27th Jul

03:25 03:345 05:05 11:54 15:30 18:43 20:11

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FR EE

Emsak: Fajer: Shoruk: Dohr: Asr: Maghreb: Eshaa:

Self-starters tell the story of special stilettos

Raul Castro: Cuba willing to sit down with US

Games final could see repeat of Wimbledon

14 45 Max 48º Min 34º

NO: 15521- Friday, July 27, 2012

www.kuwaittimes.net

Health tips for Ramadan See Page 8

TEHRAN: An Iranian girl recites verses of the Quran, Islam’s holy book during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan in Tehran, Iran, yesterday. — AP

Local FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Local Spotlight

Satire Wire

Food for thought in Ramadan

Bye bye Kuwait

By Muna Al-Fuzai

By Sawsan Kazak muna@kuwaittimes.net

sawsank@kuwaittimes.net

A

lthough Ramadan is supposed to be the holy month of fasting and meditation, spiritually and physically, yet many Muslims, including those in Arab media, work hard to focus on two main items here, food and entertainment.

A very active movement on television is to produce many shows about cooking, along with entertainment series. As if we don’t have enough from both of these during the year.

Here in Kuwait we eat a lot, possibly because there is not much to do if you are not working, and if you hang out with friends you will often end up in a mall or at a restaurant. So, we don’t eat because we are starving, but as a habit and as part of a food ritual. This is not healthy and that is why obesity in Kuwait is spreading, especially among the young.

These days, kitchens become like bee hives before the iftar time. Every person in the family wants to prepare or give a hand, or possibly find a way to help to make food ready. But, aren’t we missing something here? Is filling the stomach the reason for fasting? Is that the lesson we need to learn?

Maids are the ones I really feel sorry for these days. They deserve a reward for all their hard work.

They are the ones who carry the whole mission all the way from zero point to the clean up. The lady of the house may do some cooking, but when everyone has completed the eating ceremony no

one wants to take away the dishes or have another look at the kitchen. So, the maids are the ones who take the lead in cleaning up all the chaos and do not leave until they are done and possibly prepare the kitchens for another round for the sohoor, the meal before fasting. So, for those of you who think that mission is easy, let me tell you that it is the most difficult and few would agree to do this work.

So, I can see the irony here when everyone wants to make food just for their pleasure and not for their belief, to give a hand, or ask the maid how she feels or even thank her for the work she does.

Ramadan is not about eating all kinds of food, and it is surely not about forcing the maid to work day and night like a slave, which is not fair. Aren’t we calling Ramadan the month of mercy?

I also see many people cook more food than they actually consume, with much of this food ending up in the garbage! This is such a waste. I wish to see this food goes to some poor people who would be appreciative. I fail to see why any family would cook more food than they would eat.

There is an Arab saying that the eyes eat! I think this is ridiculous because you cook what is enough for your needs and not for your sight.

Ramadan moves quickly. One week is already over. I wish to see us learn the values and lessons for this month, rather than just focusing on how to fill our stomachs.

E

verything in Kuwait moves slowly, yet time seems to fly by. Most of us here are aware that our time in this country will eventually come to an end, but you are never truly prepared for that moment. I am getting ready to move to the US in the next few weeks to do my master’s degree. As my time in Kuwait draws to an end, I can’t help but be surprised and baffled at how fast the years have come and gone.

Looking back at my six years in Kuwait, I realize that I have learnt a lot about the Kuwaiti culture and society. On the other hand, there will be many aspects that I will miss. As popular as it is to slam the lifestyle here, it was the perfect fit for me. I loved the laid-back, almost island-like attitude that exists here, which is accompanied by a feeling of ‘anything is possible’.

Seeing that shopping and eating are the national pastimes, I have become a professional at both. Thanks to years of practice, I have become a better shopper, honing my bargain-hunting skills. I have also broadened my culinary horizons by trying a variety of restaurants with authentic Kuwaiti creations; I have also stretched out my stomach with the massive meals I have had here, not to mention the few extra pounds I put on.

I will miss valet-parking my car any-

where and never having to pump my own gas. I will miss the Kuwait weather, with its 363 days of sun and two days of rain that end up causing floods. I will miss Kuwait’s short ‘winters’ and even its sandstorms. I will miss wasta and how it has simplified my life in a variety of ways. I will miss how timings and schedules are loose and sometimes optional. I will miss the Kuwaiti dinar and the fact that it’s the highest currency in the world; converting to other currencies was always fun.

There are some aspects that have deteriorated here in Kuwait, the most obvious being my driving. In keeping with Kuwait’s unwritten rules of the road, I usually ignored minor details like speed limits and stop signs (well minor in Kuwait anyways).

My driving will have to regress back to its original ‘follow the regulations’ style it was at before driving in Kuwait. My energy levels have also dropped, due to valet parking, tea boys and lack of public transportation taking, I can officially be classified in the lazy category.

But all-in-all I have enjoyed the ups and downs, the good and the bad, the parliamentary grillings and national day celebrations. I have enjoyed learning about a different culture and all the sub-cultures that exist within it. Kuwait, you will be missed.

In my view

Instagram in focus

By Labeed Abdal

local@kuwaittimes.net

K

evin Systrom, 28, from Boston, made his first fortune after he closed an offer with Facebook to purchase a new photosharing application, which was launched in October 2010, for $1 billion.

The new program Instagram includes filters to make changes in photos and can instantly be shared over many social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter - which are increasing in popularity with their 30 million users.

Instagram.com says on its website that its application is fast, beautiful and fun.

I think it is more than that, as followers of all ages, from 13 years and older, are increasing in numbers rapidly. One of Instagram’s great features is its self-censorship. It blocks any photo that is harmful, including pornographic, from being posted on its ‘Insta-universe’.

Those phenomenon, which began with many social networking tools like Facebook, then Twitter, YouTube and now Instagram,

have given the word a global new meaning.

It, indeed, gave people a larger role in expressing themselves. It allowed them to breathe freely with fewer or no restrictions by commenting, and expressing, their likes and dislikes. It has now introduced them a way to visually express themselves.

All this happens when leading revolutions used these networks as a powerful tool to force governments to resign or rulers to quit and be prosecuted.

These are memorable times. Man has made the impossible possible, connecting with each other more than what could ever have been imagined. One such “unimagined thing” is the common example of finding old friends that we did not see or expect to see again after one or two decades. Also, they allowed to create friendships from all sides of the universe. Let’s have all the benefits of this.

Yes, it is the age of Facebooking, Youtubeing, Twittering , Instagraming and more...

Local FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Conspiracy Theories

Have mercy on others!

By Badrya Darwish

badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

W

hy do we need cleaners in our streets at 3.30pm when the temperature outside is skyrocketing? We are all in our air-conditioned cars zooming right by them. I thought that by law workers are not supposed to work outside between 12pm and 4pm if the temperature is over 45 degrees. In all honesty, the temperature today shows 47 degrees Celsius - which is the officially announced temperature. They measure these temperatures in the shade. Forget it if they measure the temperature outside under the scorching sunshine. Would the thermometer blast skyward?

In all honesty, people have to work, but there is a big difference between people working in offices, ministries, schools or air-conditioned stores. Even the cheapest grocery in Kuwait has air-conditioning. My criticism is for those who let people work outdoors.

On the way to the office today I saw one cleaner on Damascus street wearing his yellow overalls and sweeping the street. He was carrying his broom and was sweeping the pavement. I said to myself: “Wow! Why is he outside in the hot weather when we can all barely stand the heat?” Why can’t this job be done at night when the temperature is manageable? I thought it was just one company that has its workers toiling out in the sun.

But the minute I reached the Kuwait Times office I saw three other workers cleaning the big garbage bins near Sharaa Sahafa in Shuwaikh. Honestly, I wanted to take photos but I missed that opportunity.

My editor told me: “You always have a camera on you.

You should have snapped a photo.”

I would like to invite the owner of that cleaning company, who has boys working out in the heat, or their manager who is responsible for the day-to-day operations, to go out and just try to do that job for 10 minutes at 4pm. This is my wishful thinking. But it will not happen in Kuwait. Would he or she like his daughter or son to work under the scorching heat for just 10 minutes? I doubt it.

How come the government of war-torn Iraq yesterday announced it would hold an official holiday because of the searing temperatures.

I am addressing my letter to both - the Minister of Social Affairs and Labour and the Minister of Public Works and Development. Please, look into this matter. This is what I saw, but I am sure if I went around Kuwait I would find more people working outside in the heat. Especially, as this is supposed to be the holy month of Ramadan - the month of mercy, compassion, sympathy and charity. Please, guys! Do not spoil the charity which Kuwait does, which is lost among those who abuse the system and others’ human rights! If we do not have mercy on people, how do we expect God to have mercy on us? Kuwait needs a lot of mercy, especially with whatever is happening inside the country and around it. Have a nice weekend.

Ramadan Kareem!

KUWAIT: Workers are seen toiling in the heat in Kuwait yesterday. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Local FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Self-starters tell the story of special stilettos Kuwaiti women enter the avenue of shoe designing

By Nawara Fattahova

T

radition and modernity commingle in the unique footwear designed by two Kuwaiti self-starters - Maha Al-Mutairi and Abrar Al-Anezi. The two Kuwaiti women spotted a niche in the design footwear in Kuwait and decided to create exquisite handmade designs because women in Kuwait love to be unique.

This is how Maha and Abrar entered the world of fashion and design. What started as a hobby a year ago is now a business. “We were invited at a girls gathering and we looked for something special to wear with our outfits. We were not satisfied with the shoes. So we designed three different designs for us to wear. People started asking us where we bought our shoes,” Maha said adding that soon they started to create more designs.

Maha and her partner, Abrar, buy the base of the shoes ready from the local market, and then design the shoes to complete the footwear.

“After long searching, I found that there are no shoe factories in Kuwait, apart from a small one in Sabhan which only has a few designs, so I had to buy ready-made shoes from the market,” she said adding that as their work has become successful they have been thinking of expanding in the future.

At their first exhibition in January 2012 they only exhibited seven shoe designs. “The first exhibition was an introduction of our work. The designs were not for selling, just to show people what we do,” Maha said.

All the designs are handmade and that is why sometimes it takes from 10 to14 days to finish one pair of shoes. “Apart from the orders for designs that we receive from customers, we also design a collection for different occasions, including Eid Al- Fitr, Eid Al-Adha, and Ramadan. Currently, we haven’t designed any winter shoes, though I’m willing to design boots for winter,” said Maha.

Currently, the designs include both stilettos and Maha Al-Mutairi shows shoe flat shoes. “At the beginmodels she and Abrar Al-Anezi ning, we only started with designed together. stilettos. When we noticed the increased demand for flat shoes, especially from teenagers, we also began to design flat shoes. The flats were harder to come by new ideas, as most ideas were already used in the market. Thus executing the work is harder for stilettos, but we have more opportunities for creation,” she explained.

They also receive some difficult designs that are not possible to do.

“Once a customer demanded a pair of shoes with a heel in the shape of a lipstick. I apologized for not being able to make it. I’m not a factory and I can’t guarantee that this heel will hold up. Also, sometimes customers describe crazy designs which I thought were ugly and very hard to do,” she added.

There are different forms and shapes for the shoes base. “We have shoes with different heel lengths and flat shoes without heels. We also started to change even the internal fabric of the shoes, especially the flat open sandals and ballerinas. Some designs include writing, so we let the customer write what they like on the shoes. And to avoid any problems with sizes, we let the customer try the form of the shoes first, before we start the work,” stressed Maha.

Maha and her partner use best quality product. They say that crystal decoration is the most preferred element in their work. “Everything is handmade, and we only let the shoemaker fix the material, so we do the rest of the work,” Maha says explaining that this is the reason why they only have 8 to 10 designs in one exhibition. “It takes a long time to finish one design,” she says elaborating that they also make purses or accessory for customers.

Before starting this hobby-turned business, Maha enrolled in a professional course on how to start a small business. Then she and her partner Abrar chose the name for their business and registered it at the Ministry of Commerce. They have selected the name ‘Invierno’ as

their brand. The two government employees, Maha and Abrar, have turned their passion into a hobby. “We only find time to work on our designs in the afternoons after we

NO: 15521

8

RAMADAN 8, 1433 AH

Who is required to fast in the month of Ramadan?

Everyone Men Adults in good health

finish work or on the weekends.” Their designs can be seen on Instagram, Twitter, and their blog: Inviernoq8.blogspot.com.

Local FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Instagram in Kuwait

W

hat’s more fun than clicking a beautiful picture? Sharing it with others! This summer, let other people see the way you see Kuwait - through your lens. Friday Times will feature snapshots of Kuwait through Instagram feeds. If you want to share your Instagram photos, email us at instagram@kuwaittimes.net

Photos from Instagram account: sharaislam

Local FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Suicides in Kuwait on the rise

By Ben Garcia

T

he statistics, from the General Department of Criminal Investigations, reveal a shocking rise in suicides.

Suicides in Kuwait have risen by 40 percent between 2010 to 2011. A reported 52 cases of suicide were recorded in 2010, but this figure jumped to 73 in 2011.

There are no clear indicators to suggest what has led to the increase. Suicides tend to be most common among Kuwait’s lower skilled expatriate worker class. But they do occur in every community - locals and expats and can have devastating implications for the families left behind.

There are a variety of factors that may be causing the rising rates. The global financial crisis, begun in 2008, is still impacting people in Kuwait and the region.

Among expatriates, especially financial concerns, job loss, domestic disputes or other troubles back home could be contributing factors.

“Psychological, physiological, financial hardships, broken relationships, despair, disappointments. Many names have been given to the reason behind this selfish act,” explained Reverend Gil Bantugan, an Evangelical pas-

tor in Kuwait. “When someone loses the will to live and finds that life has become meaningless, then he kills himself,” he said.

Stress from family and school can also be contributors. Just recently, a 14 year-old Kuwaiti girl hanged herself in Umm AlHaiman, reportedly after receiving poor exam marks.

Such a sight has become all too common. “I was broken hearted and my life was a total wreck. One night, my husband

have found new partners. Just recently, on July 24, 2012, a 42year-old Indian expat reportedly hanged himself in a public park in Abu-Halifa. According to the victim’s family friend he was suffering from family problems back in India and the situation worsened when he failed to get a decent job. Explaining the rationale about why some people reaches a ‘dead end’, Pastor Bantugan said: “The most basic question everyone faces in life is Why am I

estimates that around 3000 people around the globe, on average, commit suicide every day, with about 1 million suicides each year.

Jamile, 39, tried to end her life when she was 16 because she was deeply embarrassed when her father caught her chatting with the boy next door.

“It was the first time I spoke to the boy next door; I was really in love with him, perhaps because I was used to seeing him every day

“My father saw me talking to the boy next door. My dad was very strict and I saw his reaction, he was upset. I was afraid, so I just thought of hiding for the rest of my life. But when I saw the bottle of paracetamol with tablets, I swallowed them all. Thanks God I was not able to take it, I vomited and was rushed to the hospital.” told me he was leaving. I begged him not to. When he left our flat and I saw him get in his car, I shouted from the window that I would jump from our third floor if he left. He told me “Just try.” So I jumped. The rest was history,” a married woman in Kuwait, who asked not to be identified, told Friday Times. She and her husband are now separated and both

here? What is my purpose? The starting place must be with God and his eternal purposes for each life. Real meaning and significance comes from understanding and fulfilling God’s purposes for putting us on earth. And unless a man finds the reason for his being, he will always find something lacking in his heart.”

The World Health Organization

when they moved to our neighborhood. When I was talking with him, my father saw me. He was a strict father and I saw his reaction, he was upset. I was afraid, so I just thought of hiding for the rest of my life. But when I saw the bottle of paracetamol with tablets, I swallowed them all. Thanks God I was not able to take it, I vomited and was rushed to the hospital. It

was a crazy thing that happened,” Jamile explained. “I thought I would disappear. I didn’t,” she said.

Jamile survived and was later summoned by the police and a case was filed. Suicide is illegal in Kuwait and those who attempt it and survive can be, and often are charged with a crime. “At that time, there was one girl in my class who had done the same thing. In a way, it was a trend. So I tried it also,” she said.

Most world religions abhor suicide. “In the Quran, Chapter 4:29 (An-Nisa), it says ‘Do not kill, yourself surely Allah is most merciful.”

According to an imam here in Kuwait, “In the Hadith Sahih Al Bukhari it says: He who commits suicide by throttling shall keep on throttling himself in the fire forever and he who commit suicide by stubbing himself shall keep on stubbing himself in the hell fire.”

The World Suicide Prevention Day marked on September 10 was born in a bid to draw attention to the worrying phenomenon of suicides globally. It is the worldwide day for the prevention of suicides around the world.

Various events and activities are held on this occasion to raise awareness that suicide is a major, preventable cause of premature death.

Local FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Portion control during

Ramadan

By Priyanka Saligram

T

he first week of the month of fasting and feasting is already upon us. According to experts, it’s the first week of Ramadan that is the hardest for someone who is fasting to adjust to. But after the first 10 days, the body adapts itself to the new rhythm, provided certain guidelines are followed, according to medical experts. In an interview with the Friday Times, Dr. Joseph John, an Internist at Dar Al-Saha Polyclinic, revealed why calorie counting should not take a backseat during Ramadan. An excerpt:

calorie requirement will be much lower for people with diabetes undertaking moderate levels of activity and lower still for those who are sedentary.

FT: Do people need to consume excess food rich in sugar and fat considering they go without food or water for such a long duration?

Dr. John: People need to consume a healthy balanced diet. Foods rich in extra fat and sugar are detrimental to health. Refined sugars are easily absorbed and leave an individual craving for more. Adequate vegetables and fruits, besides an adequate measure of good fats is suggested.

FT: Why are dates considered better than sugar? Do dates have extra minerals?

Dr. John: In general people with diabetes should aim for fruit servings that don’t exceed 60 calories and 15 grams of carbohydrates. You can therefore eat more juicy fresh fruit than concentrated sweets as dates or raisins which have higher calories and carbohydrate content.

1 cup serving of chopped dates contains 415 calories, 75 grams of sugar and 110 grams of carbohydrates. On the positive side, dates have fiber and nutrients like magnesium, minerals, potassium, and vitamin B6. If the choice is a super sweet fruit as dates, then portion control is very important.

FT: Why is it advised to break the fast with dates and laban?

Dr. John: It essential to break your fast with simple sugars as fruits besides fluids which provide hydration and are a source of energy.

FT: How many calories does an ordinary person need during Ramadan to carry on his daily chores and for the organs and digestive system to function optimally?

Dr. John: The calorie requirements of people depend on age, gender, level of physical activity and weight. There is a progressive increase in calorie requirement until 30 years. After that, requirements decrease from 3150 years to 2,400-2,600 calories in males and 2,000-2,200 calories in female and after 50 years to 2,2002,400 calories in males and 1,800 in females with moderate activity. The

FT: Is a spike of sugar okay for diabetics after hours of fasting and low sugar?

Dr. John: Diabetics are prone to complications arising from extremely low blood glucose (Hypoglycemia) and high blood glucose (Hyperglycemia).

It is best to not allow blood sugar to go below 3.9mmol/L (70 mg/dl) or shoot above 16.7mmol/L(300mg/dl).

Under these circumstances, help should be sought and fast may be broken.

FT: How should diabetics regulate their medication?

Dr. John: Regulation of medicine should be in consultation with primary physician. If a diabetes patient desires to fast during Ramadan and has underlying illness, risk stratification by a physician is essential. If the person remains firm on the desire to

meals as they do not tend to enhance acidity. They will also help prevent you from overeating which can result in acidity. Remember to chew the food well to avoid overeating.

Does eating right have to be such a difficult choice to make? continue his fast, the problems likely to occur may be explained. He must be educated to recognize problems and on when to seek help. Dosage of oral diabetic agents and insulin will have to be modified during the period of fast. Monitoring of blood sugar and advice on when the fast may be broken should the medical condition require is essential. The whole process of educating a patient keen on fasting during Ramadan with regard to diet, exercise, medications, complications and monitoring has to start at least two months prior to Ramadan.

FT: Do you think soups may help diabetics instead of dates and juice?

Dr. John: It is what goes into making of the soup that matters. As noted earlier, the quantity of super sweet fruits such as dates is very important as they have high calorific value. Homemade fresh juices in the form of orange or lemon juice may be consumed.

FT: Do people fasting have a need to cut down on red meat or heavy spicy meat and substitute it with vegetables to aid better digestion?

Dr. John: During the period of Ramadan, a healthy balanced diet is essential. Slow energy releasing foods (wheat, beans, red rice) before and after fasting is advised. Minimize saturated fatty food. Small amounts of MUFA (Monounsaturated fatty acids), high fiber food like whole grain cereals, whole wheat bread, pulses, fruits, vegetables and salads are retained longer and prevent one from feeling hungry all the time.

Lean meat and not processed variety may be taken in measures suggested by dietitian/physician/diabetes educator.

FT: Should fruits be eaten after meals or in between to prevent acidity?

Dr. John: Fruits should be eaten before

FT: It was found that eating a moderately high fat diet around 36 percent of the total energy (calories) improved blood cholesterol profile by eliminating elevation of blood uric acid and acid levels. What is your comment on this?

Dr. John: There are good fats and bad fats. Good fats as MUFA and PUFA fats as in vegetable oils as olives, canola, sunflower, soya, corn, nuts, seeds can be eaten. It is essential to limit bad fats (saturated variety) especially transfats. Bad fats are in red meat, butter, mayonnaise, full fat cheese, ice cream etc.

FT: How does the body’s circadian rhythm adapt to this sudden change in routine? How long does it take for the body to get used to normal routine post Eid? Dr. John: Ramadan interferes with normal circadian rhythm by disturbing typical pattern of feeding and restactivity pattern. The obvious consequences of day time fasting are: decreased energy level due to fasting; altered metabolic response during day (especially with reference to diabetes mellitus and gut function); and sleep disturbance on the account of late evening meals and inverted drinking schedule.

The morning peaking of cortisol and testosterone around waking up displays a shift. Enhanced peak of prolactin hormone and decrease in melatonin secretion is noted. It is as unclear how the circadian rhythm in response to activity gets altered. Resychronisation of circadian rhythm occurs once feeding and sleep patterns revert to normal.

FT: Do extra mineral supplements help?

Dr. John: If you eat a normal, balanced diet, you need not take extra mineral supplements. They are of help when dietary intake is insufficient and in the setting of certain problems associated with decreased absorption from the gut. Your physician will be the best judge.

Local FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

News

in brief

Minister pays surprise inspection visit KUWAIT: Minister of Health Dr. Ali Al-Obeidi said here yesterday that field inspection tours of hospitals and health centers during Ramadan come in response to high-level directives for all ministers to extend more care to citizens and work to overcome any difficulties they may encounter.

After a surprise inspection visit to Al-Sabah Hospital yesterday the minister said that such inspections provide the opportunity for officials to communicate directly with patients and healthcare providers. He explained that these surprise visits also help officials to ensure the extent of targeted programs being carried out and observe in person plans of the Ministry of Health.

New security procedures in place KUWAIT: The Foreign Ministry here yesterday called on Kuwaitis planning to visit Australia to be informed about the new security procedures set up at Sydney Airport. The ministry, in a statement, said the new procedures include randomly using an image scanner on passengers for security reasons. Children and those with health problems will not be included in this process, in addition to VIPs, it noted.

MoH realizes magnitude of Hepatitis C problem - Official KUWAIT: The Health Ministry is keen to dedicate great attention to the issue of prevention of Hepatitis C and all its types, Assistant Undersecretary for Public Health at the Ministry Dr. Qais Al-Duwairi affirmed yesterday. In a press statement on the occasion of World Hepatitis Day, Al-Duwairi said that the ministry realizes the magnitude of the problem and its dimensions, noting that Hepatitis C might cause liver cancer, or cirrhosis of the liver, or chronic imbalances to liver functions. He added that World Hepatitis Day is an opportunity to shed light on issue of Hepatitis C and burdens resulting from it on public health and development, pointing out efforts, programs, and policies that are implemented by each of World Health Organization (WHO)’s member states, including Kuwait, to prevent infection of the disease and provide healthcare for those who are infected with it. Also, Al-Duwairi said that the ministry cooperates with WHO, as well as specialized health authorities, organizations, and research centers to implement preventive and therapeutic strategies in order to counter Hepatitis C. In addition, he noted that the ministry is implementing latest international standards, protocols, and requirements to guarantee safety of blood, as well as blood-related products and derivatives and perform check-ups on blood donors.

Kuwait role praised SARAJEVO: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon praised the positive role played by Kuwait in enhancing world peace and security. Upon meeting the Kuwaiti Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mohammad Fadhel Khalaf, Ban Kimoon praised Kuwait’s sense of responsibility toward achieving international and regional stability. This responsibility, he added, stemmed from the country’s “wise leadership.” Ban Kimoon, who is currently visiting Bosnia, expressed his faith in the Gulf country to continue serving global peace and human development. The Kuwaiti envoy thanked the UN top official and praised, in return, the UN body’s ongoing efforts in bringing stability to the Middle East. Ban Kimoon’s two-day visit to Bosnia included meeting many senior officials and visiting a graveyard of victims of the Srebrenica genocide. —KUNA

Al-Khorafi invites 2009 MPs for July 31 meeting

By B Izzak KUWAIT: The opposition majority bloc and youth activist groups yesterday launched what they called the “nation is the source of powers” charter which outlined three key demands and threats from the opposition amid a stern warning by MP Ahmad Al-Saadoun to the prime minister.

The charter, released after a meeting between youth activists and a number of opposition MPs, expressed the total rejection for the continuation of the 2009 national assembly, which was dissolved last year but revived by a constitutional court ruling last month. It called for immediately dissolving the house and scheduling fresh polls.

The charter strongly rejected any change to the electoral law or voting system through issuing “emergency decrees”, through the reinstated 2009 assembly or by involving the judiciary into the political dispute. It insisted that any amendment must be passed in the next assembly.

The charter called on Kuwaitis to boycott the forthcoming parliamentary elections in case the electoral system was

changed and called for considering such an action as a coup against the constitution and a violation of the will of the Kuwaiti people. Islamist MP Waleed AlTabtabai said the charter will be circulated for signatures by the former members of the scrapped 2012 assembly, youth activists and the public, and urged civil society organizations to join the campaign.

The new move comes amid reports that the government was contemplating either amending the electoral constituencies by an “emergency decree” or referring the electoral law to the constitutional court to rule on whether or not it breaches the constitution.

Opposition MPs insist that any change to the electoral law will be done in such a way as to enable the government to influence the outcome of any parliamentary election, which would effectively prevent the opposition from controlling a majority in the house as it did in the scrapped 2012 house.

In a rare attack on Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, MP Saadoun accused the prime minister and cabinet of searching for a justification to “break the will of the people”.

Saadoun charged that all such attempts by the government aim at perpetuating the 2009 assembly, which was brought down by the people in December last year. Opposition MP Abdulrahman AlAnjari, meanwhile, charged that the prime minister and assembly speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi were conducting “the biggest and most silly political scenario in Kuwait”.

Further, Khorafi sent out invitations yesterday to MPs of the 2009 national assembly and members of the cabinet to attend a session on July 31, the first meeting since the house was revived by court on June 20. The invitation said the session would include allowing the ministers to take the oath to become MPs, besides approving past minutes.

There is a small chance that there will be enough of a quorum to hold the session, though many MPs said they would boycott the gathering. Khorafi said if the session fails, he would schedule another meeting on August 7 and then refer the issue to the Amir.

Also, MP Mohammad Al-Mutairi officially submitted his resignation to the speaker to become the first 2009 MP to step down.

Policemen rape Filipina in patrol car KUWAIT: Two policemen violated the sacredness of the holy month of Ramadan and disgraced their military honor when they kidnapped a Filipina expat at noon in Farwaniya then raped her in their patrol car. A security source said the victim told Farwaniya police station officers that two policemen stopped her and asked for her ID. They then told her she was wanted and took her to an area in South Surra where they raped her in the back seat of the patrol car. Officers there told her to go to south Surra to file a complaint. She went to south Surra police station and the case was sent to Hawally detectives. The victim said she did not pay attention to the patrol’s color or number, because “she trusted the police”. The suspect police later told her to leave the car and sped away, leaving her in a hysterical state. Investigations are underway.

Jobless threatens to set himself on fire An Egyptian expat drew the attention of passers-by on Fahad Al-Salem street when he doused himself with flammable fluid, then started screaming “I spent all I had to come to Kuwait, then did not find a job. I want to work, otherwise I will set myself ablaze now.” Onlookers were unable to convince the man to cease, so police were called. Capital security men, headed by acting director Brig Hussein Al-Shirazi, went to the area and negotiated with the man for 90 minutes to no avail, so one of the officers snatched the lighter from the man, who was arrested and charged with attempted suicide.

Forgerer caught Firdous police arrested an Egyptian expat for forging official documents after he was paid KD 70 to manipulate his cousin’s passport. The forger and passport holder were sent to concerned authorities.

Beggar nabbed A police team that is combating begging in Kuwait arrested a man who deliberately removed part of his foot to gain the public’s sympathy.

Policemen found an Indian who was severely limping and begging and when questioned he confessed to severing part of his foot to win people’s sympathy.

Thief mugs KD600 A thief broke into a tire company in Jahra and stole KD 600 before escaping. The thief broke a hole into the side of the Kirby wall. A security source said workers discovered KD 600 was missing from the cash register so they called police. Investigations are underway.

Officers arrest Kuwaiti on drug charges

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: Drugs enforcement officers confiscated 1.5 kilogram of drugs and 1500 pills from two citizens.

Information received by officers indicated that one of the suspects was trading in drugs, so necessary approval was given by the public prosecutor for his arrest. Officers report the suspect offered significant resistance. Found in his house was a half kilo of drugs, in addition to hashish.

The suspect reportedly confessed and revealed the identity of another Kuwaiti who supplied him with the drugs.

Police went to the house to arrest the second suspect, but he began shooting at them and managed to escape, leaving behind one kilo of drugs and 1,500 pills. Police continue searching for the second suspect.

FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Chavez rival campaigns through Facebook forum

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Romney’s overseas trip hopes to build British ties

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Chinese politician Bo’s wife charged with murder

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ALEPPO: A masked opposition fighter poses inside the Shaar district police station in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo after it was overrun by Free Syrian Army forces on Wednesday.—AFP

Defected Assad confidant seeks Syrian unity ‘Regime has many good people without blood on their hands’ BEIRUT: Syria’s most prominent defector has put himself forward as someone to unite the fractured opposition as the disparate factions were set to gather in Qatar yesterday to try to agree on a transitional leadership if Bashar Assad’s regime is toppled. Brig. Gen. Manaf Tlass, a commander in the powerful Republican Guard and the son of a former defense minister who was the most trusted lieutenant of the president’s father, defected in early July and flew to Paris. He is now in Saudi Arabia, a key financial backer of the rebellion, where he told the Al-Sharq AlAwsat daily that he does not see a future for Syria with his former friend at the helm.

“I will try and help as much as I can to unite all the honorable people inside and outside Syria to put together a roadmap to get us out of this crisis, whether there is a role for me or not,” he said,

explaining that he was in Saudi Arabia to assess what kind of assistance the oil-rich nation could give to help create a new Syria. In the three weeks since his defection he has only spoken publicly twice, both times to Saudi controlled media.

Tlass, once a close confidant of the president’s, said the regime has many good people without blood on their hands and the country’s institutions should be preserved. He said he had tried to persuade the president not to listen to his inner circle of security advisers who were all counseling for a harsh crackdown on the uprising, which began as peaceful protests in March 2011 but morphed into a civil war.

He said he defected when he realized the regime could not be deterred from its singleminded pursuit of crushing the opposition.

“Sometimes in a friendship you advise a friend many times, and then you discover that you aren’t having any impact, so you decide to distance yourself,” he said. The meeting in Doha will focus on forming a transitional administration that could step in as a stopgap government if rebel forces topple Assad. It marks the most comprehensive bid to bring together various Syrian opposition groups and show world leaders a credible alternative to Assad. It is not clear, however, if Tlass would be an acceptable leadership figure for the opposition or the rebels fighting - and dying - on the ground, especially considering how close his family has been to the regime.

“Those who recently defected from the regime must not take part in leading the transitional period,” said Mahmoud Othman, an

Istanbul-based member of the opposition Syrian National Council, adding that the Syrian people were paying too high a price in blood to replace Assad with someone close to him. One European Union official familiar with Western intelligence reports dismissed Tlass as a “peripheral figure” in the regime, who had been sidelined. He spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the material. The SNC has acted as the international face of the revolution, but it’s been unable to unite the dozens of disparate rebel factions under one banner or even assert much control over the rag-tag rebel groups fighting inside the country. Rebels who have been fighting for six days in the commercial capital Aleppo, meanwhile, braced themselves amid reports that the government is massing reinforcements to retake the embattled city of 3 million. —AP

International FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Egypt all-veiled TV aims to cover women’s needs CAIRO: A satellite channel run and hosted by fullyveiled presenters aims to break down the barriers for women in niqab who until the revolution that brought Islamists to power were shunned by Egypt’s lucrative television industry. In the studios of Maria TV in Cairo, which were launched on the first day of Ramadan last week, two presenters dressed in stark black, their faces covered but for narrow eye slits and their hands gloved, discuss the editorial content for the day.

The channel named after one of the Prophet Mohammed’s wives is run by women and will only feature niqab-clad presenters, in a first for Egyptian television more known for its sexy female soap opera stars.

“The main goal of the channel is to show society that there are women in niqab who are active, who can have a role in society and be successful and be doctors, engineers or successful media personalities,” said Abeer Shaheer, the head presenter of the channel.

Until the revolution that toppled president Hosni Mubarak last year and brought a Muslim Brotherhood president to power, women donning Islamic headscarves and particularly full face veils had been firmly kept out of the media. “We have been oppressed for decades. We are not allowed in certain places, we are treated differently at universities and in government

institutions just because we chose to exercise our freedom and add a bit of religion by wearing something we believe conforms with Islam,” she told AFP. Most Muslim women in Egypt wear the hijab, which covers the hair, but the niqab, which covers the entire face, is becoming more popular on the streets of Cairo.

But if the face is something that should not be seen, then why not stick to radio? “That’s what some people have said,” Shaheer said. “They complain they can’t see the face ... or the body language.” “So we say ‘when you watch something, it’s the content that matters, not what the presenter looks like’,” she says in a deep, assertive voice. Supporters of the niqab say wearing it brings women closer to God but the majority of mainstream Muslim scholars-who agree a woman must cover her hair say the niqab is unnecessary.

Shaheer’s colleague, Iman Fahmy, a commerce graduate, is one such advocate of the niqab. She says the channel could help people become closer to God and “follow the true path.” “The aim of the channel is to get Muslim women and girls to be virtuous, so that they can become virtuous mothers and bring up a virtuous generation that will be efficient in society,” said the soft-spoken 28-year old whose black veil is edged with delicate embroidery.

“Human communication is through the eyes,” she tells detractors of the channel. “It doesn’t matter what a woman looks like behind the niqab... the important thing is a spirit that can communicate the meanings and feelings.” The channel has heightened fears among some who see it as a further extension of Islamists’ reach since the revolution. The Muslim Brotherhood, from which the new president Mohamed Morsi has emerged, and other Salafi groups won a crushing victory in parliamentary elections. Others believe the channel is an example of the freedom of speech that the revolution sought to bring about.

“For years, on official Egyptian media, women who wore a headscarf were taken away from the camera and given off-camera work. This channel says women who wear the niqab do exist in Egypt,” said Mozn Hassan, executive director of Nazra, a women’s studies centre. “It’s important for people to have the freedom to create such channels and say what they want,” said Hassan, who does not wear a headscarf or niqab.

Maria TV insists it is not a religious channel, but a women’s interest one. “We are a cultural channel. We have children’s programs, sewing programs, shows on relationships, comedy, politics,” said Shaheer. “We have everything a woman needs.”— AFP

Iran and Israel trade charges over Bulgaria bomb UNITED NATIONS: Iran called Israeli allegations that it was responsible for last week’s suicide bombing of a bus carrying Israeli tourists in Bulgaria “baseless” on Wednesday and accused Israel of carrying out a terrorist operation. Israel’s deputy UN ambassador Haim Waxman called the allegation

by Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Khazaee “appalling but not surprising” since it came from the same government that says the 9/11 attack was a conspiracy theory and denies the Holocaust.

Israel accuses Iran of developing atomic weapons and has repeatedly hinted it is prepared to strike Iranian nuclear targets if Tehran does not curb its suspect program. Iran denies it is trying to develop nuclear weapons and says its nuclear program is designed to produce nuclear energy. Waxman raised the issue of the Bulgarian bombing during a UN Security Council debate on the Mideast, accusing Iran and Hezbollah of responsibility for the bombing that killed five Israeli tourists and a Bulgarian bus driver. He also blamed Iran and Hezbollah for terrorist attacks and attempted attacks in recent months in India, Azerbaijan, Thailand, Kenya, Turkey and Cyprus that targeted Israelis. When he took the floor, Khazaee insisted that “we have never and will not engage in such a despicable attempt on the lives of innocent people.”

“Such terrorist operation could only be planned and carried out by the same regime whose short history is full of state terrorism operations and assassinations aimed at implicating others for narrow political gains,” he said. Khazaee said he could provide many examples showing that Israel “killed its own citizens and innocent Jewish people during the last couple of decades in order to blame others.”

“Iran is a victim of such operations and the assassinations of Iran’s nuclear scientists are fresh cases in our mind,” he said.

Tehran claims Israel’s Mossad spy agency has been behind the slayings of at least five nuclear scientists since 2010, as well as other clandestine operations such as planting powerful computer viruses. Waxman reiterated in a statement after the council meeting ended that “Iran’s fingerprints are all over last week’s horrific attack in Bulgaria - and in dozens of other terrorist plots in recent months that span five continents and at least 24 countries.”

“The time has come for the world to put an end to this campaign of terror, once and for all,” he said. Bulgaria’s Prime Minister Boiko Borisov said Tuesday that a sophisticated group of conspirators was involved in the bombing. He did not give any numbers or nationalities of those believed to be responsible but described them as “exceptionally skilled” and said they “observed absolute secrecy.”— AP

BAGHDAD: An Iraqi man cools off as temperatures reached to 48 degrees Celsius (118 Fahrenheit) in Baghdad yesterday. In the Sinak neighbourhood of central Baghdad, these street showers have been erected on the pavement every 200 metres (yards). —AFP

19 killed as Iraqi forces clash with militants 11 policemen among dead BAGHDAD: Militants downed an Iraqi army helicopter yesterday in clashes that have killed at least 19 people including 11 policemen, a regional official said, in what appeared to be part of an Al-Qaeda surge to retake one of its former strongholds. The fighting around the town of Hadid, about 10 kilometers north of the Diyala provincial capital of Baqouba, follows a warning last weekend from Al-Qaeda’s leader in Iraq to push back into areas the group was driven out of by the US military after sectarian fighting peaked in 2007. A day after AlQaeda issued the threat, shootings and bombings killed 115 people in Iraq’s deadliest day in more than two years - an assault for which the terror group claimed responsibility.

Diyala provincial spokesman Salih Ebressim Khalil said militants opened fire yesterday on the Iraqi army helicopter, killing one soldier, wounding another and forcing the aircraft to make an emergency landing. The rest of the crew was unharmed. The helicopter was called in to provide surveillance for security forces battling militants since an attack late Tuesday on a security checkpoint in a rural area near Hadid, some 70 kilometers (45 miles) northeast of Baghdad.

Despite police efforts to seal off the area, gunbattles raged overnight Wednesday, killing 11 policemen, Khalil said.

According to provincial police and health officials, seven militants also were killed in the clashes and eight were arrested. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release information. Diyala is a predominantly Sunni province that

is sandwiched between Baghdad and the Iranian border. It has a large Shiite population, as well as pockets of ethnic Kurds, and long has been a battleground for Sunni insurgents trying to assert control.

Its remote rural areas have served as a safe haven for insurgents at the height of the nation’s sectarian fighting between 2005 and 2007, and posed a major challenge to Iraqi security forces.

In a statement posted on a militant site last Saturday, local AlQaeda leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi announced a new campaign dubbed “Breaking the Walls.” He said it sought to undermine the nation’s weakened Shiite-led government by realigning with Sunni tribes, and returning to areas it was driven from before the American military withdrew from Iraq last December. Al-Qaeda’s local wing in Iraq is known as the Islamic State of Iraq, and has for years had a hotand-cold relationship with the global terror network’s leadership.

Both shared the goal of targeting the US military in Iraq and, to an extent, undermining the Shiite government that replaced Saddam Hussein’s regime. But Al-Qaeda leaders Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahri distanced themselves from the Iraqi militants in 2007 for also killing Iraqi civilians instead of focusing on Western targets. Generally, Al-Qaeda in Iraq does not launch attacks or otherwise operate beyond Iraq’s borders. But in early 2012, al-Zawahri urged Iraqi insurgents to support the Sunni-based uprising in neighboring Syria against President Bashar Assad, an Alawite. The sect is a branch of Shiite Islam.— AP

International FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

5 1/2 years for woman who got $2.1M bogus refund SALEM: A 25-year-old woman who duped the state of Oregon into giving her a $2.1 million tax refund pleaded guilty Tuesday and was sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison. Krystle Marie Reyes, of Salem, entered guilty pleas to one felony count of tax evasion and three counts of felony fraud. She had faced eight felony charges. Reyes’ court-appointed lawyer, Gale Rieder, said her client faced “overwhelming” evidence, Rieder said her client “wanted to take responsibility for what she’d done.” “She’s remorseful and saddened by the impact on her family,” the lawyer said. “She has no criminal history.” The woman received the refund on a debit card and spent about $150,000 before twice reporting the card lost or stolen. At that point the ruse was discovered. The state has recovered about $1.9 million of the money. An Oregon

Department of Revenue spokesman said Tuesday that the findings of an internal agency audit would be released Wednesday.

Reyes filed an electronic tax return in late January via Turbo Tax, erroneously reporting earnings of more than $3 million, authorities have said. Her request for a $2.1 million refund was initially redflagged by an automated system. The Oregonian quoted from a 24-page search warrant affidavit regarding what happened next. The return was set aside for review by processing staff and managers for potential fraud. But “some time later,” the affidavit said, a Revenue employee overrode the flagged payment and the refund was issued.

By policy, three agency employees are required to verify the override, the newspaper said. However,

according to the affidavit, no one responsible for reviewing the return opened the file to look at it or looked at the W-2 form Reyes filed. Reyes previously worked at retirement facilities or senior care homes and reported income of less than $15,000 per year in 2009 and 2010, records show. Before her June 6 arrest, Reyes’ spending spree included about $1,800 in cash to buy a 1999 Dodge Caravan and spending $851 on tires and wheels.

The affidavit says other purchases included a queen-sized air mattress, a deep fryer, an air conditioner and a cream and gray floral rug. She bought a sofa and recliner with brown leather trim. Andrew Campbell, a senior assistant state attorney general who filed the charges against Reyes, declined to comment on Tuesday’s plea deal. — AP

Gun violence shifts to forefront of campaign WASHINGTON: Days after the mass shootings in Colorado, guns shifted to the forefront of the presidential campaign as President Barack Obama and Republican candidate Mitt Romney engaged in their most extensive discussions on the issue since the tragedy. Obama, in a speech to an AfricanAmerican group Wednesday in New Orleans, embraced some degree of additional restrictions on guns. He acknowledged that not enough had been done to prevent weapons from getting into the hands of criminals and pledged to work with lawmakers from both parties to move forward on the matter.

Romney said in a television interview that changing the nation’s laws would not prevent gun-related tragedies. But he mistakenly said many weapons used by the shooting suspect in Aurora, Colo., were obtained illegally, despite the fact that authorities allege that the firearms used to kill 12 people and injure dozens more were purchased legally.

Neither candidate strayed significantly in their remarks Wednesday from their previously held positions on gun violence.

But their pointed comments revived a debate - if perhaps only briefly - that has steadily faded to the background in national politics and been virtually non-existent in the 2012 campaign. The White House in particular has NEW ORLEANS: President faced fresh questions Barack Obama addresses the since the shootings about National Urban League con- whether Obama, a strong vention at the Ernest N. Morial supporter of gun control Convention Center in New as a senator from Illinois, would make an electionOrleans, Wednesday. — AP year push for stricter measures. Following last year’s killing of six people and the wounding of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona, Obama called for steps to “keep those irresponsible, law-breaking few from getting their hands on a gun in the first place.” But he has advanced no legislative proposals since then.

The White House blames the lack of legislation in part on congressional opposition and says Obama has used his executive powers to strengthen some gun control measures. It’s been more than a decade since gun control advocates had a realistic hope of getting the type of legislation they seek, despite predictions that each shocking outburst of violence would lead to action. During remarks Wednesday night to the National Urban League, Obama acknowledged a national pattern of calling for tougher gun restrictions in the wake of violent crimes but not following through.

“Too often, those efforts are defeated by politics and by lobbying and eventually by the pull of our collective attention elsewhere,” he said. Obama called for stepped-up background checks for people who want to purchase guns and restrictions to keep mentally imbalanced individuals from buying weapons. —AP

CALIFORNIA: In this photo taken Wednesday a gardener pushes his lawn mower past a memorial for shooting victim Manuel Angel Diaz in Anaheim, Calif.—AP

Mom condemns violence in wake of police shooting ANAHEIM: Police maintained a heavy presence on the streets of Anaheim to guard against further violent protests in the wake of the fatal shooting of an unarmed man by officers. The mother of Manuel Diaz condemned the unrest that has roiled the city, saying she did not want them to become her son’s legacy. “I watched as my son took his last breath. I watched as his heart stopped beating for the last time,” Genevieve Huizar said Wednesday, breaking into sobs. “Please, please, please stop the violence. It’s not going to bring my son back, and this is the worst thing any mother could go through.”

Her news conference followed a night of protests where as many as 600 demonstrators surged through downtown, smashing shop windows, setting trash fires and hurling rocks and bottles at riot-clad officers who used batons, pepper balls and beanbag rounds.

Twenty-four people, including four minors, were arrested on suspicion of crimes ranging from failure to disperse to assault with a deadly weapon, Police Chief John Welter said.

The violence downtown left 20 stores with shattered windows, authorities said Mayor Tom Tait also appealed

for calm and said the U.S. attorney’s office had agreed to review two officerinvolved shootings over the weekend including the one that left Diaz dead and that he planned to meet with members of that office and the FBI on Friday. “We will have a clear and complete understanding of these incidents” followed by a public dialogue on what actions should be taken, Tait said at a news conference.

Police were out in force Wednesday night and there were no immediate reports of problems. Police said Diaz was shot Saturday after two officers approached three men who were acting suspiciously in an alley before running away. One officer chased Diaz to the front of an apartment complex. The second shooting occurred Sunday when officers spotted a suspected gang member in a stolen sport utility vehicle.

After a brief pursuit, police said 21-yearold Joel Mathew Acevedo fired at an officer who returned fire and killed him.

The back-to-back deaths were the fourth and fifth fatal police shooting in this Orange County city this year The shootings and resulting demonstrations marred the image of the Orange County city, which is home to Disneyland and the Angels baseball team but also has

neighborhoods teeming with gritty apartments. Like much of California, the city of more than 330,000 has changed significantly since Disneyland put it on the map in 1955. With its growth spurt, the once mostly white population is now more than 50 percent Hispanic and there’s a sense of disenfranchisement from some in the Latino community.

The lawyer for Diaz’s family said Hispanics feel they are disproportionately singled out by police and instinctively avoid police.

“White kids in a rich white neighborhood don’t get rousted by police and when they do, they don’t have to fear the police. But that’s not true with brown kids in a poor neighborhood,” said Dana Douglas, the attorney.

“Frankly, when it’s brown kids in a poor area just standing there having a conversation, it’s considered suspicious.”

Police Sgt. Bob Dunn did not return messages seeking comment on Douglas’ comments. Police would not say what led the officer to shoot Diaz.

But Welter said Diaz failed to heed orders to stop and threw something on the roof of the complex that contained what officers believe was heroin. Both officers were placed on paid leave pending an investigation. — AP

International FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Memorials begin for theater shooting victims DENVER: A dad who took his teenage children to the new Batman movie and was killed when a gunman opened fire on the theater was mourned Wednesday, the first memorial service for a victim of the shootings. Fifty-one-year-old Gordon Cowden was the oldest of the 12 people killed in the massacre at the ‘Dark Knight Rises.’ His teenage children escaped unharmed.

Cowden lived in Aurora, the Denver suburb where the theater is located. A family statement described

him as a ‘true Texas gentleman’ who loved the outdoors and owned his own business. ‘A quick-witted world traveler with a keen sense of humor, he will be remembered for his devotion to his children and for always trying his best to do the right thing, no matter the obstacle,’ his family said.

Carrying flowers and passing a large portrait of Cowden, about 150 mourners gathered for the memorial at a Denver church. Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper paused at the photo before entering the church.

The memorial was also attended

by Aurora Mayor Steve Hogan and Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates. Later this week, families of other victims planned to say their final goodbyes.

Funerals were planned in towns from San Antonio, home of aspiring sportscaster Jessica Ghawi, to Crystal Lake, Ill., hometown of Navy intelligence officer John Thomas Larimer. Also Wednesday, residents of the apartment building where shooting suspect James Holmes lived were allowed to return. The small building

near the University of Colorado, Denver, medical campus was cleared as a precaution because police said Holmes had booby trapped his apartment with a trip wire, explosives and unknown liquids.

Because many of the shooting victims have families outside Denver, authorities have assigned each victimís family a communications officer to keep them updated on the case.

Holmes is due in court next Monday, when he will hear the charges against him. — AP

International FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Chavez rival campaigns through Facebook forum CARACAS: Venezuelan opposition presidential candidate Henrique Capriles tried a new campaign tool on Wednesday with a live question-and-answer session on Facebook. The candidate, who is running against President Hugo Chavez in the country’s Oct 7 election, used the 45-minute video appearance to field questions sent via Facebook and Twitter. Answering one of the questions, Capriles criticized Chavez’s decision this week to pull out of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, calling it “irresponsible.”

“He doesn’t like them to put limits on him,” Capriles said, referring to Chavez. “This affects those Venezuelans who are left without justice in their country.” Capriles said that if he’s elected, he would restore Venezuela’s membership in any such international bodies. He spoke on Wednesday night before an audience in a studio at the Venezuelan television channel RCTV, which Chavez’s government forced off the airwaves in 2007. The government had refused to renew the channel’s license, accusing it of violating broadcast laws and backing a failed 2002 coup against Chavez.

Capriles said if he wins the vote, he would allow RCTV to go back on the air. Both Capriles and Chavez are active on Twitter, but the live video talk on Facebook was a first for a Venezuelan politician.

Andreina Marquez, who leads online efforts for Capriles’ campaign, said the online forum was a way to “open another channel of participation.” A poll last month by the Caracas-based polling firm Datanalisis found that Chavez had a 15-point lead over Capriles.

The survey, which had a margin of error of 3 percentage points, also found that 23 percent of those polled didn’t express an opinion as to which candidate they would support.— AP

CARACAS: Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez, speaks as he is accompanied by a Brazilian commission at the Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday. —AP

HAVANA: Cuban President Raul Castro (2-L) participates next to Commanders Guillermo Gracia Frias (R) and Ramiro Valdez Menendez (2-R) and Luis A. Torres, first secretary of Communist Party in Guantanamo in the celebration of 59th Anniversary of Moncada barrack attack -Cuban National Day Wednesday. — AFP

Castro: Cuba willing to sit down with US HAVANA: Cuban President Raul Castro said yesterday that his government is willing to mend fences with bitter Cold War foe the United States and sit down to discuss anything, as long as it is a conversation between equals. At the end of a Revolution Day ceremony marking the 59th anniversary of a failed uprising against a military barracks, Castro grabbed the microphone for apparently impromptu remarks. He echoed previous statements that no topic is off-limits, including US concerns about democracy, freedom of the press and human rights on the island, as long as it is a conversation between equals.

“Any day they want, the table is set. This has already been said through diplomatic channels,” Castro said. “If they want to talk, we will talk.” Washington would have to be prepared to hear Cuba’s own complaints about the treatment of those issues in the United States and its European allies, he added. “We are nobody’s colony, nobody’s puppet,” Castro said. Washington and Havana have not had diplomatic relations for five decades.The 50year-old US embargo outlaws nearly all trade and travel to the island, and Washington insists Cuba must institute democratic reforms and improve human rights before it can be lifted.

Days after prominent dissident Oswalo Paya died in a car crash, Castro had harsh words for the island’s opposition, accusing them of plotting to topple the government.

“Some small factions are doing nothing less than trying to

lay the groundwork and hoping that one day what happened in Libya will happen here, what they’re trying to make happen in Syria,” Castro said. Castro also reminisced about the 1959 Revolution, promised that Cuba will complete a trans-island expressway halted years ago for lack of funds, empathized with islanders’ complaints about meager salaries and said once again that his five-year plan to overhaul Cuba’s socialist economy will not be done hastily.

The July 26 national holiday was often used to make major announcements when Castro’s older brother Fidel was president, but there were none yesterday. The main celebration kicked off at sunrise with music and speeches at a plaza in the eastern province of Guantanamo, home to the US naval base of the same name. The American presence in Guantanamo is a sore point for Havana, which demands the base be shut down and accuses the US of torturing terror suspects held in the military prison.

“We will continue to fight such a flagrant violation. ...

Never, under any circumstance, will we stop trying to recover that piece of ground,” first Vice President Jose Ramon Machado Ventura said in the keynote address.

Musicians sang the song “Guantanamera,” and a young girl read a speech paying homage to the revolution and resistance to “Yankee” imperialism. “We will be like ‘Che,’” she said, repeating the mantra taught to schoolchildren across the island. Argentine-born guerrilla Ernesto “Che” Guevara is held up as a model of personal conduct in Cuba. — AP

Seven coal miners dead after explosion in northern Mexico MEXICO CITY: An explosion on Wednesday in a coal mine in northern Mexico killed seven miners, officials said, highlighting lax safety conditions in small mines that are often poorly regulated.

Emergency services brought the bodies of the men, aged between 20 and 39 years old, to the surface after an hours-long rescue effort, said Juan Antonio Ibarra, a emergency services official in the coal-mining state of Coahuila.

“Sometimes these mines don’t have the appropriate security measures,” said Ibarra. Ibarra said a

pocket of gas likely caused the explosion that occurred 246 feet (75 meters) underground. The rescue operation, which involved up to 50 people, had moved slowly because of the need to ventilate the mine to prevent another explosion, Ibarra said. The “pozito,” or little hole, coal mine, which is privately operated by the El Progreso mining company, faced fines and sanctions in past, the Mexico’s labor ministry said in a statement.

The mine had been inspected 16 times since 2009 and access restrictions were enacted as

recently as June after inspectors found it lacked emergency exits, the labor ministry added. “The government pledges to continue inspections of high-risk mines across the country,” the statement said. The company could not immediately be reached for comment.

Men have mined the largely unregulated pozito mines that dot Coahuila for more than a century.

A 2006 methane explosion at the much larger Piedras Negras mine, owned by Grupo Mexico, killed 65 miners. — Reuters

International FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Bulgaria govt survives no confidence vote SOFIA: Bulgaria’s centre-right government survived a parliamentary no-confidence vote yesterday, called over a failure to reform its inefficient judiciary and combat organised crime and corruption that has awakened concerns in Brussels. Prime Minister Boiko Borisov’s cabinet survived the vote, the fourth since it took office three years ago, with backing of independent lawmakers, as had been widely expected. 72 lawmakers supported the motion compared to 121 needed to topple the centre-right government. 136 voted against.

The leftist opposition and the ethnic Turkish MRF party, filed the motion after the European Union said it would prolong its monitoring of Bulgaria’s justice system and efforts to clamp down on organised crime and deep-seated corruption. The Socialists say an attack by a suicide bomber that killed five Israeli tourists in the Black Sea city of Burgas last week adds to evidence of the cabinet’s weakness on security policy.

The opposition argue that the extended EU monitoring will block Bulgaria’s bid to join Europe’s passport-free Schengen zone and reinforce the image of the EU’s newest and poorest and country as a second-class member. Bulgaria has failed to uncover and sanction the majority of some 150 contract killings in the past ten years and has not jailed a single top official on corruption charges. Opinion polls show that Borisov’s GERB party remains the most popular political party, though austerity measures although milder than in many other European countries - and the lack of significant results in fighting crime and graft have eroded his support.

Organised crime still exercises substantial influence over the emerging economy, stifling market competition and deterring much needed foreign investment to spur growth, EU experts and local analysts say. It is estimated to generate about 1.8 billion euros a year, or 5 percent of Bulgaria’s domestic product, a recent report from an independent Sofia based think-tank said. The Centre for the Study of the Democracy said the key challenge for the country was to deal with local “oligarchs” who run legitimate businesses but are also involved in tax fraud schemes and rely on illicit lobbying and corruption. The government has set up a specialised court to prosecute organised crime and adopted a new, tougher law on confiscating illegally obtained assets, but it is yet to convince Bulgarians and EU partners it is serious about combating crime and graft. — Reuters

Romney’s overseas trip hopes to build British ties Romney, Cameron met privately, exchanged pleasantries LONDON: Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney yesterday plunged into a series of meetings with British leaders, including Prime Minister David Cameron, as he sought to project an image of leadership during the first stop of a weeklong overseas swing that will include Israel and Poland. Romney, a former businessman and one-term governor, is largely untested on the world’s political stage, and he hopes to assert himself in a tight and highly expensive presidential race.

“The world is a tumultuous and dangerous place,” he said yesterday. “And certainly in many of the regions around the world we have great interests in having a common effort in seeing greater peace and prosperity.” Meeting with British officials is typically one of the first priorities of any new U.S. president, and establishing those relationships beforehand can help smooth any transition.

President Barack Obama met with British leaders when he took a trip abroad while campaigning for president in 2008.

Romney and Cameron met privately and exchanged pleasantries soon after Romney startled the British by telling NBC News it wasn’t clear whether Britain could overcome the issues that have dogged its final preparations for the Olympics. “It’s hard to know just how well it will turn out,” he said, and he called the late-developing concerns over security staffing “disconcerting.” The Republican managed the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002.

During the public portion of his meeting with Cameron, Romney weighed in again. “It is impossible for absolutely no mistakes to occur,” he said. “Of course there will be errors from time to time, but those are all overshadowed by the extraordinary demonstrations of courage, character and determination by the athletes.”

Cameron told reporters that Romney and others would soon “see beyond doubt that Britain can deliver.” After the meeting, Romney told reporters that he and Cameron spoke “at length” about Syria as well as Libya, Pakistan and other countries. He did not give details, saying discussion of foreign policy should be made by the president and the administration overseas and not by those seeking office. He did thank British soldiers for fighting alongside U.S. troops in

Afghanistan.

It wasn’t Romney’s first meeting with Cameron. The two also talked during a Romney visit to London in 2011. This year, Cameron traveled to the U.S., where he met Obama and attended a state dinner in Washington but did not meet with Romney. Romney also will spend part of his time in London raising money and highlighting his Olympics experience with an appearance Friday at the opening ceremonies of the London Games.

He met with former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who now serves as a special envoy to the Middle East. The Romney campaign said the two discussed the Middle East peace process, the situation in Syria, Iran and the wider region. They also discussed economic issues facing both countries. Romney then met with Ed Miliband, the current leader of the Labour Party - the opposition to Cameron’s Conservative Party. Before that session, Miliband invited two reporters from what he called “my side” to ask questions.

Romney declined to take questions from U.S. journalists. Meetings followed with Foreign Secretary William Hague and Nick Clegg, the deputy prime minister. The meeting with a deputy prime minister is somewhat unusual. It’s hap-

pening because Britain has a coalition government, and Clegg’s Liberal Democrats govern alongside Cameron’s Conservative party. The meetings come a day after the Daily Telegraph newspaper published a story quoting an unidentified Romney campaign adviser saying the Republican believes the U.S. relationship with Britain is special because of shared “Anglo-Saxon heritage” and the White House doesn’t appreciate that shared history.

Romney quickly distanced himself from any such view. “I don’t agree with whoever that adviser might be,” Romney told NBC News, “but do agree that we have a very common bond between ourselves and Great Britain.” Nonetheless, Vice President Joe Biden and top Obama aides criticized Romney. “The comments reported this morning are a disturbing start to a trip designed to demonstrate Gov. Romney’s readiness to represent the United States on the world’s stage,” Biden said.

Later yesterday, Romney planned to hold a high-dollar fundraiser in London’s tony Knightsbridge district. One of the hosts, former Barclays CEO Bob Diamond, withdrew from the event after he resigned in the wake of a rate-rigging scandal wracking British banks.—AP

LONDON: Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney meets with British Prime Minister David Cameron at 10 Downing Street in London yesterday.—AP

Topless protester pursues Russia church leader KIEV: A bare-breasted feminist activist bearing a threatening message on her body tried to attack the Russian Orthodox Church’s leader yesterday to protest alleged anti-Ukrainian policies by the church and the Kremlin. The protester with the controversial Ukrainian women’s rights movement Femen managed to get a meter (yard) within Patriarch Kirill at Kiev’s airport, but was stopped by a security guard and a priest.

The woman, identified by Femen as Yana Zhdanova, had the words “Kill Kirill” written on her back in large black letters and shouted a phrase from a religious ritual that aims to expel demons, roughly trans-

lated as “Kirill, go to hell.” Police said the activist was being held at the airport and will soon be taken to court, where she may face a fine or several days in custody. The commotion highlighted the tension between Moscow and Kiev as Ukraine tries to move out of Russia’s shadow politically, economically and spiritually.

Ukraine’s main Orthodox Church still answers to Kirill’s Moscow Patriarchate, and two smaller but increasingly popular independent churches are not recognized by world’s Orthodox leaders. But there is a growing movement to create a strong, unified Ukrainian Orthodox church that would

be Moscow’s equal. The incident also underlined the relative freedom and democracy of Ukrainian society compared to Russia, where three members of the feminist rock band Pussy Riot have spent months in prison and face up to 7 years in jail for performing a “punk prayer” against Russian President Vladimir Putin from a pulpit of Moscow’s main cathedral.

A spokesman for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church said it will not press charges against Zhdanova. “The girl has been shamed and lectured and I think this is quite enough,” church spokesman Vasily Anisimov told The Associated Press. “If we put a policeman

next to every sin ... what will our life become?” Kirill did not react to the incident, proceeding to talk about his visit to a group of reporters. He is in Ukraine on an annual worshipping trip.

Femen has gained prominence for staging topless protests against all kinds of political and social problems - from the shortage of hot water to women’s rights in the Muslim world to domestic pension reforms. But critics say Femen members are more interested in self-promotion than real reform, and that their antics are often tacky and undermine the cause of their protests.— AP

International FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Mahama named Ghana ruling party boss, lined up for poll ACCRA: Ghana’s ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has confirmed newly sworn-in President John Dramani Mahama as its leader in a move seen as boosting his chances of becoming the party’s candidate in a presidential election later this year. The West African oil, cocoa and gold producer has seen a smooth transition of power following the sudden death of President John Atta Mills on Tuesday, but attention has already turned to who will replace him as the NDC’s flagbearer in the December vote.

NDC Deputy General Secretary George Lawson said the party confirmed Mahama’s leadership at a meeting on Wednesday, in line with the bylaws of the party’s constitution. “The meeting unanimously confirmed His Excellency President John Mahama as the party’s new leader. It was a smooth process,” Lawson told Reuters yesterday.

The NDC was due to hold another meeting yesterday to hammer out a process for electing a candidate to run against the opposition New Patriotic Party’s Nana Akufo-Addo in what is expected to be a tight race.

A domestic analyst and party officials said Mahama’s new position as leader of the party, a post previously held by Mills, would help clear the path to nomination as its candidate. “We don’t think there will be any contest.

It’s going to be President Mahama,” one key NDC leader told Reuters, asking not to be named.

Analyst Emmanuel Akwetey of the Accra-based Institute of Democratic Governance said the fact that Mahama will enter the competition as Ghana’s sitting president would also work in his favour.

“I think it’s a done deal,” Akwetey said. Ahead of Mills’ death, most analysts had expected a year of election spending testing Ghana’s reputation for improved economic management. The government last week sought parliament’s permission for extra spending.

Mahama is widely expected to maintain current policies in his caretaker role. There had been concerns that uncertainty following Mills’ death and the prospect of a possible internal struggle within the ruling party could unsettle the political outlook.

One potential challenger is seen as Nana Konadu, wife of former president Jerry Rawlings, who Mills crushed in a divisive party primary. In an interview to the BBC on Wednesday, former president Rawlings appeared to lay bare some of the existing divisions, claiming that health problems had affected Mills’ performance and criticised him for not attending to them better.

Ghana has been one of the best performing economies in Africa over the last few years, helped by high oil prices.

However with exported oil and imported consumer goods paid for in dollars, the local Ghanaian currency has suffered, falling some 17 percent this year and hitting poorer people without access to foreign currency. Analysts had worried prolonged political uncertainly might delay efforts to address this.—Reuters

Nigeria’s Boko Haram kills 5 in new attacks Two policemen, civilian killed in separate attack MAIDUGURI: Suspected members of Islamist sect Boko Haram have killed at least five people in attacks on a police station, a local government office and a factory owned by Indians in the northeast city of Maiduguri, authorites said yesterday. Two Indians were killed when gunmen stormed their factory on Wednesday, while at least three people died in a separate attack the same day.

“Two policemen and one civilian were killed in the attack and we are on the trail of the culprits,” Police Commissioner Bala Hassan told Reuters. Witness Alhaji Bukar Aisami told Reuters he saw four dead policeman at the scene. He said a local government office was also attacked but

there were no casualties. “Information available indicates that suspected Boko Haram terrorists attacked a gum arabic factory operated by Indians located at Bayan Quarters in Maiduguri on Wednesday,” said Sagir Musa, spokesman for the military Joint Task Force.

“The incident led to the death of two Indians with one wounded, who is receiving treatment at the hospital.”

The attackers stole 90,000 naira ($560), he said. Boko Haram has killed hundreds this year in its campaign to carve out an Islamic state in Nigeria, whose population is split evenly between Christians and Muslims. The group was born out of an uprising in 2009 in Maiduguri, capital of Borno state. Most

of its attacks have been in Borno, but its threat has spread across northern Nigeria and to the capital Abuja this year, with suicide bombings and coordinated attacks increasingly common.

The group is believed to have a loose leadership structure and several cells working independently of each other. Criminal gangs are happy for Boko Haram to take the blame for robberies and assassinations. President Goodluck Jonathan has come under increasing pressure to stem the flow of violence, which is slowing economic growth in the mainly Muslim north. He sacked the national security adviser and minister of defence last month and promised new tactics to fight terrorism but gave no details.—Reuters

PARIS: French President Francois Hollande (R) shakes hands with Ivory Coast counterpart Alassane Ouattara following a join press at the Elysee Presidential Palace yesterday in Paris. —AFP

France’s Hollande urges Ivory Coast dialogue PARIS: French President Francois Hollande yesterday urged his Ivory Coast counterpart Alassane Ouattara to pursue reconciliation efforts in the West African country. In talks here, Hollande “raised the question of the reconciliation needed between Ivorians, which occurs through dialogue, the fight against impunity and justice,” his office said in a statement.

Ouattara’s government has struggled with reconciliation efforts since he took power last year after ousting former leader Laurent Gbagbo, who refused to accept his loss in a presidential election.

About 3,000 people were killed in post-election unrest. Gbagbo’s Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) this month accused authorities of having “absolutely no intention” of holding direct talks with the opposition. A diplomatic source said French officials had “highlighted the importance of reconciliation” in talks with Ouattara, who was on a three-day visit to Ivory Coast’s former colonial ruler.

“There are tools in place,” the source said. “President Ouattara acknowledged that you need both players to be involved to have a dialogue.” Ouattara also thanked

Hollande for France’s cancellation of nearly all Ivory Coast’s debt-part of an international effort to grant the country debt relief as it seeks to rebuild its economy. “This will allow us to strengthen investments in social sectors and I would like to say a big thank you,” Ouattara said after the two emerged from talks.

The countries signed a deal Wednesday that will see France cancel 99.5 percent of Ivory Coast’s debt, or about three billion euros ($3.7 billion), after Western creditors announced a $6.5 billion write-off last month.—AFP

International FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

N Korea leader projects new image by showing off wife SEOUL: The nation’s young leader tours a new amusement park with his beautiful bride on his arm, smiling and waving to adoring crowds. An everyday image of domestic bliss in high places? In North Korea, it was a carefully choreographed appearance aimed at showing Kim Jong Un as a friendly, modern leader, no different from the heads of other countries. It also provided a sharp contrast to the intensely private face his father Kim Jong Il had portrayed during his 17 years in power.

Kim Jong Un’s marital status was confirmed almost as an afterthought by state TV in an understated report on Wednesday about the opening of the amusement park: “As a welcoming song resonated, dear respected Marshal Kim Jong Un, supreme commander of our party and people, appeared at the inauguration ceremony together with his wife, comrade Ri Sol Ju.” With that sparse description, the typically closelipped North Korean government revealed to the world that the mystery woman seen beside Kim at public events over the last several weeks was indeed his wife, as had been speculated. No details were given, but

South Korean media reports said she is a former singer and cheer squad member and that they married in 2009. Analysts say the disclosure of his marital status was aimed at sending the message that the 20-something Kim was mature and stable, someone people can relate to despite having only seven months of experience as leader following the death of his father in December. Marriage would ease worries among Kim’s people and the much older officials serving under him “about the youth question,” said Daniel Pinkston, a Seoul-based analyst with the International Crisis Group.

It also helps ordinary North Koreans feel that their new ruler is an average guy, not an eccentric, said Ahn Chanil, another political analyst.

Ri was shown smiling while speaking with her husband, her arm tucked closely under Kim’s as they led an entourage of senior military and party officials through the park. In another photo released by the official Korean Central News Agency, she held Kim’s arm while he raised the other to wave his hat at a crowd of people in swimsuits. Such public displays of affection aren’t

unusual among ordinary North Koreans, but they are a big change for the ruling family and a “shocking” development in a country like North Korea, where first ladies are normally hidden from publicity, said Lee Wooyoung, a professor at Seoul’s University of North Korean Studies.

“The North seems to be focusing on portraying Kim as a friendly, young and down-to-earth leader,” Lee said.

Kim has been seen with Ri during a kindergarten visit and other events recently, including a concert where Mickey Mouse and other Disney characters performed, but state media had not mentioned her before now.

On Wednesday, Kim and Ri, wearing a stylish red and black polka dot jacket and black skirt, were shown smiling broadly as they inspected the newly opened Rungna People’s Pleasure Ground. They were greeted with loud cheers when they visited a dolphin show, a wading pool and a mini golf course, KCNA reported. The couple “saw dolphins playing stunts to the tune of joyful music,” and also shook hands with foreign diplomats and officials and their wives, the dispatch said.—AP

10 years after fall of Taleban, Afghans embrace social media KABUL: Ten years after the fall of the Taleban , who banned modern technology as un-Islamic, the use of social media in Afghanistan is booming as politicians, warlords and even militants rush to get their message across. The hardline Islamists who ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001 and forbade the use of the Internet, deeming it a Western propaganda tool, now regularly use Twitter to promote their ideas and boast about attacks on NATO forces.

The militants are reluctant to discuss the thinking behind their Internet U-turn, but last year’s Arab Spring was a wake-up call to the Muslim world about the ability of social media to organise mass movements and communicate a message outside traditional channels. Taleban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said they would still ban the Internet or any other media outlet if they were used for “un-Islamic” purposes, but for now they are happy to use it as a public relations tool.

They have set up an official website featuring propaganda videos depicting their campaigns against US-led NATO forces in Afghanistan, including scenes of attacks and bombings. “The leadership of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan regards social media, in particular Facebook, as a useful way to communicate and pass messages of the Islamic Emirate to Afghans as well as foreigners,” Mujahid told AFP. “In fact the commission for cultural affairs of the Islamic Emirate encourages our people inside and outside Afghanistan to use social media to pass our messages to the Afghan nation as well as to the Westerners. “We know that Twitter is very popular among Westerners and we are using it to pass our message and philosophy to a different audience, including Westerners,” he said.

Some two million people, less than 10 percent of the population, have computer access to the Internet, officials say, but the figure is rising and many more have access through the increasing use of smart phones.

Status update: Former warlord-The role of social media in the Arab Spring convinced one seasoned Afghan figure, Abdul Rashid Dostum-a former warlord who now has an official Facebook and Twitter account-said his aide, Homayoon Haqbeen. Dostum, who is considered by many as the leader of Afghanistan’s Uzbek minority based largely in the north, is also part of the National Front, a major political alliance planning a push for the presidency in 2014 elections. The incumbent, President Hamid Karzai, is constitutionally not allowed to seek another term, but is expected to present and back a successor. Homayoon said Dostum wants to get his message out to young, energetic and educated Afghan youths as well as to a Western audience.

“Nowadays you see that almost all the active politicians and many Afghans interested in politics are on Facebook or Twitter,” he said. Like the Taleban , Dostum knows that he can use the traditional channels of local elders and mullahs to address and mobilise poor and illiterate Afghans who make up most of the population in rural areas. “We launch gatherings and rallies in some provinces, mainly rural areas to communicate and address those people who have no access to the Internet.—AFP

BAJUR: Pakistani investigators look for evidence at the site of a bomb blast in the Pakistani tribal area of Khar, Bajur yesterday.—AP

Bombing kills 11 in Pakistan NATO route hampered KHAR: A truck packed with explosives blew up in a crowded market in northwestern Pakistan yesterday, killing 11 people, as security concerns led officials to temporarily close a supply route to NATO troops in Afghanistan. The blast in Salarzai town in the Bajur tribal area near the Afghan border also wounded nearly two dozen people, some of them critically, and damaged several vehicles and shops, said Jehangir Azam, a local government administrator.

It’s unclear whether the attack was a suicide bombing, or if the explosives were detonated by remote control, he added. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. A shop owner who was injured in the explosion, Sher Mohammed, was sitting in his store when he saw a pickup truck enter the bazaar. Minutes later he heard a loud detonation. “Something hurt my arm, chest and leg, and I fell down,” said Mohammed. “When I opened my eyes, I found myself on this hospital bed.”

The Pakistani Taliban have a strong presence in Bajur, but the group’s spokesman, Ahsanullah Ahsan, denied they were behind the bombing. The group often denies involvement in bombings with significant civilian casualties. The army has carried out several

offensives against militants in Bajur, but they continue to stage attacks. Yesterday’s decision to close one of the two border crossings used by NATO to ship troop supplies into Afghanistan was made based on security concerns, said Bakhtiar Khan, a local government official. The closure of Torkham crossing in the northwest Khyber tribal area followed an attack in the area on Tuesday in which gunmen opened fire on a convoy carrying NATO troop supplies, killing a driver and wounding two other people. The crossing could remain closed for several days as officials work with Pakistan’s paramilitary Frontier Corps to come up with an adequate security plan, said Khan. The other crossing used by NATO convoys, Chaman in southwest Baluchistan province, remains open, said customs official Mohammed Tariq.

Pakistan closed its Afghan border to NATO supplies in November in retaliation for U.S. airstrikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

Islamabad finally reopened the route in early July after the U.S. apologized for the deaths. The flow of trucks over the border since then has been relatively thin because of bureaucratic delays and disputes over compensation. — AP

International FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Chinese politician Bo’s wife charged with murder Politician’s wife has falling out with British businessman over money BEIJING : Prosecutors have charged the wife of ousted Chinese politician Bo Xilai and a family aide with the murder of a British businessman, the government said yesterday, pushing ahead a case at the center of a messy political scandal that unsettled China’s leadership ahead of a delicate power transition. The state-run Xinhua News Agency reported that the recently issued indictment said Bo’s wife, Gu Kailai, had a falling out with Briton Neil Heywood over money and worried that it would threaten her and her son’s safety. Gu and the aide, Zhang Xiaojun, are alleged to have poisoned Heywood together, the report said. Heywood’s death in November was attributed initially to a heart attack or excessive drinking.

The brief report is the first official news that the case against Gu is proceeding since the announcement three months ago that she and Zhang were being investigated and that Bo was being suspended from the powerful Politburo for unspecified discipline violations. Unmentioned in the Xinhua report was any reference to Bo or a separate party investigation into him.

“To charge a Politburo member if he was involved in any way in the murder would have sullied the reputation of the Communist Party in ways that would have been too much for the leadership to handle,” said Joseph Fewsmith, a China politics expert at Boston University. Bo’s ouster and the investigation into his family presented the Communist Party leadership with its ugliest public scandal in nearly two decades. It exposed the bare-knuckled infighting that the secretive leadership prefers to hide and affirmed an already skeptical public’s dim view about corrupt dealings in the party.

News of Gu’s prosecution signals that the leadership has closed ranks and reached a general agreement about the case as well as arrangements to install a younger group of leaders at a party congress later this year. “They have to try to show solidarity, because if they do not do that the consequences are alarming. It

BEIJING: In this Jan. 17, 2007 file photo, former Chongqing Communist Party Secretary Bo Xilai, right, accompanied by his wife Gu Kailai, attends a funeral for his father in Beijing. —AP would undermine social stability” by sending a signal about divisions in the ranks, said Cheng Li, an elite politics expert at the Brookings Institution in Washington.

By making the announcement on the eve of the London Olympics, the leadership also likely hopes that public attention will be absorbed watching the Chinese team, instead of circulating political gossip, said Li. Given that the congress is still unscheduled and likely several months away, the leadership has time to dispatch Gu’s and Bo’s cases and allow public interest to flag in the interim, Li and others said.

In a sign that the release of the news was carefully managed, the Xinhua’s report was read on state television and posted on official mainstream news sites. But

it appeared to have been scrubbed off popular microblogs, where Bo and his wife’s names remain banned search terms. Commenting was disabled on most sites that carried the Xinhua report, while other webpages only allowed comments in support of the prosecution. Before his fall, Bo was one of China’s most powerful and charismatic politicians. The son of a revolutionary veteran and party secretary of the Austriasized metropolitan area of Chongqing, he was thought to be destined for a seat in the leadership’s inner sanctum, the Politburo Standing Committee.

On his rise, Bo led high-profile campaigns to bust organized crime and to promote communist culture. In doing so, however, his administration ran roughshod over civil liberties that angered some leaders and alienated others with his publicity seeking. The infighting may never have come to light, as has happened in previous leadership fights, except for the sudden flight to the US Consulate in Chengdu of longtime Bo aide and former Chongqing police chief Wang Lijun in February.

Apparently fearing for his safety if he remained in Chongqing, Wang told American diplomats about his suspicions that Heywood had been murdered and that Bo’s family was involved.

The Xinhua report did not say when Gu’s trial would be held. She and Zhang were charged in the eastern city of Hefei, far from both Beijing and Chongqing, where Heywood was found dead. Prosecutors have interrogated Gu and Zhang and have “heard the opinions” of their defense lawyers, Xinhua said. The report also did not say when the indictment was issued or give details about the crime other than that Heywood was poisoned. It referred to Bo’s wife as “Bogu Kailai,” an unexplained combining of their surnames. It did not name their son, but they have only one, Bo Guagua. A graduate of Oxford University and Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, the younger Bo has become a notorious symbol among Chinese of the privilege of the elite.—AP

China raises storm toll to 77 after outcry

BEIJING: An elderly woman stands by her damaged home in the devasted area in Beijing yesterday, after the worst rainstorms in six decades pounded the capital city on July 21 leaving the metropolis flooded and tens of thousands of people stranded in surging waters. —AFP

BEIJING: Chinese authorities yesterday raised Beijing storm’s death toll to 77 after the public questioned the days-old tally of 37, with some residents even compiling their own totals in a reflection of deep mistrust of the government’s handling of the disaster. The Beijing city government said 77 bodies of victims from Saturday’s downpour had been found in the city as of yesterday, 66 of whom have been identified. Nearly half of the victims were found in worst-hit Fangshan district, a rural community in the city’s mountainous outskirts, the government said on its microblog.

In a rare expression of humility, Beijing’s flood and drought prevention headquarters offered condolences to the families of the victims and pledged that it would “conscientiously sum up and reflect and learn lessons from” the flood and improve the city’s resilience against disasters, the city government said.

Previously, no new death toll figures had been issued since Sunday, the day after Beijing’s biggest downpour in 61 years overwhelmed drainage systems, swamped downtown underpasses and sent flash floods roiling through the city’s outskirts.

Officials have kept a tight lid on information, mindful that any failure to cope with the flooding could undermine the country’s leadership as it undergoes a once-a-decade transition, with Beijing city leaders a part of that reshuffling. China’s communist government has justified its one-party rule in part by delivering economic growth and maintaining stability in the face of bubbling unrest and periodic mass disasters like Saturday’s flooding.

In explaining why it has taken days for the authorities to update

the death toll, flood prevention officials said mudslides that were triggered by the heavy rains hindered rescuers’ searches for bodies, the government said. Identifying victims requires repeated investigation and verification, it said, adding that search efforts were ongoing.

The jump in the death toll could reflect the normally arid city’s general unpreparedness for heavy rains, said Dong Liming, a professor at Peking University’s College of Urban and Environmental Sciences. “Beijing has long been preparing for drought and not floods, so when a major flood hit the city, it resulted in big losses,” Dong said. Earlier yesterday, residents in Beijing’s worst-affected Fangshan district were compiling their own death toll online using both public and private chat rooms on the popular Baidu website. The toll was not being posted publicly, but some online accounts said the number was more than 300. There was no way to independently confirm the tally.

A woman with the information office of the Fangshan district government said of that figure, “I don’t know where those numbers came from.” She would only give her surname, Xu, a common practice among ordinary Chinese officials. Calls to the information office of the Beijing municipal government rang unanswered. Li Chengpeng, a writer based in the southwestern province of Sichuan, said he was collecting names of the dead from flooding in Beijing and elsewhere. The official Xinhua News Agency reported at least 95 were killed after weekend storms hit 17 provinces and cities, a toll that was not adjusted after Beijing’s new tally was released.—AP

Business FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Gulf states better placed to launch single currency

Nomura CEO steps down

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ATHENS: European Commission director Matthias Morse (L) and European Central Bank’s (ECB) representative Klaus Masuch (R) arrive for a meeting at the Finance Ministry in Athens yesterday. Greek Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras is meeting with head auditors from the EU, the IMF and the European Central Bank whose ongoing inspection of government reforms will determine whether the country will earn pending loans. (Inset) Mario Draghi — AFP

ECB will act to save euro: Draghi Italy, Spain bond falls sharply on hopes of action LONDON: European Central Bank President Mario Draghi pledged yesterday to do whatever was necessary to protect the euro zone from collapse, sending a strong signal that inflated Spanish and Italian borrowing costs were in his sights. Fears about the euro zone’s future are intensifying with Spain and Italy facing frenzied pressure on financial markets and Greece holding crunch meetings with its international lenders having failed to keep its repair plans on track, raising fresh questions about its place in the currency bloc.

With the need for urgent action becoming increasingly apparent, the ECB appears to be gearing up to flex its muscles, something Madrid and Rome have been seeking for months.

“Within our mandate, the ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro. And believe me, it will be enough,” Draghi told an investment conference in London to mark the beginning of the Olympics.

“To the extent that the size of the sovereign premia (borrowing costs) hamper the functioning of the monetary policy transmission channels, they come within our mandate,” he said.

The comments are Draghi’s boldest to date and

suggest the ECB is ready to defend Italy and Spain whose borrowing costs have hit unsustainable levels.

The euro jumped after his remarks and Spanish and Italian bond yields fell sharply. The ECB has kept its sovereign bond-buying programme mothballed for months. Internal opposition to reviving it is stiff so focus will turn to what else the ECB could do following Draghi’s remarks.

Economists think it could be forced to buy bonds again or support struggling euro zone countries via the back door. On Wednesday, ECB policymaker Ewald Nowotny broke ranks with his colleagues, saying that giving Europe’s permanent rescue fund a banking licence so that it could drawn on central bank funds had merits.

Draghi and others have previously rejected that option.

Alternatively, the bank could act as the Federal Reserve and Bank of England have, and opt for straight quantitative easing-money-printing by another name. “The comments about high government bond yields disrupting ECB monetary policy transmission are interesting, in so far as they hint at a possible attempt to cir-

cumvent the restrictions on outright government bond purchases,” said Marc Ostwald, Strategist at Monument Securities.

“Of course it remains to be see whether Herr Weidmann, Herr Asmussen, Frau Merkel and Herr Schaeuble would agree with his assessment,” he said, referring to the senior members of the German government and its representatives at the ECB. French Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici said Draghi’s remarks on government bond yields were “very positive”. The ECB rode to the rescue at a previous moment of acute stress in December, launching a programme that eventually created more than 1 trillion euros of threeyear liquidity for the currency area’s cashstrapped banks. That bought three months of market calm which now seems a distant memory.

ECB members have been steadily upping their rhetoric in recent weeks as delays in getting the euro zone’s bailout fund up and running and Spanish banks recapitalised has pushed the euro zone crisis back to boiling point.

Euro zone powerhouse Germany was put on a rating downgrade warning this week along

with fellow AAA members the Netherlands and Luxembourg. Draghi said at the weekend that the ECB had “no taboos” over what it could or could not do. His fears about the failing transmission of record low interest rates and uber-cheap loans into the real economy chime with similar warnings from Bank of France head Christian Noyer.

Draghi’s remarks “suggest that he has either convinced the German members of the ECB that it is time to intervene verbally, and if necessary follow through with actual intervention, or he is willing to risk a showdown knowing that a vast majority of the Council will support him,” said Riccardo Barbieri, chief European economist at Mizuho International.

A crucial issue for the euro zone is that its bailout fund would not be able to cope with supporting a country as large as Spain or Italy without a major injection of firepower. In the absence of that, the ECB is the only line of defence.

Draghi added that the ECB did not want to do things that should be done by governments. He refused to speculate on the chance of a country leaving the euro but said that the single currency was “irreversible”. — Reuters

Business FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Gulf states better placed to launch single currency GCC countries should learn from euro zone troubles

PARIS: A file picture show French telecommunications equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent chief executive Ben Verwaayen talking during a press conference. Alcatel-Lucent is planning to cut up to 5,000 jobs after bad financial results for the second half of 2012. — AFP

Alcatel-Lucent to cut 5,000 jobs PARIS: Telecoms equipment group Alcatel-Lucent is to cut 5,000 jobs in a multimillion-euro cost drive after it reported a second-quarter net loss of euro 254 million ($308 million).

The Franco-American telecommunications equipment maker unveiled a restructuring plan that it said would take euro 1.25 billion off its bottom line by next year.

Shares in the company plunged as the Paris bourse opened, retreating 7.3 percent in early trading. AlcatelLucent had reported a second-quarter net profit of euro 43 million last year.

The company said the global economic slowdown and heightened competition were hitting profits and that it would exit or reduce operations in markets where it was struggling. It did not specifically name those markets, but it logged the largest decline in revenues in Europe, where sales fell 15.6 percent over the second quarter the last year.

The company said that retreat was driven by Western Europe.

Its wireless, optics network applications businesses all also registered steep declines in revenues. By contrast, its IP telephony division that supports movie streaming, video calls and gaming was booming, with revenues growing 16.5 percent over last year.

Alcatel warned last week that it would miss its target of improving on the 3.9 percent adjusted operating margin achieved in 2011. It did not update this guidance. The Paris-based firm reported revenue of euro3.5 billion for April to June, down 7.1 percent from the same period last year.

While the company has already promised a slew cost cuts, it announced another euro750 million in reductions that will bring its total cuts to euro1.25 billion by the end of 2013. It will achieve those by eliminating 5,000 jobs, ending unprofitable contracts and leaving or reorganizing operations in poor markets.

“It is clear from the deteriorating macro environment and the competitive pricing environment in certain regions challenging profitability that we must embark on a more aggressive transformation,” said CEO Ben Verwaayen. “We are taking aggressive action that will improve our agility in the marketplace while remaining fully committed to both our customers and continuing to deliver world-class innovation.”

Alcatel-Lucent supplies telecommunication carriers such as AT&T, Verizon and France Telecom. It competes with European rivals such as LM Ericsson AB of Sweden and Nokia Siemens Networks of Finland.

But it has struggled to turn a profit since the 2006 merger of France’s Alcatel and Lucent of the United States.

Rounds of cost-cutting helped it make 2011 its first fullyear profit since the tie-up. — AP

DUBAI: Gulf Arab oil exporters should learn from the euro zone debt crisis but press on with their own monetary union project, a senior official from Qatar’s central bank said yesterday. “I think that the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries should benefit from the euro experience and continue with the GCC monetary union project without a delay,” Khalid Alkhater, Director of Research and Monetary Policy at the bank, told Reuters.

“The monetary union is a strategic long-term project for these countries, not only economically, but it should be also politically,” he said in rare public comments by a Gulf central bank official. “...The costs of not establishing it could be very high for the GCC countries...in the future.” The creation of monetary union became the primary objective of the six GCC members in the early 1980s. Four of them - Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain - formed a joint monetary council and a forerunner to a Gulf central bank in March 2010.

But the monetary council has since kept a low profile, and most observers believe any unification of the region’s currencies will not occur for at least five years.

They cite the euro crisis and a lack of political will following the United Arab Emirates’ withdrawal from the project in 2009 among the main reasons. The sixth GCC state, Oman, pulled out in 2006.

The absence of the UAE, seen as providing an economic counterbalance to Saudi Arabia, is an obstacle to further progress towards monetary union in the Gulf, where most countries peg their currencies to the dollar, analysts have said.

Alkhater, who is not a member of the Gulf monetary council, said that the GCC states had more in common than euro zone states, sharing the same culture and language and facing similar political and economic challenges.

“We have six countries that are homogeneous almost in all domains. They share similar production structures, which mean that they are all subject to symmetric shocks,” he said in an e-mail response to Reuters’ questions.

“Therefore ... the GCC countries are better qualified to satisfy the optimum currency area criteria, and therefore to establish a monetary union, than the euro zone.”

A Gulf official has told Reuters that the countries taking part in the single currency project are still dealing with organising the institutions and there was no decision yet on any programme or timings.

“Now, we have a call by some countries (the Saudi kingdom) for political union, therefore, the monetary union can serve

as an intermediate step in achieving that goal,” Alkhater said.

Social unrest in the Middle East, which also hit Bahrain and Oman, and tensions over Iran’s disputed nuclear programme triggered a surprising Saudi Arabia’s proposal in December to create a Gulf Union.

But so far the plan has run into worries of some countries about increasing domination of Riyadh, the main force behind political and economic integration in the region, which controls about 30 percent of proven global oil reserves.

A Reuters poll this month showed 14 of 15 analysts did not expect the Gulf to launch a single currency in the next five years. Eight out of 10 said the UAE’s return to the project in the future was unlikely or very unlikely. —Reuters

SHANGHAI: A woman leaves a luxury shopping mall in Shanghai yesterday. Chinese shoppers are increasingly buying luxury goods in mainland China, turning away from high-end stores abroad and in Hong Kong, a survey indicated. — AFP

US jobless claims fall, still volatile due to auto jobs WASHINGTON: The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits fell last week to near a four-year low but an unusual pattern for summer factory shutdowns kept hopes in check that the weak labor market was improving. Other data yesterday showed new orders for long-lasting US manufactured goods rose in June although a gauge of planned business spending plans dropped, pointing to a slowdown in factory activity.

Economists said the two economic reports did little to change the view that the economy was stuck in a rough patch.

“They both look good on the surface, but I don’t think there’s really anything to get excited about,” said Stephen Stanley, an economist at Pierpont Securities in Stamford, Connecticut.

The labor market has suffered three months of sub-100,000 job growth as the economy slowed amid a cloud of uncer-

tainty spawned by fears of sharp contraction in fiscal policy and debt problems in Europe.

Last week, initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 35,000 to a seasonally adjusted 353,000, the Labor Department said. That was a much sharper drop than economists expected.

The reading for jobless claims has been volatile this month because of the timing of the annual auto plant shutdowns for retooling. The number of new claims had touched a four-year low in the July 7 week at 352,000. One measure that tries to smooth out this volatility, the fourweek moving average, fell 8,750 last week to 367,250.

“The good news there is on average over the last four weeks the number is improving,” said Art Hogan, managing director of Lazard Capital Markets in New York. This year, automakers are carrying out fewer temporary plant shutdowns,

throwing off the model the department uses to smooth the data for typical seasonal patterns.

A Labor Department official said they were still experiencing volatility related to the auto layoffs that usually happen at this time of year. Otherwise, the data had few blips. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told lawmakers last week that the US central bank, which last month expanded its efforts to spur the economy, would take additional action if officials concluded no progress was being made towards higher levels of employment. In a separate report, the Commerce Department said durable good orders increased 1.6 percent in June as demand for aircraft surged. That was also higher than Wall Street economists expected.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast orders for durable goods, items from toasters to aircraft that are meant to last at least three years, rising 0.4 percent. —Reuters

Business FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

China solar makers decry trade spat, urge dialogue SHANGHAI: Chinese solar panel makers are urging Beijing to seek talks with the European Union over a dispute they say threatens to escalate into a trade war.

Four big solar panel manufacturers issued a joint statement yesterday appealing for both sides to resolve the disagreement over allegations they receive illegal subsidies and dump their products in the European market.

“The Chinese government should immediately seek high-level dialogue with the EU to find a way to improve the situation,” said the statement by Yingli Green Energy Holdings Co., Suntech Power Holdings Co., Trina Solar Ltd. and Canadian Solar Inc. It also urged Beijing to take any

measures needed to protect the “legitimate rights and interests” of the Chinese industry. Trade conflicts are gaining momentum as the dismal economic climate has countries sparring over jobs and business.

Germany’s SolarWorld AG and other European solar panel makers filed a complaint this week seeking import tariffs on Chinese-made products. China also faces trade sanctions from the US, which has imposed tariffs on Chinese made solar panels. China has fought back by investigating US support for its solar industry.

The Chinese companies urged the EU to seriously reconsider its anti-dumping investigation, saying the spat could

escalate into a trade war over photovoltaic products as solar panels are also known. The group stoutly denied China was providing any illegal subsidies to its own manufacturers, but noted that the industry is in the midst of a transition as the cost of panels drops. “This is an extremely serious problem,” Zhang Qian, head of the Beijing office for Canadian Solar, one of the country’s biggest solar makers, said in a phone interview. “If the anti-dumping complaint goes through it will be impossible for Chinese companies to export to Europe anymore. That would be a disaster for the Chinese solar industry.”

Nearly 60 percent of China’s $35.8 billion in exports of solar products went to

Europe last year. Many of some 300,000 solar industry-related jobs in Europe are linked to Chinese manufacturers, the statement said. Apart from the potential political and economic ramifications of a prolonged trade standoff, disputes could hinder progress toward global energy saving, it said.

“The EU should be very clear that any kind of limit on market liberalization may destroy the balanced development of the photovoltaic industry,” the companies said. In May, SolarWorld’s US subsidiary persuaded the US Commerce Department to levy tariffs against Suntech, Yingli and other Chinese manufacturers, alleging they illegally sold their products below cost.— AP

Shares fall as earnings add to European woes Euro weakens but capped by talk of CB action

JAKARTA: AirAsia Chief Executive Officer Tony Fernandez, left, hugs Batavia Air President Director Yudiawan Tansari during a joint press conference in Jakarta, Indonesia, yesterday. — AP

Malaysia’s AirAsia buys Indonesian Batavia Air JAKARTA: Malaysia-based AirAsia said yesterday it is paying $80 million in cash for Indonesia’s Batavia Air, as the region’s biggest budget carrier spreads its wings in Southeast Asia’s largest economy. “In accordance with Indonesian civil aviation ownership regulations, AAB will hold a 49 percent stake in Metro Batavia Group with the 51 percent majority held by its Indonesian partner, Fersindo,” the group, AirAsia Berhad (AAB), said in a statement.

“The acquisition of 100 percent interest in Metro Batavia by AAB and Fersindo will be carried out in two stages, through acquisition of a majority 76.95 percent stake and subsequently followed by the remaining 23.05 percent held by its existing shareholders.”

Acquisition is expected to be completed by the second quarter of next year, and is subject to regulatory approvals in Indonesia, it said. “The total purchasing consideration for Metro Batavia Group is $80 million and will be settled in cash,” the statement added.

AirAsia has been shoring up its presence in the region against a host of other competitors, including Lion Air, Indonesia’s largest low cost carrier. “The Batavia Air acquisition is a fantastic opportunity for AirAsia to accelerate our growth plans in one of the most exciting aviation markets in Asia and further underlines our belief in the growth potential of Indonesia’s aviation sector,” said Tony Fernandes, Group CEO and Director of AAB. Batavia Air is a largely domestic carrier with about 30 planes and a few international routes such as Jeddah, Singapore and Guangzhou. It has been bouncing through financial turbulence recently, with the transportation ministry confirming the carrier was forced to return two leased Boeing 737 airliners to its owners after failing to pay overdue bills.

Demand for air travel in Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands with a growing middle class among its 240 million population, has been soaring. Its domestic airlines carried more than 60 million passengers last year, and the Indonesia Air Carriers Association predicts a 52 percent increase in passenger numbers by 2015. — AFP

LONDON: European shares and the euro fell yesterday as persistent worries about Spain and Greece combined with disappointing company earnings to undermine investors’ confidence, but moves were limited by talk that central banks may be prompted into action.

Both the US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank hold policy meetings next week, heightening speculation they may act to boost the slowing world economy and consider fresh approaches to tackling the euro zone’s debt problems.

The single currency, which had bounced higher on Wednesday on talk that the ECB may consider boosting the firepower of the region’s new bailout fund, slipped 0.2 percent to $1.2130, above a two-year low of $1.2042 set earlier in the week.

“Every time there is a rally in the euro like there was yesterday, it should be used as an opportunity to sell into,” said Richard Falkenhall, currency strategist at SEB in Stockholm.

On Wednesday the euro bounced higher after ECB Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny discussed the merits of giving the euro zone bailout fund a banking licence, which would give the fund access to unlimited cheap funds.

“While we think something like the banking license may be required to stabilize peripheral funding pressures, we believe it may take further market stress for member countries to agree (to this),” Barclays Capital analysts said in a note.

The problems of Spain and Greece stayed at the centre of market attention.

“We remain gloomy on the euro crisis,” Citi economists said in a report in which they raised the likelihood of Greece leaving the euro zone in the next 12-18 months to 90 percent from a 50-75 percent chance previously.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso is due to hold talks with Greek premier Antonis Samaras in Athens later, as a group of international lenders try to decide whether to keep releasing funds from a 130 billion euro bailout package or let the country go bust.

Investors are also worried about Madrid’s

ability to keep funding itself from the capital markets as it faces growing bills from regional governments battling rising deficits, although Nowotny’s comments have eased some of the pressure on Spanish debt.

Spain’s 10-year government bond yields edged down to around 7.4 percent, but remain close to their euro era highs of 7.75 percent and at levels deemed unaffordable in the long term.

German bonds were mostly steady, having gained recently on a flight of funds away from peripheral debt markets, with the 10-year Bund yielding about 1.23 percent.

The Bund market was also under-

conglomerate Siemens said the crisis had caused a 23 percent drop in quarterly new orders.

The world’s second largest western oil firm Royal Dutch Shell also missed forecasts, reporting second-quarter earnings of around $6 billion, down from $8 billion a year ago.

US stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Thursday as well.

Oil prices dropped below $104 a barrel on the disappointing earnings, and as the dollar gained slightly.

The dollar index was up 0.1 percent at 83.586, near a two-year high of 84.10.

Brent crude fell 80 cents to $103.58 per

HONG KONG: People walk in the rain at a shopping district in Hong Kong yesterday. Asian stock markets rose yesterday amid hopes Europe will give its bailout fund more financial firepower but gains were tempered as South Korea reported its economic growth slowed to a two-year low. — AP pinned by a lower open to European shares due to downbeat corporate earnings, which have pointed to Europe’s crisis as a source of weakening orders and consumer demand. The FTSEurofirst 300 index was down 0.1 percent at 1,016.60 in early trading after German engineering

barrel while US crude was down 85 cents at $88.12.

However, oil prices are being supported by expectations that weak economic data in the US will prompt the Federal Reserve to introduce a third round of quantitative easing (QE).— Reuters

Business FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

LG Display sinks to loss in Q2 on low TV demand SEOUL: LG Display reported a wider-than-expected quarterly loss yesterday, hit by a US price-rigging penalty and weak demand for TVs. The South Korean display panel maker said it lost 112 billion won ($98 billion) in the April-June second quarter, much worse than the expected 28 billion won loss. The company posted its seventh straight quarterly operating loss of 25 billion won even as sales hit a record high of 6.9 trillion won.

The world’s second-largest maker of display panels said its bottom line was hurt by a one-time penalty to settle a price-rigging case in the United States as well as persistently feeble demand for TVs. Sales of TV panels account for about half of LG Display’s revenue.

Earlier this month, LG Display Co. agreed to pay $380 million to settle a civil lawsuit over price fixing in the liq-

uid crystal display market in the United States.

The global TV industry has been beset by challenges on multiple fronts in the last couple of years, forcing panel makers to adopt painful cost-cutting and restructuring. On top of the deepening global economic malaise that has prompted consumers and corporations to postpone TV purchases, the emergence of new mobile devices such as tablet PCs has lured customers from TVs. Samsung Electronics Co., which competes with LG Display in the display area, spun off its loss-making display unit in April.

LG Display, which supplies panels to Apple Inc. and its affiliate LG Electronics Inc., believes the tough market situation will not improve any time soon.”Due to the uncertainty in the global economy, the industry demand

growth in the third quarter is expected to be limited,” Chief Financial Officer James Jeong said. Analysts were slightly more upbeat about the company’s outlook, expecting LG Display to achieve a turnaround in the current quarter.

So Hyun-chul, an analyst at Shinhan Investment Corp., expects the company to post 339 billion won in operating profit in the third quarter as the proportion of high-end LCD panels is increasing in its total production.

In the third quarter, its shipments for Apple’s new iPad will increase and LG Display will start supplying panels for Apple’s new iPhone, said So. Separately, the company said it will invest 1.2 trillion won to raise output of high-end display panels for mobile devices by upgrading its existing plant in the southwestern city of Gumi. — AP

India seen holding back on reforms NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will hold off on widely anticipated fuel subsidy and retail reforms because of renewed opposition from party colleagues and coalition allies, leaving budget targets in tatters and rattling investors.

Members of Singh’s Congress Party and senior government officials told Reuters that no movement was expected until at least the second week of September, despite market expectations of an announcement this week or the next.

Despite consultations with partners and state governments, it was not clear how Singh would be able to build a consensus on opening the $450 billion retail sector to foreign supermarkets like WalMart Stores or on increasing fuel prices.

“Such an announcement will not be made unless a political consensus is reached,” one party leader said. The Indian rupee fell for a fourth successive session on Wednesday on growing worries of government dithering on policy reform.

A month-long session of parliament starts on Aug. 8. While the government does not need parliamentary approval for the reforms, many Congress politicians said the party would find it hard to stomach protests from allies and the opposition.

Singh took over the finance ministry portfolio after Pranab Mukherjee resigned in June to contest and later win election to the largely ceremonial role of the nation’s president. Singh, the architect of India’s initial economic reforms in the 1990s, promised to revive the “animal spirit” of the economy and many investors had expected him to move in the period between Mukherjee’s election on July 19 and the opening of what is dubbed as the monsoon session of parliament.

Changing rules to allow multi-brand foreign retailers to operate in India was expected to be the first major announcement. But that plan hit fresh opposition from the Samajwadi (Socialist) Party, a major Congress ally, and left parties last weekend.

“We urge the government not to open up the retail trade to FDI (foreign direct investment) any further,” Samajwadi leader Mulayam Singh Yadav and communist party leaders told Singh in a letter that was published in Indian newspapers.

Shares of retailers fell as much as 7 percent after the contents of the letter were made public. Singh had introduced the retail reform plan last year but quickly abandoned it after protests in parliament and on the street.

The plan to reduce subsidies on diesel, kerosene and cooking gas, that are aimed at India’s poor and rural majority, also looks in trouble because crop yields this year could be affected by poor rains.

Most Indians work in agriculture and political parties are loathe to hurt their pockets, especially since inflation has run at over 7 percent for two years.

Singh’s office said this week that the rains in the June-September monsoon season that irrigate 55 percent of India’s farmlands were likely to be below average. The season accounts for 75 percent of the country’s annual rainfall and half of that is usually delivered in June and July.

The oil ministry indicated this week that diesel prices wouldn’t be raised before September, and unlikely to cover the subsidy, putting more pressure on the budget.

A senior finance ministry official told Reuters delays to reforms, especially raising heavily-subsidised fuel prices, meant India would struggle to meet the fiscal deficit target of 5.1 percent of the budget, or $91.4 billion. The government has already spent most of the $7.6 billion set aside for fuel subsidies in the 2012-13 fiscal year. To make matters worse, demand for diesel is expected to rise as farmers try to cope with poor monsoon rains by pumping more from wells.

Subdued tax income and hiccups in plans to sell stakes in state-run companies are adding to pressure on the budget and subsidies for food are als rising, leading the government to mull asking for $5 billion-$7 billion beyond budgeted subsidy spending, the official said.

The poor monsoon and dampened investor sentiment means growth, which was at its lowest in nine years in the March quarter, is unlikely to rebound any time soon. Another senior official at the finance ministry said the 2012-13 (April-March) growth target of 7.6 percent will be revised downward “significantly” and blamed flat industrial output, and slowdowns in exports and the information technology in the first quarter.—Reuters

TOKYO: Nomura Holdings Ltd. CEO Kenichi Watanabe bows next to Nomura Securities Co. President Koji Nagai, center, and Senior Managing Director Shoichi Nagamatsu, left, at the start of a press conference in Tokyo yesterday. Watanabe announced his resignation in the wake of an insider trading scandal that has tarnished the reputation of Japan Inc. and its biggest investment bank. — AP

Nomura CEO steps down Insider trading scandal TOKYO: The head of Japan’s biggest securities firm resigned yesterday in the wake of an embarrassing insider trading scandal, part of a widening national probe into the widespread practice. Nomura Holdings’ Chief Executive Kenichi Watanabe will step down as of July 31, while Takumi Shibata, Nomura’s chief operating officer, will also leave his post, the company said in a statement.

Watanabe vowed last month he would not resign after Nomura released the findings of a damning report that revealed some employees had been leaking material information to clients.

But yesterday, he stepped aside to be replaced by Koji Nagai, president of Nomura Securities. “I wanted to see that measures for improvement to address the matters pointed out (by authorities) and other additional measures are put in place,” Watanabe told a press briefing in Tokyo.

The news comes as Japanese authorities are carrying out a wide-ranging probe into insider trading which, although illegal in Japan, is widespread and carries only token fines. Separately on Thursday, Nomura said net profit in its fiscal first quarter to June shrank 89.4 percent to 1.89 billion yen ($24.19 million) owing to lower retail and wholesale trading business.

Revenue was 12 percent higher year-on-year at 369.3 billion yen, it said. Watanabe and the firm’s other top executives decided drastic action was needed to regain clients’ trust, according to earlier press reports, including the leading Nikkei business daily.

Scandal-hit Nomura has reportedly been dumped from several bond and share sales including the government’s planned sale of its stake in Japan Tobacco and once-bankrupt Japan Airlines’ expected share offering later this year. The company report said Japan’s biggest brokerage was overrun with “serious systemic defects that would erode confidence in (Nomura) as a securities company”.

Nomura’s top executives, including Watanabe, agreed to take temporary pay cuts of between 10 and 50 percent, with Watanabe’s compensation to be chopped in half for six months, the company said at the time.

The report said the firm’s sales staff tipped off clients about share sales and information often flowed freely between sales and Nomura’s investment banking and research side, which is usually barred.

There was little or no training for younger employees about their ethical responsibilities and “some instances of excessive entertainment of particular clients were found to be contrary to business ethics”, it added.

Although it usually draws huge fines and jail time in the West, insider trading is largely tolerated in Japan with recent fines coming in at around just $1,500, while criminal convictions are few and far between.

But there has been renewed pressure to crack down on lax regulations and legal loopholes, which have dented Japan’s corporate governance image. Nomura shares rose 5.71 percent to 259 yen in Tokyo with its financial results released after markets closed. — AFP

THEY ARE THE 99!

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

THE STORY SO FAR : The Story So Far: Hadya the Guide brings Wakila the Guardian and Raheema the Merciful to her school. The teacher hands out red and blue shirts to the class, and tells them that the red-shirted students are now better than the blue-shirted ones. Wakila is worried...

The 99 ® and all related characters ® and © 2012, Teshkeel Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

www.the99.org

Opinion FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Embracing a greener Ramadan The world needs arms trade treaty

By Stuart F Platt and Galen Carey

T

here’s less oversight on sales of grenade launchers in international markets than of iPods or bananas.

Yes, you read that right: We have strict international rules and regulations on selling fruit and MP3 players, but no unifying international laws governing the sale of weapons. This has allowed arms dealers to supply weapons to terrorists and almost every place that has been under United Nations arms embargoes during the last 15 years - including Liberia, Darfur in the Sudan and the Congo - a fact that should concern every American.

Thankfully, the United States can help bring some common sense to the international arms market during the United Nations Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty in New York City this month. While the United States maintains some of the strictest regulations on the import and export of tanks, guns, missiles, ammunition and other arms, many countries have little to no regulation at all. This patchwork system makes it all too easy for traffickers to sell powerful weapons and ammunition to terrorists and warlords that they can then use against our troops and innocent civilians.

If agreed to, the Arms Trade Treaty would establish a global framework and close loopholes exploited by those intent on achieving power through terror. Such a treaty would also help authorities track and extradite illicit arms brokers and bring the rest of the world more in line with the rigorous standards and regulations already in force in the United States. This is why you see a joint byline like ours _ retired US military leaders have joined with America’s religious communities to support a robust Arms Trade Treaty.

The National Association of Evangelicals and National Council of Churches, together with global Christian voices including the Vatican and the World Evangelical Alliance, have called on world leaders to negotiate a strong arms treaty. Last spring, Christians from over 3,500 congregations in 48 states joined in a day of prayer and fasting to draw attention to the fact that the “least of these” suffer the most when weapons flow unimpeded into conflict zones.

The congregants were joined in their support for the treaty by a number of retired generals and admirals who echoed the CIA’s assessment that the greatest future threats to America’s troops and security will likely come from terrorist groups and small bands of guerrilla fighters arming themselves through the under-regulated weapons market. Although the moral and security arguments for a robust Arms Trade Treaty are clear, critics claim that it would interfere with the right of Americans to own guns. This fear, if genuine, is misplaced. The rules created to govern the negotiations explicitly prevent the treaty from having an impact on domestic gun laws or sales within countries.

Furthermore, the US delegation involved in negotiating the treaty has forcefully echoed the sentiments of a number of senators, stating that it will not agree to a treaty that infringes upon our Second Amendment rights. The Arms Trade Treaty will not end war, terrorism or violence. But it will reduce the flow of deadly weapons to terrorists, gangs, rebels, rogue states and criminals. And it will mean that regional and civil conflicts are less likely to spiral out of control into large-scale violence. It’s clear that it is in our moral and national security interests. What is unclear is why anyone would risk undermining a treaty that could save lives and promote our national security. — MCT

PADANG: An Indonesian woman cleans a water soaked Quran outside a damaged mosque following a flash flood in Padang, the capital of West Sumatra province on July 25, 2012. — AFP

By Ryan Strom

T

he holiest month of the Islamic year, Ramadan, began last Friday, 20 July. This Ramadan, many Muslims are looking at a new dimension of the month: our impact on the earth. This is particularly important as we learn more about the effects of climate change, dwindling resources and, most importantly, decreasing access to fresh water around the world, which is a growing concern in many Muslim communities and countries.

Muslims believe that God has asked them to abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset during Ramadan. In addition to fasting, Muslims around the world aspire to attain spiritual contentment and come closer to God through increased prayer, meditation, helping others and self-reflection. While fasting is the most well known aspect of the month, it is also a time to be more aware of the universal principles of mercy, compassion and respect for the Earth that our faith teaches.

In the Quran, God states that he has placed humanity as a “vicegerent on Earth” (2:30). Accordingly, Muslims believe that humans are called to protect, cherish, care for and respect the Earth and all of God’s creation within it. This theme was echoed in the life of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). In one of his famous sayings, he states that even if the end of the world comes when you are in the middle of planting a tree, you should continue to plant it. During Ramadan, Muslims in the United States have been finding ways to make Ramadan more “green”, or environmentally sustainable, and reduce their impact on the earth. Nightly iftars, when Muslims break the fast, play an especially important role in this.

Throughout Ramadan Muslims gather for community iftars every night, with larger gatherings usually held at local mosques, sometimes with hundreds of individuals in attendance. Many Muslims have begun holding “Green Iftars,” also referred to as “Zero Trash Iftars”, which provide an alternative to discarding hundreds of pieces of disposable plates, cups, utensils and even food. Groups that implement the practice of “Green Iftars” make use of

reusable or recyclable materials and aim to avoid any waste. Some mosques, like Dar Al Hijrah and Adams Center, both located in Northern Virginia, educate their congregates on the importance of environmental sustainability and have set up recycling programs to educate their members.

Other Muslims take a more personal route, striving to incorporate sustainable practices into their daily lives.

Many individuals follow the Prophet’s advice that Muslims should only fill one-third of their stomachs with food, with one-third reserved for liquid and the final one-third for air, minimizing the amount they consume. Many also make conscious efforts to conserve water to the last drop, especially during the ritual ablution (called wudu) that Muslims perform before prayer. The conservation of water is a recurring theme within Islamic teachings.

In addition to avoiding wasteful practices regarding food and water, many Muslims also take stock of material possessions, reflecting on what is really needed and how our consumption patterns affect the world around us. The Prophet emphasized to his followers that the act of giving up food and drink loses its significance without personal evaluation. Essentially, Muslims are encouraged to reflect on this question: what is the point of the physical act of fasting if our actions and words go unchanged? While there are many higher values that Muslims strive to adhere to in their daily lives, the values of environmental consciousness and stewardship are particularly relevant during this month.

Now is the time for us to encourage ourselves, and those around us, to be the best possible stewards of the earth and to live as individuals who are compassionate and respectful toward the diverse and beautiful aspects of God’s creation. As humans, we are responsible for the world around us and we have a duty to strive to make the changes we wish to see. If all of us, regardless of our faith tradition, were able to take stock of our personal connection with nature, and our consumption patterns, surely the world would be a different and much better place.

— CGNews

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FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Years

www.kuwaittimes.net

A Kashmiri Muslim woman reads the holy Quran inside the Jamia Mosque on the second day of the Ramadan, in Srinagar, India, Sunday, July 22, 2012. Muslims throughout the world are marking the month of Ramadan, the holiest month in Islamic calendar where devout fast from dawn till dusk. — AP

Tr a v e l FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Gulf Air Falcon Gold Lounge, a class apart

By Sawsan Kazak

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raveling can be exhausting, with long periods spent at the airport waiting for the flight or in transit. But traveling doesn’t have to be hard. The time spent at the airport can be just as enjoyable and refreshing as the final destination. The newly inaugurated Gulf Air Falcon Gold Lounge in Bahrain’s International Airport offers travelers five star amenities in a cozy ambiance.

“The Gulf Air Falcon Gold Lounge is distinct in many ways - specifically, the architectural design of the new 1,720 sq ft lounge combines the traditional Arabian theme with modern amenities giving guests a sense of space and freedom,” says Gulf Air Chief Services Officer, Marcus Bernhardt, of the features that sets the Falcon Gold Lounge apart.

Bernhardt believes the well planned layout and attention to details in the business lounge allows travelers access to facilities that make the traveling process enjoyable.

“The lounge features a well laid-out business, dining, lounging facilities and TV areas in addition to offering panoramic views of the runway through a high glass wall,” explains

Bernhardt. The Gulf Air Falcon Gold Lounge can accommodate up to 200 people and was officially inaugurated in May 2012 following a major upgrade and renovation that is part of an extensive lounge-renovation program

across the Gulf Air network. “The Bahrain lounge follows the opening of a new premium lounge in Terminal 4 at Heathrow International Airport in London last year, and will be preceded by the upgrading of Gulf

Air’s premium lounge in Dubai International Airport due next year,” says the Gulf Air Chief Services Officer.

But with all this modernization, Gulf Air has made a point to not forget tradition. “The fully renovated lounge seamlessly integrates contemporary design and architecture with Arabian influences, creating an environment that combines peace and tranquility with extensive modern-day business and catering facilities for the Gulf Air Falcon Gold traveler,” says Bernhardt.

Family-friendly For the first time, premium passengers have the added facilities of the ‘Quiet Lounge’ which holds seven private sleeping rooms, a cigar lounge and shower rooms with hotelstyle towels and luxury brand toiletries and amenities. Visitors of the lounge can stay connected with free Wi-Fi throughout the lounge, discreet power sockets at every seat and a business center that includes PCs, fax machines and printers.

This unique lounge has also taken steps to put the whole family at ease with features that allow all members to rest in style.

Tr a v e l FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Gulf Air Chief Services Officer, Marcus Bernhardt

“For families the lounge offers a spacious family room with highly trained professional SkyNannies in attendance as well as a gaming room equipped with Xbox and PlayStation units,” says Bernhardt of the family-friendly features offered. The modern, self-service buffet area also offers a wide variety of snacks and meals, including an Italian coffee corner offering the world famous LavAzza brand coffee varieties.

Ramadan traveler Seeing that it is the holy month of Ramadan, the Gulf Air Falcon Gold Lounge has taken steps to ensure comfort and elegance during the holy month. “Our Ramadan travelers can avail themselves of the ‘Quiet Lounge’ which boasts private sleeping rooms with comfortable beds, dimming lights and the ‘do not disturb’ option to rest in complete privacy. The sleeping rooms are also

equipped with hi definition TVs with wireless headphones for those who want to watch their favorite programs or listen to their choice of music in private,” says Bernhardt.

The lounge also offers separate prayer rooms and secure lockers for those who want to use these facilities.

The lounge is freely accessible to all Blue, Gold and Silver card-holding FFP members of Gulf Air, and Falcon Gold class ticket holders

of Gulf Air and premium class ticket holders of the carrier’s code-share partner airlines.

As the Gulf Air team is always striving for excellence, it plans to continue evolving and adding the services and features to the Gulf Air Falcon Gold Lounge based on customer’s needs and feedback.

Beauty FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Freezing time with Botox Facial lines reveal character but who wants to?

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otox is one of the many trade names for the neurotoxic protein called botulinum toxin that is produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. In large doses, the protein causes botulism, a rare paralytic illness often linked to food poisoning.

However, the protein is used in cosmetic medicine to treat moderate to severe brow furrow (glabellar lines), uncontrolled blinking, lazy eye, wrinkles, and facial creases. These procedures use a small amount of diluted botulinum toxin that enables controlled weakening of muscles. Botulinum toxin is sold commercially under the brand names Botox, BTXA, Dysport, Myobloc, Neurobloc, Xeomin, Botox Cosmetic, and Vistabel.

Botox widely used for non-cosmetic medical procedures. In addition to cosmetic use, Botox is used to treat cervical dystonia, writer’s cramp, excessive sweating, achalasia (an esophagus problem), chronic pain, neuropathy, and migraine headaches. For people with overactive bladders, Botox can improve their quality of life, say researchers from King’s College London School of Medicine, London, England. Men with enlarged prostates benefit from Botox injections directly into the prostate, a study at University Medical College, Taiwan found.

A possible treatment for some cases of depression: Some studies have indicated that Botox used for aesthetic purposes can help people with mental illness. A study published in Dermatologic Surgery found that treating clinically depressed patients with Botox on the frown lines of their faces actually got rid of their depression.

How does Botox work?

Botox works to relax the contraction of muscles by blocking nerve impulses. The result is muscles that can no longer contract, and so the wrinkles relax and soften. It usually takes two to four days to see cosmetic improvement and the effects tend to last from four to six months. Most patients require retreatment to remove wrinkles and lines as they begin to reappear, but after each injection the wrinkles return as less severe as the muscles are trained to relax.

How is Botox administered?

Botox procedures do not require anesthesia and usually take just a few minutes to perform. The protein is injected into the muscle using a fine needle in order to minimize discomfort and maximize accuracy. It is recommended that patients avoid alcohol for about a week before the procedure. In order to minimize bruising, patients should stop using aspirin and anti-inflammatory medications about two weeks before treatment. For cosmetic procedures, a study published in Dermatologic Therapy found that men need a higher dose of Botox than women.

Is Botox better than a face-lift?

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, whether Botox gives better results than a facelift (surgery) depends on the age of the patient. People in their 30s who have had limited exposure to sunlight usually show signs of aging in their eyes and temple area first, with crow’s feet and some bulging of the eyelid. As they have not lost much volume at this point, fillers or Botox usually smooth out the lines that people want to get

rid of. When people enter their 40s the middle of the face starts to shift as the cheeks lose some of their fat and laugh lines set in. The cheeks become deflated towards the end of the fourth decade, and the jowls start to sag.

A combination of Botox as well as minimal lifting procedures will provide the best results.

What are the side effects of Botox?

The most common side effect of Botox injections is temporary bruising. Other possible side effects include: headache; respiratory infection; flu syndrome; Blepharoptosis (drooping of the upper eyelid; nausea and indigestion (heartburn). Doctors in the USA and the UK have reported that some patients “binge” on Botox to the point where their faces look frozen. They refer to the term “Wrinklerexia” - when some Botox-devotees become so obsessed with their wrinkle-free image that they start seeing lines where there are none and binge on Botox to obtain a freeze-frame face. www.medicalnewstoday.com

Books FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Top Jeffrey

Archer reads Kane and Abel

Matter of Honour

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n unemployed ex-military man inherits a sealed letter in his father’s will. It is an old letter that his father, at the insistence of his wife, had never opened. His father’s letter to him instructed him that he was only to open the letter if a matter of family honour came up. This excellent book takes the reader over many countries in Europe as foreign agents try to take his inheritance from him. The item in question is worth far more than monetary value. This book could have been given a sub-title of “Chase” as there is a great one here. For anyone who likes a good book with a chase in it, this is one of the best. In the book the protagonist and the antagonist share the spotlight between right and wrong equally while an unknown protagonist is only briefly but effectively seen.

A highly recommended read.

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n the same day, on opposite sides of the globe, two boys are born. William Kane is the son of a wealthy Boston banking conglomerate. “Abel” Rosnovski (who takes the name when he immigrates to the United States) is the orphaned child of a Polish peasant. William’s life is shaped by wealth, political connections, and an Ivy League education. Abel’s will is honed as he escapes Russian imprisonment and fights his way to the United States for a better life. When a banking deal goes awry between William’s company and Abel’s hotelier employer, Abel is left at the helm of one of the largest hotel chains in the country and face-to-face with his new arch-enemy, William Kane.

As The Crow Flies

“A

s The Crow Flies” is the saga of Charlie Trumper whom, after his grandfather’s death, takes over running of his fruit cart in the streets of London during the first few years of the 20th century. The book follows his progress from the small cart, to owning his first shop after his service in World War 1, and his further quest to fulfil his dream of owning the “biggest barrow in the world”.

However, it is not an easy process and there are many obstacles and people who want to see his dream squashed, especially a determined, wealthy lady who can use her money to stop his goals. It also follows the events of his family life, meeting his wife and having a family. The story starts in 1900 and goes until 1970, capturing many difficult periods of the last century.

Shall We Tell the President?

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ick Stames, a FBI agent, comes to know about a plot to assassinate the president of United States. Very soon he along with one of his sincere juniors drowns mysteriously into the river. The other junior Mark Andrews, starts his search with the knowledge of the time of strike. He discovers that one of the senators is the master of the game and soon finds out Senator Dexter, the father of his love is on the check list.

Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less

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ith a deviousness born of long practice, Harvey Metcalfe, a Boston based self-made guru of deceit, stays behind the scenes and runs a stock scam involving some bogus petroleum shares at the London Stock Exchange. After the scam folds, Harvey happily goes away a million dollars richer and leaves behind four stupefied men, the unwitting principal buyers, teetering on the edge of financial ruin. Stephen Bradley, a visiting American professor at Oxford, chooses to get even rather than get mad and brings together the other three investors comprising of Harley Street’s Dr. Robin Oakley, gallery owner JeanPierre Lamanns and Lord James Brigsley. They decide to turn the tables on Harvey. Combining their individual abilities and expertise, they each come up a scheme to relieve Harvey of the exact amount he robbed them of.

Te c h n o l o g y FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Mini helpers for big studies

Programmes and apps for university P

eople who went to university a generation or two ago would probably no longer recognize the place. Lecture schedules are up on websites; the facts you need are on Wikipedia; and the right format for your dissertation can be spat out automatically by your word processing programme. PCs, smartphones and the internet have made life much easier for students.

And now, thanks to a host of new programmes and apps, it is about to get easier still, sometimes without costing a cent. Whether the curriculum is natural science or philosophy, some programmes are required for everyone. There is no avoiding an Office suite, for example: not just because of the word processing, but because of the presentation software.

“It’s pretty much normal in every field that you have to present your ideas before the larger public,” says Nicolas Apostolopoulos, director of the Centre for Digital Systems at Berlin’s Free University. If the fee-based version from Microsoft isn’t what you want, consider freeware versions from OpenOffice or LibreOffice. IT consultant Markus Stenzel has made available a package of vital applications for students on his website. It includes the Office packets already mentioned, along with programmes for photo editing; creating file cards and mind-maps; and a virus scanner.

Since it’s all freeware, the products on Stenzel’s website don’t cost a thing.

“Generally, you don’t need commercial software for studying,” says Stenzel. But, depending on the course of studies, some students might

require still more programmes. Economics students cannot do without some kind of spreadsheet programme, while architectural students need something that can draft 3D models. Maths and sciences students can’t get by without LaTeX, which helps create texts that integrate formulae and graphics.

Students are advised to wait to figure out which applications they need until they are at university. “I’d recommend checking with a lecturer or fellow students,” says Stenzel. Many specialty programmes are only necessary for advanced classes or once a master’s curriculum has been started.

But it’s not enough to just own the programmes: Students need to be able to use them properly. Students also need to learn how to surf the internet properly, says Apostolopoulos. “A student today needs to know how he can publish his texts and his findings online - for example, with blogs or a wiki.”

It’s more than just entering a search phrase into Google, he notes. People who need a little help here can usually find special classes on the topic at most university libraries at the start of each semester. Most of today’s students don’t limit themselves to PCs or laptops. “The higher sales figures for smartphones and tablets are also being reflected on campuses,” says Kathrin Braungardt of the e-learning team at Germany’s Ruhr University in Bochum.

Universities are still playing catch-up with these devices, laments Apostolopoulos. “There’s a

lot lacking. For example, there are usually no learning platform displays that have been formatted for mobile devices.” But he thinks that will all change in the next couple of years. After all, there are already apps for organizational matters.

Bochum’s university already has RUB Mobile, which helps students familiarize themselves with the campus, call up meal plans and contact people in the university directories.

Well-known app stores like iTunes App Store and Google Play also have a lot to offer students.

CamScanner can turn a mobile phone camera into a scanner for all kinds of devices. Cloud-based apps like Dropbox or Google Drive can let students access their documents even when they’re away from a PC. Meanwhile, services like Evernote can let people collect notes and documents and synchronize them between a computer and a smartphone. And that is before even mentioning additional accessories like dictionaries and addons like the official Wikipedia app.— dpa

Lifestyle FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Younger American males venturing into salons

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en still make up a small portion of salon customers in the United States, but their numbers are growing, especially in the 18-34 age group, a global market research group said. In a report aimed at the salon industry, Mintel said Tuesday that 52 percent of the men it surveyed had gone to salons, which it broadly defined as anything from a luxury spa to a corner barber shop.

Fifty-eight percent said they’d gone for a mere haircut. But among males aged 18-34, 25 percent said they had gone for a manicure or pedicure, and 20 percent had treated themselves to a facial. “The men’s market is growing, although it’s (still) a small portion” of the overall market for beauty health and services, said Amy Ziegler, global personal care analyst at Mintel in Chicago. She attributed the trend in part to a growing number of male-specific salons-often promoted through social media”that are not so scary, and less intimidating” than traditional, female-oriented establishments.

“The men who are engaged (with going to salons) are very engaged. You can call them your ‘metrosexual’ men who are very concerned with their appearance,” Ziegler added.

“But I think there’s still that portion of men who may not have been interested, but who are hearing about them, and who are willing to try... and then think, ‘This isn’t so bad’-and they’re going back.” Mintel, which interviewed about 2,000 men and women for its report, also found the market for grooming and beauty services growing at a higher rate among Hispanics, blacks and Asians of both genders.

Blacks are especially keen on nail care, while Hispanics and, to a lesser extent, Asians are more interested in facials and massages, Ziegler said. Coming out of the recession, Ziegler said, there is a “shift away from DIY,” with American consumers returning to salons for such treatments as hair coloring that they had opted to do at home to save money. —AFP

‘Alchemist’ author plays with reality in new book

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elebrated Brazilian author Paulo Coelho released his latest novel Wednesday, “Manuscript Found in Accra,” examining “values that span time.” It is Coelho’s 22nd offering-previous works, including “The Alchemist,” “Veronica Decides to Die” and “The Zahir,” have sold over 140 million copies in 73 languages. The novel plays with fiction and reality in telling a story about a Greek sage known as Copta, who features in a manuscript discovered by an Englishman centuries later.

“Distinguishing fiction is really hard not just for writers, but for anyone. We live under a barrage of information that we believe is real, even when it can’t be,” Coelho said in an interview in Geneva, released by his publisher Sextante. This story “is based on values, and values are never fiction. They pass through time,” the writer added.

The titular manuscript is a 1307 retelling of a meeting between Copta and the people of Jerusalem, just before Crusaders arrived in the late 11th century.

Copta “urges men and women in the city to seek wisdom in everyday life,” the publishing house wrote in a statement marking the release of the new novel, which will have a first run of 100,000 copies. Wednesday is also the 25th anniversary of the release of one of Coelho’s most famous works, “The Pilgrimage,” which tells of his experience along the Way of St. James, in Spain. —AFP

Pakistani men, pray after breaking their fast during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in a musical instruments shop in Lahore, Pakistan. During Ramadan, Muslims abstain from food and drink during the daylight hours, breaking their fast at sundown and although it is a time of deprivation, Muslims consider Ramadan to be a joyful season. — AP

Istanbul show sheds light on Goya’s dark etchings G

oya’s bullfighters, prostitutes and demons are on exhibit in Istanbul in what curators called one of the most extensive shows of the Spanish master’s work.

“Goya: Witness of His Time,” at the Pera Museum, draws together 230 etchings, drawings and oil paintings that detail the upheaval in Spain at the turn of the 19th century. They also provide insight into the dark imagination of one of Spain’s greatest artists. But it is the satire that still resonates, Marisa Oropesa, the curator, said in an interview.

The etching captioned “Even thus he cannot make her out,” shows an unctuous suitor sidling up to a woman either genuinely charmed by his overtures or pandering to his romantic illusions.

“This is quite humorous, and its theme is universal,” Oropesa said. “Generally, one would expect the man seeking a prostitute to recognize one.”

It is part of “The Caprichos,” or “The Whims”, a fantastical series of prints featuring caricatures of Spanish society and evoking the political cartoon. The Caprichos is one of four series of prints that comprise the bulk of the Pera show.

“Tauromaquia” (Bullfighting) depicts the quintessentially Spanish pastime, and “The Follies” series shows contorted humans and demons that predicts Surrealism by more than 100 years. The aquatint prints of the macabre “Disasters of War” series are a chronicle of the violence meted out against Spaniards by advancing Napoleonic armies between 1808 and 1814.

Chilling Heart-wrenching in their brutality, these images have the power to chill even now. “On account of a knife” depicts a garrotted priest with a knife, the possession of which earned him his death sentence, dangling from his neck.

The series yielded the artist’s most famous painting, “The Second of May 1808,” which is not on view at the Pera. The engravings out-

weigh the smattering of paintings, which makes the show an intense study in monochrome, but the paintings are a vibrant punctuation to the intimately sized prints.

“Children Playing Leapfrog,” from 17851786, is an early indication of Goya’s talent at rendering the inner character of a subject with vivid emotion. Pride of place at the show goes to “Charles IV in the Uniform of Colonel of the Guardias de Corps” and “Maria Luisade Parma in Court Dress,” portraits from 1800. The diptych is among commissions from royalty and other wealthy patrons Goya undertook at the start of his career. Born in 1746, Francisco de Goya y Lucientes was rejected early on by the art establishment. After a stint in Rome, he returned to Spain and was hired by the Royal Tapestry Factory. He soon had little trouble securing commissions from nobility.

In 1793, illness left Goya deaf and withdrawn, and he began to experiment across other media, which led to some of his most arresting works. His place among the great artists was

assured. It was decades after his death in 1828 that his style of modernity would be taken up again.

“Goya is the last of the Old Masters and the first of the Modernists,” said Ozalp Birol, general manager at the Pera. “Mounting a Master’s series of engravings in full does not happen often, and this is one of the most comprehensive shows. The selection of paintings enhance the exhibit,” Birol said. The works are primarily from collections in Spain and Italy. Some own only one engraving or part of a series, Oropesa said. “It was very difficult because many owners do not want to loan Goyas out. Getting so many of them together was complex.” Goya joins the likes of Miro, Chagall and Picasso in artists exhibited at the Pera Museum, located in Istanbul’s smart Beyoglu district. The Pera is a central part of what has become Europe’s most exciting emerging art scene. “Goya: Witness of His Time,” now in its final week, has attracted some 40,000 visitors, the museum said. —Reuters

Lifestyle FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

(Above) File photo received from Aadi Productions shows Nepalese cinema director Deepak Rauniyar, of the new Nepali film ‘Highway’, speaking in the Nepalese capital Kathmandu, which has opened to packed houses across the Himalayan nation. (Left) File photo received from Aadi Productions shows a scene from the new Nepali film ‘Highway’. —AFP photos

Love it or hate it, daring Nepali film makes waves A

s the curtain comes down on the most divisive and talked-about film in Nepali cinema history, half the audience stands to applaud while the rest slump bemused in their seats. The split reaction has been common among packed theatres watching “Highway”, a sweeping social commentary hailed by many as a new benchmark for the domestic film industry but dismissed by others as complicated and boring. “This is a terrible film. There are too many confusing strands and no action. It makes no sense,” Prashant Thapa, 27, told AFP during the interval of a showing this week in a Kathmandu multiplex.

Fellow cinema-goer Ujjwal Acharya, 32, disagreed, saying “it’s a brilliant movie... really creative”. Since Highway-co-produced by “Lethal

Weapon” star Danny Glover-opened to packed houses across Nepal it has polarised audiences, prompting more than 10,000 tweets, provoking contempt in some corners and adulation in others. “Seventy percent of people are saying it’s the worst movie they ever watched,” its firsttime director Deepak Rauniyar, 33, cheerfully told AFP as viewers filed out of one cinema.

“People are talking about it a lot and they are angry. If you look on the Facebook page there are two separate groups-one who say they really love it and the other who really don’t. There are none in the middle.”

Set amid the breathtaking landscapes of eastern Nepal, Highway follows the journey of nine passengers stranded on an ill-fated bus to Kathmandu trying to get through three illegal

road blockades, known locally as “bandhas”. Its jumpy storytelling style makes it unique in Nepali cinema, which normally follows the familiar Bollywood narratives that are often copied scene for scene in Nepali movies. With a third of its measly $100,000 budget funded by public donations raised via the Internet, almost everything about the making of the film bucked the prevalent movie trends in Nepal.

The country’s fledgling film industry peaked in 2000 with “Himalaya”, an acclaimed story of salt traders, but directors have since been unwilling to get away from the tried-and-tested formula of romantic plots with song-and-dance numbers.

“I wanted to break the stereotypical thinking about Nepal-everyone seeing it as just a moun-

No autopsy planned on Sherman Hemsley

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In this 1977 file photo provided by CBS, Sherman Hemsley, left, and Paul Benedict star in an episode of “The Jeffersons.” — AP

o autopsy will be done on “The Jeffersons” lead actor Sherman Hemsley because his medical history indicates he died of natural causes at age 74, an official said yesterday. Hemsley was found dead on Tuesday at a house in El Paso, Texas, where he lived, and at the time police said the cause of death was “pending autopsy results.”

But the El Paso County Office of the Medical Examiner has decided against doing an autopsy, said Annabel Salazar, chief investigator for the office. Hemsley’s cause of death is “most definitely natural causes,” she said, but she added that she could not give specifics on any possible ailment the actor might have suffered.

Hemsley’s best-known role was as George Jefferson, the owner of a dry cleaning business who lived in a New York luxury highrise apartment with his family. “The Jeffersons” ran on television from 1975 to 1985. — Reuters

tain country where it snows-and I also wanted to show the life can be no more different than in London or New York,” Rauniyar said.

“We can make films on a low budget and have an industry that is recognized around the world. We should start making horror films, really commercial films, art-house cinema and start telling our stories.”

The film’s dialogue, improvised by a relatively unknown cast, was inspired by a bus journey in 2009 in which Rauniyar was stranded by blockades as he tried to make it to Kathmandu.

A former teacher, Rauniyar also used to work on a national newspaper in Kathmandu and says he would often argue with movie directors who complained about unfavorable reviews for their “bad copies of Hindi films”. —AFP

Duvall to host Romney fundraiser with Romney

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obert Duvall is an unusual figure in the Hollywood milieu - he’s a well-known entertainer who is willing to lend his star power to promoting a Republican politician.

The “Apocalypse Now” star is taking a cue from his left-leaning counterparts by hosting a fundraiser for presumptive GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney next month. According to an invitation spotted by National Journal, Duvall is opening his Middleburg, Va., home to Romney boosters - as long as they’re willing to open their wallets - and “special guest” Ann Romney on Sept. 6.

Tickets to the event start at $2,500 per person for entry to the general reception, $10,000 Robert Duvall grants them access to the VIP photo reception and $25,000 saves them a spot at Duvall’s dinner party for the presidential hopeful’s wife and deep-pocketed supporters. Proceeds from the function will go to the joint fundraising committee Romney Victory, Inc. A representative for Duvall said the actor wasn’t reachable yesterday, as that was his first day filming his new movie. By throwing in so publicly for Romney, Duvall bolsters his position among a relatively small group of Hollywood heavyweights, including Kelsey Grammer, Jon Voight, Drew Carey and Adam Sandler, who register (at least with their checkbooks) on the conservative side of the political spectrum. —Reuters

Lifestyle FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Judge transfers custody of Jackson’s children

File photo shows, from left, Prince Jackson, Blanket Jackson and Paris Jackson after a hand and footprint ceremony honoring their father musician Michael Jackson in front of Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles. —AP

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US judge on Wednesday gave temporary guardianship of late singer Michael Jackson’s three children to his nephew TJ amid a bitter public dispute over the whereabouts of the family’s matriarch. Katherine Jackson, the late singer’s mother, had custody of Paris, Prince Michael and Blanket, but Judge Mitchell Beckloff suspended that arrangement because she had left the family home in Los Angeles. The family has been embroiled in legal and financial disputes since the pop star’s sudden death in June 2009 from an overdose of Propofol, a powerful anesthetic. The matriarch’s whereabouts were uncertain for days, with one member of the family reporting her missing-but the singer’s brother Jermaine insisting she was well and resting in Arizona. “I want to reassure everyone ... that Mother is fine but is resting up in AZ on the orders of a doctor, not us,” Jermaine Jackson tweeted.

Randy Jackson, another of the singer’s brothers, on ABC’s “Good Morning America” Wednesday

repeated that Katherine had left Los Angeles on her doctor’s orders.

Her doctor “wanted her to go somewhere where she couldn’t be on the phone, and just cut off from the outside world for a few days,” he said.Katherine Jackson herself has now said she is “good and fine” and on her way home to California, according to excerpts of an interview with ABC News released by the network ahead of its broadcast later Wednesday.

However, her absence has sparked a flurry of angry Twitter messages from Jackson’s 14-yearold daughter, Paris. On Sunday, she wrote: “Yes, my grandmother is missing. i haven’t spoken with her in a week i want her home now.” And then on Tuesday, she posted: “9 days and counting... so help me god i will make whoever did this pay.”

Her brother Prince Michael is 15, and Blanket is 10.

Katherine Jackson however explained to ABC News: “One reason I didn’t call is I just gave up my phone and I didn’t want to have any phone calls

Katherine Jackson’s lawyer, Perry Sanders, gives a press conference after the Michael Jackson Family Conservancy Hearing on July 25, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. — AFP while I was here.” Lawyers for TJ Jackson, the 34year-old son of Michael’s brother Tito, and for Katherine Jackson however told the judge they suspected the woman’s disappearance was not voluntary. TJ Jackson said he spoke with Katherine on Tuesday and that she was acting strangely.

“I’ve never heard my grandmother talk like that,” he said in court. “I’d ask simple questions and she wasn’t sharp.”

Katherine Jackson said she was “devastated” about the change in the guardianship of her grandchildren, adding that the court ruling was “based on a bunch of lies.” Entertainment media have portrayed her absence as an abduction by Michael’s siblings, who are allegedly furious they did not inherit any of the singer’s assets. But she insisted she was visiting a spa in Arizona to rest and that rumors of a kidnapping were false, saying “My children would never do anything to me like that.” On July 17, five of the siblings accused the estate’s executors of forging Jackson’s signature

on the 2002 will that excluded them.

In a letter posted online, Tito, Randy, Jermaine, Rebbie and Janet write “the will, without question, it’s fake, flawed, and fraudulent.” Tito later withdrew from the group, according to celebrity news website TMZ. The siblings say they have “evidence that undoubtedly supports and proves that Michael was absolutely not in Los Angeles, California on the date of his signature” in the will.

They demand the executors, John Branca and John McClain, “resign effective immediately,” accusing them of having “failed to perform (their) duties.” However, TMZ has reported that the executors had paid off nearly all of the singer’s $500 million debt with the income they generated from his assets. In a statement, Branca and McClain wrote they are “saddened that false and defamatory accusations grounded in stale Internet conspiracy theories are now being made by certain members of Michael’s family whom he chose to leave out of his will.”—AFP

‘Twilight’ star, ‘Snow White’ director say sorry for fling

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wilight” fans are heartbroken by Kristen Stewart’s public admission that she cheated on her boyfriend and co-star Robert Pattinson. Some on Twitter are blasting the actress with no shortage of nasty names, while others are pledging support for Pattinson, calling him “sexy” and promising they’d be faithful. But the scandal involving the on- and off-screen couple is unlikely to affect box-office returns for the final installment in the vampire-romance juggernaut due this fall, or even harm the image of the 22-year-old actress.

“It could make her actually more alluring,” said Ian Drew, a senior editor at Us Weekly magazine, which features compromising photos of Stewart and her “Snow White and the Huntsman” director Rupert Sanders in its latest issue, out Friday. “She plays a bad girl. It’s not like Sally Field did this, so it could actually enhance her appeal and make her even bigger.”

Stewart, whom Forbes named Hollywood’s highest-paid actress last month, issued an apology to People magazine Wednesday, saying she is “deeply sorry for the hurt and embarrassment I’ve caused to those close to me and everyone this has affected.” “This momentary indiscretion has jeopardized the most important thing in my life, the person I love and respect the most, Rob,” she said. “I love him, I love him, I’m so sor-

ry.”

Stewart and Pattinson have been in a relationship for several years after meeting on the set of “Twilight,” in which they play lovers.

Sanders, who is married and has two children, followed with his own apologetic statement to People. “I am utterly distraught about the pain I have caused my family,” he said. “My beautiful

This May 29, 2012 file photo shows actress Kristen Stewart and director Rupert Sanders attending the “Snow White and the Huntsman” screening in Los Angeles. —AP photos

File photo shows British actor Robert Pattinson, left, and US actress Kristen Stewart arriving at the UK film premiere of “Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 1” at Westfield Stratford in east London.

wife and heavenly children are all I have in this world; I love them with all my heart. I am praying that we can get through this together.” A spokesman for the director confirmed the statement Wednesday. Representatives for Stewart and Pattinson did not respond to requests for comment. Fans embraced Stewart as human girl Bella Swan and Pattinson as vampire suitor Edward Cullen from the moment they were

announced in 2008 as the stars of the big-screen adaptation of Stephenie Meyer’s popular novels.

The real-life romance that bloomed between the co-stars only made things more magical for the mostly female fan base. “The fans are so romantically tied to this movie in both the real-life romance and the on-screen romance, so I’m sure this is hitting them pretty hard,” said box-office analyst Paul Dergarabedian of Hollywood.com.

“They think of Bella and Edward and Kristen and Rob like family - characters they absolutely love on screen and in real life. For a 14-year-old girl, this is probably heartbreaking. But are girls not going to see the movie because of this?

Heck no.” Reports of infidelity could even draw more viewers to theaters for “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2,” he said: “They might go just so they can be even more mad at Kristen.” Pattinson became an instant heartthrob with his casting as the charming, elegant Edward Cullen. He was included among People magazine’s “Sexiest Men Alive” in 2008 and has won similar titles from readers of Glamour and OK magazines. “The shocking thing is (Stewart) cheated on Robert Pattinson, who is this guy who everyone in the world wants,” Drew said.

Fans might feel it when they watch the film in November. “It sort of intrudes on their universe a little bit,” he said. —AP

Lifestyle FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

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Singers perform on stage during a dress rehearsal of the new Bayreuth opera Festival production of ‘The Flying Dutchman’ in Bayreuth, southern Germany, on July 18, 2012. — AFP

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he South Korean opera singer who stepped in to salvage the Bayreuth Festival’s opening night from scandal fell to his knees seized with emotion as the curtain came down late Wednesday. Bass-baritone Samuel Youn agreed to sing the title role at just four days’ notice after the original singer, Russian opera star Yevgeny Nikitin, quit in an embarrassing affair over Nazi tattoos emblazoned across his chest. Youn, who had previously taken only minor roles at the annual month-long festival dedicated exclusively to the works of Richard Wagner, may not have quite the vocal charisma or stage presence of Nikitin, who would have been the first Russian to take a lead role in Bayreuth.

But the first-night audience, which included Chancellor Angela Merkel and most of her cabinet, gave the ersatz Dutchman a tumultuous reception at the end of the two-and-a-quarter-hour evening. The “Dutchman” is the only new production of this year’s festival, the 101st edition of the summer music festival founded by Wagner himself. German director Jan Philipp Gloger, making his debut on Bayreuth’s fabled “Green Hill”, strips everything nautical from his new staging. Wagner’s romantic opera tells of a ship’s captain condemned to roam the seas for eternity until he finds redemption in the love of a woman.

But 31-year-old Gloger, who has previously made his name in spoken theatre rather than opera, casts the title figure as a burned-out businessman who travels a loveless world with nothing more than a trolley suitcase and a cup of carry-out coffee.

Possessing more wealth than he will ever need, the unhappy fig-

H This undated photo released by Katherine Thorp shows Chad Everett, the star of the 1970s TV series ‘Medical Center.’— AP

ure throws his cash at prostitutes and even burns it and then mutilates himself by cutting his arm. Daland, the father of heroine Senta, is also an entrepreneur who manufactures electric desk fans and the famous spinning scene depicts blue-uniformed factory workers packing the products into cardboard boxes, while the sailors are a chorus of dowdy salesmen.

Senta herself appears to have a rebellious streak and artistic tendencies and constructs her fantasy Dutchman and model ship out of cardboard, sticky tape and red paint. And Erik, the man who wants to marry her, is the factory handyman. Beneath its modern-day trappings, Gloger’s reading is surprisingly conventional. And despite a striking opening scene in which Daland and the Steersman are cast adrift in a small boat in some sort of metaphorical super computer, the staging quickly runs out of steam.

At the end, Senta stabs herself with a pair of scissors and joins the Dutchman atop a pile of cardboard boxes. And Daland, ever the canny entrepreneur, quickly changes the design of the desk fan in their memory. Musically, the evening was much more satisfying. Alongide Youn, Canadian soprano Adrianne Pieczonka seemed to need some time to warm up but was convincingly dramatic as Senta and Franz-Josef Selig as Daland sang with a full, rounded bass.—AFP

ollywood remembered actor Chad Everett on Wednesday by laying flowers at his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one day after he died at home in Los Angeles of lung cancer. He was 74.

Everett was best known for his role as dashing young surgeon Joe Gannon on hospital drama “Medical Center,” which ran on U.S. television from 1969 to 1976, and earned him two Golden Globe nominations.

The actor worked in numerous roles over a career that spanned some 50 years. He was acting as recently as this year in an episode of the TV series, “Castle.” His credits include guest-starring roles on 1960s shows such as “77 Sunset Strip” and “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” After “Medical Center” came roles

aul Jacobs says the organ can be the “loneliest instrument” but as the winner of the first Grammy for a solo organ CD, touring with world-famous orchestras and as head of the organ department at the Juilliard school, he is fast building a following. The audience was on its feet at Westminster Cathedral in London on Wednesday night as Jacobs, who is 35 and on the short of side of average, played a tour-deforce recital that started, in an American’s nod to Britain, with the only organ sonata written by Elgar, and ended with French composer JeanneDemessieux’s fiendish “Octaves”, which seems to demand theperformer have three arms and four feet. (http://www.youtube.com /watch?v=TNU2qJAKzLg) The recital, like pretty much everything Jacobs does, was played from memory. “For music you love, you have to,” he said.

The previous day, in an interview at his hotel, Jacobs, dressed conservatively and hardly looking like an activist or an Olympian in this Gamesmad city, turned out to be a bit of both. Jacobs, who has toured with conductor Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Orchestra and won his Grammy in 2011 for his recording of French composer Olivier Messiaen’s deeply mystical “Livre du Saint-Sacrement” (Naxos), has strong views on the state of musical culture in the modern world. He doesn’t like it, and he’s doing his bit to change it.

“Many listeners today do not have a sense of their responsibility when encountering music, unfortunately they do not know how to listen because they have never been shown how to do so, so it’s very much the consumerist approach,” he said over a cup of very English breakfast tea in his hotel’s lobby. —Reuters

on the TV mini-series “Centennial” and shows such as “Murder, She Wrote” and “Melrose Place.”

Born Raymon Lee Cramton on June 11, 1937, in South Bend Indiana, Everett first performed in stage plays in high school and college. After graduating, he moved to Hollywood and became a contract player with Warner Bros. Along with his television roles, Everett also worked in movies during his career. His wife, actress Shelby Grant, died in 2011. He is survived by two daughters and six grandchildren.—Reuters

Paul Jacobs

Lifestyle FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

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paparazzo photographer faces criminal charges in connection with a high-speed chase of Justin Bieber earlier this month, marking the first use of a new state law designed to clamp down on photographers’ reckless pursuit of celebrities. The Los Angeles City Attorney’s office on Wednesday filed four misdemeanor charges against Paul Raef, 30, including reckless driving with the intent to capture pictures for commercial gain, reckless driving, failure to obey a peace officer and following another vehicle too closely.

Paparazzi pursuit of celebrities has long been identified as a risk in Los Angeles. “It’s Hollywood. There are a huge number of celebrities and there’s a lot of money paid for these pictures,” said attorney Harland Braun, who has defended cases involving paparazzi and who said he has had to fend off photographers chasing his celebrity clients. “Unfortunately, innocent people get caught up in these chases,” he said. “I think the law is a good thing.” City attorney spokesman Frank Mateljan said the Raef case meets all the criteria spelled out in the law which has not been used before this.

“We’re very confident in our case,” he said However, a leading First Amendment lawyer said the California law is likely to be challenged vigorously. Attorney Douglas Mirell said the statute enacted nearly two years ago seeks to punish members of the press by a different standard than the average person. “A fan doing the same thing, trying to get a glimpse of Bieber or taking a photo for their personal photo album might be engaged in the same egregious conduct. But it would fall outside the statute because they were not doing it

for a commercial purpose,” Mirell said.

He said members of the press should be prosecuted the same way as others for laws such as reckless driving but should not be singled out as more culpable than others. The charges stem from a July 6 incident in which Los Angeles Councilman Dennis Zine, a former police officer, and three other motorists called 911 to report a high speed chase along the 101 Freeway in the San Fernando Valley. Officers saw six vehicles pursuing a silver Fisker Karma, a high-end sports car driven by Bieber.

A Toyota SUV owned by Raef was seen traveling at speeds well over 80 miles an hour across all lanes of the freeway and on the shoulder, as well as forcing its way into lanes when it had no room to merge safely.

Authorities said motorists were forced to brake and swerve to avoid colliding with Raef’s vehicle and the others. Bieber pulled over when officers signaled him to do so, but Raef’s vehicle did not stop. Bieber was given a speeding ticket and released.

The matter might have ended there. But 30 minutes later, Bieber called 911 and said he was again being followed by the same Toyota. California Highway Patrol officers arrived at a downtown Los Angeles parking garage, where other paparazzi had congregated, and found the Toyota with the same license plate as the one that had chased the singer. Officers identified Raef as the driver.

Raef is scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 9. If convicted, he faces up to one year in county jail and $3,500 in fines. Raef could not immediately be located for comment. Bieber’s publicist did not respond to phone and

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ritish comedian and actor Russell Brand faced up to six months in prison on Wednesday when he was charged with a misdemeanor in New Orleans for throwing a photographer’s iPhone through a window. The “Get Him to the Greek” film star was scheduled to be arraigned yesterday before Judge Sean Early, according to New Orleans Municipal Court spokesman Baptiste Souquet. It was unclear if Brand would be in the courtroom, or whether his attorney would be allowed to enter a plea on his behalf. New Orleans police arrested the Brand on March 15 after a photographer accused the comedian of grabbing his iPhone and tossing it through a window, breaking the glass in a downtown law office. Bail was set at $5,000 for Brand and he was released shortly after his arrest. Brand’s New Orleans lawyer, Robert Glass, could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.

District attorney’s office spokesman Christopher Bowman said Brand was charged with one count of misdemeanor criminal damage to property. The charge of simple criminal damage to property valued under $500 carries a potential penalty of up to six months in prison and/or a $500 fine. People familiar with similar cases say it is unlikely Brand, if convicted, will face jail time.

This is not Brand’s first brush with the law. In 2010, he was arrested for an alleged attack on a paparazzo at a Los Angeles airport, and last year, he was deported from Japan over his criminal history when he tried to visit his then-wife Katy Perry on her concert tour in the country. —Reuters

email messages Although Bieber ended up with a speeding ticket, Mateljan said he has cooperated with authorities investigating the case.—AP

ith “Step Up Revolution,” their second summertime at-bat after “Rock of Ages,” producers Adam Shankman and Jennifer Gibgot return to one of the things they do best - making young unknowns look like the next big thing. In its fourth installment, however, the “Step Up” franchise has traded an air of inevitability for one of predictability. While die-hard fans and dance fanatics will respond on the opening weekend, ongoing competition from superheroes and cute cartoon characters may slow momentum in subsequent weeks.

After dancing its way across Baltimore and New York City in previous iterations, “Step Up” moves to Miami, where homeboys Sean (Ryan Guzman) and Eddy (Misha Gabriel) have been best buds since toddler-hood and now lead a local dance flash mob known as, well, “The Mob,” just to keep things simple. Together with their crew, including choreographers, visual artists and a DJ, the guys have been busting out surprise dance numbers all over Miami and shooting video to compete in a YouTube contest to win $1 million.

Sean’s day job as a waiter at a luxury hotel helps support his dance habit and pay the rent on the house he shares with his single-mom sister (Megan Boone) and niece. When Emily Anderson (Kathryn McCormick) turns up at the hotel - owned by her father Bill (Peter Gallagher), a ruthless real-estate developer - for a summer of bartending while preparing to audition for a coveted spot with a high-toned local dance company, attraction inevitably sparks between the two. As it turns out, aloof Emily needs Sean’s help more than she suspects. Seems that the dance company director (Mia Michaels) thinks Emily is a talented performer but wound a bit too tightly to be truly creative.

So if she wants to make it onto the roster, Emily is going to need some new moves,which she figures Sean can help deliver once she discovers he’s one of the motivators behind The Mob. After her video debut, a sexy number in a crowded, fancy restaurant, draws millions of hits online, Emily’s brought on with the group as they plan their next outrageous “mission.”

However there’s one major obstacle looming over the pair’s romantic bliss and professional success: Emily’s dad is determined to build a new luxury development after razing the multiracial community where Sean lives and hangs out with other Mob members. Although Sean agrees to keep Emily’s identity concealed while she rehearses and performs with his crew, if word gets out, his

This June 17, 2012 file photo shows singer Justin Bieber performing during the 2012 Much Music Video Awards in Toronto. — AP

street cred will be totally shot, which could complicate that business about winning the YouTube video contest.

Emily has another idea, though, encouraging Sean and The Mob to stand up to her dad’s development plans with some proactive dance interventions.

Much like hit-making music producers, Shankman and Gibgot have orchestrated a surprisingly winning series that takes promising filmmakers and performers and turns them into recognizable professionals, like directing alum John M. Chu and former man-candy dancer Channing Tatum. Making his feature-filmmaking debut, music-video and TV director Scott Speer acquits himself adequately, particularly since the movie is more akin to a long-form video project. Playwright and first-time screenwriter Amanda Brody plays it safe, leaving the pyrotechnics to the choreography team and sticking to the franchise’s proven dance-romance formula, which offers few surprises but delivers effectively. The attempt to add a modicum of social relevance to an essentially carefree entertainment vehicle by staging dance protests against the resort development is pretty much a nonstarter, particularly since there’s no indication that The Mob’s illegal assemblies are attracting the least law-enforcement attention.—AP

This film image released by Summit Entertainment shows a scene from ‘Step Up Revolution.’ — AP

FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

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Pe t s FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Counting them before they hatch Pet store owner hatches poultry adoption business

T

hough she probably wouldn’t mention this on her business card, Liz Perry is a chicken matchmaker. One of the few, if only, people performing the worthy service in southern Wisconsin, Perry helps unwanted chickens find new homes - homes where they will be egg-producing pets and not end up in a casserole dish.

As the number of urban chickens taking roost in cities and suburbs explodes, Perry - who owns two pet stores in Madison - has become the go-to foster mother for unwanted birds. She figures she’s found homes for as many as 250 chickens in the last few years. She doesn’t have a website nor does she advertise her urban chicken rescue services, but people find her anyway, often by posting questions on the website madcitychickens.com.

Shortly after she opened her first Nutzy Mutz & Crazy Catz store in Madison, customers started asking Perry if she sold chicken feed. She didn’t know Madison allowed residents to keep as many as four hens in their backyards. Realizing a business opportunity, she began stocking bags of feed. Then, when she and her husband dropped off trash at a local dump, she saw a chicken running around the landfill. They took the animal home, dubbed the new pet Consuela and were later featured in the documentary “Mad City Chickens.”

She began networking with backyard chicken owners as well as those who wanted to get chickens.

Soon, folks who no longer wanted their birds began contacting her.

Maybe they ordered four chicks but five or six were delivered by mail, or maybe one of the hens turned out to be a rooster, which is not allowed by many city ordinances. She began getting calls from animal shelters to handle chickens that were surrendered or neglected by their owners.

She once mentioned to an organic chicken farmer in Jefferson, Wis., that she finds homes for chickens. “He called and said ‘I have these girls I need to find homes for, or they’ll wind up in the stew pot.’ I said sure. He said ‘I have 80.’ I’m like - 80? But I found homes for all of them,” Perry said.

To folks who have no idea or don’t care where their omelets or chicken Parmesan come from, it might seem strange that anyone would take such an interest in chickens who need new homes. But Perry points out that chickens make good pets, they’re hearty, and they lay eggs every day. That’s why so many urban dwellers are building chicken coops in their backyards.

But invariably some owners tire of their flocks.

“It’s not unlike puppies. The chicks are super cute and fun, but then they grow up and people say:

‘My kids aren’t taking care of them anymore.’ So they’ll get dumped,” Perry said. Jen Lynch and her husband, Scott, were one of the first families recruited by Perry to take in chickens. The Madison couple had talked about getting some chicks

The Lynches are active in the local food movement and run a mobile wood-fire pizza company, La Fortuna Pizza, and wanted chickens for their eggs. Flicka and Ricka did lay eggs but they also quickly became members of the family.

Perry travels throughout southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois picking up chickens. Some are neglected, like Finch, a rooster suffering from frostbite when he ended up at an animal shelter. Perry nursed him back to health by putting aloe on

Finch, a rooster, stands on a chair while housemate Midge licks her lips. —MCT

Liz Perry holds Finch, a rooster she recently fostered as part of her work with the Urban Chicken Network. —MCT but hadn’t pursued it until Perry asked them a few years ago to take in two chickens-Flicka and Rickafeatured in the “Mad City Chickens” movie.

“They’re hilarious and tame. Ours knew commands. One used to fall asleep in my daughter’s lap. They performed antics for food they liked,” said Jen Lynch.

his damaged claws, though the frostbite did turn his red comb into a flat-top. Finch survived and now lives at the Raptor Education Center in Antigo, Wis.

Marcia Coburn, president of Red Door Animal Shelter in Chicago, found out about Perry through a friend who works at an animal hospital. Among the hardest animals to place are roosters because their loud crowing soon wears out their welcome, and many communities bar roosters from backyard coops.

Coburn doubts that any of the chickens taken to Red Door Animal Shelter run away on their own.

“Nobody has ever called us and said they lost their chicken. I think they’re abandoned,” said Coburn.

“We started working with Liz to place them. She’s placed roosters for us, too, which is really hard.”

Perry placed seven neglected chickens with Chris Holman who runs Nami Moon Farms in Custer, Wis. They met at a farmers’ market in Madison and when Holman saw Perry’s online comment about chickens needing homes, he sent her an email.

The seven chickens placed with Holman had been neglected and removed from a home with too many animals. By the time Perry arranged for them to go to Holman’s farm, they were healthy.

“We have the space, we like chickens,” said Holman, who placed the birds with his pet chicken flock.

“From my point of view if no one else will take them, we’ve got the space.”

Perry carefully vets all prospective chicken owners to ensure the birds will be pets and not Sunday dinner. But she’s also realistic and knows that sometimes chickens eventually are slaughtered, particularly when they stop laying eggs. “I don’t judge people who eat their chickens if they’re running around and are free range,” said Perry, who doesn’t eat chicken, turkey or eggs.

“If it’s a chicken that came from a bad situation I will only find them a home where they’re considered a pet.” —MCT

Stars

FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Aries (March 21-April 19) This is a great day; you will be able to accomplish anything you want to accomplish—particularly if it is by your own choice. Work situations may throw you into positions where you must deal with enclosed hidden interests. You may deal with education, psychology, spiritual enlightenment or teaching principles and techniques. Your attention may be drawn to the new ways in which you are getting around and staying in touch these days—communication at the everyday level is being changed by technology. If you must go shopping this afternoon, leave those credit cards at home. You might change your mind about a purchase later. On the plus side, your warmth will reflect back from your loved ones and everyone enjoys your company.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) This is a day when nothing is taken lightly.

Discussions seem more complex than usual and problems can seem to take a long time to unravel. Your timing should be perfect, especially after the noon break—for whatever you want to accomplish. Gut-level is the way you think, speak and perceive in the cycle you have just begun. You are not interested in the superficial; instead, you want to get right to the root of things. You do not care about the universal, only about how things influence you and yours.

You will prosper through new insights, inventions and an independent point of view. Your career could open up by taking the road less traveled and by daring to be the oddball . . . new approaches. Relax this evening—family matters can be fun.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) Personal business has your interest this day. There is a lot of drive mentally churning around that may be hard to put to work. You may find yourself trying to concentrate on two or three things at once. It could be hard to think or study during this time. A break is welcomed this afternoon and some form of group exercise will help you to refocus your thoughts. Exercise for mental and physical endurance is encouraged. These things help you feel more relaxed and confident. Enjoy the evening meal and some good conversation with friends this evening. Your current appreciation for just about everything may lead you to overspend—careful. Compare prices and teach the young people that are in your care to do the same.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) Communication is featured today. You may be in an almost continuous dialogue with customers, friends or associates at this time. Most of your conversations today are over inventions, updated technology and where the economy is headed. Perhaps you have read an article in some scientific magazine about future business. You adjust your ideals often and struggle not to become carried away with each new vision. The world of your imagination is a major focus of change. You are independent, confident and may decide to have a conference with family members about furthering your education or at the least, learning some new technology to help better your finances. A family member may decide to take a class with you.

Leo (July 23-August 22) Others may oppose your new ideas today; however, this is a time when you can expect a little boost, some sort of extra support or recognition for your recent accomplishments. You seek additional ways to express yourself—perhaps to make a profit.

Market your best skill, even if it is a hobby! The support you need to branch out in a new direction is available. Your current situation may demand some reevaluation. Your ability to get to the real heart of things comes through clearly. Your career and your sense of judgment in solving problems are in good shape. A faraway associate requests your advice this afternoon. Romance and such creative pursuits as hobbies are an outlet for you after your workday has ended.

Virgo (August 23-September 22) This day is an easy day that should find everything running in a smooth manner. Ideas and interaction with authority figures or older people may be in the forecast. It is easy for you to work with people and to guide others. The key to understanding your personality and the circumstances in which you find yourself most days can be found in the support system that surrounds you. This may mean that you are a teacher and that many other teachers can be found in your family. There are opportunities to network this afternoon. A special meeting will give you the opportunity to speak up and allow others to hear your ideas. Now is the time to clearly express your thinking on particular subjects. A family member will make a surprise visit soon.

COUNTRY CODES Libra (September 23-October 22) This today the right time to make the changes necessary for a better life. This could mean that you make moves to get a new job, change your living space, stop smoking or go for that special job change. You appreciate your particular situation and enjoy support from those around you. Being on the go and keeping a finger to the winds of change make you feel in touch. Learning is an invigorating experience for you. You can really communicate and successfully express yourself. Sharp and penetrating insight into your own inner workings and what is hidden or going on behind the scenes, is also good for research and analysis. Improvements in all areas of your life are possible this day. This is a time of good fortune and positive changes.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) You may daydream a golden opportunity for financial success. Be sure to keep an open mind about all ideas or proposals—paying attention to all the details involved. This day is a good one for making decisions, carrying out plans and communicating to others just where you stand. Make sure the dialogue goes both ways, however—others have ideas too. If you stick to the main subjects, you should accomplish a lot just now—do not become entangled in trivialities.

Communication with authority figures or older members of your family is enhanced now. You are gracious and understanding to friends and relatives. It is an excellent time to engage in activities with members of the opposite sex. It’s also a good time to give a good friend a call.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) You are invigorated, ready to conquer the world this morning. You have a desire to learn and to teach some of the new technology that is available in the workplace. You are encouraged into a positive place today. Your experiences will be out of the ordinary and enjoyable. Great opportunities may emerge from your work or in spiritual affairs. There may be instances when you will have to give a full accounting of your labors, particularly to superiors or those interested in buying your wares. The part where you have little or no contact with others is your favorite time—you must give yourself credit—you will do well when it comes to presenting yourself to others. You have plenty of eagerness to tackle any professional problem today.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19) Habits are in a cycle of change; variety satisfies a deep inner need. Being on the go and keeping a finger to the winds of change makes you feel aware and updated to all sorts of interests in the world and in your personal life. You often find yourself involved in conversations involving a variety of subjects and you like to keep informed. You are apt to spend a great deal of time communicating with co-workers and people apart from work. You may look to the social setting to improve your professional standing this whole week.

Interactions with the opposite sex on a professional level may occur during this period—careful. A wonderful intimacy is developing between you and your mate—awareness here is a good thing.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) This can be a stimulating time in the business world.

Your finances are beginning to look better and you may be able to assess your own life situation in better than usual conditions today. There is a constant yearning to broaden your horizons and now is the time. You may find yourself taking on new studies. Learning about a foreign country, law, politics, education or religion are some of the areas which you may enjoy studying. You will feel especially kind toward a friend or loved one this afternoon. A visitor in your home may compliment you on your unique tastes or belongings. This evening is emotionally rewarding as you catch up on the family or loved one’s activity. You are filled with some renewed appreciation for all that is beautiful and fine.

Pisces (February 19-March 20) Pace yourself with your work today, particularly if you find you have to put in a little overtime. The tendency to rush through what seems like ordinary work may find you missing some important details. If you are leaving on a trip—make a list and double-check it. If you are planning a party—make a list and double-check it. If you are giving a lecture, double-check your notes to make sure that none are missing—you get the idea. Later this evening, friends and family will help you lose contact with that busy world of work and timetables. There is a chance to understand those around you and to have a special time with someone you love. Tonight your plans can resume. Harmony makes this a time worth remembering.

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

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

Comics

C R O S S W O R D

7 4 9

FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

To Yester

Word Sleuth Solution

Yesterday’s Solution

ACROSS

1. Thickening of tissue in the motor tracts of the lateral columns and anterior horns of the spinal cord.

4. Large highly venomous snake of northeastern Australia.

10. A metric unit of volume or capacity equal to 10 liters.

13. 10 hao equal 1 dong.

14. Refuse to acknowledge.

15. The fatty flesh of eel.

16. The rate at which energy is drawn from a source that produces a flow of electricity in a circuit.

17. The sacred city of Lamaism.

18. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

19. Squash bugs.

21. A three-tone Chadic language.

23. A barrier constructed to contain the flow or water or to keep out the sea.

24. An official prosecutor for a judicial district.

25. An accountant certified by the state.

27. (Roman mythology) A princess of Tyre who was the founder and queen of Carthage.

29. A soft silvery metallic element of the alkali earth group.

30. Relating to or characteristic of or occurring in the air.

31. German organist and contrapuntist (1685-1750).

33. In the Arabian Nights a hero who tells of the fantastic adventures he had in his voyages.

39. The cry made by sheep.

40. The 7th letter of the Greek alphabet.

42. An arc-shaped whitish deposit sometimes seen in the cornea.

45. An endorsement.

46. Spicy fruit of the cubeb vine.

49. The female or generative principle.

52. A particular geographical region of indefinite boundary (usually serving some special purpose or distinguished by its people or culture or geography).

53. A Russian river.

57. An authoritative direction or instruction to do something.

62. Black tropical American cuckoo.

63. Obvious and dull.

64. A collection of facts from which conclusions may be drawn.

65. A spacecraft that carries astronauts from the command module to the surface of the moon and back.

66. Jordan's port.

67. By bad luck.

DOWN 1. Having the leading position or higher score in a contest.

2. A genus of Lamnidae.

3. An upholstered seat for more than one person.

4. A genus of Cichlidae.

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

6. In or of the present month.

7. Arranged for pictorial purposes.

8. Brazilian tree with handsomely marked wood.

9. A colorless odorless gaseous element that give a red glow in a vacuum tube.

10. No longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life.

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

12. Wild or domesticated South American cud-chewing animal related to camels but smaller and lacking a hump.

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

22. (Babylonian) A demigod or first man.

26. A unit of dry measure used in Egypt.

28. A tax on various goods brought into a town.

32. (informal) Rural and uncouth.

34. A state in midwestern United States.

35. A silvery soft waxy metallic element of the alkali metal group.

36. A small cake leavened with yeast.

37. French writer whose novels described the sordid side of city life (18041857).

38. A hormone secreted by the anterior pituitary gland that controls the degree of pigmentation in melanocytes.

41. A region in central Italy.

42. Arranged for pictorial purposes.

43. Large brownish-green New Zealand parrot.

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

47. Liquid excretory product.

48. Make difficult to perceive by sight.

50. Sluggish tailless Australian arboreal marsupial with gray furry ears and coat.

51. A metallic element of the rare earth group.

54. The food served and eaten at one time.

55. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

56. A river that rises in northeastern Turkey (near the source of the Euphrates) and flows generally eastward through Armenia to the Caspian Sea. 58. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

59. East Indian tree bearing a profusion of intense vermilion velvet-textured blooms and yielding a yellow dye.

60. Tag the base runner to get him out.

61. A federal agency established to regulate the release of new foods and health-related products.

Yesterday’s Solution

Sports FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Nationals roll over Mets

ARLINGTON: Boston Red Sox’s Pedro Ciriaco (77) slides into second base during the double play against Texas Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler (left) during the first inning.—AP

Holland guides Rangers to victory over Red Sox ARLINGTON: Texas’ Derek Holland struck out seven and pitched into the eighth inning, guiding the Rangers to a 5-3 win over the Boston Red Sox in the American League on Wednesday.

Holland (7-5) allowed five hits in 7 2-3 innings, and came out of the game soon after a stretch when he retired 20 of 22 batters.

Texas took advantage of a couple of wild throws by Boston pitcher Josh Beckett to score the go-ahead run.

Elvis Andrus was hit on the left forearm by a pitch to reach base with one out in the seventh. He got to third on a single by Adrian Beltre and scored to break a 3-3 tie when Beckett (5-9) threw a wild pitch that bounced several feet wide of the plate.

Yankees 5, Mariners 2 In Seattle, Jayson Nix lined a three-run double in the eighth inning as New York rallied for a 5-2 victory over Seattle to complete a disappointing 2-5 West Coast trip on a positive note.

Nix’s liner scored Derek Jeter, Robinson Cano and Mark Teixeira. It was Nix’s first hit in eight at-bats during the trip. His hit came off Shawn Kelley, who had relieved Lucas Luetge (1-1) after he loaded the bases. Seattle got just one hit after the first inning.

David Phelps (2-3) threw 1 1-3 innings of relief and struck out two to get the victory.

Tigers 5, Indians 3 In Cleveland, Max Scherzer allowed two runs over seven innings to win his fourth straight decision, guiding Detroit past Cleveland. Quintin Berry had three hits and drove in two runs to help Scherzer (10-5) win for the first time in four career starts at Progressive Field. Scherzer, whose only mistake came on a tworun homer in the third, held the Indians to three hits and struck out eight. The Tigers remained tied for first in the AL Central with Chicago, while the third-place Indians fell four games out.

Cleveland starter Derek Lowe (8-9) allowed five runs in six innings, but wasn’t helped by shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera’s throwing errors on consecutive plays that allowed two runs to score in the second.

Rays 10, Orioles 1 In Baltimore, David Price allowed one run over seven innings to earn his major league-leading 14th victory, leading Tampa Bay to an easy win over Baltimore. Price (14-4) struck out 10 and walked none. He has won a career-high six straight decisions.

Ryan Roberts homered and scored three runs in his debut for the Rays, who scored their 10 runs in the first five innings; more than they’d scored in the previous four games combined. Orioles rookie Miguel Gonzalez (2-2) gave up a leadoff homer in the first and took the loss.

Athletics 16, Blue Jays 0 In Toronto, the visitors inflicted Toronto’s heaviest-ever shutout defeat and won a season-high seventh straight game.

Coco Crisp hit two home runs and Yoenis Cespedes had two RBI doubles for the A’s, who are 16-2 in July.

Things got so out of hand that the Blue Jays used catcher Jeff Mathis to pitch the ninth inning, and he gave up two runs.

Oakland starter A.J. Griffin (3-0) pitched six scoreless innings, striking out nine. He has a 2.25 ERA. Toronto starter Ricky Romero (8-7) lasted only 1 1-3 innings in the shortest start of his career. He lost his sixth decision in a row.—AP

NEW YORK: Washington ace Stephen Strasburg struck out 11 batters in seven innings as the Nationals won 5-2 on Wednesday, completing a series sweep of the free-falling New York Mets. Strasburg (11-4) gave up four hits in matching his career best for innings, done seven times.

Michael Morse and Danny Espinosa hit consecutive homers, while Espinosa also doubled and scored on one of the Mets’ two errors in the Nationals’ fifth straight win.

The Mets’ 1-11 slide after the All-Star break is approaching their record for futility to start the second half of a season. The 1962 Mets won just one of their first 15 games en route to a 40-120 season.

New York starter Jeremy Hefner (1-4) labored through six innings, giving up three runs n his fourth big league start.

Cardinals 3, Dodgers 2 In St. Louis, Rafael Furcal singled home the winning run with two outs in the 12th inning as St. Louis edged Los Angeles.

Lance Berkman, who left a day earlier with a bruised knee after being hit by a pitch, drew a one-out walk in the 12th from Jamey Wright (4-3). Matt Carpenter singled with two outs and Furcal drove home pinch-runner Joe Kelly.

The loss dampened the Dodgers debut of Hanley Ramirez. The All-Star infielder, acquired the previous night from Miami, tripled on the first pitch he saw with his new team. He went 2 for 4 with a walk, scoring once and hitting the RBI single in sixth that made it 2-2.

Cardinals reliever Fernando Salas (1-3) pitched two scoreless innings to pick up his first victory in more than a year.

Braves 7, Marlins 1 In Miami, Juan Francisco homered and drove in three runs for Atlanta in the win over Miami. Michael Bourn and Jason Heyward also homered for the Braves, to back Tommy Hanson (11-5), who pitched around a career-high seven walks and allowed one run in five innings.

Marlins starter Ricky Nolasco (8-9) gave up six runs in 5 1-3 innings, dropping to 02 with a 9.64 ERA against the Braves this season.

A Marlins Park-record crowd of 36,711 watched the home team steal seven bases, the most in the major leagues this season.

Padres 6, Giants 3 In San Francisco, Jesus Guzman hit two home runs and Chase Headley had one as San Diego avoided a three-game sweep

by San Francisco.

Giants starter Tim Lincecum (4-11) was quickly hooked after he allowed five runs in 4 2-3 innings. Padres starter Jason Marquis (4-5) gave up one earned run in 7 1-3 innings, striking out eight and walking one.

Pirates 3, Cubs 2 In Pittsburgh, Kevin Correia won his career-best fifth straight start as Pittsburgh edged Chicago. Correia (8-6) gave up four hits in six innings, helping Pittsburgh avoid getting swept at home.

Garrett Jones drove in the go-ahead run with a two-out double in the sixth.

Cubs starter Ryan Dempster (5-5) allowed three runs in six innings. His ERA, which had been a major league-leading 2.11, rose to 2.25. Pirates closer Joel Hanrahan recorded his 29th save in 32 chances.

NEW YORK: Washington Nationals starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg pitches during the first inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets.—AP the season.

John Mayberry Jr. walked with one out Reds 5, Astros 3 In Houston, Drew Stubbs delivered in the 10th against Francisco Rodriguez (2another huge hit in the ninth inning; a 6). Eric Kratz followed with a double. two-out, two-run double that rallied Carlos Ruiz hit a sacrifice fly to tie it. Rollins Cincinnati past Houston and to its season- hit an RBI single.

The Phillies have won four straight, high seventh straight win.

Stubbs came through with the Reds including three walkoff wins. Rollins also trailing 3-2. A night earlier, he hit a two- had the winning hit in the 12th against run homer in the ninth that wiped out the San Francisco on Sunday.

The Phillies scored four runs off Astros’ one-run lead. Both of Stubbs’ hits came against former teammate Francisco Rodriguez in the ninth in a 7-6 win Cordero (3-7). The NL Central leaders sent Monday, and six in the eighth in a 7-6 win Houston to its ninth straight loss, tying a Tuesday. The Brewers lost their sixth straight - all on the road. Philadelphia’s season worst.

Xavier Paul opened the Cincinnati Michael Schwimer (2-1) allowed an ninth with a double off Cordero and unearned run in the 10th, but earned the Brandon Phillips drew a one-out walk. win.

Stubbs’ double allowed Paul and Phillips Rockies 4, D’backs 2 to score. Jay Bruce added an insurance run In Phoenix, Jeff Francis pitched 6 1-3 with an RBI single. Reds reliever Sean Marshall (3-3) got the last out in the eighth strong innings, steering Colorado past for the win. Cordero has blown both of his Arizona and avoiding a three-game save opportunities since joining the Astros sweep.

Francis (3-2) allowed two runs and one from Toronto on Friday. walk in his longest outing of the season.

Wilin Rosario hit a two-run homer for the Phillies 7, Brewers 6 In Philadelphia, Jimmy Rollins hit an RBI Rockies. The Diamondbacks overall winsingle with two outs in the 10th innings as ning streak ended at five games while its Philadelphia rallied in its last at-bat for the home streak ended at eight games. fourth straight day, edging Milwaukee and Arizona starter Trevor Cahill (8-9) went 6 2completing its first three-game sweep of 3 innings, allowing four runs.—AP

MLB results/standings Washington 5, NY Mets 2; Pittsburgh 3, Chicago Cubs 2; Atlanta 7, Miami 1; Philadelphia 7, Milwaukee 6 (10 innings); Chicago White Sox 8, Minnesota 2; LA Angels 11, Kansas City 6; NY Yankees 5, Seattle 2; San Diego 6, San Francisco 3; Tampa Bay 10, Baltimore 1; Detroit 5, Cleveland 3; Oakland 16, Toronto 0; Texas 5, Boston 3; Cincinnati 5, Houston 3; St. Louis 3, La Dodgers 2 (12 innings); Colorado 4, Arizona 2.

American League Eastern Division W L PCT NY Yankees 59 39 .602 Tampa Bay 51 47 .520 Baltimore 51 47 .520 Boston 49 50 .495 Toronto 48 49 .495 Central Division Detroit 53 45 .541 Chicago White Sox 53 45 .541 Cleveland 49 49 .500 Kansas City 41 56 .423 Minnesota 40 58 .408 Western Division Texas 58 39 .598 Oakland 53 44 .546 LA Angels 54 45 .545 Seattle 43 57 .430

GB 8 8 10.5 10.5 4 11.5 13 5 5 16.5

National League Eastern Division Washington 58 39 .598 Atlanta 54 44 .551 NY Mets 47 51 .480 Miami 45 53 .459 Philadelphia 45 54 .455 Central Division Cincinnati 58 40 .592 Pittsburgh 55 42 .567 St. Louis 52 46 .531 Milwaukee 44 53 .454 Chicago Cubs 40 57 .412 Houston 34 65 .343 Western Division San Francisco 55 43 .561 LA Dodgers 53 46 .535 Arizona 49 49 .500 San Diego 42 58 .420 Colorado 37 60 .381

4.5 11.5 13.5 14 2.5 6 13.5 17.5 24.5 2.5 6 14 17.5

Sports FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Kharafi National lift Kuwait Cricket Summer League title

Saeed Mubarak handing over the winners trophy to Kharafi National captain KUWAIT: Kharafi National cricket team won the prestigious Kuwait Cricket Summer League trophy by defeating Boom Boom cricket club by a margin of 64 runs in a closely contested tussle at Sulaibiya cricket ground. Kharafi National owes this victory for their splendid team work which fetched them the coveted trophy.

Winning the toss, Boom Boom send Kharafi Nationals team to bat first as openers Paresh Kumar and Vipin piled up 75 runs. Both the batsmen exhibiting some wonderful strokes as they drove and pulled with awesome power.

Vipin departed after scoring a valuable 22 runs while Paresh Kumar along with the stylish Alwin Patel stroked handsomely to take the Kharafi National

score to 160 runs in their allotted 20 overs. Paresh Kumar scored a marvelous 52 runs while Alwin Patel batted beautifully well to score 43 runs.

Boom Boom played positively in the initial stages but crumbled to some excellent bowling by Abdul Razzak who was supported well by Renil Raj & Santhosh which restricted the free scoring Boom Boom batsmen as they failed to take the initiative and they were all out for 96 runs in the 17th over.

Waqar batted well to score 34 runs while Ansar stood firm with a painstaking 19 runs. Abdul Razzak took 4 wickets for 20 runs while Renil Raj 3-23 and Santhosh 2-11 provide the much needed back up for National Kharafi victory.

The winning trophy was handed over

Runners-Up trophy presented by Asad Baig to Boom Boom Captain to Kharafi National captain by Saeed Mubarak, Board member, Kuwait Cricket and runners up trophy was presented to Boom Boom captain by Asad Baig, Director General, Kuwait Cricket.

Man of the match trophy was presented by Umar to Paresh Kumar while Alwin Patel rightly took the Man of the series trophy from Saeed Mubarak. The match was officiated by Zahid Usman and Fareed Dalwai. A prize money of $500 was given to the winning team while the runner up team received $250 along with individual prizes handed over by Mahboob Khan (Director Women’s Cricket) and Iqbal Rajporkar the tournament coordinator while Riaz Choudhry ( Director Umpiring) was the master of ceremony.

Man of the Match trophy presented by Umar to Paresh Kumar

Guptill falls short of ton ANTIGUA: Martin Guptill fell three runs short of his third test century as New Zealand closed the first day of the first Test against West Indies on 232 for four at North Sound, Antigua.

Guptill’s patient 249 ball, 353 minute innings was the backbone of a solid opening day for the tourists, who won the toss, but two late wickets gave West Indies a chance of making some inroads late yesterday. Off-spinner Sunil Narine, playing in his first test in the Caribbean after making his debut in the five-day game on the tour of England in June, showed his value with three wickets.

SCOREBOARD Scoreboard at the end of the first day of the first test between West Indies and New Zealand at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound, Antigua yesterday: New Zealand D.Flynn c Powell b Narine 45 M.Guptill c Deonarine b Narine 97 B.McCullum c Deonarine b Roach 25 R.Taylor b Narine 45 N.Wagner not out 4 K.Williamson not out 2 Extras (b-6, lb-1,w-1, nb-6) 14 Total (four wickets, 90 overs) 232 To bat: D.Bracewell, D.Brownlie, C.Martin, C van Wyk, D.Vettori.

Fall of wickets: 1-97, 2-133, 3-223, 4-228 Bowling: Rampaul 15-3-34-0 (w-1), Roach 154-46-1 (nb-5), Sammy 18-6-43-0, Narine 28-773-3 (nb-1), Samuels 6-2-14-0, Fudadin 5-1-110, Deonarine 3-1-4-0.

Guptill put on 97 for the first wicket with Daniel Flynn before Narine got his first test wicket and a much-needed breakthrough for Darren Sammy’s side after a fruitless morning session.

Flynn, on 45, attempted to cut a rising, short delivery from Narine but was beaten by some extra bounce and chopped the ball to Kieran Powell at point.

It was a moment of relief for the Caribbean side who had bowled pretty well in the early stages for little reward with Kemar Roach and Ravi Rampaul getting some movement.

Roach finally got his reward when Brendon McCullum (25) drove him straight to Narsingh Deonarine at mid-off who held on well.

Skipper Ross Taylor then got his head down with Guptill in a solid 90 run partnership which frustrated the hosts and the handful of spectators at the sadly empty Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.

But six overs from the close Narine struckagain with a shorter delivery-when Taylor gloved the ball on to his stumps as he attempted to work the ball to the onside.

Then Guptill, with the prospect of ending the day unbeaten and with a century to his name, had a rush of blood as he allowed the moment to get to him.

Attempting to sweep Narine, the opener got a top edge which was snaffled up by Deonarine at mid-on to the delight of Sammy.

New Zealand will now have to consolidate late yesterday rather than motor towards an imposing total but it was nonetheless a day when their top order showed they could handle themselves in Caribbean conditions.-Reuters

ANTIGUA: In this image released by DigicelCricket.com, New Zealand’s opener Martin Guptill (left) plays a shot past West Indies’ wicket keeper Dinesh Ramdin during the opening day of their first cricket Test match. —AP

Sports FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Super Rugby hots up for semi-finals HAMILTON: Super Rugby fans can expect test match intensity in this weekend’s semi-finals with arguably the four best sides over the course of the season preparing to hammer into each other. The seven-times champion Canterbury Crusaders head north to Hamilton to meet the New Zealand conference winners the Waikato Chiefs.

The showdown comes just three weeks after the two sides engaged in a match of such quality many felt the players were still on international duty. The table-topping Stormers, who have relied on smothering defence and grinding efficiency this season, will host fellow South African side the Sharks.

The Sharks return to South Africa after criss-crossing the Indian Ocean to beat 2011 champions the Queensland Reds in Brisbane.

The Stormers overhauled the Chiefs for the top spot in the regular season after the Hamilton-based side lost their final two matches to the Crusaders and the Wellington Hurricanes.

Chiefs coach Dave Rennie was unimpressed with his side’s execution in their final match against the Hurricane. “Last week was about having a look at our game, pulling it to pieces and fine-tuning a few things that haven’t been working so well for us,” Chiefs forwards coach Tom Coventry said.

“Possibly they’ve been a little bit blurred after we came back from the four-week break (for the international window) and some of the things that were working well for us had either been forgotten or weren’t being implemented that well.”

Tonga prop Sona Taumalolo will start at loosehead prop for the Chiefs, while fellow prop Ben Afeaki will

return from injury on the bench for the match at the Waikato Stadium.

All Blacks flanker Sam Cane will once again be on the bench while Tanerau Latimer will start on the open side. The Crudsaders, who dominated the Chiefs in the set-piece three weeks ago to win 28-21 and comfortably accounted for the the Bulls in the playoffs last week, made just one change to their side. Owen Franks will make way for his brother Ben at the tighthead prop.

“They’ve had time to analyse us and other things around their game, including their lineout and backs.

We’re expecting new stuff and hopefully we’ll be ready for it,” said Crusaders scrum coach Dave Hewett.

The Durban-based Sharks, who beat the Reds 30-17 last week, have been in knock-out mode for the last three weeks when a loss in either of their last two games would have ended their playoff hopes. They will have to deal with the debilitating travel effects of crossing the Indian Ocean twice in less than a week while the Cape Town-based Stormers are coming off a week’s rest and have the advantage of hosting the semi-final match-up.

The Sharks will also have to deal with the Stormers’ superb defensive record, having conceded just 21 tries, the best in the tournament.

Sharks coach John Plumtree was aware of the difficulty that his charges face in trying to turn over the Stormers on their home ground.

“They have a real belief in what they do, their leadership is clearly very strong because they get out there and play consistent rugby every week,” Plumtree said. “That is why they finished top, that is why they are in a situation where, if they beat us, they get a home final.”— Reuters

LOS ANGELES: Igor Sijsling of the Netherlands returns the ball during a second round singles match against Sam Querrey of the United States at the Farmers Classic tennis tournament. — AP

Querrey breezes into quarters LOS ANGELES: Two-time champion Sam Querrey won his opening match in the Farmers Classic, beating Igor Sijsling of the Netherlands 6-2, 6-2 on Wednesday at the Los Angeles Tennis Center.

Querrey, the 2009 and 2010 tournament winner who missed the event last year after undergoing surgery for a right shoulder injury, had nine aces and didn’t face a break point in the 53-minute match.

“I feel like it’s my tournament to win (again),” Querrey said. “I played great. I served really well, a lot of energy, and I hit my forehand great. There were a couple of little thing I could nitpick here and there but overall it was really good.” In the quarterfinals today, the American will face fifth-seeded Xavier Malisse of Belgium or Matthew Ebden of Austria.

Earlier, Rajeev Ram beat Chile’s Paul Capdeville 6-3, 6-1 in another second-round match. The American

lost only nine points on serve and had 10 aces. He dominated the 64-minute match with that serve, winning 85 percent of his first-serve points (22-26) and 69 percent on his second serve (11-16).

“I just tried to get as many balls in (play) as I could,” said Ram, who beat former junior doubles partner Brian Baker in the first round. “I also served well. It’s important to win consecutive matches. That’s what the top guys do. This was an important step for me.

I’m trying to compete hard and not make too many errors. I don’t want to beat myself out there.”

Ram set up a match against third-seeded Leonardo Mayer of Argentina. Mayer had a 6-0, 4-0 lead when Italy’s Flavio Cipolla retired because of a neck injury.

Ram won the singles and doubles titles in Newport, RI, in 2009, beating Querrey in the singles final, and made the semifinals there this year. — AP

Al-Roudhan Indoor Soccer KUWAIT: In the tournament of the late Abdullah Mushari Al-Roudhan for Indoor Soccer, Brazilian player Wilson led his team Abyat to a stunning 9-0 victory over the Australian college.

The sixth day of competition also witnessed four-goal victory of Kuwaiti Investment Co. against Al Ghazal Group. Al Oula for gasoline defeated Ministry of Defence with same result.

In the first game Abyat players thrilled the audience with a

very high technical performance and high skills, which was well appreciated. The Brazilian star Wilson has recorded four goals with four different strikes and he amused the public who responded and encouraged the team all the way.

FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

LONDON: In this multiple exposure photo, a Brazilian gymnast performs on the vault during training at the 2012 Summer Olympics. —AP

Gymnastics still searching for right formula — Patterson LONDON: Just when it appeared that residents in Dallas would have an Olympic gymnastics champion cleaning and polishing their teeth, making their all-American smiles sparkle brighter, Carly Patterson made a frightening discovery.

“Chemistry was so scary!” the 2004 Athens all-around gold medallist exclaimed before flashing her own megawatt smile.

“I started off with intentions of going into dental hygiene but I quickly found out that chemistry and biology are not my forte. When I realised I would have to do harder maths just to move forward with the dental hygiene degree, I was like, no. “So I quickly split.”

Unable to work out what SnO2 + 2H2 adds up to, she decided to try out a formula that was more to her liking - a bachelor degree in communications.

Eight years on from her golden moment, she will get a chance to put her media skills into practice during the London Games, where she will be working as an expert for American TV. However, while excited at the prospect of seeing whether fellow Americans Jordyn Wieber or Gabby Douglas can follow in her footsteps, Patterson is unsure if she will enjoy everything she will see over the next fortnight. “Things are so different even from eight years ago from when I was in the Olympics.

We had a lot more leaps and jumps that made gymnastics a lot more artistic,” Patterson, now 24, told Reuters in a telephone interview.

“You now see gymnasts trying to get the highest start value they can and they are cramming their routines with as many tricks as possible. They have now lost a lot of the dance elements as they try to get in as many skills as they can to get more points.”

Like Patterson, officials at the sport’s governing body (FIG) also do not like the direction women’s gymnastics has taken, despite devising the code of points which has resulted in waif-like, pony-tailed competitors favouring jaw-dropping acrobatic tricks at the expense of old-fashioned artistry.

As a result, the FIG has tweaked its rules so that women include only eight skills in their routines rather than the 10 that was compulsory in Beijing four years ago. However, Patterson believes the constant chopping and changing of rules is also to blame for the current culture.

“Gymnastic (rules) change almost every year and every four years the rules are totally made over. I think sometimes they can be left a little bit longer and keep working things out, and not change them so drastically. It is very different even from even two Olympics ago that I was in,” she explained.

“With gymnastics, it’s such a short lifespan for women, they just adapt to the code of points that exist at the time. So it’s not like the same gymnast has to keep adapting every four years because by the time the rules change, they are already on their way out.

“There is no longevity in the sport that you see with swimming, tennis or golf.”

Once the Games are over, Patterson, who leads a “normal and anonymous life” in the three years between every Olympics, will quickly switch her focus to something she hopes will have a long lifespan — marriage.

Patterson got engaged to “a regular guy who doesn’t even remember if he saw me at the Olympics” in January and is now in the midst of sorting out her invite list for the Nov. 3 wedding in her hometown of Dallas.

“The engagement was a total surprise.

Mark tricked me into going to see this house he said his parents were going to buy, but he lied to me,” said Patterson.

“As soon as we got to the site to look at it, I saw the ‘will you marry me’ sign set up and he had candles and flowers and champagne.

Then family came out from behind trees to celebrate with us so it was really, really sweet.

“Sorting out the invite list has been the toughest part. You can invite everyone you’ve ever met but I want to keep my wedding as small as possible but just with my side of the family, it’s already up to 100. It’s going be tough to keep the numbers down.”—Reuters

Games final could see repeat of Wimbledon LONDON: Top seeded Roger Federer could meet Britain’s Andy Murray in the Olympic tennis final in a repeat of Wimbledon earlier this month, after the pair were drawn on opposite sides of the competition yesterday.

Third seed Murray will take on Federer’s fellow-Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka in his opening match. Federer, the top seed and world number one, will play Colombia’s Alejandro Falla while Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, seeded two, will face Italy’s Fabio Fognini.

Women’s top seed Belarusian Victoria Azarenka will play Romanian world number 79 Irina-Camelia Begu in the first round when the competition kicks off later this week.

America’s Serena Williams, fresh from her fifth Wimbledon title, takes on former world number one Jelena Jankovic of Serbia.

Neither of Beijing’s singles gold medallists will be returning to defend their titles, after Spain’s Rafa Nadal was forced to pull out through injury and Russia’s Elena Dementieva retired.

Top seeded mens duo Mike and Bob Bryan will play Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci and Andre Sa, and could face Beijing doubles gold medallists Federer and Wawrinka in the quarter finals.

In the women’s doubles, top seeded American’s Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond get a pass to the second round after the withdrawal of Ukraine’s Alona and Kateryna Bondarenko due to injury.

Unseeded defending gold medallists Venus and Serena Williams will take on Romania’s Sorana Cirstea and Simona Halep.—Reuters

LONDON: US tennis player Venus Williams is pictured during a training session at Wimbledon before the start of the London 2012 Olympic Games. —AFP

FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Saudi judo fighter banned from wearing hijab LONDON: Saudi judoka Wojdan Shaherkani was yesterday banned from wearing the hijab head scarf when she is fighting at the Olympic Games. The 18-year-old heavyweight, part of a two-woman team sent from Saudi Arabia to an Olympics for the first time, was ordered by International Judo Federation president Marius Vizer to step onto the mat with her head uncovered.

“The Saudi Arabian athlete will take part in judo and she will fight according to the principle and spirit of judo, so without a hijab,” said Vizer follow-

ing yesterday’s draw.

Judo applies strict safety rules and any covering on the head is deemed to present a risk to the fighter’s health.

Shaherkani is due to take part in the women’s judo competition on August 3. Saudi Arabia only agreed to send a women’s team to London on condition that their two athletes respect a strict dress code.

The country’s most senior sports official Prince Nawaf bin Faisal had told local daily Al-Jazirah the two athletes would be allowed to compete as long as they will be “wearing suitable cloth-

ing that complies with sharia.”

Additionally he added other stipulations that: “the athlete’s guardian agrees and attends with her,” and “there must also be no mixing with men during the Games”.

Men and women share the judo training venue, warm-up area in the competition hall and fight side-by-side on the various mat areas inside the competition arena. American-raised 800m runner Sarah Attar is the second woman in the Saudi squad in London.

She has spent little time in the Islamic kingdom and grew up mostly

in California, where she took up cross country running. Attar appears without a headscarf in her official London 2012 photo.

For Shaherkani her participation is also contentious on other safety grounds as she has only been involved in the sport for two years and is not even a black belt.

That means she very likely is nowhere near the level of the international fighters she will be coming up against. She will fight Puerto Rico’s Melissa Mojica, ranked 13 in the world, in the first round.—AFP

Cameron says security the priority on eve of Games

LONDON: Torchbearer Kevin Crain (right) passes the Olympic Flame to John Elbrow (left) outside St. Paul’s Cathedral, in central London, ahead of the 2012 Summer Olympics.—AP

Olympic torch goes on lap through London LONDON: The Olympic torch began a festive valedictory lap around London yesterday, taking in some of the sun-drenched capital’s most famous landmarks on the second-to-last day of its trek across Britain.

The torch - carried by athletes, charity workers and celebrities - thrilled thousands of Londoners as it swept across Regent’s Canal in Camden, through the city’s newly renovated neo-gothic train station at St. Pancras and down the winding streets of the ancient City of London.

For many Londoners, it was their first glimpse of a golden beacon that has spent the past 68 days traveling up and down the country, from Loch Ness to Land’s End and beyond.

On Friday, the torch will complete its journey, lighting the Olympic Stadium’s cauldron in a ceremony marking the official start of the 2012 London Games.

Yesterday’s relay - which began in a burst of sunshine following months of awful weather - seemed to lift London’s spirits. In the north London neighborhood of Camden, many families with young children got up early to see the torch as it kicked off its relay at the Victorian-era Roundhouse building around 6:50 a.m.

The good-natured crowd defied security guards’ efforts to corral them behind barriers, mobbing Clive Woodward, the former English rugby star who was the first torchbearer of the day.

The torch was later sped across London’s River Thames by Paralympic champion Ade Adipitan, whose dreadlocks flapped in the wind as he propelled his wheelchair across the slender, blade-like Millennium Bridge.

Londoners who’ve spent much of the past few weeks worrying about rain, security, and strikes appeared to lighten up as the flame made its way across town. In the south London borough of Lambeth, thick, flag-waving crowds chanted “We want the torch!”

In nearby Wandsworth, 24-year-old John Lake - a cancer survivor who has raised thousands of pounds for the Brain Research Trust - pumped his fist and waved the torch back and forth as he ran down the road with a mile-wide grin on his face.

“Make some noise!” someone shouted as the crowd erupted into cheers.

Other runners are carrying the flame past some of the city’s most impressive landmarks on Thursday, including the Houses of Parliament, St. Paul’s Cathedral, 10 Downing St. and Buckingham Palace, where it will be greeted by Prince William and his wife Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge. —AP

LONDON: British Prime Minister David Cameron declared security his main concern on the eve of the London Olympics yesterday while US presidential hopeful Mitt Romney backtracked on unflattering comments he made.

“The biggest concern has always got to be a safe and secure Games,” Cameron told a press conference with the Olympic Stadium as a backdrop.

“That matters more than anything else.

“I think we’ve made as many preparations as we can. I think we have very good contingency plans in place.

“Always as prime minister I feel that is an area I should take personal responsibility for.”

London’s security preparations had been called into question in comments by Republican candidate Romney, who is in London to attend the opening ceremony today.

Romney said several issues in the build-up to the Games had been “disconcerting”, focusing on a fiasco involving private security contractor G4S which has failed to provide the number of private guards it had promised.

“The stories about the private security firm not having enough people, the supposed strike of the immigration and customs officials-that obviously is not something which is encouraging,” he told NBC News on Wednesday.

It was “hard to know just how well it will turn out”, Romney added. But Romney, who took over the preparations for the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City after they were marred by scandal, struck a more diplomatic note after he met British opposition Labour Party leader Ed Miliband. “It is impossible for absolutely no mistakes to occur,” Romney said.

“Of course there will be errors from time to time, but those are all overshadowed by the extraordinary demonstrations of courage, character and determination by the athletes.

“The Games are, after all, about the athletes, the volunteers and the people of the community who come together to celebrate those athletes.

As soon as the Games begin, we all forget the organisers and focus on the

LONDON: A slalom canoeist empties his canoe during a training session at the Lee Valley Whitewater Center, ahead of the 2012 Summer Olympics.—AP

athletes.”

Britain has deployed an additional 4,700 troops in recent days to make up the shortfall in private security guards, taking the total military deployment to 18,200. The huge operation to safeguard the Games is Britain’s biggest peacetime security mobilisation.

Meanwhile, Games organisers and Cameron tried to downplay a mix-up which saw North Korea’s women football team walk off the pitch in an embarrassing start to the competitive action at the Games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) apologised to the North Korean delegation after its football squad were shown on giant screens next to South Korea’s flag, at their opener against Colombia on Wednesday at Hampden Park in Glasgow.

Relations between the two Koreas, still officially at war and facing each other over the world’s most heavily guarded border, have worsened in recent months over the communist North’s nuclear programme.

The North Korean players left the pitch in protest but were persuaded to return an hour later after the mis-

take had been rectified, and went on to record a 2-0 victory.

“This was an honest mistake, honestly made,” Cameron said. “An apology has been made and I’m sure every step will be taken to make sure these things don’t happen again.

“We shouldn’t inflate this episode.

It was unfortunate, it shouldn’t have happened, and I think we can leave it at that.” IOC president Jacques Rogge described the incident as “most unfortunate”.

“I can assure you the organising committee will take corrective action and there will be no repeat,” he said yesterday.

In a lighter comment, Cameron said he would watch the judo events at the Games with Russian President Vladimir Putin-but joked it could get in the way of their trade talks.

“I discussed EU bilateral trade with the Brazilian president (Dilma Rousseff) yesterday-she’s here for the Games,” he told business leaders in London.

“I will do the same with the Russian president next week when he’s here,” he added. “We will be at the judo, so it may be a bit off-putting.”—AFP

FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

Linguistic faux-pas

LONDON: Michael Phelps trains at the Aquatics Center at the Olympic Park. Opening ceremonies for the 2012 London Olympics will be held today. — AP

Torres: Keeping quiet the best way to beat Phelps LONDON: The first US swimmer to compete at five Olympics has some advice for Ryan Lochte and anyone else who wants to beat Michael Phelps: Keep quiet. “If I was his competitor, I wouldn’t say a word,” four-time Olympic champion Dara Torres said yesterday.

Phelps’ duel with US teammate Lochte will be the main event in swimming at this year’s Olympics, and although their rivalry has so far been friendly and respectful - if intense - the heat could go up a notch in London.

Torres, who won 12 medals in an Olympic career that began in 1984 and ended in 2008, told The Associated Press that any trashtalking or mind games would only work in 14-time gold medalist Phelps’ favor. “He takes that very seriously, and he uses that against his competitor,” she said.

Speaking to AP at a sponsor’s event in the heart of Olympic Park and next to the main stadium, Torres said the battle between the pair would be “fun” but they must remember that they’re on the same team and it “stays in the pool.” Phelps first competed at the 2000 Sydney Games as a teenager. Torres said he might reconsider his decision to retire after London and end the most successful Olympic swimming career in history.

Phelps won a record eight gold medals in Beijing in 2008 and has more Olympic golds overall than any other athlete. But before he touches the wall for the last time at the Olympics, Phelps will face

probably his biggest challenge when he goes up against Lochte, who won one of their head-to-head contests at the US trials and beat Phelps twice at the world championships in 2011. They will compete against each other in the 200- and 400-meter individual medleys in London.

“Obviously, people like showdowns, and there is a showdown between Phelps and Lochte, and it’s going to be really fun to watch because they are both just fiercely competitive,” Torres said.

“There’s finally someone at Michael’s feet giving him a run for his money. Michael wants to win, and Ryan doesn’t want to lose, either.” Torres, now 45, returned to swim in Beijing after sitting out the 2004 Olympics and won three silvers at age 41. It wouldn’t be easy for Phelps to give up, she said, and no longer have something that’s been a part of his life for so long. Phelps has said he will retire after the 2012 Games, at the much younger age of 27. “In his 20s, right?” Torres said. “I remember when he swam his first Olympics in 2000 at 15 years old. I think people forget that.”

Torres said Phelps’ plan to retire is “pretty convincing,” but she cautioned that no athlete knows ahead of time what it feels like to be away from competition. “So never say never,” she said. “He says that he’s done, and he very well may be, but he has to wait and experience what it’s like not being in the sport for a little while to see if he really is done.”—AP

LONDON: A shopping centre next to the Olympic Park has displayed incomprehensible welcome signs in a garbled attempt at Arabic in the latest cultural blunder to embarrass London at a time when the eyes of the world are fixed on the British capital.

The linguistic faux-pas follows a diplomatic incident that marred the first day of competition on Wednesday, when the South Korean flag was mistakenly displayed before a soccer match between the North Korean and Colombian women’s teams.

With its huge immigrant population hailing from every corner of the world, London is often celebrated as a multi-cultural success story, but such gaffes risk making the vibrant Olympic host city look provincial and incompetent.

The vast and glitzy Westfield shopping centre, where most visitors to the Olympic Park will pass on their way in from nearby Stratford rail station, displayed welcome signs in many languages but printed the Arabic ones back-to-front.

“It beggars belief they cannot even write ‘welcome’ in Arabic.

What will our Olympic guests be thinking? It is cringe-worthy,” said Chris Doyle of the Council for Advancing Arab-British Relations (Caabu), on the organisation’s website. Caabu said the garbled welcome message also appeared on staff t-shirts at the shopping centre.

“Westfield sincerely apologises for the incorrect printing of the welcome material,” a spokeswoman said on Wednesday, promising to put things right as soon as possible. A Reuters reporter at Westfield yesterday morning found new welcome signs with the correct Arabic phrase.

Westfield is located in Newham, a borough or district of London that is home to a high proportion of recent immigrants, many of them from Arabic-speaking countries.

“The irony of this is that it happened in the UK’s most multilingual borough, Newham, where hundreds of languages are spoken,” Teresa Tinsley, formerly of the National Centre for Languages, told BBC Radio 4 yesterday.

Tinsley bemoaned what she said were poor language teaching standards in Britain and said this was leading to a parochial mindset.

“When people in other countries learn English they’re opening up to the world, they’re opening up to another perspective, and that’s what we’re losing out on by having this very narrow view,” she said. The Westfield blunder comes after rail company First Capital Connect also displayed information signs in back-to-front Arabic, until Caabu pointed this out and the company corrected the signs at 78 stations. “After First Capital Connect and now Westfield, we must start to wonder just how many other Arabic signs printed for the Olympics are nonsensical,” said Doyle.

He said that in both cases, what appeared to have happened was that the Arabic words had been put through mainstream Western computer programmes that had printed them left-toright instead of right-to-left and had also separated the letters.

“By the time that’s happened it is pretty much unintelligible.

You can try to decipher it but any Arab or Arabic speaker would see that this was meant to be Arabic but doesn’t make any sense,” said Doyle. For non-Arabic speakers, the Caabu website illustrated the mistake by saying it would be the equivalent of a sign that was supposed to read “WELCOME TO LONDON” being printed like this:”N O D N O L O T E M O C L E W”— Reuters

Chinks appear in Bolt’s armor LONDON: Fitness concerns, an early morning car crash and losing over both the 100 and 200m to the same Jamaican rival have raised serious doubts about Usain Bolt’s ability to defend his Olympic sprint titles. The 25-year-old transformed the world of athletics when he scorched to victory in both sprint events at the Beijing Games in then-world record times.

Bolt, who is due to hold his first pre-Olympic press conference in London yesterday, bettered his Olympic form at the 2009 Berlin worlds, setting current world records in the 100 and 200m of 9.58 and 19.19sec. But a sensational false start in Daegu last August saw him cede his world 100m crown to compatriot Yohan Blake, who recently eclipsed Bolt in the Jamaican Olympic trials, notably inflicting on his training partner a first loss over 200m in more than four years.

Bolt, standing 1.96m (6’5”) tall, has also struggled with leg and back problems in recent weeks, but Jamaican team doctor Winston Dawes said he

expects Bolt to be in prime shape by the time track and field events start on August 3.

“He’s back fully. He has been training very, very hard and his performance is on track,” Dawes told the BBC on Wednesday. “We expect he’ll be fully fit by the time the Olympics come around. He had some slight cramps in his legs. He had had an accident before, so that might have shaken him up a little.” Bolt walked away from that one-vehicle accident reportedly uninjured, but Jamaican police were left waiting to hear from the triple Olympic sprint champion after he provided what they said was a “sketchy” statement.

Bolt had at least passed a breathalyser test to prove he was not under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash that left his BMW sports car damaged. Back on the track, the accident followed his slowest 100m in three years at Ostrava in May, and after being beaten by Blake in the Jamaican trials, Bolt withdrew from the Monaco Diamond League meeting citing a “slight problem”.—AFP

LONDON: Australian Jessica Fox clears a gate during a Kayak Slalom training session at the Olympic Park. — AFP

FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012

www.kuwaittimes.net

LONDON: In this photo provided by LOCOG, Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan carries the Olympic flame on the torch relay leg between The City of London and the borough of Southwark yesterday. —AP

Olympic torch goes on lap through London

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