02 Feb 2012

CR IP TI ON BS SU

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

Bahrain boils as uprising nears 1-year mark

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13Kuwaitis 10 head 28 to vote 19 Police clash with tribesmen on eve of polls

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conspiracy theories

from the editor’s desk

2 million ignored

Vote for the future

By Badrya Darwish

By Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan

badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

I

myopinion@kuwaittimes.net

T

he scenes from the attack on Al-Watan TV, which took place in the early hours of yesterday, are further signs of the level of chaos that threatens the security of this country. Again a mob of people decided to take measures into their own hands and attacked the TV station in an attempt to get to one of its guests who was in a live interview.

Police were called to the scene to stop the mob from entering the building but they retaliated with force, injuring many officers and causing damage to public and private properties.

All I have been hearing for the past couple of days from some of the MPs who are clearly responsible for these actions are threats of crushing or trampling underfoot all those who cross them! Has the law lost its power over citizens? Are we all supposed to carry guns now for security or to state our point of view?

To be honest, at this moment I feel like I do need a gun to state my opinion or to write about politics in Kuwait, since the police and the government are not putting their foot down and ensuring the safety of its citizens.

Enough is enough! Over half of those involved in the Kuwaiti political scene are talking nonsense and are insinuating hatred and are creating divisions within the Kuwaiti society. These divisions are dangerous and could escalate even further than what it has mounted to now. Kuwait does not only require strong policing, but it also requires men/women who can take decisions and back them with actions in the government.

Candidates should not be allowed to dissect Kuwait into social groups. We are all Kuwaiti whether we are Shiite, Sunni, tribal, hadar, within the old walls of Kuwait, outside the walls of Kuwait, originally from the east, west, south, north or from another planet.

The government should take legal action against anyone who encourages such divisions. How can candidates build their election campaigns on schoolyard insults and obscenity and still get away with it?

The law should hold such people responsible for their insulting behavior, and it should not be entertained by the media who seem to have lost their sense of responsibility as well.

I hope that Kuwaitis will think hard when they hit the polling stations today. The future of Kuwait lies in its security and unity. Remember the experiences of 1990 when we lost our country to an invasion and many of us where stranded abroad or stuck inside in one of the darkest hours for Kuwaitis. Let’s not destroy our own country and take Kuwait for granted when we vote today.

KUWAIT: Tribesmen try to storm Al-Watan TV’s offices in Ardiya early yesterday. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

By B Izzak KUWAIT: Kuwaitis cast their votes today for the fourth time since May 2006 to elect a National Assembly they hope will bring stability and put an end to almost nonstop crises that have worsened in the past few years.

The polls come following the most intense election campaign in which candidates traded accusations in a way unprecedented in Kuwait to the extent that made political analyst and writer Ghanem Al-Najjar to describe the election as “the worst election ever”.

The campaign was also marred with violence after angry tribesmen first burned the election tent of controversial candidate Mohammad Al-Juwaihel after he made remarks deemed offensive to the Mutairi tribe, the second largest in Kuwait. On Tuesday night, tribesmen briefly stormed the offices of local Al-Watan televi-

sion station in Ardiya, damaging some furniture and equipment and clashing with police in the process, resulting in at least 20 security men being wounded.

Four local reporters were also injured in the clashes and 15 of the tribesmen were rounded up. The tribesmen surrounded the station because it was hosting Nabeel Al-Fadl, a candidate very close to Juwaihel and who is a longtime critic of the opposition.

Veteran opposition figure Ahmad Al-Saadoun charged that anti-democracy elements were trying to destroy the elections in which the opposition is tipped to win. “This time we are before an abnormal struggle ...

Parties that will not come back (to parliament) will not remain silent ... They want to sabotage the election,” Saadoun told an election rally on Tuesday night. The liberal National Democratic Alliance described Juwaihel Continued on Page 13

Iraqis in dock over Mubarak port plot US Navy repairs Iran dhow NASIRIYAH, Iraq: Six people are to go on trial suspected of planning attacks on a Kuwaiti port project in the Gulf that is disputed by Iraq, a judiciary official said yesterday. “The police have arrested six people accused of preparing an attack on Mubarak port,” said a spokesman for the court of appeal in Nasiriyah, 305 km south of Baghdad. Baghdad claims the Mubarak Al-Kabir project, once completed, would strangle its shipping lanes in the narrow Khor Abdullah waterway that serves as its entrance to the Gulf, through which the vast majority of its oil exports flow. Kuwait insists the port will not affect Iraq.

The court spokesman said the six detainees “all deny the charges, but a witness has confirmed that they were implicated in preparing to attack the port”. The six, from Nasiriyah and the port of Basra farther south, have been referred to a criminal court for trial, he added. It was not known if the suspects were members of a particular group, and there was no trial date given.

Kuwait began construction on the container port in 2007 but Baghdad only raised objections to it last May, a month Continued on Page 13

A US Navy team aboard an inflatable boat (left) is seen alongside an inoperable Iranian fishing dhow as a US helicopter flies overhead in the Gulf on Tuesday. — AP

Egypt football violence kills 74

PORT SAID, Egypt: Egyptian football fans rush to the pit during riots that erupted after a football match between Al-Masry and Al-Ahly teams yesterday. — AFP

CAIRO: Seventy-four people were killed and at least 1,000 injured yesterday after a football pitch invasion in the Egyptian city of Port Said, in what a deputy minister called the biggest disaster in the nation’s football history. Violence at football matches across north Africa has increased significantly since political unrest began sweeping the region more than a year ago, and one player described yesterday’s riot as “a war, not football”.

Angry politicians and sports officials decried a lack of security at the match between Port Said team Al-Masry and Al-Ahli, one of Egypt’s most successful clubs, and blamed the nation’s leaders for allowing - or even causing - the tragedy.

Yesterday’s trouble flared at the end of a match when Al-Masry beat Al-Ahli 3-1. “This is unfortunate and deeply saddening. It is the biggest disaster in Egypt’s football history,” Deputy Health Minister Hesham Sheiha told state television. Witnesses said trouble broke out when Ahli fans unfurled banners insulting Port Said and an Ahli supporter descended onto the pitch carrying an iron bar. Al-Masry fans reacted by pouring onto the pitch and attacking Ahli players. They then turned to the terraces to attack Ahli supporters. Most of the deaths were among people who were trampled in the Continued on Page 13

t’s a shame that the agendas of all candidates whom I have been watching for over a month now have ignored expats. Expat issues were totally extinct from the candidates’ agendas. As you all know, Kuwait’s population is a bit over 3 million people. Kuwaitis make up 1,300,000 of it according to the latest census. That means that we have around two million expats living side by side with us. I find it illogical to totally ignore 2 million people living with you on the same land, under the same sky who share every aspect, both good or bad, and day-to-day problems.

All candidates are talking about prosperity of Kuwait and how to enhance and advance life in Kuwait. But how can you talk about advancement on all levels when you ignore 2 million people living with you as if they are thin air and don’t exist.

Of course, I am not asking expats to be given citizenship. I am not asking anybody to scrap their debts or give them housing allowance or free medical services. I am not asking you to pay for their education or enroll them in government schools or Kuwait University. But I am asking you to acknowledge their existence and try to have inclusive agendas that protect the minimum of their interests.

I ask for rules and regulations that protect their pride and dignity. For instance, I don’t see why an employee in my company needs to have my consent to get his or her driving license. I don’t see why I have anything to do with the mobility of my employees. It is basic human rights if somebody is eligible and capable to drive to do so. As long as someone is given a visa in my country, this means he should be allowed to transport himself. Why should he or she be under my mercy to drive around? Even when he gets the driving license, why does he need my consent and gracious signature to renew his driving license? Is it not enough that we annoy expats with red tape and loads of paperwork and rules and regulations which change almost on a monthly basis?

At least you can subsidize the low-income people with medicines which are available free of charge for us Kuwaitis but not expats. I do not mean any expats.

I am referring to the low-income ones. These people who are ignored are the people who build the election headquarters. They are the ones arranging the microphones and chairs. They are the ones who in the end of the night clean the garbage we leave behind. They are the ones preparing the sandwiches and shawarma we distribute at these occasions etc, etc.

If Kuwait Times allows me, I need 24 pages to list the things they do. Don’t you think that they deserve at least one sentence from our candidates? Thank you very much and good day. We live in a shariahabiding country! This is just a reminder.

Romney wins big TAMPA, Florida: Mitt Romney regained the lead in the Republican presidential nomination race with a big win in Florida, but drew criticism yesterday in what should have been his victory lap with remarks suggesting he was indifferent to America’s poor. Romney rolled to an impressive triumph in Florida, capturing 46 percent of the vote to Newt Gingrich’s 32 percent after pounding his nearest rival with negative advertisements.

The victory restored him to frontrunner status in the state-by-state battle for the Republican nomination to run against Democratic President Barack Obama in the Nov 6 general election.

But the wealthy ex-governor and former private equity executive, who lost the South Carolina primary on Jan. 21 after opponents painted him as a heartless capitalist, gave a reminder of the challenges he will face winning

TAMPA, Florida: Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov Mitt Romney gestures during his Florida primary night party on Tuesday. — AFP over voters struggling with the economic downturn and high unemployment. In an interview on CNN, Romney said he was not concerned about the poorest Americans, but that his primary focus was on the middle class.

“I’m not concerned about the very Continued on Page 13

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

local

Kuwait must become a model for low-cost election: Expert

By Sajeev K Peter KUWAIT: Kuwait, being a small country with fewer voters, could very well become a role model for a low-cost election, said Professor M D Nalapat, UNESCO Peace Chair and a renowned academician here yesterday. “In Kuwait also, money plays a significant role in elections, as in most of the countries across the world such as the US or India,” Nalapat, who arrived here as an election observer from India, told the Kuwait Times. The country has a population of one million and the electorate will elect 50 representatives to the parliament.

Prof M D Nalapat “Today, only candidates with very sound financial backgrounds can afford to contest elections. The result is that the parliament becomes representative of only the rich.

This does not work well for democracy,” he said. He suggested that the country must set an example by evolving a mechanism such as state funding of elections and curbing the role of money in election campaigning. This will help all candidates, regardless of their financial strength, who can address the people directly. “Once you curb the money power and its electoral appeal, it is a very good advantage in a democracy. And I earnestly believe that Kuwait can show the way to the rest of the world,” Nalapat said.

Commenting positively on the preparations for today’s election, he said “Everything is pretty well organized”. He

added, “The authorities have made elaborate and comprehensive arrangements at all of the 500, or so, polling stations. All foreign observers, including journalists, numbering around 1,000 as well as the representatives of the candidates have been provided all necessary facilities for the elections.”

Thought leader “I have always regarded Kuwait as a ‘thought leader’ in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) as Singapore is the thought leader of the ASEAN bloc. It’s a very modern and forward looking country,” Nalapat remarked. “I listened to five or six election rallies on Tuesday. It is quite interesting to note that the candidates are speaking without any fear. Some of them are even making sharp criticisms of their opponents. And the absence of fear of authority is central to democracy. It is a healthy sign,” he added.

Nalapat continued, “Some people may argue that a free debate will create a certain amount of disturbances or bad blood in society. But in my view, a clash of views during free debates is welcomed in a democracy as long as there is no violence or abuse of responsibility.” He added that the current election in Kuwait has hogged the global spotlight as it comes close on the heels of the Arab Spring in the region.

A Professor of geopolitics at the Manipal University, Nalapat said the regional political situation has become very volatile in the context of developments in Syria and Iran. Underlining the importance of separating business from politics, he said, “The business community is very important in Kuwait. Kuwait is a nation of business people. The government must ensure that every business house must be given a level-playing field. Provided the government adopts a pro-reform, business-friendly and business neutral approach, the country’s economy can achieve tremendous growth.”

The former Coordinating Editor of the Times of India, Professor Nalapat writes extensively on security, policy and international affairs, and is a columnist for the Sunday Guardian and the Pakistan Observer. He will wrap up his five-day visit to Kuwait on Saturday.

Kuwait opposition seeks gains in new parliament 400,000 registered to vote KUWAIT: Kuwait is heading into elections in much the same combative style that gripped the last parliament: Opposition groups pressing for even a bigger voice against the nation’s Western-allied rulers and domestic tensions running so high that one group torched the campaign tent of a rival. Today’s voting for the 50-seat assembly-one of the most outspoken elected bodies in the Gulfwill test how much Kuwait’s ruling family and its backers can hold back a growing array of challengers, including hard-line Islamists and young liberals inspired by the Arab Spring.

An expected strong showing by opposition groups also could bring major distractions for Kuwait’s leadership as the nation regains its role as the main base for American ground troops in the Gulf following the US withdrawal from Iraq last year.

Although Kuwait’s key government posts are firmly in the hands of the ruling Al-Sabah family, the country’s parliament stands out in the Gulf as one of the few elected groups that openly confront the leadership over issues such as cronyism, free expression and alleged corruption.

Kuwait’s Amir, His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, dissolved parliament and called elections in December after months of political showdowns that included opposition lawmakers demanding to question the prime minister over an alleged payoff scandal and protests that culminated in anti-government mobs storming parliament.

About 400,000 Kuwaitis are registered to vote in what will be the first parliamentary election since May 2009. The more than 280 candidates include 23 women, including reelection bids by four lawmakers who were the first women in the assembly. Pro-government lawmakers had a slight edge in the last parliament. Opposition groups have gained strength in recent years over claims that Kuwait’s rulers have tried to muzzle dissident voices, and complaints that the country has failed to keep pace with the Gulf powerhouses Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in the past decade.

Kuwait’s tensions have roots years before the Arab Spring protests, but factions such as Kuwait’s Fifth Fence movement have drawn encouragement from the push for reforms and more accountability from officials around the region. In late November, the Amir selected Defense Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Hamad Al-Sabah as the new prime minister, replacing the long-serving Sheikh Nasser AlMohammad Al-Sabah. He had survived several no-confidence votes in parliament, but was the target of a growing campaign for his dismissal over allegations that government officials funneled payoffs to bank accounts outside the country.

“Despite the wealth of the country, Kuwait has been witnessing a decline in the quality of services and government operations,” said Kuwait-based political analyst Shafiq Ghabra.

“The youth today are aware, and they are

adamant on building the nation. If they are dissatisfied with the performance of the parliament, they will make their opinion heard.”

The campaign has taken on increasingly bitter tones as Kuwait’s powerful tribes jockey for position. On Monday, thousands of angry members of the Al-Mutairi tribe burned down a tent that served as headquarters of candidate Mohammad Al-Juwaihel after he allegedly insulted the tribe in a televised speech. Al-Juwaihel has alleged that many tribes are not “true Kuwaitis” because of ancestral roots in Saudi Arabia that allow them to obtain dual citizenship and have access to the cradle-to-grave welfare systems of both countries.

Hundreds of protesters believed linked to the Al-Mutairi stormed the building of private Watan TV early yesterday during a debate that included an ally of Al-Juwaihel. Police used tear gas to disperse the crowd.

In recent weeks, riot police also have clashed with protesters who claim Kuwait is depriving them of citizenship and rights. The rallies defied orders by authorities to halt the demonstrations, which are led by descendants of desert nomads who are considered stateless by Kuwait. They seek access to the oil-rich nation’s extensive benefits such as free health care and state jobs. The stateless residents can’t vote. The US military plans to boost the number of troops stationed in Kuwait following the pullout of American forces in Iraq in December.— AFP

Interior warns against public gatherings, security breaches KUWAIT: The Interior Ministry warned against public gatherings and demonstrations during the national parliamentary elections, adding that those who choose to abuse security and

public order in the country will be prosecuted.

The ministry said in a statement that a group of people were prevented by security forces from breaking into and

ransacking the head office of the local station, Al-Watan Television.

After being prevented from entering the building, the mob started to attack policemen with sticks, bottles and stones, leading

to the injury of several security personnel and damage to surrounding property.

Some of the assailants were arrested during the incident, the statement added.—KUNA

KUWAIT: Hundreds of angry tribesmen clash with police who tried to stop them from storming Al-Watan TV building in Ardiya, Tuesday at midnight. Dozens of people, including security officers, were injured in the clashes.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

local

Stage set for free and fair elections Committee suggests: balance voter distribution, place ceiling on election expenditure, lower voting age to 18 Commission questions Ministry’s efforts in combating vote buying KUWAIT: The Supreme Commission of Transparency sent thirty cases of bribery during the campaigning period for parliamentary elections to the Ministry of Interior, yet no further action has been taken, announced the commission’s head Salah Al-Ghazali.

Al-Ghazali, who is chairman of the Kuwait Transparency Society, which was assigned to oversee the elections, made these remarks during a press conference held Tuesday. He added that senior Ministry of Interior officials denied an announcement previously made by the Ministry of Information about seven briber y charges being referred to the Public Prosecution.

Most candidates were active during the last day of campaigning in calling voters to elect MPs capable of combating corruption and achieving reform; a general theme that dominated election campaigns for elections which come after a parliamentary dissolution following a graft scandal which rocked the country and led to the previous cabinet’s resignation.

Veteran parliamentarian and third constituency candidate, Ahmad Al-Saadoun, warned of attempts carried out by “...parties who have lost all hope in returning to decision making positions” to foil the election process by allegedly lobbying top stop “honorable candidates” from being elected. Al-Saadoun expressed faith while speaking at a seminar held by third constituency candidate Faisal Al-Yahya, “Kuwaiti people will be aware not to be fooled by this conspiracy.”

Meanwhile, Kuwaiti liberal figure Ahmad AlKhateeb expressed optimism that Kuwait’s young people are aware and that “...radical changes in political life will, sooner or later, help steer Kuwait’s ship to safety.”

His comments came during the final public address held by second constituency candidate Mohammad Al-Abduljader in Al-Nuzha Tuesday, in which AlAbduljader reasserted his commitment to work for political stability, and adopt causes concerning female citizens and youths.

Second constituency candidate, Marzouq AlGhanim, argued during a televised interview that a campaign has been launched against former MPs “...who stood against corruption in the previous parliament,” yet expressed faith that all suspicious bids to foil their reelection will fail. Al-Ghanim further explained that the political activity of his National Action Bloc in the previous parliament “...hurt many who are now trying to use their media capabilities to retaliate by making desperate attempts to hurt our chances in the elections.”

Some candidates utilized a more serious approach in the closing public addresses of their election campaigns. In one case, first constituency candidate Abdulhameed Dashty vowed in front of a crowd of supporters to work hard to prevent Minister of Education, Ahmad Al-Mulaifi, from remaining in the cabinet if elected, blaming him for the educational struggles Kuwait is facing, which “...affected every Kuwaiti house.”

In the meantime, fourth constituency candidate Thekra Al-Rashidi said to a crowd of Jahra voters that she will prioritize, if elected, matters relating to citizens of the governorate, adding that she will continue to be active in working on the Bedoons (stateless residents) issue. Second constituency candidate and former MP, Dr Salwa Al-Jassar, said that she is usually the subject of heavy criticism by oppositionists because her husband, Dr Jassem Al-Tammar, who is chairman of the Kuwait Society for People with Special Needs, worked to expose seven thousand people who had been falsely claiming disability benefits. — Al-Qabas, Al-Rai & Al-Watan

‘World attention focuses on Kuwait’ KUWAIT: Information Minister Sheikh Hamad Jaber Al-Ali Al-Sabah said here yesterday that the presence of international observers in Kuwait gives a good impression of the democratic process in the State of Kuwait, saying that justice and transparency are among the country’s work strategy. This came during a luncheon he hosted in honor of the international observers currently in Kuwait to cover today’s parliamentary elections.

He stressed that the presence of international observers gave the best impression in the hearts of the citizens, local, Arab and international civil societies on justice and transparency as acquired rights for candidates and voters, adding that the observers will follow today the voting process for the National Assembly elections 2012.

Sheikh Hamad said that the eyes of the world are now focused on the State of Kuwait, where about 120 media bodies and correspondents from around the world would be covering these elections, stressing that these media personnel would exercise their functions freely and transparently. — KUNA

MoI wastes KD150,000 on useless Stream-Box KUWAIT: The Ministry of Information (MoI) is currently conducting a wide scale investigation into the purchase of 10 Stream Box cameras and their accessories for KD 150,000.

The tender was offered for bidding by the news and political programs sector without first conducting a feasibility study.

The cameras will be used on election day, as they are easily portable and use the telecom network to transmit using an SIM card, similar to those used in mobile phones.

Sources said such cameras are used by satellite television channels with limited resources. Their transmission is occasionally cut due to the high pressure on telecom grids, which might challenge KTV as election day will certainly witness high pressure on telecom grids.

The sources underlined that the ministry should have purchased new cams, similar to those already in use, that have stronger satellite signals and land transmission techniques. Using Stream Box cams is taking a risk and they will surely end up useless in warehouses after election day. —Al-Jarida

KUWAIT: (Left to right) Hassan Abdelati, Amal Van Has, Taleb Awadh, Salah Al-Ghazali, Yousuf Mustafa (moderator), Mahmoud Al-Dousari, Khalid AlKandari, Waleed Al-Ahmad and Ziyad Abdelsamad. (Right) The Information Ministry press conference in progress.—Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat KUWAIT: The Information Ministry held a press conference on election transparency less than a day before Kuwait’s Parliamentary elections to shed the light on the procedures and plans to be implemented during voting hours. The meeting was attended by Maj Gen Mahmoud Al-Dousary, Assistant Undersecretary for Public Security and Commander of the 2012 elections security, Dr Salah Al-Ghazali, Head of Kuwait Transparency Society and Head of Elections Transparency Commission, Khalid Al-Kandari, Head of Kuwait Lawyers Society, Waleed AlAhmad, Member of KJA, Ziyad Abdelsamad, Director of Arab non-government organizations for development, Taleb Awadh, Head of Arab Democracy Monitor Amal Van Has, of the Bridges Extension Organization, and Hassan Abdelati, of the Arab network for the Democracy of Elections.

Al-Dousari welcomed the guests, including Ministry of Information Undersecretary, Sheikh Salman Al-Sabah.

Speaking on the role of the Interior Ministry in 2012 Elections, Al-Dousari said His Highness the Amir, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad, gave his blessings to the formation of the Elections Transparency Commission, as soon as Dr Salah Al-Ghazali approached him. The decision concerned the follow-up of the elections and preventing the crime of vote buying. Al-Dousari said the entire election process is under the Judiciary alone, and controlled by this authority. He said there are five centers in the five constituencies that work around the clock, with links to police stations.

When cases have been reported, detectives have investigated, and the public prosecution has issued the necessary warrants to make arrests and other necessary actions. AlDousari said there have been 31 complaints so far. When a journalist said the burning of the election headquarters of a candidate evolved to attacking television stations, this made the Interior Ministry adjust the security plan of the election process. Major General Al-Dousari said the Interior Ministry was able to prevent attacks on the TV station, and there was no damage.

There was a reaction to what some candidates said, which led to attempts to attack the stations, and police forces were able to prevent them. Al-Dousari said that he spoke to former MPs Mohammad Hayef, and Faisal Al-Mislem who calmed the angry youths.

He said police authorities plan for everything and are ready for the election day. He said it is normal to “expect the unexpected.”

Dr. Salah Al-Ghazali, Head of the Higher Elections Transparency Commission, said there are Arab, European, American and Canadian organizations represented in Kuwait and all are welcome, as they follow the Kuwait elections.

Al-Ghazali said there are 300 local moni-

tors who will be distinguished with blue vests, and 35 international monitors wearing grey vests. They will roam election committees and will make sure all committees are visited. Al-Ghazali said, “We are honored to have some brothers from Egypt from the Arab Human Rights Organization who are known to be active across the Arab World.” He added that any foreign interference in Kuwaiti elections is totally rejected. “We cooperate with the monitors and not their comments, nor any other interference.”

Al-Ghazali said invitations were made to Civil Society Organizations and Kuwait will not hesitate any party who expresses interest in coming here. “As for burning the election headquarters, it is something we reject and it is alien to us and did not happen before and happened in one place only. Creating strife or tribal alienation is totally rejected in Kuwait, and the reactions by the public are also rejected as the Interior Ministry is there and courts can rule on the matter.

“We thank the Ministry of Information for its interest and the establishment of the media center. It facilitates all the needs of the media and journalists to ensure the best coverage,” Al-Ghazali said.

He also thanked the Ministry of Interior, acknowledging the heavy load on them. He said the government is keen on election transparency and fairness, which differs from the elections in 2006, 2008 and 2009.

“We monitored the elections unilaterally, and the government’s cooperation was minimal, though we issued frank and direct statements about the lack of cooperation by the government,” he added.

Al-Ghazali said this year the role of society in monitoring the elections was explained after a visit to HH the Amir. The Council of Ministers held a meeting four days later and decided to allow KTS to monitor the elections. It also allowed cooperation with international societies and hosted them in Kuwait during the elections. A report will be issued after the elections with comments by the Arab monitors.

Khalid Al-Kandari, Head of Kuwait Lawyers Society, said there are people who wonder why we have monitors. He said democracy has been practiced in Kuwait even before it was established, and now renewed with the new orders of HH the Amir for 2012.

“All Kuwaitis know that elections here are fair, under the supervision of the Judiciary.

Whoever feels there are problems can refer to the Constitutional Court, as some candidates did previously. In some cases results were cancelled, and this shows how clean the process is. Yet we were in need of publishing it. The presence of Arab and Foreign monitors serves this purpose, as they see Kuwait democracy first hand,” Al-Kanderi said.

He said there is no problem in exchanging

expertise and learning from others, as this will help to improve local laws and Kuwait must work towards that.

Concerning the measures taken by the government towards the increase in sectarian and tribal issues lately, despite unity and peaceful coexistence in Kuwait, Khalid AlKandari said; “the nature of society in the Gulf is tribal, and this is the fabric of our society.

Developments may create things that make one resort to the tribe, family or sect, especially during times like elections.

I believe treatment of this phenomena began when the law of criminalizing by-elections, and the legislative authority began dealing with the core of the problem with this.” Ziad Abdelsamad, the Director of Arab NGOs Network for Development, said the team observed the most notable comments during a visit that took place two weeks ago.

He said his organization seeks to exchange expertise in the Arab World. He said there are many competencies in civil society that can boost dialogue under the democratic transformations taking place in the area. The organization also looks into election laws to make sure they allow total freedom in the election process, as well as monitoring the mechanisms of implementing the laws, and compliance with them by the concerned authorities. During the meeting it was concluded that elections in Kuwait this year follow political crises, yet the security and political atmosphere is in a state that allows for elections. Candidates can present their cases without problems.

Secondly, there is a serious effort to organize the elections in a way that allows citizens to participate easily as far as voters lists, and declaring them before hand, announcing the voting precincts, and including committees that receive complaints. The process guarantees the secrecy of voting.

“This does not mean that we do not add some other comments that can be divided in those related to the law, as we hope that will be considered later to boost the legal aspect,” Abdelsamad said.

According to international standards, that guarantee a certain amount of democracy, an independent authority should conduct the elections. It must be totally independent from political authorities. Although there are no signs that the Ministry of Interior has any role in the elections, still there must be an independent authority, he said.

Guarantee of independence Most candidates commented, while we were evaluating the legal aspect, a defect in distributing constituencies that affects the fairness of voter distribution. There is one constituency with 45,000 voters and another with 140,000. It is necessary to create a balance in voter distribution.

It may be true that the law sets advertisement standards, but they are too general. To avoid this, the Ministry of Information issued some rules, but there remained complaints by candidates regarding private television channels which do not allow all candidates to speak. There must be certain standards to ensure this is not the case.

Another important issue is the lack of a ceiling on election financing, and there is a high percentage of expenditure on the elections. Money has great influence on the voters freedom and performance, so there should be rules and standards on spending.

Also, the law does not reveal how to activate the participation of women in the elections. The legal voting age should be reduced from 21 to 18 years because it is the legal age.

Waleed Al-Ahmad, KJA Member, said the press began its activities before the formation of any committee, to monitor and follow elections. This year the government approached NGOs, and a committee was formed to monitor vote buying, showing government interest in civil society.

“We were writing in the past and crying out loud, but now we are participating officially,” he said.

Kuwait’s journalism uncovered the bribe receivers, though others claimed the honor, Al-Ahmed said.

“Kuwait’s journalism ousted governments in the past, it even grilled ministers and in cases members of the ruling family, and I say this with pride. This shows Kuwait’s democracy of which we are proud, “ he concluded.

Dr. Taleb Awadh Head of the Arab World Democracy Monitor, said his organization works on election monitoring and reform, and has participated in several Arab countries.

Amal Van Has, of the Bridges Extending Establishment in Holland, said the establishment is a European-Gulf organization that words with civil society.

“Our work is to publish human rights culture and strengthen the role of civil society.

The organization covers the GCC countries in connection with European societies in what we call ‘beneficial experiences’.”

Commenting on a question from the Head of the Bahraini Transparency Society, on whether supervisory authorities in other Gulf countries are invited to observe Kuwait’s experience, and whether legislative councils were also invited to exchange information, Amal Van Has said there was an invitation from KTS. Dr. Hassan Abdelati, of the Arab Network for Election and Democracy, said the Network is concerned with developing the democratic process as a whole in the Arab World through the exchange of expertise, as seen during the past three years. It also is concerned with developing the participation of civil society.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

LOCAL kuwait digest

In my view

Reality versus the ideal

Flair of Suspicion

By Abdullah Al-Misfer Al-Adwani Question: Has a single one of you seen such a dissatisfied, angry nation of people in such a blessed, wealthy state as this one is?

Answer: Of course not.

Question: Have you seen rotten meat being unknowingly consumed in such a small state whose foodstuffs and imports can be so easily controlled, yet aren’t because of corruption?

Answer: Definitely not.

By Fouad Al-Obaid

fouad@kuwaittimes.net Twitter: @Fouadalobaid

In reality, the Kuwaiti citizen is sad and worried, unsure of how to spend their money and waiting for a cold or flu so they may enjoy medical treatment abroad at the highest level available.

Question: Have you seen MPs and activists been dragged on the ground by police?

Answer: This is not Kuwait!

Ideally, the Kuwaiti citizen would live a luxurious life, where salaries are not low and are compatible with economic growth and the price of goods. There would be no residency crisis, as each child would get a space to build their home on the day they are born.

The excellent education here would be free, and the government hospitals would be at their best and without fees.

The Kuwaiti citizen should enjoy a standard of living with many hospitals available across the country, with doctors awaiting the arrival of patients, as they are under so little strain. All citizens should eat healthy food which is free from any corruption, and breath fresh air starting from Umm Al-Haiman covering the rest of the country. There should be no road accidents and our streets well paved.

In reality, the Kuwaiti citizen is sad and worried, unsure of how to spend their money and waiting for a cold or flu so they may enjoy medical treatment abroad at the highest level available. They are sad and worried because they have achieved knowledge and education, but don’t know how to benefit humanity with it.

The citizen is puzzled, as all of their children succeed in education with strong exam results having received a high level of education. They are worried given the many universities in Kuwait still awaiting students to fill in their empty seats. The price of citizen is very high, more than the price of a quality lamb, whose price stands at KD 15,000. Even higher still than the price of a female camel, whose price has reached KD 100,000. The dowry for a Kuwaiti bride is equivalent to ten times that of the camel price. We are certainly free with nothing to do....so we busy ourselves in politics and other silly things.

What does the Kuwaiti citizen want from the coming MPs? Residence, education, health services, or to put an end to corruption? Dear citizen, just decide what it is you want. Everything is available on the candidate’s table. There are no objections as you enjoy a sandwich, coming from Sheraton Hotel, as everything is paid for from your pocket and your health and your education and your time and money.

Dear voter...don’t forget to finish your heavy meal at the candidates’ camps with the sweets and a glass of tea, with mints and Arabic coffee for better digestion. Dear voter...you have choices, either you enjoy what the candidates offer at dinner, or enjoy the actions the upcoming MPs take regarding legislation, supervision and the protection of public funds.

Choose. — Al-Anbaa

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kuwait digest

The choice is yours!

By Hamad Nayef Al-Enezi

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t’s only a few hours before decisions are taken and the future of your kids and grandkids is planned to be either a bright one or a continuation of the same state of disillusionment and frustration that you have been living for the past few years because you did not care. You were courteous to someone, you sought your own interests at the expanse of the nation and selected those who did not deserve to represent you or be responsible for your future. It’s all up to you and the choice is yours; either reform or repent. The ballot paper you are about to cast in the boxes will either form a contribution in building your country’s future or an axe that pulls down the aspirations of so many people.

A wise choice will then have the upper hand, so choose whomever you wish and decide whatever you wish.

You are the beneficiary and at the same time the sufferer of the consequences of such choices.

Therefore, vote for those who are capable and worthy of the position. No more favors, no more courtesy when your kids’ future is involved or you’ll be the first to pay for it in the form of loss of your daily bread, the health of your children and the quality of education they will get. This is something that can just not be compromised on.

So, be brave and as frank as it takes to reject all kinds of black-

mail and familial, tribal or sectarian courtesy. Be free in your choices and decisions. Fight today to

Be brave and as frank as it takes to reject all kinds of blackmail and familial, tribal or sectarian courtesy. Be free in your choices and decisions. Fight today to relax tomorrow and always remember that when you vote for a candidate, that means you trust and entrust him with your future. So, make a wise choice.

Do your duty before asking others to do theirs. Participate in the change today by placing the right people in the right positions.

relax tomorrow and always remember that when you vote for a candidate, that means you trust and entrust him with your future.

So, make a wise choice. Do your duty before asking others to do theirs. Participate in the change today by placing the right people in the right positions. Don’t get beguiled by yellow smiles, false promises, religious and pious looks, long beards or huge colored turbans or the record number of hugs and kisses during elections.

Avoid those who promise to provide you wasta that would cost you so much afterwards and make you cry over spilt milk.

Avoid former pro-government MPs and those who had opposed the government all the time and all the way. The first party cares about nothing but its own interests while the second party takes such a stance because its interests were jeopardized and compromised by the government. Choose well-balanced lawmakers who are driven by values and principles even though they are few! Don’t vote for those who are addicted to political conflicts or trying to create sectarian tension.

It’s those who are behind our setbacks and choosing them would resume in a terrible state of deterioration. Focus on more youth while selecting. We’ve grown fed up of seeing the same faces for over 20 years. The choice is really yours! — Al-Jarida

kuwait digest kuwait digest

A letter to Kuwaiti voters

A voter’s validity

By Mohammad Al-Husainy

D

ear voter, the five star treatment you receive from candidates or their aides might not be a feast for black eyes, a kiss planted on the nose not because you are a respectable person, and the daily dinner is not a display of generosity. When old friends call you, they do so not because they missed you. They just want to know who you will vote for. One of the candidates will win your vote.

So do not show arrogance. Today, we have been visited by ‘X’ and ‘Y’ as if the one who visited you is the head of a state. Due to many candidates’ visiting, sometimes, they enter a diwaniya and they do not know who the owner is. When you tell people that an ex MP and current candidate visited us today, it means that he never visited you when he was an MP. There is a possibility that this will be the last visit he makes until next elections are held.

A candidate now is looking for people because he needs them. If he makes it to the council, he will run away because he took what he wanted from them. What you see now is a timely issue and shall end once you place the tick mark on the ballot paper. When you are going for elections, you will find many who welcome you and remind you not to forget them. You will feel as if you are big movie star in Hollywood. Someone will lead you to the voting hall, hold your hand and give you water. Once the process is finished, no one looks into your face and when you leave the gate after voting, you do not find any one who says thank you or good bye. Your validity has expired. A voter’s validity depends on the time of departure from the exit door. After that no one cares about you.

Dear winners, why not hold gatherings in your diwaniyas after the victory. That way, every now and then you can inform voters about your views, like what you do at election time. This is the only day when you need the vote. After victory, no one sees you except in papers and TV channels. Note: this article concerns some candidates, not all. — Al-Anbaa

By Dr Sulaiman Al-Khadhari Dear Kuwaiti voter, would like to take a few minutes of your time and talk to you about election day, without interfering in your own personal point of view.

First of all, I’d like to ask you this question: As you head to ballot boxes, what exactly do you need from your country? People would probably say that they want job opportunities, fair distribution of wealth, development projects, as well as improvement in security, health and education fields, in addition to freedom of expression and belief and a secure future for the young. Is there anything more that a person really needs from their country? I personally don’t think there is.

Now, let me tell you a secret.

Do you know that as you prepare to vote for the candidate in the next Parliament, achieving all demands mentioned lies solely in our hands? You don’t believe me?

Then let’s talk a little bit more about this.

If you want to talk about it from a religious point of view, we find many evidence in holy books that say key for change in society lies in its members’ hands. There are also a lot of proof in history about change that never comes from the higher authority, but only through a historic moment in which the people rise above all differences and unify under one national determination.

The current situation in the country suffers from deterioration in the political, economic and

I

social fields. I understand your frustration that stems from political struggles which put the very existence of the modern state at risk, given the lack of real strategy to achieve sustainable development. At the same time, I believe

I totally understand when you say that we tried to elect honest MPs to the Parliament, and failed. However, this shouldn’t be a reason for us to stop believing that the road to full reform is still a long one, and requires a lot of our patience and efforts.

Yes, reform cannot be achieved solely by electing people who claim good intention.

It is true that we need radical reforms in which individual candidacy is replaced by a political party system.

that you and I can make change happen by putting all of our sectarian and tribal differences behind and focusing on real work.

I totally understand when you say that we tried to elect honest MPs to the Parliament, and failed.

However, this shouldn’t be a reason for us to stop believing that the road to full reform is still a long one, and requires a lot of our patience and efforts. Yes, reform cannot be achieved solely by electing people who claim good intention. It is true that we need radical reforms in which individual candidacy is replaced by a political party system. Until that happens, we have no other choice but to attempt to vote MPs to the next Parliament. There is no doubt that it would be a step forward in the long run towards achieving reform.

Election day is an exceptional opportunity for all of us to either save ourselves or contribute more to our deteriorating situation. I am asking you to think about the future of our children, and how the situation will remain if conditions remained the same.

Before I end the letter, I want to ask you to do a favor. When you go out to vote, please take a picture of your children with you. Look into that picture carefully, before you write down the names of candidates you want to vote for. Vote for whoever you like; just make sure that you take a careful look to your kids’ faces. I’m sure if you do so, you’ll definitely make the right choice. — Al-Rai

he way things are unraveling in Kuwait these days after the torching of Juwaihel’s electoral ‘tent’ and the storming of ‘Al-Watan TV’ that led to a clash between tribesmen and Special Forces leaving several injured could be a studied conspiracy.

With the elections set to take place today, why are people stressing the electoral process? Could this be a ‘false-flag’ operation orchestrated to de-legitimize the opposition and scare people into believing that democracy will lead to violence that could escalate to civil war lest we submit to a strong centralized authority, which at such a point would want to curb civil liberties?

I pray that this is not the case, because Kuwaitis would not tolerate such aggression and I suspect that if it were found to be true, it would lead to a complete overhaul of the current political system.

The latter being an ever growing reality! The issue that the opposition should nevertheless consider is the implication of their activities on neighboring countries and their reaction. Ultimately, we as Kuwaitis pride ourselves in our ‘democracy’ and our ability to speak freely and assemble. These rights may be curbed in the near future if people are scared into domination.

At this point I pray to the Almighty that things will not get much worse, and I hope that the government will live up to its responsibility and address the numerous grievances lest it becomes the victim of an even angrier mob that would come to fill a void left by incompetent governance.

To His Highness the Prime Minister and his teams of experts, I call on them to do their work and not wait for Feb 3, 2012 to act! I believe that the time is ripe for the government to pave the way for a Jeddah 2.0 summit (in reference to the 1990 Jeddah summit).

It is time for a new national consultation that would bring together Kuwaitis to lay the foundation for a new political arrangement that would safeguard our country from the dangers of sedition and would draw a new vision for 21st century Kuwait. We need earnest work, and people who are both skilled and able to efficiently run this country.

If today we fail, we would fail ourselves, and the generations to come. We would open the way for foreign intervention, and place Kuwait under threat of aggression. Dear fellow citizens, I pray that today you go out and vote, and that you vote with a clear conscience. If we lose our country, we are gone. Please take a good look at your children, cousins, nephews, friends, parents, and siblings before going to cast your vote.

kuwait digest

Elections or dogfight?

By Hassan Al-Essa

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he current election campaigns seem more like dogfights. They lack concepts, ideologies, criteria and the simplest rules of good conduct and dialogue, especially some candidates who tend to provoke others the way people do in dogfights.

The problem is not the difference and conflict of such candidates; it’s up to them as they only reflect what they are made of and what they were raised up to be. The real problem is that a such sorrowful state of affairs indicate how sectarian we have become, being torn between Sunnis and Shiites.

What happens now in some campaigns is unprecedented in terms of hatred, grudges and lowprofile political speech. A number of candidates introduce themselves to voters as vendetta seekers with tools of revenge from former opposition MPs. Does this mean that the coming parliament will turn into an arena for wrestling Roman slaves without Spartacus as their symbol of freedom?

The problem is not the difference and conflict of such candidates; it’s up to them as they only reflect what they are made of and what they were raised up to be. The real problem is that a such sorrowful state of affairs indicate how sectarian we have become, being torn between Sunnis and Shiites.

What makes things even worse is having more sectarian blocs and Islamite groups that all agree on enhancing feelings of sectarianism and racism that dominate many of them with the aim of alienating Shiites and limiting their number in parliament to a minimum. Such calls are naturally led by leaders of racism and sectarianism.

Iraq is only a few hours away and we can easily see how sectarian calls led to a devastating civil war there when democracy was imposed on them and was misinterpreted by the majority as an absolute right to rule. Syria is also following in the same footsteps where peaceful demonstrations have evolved into a sad civil war. The same happened previously in Lebanon and Algeria; so will we learn from others’ experiences or will we stubbornly keep trying to light the fuse of hatred? — Al-Jarida

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

Local Teacher allowances not before May

KUWAIT: CCC and CiK officials pose with their guests yesterday at Marina Hotel at the start of the seminar. —Photos by Yasser Zayyat

KUWAIT: Cross section of attendees during tax planning and investment seminar.

Kuwait hosts planning seminar ‘Tax is no joke in Canada’

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: Canadian Commercial Circle (CCC) in cooperation with Canadians in Kuwait (CiK) organized on Tuesday a Tax and Investment Planning seminar, held at the Marina Hotel. The seminar aimed at providing expert advice on how to deal while abroad with the countless taxation issues back home in Canada. The seminar was sponsored by Gulf Bank, Trowbridge, RBC Wealth Management Dominion Securities, Redev and Marina Hotel.

Basil Toutoungi, CCC President, welcomed visitors while Robert Drolet, Vice President, introduced speakers and thanked them for their readiness to partic-

ipate and share their ideas and expertise on both investment and taxation issues.

The program included quite interesting subjects, ranging from Canadian departure and repatriation tax issues, tax planning for Canadian expatriates, risk management tools as well as real property ownership.

“We are pleased to see new people attending the taxation seminar. This is so important for us, tax is no joke in Canada.

Thanks to CiK for spreading the news and for inviting new people to attend tonight’s event,” Toutoungi said.

Canadians should determine their residency status for tax purposes so as to minimize their obligations while abroad.

Wayne Bewick, a professional corporation, chartered accountants and tax advisor, explained several rules governing Canadian residency for tax purposes and its implications on expatriates living and working abroad. Specialized in expatriate and international taxation, Bewick outlined the basic principles of tax planning for Canadian expatriates and how to deal with property or income tax back in Canada and other related issues. He also talked about residence and non-residential income tax return but admitted complexities in taxation issues back in Canada.

But organizations like Trowbdrige can help. “The most important thing for Canadian expatriates is that they should

know the prevailing law back in Canada.

We always recommend professional advice to shed light and get proper guidance, especially on tax related issues,” he added.

Neil Korzack, another speaker, discussed various issues on wealth management services which they provide to clients. Korzack is Vice President of RBC Dominion Securities Inc. Kuwait. The GCC countries are home to many Canadians whose financial affairs needed professional support and advise.

Ashley Meier, representative of REDEV Properties [Alberta] briefly talked about the profile of his company and its activities.

Bedoon wins lawsuit to obtain ID card KUWAIT: A bedoon woman in her thirties won an unprecedented court order recently that orders the government to issue an identity card for her which she wasn’t able to get all her life, owing to complications she has faced since birth. “My client had applied at the central agency for stateless resi-

dents to obtain a security card which the agency gives to bedoons as their only form of identification”, explained attorney Fawziya Al-Sabah in her statement to the press. “After growing tired of waiting for so long without a response, she decided to take the issue to court”.

During hearings at the Administrative Court, Al-Sabah argued that her client took all legal measures possible to obtain her ID card but to no avail. She further explained that the woman is not only entitled to the card, but also meets conditions of naturalization which include possessing docu-

ments from the 1965 census. Her father served in the Ministry of Interior until he retired in 1988.

Regarding the woman’s dilemma, Al-Sabah explained that she was born to a divorced mother in 1980, and problems between her biological parents impeded her father from registering her name

in the 1985 census. Al-Sabah added that the girl’s father left Kuwait for good in 1988 following his retirement; since then she’s been struggling to register her name in the state department because a bedoon minor can only be registered by her father. —Al-Rai

KUWAIT: Teachers are awaiting the payment of their new cadre. They say official declarations are contradictory and a sample of the administrative corruption within the Ministry of Education (MoE).

Radhi Al-Rashidi, MoE assistant undersecretary, said he did not receive any decision about paying the cadre.

“The financial division is ready to pay allowances of teachers the minute we receive the decision,” he said.

Ayesha Al-Roudhan, assistant undersecretary, said that human resources are working to execute the law. She said payment requires some amendments on the information of more than 40,000 teachers, and that amendments require a long time and cannot be finished before May. She said that the month of May is the earliest to pay allowances.

Tamador Al-Sdairawi, MoE undersecretary, said there is no postponing payments until next year.

But teachers were shocked and surprised to hear from some officials that payment of allowances will not be until the next academic year. Many teachers are enquiring how they can trust their leaders in the ministry, when they observe such confusion and contradictory declarations. —Al-Shahed

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

local

Drunk military man causes traffic chaos in Salmiya Son assaults dad in Taima

KUWAIT: Ahmadi Governor Sheikh Dr Ibrahim Al-Duaij Al-Sabah met recently with Ambassador of Poland to Kuwait, Yanosh Eshfeido, and discussed bilateral relations and matters of mutual interest between the two countries.

MoI to visit poll stations committee has been formed at the order of the deputy prime minister, minister of inteKUWAIT: Mohammad Jaafar Al-Mosawi, rior and MoD headed by municipality genMember and Secretary of the Supreme eral director. Their mission is to ensure that Committee for Elections at Kuwait munici- locations are licensed. Election places have pality said that joint work teams from been inspected and found to be ready to receive voters.

Ministry of Interior and Meanwhile, Mariam AlKuwait Municipality will Hilal, acting public relations visit all voting stations, and media director at the during Election Day to General Fire Ser vices ensure that no violations Directorate (GFSD), said Brig take place. He said that Yousuf Al-Ansari, acting the aim is to make elecGFSD general director, tions successful at all levissued an order that all els, under His Highness super visors, officers and the Amir and the Crown heads of fire centers in the Prince. governorates must stay Al-Mosawi said that alert in their offices starting today is voting day to from dawn on Thursday. elect NA council member, The reason is the elecand that it will require tions, which will be held all double efforts from joint over the country today. The groups from Ministry of Mariam Al-Hilal director expressed hopes Interior and municipality that elections will be held in all governorates to protect the election process and simplify for- in a quiet atmosphere, pointing out that malities while ensuring that everything fire leaders are alerted to meet any emergoes well in a smooth manner. The joint gency that might happen.

By Hanan Al-Saadoun

KUWAIT: A military man got himself into some real trouble when he drank too much alcohol and hallucinated that he was a police officer. A few drinks later, the man actually went out in to the street and set up a police checkpoint of his own. Security officers headed to a street in Salmiya where people reported a policeman holding a liquor bottle and forcing drivers to stop for identification check.

When he was approached by the officers, the drunken man charged at them in an attempt to avoid arrest, but was eventually detained following strong resistance. The man entered the Rumathiya police station while still clutching his liquor bottle and threatening to kill anyone who tried to take it away from him, according to police. The Army Intelligence was contacted after police found out that the suspect is a lieutenant in the Kuwaiti Army. He faces multiple charges that include alcohol consumption, impersonation and resisting apprehension.

Struck by lightning Two people sustained injuries after being struck by lightning at an open location in

Abdaly. They were taken to the Jahra Hospital with multiple bruises and injuries.

Brutal attack A young man was arrested in Taima for knocking his own father unconscious following a brutal assault. The suspect returned home past midnight and found his father waiting to scold him. Soon enough, he started punching and kicking his father and the assault didn’t stop even after he threw his old man out into the street. Police soon arrived at the scene after neighbors reported the incident. The suspect was arrested following strong resistance and taken to the area’s police station to face charges. He remains in custody pending legal action.

Ammo found A large number of ammunitions and a weapon were recently found at construction site of the Sabah Al-Salem University project which were later confirmed to be remnants from the Iraqi Invasion more than 20 years ago. Police were called after construction workers dug out 26 boxes containing 48 bul-

that Iran has recently threatened to cut-off traffic through the Hormuz Strait. Should Iran take such a step it would be in violation of international rules and it would not be accepted by the international community. However, as mentioned our objective is to find a negotiated solution with Iran,” he said.

The Danish FM described the situation in Syria as “entirely unacceptable.”

“The EU has for long sent a clear message - President Assad must understand that he has lost his legitimacy in the eyes of the Syrian people. He must step aside to allow for a peaceful and democratic transition. The Arab League’s Peace Plan was the last chance for President Assad. A chance he decided not to take. The Arab League was right to suspend the monitoring mission, which failed to deter the authorities’ violence. Now it is time for the UN Security Council to take up a more active role,” he said.

On the Palestine question, the Danish FM regretted that, 2011 did not produce a peace agreement or even direct negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis.

“And yet, the road towards a peace agreement - to be signed no later than end 2012 - was put to paper by the Middle East Quartet in its statement of Sept 23, 2011.

International efforts are directed towards sustaining this initiative. This includes very much the efforts of the European Union whose High Representative on Foreign Policy, Catherine Ashton, is the EU representative on the principal’s level in the Quartet,” he said.

“The Danish government is intent on having the parties seizing this opportunity; but there must be an ambition and a resolve on the part of the Israeli government and the Palestinian leadership to take it further. If this is not the case, it will merely represent another opportunity missed, while the possibility of a two-state solution is fast eroding,” he said in the interview.

“So in close cooperation with the other EU member states, the Danish Government will continue its efforts for recognition and establishment of an independent and viable Palestine,” stressed Sovndal.

He underlined that it is this Danish government’s policy to seek constructive dialogue and engagement with the Arab countries.

“With or without the EU presidency we give great importance to the promotion of dialogue and mutual understanding,” he said. The Danish FM pointed out that in 2012, Denmark has further enhanced its collaboration with the Middle East and North Africa through a Danish-Arab Partnership Program.

“The double objective of the Program is to support existing reform and democratization processes in the Middle East and North Africa and promote dialogue, understanding and cooperation between Denmark and the Arab word. The program is based on the understanding that developments in Europe are closely connected with developments in the countries in the region, Europe’s neighbours to the south.

The MENA countries and the EU face huge challenges that require joint and future-oriented solutions in the decades ahead,” he added. — KUNA

Urgent delivery Police launched an investigation when an Asian woman reportedly gave birth to a baby boy inside a Jabriya house she stormed inside. Security officers accompanied by an ambulance rushed to a house near the Ethiopian embassy building where a citizen reported a woman making her way inside while in labor, and eventually giving birth to a baby. The new mother and her newborn were taken to the nearest hospital while police filed a case at the area’s station.

Shooting A citizen called police recently to report two drivers firing gunshots at each other while driving on Sixth Ring Road, adding that he last saw them entering Al-Jahra. Security officers were sent to the area to investigate the case. According to security sources quoted in the news report, investigation is still ongoing. — Al-Anbaa, Al-Watan, Al-Rai

Dive Team returns from UAE visit

Danish FM underlines importance of ties with Kuwait, GCC states BRUSSELS: Denmark’s Foreign Minister Villy Sovndal yesterday stressed the importance of his country’s historic relations with the Arab Gulf countries, in particular with Kuwait.

“It goes without saying that Denmark has always given great importance to the relations with the GCC countries,” Sovndal said in a written interview. Denmark currently holds the rotating Presidency of the European Union.

He said Denmark has with great interest noted that the GCC Summit in December 2011 decided that the GCC should move from the cooperation stage to the union stage.

“This is a decisive step and we trust that it will enhance the GCC’s role in global policy-making. It is also our hope that the negotiations on a GCC-EU Free Trade Agreement will soon lead to signature of an agreement,” he said.

He noted that the relations between the GCC countries and Denmark date back several hundred years.

In 1761, Danish King Frederik V launched the Danish Arabia Expedition and sent six of his men on an exploratory voyage with the clear purpose to explore as deeply into the interior of Arabia as possible.

“At that time, researchers in Europe had only scarce information about your part of the world. The expedition was led by the young scientist Carsten Niebuhr who produced some the world’s most precise maps of the Gulf Region of his time” said the Danish FM. “He was also the first to mention the name “Kuwait”, but most importantly, the expedition’s findings taught the Europeans about the similarities between Middle Eastern populations and themselves. In his memoires, Carsten Niebuhr expressed a great respect for the local culture he came to admire deeply,” said Sovndal.

Last year, in 2011, Denmark, he noted, honoured the relations with the Arab world by celebrating 250th years anniversary of the Danish Arabia Expedition. Through a number of activities, the long history of good relations between Denmark and the destination countries was brought into focus.

Replying to KUNA’s question on EU-GCC energy cooperation, he said: “GCC-countries are of major importance to the EU as reliable and secure sources of energy supply. A significant part of the EU’s import of particularly oil and gas comes from GCC countries. We hope that it also soon will be possible to import large quantities of electricity from renewable energy sources from this region.”

He mentioned that in “Denmark, Kuwait Petroleum has an important role as a supplier of oil products with a market share of around 15-20 pct of downstream oil products.”

On EU ties with Iran, he said the 27member European bloc supports the twin track approach combining sanctions with willingness to negotiate.

“In reaction to the recent IAEA report the EU has agreed on additional and broadened sanctions against Iran. The aim is to convince Iran to return to the negotiations on their nuclear programme. I am aware

lets as well as an RPG weapon. The ammunitions were recovered from the scene by bomb specialists.

KUWAIT: A delegation from the Kuwait Dive Team (KDT) returned to Kuwait recently following a visit to the United Arab Emirates. KDT met with several environmental and voluntary organizations from Gulf Cooperation Council countries to exchange experiences in the field.

“The trip featured an audience with Sheikh Abdul-Aziz Al-Nu’aimi, Ajman’s environmental consultant, as well as editor-in-chief of National Geographic - Abu Dhabi, Mohammad Al-Hamadi”, said KDT team leader Waleed Al-Fadhel.

Kuwait Dive Team, which is part of the Environmental Voluntary Foundation, intends to establish a unified GCC network of voluntary work to encourage environmental volunteers in the region, Al-Fadhel added.

Brown hopeful for Kuwait to host WEC KUWAIT: Former British prime minister and ex-chancellor of the exchequer Gordon Brown expressed hope yesterday that the State of Kuwait would host the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, due in January, 2013.

Kuwait is entitled to play a leading role in the world economy, he said, citing the huge oil resources of the country and the world’s inability to replace oil with alternative energies in the near future.

Brown made the remarks in an address to the Global Economic Real Estate Conference. The gathering is organized by Kuwait Finance House (KFH). Brown, who met His

Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah earlier yesterday, said HH the Amir has a real desire to turn Kuwait into a leading regional financial and commercial hub. The Kuwaiti economy grew by four percent, exceeding the growth rates of the US and European economies, he said, adding that Kuwait has huge potential to take part in the implementation of infrastructure projects around the globe.

The United States and Europe used to account for 60 percent of the world’s total production, consumption and manufacturing rates until 2000, but the world faced

transformations later on with the emerging economies in Asia accounting for 60 percent of the world’s investment and manufacturing industries in 2010, he stated.

A great part of the production was relocated from Europe to emerging economies, he said, and expressed the expectation that the Asian economies, notably China, would account for 30 percent of the world’s consumption in 2020.

He suggested four fundamentals for world economic growth; first to secure coordination and integration among the leading economic blocs, second to increase funding for infrastructure and real

property projects, third to follow international criterions for infrastructure projects - to be developed by the International Monetary Fund - and fourth, to invest heavily in the clear energy technologies in order to create jobs for the youth. These suggestions have been discussed by the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2012 in Davos and Klosters, Switzerland, which took place from Jan 25 to 29, he noted. Brown also suggested launching a regional development bank for the Gulf region to play a pivotal role in the areas of job creating and capacity building. — KUNA

KFAED funds infrastructure projects in Lebanon BEIRUT: Representative of the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) in Lebanon Nawaf Al-Dabbous asserted here yesterday keenness of the fund to support infrastructure projects in Lebanon.

Al-Dabbous said after meeting Energy and Water Minister Gebran Bassil that the two sides discussed a number of projects implemented by

the fund in Lebanon at the behest of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah.

He added that the fund’s projects in Lebanon contributed to the revival and development of social and economic life, and reflected the spirit of loving and affections of the people of Kuwait to Lebanon.

He said the Fund attaches great attention to development projects and social development in Lebanon, pointing to the importance of projects implemented by the Fund in Lebanon for the advancement of its economy and improving basic infrastructure. Meanwhile, KFAED has so far provided Lebanon with 17 loans since 1966 worth nearly $500 million. — KUNA

Entertainment City open daily during spring break KUWAIT: The Entertainment City is hosting activities as part of its ongoing spring festival, ending on Feb 11, 2012, the Touristic Enterprises Company reiterated in a statement yesterday.

“Several activities await visitors everyday, including circus shows, special events for children and competitions for people of all ages,” said operations and activities manager, Anwar Al-Nisf, adding that the activities are at different timings through-

out the week to accommodate different schedules.

The statement further added that the Entertainment City timings during the spring break are as follows: from 12noon to 10 pm on weekdays from Sunday to Wednesday, and from 12noon to 11 pm on Thursday, while the facility will open during weekends from 10 am to 11 pm on Friday, and from 10 am to 10 pm on Saturday. Mondays are restricted for female visitors only.

Anwar Al-Nisf

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

Police probe anthrax parcel sent to Pakistan PM’s house

Assange in UK Supreme Court over extradition fight

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JERUSALEM: Israel’s President Shimon Peres, right, and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, second left, sit for breakfast together with aides at a Jerusalem hotel yesterday. Ban Ki-moon is visiting the region in an effort to restart talks between Israel and the Palestinians. —AP

UN chief urges Israel to halt settlements Ban visits area to restart peace talks JERUSALEM: UN chief Ban Ki-moon pressed Israel yesterday to do more to get flagging Mideast peace efforts back on track, calling for a halt in West Bank settlement construction and urging the Israelis to submit concrete proposals on the key issues of borders and security ties with a future Palestine. Ban is visiting Israel and the Palestinian areas on a mission to salvage the latest efforts to restart peace talks. A month of lowlevel discussions between Israel and the Palestinians ended last week without any breakthroughs, and it remains unclear whether they will resume the dialogue.

“We are at a critical moment for Israel and the region,” Ban said. “I remain hopeful that the direct, frequent exchanges between the parties with continue.” Formal peace talks have stalled for more than three years, in large part over the settlement issue. The Palestinians say there is no point in negotiating as long as Israel continues to settle its population in the West Bank and east Jerusalem - captured areas that the Palestinians want for their future state.

Some 500,000 Israelis now live in these areas, and this week Netanyahu’s government approved new financial incentives meant to lure more Israelis to the West Bank. Continued settlement “does not help the ongoing peace process,” Ban said. “They should refrain from further settlement for the sake of ongoing peace talks. This can be a way of expressing goodwill gestures.” Netanyahu appeared to rebuff Ban’s request, saying the question of settlements “should be part of the final peace talks and final peace agreements.”

The Palestinians have demanded a halt in settlement construction before returning to the negotiating table. Last month’s low-level discussions, mediated by Jordan, ended without any Israeli commitment to freeze settlement building or progress on other issues, like proposed borders and security arrangements. The Palestinians have not yet decided whether to continue the talks, but Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas sounded pessimistic yesterday.

“By refusing to recognize the borders of the independent Palestinian state and to stop building in the Palestinian territories, Israel has blocked all international attempts to revive the peace process and start direct negotiations,” Abbas was quoted by the official Palestinian news agency

Wafa. The talks in Jordan were meant to clear the way for the resumption of full-fledged peace talks and a final peace agreement by the end of the year. They are taking place under the auspices of the international “Quartet” of Mideast mediators the US, European Union, Russia and the United Nations.

The Quartet has asked both sides to promptly submit detailed proposals on borders and security. The Palestinians believe the deadline was on Jan. 26 and have already submitted their proposals. Israel believes the deadline is in April and has only submitted vague principles on border arrangements. “I also hope that Israel will be forthcoming with its own concrete proposals on territory and security, as called for by the Quartet,” Ban said. Responding to Ban’s comments, Netanyahu said he recognizes “there has to be an agreement, probably a painful agreement for us given our passion for these historic lands.” But he complained that “the real cause of this conflict” is

the Palestinians refusal to recognize Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people. Israel has also accused the state-run Palestinian media of broadcasting hatred and incitement against Israel and Jews. Asked about the alleged incitement, Ban said: “Hate speeches or provocations, they are not helpful, they are not acceptable.”

Later yesterday, Ban toured the site of the first planned Palestinian city in the West Bank.

Construction of the new city, called Rawabi, has been held up by Israeli security concerns about a planned access road, but developers said they hope to complete the project by 2013. Ban said he visited the project to encourage sustainable development and to express his concern about lack of progress in peace efforts. “To live in a viable, independent and sovereign state of Palestine is a long overdue aspiration of the Palestinian people,” Ban told reporters. “That is why I am here.” Later yesterday, he was set to meet with Abbas. — AP

Iraq executes 17 people in one day, 51 this year BAGHDAD: Iraq has executed 17 convicted criminals in one day, the justice ministry said yesterday, bringing to 51 the number of people executed so far this year. “The justice ministry carried out (death) sentences against 17 people condemned for terrorist and criminal crimes ... on Tuesday,” it said in a statement.

“The ministry is continuing to carry out punishments against criminals according to the law and the constitution,” Justice Minister Hassan Al-Shammari was quoted as saying.

Last month, justice ministry spokesman Haidar Al-Saadi said that Iraq had executed 34 people in 2012, including two women and a Syrian, compared to a total of 68 last year. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay last week expressed shock at the number of executions, criticizing the lack of transparency in court proceedings

and calling for an immediate suspension of the death penalty.

“I call on the government of Iraq to implement an immediate moratorium on the institution of the death penalty,” Pillay said in a statement.”Even if the most scrupulous fair trial standards were observed, this would be a terrifying number of executions to take place in a single day,” said Pillay, a South African high court judge. “Given the lack of transparency in court proceedings, major concerns about due process and fairness of trials, and the very wide range of offences for which the death penalty can be imposed in Iraq, it is a truly shocking figure,” she said. The United Nations estimates that more than 1,200 people have been sentenced to death in Iraq since 2004, but it does not have comprehensive statistics on executions.— AFP

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

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

Freed from Gaddafi, Libyan Sufis face violent Islamists TRIPOLI: Freed from Muammar Gaddafi’s 42-year dictatorship, Libya’s Sufi Muslims find themselves under renewed pressure from violent Islamists who have been attacking them and their beliefs as heretical. The desecration of graves belonging to Sufi saints and sages in recent months have put the peaceful Sufis on the defensive, prompting some to post armed guards at their mosques and lodges to ward off hardline thugs.

But the birthday of Islam’s Prophet Mohammad, one of the highpoints in the Sufi calendar, is on Saturday and Libyan Sufis are determined to take their traditional processions through the streets to show they will not be cowed. At a meeting of Sufi scholars to plan the celebrations, Sheikh Adl AlAref Al-Hadad said even being driven out of his zawiyah (Islamic school) late last year by Islamists known as Salafis would not deter him from marching.

“I’m worried but I’m not afraid,” said Al-Hadad, whose Tripoli school was stormed by armed men who burned

its library, destroyed office equipment and dug up graves of sages buried there. They turned the school into a Salafi mosque. On Jan 13, extremists crashed a bulldozer through the walls of the old cemetery in the eastern city of Benghazi, destroyed its tombs and carried off 29 bodies of respected sages and scholars. They also demolished a nearby Sufi school.

Sheikh Khaled Mohammad Saidan, whose Dargut Pasha Mosque faces Tripoli’s port, said most Islamists in post-Gaddafi Libya disagreed with Sufis, but peacefully. “But there are no police around and you never know what some people might do,” he added.

Sufi lodges from around Tripoli will march on Saturday through narrow alleys of the walled old town, waving flags and chanting poems in praise of Mohammad to the beat of cymbals, drums and tambourines. To the puritanical Salafis, these practices amount to bida (innovation) and shirk (idolatry), both grave sins that must be

stopped, by force if necessary.

Sufism, a mystical strain in both Sunni and Shiite Islam, dates back to the early days of the faith. Apart from their prayers, Sufi devotions include singing hymns, chanting the names of God or dancing to heighten awareness of the divine. Revered saints, scholars and holy people are buried in shrines and some are honoured with annual pilgrimages. While many Islamic scholars say this is admissible, puritanical schools of Islam such as Saudi Arabia’s Wahhabis or the Afghan Taliban consider it heretical.

As pious and peaceful believers, Sufis have been easy targets for violent Islamists seeking political power. The Pakistani Taleban have attacked Sufi shrines and mosques there in recent years and Salafi attacks on Sufis broke out last year after Egypt’s protesters toppled President Hosni Mubarak.

Gaddafi had a bizarre and fickle relationship with Islam, using it when it boosted his authority but suppressing it whenever faith seemed to be the

first step towards dissent. At one point in the 1980s, anyone going to morning prayers in a mosque risked arrest as a religious extremist. The dictator denied there was a split between Sunnis and Shiites. He blew hot and cold on the Prophet’s birthday event known as Mawlid, sometimes limiting it in Libya but leading mass celebrations in African cities in his selfappointed role as a pan-African and pan-Islamic leader.

Traditional religious schools were shut and religious education was reduced to a few basics about Islam and heavy emphasis on memorizing the Quran. Gaddafi even abolished the Dar al Ifta, the central authority for issuing religious rulings or fatwas, and Libya offered no such advice to its Muslims from 1978 until the office was restored after rebels chased him from power last August. “He did everything but give people carpets and say pray to him rather than Allah,” one imam remarked.

All this undermined Libya’s tradi-

tional Islam, a balanced Sunni version with Sufi influences. Some Muslims began looking abroad for inspiration, especially to Saudi Arabia, and brought back a more austere Islam that mixed up the religious landscape.”Nobody knows anymore what they are,” said Sufi theologian Aref Ali Nayed when asked what the majority was in Libyan Islam. “We have 42 years of Gaddafi to thank for that.”

Libya’s Sufis also worry they are being outflanked politically. Many new religious officials have Salafi leanings, they say, and are appointing Salafi imams to mosques vacated by proGaddafi preachers. Salafi preaching is now widespread on Libyan television and radio, they say. Salafis have also begun denouncing traditional imams to the authorities, prompting them to be replaced by hardliners. “About half the imams here have been replaced by Salafis,” said one imam at a large Tripoli mosque where Salafis in the congregation are campaigning against celebrating Mawlid. — Reuters

UN nuke official: New trip to Iran planned Main focus of trip was to break Iranian resistance

WADI AHJAR: Yemeni tribesmen look on, sitting on a pick-up car yesterday at a road near a village in Wadi Ahjar, some 50 kms northwest of Sanaa, where gunmen are holding four international aid workers after they kidnapped them. —AFP

Oxfam warns of major Yemen relief crisis DUBAI: Oxfam’s country director in Yemen has said that relief efforts to stave off a food crisis are severely underfunded, risking a major humanitarian crisis in one of the world’s poorest countries. “We are very concerned on two fronts: the increasing levels of humanitarian need, and the level of funding and attention that it’s getting,” Oxfam’s Colette Fearon told AFP in Dubai. Fearon said the 2012 Consolidated Appeal for relief funds, which includes the financial needs of all major aid organisations working in Yemen, is so far “only 12 percent funded.”

The appeal calls for some “half a billion dollars... to reach 3.7 million people,” and these constitute only half the number of people the humanitarian community in Yemen believe are actually in need of assistance, said Fearon. Aid agencies expect the situation to get worse throughout the year unless relief efforts are sufficiently funded.

“People for months now have been resorting to coping mechanisms, going to bed hungry,” said Fearon. “If aid does not come, it will be a major crisis... We’d be looking at a much more difficult humanitarian situation. People would have descended so far, it won’t be nearly as easy for them to recover.” Recent UN figures have shown “very worrying levels of malnutrition, especially among children,” and the crisis has now spread to Yemenis living in non-conflict areas as well, she added.

In September, Oxfam released a

report warning of “widespread hunger and chronic malnutrition taking hold in Yemen,” and warned of an impending “calamity” if the international community does not immediately step up relief efforts in the Arab world’s poorest nation. In December, UN agencies warned that Yemen was on its way to becoming another Somalia, saying nearly four million people will be affected by the political and economic crisis that has plagued the country since mass protests demanding President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s ouster erupted in January 2011.

Despite improvements in the security situation in the capital Sanaa since Saleh signed the Gulf-sponsored transition plan in November and handed power to the vice president, much of Yemen remains insecure, further complicating the delivery of aid to those most in need.

Abyan province in the south, where government troops are battling Al-Qaeda affiliated militants, is mostly off-limits to international aid workers, and is becoming increasingly dangerous for local aid agencies.

The conflict there has already displaced more than 90,000 Yemenis, according to the latest UN figures.

According to Fearon, “large proportions of the population have been in a long and deepening crisis.” She said that for months, people have been drawing on what remains of their minimal resources and that now those resources “have been depleted.”— AFP

Iraq to host first Arab summit since revolts BAGHDAD: Iraq is to host an Arab summit on March 29, the first since the Arab Spring that swept away several dictators and brought Islamists to the fore, a senior Arab League official said yesterday. The last time Baghdad hosted a regular summit of the 22-member organisation dates back to November 1978, and Iraq was the venue for an extraordinary session in May 1990, just months before Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait.

“We’ve agreed on all the logistical and security arrangements,” the Arab League’s assistant secretary general, Ahmed ben Hilli, announced at a joint press conference in Baghdad with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari. “Arab economy ministers will meet on March 27, foreign ministers on the 28th and heads of state on March 29” for a regular summit, ben Hilli said.

“The agenda of this summit will be different from previous ones because it will be more open and should be closer to Arab citizens,” he said, underlining the dramatic changes in the region. Zebari said that Iraq, which is to host the event in its fortified Green Zone of downtown Baghdad, would “do everything to assure the security of the delegations and heads of Arab states.” The announcement came as

official figures showed 151 Iraqis were killed in attacks in January, the month after Washington ended a military deployment of more than eight years. It was one of the lowest monthly death tolls since 2003.

A regular Arab summit was originally due to be held on March 29, 2011 in the Iraqi capital but delayed due to the turbulence of the Arab Spring that last year ousted long-term rulers of Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.

It was rescheduled until May 11 before being postponed for a second time.

Saddam, toppled in a 2003 US-led invasion and executed in 2006, Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi, killed last year, and Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who fled to Saudi Arabia in January 2011, will be notable absentees.

Egypt’s longtime ruler Hosni Mubarak, forced to step down as president last February 11, and Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has signed an accord to hand over power to his deputy later this month, will also be missing. And the Cairobased League, which in November suspended Syria because of its deadly crackdown on dissent, is seeking UN backing for its plan for Syrian President Bashar AlAssad to step down. —AFP

VIENNA: A senior UN nuclear expert yesterday announced plans to revisit Tehran soon after a “good trip,” indicating progress on his team’s quest to probe suspicions that the Islamic Republic is secretly working on an atomic arms program. The announcement from mission leader Herman Nackaerts came shortly after his group landed at Vienna airport after three days of discussions with Iranian officials in Tehran.

While Nackaerts gave no details on what the International Atomic Energy Agency experts had achieved, diplomats had said before their departure that their main focus was to break Iranian resistance to talking about the weapons program allegations.

“We had three days of intensive discussions about all our priorities, and we are committed to resolve all the outstanding issues,” Nackaerts told reporters. “And the Iranians said they are committed, too.

“But, of course, there’s still a lot of work to be done,” he said. “So we have planned another trip in the very near future.” Asked how the visit was, he replied, “we had a good trip.” Diplomats familiar with IAEA strategy told The Associated Press before the trip that the agency delegation was unlikely to settle for vague promises or complicated plans that could further stall their probe. Nackaerts’ announcement that a new visit would soon take place - plus his praise of a “good trip” - therefore suggested that he was coming back to Vienna with some progress made.

Any progress on the issue would be significant, at a time of growing tensions over fears that

Iran might be using the cover of a peaceful nuclear program to move to the point where it can break out into making a bomb and growing concerns that Israel could be planning an pre-emptive attack. Alluding to such fears, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon

years, saying they are based on “fabricated documents” provided by a “few arrogant countries” - a phrase authorities in Iran often use to refer to the United States and its allies.

Faced with Iranian stonewalling, the IAEA summa-

VIENNA: Herman Nackaerts, Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, is interviewed as he arrives after his flight from Iran at Vienna’s Schwechat airport, Austria yesterday. —AP yesterday told Israel that the international standoff over Iran’s suspect nuclear program must be resolved peacefully.

At a news conference with Israel’s prime minister in Jerusalem, Ban urged the Iranians to prove their nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. When asked whether he fears an Israeli attack, he said “there is no alternative to a peaceful resolution of these issues.” Iran has refused to discuss the alleged weapons experiments for more than three

rized its body of information in November in a 13-page document drawing on 1,000 pages of intelligence. It stated then for the first time that some of the alleged experiments can have no other purpose than developing nuclear weapons. The IAEA team was seeking progress on its efforts to talk to key Iranian scientists suspected of working on a weapons program. They also hoped to break down opposition to their plans to inspect documents related to nuclear work and secure

commitments from Iranian authorities to allow future visits.

Beyond concerns about the purported weapons work, the United States and its allies want Iran to halt uranium enrichment, which they believe could eventually lead to weapons-grade material and the production of nuclear weapons. Iran says its program is for peaceful purposes - generating electricity and producing medical radioisotopes to treat cancer patients. Since the discovery in 2002 that Iran was secretly working on uranium enrichment, the nation has expanded that operation to the point where it has thousands of centrifuges churning out enriched material the potential source of both nuclear fuel and fissile warhead material.

Iran also has started producing uranium at a higher level than its main stockpile - a move that would jump start the creation of highly enriched, weapons grade uranium, should it chose to go that route. And it is moving its higher-enriched operation into an underground bunker that it says is safe from attack.

Tehran is under four sets of UN Security Council sanctions because of its refusal to heed international concerns about its nuclear programs, as well as penalties imposed by the United States and Western nations meant to force it into dialogue. The European Union last week imposed an oil embargo on Iran and froze the assets of its central bank. In December, the United States said it would bar financial institutions from the US market if they do business with Iran’s central bank. — AP

Egypt’s ‘war on democracy’ threatens US ties CAIRO: Arriving in Egypt last year, Julie Hughes had hoped to help write history by aiding the country’s new generation of politicians and civil society groups to build a democratic future. Instead, the American director of the National Democratic Institute is under investigation by authorities for funding irregularities at her US-based group and is banned from leaving Egypt, a measure that prompted other activists to seek refuge this week in the US embassy in Cairo.

Her hope for change, inspired by the fall of Hosni Mubarak at the hands of hundreds of thousands of protesting Egyptians, was punctured on Dec 29 when her offices were raided in connection with an investigation by Egypt’s new military rulers. The work of NDI, which is

loosely linked to the US Democratic Party, had fallen prey to what Egyptian pro-democracy campaigners say is a war between remnants of Mubarak’s inner circle and a rapidly developing civil society.

It’s a war, some campaigners say, that is more vicious than the one they fought under Mubarak, and it could further sour relations between Cairo and Washington, putting $1.3 billion of annual US military aid in jeopardy.

But for the authorities, it is a matter of law; the non-governmental organisations broke it by receiving foreign funding without government approval. For Hughes, the first casualty has been NDI’s work with Egypt’s budding new political class. “That is more than a little heartbreaking for us,” Hughes told Reuters at her

CAIRO: Egyptian vegetable vendor Abu Hussein, 72, sits in an alley of a neighborhood waiting for customers in Cairo, Egypt yesterday. —AP

Cairo home. A handful of Americans, including a son of a member of President Barack Obama’s cabinet, are sheltering behind the fortress-like walls of the US embassy for protection. All employees of US-based non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that have loose links to America’s two leading political parties, they say they have been accused of running groups that were not properly licensed in Egypt and receiving foreign funding illegally.

A judicial source said yesterday the travel ban had been extended to three more Americans, taking the total to 17 US citizens out of a total of 28 foreigners who have been prevented from leaving Egypt. The source expected the release of the probe’s results next week. The government has yet to confirm the specific charges, leaving the activists guessing as to what the punishment could be.

The groups work on everything from educating voters to advising politicians on how to build a successful coalition. Hughes sums up the euphoria with which many activists arrived in Egypt. “It’s an honor to be right here now at this point in history: to see history being rewritten and being remade and people grabbing hold of their political future and helping them participate in the democratic transition,” she told Reuters.

NDI has trained around 14,000 Egyptians in advocacy, voter education and election monitoring since April 1 last year and has brought speakers including former leaders of Poland and Chile, countries with an experience of democratic transitions. But the investigation shows how far Egypt has to go before such organisations can operate as freely as they do in much of the world, highlighting what Egyptian activists describe as the persistence of the Mubarak-era mentality - one of fear of allowing too much debate. — Reuters

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

INTERNATIONAL

Argentina calls William Falklands ‘conquistador’ BUENOS AIRES: Argentina said it doesn’t seek another war over the Falkland Islands, and accused Britain of militarizing their sovereignty dispute by announcing Tuesday that it is sending an advanced warship to the islands along with Prince William “in the uniform of a conquistador.” The assignment of Prince William, a Royal Air Force helicopter pilot, for a six-week military mission in the Falklands in February and March has been a sore point for Argentina. It has sought to reclaim the South Atlantic archipelago that it calls the Malvinas Islands ever since Britain seized the islands some 180 years ago.

Both countries have engaged in a

war of words in recent weeks ahead of the 30th anniversary of Argentina’s failed attempt to take the islands back.

Its invasion ended with more than 600 Argentine soldiers killed and 200 British dead in an international humiliation for Argentina’s military junta. Weakened by that defeat, the dictatorship soon allowed the return of democracy, and Argentines have had little appetite since then for war.

Instead, Argentina hopes diplomatic and economic measures will pressure Britain to comply with United Nations resolutions encouraging both countries to negotiate the islands’ sovereignty.

British leaders have refused to do that.

The pressure on Britain includes a ban

by South America’s Mercosur nations on any Falklands-flagged vessels entering their ports. That action prompted British Prime Minister David Cameron to accuse Argentine President Cristina Fernandez of having “colonialist” aims on an island population that wants to remain a British dependency. She accused Cameron of “mediocrity bordering on stupidity.”

British Foreign Secretary William Hague came back with more fighting words Tuesday, telling Sky News that Britain is sending one of its most modern warships, the destroyer HMS Dauntless, to the Falklands. He called

the deployment a routine replacement of another warship, but also stressed that “the Royal Navy packs a very considerable punch.” Argentina’s foreign ministry accused Britain of taking the debate over the islands into dangerous territory to distract people from British economic problems.

“The governments should avoid the temptation of inciting debates that transform patriotism into bullying with the aim of distracting public attention from political decisions to reduce spending in the context of structural crisis and high unemployment,” the foreign ministry’s statement said. It added that while Argentina pursues peace

around the world by participating in UN missions, “Britain insists on ignoring UN resolutions, weakening diplomatic efforts and increasing the risk of more wars.”

Argentines are saddened that Prince William “will arrive on our soil in the uniform of a conquistador, and not with the wisdom of a statesman who works for peace and dialogue between nations,” the ministry said. The 29-year-old prince, known in the military as Flight Lt. William Wales, is expected to return to Britain before the April anniversary of Argentina’s invasion. His uncle, Prince Andrew, served as a Royal Navy helicopter pilot during the war. —AP

General, 29 soldiers on trial for homicide in Mexico ‘Crimes charged are deplorable and reprehensible’

HAVANA: Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff, left, speaks with Cuba’s President Raul Castro during a meeting at Revolution palace in Havana, Cuba, Tuesday . Rousseff is in Cuba for a visit emphasizing economic cooperation. —AP

Brazil’s Rousseff meets with Fidel Castro in Cuba HAVANA: Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff met with Fidel Castro, the revolutionary hero of her youth, and held talks with his younger brother, President Raul Castro, on Tuesday in a visit to strengthen financial ties with communistled Cuba. She toured the port of Mariel near Havana where a Brazilian company is leading a massive renovation and chided the United States for its controversial military prison at Guantanamo Bay. Cuba released few details about the visit and did not allow coverage by the international media, but state-run television said the two governments signed agreements on Cuban food purchases from Brazil, the Mariel project and Cuba’s biotechnology and pharmaceuticals industry.

A Brazilian diplomat confirmed that Rousseff had met with Fidel Castro, whose 1959 communist revolution she tried to emulate as a leftist guerrilla fighter against Brazil’s 1960s military dictatorship. She told reporters she would go see him with “much pride.” Citing a Brazilian press report, government website said Rousseff, after lunching with Raul Castro, led a “small delegation” to meet the man who ruled Cuba for 49 years.

The 85-year-old Fidel Castro resigned the presidency four years ago, but still occasionally writes columns for Cuban press and meets with visiting leaders.

Younger brother Raul Castro, who is 80, succeeded him in office. Cuban media said Rousseff and Raul Castro discussed “the excellent state of their bilateral relations” and later toured the Mariel port together. She said Brazil is contributing $640 million toward the $900 million project, led by Brazilian firm Odebrecht.

Mariel, best-known as the site of a 1980 Cuban exodus to the United States, is being turned into Cuba’s main commercial port and hub for its nascent offshore oil industry.

She also said Brazil had granted $400 million in credits for Cuba to buy Brazilian food and $200 million under a program to improve Cuban agriculture. Rousseff said Brazil had made a “historic commitment” to “help the process of economic development” on the island, which has been under a US trade embargo for 50 years. Cuba is in the midst of modernizing its creaky Soviet-style economy by easing the role of the state and encouraging more private initiative. Brazil is one of Cuba’s largest commercial partners, with

$642 million in trade last year, and one of its biggest foreign investors. Brazil-Cuba economic and political ties were deepened under Rousseff’s predecessor, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Rousseff arrived in Cuba on Monday amid controversies over the recent death of a jailed Cuban dissident and Brazil’s decision to grant a visa to dissident blogger Yoani Sanchez. Brazil’s first woman president was arrested in 1970, tortured and imprisoned for three years for guerrilla activities, which some believe would make her more sympathetic to opponents of the Cuban government.

Sanchez and others asked to meet with her, which Brazilian media reports said was unlikely. On Tuesday, Rousseff said she would discuss human rights with Cuban leaders, but that talks would include the controversial US military prison at Guantanamo Bay for suspected terrorists.

“We are going to start by talking about human rights in the United States, with respect to a base here (in Cuba) called Guantanamo,” she said. The United States has been accused of depriving suspects of civil liberties by holding them indefinitely at the US base in eastern Cuba.

Many detainees have said they were tortured at the prison, opened in 2002 by President George W. Bush to hold suspected terrorists after the invasion of Afghanistan in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

Rousseff did not speak of dissident Wilman Villar, who fellow government opponents said died of a hunger strike and mistreatment behind bars. The Cuban government has said he was a common criminal and denied that he conducted a hunger strike. Of Sanchez, Rousseff said Brazil had given her a visa last week but whether she could travel was up to Cuba. The Cuban government views Sanchez as one of its top opponents and as such a mercenary for the United States. It has repeatedly blocked her from traveling abroad, where she has a large international following.

Sanchez said on Twitter that she has requested permission from Cuba to go to Brazil and is awaiting an answer. Rousseff was set to go to Haiti on Wednesday, where Brazilian troops lead the UN peacekeeping force and Brazil has helped finance a Cuban medical mission at work since a powerful earthquake struck that Caribbean nation last year.— Reuters

US state’s senate takes up gay marriage vote WASHINGTON: The Washington state Senate is set to take a crucial vote yesterday on a proposal to legalize same-sex marriage as lawmakers consider whether to make the state the seventh in the US to approve gay marriage. The bill is expected to pass and move on to the House, where passage is expected by a more comfortable margin. Democratic Gov Chris Gregoire supports the measure and said she will sign it into law.

“Nothing is done until it is actually voted on,” the bill’s sponsor, Democratic Sen. Ed Murray of Seattle, cautioned. Opponents of

same-sex marriage have already promised a referendum battle at the ballot if the measure becomes law. Same-sex marriage is legal in New York, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont, as well as the District of Columbia.

Lawmakers in New Jersey and Maryland are expected to debate gay marriage this year, and Maine is likely to see a gay marriage proposal on the November ballot so voters can decide. Washington state has had a domestic partnership law since 2007 and an “everything but marriage” expansion of the domestic partnership law since 2009. —AP

MEXICO CITY: A Mexican army general and 29 soldiers under his command in a town on the border with Texas are being tried on charges of torture, homicide, drug trafficking and other crimes, a top government official confirmed Tuesday. Interior Secretary Alejandro Poire said that the crimes charged in the case are “deplorable and reprehensible” and that the troops are being tried in a military court.

Details about Gen Manuel Moreno Avina and his subordinates’ alleged reign of terror in the town of Ojinaga, across from Presidio, Texas, were first reported by the newspaper Reforma, which had access to some of the soldiers’ testimony. Shortly after Moreno arrived in Ojinaga in spring 2008, the troops under his command began kidnapping, torturing and killing suspects and stealing cars, computers, TV sets and even mattresses during raids on suspects’ homes, according to the testimony reported by Reforma. They allegedly resold the stolen items as well as marijuana and cocaine they seized.

Poire did not confirm the allegations contained in Reforma’s story, and the Defense Department didn’t respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press. According to the newspaper, prosecutors say at least 10 civilians were killed by soldiers or by hit men under the orders of Moreno in 2008 and 2009. At least three of those slain were described as suspects in the custody of soldiers, including a man in his 20s who was detained in July 2008 and taken to the military garrison and given electroshocks until he died of a heart attack. His body allegedly was taken to a ranch, soaked in diesel and burned.

Seven other people were killed on the orders of Moreno by two

hit men working for La Linea, a gang of assassins and corrupt police officers who act as enforcers for the Juarez Cartel, according to the testimony reported by Reforma. Among the alleged victims were a secretary at the federal prosecutors’ office in Ojinaga, a state police officer, a

other soldiers are being tried in a military court in the Pacific coast state of Sinaloa and are all being held at a military prison in the state of Jalisco, it said.

Military investigators were first alerted to the soldiers’ crimes in August 2009 by an anonymous complaint that they were collabo-

Human Rights and Mexico’s own Supreme Court have ruled that soldiers who commit human rights violations against civilians should be tried in civilian courts.

Calderon has said his government will comply with rulings, but so far it has not made the transition or agreed to give civilian courts mili-

CUIDAD JUAREZ: A member of the local police guards one of the hotels where policemen are billeted on Tuesday in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state, Mexico. —AFP local police officer who stopped Moreno for speeding and driving under the influence of alcohol, and a businessman who filed a complaint with federal prosecutors and human rights officials after soldiers raided his house and stole money.

Soldiers also reportedly testified that Moreno often kept cars seized in legal and illegal raids and had them painted in military green. Poire said the general and

Slim denies he has monopoly on telecom MEXICO CITY: Telephone magnate Carlos Slim denied Tuesday that he has a monopoly on telecommunications in Mexico, disputing a report by an international economic forum that say a lack of competition has cost the country billions. Slim, who is one of the world’s richest people, said his phone companies have either kept prices the same or reduced them. His Telmex company controls 80 percent of Mexico’s landline market, while his Telcel controls 70 percent of the mobile phone business.

The Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Monday that Mexicans overpaid for telecommunications services by more than $13 billion a year from 2005 to 2009. It said a lack of competition cost Mexico $25 billion a year in the same period. Slim called those numbers “fantasy.” Telcel is the Mexican arm of America Mobile, Latin America’s leading mobile-phone operator.

Slim denied that any of his businesses are monopolies.”What does monopoly mean? One,” he said, adding that “if we have less than 100 percent of the market it means that there are other competitors.” Asked about the potential entry into Mexico’s mobile-phone market by the Mexican broadcasting giant Televisa, Slim said he didn’t fear competition. “We aren’t afraid of competing with anyone,” he said. “What we want is that they invest, that they don’t take advantage of our investments.”

Televisa, the world’s largest producer of Spanish-language programming, announced last April that it would pay $1.6 billion for a 50 percent share of the mobilephone operator Iusacell. That’s a property of the Salinas Group, which operates TV Azteca, the second biggest television operation in Mexico. The OECD said Iusacell has 4.4 percent of the mobile-phone market and Televisa’s entry could generate more competition in the sector. Mexico’s anti-monopoly regulator has made a decision on the Televisa-Iusacell merger, but has not yet made it public.

Slim’s companies have pulled their advertising from Televisa and TV Azteca, saying they overcharge, and he has accused the two TV operations of monopolistic practices. He has been trying to get the government’s permission to enter Mexico’s pay-television market, a request that has been opposed by Televisa. —AP

rating with a criminal group, Defense Department officials told Reforma. President Felipe Calderon deployed 50,000 soldiers and other military personnel to fight organized crime shortly after taking office in December 2006. More than 47,000 people have been killed in drug violence since Calderon launched his offensive, according to government figures.

The Inter-American Court on

tary cases of murder. A Human Rights Watch report on Mexico released in November said only 15 soldiers had been convicted following 3,671 investigations by military prosecutors into alleged human rights violations by soldiers against civilians from 2007 to June 2011. No soldier or state official had been convicted in any of more than 200 cases that the New York-based rights group documented in the report. —AP

Ex-teacher due in court on molestation charges LOS ANGELES: The children never complained around children or his hand over their mouths. about their teacher. Not, authorities said, when Some photos showed children with live bugs the he blindfolded them, not when he put tape over size of hissing cockroaches on their mouths or their mouths or even placed live cockroaches on faces. Others depicted girls with what appears to their faces. He told them it was a game and pho- be a spoon up to their mouths as if they were tographed them, creating images that would going to ingest a clear-white liquid. Children lead to his arrest, investigators said of Mark were fed Berndt’s semen from a spoon or on Berndt, who is scheduled to appear in court yes- cookies, Marquez said.

Kids reported being fed something distasteterday on charges that he committed lewd acts on 23 boys and girls, ages 6 to 10. He has hired a ful. A blue plastic spoon and container found in lawyer and has made no statements to authori- the trash in his classroom tested positive for his ties, said Los Angeles County sheriff’s spokesman semen, authorities said. Police recommended the children in the photos be testSteve Whitmore. ed for sexually transmitted disThe investigation began when eases. There may be more victims a film processor reported Berndt’s given the length of time that photos more than a year ago.

Berndt taught at the school, Since the discovery, the school Marquez said. At first, neither the district fired Berndt and police parents nor the children believed put him under surveillance. “If it they had been molested, so there wasn’t for the film processor, this wasn’t much reaction, according could still be continuing today,” to Whitmore. It was only after the said sheriff’s Lt. Carlos Marquez. matter of the semen was raised Berndt was arrested Monday at that they became alarmed. his home and was being held on Berndt, who has no previous $2.3 million bail. He could get a arrest record, was placed under life sentence if convicted. surveillance. The childless bacheSome parents picking up their Mark Berndt lor lives a few blocks from two children at Miramonte Elementary School on Tuesday complained that parks and an elementary school. The incidents officials at the school in South Los Angeles occurred during school hours but not all the chilshould have told them when the photos were dren were his students, Marquez said. “The reafound. “My concern is why, if the principal knew son some of the kids are not his students, per se, this in advance, why didn’t he inform us?” said is that during the lunch breaks or recess, he’d go Gloria Polanco. “How long has he been doing out to the playground and entice them back to this?” The charges against Berndt are for the peri- the classroom,” Marquez said.

“They didn’t know they were being violated od between 2008 and 2010. The probe began after the film processor, who is required by state in that manner,” he said. “They just thought it law to report suspicions of child abuse and was a game.” Berndt was a teaching assistant in molestation, turned over some 40 photographs the Los Angeles Unified School District in 1976 and 1977 and he began teaching at Miramonte to authorities.

About 400 photos were found at Berndt’s in 1979, according to a district work history home and at the photo lab during searches. It’s obtained by the Los Angeles Times. Berndt had not clear how many children were pictured. At no disciplinary actions on file and performed up least 10 in the photos have not yet been identi- to standards in his last five evaluations over the fied. Some photos showed Berndt with his arm last decade, according to the document. —AP

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

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

Four UK men admit London Stock Exchange bomb plot LONDON: Four British men fueled by the words of a US-born Muslim cleric pleaded guilty yesterday to involvement in an Al-Qaeda inspired plot to spread terror and cause economic damage by bombing the London Stock Exchange at Christmastime. The nine men, from several parts of the country, were brought together through radical Islamist groups and nurtured plans to attack the stock exchange and other high-profile targets. Unbeknownst to them, British authorities learned of the plot and put them under surveillance.

They were arrested in raids in December 2010 and all initially denied all the charges against them. But yesterday, as their trial was due to start, four of the defendants pleaded guilty at Woolwich Crown Court to involvement in the Stock Exchange plan, and the five other British Muslims to lesser charges. Mohammed Chowdhury, 21; Shah Rahman, 28; Gurukanth Desai, 30; and Abdul Miah, 25, all admitted preparing for acts of terrorism by planning to plant an improvised explosive device in the toilets of the London Stock Exchange.

Prosecution lawyer Andrew Edis accepted that the men had not planned to kill anyone. “Their intention

was to cause terror and economic harm and disruption,” he said. “But their chosen method meant there was a risk people would be maimed or killed.”

Chowdhury, from London, was described by prosecutors as the “lynchpin” of the plot. His lawyer, Christopher Blaxland, said Chowdhury admitted planning to plant the bomb, “with the obvious attendant risk but without any intention to cause death or even injury but with the intention to terrorize, damage property and to cause economic damage.” The other five defendants admitted attending planning meetings, fundraising for terrorism or possessing copies of the Al-Qaeda magazine, Inspire, which contained a feature headlined “Make A Bomb In The Kitchen Of Your Mom.” Prosecutors said they had not made any bombs or set dates for the attacks.

They said the men were not members of Al-Qaeda but had been inspired by the terror network and the sermons of its Yemen-based American-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who was killed last year in a US drone strike. Edis said the nine defendants “were implementing the published strategy of AQAP” - AlQaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. The suspects, then aged between 20 and

Assange in UK Supreme Court over extradition fight LONDON: Julian Assange took his extradition battle to Britain’s Supreme Court yesterday, arguing that sending him to Sweden would violate a fundamental legal principle. The two-day hearing is Assange’s last chance to persuade British judges to quash efforts to send him to Scandinavia, where he is wanted on sex crimes allegations. Assange - who leads the WikiLeaks anti-secrecy website - was accused of rape, coercion and molestation following encounters with two Swedish women in August 2010, shortly after WikiLeaks published sensitive US government documents relating to the Afghan war.

Assange’s case in the Supreme Court hinges on a single technical point: whether Sweden’s public prosecutors could issue a warrant for Assange’s arrest.

Swedish authorities issued the European Arrest Warrant on rape and molestation accusations, and Assange was arrested in London in December 2010. Assange, who denies any wrongdoing, has been fighting extradition since then. In Britain as in the United States, generally only judges can issue arrest warrants, and British courts only honor warrants issued by what they describe as judicial authorities.

Lawyers for Sweden argue that in Sweden, as in other European countries, prosecutors play a judicial or semi-judicial role.

Assange lawyer Dinah Rose rejected that argument Wednesday, telling the seven justices gathered in Britain’s highest court that a prosecutor “does not, and indeed cannot as a matter of principle, exercise judicial authority.” She said that wasn’t just a parochial British view, but rather a “fundamental principle” that stretches back 1,500 years to the Codex Justinius, the Byzantine legal code.

“No one may be a judge in their own case,” Rose said. Rose spent the first 2 1/2 hours of the hearing combing through British case law and parsing European draft treaties to buttress her case - in some cases slipping into French to make finer points and wording. She claimed that those who set the rules for European extraditions expected that judicial authorities issuing warrants would be independent and impartial, noting that drafters dropped the reference to public prosecutors from the final version of their text. Evidence showed, she said, that drafters believed “that the European arrest warrant was a very serious measure that has to be issued by a court.”

She spoke confidently and with few interruptions, but legal experts say Rose faces an uphill battle to convince the

Supreme Court to block the extradition.

Karen Todner, a prominent extradition specialist, said before the case started that Assange’s lawyers were unlikely to overcome the benefit of the doubt usual-

researched bomb-making and scouted out locations including Parliament, Westminster Abbey and the London Eye Ferris wheel - not knowing that they were under police surveillance and their homes and cars had been

LONDON: A combo of undated handout pictures obtained from West Midlands Police yesterday shows British Islamists (L-R) Mohammed Chowdhury, Shah Rahman, Gurukanth Desai and Abdul Miah who yesterday pleaded guilty to plotting to blow up the London Stock Exchange in 2010. —AFP the run-up to Christmas 2010 and had discussed launching a “Mumbai-style” atrocity - referring to the bomb blasts that killed 166 people in India’s financial center in 2008. The nine defendants were accused of agreeing on targets, discussing materials and methods, and researching files “containing practical instruction for a terrorist attack.”

The men held planning meetings,

bugged. A handwritten target list found at one of the defendant’s homes listed the names and addresses of London Mayor Boris Johnson, two rabbis, the American Embassy and the Stock Exchange. The men, who had Bangladeshi and Pakistani backgrounds, also were overheard discussing how to make a pipe bomb, and talked about traveling abroad for terror

training. The four suspects from Stokeon-Trent discussed leaving homemade bombs in the toilets of their city’s pubs - but noted that as Muslims they would not be able to go into the pubs to plant them.

The defendants will be sentenced next week, but the judge has already told Chowdhury he will receive 18 1/2 years and Rahman 17 years. They are likely to serve half that time before being eligible for parole.

When police swooped on the suspects in three cities in the early morning of Dec. 20, 2010, they said it was the most significant anti-terror raid for two years. London has been targeted several times by violent Islamists affiliated with or inspired by Al-Qaeda. In July 2005, four suicide bombers killed 52 commuters on three London subway trains and a bus. A year later, US and British intelligence officials thwarted one of the largest plots yet - a plan to explode bombs on nearly a dozen trans-Atlantic airliners. Al-Awlaki, who was killed in September, is thought to have orchestrated an unsuccessful October 2010 plot to send mail bombs on planes from Yemen to the US hidden in the toner cartridges of computer printers. —AP

Helicopters rescue stranded Europeans Death toll rises to 79

LONDON: Wikileaks founder Julian Assange arrives at the Supreme Court in central London yesterday in the latest stage of his lengthy battle against extradition to Sweden to face rape allegations. —AFP ly afforded to other European countries’ judicial systems.British judges “absolutely defer” to their European counterparts’ justice systems, she said, adding that she would be “very surprised” if Assange’s team won the day.

Just over a dozen sympathizers came to support Assange, a 40-year-old Australian, outside the Supreme Court building Wednesday. “We’re here to show solidarity and hold a vigil for Julian Assange,” said Andrew Russell, 31. “He was able to show the world, open that window for a brief time into what’s really going on. I see him as a journalist who should be rewarded for that courageous work, rather than hounded.”

The UK justices, who have dispensed with formal court attire in favor of business suits, will hear lawyers for the prosecution on Thursday. Their decision isn’t expected for several weeks. If they rule against Assange, the 40-year-old Australian is expected to be on a flight to Sweden within two weeks. Assange could conceivably appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, but because Sweden is a fellow European country that would not stop his extradition. — AP

Putin does not rule out poll run-off MOSCOW: Russian strongman Vladimir Putin refused to rule out yesterday a run-off in March presidential polls where he will seek a third Kremlin term but warned a second round risked causing instability. “I understand that a second round run-off is possible, according to the current legislation,” Russian news agencies quoted Putin as saying at a meeting with Russian election observers. “I also understand-and I think you do too-that a run-off would unavoidably be linked to the continuation of a struggle and the destabilisation of the political situation.”

“But there’s nothing scary about it. I am ready for that, to work in the second round, if need be.” Prime Minister Putin is seeking to win back his old Kremlin job in March 4 presidential polls, despite an outburst of protests against his possible comeback. He is wrestling with the worst legitimacy crisis of his 12-year rule after he announced his plan to seek a third Kremlin term in a job swap with incumbent President Dmitry Medvedev in

30, were arrested in London, Cardiff and Stoke-on Trent in central England, in what police called the biggest antiterror raid for two years.

Prosecutors said they plotted to send mail bombs to various targets in

September. His approval ratings have dropped to an extent that he may not poll 50 percent in the March 4 first round, forcing him to take part in a run-off three weeks later for the first time, a humiliating prospect for a leader who once enjoyed sky-high ratings.

During a second round run-off, Putin would likely have to square off with veteran Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov, his nearest challenger in the presidential race. Analysts say that if Putin, who still remains Russia’s most popular politician, wins the polls in the run-off his victory would look more legitimate but a second round is fraught with unpre dictable consequences. Many opposition activists and ordinary Russians fear that the Kremlin will seek to falsify elections to let Putin win in the first round. In 1996, Zyuganov forced the then president Boris Yeltsin into a runoff sending a scare across the country that Russia would go back to its Communist past. —AFP

BELGRADE: Rescue helicopters evacuated dozens of people from snow-blocked villages in Serbia and Bosnia and air-lifted in emergency food and medicine as a severe cold spell kept Eastern Europe in its icy grip. The death toll from the cold rose to 79 yesterday and emergency crews worked overtime as temperatures sank to minus 32.5 C (minus 26.5 F) in some areas. Parts of the Black Sea froze near the Romanian coastline and the rare show fell on Croatian islands in the Adriatic Sea. In Bulgaria, 16 towns recorded their lowest temperatures since records started 100 years ago.

In central Serbia, choppers pulled out 12 people, including nine who went to a funeral but then could not get back over icy, snowchoked roads. Two more people froze to death in the snow and two others are missing, bringing that nation’s death toll to five. “The situation is dramatic, the snow is up to five meters (16 1/2 feet) high in some areas, you can only see rooftops,” said Dr. Milorad Dramacanin, who participated in the helicopter evacuations.

One of the evacuees was an elderly woman who had fallen into a coma. She survived after being airlifted to a hospital. Two helicopters were also used yesterday to rescue people and supply remote villages in northern Bosnia. “We are trying to get through to several small villages, with each just a few elderly residents,” said Bosnian rescue official Milimir Doder. “All together some 200-300 people are cut off. We are supplying them for the second day with food and medication.”

Some villages have had no electricity for two days and crews were working aroundthe-clock trying to fix power lines. “The snow is about two meters high (6 feet) and we have cleared off paths that look more like tunnels,” Doder said.

“It is going well but if there is more snow coming, then the situation may get critical.”

Ukraine alone reported 43 deaths, mostly of homeless people. The country’s Emergency Situations Ministry said 28 people had been found dead on the streets, eight died in hospitals and seven in their homes. Over 720 others were hospitalized with hypothermia and frostbite.

Ukraine’s 1+1 channel broadcast footage of a man being treated for frostbite in his toes, which had turned completely black.

Authorities have deployed over 1,730 heating shelters across the country, handing out hot tea, coffee, boiled potatoes and pork fat - a traditional Ukrainian dish - to the homeless.

Hospitals were told not to discharge homeless patients even if their treatment was finished to protect them from the cold.

Prime Minister Mykola Azarov urged

country doesn’t know yet how to take care of its homeless,” Rozenko said. In Romania, temperatures plunged to minus 32.5 C (minus 26.5), and six homeless people died in the past 24 hours of hypothermia, the health ministry reported. Hundreds of other people were sent to shelters to protect them from the extreme cold.

SARAJEVO: Bosnian people caring food supplies in a remote village, cut of by road due high snow fall, near Bosnian town of Sokolac, 70 kms east of Sarajevo, Bosnia, yesterday. —AP Ukrainians to stay vigilant, dress warmly and help each other in the face of the severe weather. “I call on citizens, enterprises, organizations not to be indifferent, to support and protect those people who cannot help themselves in this difficult time,” Azarov said in a statement yesterday. “We are one people.” His comments after some experts suggested Ukraine’s high death toll was linked to authorities’ unwillingness and incompetence in dealing with the homeless.

Pavlo Rozenko, an expert on social policy with the Kiev-based Razumkov Center, said Ukrainian authorities often suffer from the Soviet legacy of viewing the homeless as alcoholics, drug addicts and do-nothings who need to be punished instead of helped. “The

Five people died of hypothermia in the last day in Poland, bringing its toll up to 20 since Friday. Several schools across Hungary suspended classes, including one in the east that said it could not afford the high heating bills.

In Russia, temperatures fell to minus 21 C (minus 6 F) in Moscow but only one person was reported to have died of the cold.

Despite the freezing temperatures, Gyorgy Schirilla, a 50-year-old sportsman, said he would go ahead with his annual swim on Saturday with no protective gear cross the Danube River - a distance of 500 meters (yards) - in the city of Vac. “I’m not afraid of the challenge,” Schirilla said. “This will be my 15th crossing. Two years ago ... I had to fend off ice floes weighing several tons.”— AP

Spanish court hears of Franco-era crimes for 1st time MADRID: A Spanish court heard testimony about Franco - era atrocities for the first time in history Tuesday-but the man in the dock was a judge who investigated the crimes, not an alleged culprit. The 56-year-old judge, Baltasar Garzon, who earned global fame with an attempt to ex tradite Chilean dic tator Augusto Pinochet from London, is accused of abuse of power for looking into the dark period.

Garzon is charged with overreaching his powers by trying to prosecute the atrocities despite an amnesty. He could not be jailed but risks a 20-year ban from the legal profession that would effectively end his career.

The first witness, Maria Martin, recalled how in 1936 when she was just six her mother was jailed and then shot dead, and her body dumped into a mass grave on the side of a road in the central town of Pedro Bernardo.

“They released her to testify in court but then on the way they killed her, they killed 27 men and three women,” the 81year-old, who relies on a walker to get around, said in a broken voice. Martin said her family has been fighting to recover the remains of her mother ever since. “Until the day he died in 1977 my father wrote to the local authorities to try to recover the body. They told him: ‘Go away, leave us in peace or we will do to you what we did to her ’,” she told the Supreme Court.

The defence has called 22 witnesses to testify for the families of victims, many of them buried in unmarked mass graves dotted across the country, some forgotten for decades. “For the first time, these people will be able to tell a court what the dictatorship inflicted on them,” said Emilio Silva, head of a group that tries to help people find the

remains of the missing.

Pino Sosa Sosa, 75, told the court of how her father was taken away from from their home in the town of Aruca in the Canary Islands and never seen again. “ When they took my father I was very young. They took the bread and salt which we had at home because my mother was was sick and she was looking for him,” she said.

Pino said her mother refused to sign the death certificate issued for her father “because she said they took him alive and she was searching for him alive”.

Garzon is being prosecuted for ordering the investigation in 2008 into the disappearance of 114,000 people during Spain’s 1936-39 civil war and General Francisco Franco’s subsequent dictatorship. He is charged with exceeding his powers on the grounds that the alleged crimes were covered by an amnesty agreed in 1977 as Spain moved

towards democracy two years after Franco’s death.

For relatives of the victims “seeing how the judge who tried to help them is being criminalized is terrible,” said Silva. “But there is a positive part. That people from small towns tell the Supreme Court what happened to them, what was done, is impressive,” he added. Garzon opened the inquiry in response to a complaint filed by victims’ families in 2006 which described disappearances, illegal detentions and killings during the Franco era. The judge told the court Tuesday that the amnesty law “refers to crimes of a political nature, in no way can it be said that crimes against humanity of the kind that were alleged could have any political nature. Garzon came to international prominence in 1998 when he ordered the extradition of Pinochet from Britain to face charges of human rights abuses. — AFP

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

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

15 killed in Pakistan’s southwest Gunmen attacked two posts in the Margut area QUETTA: Baluch rebels attacked Pakistani security forces overnight, killing 14 soldiers and a driver working for the military in clashes that raged for five hours, officials said yesterday. Gunmen attacked two posts in the Margut area, about 60 kilometres (40 miles) east of Quetta, capital of the insurgency-torn southwestern province of Baluchistan.

The soldiers were responsible for guarding coal mines, they said.

“A total of 15 people including 14 sol-

BADGHIS: Afghan women walk during a rainy hour in Qalay-e-Naw, Badghis province, west of Kabul, Afghanistan yesterday. —AP

Taleban ‘poised to retake Afghanistan’ after NATO pullout KABUL: A secret US military report says that the Taleban, backed by Pakistan, are set to retake control over Afghanistan after NATO-led forces withdraw from the country, The Times newspaper reported yesterday. Lt Col Jimmie Cummings, a spokesman for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), confirmed the document’s existence but said it was not a strategic study of operations.

“The classified document in question is a compilation of Taleban detainee opinions,” he said. “It’s not an analysis, nor is it meant to be considered an analysis.” Nevertheless, it could be interpreted as a damning assessment of the war, now dragging into its eleventh year and aimed at blocking a Taleban return to power, or possibly an admission of defeat. It could also reinforce the view of Taleban hardliners that the group should not negotiate peace with the United States and President Hamid Karzai’s unpopular government while in a position of strength.

The document cited by Britain’s The Times said that Pakistan’s powerful security agency, the InterServices Intelligence (ISI), was assisting the Taleban in directing attacks against foreign forces. The allegations drew a strong response from Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Abdul Basit. “This is frivolous, to put it mildly,” he told Reuters. “We are committed to non-interference in Afghanistan.”

The Times said the “highly classified” report was put together by the US military at Bagram air base in Afghanistan for top NATO officers last month.

The BBC also carried a report on the leaked document. Large swathes of Afghanistan have already been handed back to Afghan security forces, with the last foreign combat troops due to leave by the end of 2014. But many Afghans doubt their army, security forces or police will be able to take firm control of one of the world’s most volatile countries once foreign combat troops leave.

The US embassy in Kabul declined to comment on the report. The accusations will likely further strain ties between Western powers and Islamabad, which has long denied backing militant groups seeking to topple the US-backed government in Kabul. Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar was visiting Kabul yesterday on a mission to repair strained diplomatic ties with Afghanistan’s government and to meet Karzai to discuss possible peace talks with the Taliban.

Pakistan is currently reviewing ties with the United States which have suffered a series of setbacks since a unilateral US raid that killed Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil in May last year humiliated Pakistan’s powerful generals. A Nov 26 crossborder NATO air attack that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers deepened the crisis, prompting Islamabad to suspend supply routes to NATO forces in Afghanistan.

Pakistan is seen as critical to US efforts to stabilise Afghanistan, a feat one foreign power after another has failed to accomplish over the country’s turbulent history. Islamabad has resisted US pressure to go after insurgent groups like the Taleban and the Haqqani network, and argues Washington’s approach overlooks complex realities on the ground. Pakistan says Washington should attempt to bring all militant groups into the peace process and fears a 2014 combat troop exit could be hasty, plunging the region into the kind of chaos seen after the Soviet exit in 1989.

“They (the Taleban) don’t need any backing.

Everybody knows that after 10 years, they (NATO) have not been able to control a single province in Afghanistan because of the wrong policies they have been following,” Pakistani Senator Tariq Azim, a member of the Senate’s Defence Committee, told Reuters. Pentagon spokesman George Little said: “ We have long been concerned about ties between elements of the ISI and some extremist networks.”

Little said US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta “has also been clear that he believes that the safe havens in Pakistan remain a serious problem and need to be addressed by Pakistani authorities”. The document’s findings were based on interrogations of more than 4,000 Taleban and al Qaeda detainees, the Times said, adding that it identified only few individual insurgents. A State Department spokesman and Britain’s Foreign Office both declined comment on the report.

Despite the presence of about 100,000 foreign troops, violence in Afghanistan is at its worst since the Taleban were ousted by U.S.-backed Afghan forces in 2001, according to the United Nations.

The Taleban announced this month they would open a political office in the Qatari capital Doha to support possible peace talks with the United States. But there has also been talk of efforts to hold separate talks in Saudi Arabia because Karzai fears his government could be sidelined by US talks with the Taliban. The report could boost the Taliban’s confidence and make its leaders less willing to make concessions on key US demands for a ceasefire and for the insurgency to renounce violence and break all ties to Al-Qaeda. — Reuters

diers, one civilian driver of the Frontier Corps (FC) were killed and other 12 wounded in the attack,” an FC spokesman told AFP. A local intelligence official confirmed the toll. Earlier, a senior military official said two dozen gunmen armed with light and heavy weapons attacked the paramilitary posts and killed 11 soldiers. The assailants belonged to a Baluch militant group led

by Harbiar Marri who is living in self exile in London, the official said.

Baluch rebels have been fighting since 2004 for political autonomy and a greater share of profits from Baluchistan’s wealth of natural oil, gas and mineral resources. Yesterday’s clashes continued for five hours, the senior military official said, adding that militants came from mountain hideouts and planted remotecontrolled bombs to block reinforcements. “Harbiar is responsible for these attacks. He has been guiding his militants from Europe to target security

forces. “We want to make it clear that the FC cannot be deterred by these attacks.

The militants will be given a befitting reply,” he added.

On January 26, a similar attack on a Pakistani checkpost killed six soldiers in Dera Bugti, 400 kilometres (250 miles) southeast of Quetta. Pakistan is also fighting a Taleban insurgency in its northwestern border areas with Afghanistan, where 14 soldiers have been killed in the last week. —AFP

Kazakhstan frees top rights activist under amnesty ALMAT Y: K azak hstan yesterday agreed to free under an amnesty ruling a top rights activist whose jailing over a deadly car accident had sparked international condemnation, a judicial official said. A court in the eastern city of Ust-K amenogorsk ordered the release of Yevgeny Zhovtis under law on an amnesty for convicts in lesser cases that marked the t wentieth anniversary of Kazakhstan’s independence.

The ruling was issued by judge Aybek Amirgaliyev, his aide Nazigul Akimbekova told AFP by telephone.

Zhovtis was sentenced in 2009 to four years in jail on manslaughter charges after hitting a pedestrian with his car.

However the defense had argued that Zhovtis had been blinded by the head-

lights of an oncoming car while the pedestrian had been walking along a road at night. Human Rights Watch and other global organizations had raised grave concerns over the conduct of his trial and described his jailing as a huge blow to the cause of the human rights in Kazakhstan.

According to judge Amirgaliyev, Zhovtis will be freed after 15 more days in detention. Zhovtis was head of the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law, which was founded in 1993.

The decision to release him comes just after courts handed short administrative jail terms to six critics of strongman President Nursultan Nazarbayev, in what activists say is part of a new crackdown on the opposition. —AFP

Police probe anthrax parcel sent to Pakistan PM’s house ISLAMABAD: Pakistani police said yesterday they were investigating how and why a parcel containing anthrax was sent to the prime minister’s official residence in the capital Islamabad last month. It appeared to be the first reported case of anthrax sent to a government office in Pakistan, a nuclear-armed country of 174 million that is battling a Taleban insurgency and where Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden was shot dead.

“The parcel containing anthrax powder was sent last month, about 20 days ago. After the laboratory test confirmed that the parcel contained anthrax we registered a case against unknown people,” said police officer Hakim Khan. There was no immediate confirmation from the prime minister’s house, which lies in the heavily secured secretariat area of the capital Islamabad.

Neither was it immediately clear who was responsible, or how they could have accessed anthrax, of any quality, in Pakistan. Police said the parcel was posted from the Jamshoro district in southern province Sindh, the capital of which is Karachi-Pakistan’s biggest city used by the United States to ship supplies to troops fighting in Afghanistan. “We have sent a police team to investigate it and to

find the culprits there,” said Khan, an officer at the secretariat police station.

But in Jamshoro, 180 kilometres (113 miles) northeast of Karachi, police said they had not been informed by Islamabad of any anthrax delivery, instead finding out through local media reports.

“We have not yet received any instructions from the government to investigate this matter,” local police official Bashir Ahmed told AFP. “We have asked the local post office protectively to check their records to know about the sender.

“We can’t say how long it will take to complete the investigation. We expect a quick result if the sender’s identity is not fake.”

In November 2001, police arrested two men suspected of sending a letter containing anthrax to Pakistan’s largest newspaper, Jang. In the United States, anthrax mailings rattled a jittery American public just days after the September 11, 2001 attacks that killed almost 3,000 people. US government scientist Bruce Ivins committed suicide in July 2008 as FBI agents were about to bring charges against him over the anthrax campaign, which killed five people and injured 17. — AFP

PAHAPUR: Relatives and neighbours pray for a Pakistani army soldier who was killed in a Taleban militant attack at the funeral ceremony in Paharpur town some 45 km of Dera Ismail Khan yesterday. —AFP

SITAPUR: Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh state Mayawati sits before addressing an election rally at Sitapur, near Lucknow, India yesterday. —AP

India’s low-caste queen launches re-election bid SITAPUR: India’s “Dalit Queen,” a lowcaste firebrand in power in the country’s most populous state since 2007, launched her re-election bid yesterday promising to continue working for the down-trodden. Crowds of supporters from India’s Dalits, formerly “untouchables” or the lowest social class, cheered and waved as she swooped down in a helicopter before appearing on stage clutching her trademark leather handbag.

Mayawati, who uses one name, rules deeply impoverished Uttar Pradesh where she has helped elevate the status of the low-castes, but is also accused of letting the state slide further into corruption and dysfunction. She has also spent more than a billion dollars building giant statues of herself and her party symbol of an elephant, as well as memorials to past low-caste icons, in sprawling parks in the state capital Lucknow. “It is the first time for this state that our government took up the cause of the Dalits and the deprived, as well as Muslims who were always neglected by successive regimes,” she said in an hour-long speech.

Uttar Pradesh, which goes to the polls next Wednesday to elect a new state assembly, has a population of 200 million-about the size of Brazil’s-and some of the most entrenched poverty in the world. It is influential in national politics as a power base-Mayawati once said she hoped to rule the nation-and is the home constituency of India’s dynastic Gandhi family, which has dominated post-independence India.

After taking to a stage that was adorned with her image, the 56-year-old, dressed smartly in beige, sat alone on a raised armchair on the front of the platform. Her ministers and local candidates stood discreetly at the back. The crowd numbering at least 50,000, many of them families of low-caste farm labourers, packed into every available space in an open field in the town of Sitapur, about a two-hour drive northwest from Lucknow.

Many said the election of Mayawati as chief minister in 2007 had helped improve their lives as they were less often victims of persecution and harassment from higher castes. — AFP

Taleban deny plan for Saudi talks with Afghan government KABUL: The Taleban militia leading a 10-year insurgency in Afghanistan yesterday denied that they would soon hold talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s government in Saudi Arabia. “There is no truth in these published reports saying that the delegation of the Islamic Emirate would meet with representatives of the Karzai government in Saudi Arabia in the near future,” the Taleban said on their website.

Afghan officials, requesting anonymity, had suggested that the two sides would hold talks in Saudi Arabia separate from planned negotiations in Qatar between the Taleban and the United States. But it was never clear whether the Taleban , who have so far resisted talks with the Afghan government, or the Saudis, who have conditioned involvement on the Taleban renouncing Al-Qaeda, would come on board.

Taleban negotiators have begun preliminary discussions with the

United States in Qatar on plans for peace talks aimed at ending the decade -long war. They have also announced plans to set up an office in Doha. Yesterday, the Taleban said they had not yet “reached the negotiation phase with the US and its allies”.

“Before there are negotiations there should be a trust-building phase, which has not begun yet,” the statement on its website said. A day earlier, a government spokesman in Kabul cautioned that no steps had been taken to start talks in Saudi Arabia.

“The Afghan government is very clear on talks-we have always preferred Saudi to Qatar,” Akim Hasher, head of the Government Media and Information Centre, told AFP. “There is a possibility that the talks will take place in Saudi as well-Qatar is definitely not the only option.” On Monday, an Afghan diplomat based in Riyadh said talks would be held in Saudi Arabia, but stopped short of announcing any date. — AFP

Report shows Taleban POWs convinced of victory KABUL: The Taleban believe they will return to power after the US-led coalition ends its combat role in Afghanistan in 2014, NATO officials said yesterday, based on a classified report on the interrogation of thousands of insurgent prisoners. The captured Taleban fighters also believed they were receiving support from Pakistan and that they were doing well on the battlefield, the officials said.

But the officials cautioned that the report, compiled shortly after the capture of Taleban fighters, was a summary of those interrogations and not based on an intelligence analysis. “Obviously they are telling us what their idea is about the goings on of their campaign,” said Brig.

Gen. Carsten Jacobson, a spokesman for the International Security Assistance Force, or ISAF. “It is what they either do believe or what they want us to believe.”

He said most of the captured fighters think that “they are still having a successful role” on the ground but that perception was wrong and NATO was not planning to change its strategy because of it

in any way. “The insurgency is clearly on the back foot. We have been pressurizing them over the summer, we have taken vast amounts of land out of their hands and we have detained a high number” of militants, Jacobson said.

Over the past two years the militants have taken a pounding in their southern heartland, and foreign troops have escalated a campaign against them in eastern Afghanistan. Hundreds of their low- and mid-level Taleban commanders have also been picked up in night raids carried out

by Afghan and coalition forces. But their leaders and many of their fighters are located in safe havens just across the border in Pakistan’s lawless tribal belt.

The US and its allies have asked Pakistan to crack down on the safe haves in those areas, but relations between the two countries’ militaries have reached rock bottom following a NATO cross-border attack that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers last November.

“There is an expression in the report that they are basing themselves on the

support from Pakistan,” Jacobson said, but added that the report “is a compilation of investigations, or interrogations straight after detainement, so we can not really put that high a value on what they are saying.

They are talking (about) their perception of the campaign, what they believe about how the campaign is going, and what they want us to believe about how their campaign is going.”

He added that “we have always said that Pakistan has to cooperate with Afghanistan and the international coalition” in the war against terrorism. He said “safe havens, operations across the border have been a challenge over the last weeks and months” and that it was in everyone’s interest to work together.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar told reporters in Kabul, where she was on a one-day visit, that the claims were not new and could be disregarded.

“This is old wine in an even older bottle. I don’t think these claims are new.

These claims have been made for many,

many years,” she said. Just-retired Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen last year called the Taliban-affiliated Haqqani insurgent network, based in safe havens across the border in Pakistan, a “veritable arm” of the Pakistani intelligence agency. Mullen also alleged that Pakistani intelligence supported militants who last September mounted a 20hour rocket attack on the US Embassy and NATO headquarters in Kabul. In Brussels, a NATO official said the prisoners also claimed that the Taleban retain wide public support throughout Afghanistan, particularly in the countryside.

The official, however, also cautioned that the document was not based on any intelligence analysis of the situation on the ground, but is a summary of thousands of interrogation reports. “It’s a very lopsided perspective because some of them are motivated to portray the picture in their favor,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with NATO regulations. — AP

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

i n t e r n at i o n a l

Gunmen abduct Dutch, Swiss in Philippines MANILA: Gunmen in the restive southern Philippines abducted one Swiss and one Dutch tourist along with their Filipino guide yesterday and took them away by boat, authorities said. They were the latest kidnap victims in an impoverished region infested with Al-Qaeda-linked militants and criminal gangs that often seek ransom for their foreign hostages.

The tourists, identified as Dutch

Ewold Horn and Swiss Lorenzo Vinziguerre, were snatched with their guide by an armed group in the country’s southernmost Tawi-Tawi island province and dragged to a waiting boat, said military spokesman Lt. Col. Randolph Cabangbang. The Dutch Embassy in Manila confirmed the kidnapping and said it was working on the case.

Cabangbang said that the kidnap-

ping took place in the village of Parangan in the township of Panglima Sugala, in the remote islands that make up the province. It was not immediately clear what the tourists were doing there since most of the southern Philippines is considered unsafe for foreign visitors and governments have put up advisories against travel in the region. Cabangbang said there were reports that the Swiss and

Dutch were wildlife photographers.

Tawi-Tawi is home to small islands known as Turtle Islands, which are close to Malaysian waters. Muslim rebels have been fighting for minority self-rule in the predominantly Christian nation’s south for decades.

The most violent group, Al-Qaedalinked Abu Sayyaf, has been notorious for terrorist attacks and kidnappings for ransom.

Cabangbang said that Abu Sayyaf has been active in Tawi-Tawi, coming from their strongholds in nearby Basilan and Jolo islands. The militants are believed to be holding a former Australian soldier who was kidnapped before Christmas. In January, a video surfaced of him pleading for his life and urging the Philippines and Australia to raise a $2 million ransom being demanded by his captors. —AP

Kidnapped Chinese workers released 25 freed in good condition BEIJING: Twenty-five Chinese kidnapped in Egypt were freed yesterday, a day after they were taken hostage by Bedouin tribesmen, Chinese and Egyptian media reported. It was the second kidnapping in days that has sparked worry about Chinese workers in dangerous places.

China had earlier said it was “shocked” by the other abduction, of 29 Chinese workers by rebels in the Sudanese border state of South Kordofan, highlighting growing fears associated with China’s expanding global

reach. The 25 workers freed in Egypt were in good condition, Xinhua news agency said, citing an embassy official there, Ma Jianchun.

Egypt’s official Middle East News Agency confirmed their release after top security and army officials held talks with captors. Bedouin tribesmen kidnapped 24 Chinese cement factory workers and a translator in Egypt’s Sinai region on Tuesday and held them for 15 hours, according to Xinhua.

The kidnappings in Sudan and

Egypt dramatise China’s difficulties as it ventures into risky areas, generally shunned by Western companies, in search of resources and business. China’s ambassador to Egypt, Song Aiguo, had contacted Egyptian interior and defence officials on Tuesday, urging them to secure the release of the workers, Xinhua said. The kidnappers were demanding that authorities free fellow tribesmen from prison, according to tribal sources.

Residents of Sinai say they are neglected by the central govern-

SINAI: Some of the 25 Chinese nationals working for a cement factory who were abducted by Egyptian Bedouins are detained in a tent in the northern Sinai town of El-Arish on January 31, 2012. —AFP

Group: Philippine military helping accused general MANILA: An international human rights watchdog said yesterday it has information that sympathetic Philippine military personnel were thwarting attempts by civilian authorities to capture a former army general accused of kidnapping two student activists. Retired Maj Gen Jovito Palparan has been on the run since he was charged in December with kidnapping two left-wing activists in 2006. The students remain missing. Palparan, a former congressman who was close to former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, has denied any involvement. He is the highest-ranking military official to face allegations of abuse that human rights groups say has long been tolerated in the Philippines.

Rights groups and a UN investigator have blamed security forces for the deaths and disappearances of about 1,000 activists between 2001 and 2010, when Arroyo was president. Human Rights Watch said civilian officials told the group that Palparan is being protected by some military personnel and business owners who benefited from his heavy-headed tactics to suppress a long-running communist insurgency. “There are concerns that the military may be interfering in the civilian judicial process,” the New York-based watchdog said in a statement.

Military officials have denied allegations of sheltering Palparan and two soldiers accused with him, and they have promised to cooperate in the investigation against them. In December, however, a group of active and retired military officials publicly defended Palparan and warned that his prosecution was causing “demoralization in the soldiers’ ranks.” The other soldiers charged, Lt. Col. Felipe Antado and Staff Sgt. Edgardo Osorio, have surrendered. A court has allowed them to be transferred from civilian to military custody despite protestation from Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, who said the army failed to inform her where the two are being held, or if they are confined at all.

The conservative military has often acted as an influential power broker, and its members have launched several coup attempts since 1986. The deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch, Elaine Pearson, called on President Benigno Aquino III to put officers and soldiers on notice “that if they block civilian authorities in arresting Palparan, they too face legal consequences.”

“President Aquino should get the message to the military that the years of protecting Palparan for grievous abuses are over,” she said. Aquino’s government has said it wants justice for the missing students, Karen Empeno and Sherlyn Cadapan, as part of a push to improve the Philippines’ human rights record after a decade of rampant abuses during Arroyo’s administration. Arroyo gave the military a free hand in what it had called an all-out war against communist rebels. —AP

ment in Cairo and have attacked police stations and blocked access to towns, villages and industrial sites to show their discontent. The isolated desert region has descended further into lawlessness since an uprising ousted President Hosni Mubarak a year ago and threw the security apparatus into disarray. In Sudan, a team of officials China sent to seek the release of the 29 workers arrived in the capital, Khartoum, on Tuesday.

A spokesman for the rebels holding the workers since Saturday said they were in good condition. Arnu Ngutulu Lodi of the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North told Reuters rebel officials had met Chinese diplomats in neighboring Ethiopia to assure them the workers were in good health. But he gave no indication of when they would be freed. The SPLM-N also asked China to pressure Sudan to open humanitarian corridors to supply the rebel-held South Kordofan and Blue Nile areas with food and emergency aid, though that was not a release condition.

It is the third abduction of Chinese working in energy-rich Sudan since 2004. Mark Po, an analyst at UOB Kay Hian in Hong Kong, said the kidnappings were not likely to deter China from working in trouble spots. “Chinese companies occupy a pretty big portion of infrastructure projects, such as roads, bridges and communications, in third world countries, and this trend will continue,” he said. —Reuters

Myanmar reforms may spark refugee return MAE LA REFUGEE CAMP: The pastor stood before more than 300 young Burmese refugees gathered for morning prayers in a weathered, jungle church. “There’s a time for war, and a time for peace. Sixty-three years is long enough for killing,” he told them. “Hope to see you all soon in our beautiful land.” Simon Htoo’s buoyant words would have been unlikely just a few months ago, but surprisingly rapid reforms and cease-fires under way in Myanmar are opening the prospects for the return of one of the world’s largest refugee populations - some 1 million Burmese huddled in frontier camps and hide-outs across five countries.

The looming task for the international community will be massive. One of the least known Diaspora of recent times includes an array of ethnic groups and religions - Buddhist, Christian and Muslim - driven from their homeland by oppression of political dissidents and brutal military campaigns against Myanmar’s minorities. The fighting and human rights abuses still persist in some areas, and even if stopped, many refugees say the hatreds, suspicions and double-crosses of decades passed must be overcome before they feel safe enough to return.

One of the ethnic groups, the Karen, has been waging a guerrilla war for greater autonomy for 63 years from iron-fisted military regimes. The Kachin took up arms again last year. “Signing a cease-fire is very easy - you can do it in a few minutes - but

implementation is a different matter. That depends not on the smiles on their faces, but their sincerity, what is really in their hearts. Maybe it’s another trick,” said Htoo, a Karen Baptist pastor, after his sermon in this camp sheltering more than 50,000 refugees.

When they do return, the refugees will emerge from Bangladesh, India, Thailand, Malaysia and China, a refugee mass that with the Iraqis and Afghans ranks among the largest in the world.

Their living conditions vary vastly. In the fetid settlements of Bangladesh, as many as 400,000 illegal Rohingya, a Muslim ethnic minority, hover on the edge of existence. Others live in a well-established string of UN-recognized camps along the Thai border, home to three generations who have known no other life.

Most would be returning to border regions of razed villages, minefields, traumatized people and almost nonexistent support systems in a country that is already among the world’s poorest. Many fear that with the world quick to applaud Myanmar’s reforms, pressure will mount to force them back before conditions are right. “People in the refugees camps must be given a choice: to go home, stay in Thailand or be resettled abroad. We don’t trust Burmese politics because things are still very unclear,” says Dr. Cynthia Maung, a refugee doctor they call “Mother Theresa of Burma” whose Thai border clinic has treated thousands. —AP

TAK: In this photo taken Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012, young Karen refugees attend a morning church service inside Mae La refugee camp in Tha Song Yang district, Tak province northern Thailand. —AP

SEOUL: US Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell (L) addresses a press conference after talks with South Korea’s nuclear envoy Lim Sung-Nam at the foreign ministry in Seoul yesterday. —AFP

US open to North Korea diplomacy SEOUL: In a message aimed at both Koreas, a senior US diplomat said yesterday that Washington is open to settling the North Korean nuclear standoff through diplomacy, but only if Pyongyang improves ties with archrival South Korea. The comments

by Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, the top US diplomat for East Asia, were a signal to North Korea’s new government that Washington is ready to talk after weeks of transition and uncertainty following the Dec 17 death of longtime leader Kim Jong Il. But Campbell also looked to reassure worried allies in Seoul that diplomacy will progress only as long as South Korea is satisfied with North Korea’s stance. North Korea has vowed since Kim’s death not to deal with South Korea’s current conservative government, but it has also suggested a willingness to negotiate with the United States. “We are open to diplomacy with North Korea, but there is a very clear set of steps that we think are necessary,” Campbell told reporters after meetings with South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Jae-shin and South Korean nuclear envoy Lim Sung-nam.

“We agreed that the path is open to North Korea toward the resumption of talks and improved relations” with Washington and Seoul, Campbell said, but “the road to improve these relations runs through Seoul for North Korea.” “We are still waiting to see whether the new government in North Korea is prepared to take the necessary steps,” Campbell said. Many are closely watching to see what direction North Korea will take as Kim’s young son, Kim Jong Un, works to consolidate power and extend his family dynasty into a third generation.

North Korea proudly trumpets its efforts to build nuclear weapons and has a history of aggression against its southern neighbor, and there has been uncertainty about whether Pyongyang will now lean toward provocation or reconciliation - and how tightly Pyongyang will cling to its nuclear program. Pyongyang conducted nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009 and has developed missiles with the potential to attack its neighbors and possibly reach the United States.

South Korea yesterday said Kim Jong Il’s death can be an opportunity for positive change in North Korea, despite the heightened uncertainties. “We urge North Korea

to relinquish its attitude of being closed and committing armed provocations, and to follow a path toward both Koreas creating a better future,” Unification Minster Yu Woo-ik said at a forum in Seoul, according to his ministry. Shortly before Kim’s death, Washington and Pyongyang appeared close to a deal on food aid. The North, in turn, was expected to suspend uranium enrichment, which could give Pyongyang another possible route to making nuclear bombs and is a crucial hurdle to restarting six-nation aid-for-nuclear disarmament talks that have been stalled since early 2009.

North Korea has repeatedly pressed for the resumption of those nuclear talks, but Washington and Seoul have said Pyongyang must first follow through on previous nuclear commitments. Campbell urged China, North Korea’s only major economic and political backer, to share more of its plans concerning North Korea with Washington and Seoul.

Japan’s Tokyo Shimbun newspaper, citing unidentified sources, reported this week that China decided to provide 500,000 tons of food and 250,000 tons of oil to North Korea in a move meant to help stabilize Kim Jong Un’s leadership. Campbell said the United States believes Chinese officials have “taken steps to underscore their commitment to the transition in power in North Korea. Those steps might include further provision of assistance, given the circumstances in North Korea.” He didn’t elaborate.

North Korea regularly criticizes South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and says it won’t work with him. South Korea has cut off large-scale official food aid to North Korea since Lee took office in 2008, saying North Korea should first take steps toward nuclear disarmament. North Korea has also condemned South Korea’s refusal to allow its citizens, except for two private delegations, to visit Pyongyang and pay respects to Kim Jong Il during a mourning period in December.

The poor ties between the rivals also extend to sports. South Korea said yesterday that a North Korean youth football team boycotted a game in China against a South Korean squad because of the high political tensions. Still, Pyongyang has also suggested it is open to suspending its uranium enrichment program if it can get the food it wants from the United States. —AP

China: Trained separatists behind Tibetan unrest BEIJING: China has blamed “trained separatists” for a wave of unrest in Tibetaninhabited areas last week that left at least two people dead and dozens injured, state press reported yesterday. The southwestern province of Sichuan-which has big populations of ethnic Tibetans, many of whom complain of religious repression and a lack of freedom was rocked by three violent clashes last week.

Rights groups say security forces shot dead peaceful protesters in each of the incidents but China has acknowledged only two of them, and says they were triggered by a violent crowd of demonstrators.

“Initial evidence showed that the riots and assaults were well planned beforehand and instigated by trained separatists against the country,” the official China Daily newspaper said, citing the Sichuan government.

It said protesters attacked police stations with stones and molotov cocktails, prompting the police to take action and “defend themselves”. Chinese authorities have barred foreign journalists from going to the affected areas, making independent

attempts to verify the situation there near impossible. “The riots were serious crimes plotted by Tibetan separatist forces in and outside of China,” the English-language Global Times said, also citing the Sichuan government.

“Local police were forced to open fire, killing two rioters and wounding several others.” Officials at the Sichuan information office refused to comment when contacted by AFP. Chinese-language media has made scant mention of last week’s violence in Tibetan-inhabited areas, in an indication of official concern the unrest will spread. According to the English-language China Daily, 24 police officers and firemen were injured in the violence.

Tibetans have long chafed under Chinese rule, saying they suffer religious repression and government surveillance, and that their culture is gradually being eroded by an influx of majority Han Chinese into the areas they live in. Beijing, though, insists that Tibetans enjoy freedom of religious belief and says their lives have been made better by huge ongoing investment into Tibetan-inhabited areas.— AFP

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

NEWS factbox

Road to Assembly V

By B Izzak KUWAIT: Kuwaitis head to the ballot boxes to elect the fourth National Assembly since May 2006 in one of the most politically turbulent periods since parliamentary democracy was introduced in 1962. Here’s a look at the main contests in the five constituencies by highlighting the main political groups and leading candidates.

Hundreds of costumed ‘guizers’ with flaming torches are pictured with a Viking Galley in Lerwick, on the Shetland Isles, off the northeast coast of Scotland, during the Up Helly Aa Viking festival on Tuesday. Originating in the 1880s, the tradition which celebrates Shetland’s Norse heritage, sees around 900 guizers drag a Viking galley through the streets of Lerwick, led by a horde of ‘Vikings’. The festival, which attracts thousands of revelers each year, culminates in the burning of the Viking galley. — AP

Bahrain boils as uprising nears 1-year mark MANAMA: It’s usually well after midnight before Bahrain takes a breather. The thud of riot police stun grenades trails off, the stinging tear gas mist is carried away and the protest chants against the Gulf kingdom’s rulers go quiet until the next day. Then the cycle of unrest resumes in one of the longest-running - and perhaps most diplomatically complex - chapters of the Middle East uprisings. “Egypt, Tunisia, Libya,” demonstrators now shout during running battles with security forces. “Bahrain’s leaders are next.”

A year ago this month, Bahrain’s majority Shiites took inspiration from the Arab Spring to sharpen long-standing grievances against the Sunni monarchy, accused by Shiites of relegating them to second-class status in the Western-allied nation. Within days of the first protest march, Bahrain was sliding into a crisis that would bring more than two months of martial law, more than 40 deaths, hundreds of arrests and ongoing clashes so disruptive that the US Embassy last month relocated workers into safe haven neighborhoods.

But the troubles also reach far beyond the tiny flameshaped island off the Saudi coast. The past year has turned Bahrain into a crossroads for every major showdown in the region. Drawn into the mix is Saudi Arabia as protector of Bahrain’s Sunni dynasty. Archrival Iran is an angry bystander at the fierce crackdowns on fellow Shiites. And the US is Bahrain’s conflicted partner.

Washington watches the violence with growing unease but is fearful of souring relations either with the Saudis or Bahrain’s leaders who host the Navy’s strategic 5th Fleet - one of the Pentagon’s main counterweights to Tehran’s military.

“The international paralysis over Bahrain has, if anything, become more pronounced with the rising tensions over Iran’s nuclear program,” said Toby Jones, an expert on Bahraini affairs at Rutgers University. “It’s every tough problem in the region funneled into one small place.” It also highlights the intense difficulties facing the West - and Washington in particular - if proreform rebellions someday spread further in the Gulf.

The Gulf Arab states, anchored by Saudi Arabia, are critical frontline allies against Iran. Any threats to the Gulf’s autocrats would be perceived in the West also as an assault on important political interests.

“It was much easier for the US to cut loose (former Egyptian President Hosni) Mubarak than it would be with any of the Gulf states,” said Christopher Davidson, an expert on Gulf affairs at Britain’s Durham University.

“The Arab Spring is definitely weighing heavily on the minds of Gulf rulers and their Western partners.”

For the moment, Gulf dissent outside Bahrain is limited to long-running political disputes in Kuwait and recent protests by minority Shiites in Saudi Arabia, where rioters threw firebombs at police last month after the killing of a demonstrator. It’s clear from Bahrain, however, that Gulf rulers will strike back hard at any whiff of opposition. A Saudi-led military force moved into Bahrain last March to help prop up the overwhelmed Al-Khalifa dynasty, which has its ancestral roots among Saudi tribes. The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council later began studying closer defense cooperation - both to bolster against perceived Iranian threats and as a united front against internal opposition.

In the view of Gulf Arab leaders, Bahrain is the ultimate red line. Safeguarding the 200-year-old Sunni hold on power is seen as an act of self-preservation. If Bahrain’s rulers lose their grip, the thinking goes, then the domino style risks grow for other rulers. Adding to the collective hard line: They accuse Bahrain’s Shiites of offering a cozy foothold for Shiite giant Iran - even though an independent report on Bahrain’s unrest found no evidence of links to Tehran.

That hasn’t discouraged Gulf officials from brandishing Iran as the string-pullers of the Bahrain unrest. In an interview in Davos, Switzerland, Saudi Prince Turki AlFaisal, a former intelligence chief, told AP that Iran is “going behind our backs” to spark revolt in the region.

Days later, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, Ramin Mehmanparast, denounced the “double standard” policies of Western powers to back other Arab uprisings but keeping a distance from Bahrain’s Shiites to protect their strategic interests.

American officials, speaking privately, have cast doubts on the Gulf Arab narrative that Iran is behind the Bahrain protests - a theme also pushed by the army of international public relations consultants hired by Bahrain. Washington, instead, has urged for more talks

Iraqis in dock over Mubarak port plot Continued from Page 1 after HH the Amir laid the foundation stone. An Iraqi Shiite militant group, Ketaeb Hezbollah, in July threatened to target firms working on the port project. “The Iraqi people will not forget what the government of Kuwait is doing by building a port to strangle Iraq economically,” said a statement posted on the group’s website. The $1.1 billion facility on Kuwait’s Bubiyan Island is scheduled for completion in 2016.

Separately, US Navy personnel helped repair a stranded Iranian fishing boat on Tuesday, the Navy said, even as the two countries trade accusations about Iran’s nuclear ambitions. A US military helicopter stationed on the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, positioned in the Gulf, caught sight of the small Iranian fishing vessel, which was carrying nine crew members, the Navy said in a statement. The crew of the traditional fishing vessel, or dhow, sent out a distress call after its engine overheated. Its crew was waving a cloth, the statement said.

With the Iranian crew’s permission, personnel from a

US destroyer boarded the Iranian ship and repaired the vessel’s engine. US personnel also freed a fouled propeller, the statement said. “After ensuring the dhow was operational, and the crew was safe with sufficient amounts of food, water and fuel to continue its transit, the (US) teams departed the scene and returned to their ships,” the Navy statement said. While US officials say such encounters are not unusual, Tuesday’s exchange occurred amid sharp tensions between Iran and the United States.

The West suspects that Iran’s uranium enrichment activities are putting it closer to producing a nuclear weapon, a charge that Tehran denies. Iran has threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane, if Western sanctions aimed at starving Iran’s nuclear program of funds stop it from selling oil. There has been a series of rescues in recent weeks involving the two countries. On Jan 6, US naval forces freed 13 Iranian fishermen who were held hostage by pirates for over a month. On Jan 10, US forces rescued six Iranian mariners whose ship was taking on water. — Agencies

Kuwaitis head to vote in ‘worst election ever’ Continued from Page 1 and his associates as “puppets and destructive tools being moved by certain quarters in the regime”. “We are witnessing serious score settling processes among sides in the (ruling) family and their tools are election candidates, the media and personalities,” the Alliance said in a statement.

A total of 286 candidates are in the race for the 50 seats in the Assembly. Twenty-three women, including all the four former female MPs who made history two years ago by winning the first ever seats in the Assembly. Kuwait is divided into five electoral constituencies with each electing 10 MPs. Each voter is allowed to cast a maximum of four votes. Thirty-eight ex-MPs of the dissolved house and as many as 20 members of previous assemblies are among the hopefuls.

The ballot opens at 8 am and shuts at 8 pm and counting of votes, still carried out manually, is expected to take several hours before announcing the results in the early hours of Friday. The opposition, which is fielding between 50 and 60 candidates, is forecast to win more than 33 seats, with some local pollsters expecting the loose opposition to control an absolute majority in the house.

There are 400,296 eligible voters among Kuwait’s 1.17 million native population. Voting age is 21 and servicemen in the police and the army are barred from voting. More than 50 percent of Kuwait’s population are under 20 years of age. The election campaign focused on calls for true economic reforms and fighting corruption besides a large number of issues like housing, the development plan, increasing salaries and finding jobs for Kuwaitis expected to enter the job market in the coming few years.

But the idea of introducing constitutional reforms to modernize the Kuwaiti constitution gained momentum in the election. The polls were called after the previous Cabinet was forced to resign following street protests organized by youths influenced by the Arab Spring and also after HH the Amir dissolved the previous Assembly.

It was also preceded by changing former prime minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, the first premier to be replaced in Kuwait’s history. Youth activists have played an important role in the run up to the election, and directly campaigned for a number of reformist and opposition candidates. The new Assembly must hold its first session within two weeks after the announcement of the results.

with both sides and has put a “pause” on a proposed $53 million arms sale. Earlier this week, however, Washington said it would sell some military equipment, without disclosing any further details. “Washington is clearly unwilling to move this to the next level by using whatever political and military leverage it has to strong arm Bahrain’s leaders,” said Jones, the professor. “The US doesn’t buy into the idea that Iran is waiting in the wings in Bahrain. But it also cannot appear to be going against its deep alliances with the Gulf Arabs.”

Bahrain’s protesters display no pro-Iranian slogans or banners. But they indirectly echo Iran’s anger toward Saudi Arabia, which Tehran regards as an unwelcome “occupying” force in Bahrain. At Manama’s airport, the green Saudi and red-and-while Bahraini flags are displayed with crossed staffs. Pro-government Sunnis adorn their cars with bumper sticks mixing the two country’s national colors. “We feel we are a colony of Saudi Arabia now,” said 30-year-old Ameera Mohammad, who joined other women chanting antigovernment slogans last week in the Shiite district Diraz. “The government has lost its legitimacy.” — AP

Fifth Constituency • Main areas: Ahmadi, Fahaheel, Sabahiya, Fintas, Mubarak Al-Kabeer, Mangaf, Rigga, Sabah Al-Salem, Dhahr, Abu Halifa and others.

• It has 113,407 voters, making it the largest electoral district in terms of numbers. Women voters are 58,610 or 51.7 percent while male voters are 54,979 or 48.3 percent.

It is the largest constituency but has the lowest number of candidates with 47 out of 286 in all the districts. Only five of the 10 MPs in the previous Assembly in addition to one former MP are vying for the 10 seats. There is only one woman candidate. The fifth district is a purely tribal constituency but tribes have lost some of their shine in this election because a number of leading candidates refused to take part in primary elections.

There are four main tribal blocs competing for the 10 seats, besides a number of leading candidates who are competing on their own because they declined to take part in the tribal primaries. The Awazem form the largest tribe. They have nominated four candidates through primaries but former Islamist MP Falah Al-Sawwagh, from the tribe, is competing on his own. Awazem have more than 20,000 voters.

The second largest is the Ajman tribe which also nominated four candidates through primaries but former leading MP Khaled Al-Tahous is contesting on his own. The Ajmans have just under 20,000 voters.

The third bloc is an alliance of four tribes: Mutairi, Dossari, Oteibi and Hajeri, who control around 23,000 voters but their commitment is not expected to be 100 percent. Each of the four tribes nominated one candidate who are fighting together. The fourth bloc is a combination of four smaller tribes and candidates and are believed to control around 10,000 voters.

There are also several other independent candidates, the most prominent of them Faisal Al-Kandari, who is a well-known lawyer. Islamist candidates of both the Salaf and Islamic Constitutional Movement (ICM) are the strongest and the two groups are expected to bag around half of the 10 seats.

Romney wins big Continued from Page 1 poor, we have a safety net there,” he said, adding, “If it needs repair, I’ll fix it.”

Romney also said he would leave concern for the poor to the Democratic party. “We will hear from the Democrat party the plight of the poor,” Romney said. “And there’s no question it’s not good being poor and we have a safety net to help those that are very poor. But my campaign is focused on middle Americans. “You can choose where to focus, you can focus on the rich, that’s not my focus. You can focus on the very poor, that’s not my focus. My focus is on middle income Americans, retirees living on Social Security, people who can’t find work.” Opponents seized on his remarks.

Democratic National Committee spokesman Brad Woodhouse emailed them to journalists, with the introduction, “I’m glad he cleared that up.”

US voters have said the sputtering economy is their main concern for the 2012 elections. Romney has touted his business experience while harshly criticizing Obama and his Republican opponents for their lack of private sector experience. Romney, who has a personal fortune estimated at some $270 million, came under fire earlier in the campaign for saying that he liked to fire people, although those comments were taken out of context.

After his second-place showing in Florida, Gingrich vowed to battle on, rallying supporters with the reminder that there are 46 more state contests left in the nominating fight. In a sign of how bitter the campaign has become, Gingrich broke with tradition by neither congratulating Romney nor calling him after the vote. “He didn’t call last night,” Romney told Fox News yesterday. “Speaker Gingrich, I guess, doesn’t participate in that tradition.” Instead, Gingrich vowed to wage a

long-haul battle all the way to the Aug 27-30 convention, which will formally crown the party’s nominee. “This will be a two-person race between the conservative leader, Newt Gingrich, and the Massachusetts moderate,” he told supporters in Orlando, referring to Romney.

The next voting will be caucuses on Saturday in Nevada, where Romney is expected to enjoy strong support from a large population of his fellow Mormons. Nevada also has the country’s highest unemployment rate, of 12.6 percent in December. Nevada is followed next Tuesday by caucuses in Colorado and Minnesota and a primary in Missouri. Gingrich and Romney were due to arrive in Nevada later yesterday, Romney after a stop in Minnesota. Rick Santorum, a former US senator who won in Iowa’s kick-off contest, came in third in Florida at 13 percent, followed by US Representative Ron Paul at 7 percent. They are also continuing their campaigns.

The well-organized and well-financed Romney has now won two of the first four nominating contests, also capturing New Hampshire while coming in second in Iowa and South Carolina. Romney’s Florida victory got his campaign back on track after the loss to Gingrich in South Carolina 10 days earlier. Gingrich and his supporters ran devastating attack ads in South Carolina portraying Romney as a heartless corporate raider who destroyed businesses and enjoyed firing people.

With Gingrich vowing to fight on for months, there is the potential for a divisive battle that could damage the party’s chances of denying Obama re-election in November. The ugly fight in Florida highlighted deep divisions among Republicans. The party establishment largely backed Romney, but the most conservative voters, particularly those from the small-government, fiscally conservative Tea Party movement, and religious conservatives, leaned toward Gingrich. — Reuters

Egypt football violence kills 73 Continued from Page 1 crush of the panicking crowd or who fell from terraces, witnesses said. Medics said some of the deaths were also the result of stab wounds and that the death toll could rise even further as ambulances continued to ferry in the injured from the stadium. Live television coverage showed fans running onto the field and chasing Ahli players. A small group of riot police formed a corridor to try to protect the players, but they appeared overwhelmed and fans were still able to kick and punch the players as they fled. State television broadcast footage of chaos on the pitch, with fans running in all directions, as photos of bleeding players circulated on the Internet. Gunfire was also reported on the main road leading to Port Said from Cairo.

“This is not football. This is a war and people are dying in front of us. There is no movement and no security and no ambulances,” Ahli player Mohamed Abo Treika told his club’s television channel. “I call for the premier league to be cancelled. This is horrible situation and today can never be forgotten.” State television reported that Egypt’s football federation had indefinitely suspended premier league matches. Egypt’s Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, the head of the country’s ruling military council, ordered two helicopters be sent to Port Said to fly out some of the visiting Al-Ahli team and its fans, military sources said. The helicopters would transfer the injured to military hospitals, the sources said.

Albadry Farghali, a member of parliament for Port Said, accused officials and security forces of allowing the disaster, saying they still had ties to the government of President Hosni Mubarak, who was overthrown a year ago. “The security forces did this or allowed it to

happen. The men of Mubarak are still ruling. The head of the regime has fallen but all his men are still in their positions,” he screamed in a telephone call to live television. “Where is the security? Where is the government?”

The Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt’s largest political force, also accused Mubarak supporters of instigating the football violence. “The events in Port Said are planned and are a message from the remnants of the former regime,” said MP Essam Al-Erian in a statement on the Islamist group’s Freedom and Justice Party website. Shops in the northern city of Port Said, which sits at the entrance to the Suez Canal, shut their doors as private cars helped to shuttle the injured across the city to hospitals. Prosecutor General Abdel Meguid Mahmud has ordered an immediate investigation into the violence, state television reported. Parliament speaker Saad Al-Katatni, a member of the powerful Muslim Brotherhood, said that the People’s Assembly would hold an emergency session today at 11:00 am (0900 GMT) to discuss the violence. Newly elected liberal deputy Amr Hamzawi has called for the immediate sacking of the interior minister as well as the governor and security chief of Port Said.

A number of policemen were among the dead, a medical source and witnesses said. Hospitals throughout the Suez Canal zone were put on a state of emergency, and dozens of ambulances rushed to Port Said from the Canal cities of Ismailia and Suez, said an official in the zone’s local ambulance service. Another match in Cairo between Zamalek and Ismaili clubs was halted by the referee after receiving news of the violence in Port Said, prompting fans to set parts of the stadium on fire, television footage showed. Emergency services managed to bring the blaze under control, a security official said. — Agencies

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

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Issues

Malaysia oppn plots unlikely path to power

By Stuart Grudgings nwar Ibrahim is free and he knows how to work a crowd. Wading into a throng of supporters at a rally near the capital Kuala Lumpur last week, the veteran Malaysian opposition leader was relishing his unexpected freedom after being acquitted on sodomy charges that could have ended his career. Microphone in hand, he drew loud laughs and cheers as he wisecracked about government’s “cronyism” and what he said were its attempts to label him a homosexual. The high court acquittal in January of the opposition’s only true unifying figure has given the three-party alliance a formidable campaigner in national elections expected within months, adding to its momentum after historic gains in 2008 elections.

Prime Minister Najib Razak is expected to call the election by June while economic growth remains relatively strong, well before his mandate ends in March 2013.

Halijah Ismael, a middle-aged woman watching from her stall selling traditional medicine, said it was time to give Anwar a chance at governing after 55 years of unbroken rule by the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) and its allies. “Enough is enough,” said Halijah, who said she used to be active in a local UMNO political group before growing disillusioned.

The polls will be a test of whether Najib’s gradual efforts to reform the state-heavy economy and its racebased political system are enough to reverse 2008’s shock losses that deprived the ruling coalition for the first time of its prized two-thirds majority in parliament.

Backed by UMNO’s well-oiled election machine, Najib will probably win the election. The government controls most newspapers and television stations and has already started using its largesse, handing out cash payments to low-income families and raising pay and pensions for civil servants.

But the opposition and many analysts believe that weariness with the ruling coalition will enable Anwar’s coalition to extend its gains from last time, when it won five state governments out of 13 and 82 seats out of 222 in the national parliament. That could prove politically fatal for Najib by prompting powerful conservative elements in UMNO to revolt, paving a future path to power for the opposition if the government swings too far to the right. Anwar and other opposition officials told Reuters they have a two-pronged strategy for the election. First, they will make a stronger pitch to ethnic Malays in rural areas who have traditionally supported UMNO, hammering on recent corruption allegations against government officials. “We have learnt from our failure to get support from the rural heartland,” Anwar told Reuters in an interview at his People’s Justice Party headquarters on Kuala Lumpur’s outskirts.

Second, they will tout what they see as economic success stories in states that have been governed by the opposition since 2008. The opposition government of Penang state in Malaysia’s northwest, for example, has dismantled preferential treatment for ethnic Malays in public tenders and attracted more investments than any other state in 2010. Anwar says he would move quickly to reform the pro-ethnic Malay affirmative action system enshrined in the 1971 New Economic Policy - that he says unnecessarily raises tensions with minority Chinese and Indians while mostly benefiting a well-connected, wealthy few. “We have to go down and tell the Malays that our policy, a more transparent policy, would benefit them more than the New Economic Policy that is enriching the leaders and their cronies,” Anwar said.

Opinion polls show the majority of ethnic Malays support affirmative action policies, but Anwar aims to tap into a growing suspicion that the system mostly benefits elites and fuels corruption. He says he would introduce a policy based on economic need rather than race. Malays account for about 56 percent of Malaysia’s 28 million population, with Chinese and Indians making up 33 percent and 11 percent respectively. The opposition is placed to make big enough advances that “Najib will more or less lose his mandate within UMNO,” said Wan Saiful Wan Jan, the head of the IDEAS thinktank in Kuala Lumpur. “The nationalist side within UMNO will become more vocal and that will destabilize Najib’s reforms,” he said. Anwar pledges to make the judiciary independent, lift restrictions on the media and hold more open tenders for government contracts, which he says are too often handed out to UMNO “cronies”. The government says the inexperienced opposition cannot be trusted with power and is making promises it can’t keep, such as writing off student loans and reducing fuel prices. — Reuters

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Hamas seeks Palestinian ascendancy

By Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Douglas Hamilton olitical winds from the Arab Spring are filling the sails of the Palestinian Islamist organisation Hamas, as it seeks a course out of international isolation to the forefront of the Palestinian national movement. Hamas’ ties to Syria and Iran are changing.

This week, the two top men in the 25-year-old organization dedicated to crushing the Jewish state and establishing Palestine “from the (Jordan) river to the sea” headed off in distinctly different directions for high-level talks, and they began to look intriguingly like rivals.

Hamas leader in exile Khaled Meshaal, long based in Syria, went to Jordan to see Western-backed King Abdullah, whose father made peace with Israel in 1994.

Meshaal may move his headquarters there or to the Gulf emirate of Qatar, which brokered his first visit since Jordan expelled Hamas in 1999. From the Gaza Strip where he serves as Hamas prime minister, Ismail Haniya set off for talks with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Israel’s sworn enemy. Iran is displeased with Hamas over its failure to support Tehran’s main Arab ally Syria in its crisis. A diplomatic source says Iran has provided no funds to Hamas since August.

Hamas operates behind a smokescreen of rhetoric.

The workings of its collective leadership are notoriously hard to read. Spokesmen deny any internal power struggle or divisions. But analysts believe Meshaal has decided to end his close association with a Syria now in crisis, to pursue reconciliation with the pro-peace Fatah movement of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and to soften his anti-peace stance. “Meshaal has been showing a tendency towards more flexibility. He is sincere about accomplishing reconciliation and he was flexible about President Abbas’ peace moves,” Gaza political analyst Hani Habib said. “His position did not go down well with Gaza leaders.”

Israeli analyst Matti Steinberg of Haifa University says Meshaal “quite clearly wants to advance reconciliation with Fatah” and to speak about a Palestinian state within the lines created by the 1967 Middle East war, rather than recovering the Palestine that existed before Israel’s creation in 1948. He is also ready to suspend the military jihad against Israel and go along with Abbas’ idea

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of “popular resistance” through non-violent mass protests, Steinberg said. Hamas hardliners insist on the right to “armed resistance”. Analysts speculate that Meshaal’s goal may be to end the isolation of his movement and make it an essential partner in Middle East negotiations, one that Israel and the West can no longer afford to ostracise as a terrorist group. This would necessitate loosening ties with Iran.

Meshaal, 55, surprised Hamas last month by announcing he would step down before an internal leadership vote due in March, after 14 years at the helm.

Few analysts take this seriously. They think he wants to be renominated to an unprecedented fourth term, after flushing out and defeating opponents of his new policies and asserting full control to lead the Islamist movement to the forefront in the Palestinian territories. The political and spiritual roots of Hamas lie with the Sunni Arab Muslim Brotherhood, not with the Shiite radicalism of non-Arab Iran, which has funded and armed Hamas and Hezbollah in Lebanon as proxies to threaten Israel. In a Middle East increasingly divided between Sunni and Shiite powers, Hamas is embarrassed by ties to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad and his Alawite minority who, with roots in Shiism, are now on the verge of civil war with Syria’s rebelling Sunni majority and its Muslim Brotherhood leaders. Iran has certainly provided Hamas with money and - according to Israel rockets and other weapons. But Shiite thinking, while not seen as a threat, is not accepted in Gaza. Hamas security has clamped down on attempts by its few supporters to build up a Shiite organisation in the enclave.

After visits to Egypt, Tunisia, Turkey and Sudan this month, Haniya, 48, urged Abbas to cease peace talks and cooperation on security with the Israelis in the occupied West Bank. “Now those who call for normalisation with the occupier are the odd ones out,” he said on Friday. Analysts say it is not clear whether Haniya, who had just made his first foreign tour in four years, sees himself as Meshaal’s potential successor or simply his equal in Palestinian politics.

If Meshaal moves to Jordan or Qatar, one of the most outspoken Arab critics of Syria’s President Assad, Gaza analyst Ibrahim Abrash says it would mean more than just a relocation. “It would mean a move in politics too,”

he said. But Gaza remains the stronghold of the movement. “Haniya is sitting in Gaza and nothing has really changed, while Meshaal is looking for a new home and in flux. Given that, I would say Haniya is sitting pretty,” said a Western diplomat.

Some in Hamas believe there is no need to take a softer line with Israel because Islamists now in the ascendancy in the region would deter any repeat of Israel’s 2009 offensive to stop rocket fire from Gaza, in which some 1,400 Palestinians died. Steinberg disagrees. “The Muslim Brothers don’t want trouble with Israel from Gaza while they are consolidating power in Egypt, which will take several years,” he says. “Meshaal is accommodating himself with the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.” Hamas and Fatah have been bitter rivals since 2007 when the Islamists seized Gaza, splitting the Palestinians in two. Last year they agreed to a reconciliation pact, but it has yet to be implemented in spirit by the two groups with opposing policies. Hamas rejects a permanent accord with Israel. It says there may be a long-term truce allowing the creation of a Palestinian state - a status Israel regards as merely a war postponed.

Displaying a leniency some in Hamas deplore, Meshaal now says efforts to clinch a deal with Israel should get more time. In Steinberg’s view, he is “ready to advance reconciliation with Fatah in order to achieve a position of controlling” the currently Fatah-dominated Palestine Liberation Organisation.

The PLO is the most important source of power for Abbas’s Palestinian Authority, which Hamas sees as a stooge accepting agreements that relieve Israel of the burdens of occupation. “Hamas’ self-confidence has been boosted, and they are convinced that they could win a majority in the PLO,” says Palestinian analyst Hani El Masri. “But their main obstacle is Israel and the signed agreements between the Palestinian Authority and Israel ... At the moment Hamas does not have a clear position on signed agreements and responsibilities (with Israel).” “Haniya is trying to portray himself as the coming leader of the Palestinians and their representative, and not just a leader of Hamas,” says Abrash. “His moderate personality, his being in Gaza, in Palestine, and his speeches granted him wide popularity in the Arab and Muslim world, more than Meshaal.”—Reuters

Syria revolt turns into insurgency

By Rana Moussaoui he Syrian crisis that began as a peaceful revolt is quickly turning into a full-blown insurgency pitting an increasingly militarised opposition against a power ful regime bent on repression, analysts say. “It is the beginning of an all-out armed conflict,” said Joshua Landis, head of the Centre for Middle East Studies at the University of Oklahoma. “We are heading toward real chaos,” he added. “The Syrian public in general is beginning to (realise) that there isn’t a magic ending to this, there isn’t a regime collapse.”

And with a diplomatic stalemate over the continuing crackdown by the Syrian regime against the 10-month revolt, the crisis is now also increasingly taking on a sectarian tone between Sunni Muslims and Alawites, an off-shoot of Shiism. “The regime’s strategy is to sow the seeds that will lead to civil war,” said Agnes Levallois, a Paris-based Middle East expert. “In the central cities of Homs and Hama, we can already speak of a civil conflict.”

Yet experts say that despite the quickening pace of events and President Bashar Al-Assad’s mounting isolation, dramatic change in Syria, while inevitable, is not imminent given the resilience of the regime and the support it still enjoys among the population.

“That the government’s days are numbered can no longer be in serious doubt, but just how many it has left remains an open question,” wrote Yezid Sayigh, an analyst with the Carnegie Middle East

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Centre, in a recent commentary. “The regime cannot win, but it certainly can resist and prolong the conflict.”

And the fact that the international community is unwilling to intervene militarily is playing in the regime’s favour, at least for now, the experts say. Russia, which has veto power on the UN Security Council and is a staunch ally of Damascus, has so far blocked any attempt at a UN resolution condemning

the regime’s brutality that has left more than 5,000 people dead. “ The Syrian opposition is slowly beginning to realise that this is not a two-month battle,” Landis said.

“So they have to do it on their own, they have no option. “Nobody is going to come, neither the Arab League nor the West,” he added. “The Americans are not going to come on their tanks like they did in Iraq.”

Syrian rebels hold their RPGs and guns as they stand on alert during a battle with Syrian government forces in Rastan in Homs province, central Syria, on Tuesday. — AP

With that in mind, the Syrian opposition is adapting to the realities on the ground and on the diplomatic front, with the rebel Free Syrian Army taking on a more important role as more defectors and sympathisers join its ranks, estimated at some 40,000. Although the opposition initially insisted on the revolt remaining peaceful, it has gradually abandoned any pretence of that with the FSA increasingly carrying out guerrillatype operations against army positions.

In a worrisome development for the regime, the violence in recent days has gradually gotten closer to the capital, which had remained relatively quiet since the uprising began in March. “At stake is Damascus because whoever controls Damascus controls Syria,” said Fabrice Balanche, a Syria expert and lecturer at the University of Lyon 2 in France. Balanche said that the opposition was clearly drawing support from the urban poor who live in what he described as a “misery belt” that surrounds the capital and over the years has become a breeding ground for Islamists.

He said that the regime was probably banking on the conflict in Syria degenerating into sectarian warfare so that it can portray itself as the only guarantor against the country sliding to civil war.

Experts warn however that Assad’s tactic could well backfire with his regime losing control of the situation at some point.

“Bashar can hang on militarily but not economically or politically,” Balanche said. “In the end, he will nonetheless be forced to step down.” — AFP

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

sp orts Ineligible player costs Qatar Olympic qualifier QATAR: Qatar’s hopes of winning a spot in this year’s Olympic soccer competition has been dealt a blow after FIFA overturned a draw in Oman for fielding an ineligible player, awarding the home side a 3-0 victory.

The Nov 27 London Olympics qualifier ended in a 1-1 stalemate but Qatar’s Abdelaziz Hatim should not have been on the pitch in Muscat.

The midfielder had been booked in the second round of qualifiers against India and picked up a second yellow card in the round three game with South Korea. The Qatar Football Association has been fined $7,600 while the team have now slipped to third place in Group A with two points, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said on its website (www.the-afc.com) yesterday.

Qatar will have a chance to reduce the gap when they host Oman (six points), now second in the group behind South Korea (seven), on Sunday. The three top teams from Asia qualify for the Olympic men’s tournament in London from July 25 to Aug. 11. —Reuters

London flame to land at Culdrose military base ATHENS: The flame for this year’s London Olympics, scheduled to arrive in Britain on May 18, will land at a military base in Cornwall before starting the torch relay that will end with the Games’ opening ceremony on July 27, documents revealed yesterday. In the documents seen by Reuters, Games organisers are planning for the flame to arrive from Greece at the Culdrose base near Helston with a British Airways flight between 1730 and 1830 GMT. “The Olympic flame will be flown into the Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose near Helston in Cornwall,” London torch relay organisers wrote in the planning documents.

“Culdrose is first and foremost a Royal Navy search and rescue service,” it said. In the most recent Olympics of Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008, the flame arrived at the commercial airports of those capitals instead of

military bases.

The London Games flame will be lit on May 10 in Olympia, Greece, site of the ancient Olympics before a short Greek relay and the official handover ceremony in Athens for the start of the British leg. The 70-day torch relay will travel some 12,800 kms around Britain, taking in 1,018 villages and the 1,085-metre summit of Snowdon.

The relay will also take in landmarks around Britain with the flame travelling at times by canal boat, cable car, tram, steam train, hot air balloon and even motorcycle sidecar on the Isle of Man TT course.

More than 95 percent of the population will be within an hour of the route. London has chosen a lower profile relay than the protest-marred international route to Beijing in 2008, which included the problematic ascent of Everest. —Reuters

Zamora, Cisse join QPR LONDON: Bobby Zamora swapped Fulham for West London rivals Queens Park Rangers on Tuesday and will be joined at Loftus Road by French striker Djibril Cisse, who returned to the Premier League on transfer deadline day from Lazio.

England forward Zamora, who media reports said had fallen out with Fulham boss Martin Jol, has been replaced at Craven Cottage by Stuttgart’s Russian striker Pavel Pogrebnyak. The three deals were confirmed by the English clubs on their websites.

Zamora, 31, has signed a 2-1/2 year deal with the promoted club and links up again with QPR’s former Fulham boss Mark Hughes after moving for an undisclosed fee.

“Bobby is a guy that makes things happen on the pitch, be it scoring goals or creating chances for others,” Hughes said. “He’s a great foil for any team.” Ex-Liverpool and Sunderland forward Cisse, 30, has also signed a twoand-a-half year deal at QPR for an undisclosed sum.

“I rate Djibril very, very highly,” added Hughes, who has also signed Nigerian left-back Taye Taiwo, England under-21 defender Nedum Onuoha and Mali midfielder Samba Diakite since taking over this month. “I’ve watched him for many years and always been impressed by what he brings to the table. He’s a huge threat to opposition’s defences. He’s got great pace, power and movement and that’s something we’ll hopefully benefit from.” QPR, who returned to the top flight this season after a 15-year absence, are 16th in the 20-team Premier League and two points clear of the relegation zone. —Reuters

Canucks down Blackhawks

Lee Westwood

Westwood and Kaymer favorites at Qatar Masters DOHA: After forgettable performances in Abu Dhabi, third-ranked Lee Westwood and fourth-ranked Martin Kaymer are looking to get their 2012 seasons back on track with strong showings at the Qatar Masters. They have chosen one of the most challenging courses on the European Tour’s desert swing to do it, however.

The Doha Golf Club just outside Doha is infamous for its windy conditions and this year will be no different.

Forecasts are for winds to reach upward of 32 kph (20 mph) for much of the tournament.

Westwood struggled at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship and finished in a tie for 17th. Nursing a sore shoulder and unable to master the greens, the Englishman was even par after two rounds. By the time he started playing better, including a 4-under 68 in the third round, he was effectively out of contention and finished seven shots behind eventual winner Robert Rock.

“I had a few sort of issues to negotiate,” Westwood said. “We’ve been working a lot on my fitness just recently, and I haven’t played a lot coming into Abu Dhabi. Didn’t hole as many putts or find the greens there, a little difficult to read.”

Still, Westwood said his showing was “a decent start” and he was feeling good about his game after closing out the 2011 season strong. He won the Thailand Golf Championship in December and the Nedbank Challenge a few weeks earlier. He had a thirdround score of 62 at Nedbank, and opened Thailand with a 60 - the lowest round of his career - and then a 64 to beat Charl Schwartzel by seven strokes.

“The ball is starting on line where I’m aiming, and my pace control was good. I only made one bogey over the weekend. Unfortunately that was a three putt from long range,” Westwood said of his putting. “I think I was second in greens in regulation, so my game is fairly sharp.

Like I said, I’m a notoriously slow starter and it always takes me a bit to get going.”

Westwood said his shoulder is feeling better and he was eager to tackle the

Doha course - a place he has had mixed success. His best finish is third in 2010 but he missed the cut last year and finished several times outside the top 30.

“Looking forward to this week and playing a golf course I’ve done well in the past,” Westwood said. “Apparently the rough’s not as long as it was last year, but the weather man says it ’s going to be fairly windy. And when it’s like that around here, it’s a really tough test.”

Kaymer had an even worse showing in Abu Dhabi, where he was the defending champion and had won the tournament three times. The 2010 PGA Championship winner opened with a 77 which he blamed on bad putting and missed the cut after shooting a 1-over 73 on Friday. The poor performance comes in the wake of a disappointing 2011 season in which he only won twice.

Graeme McDowell, the 2010 US Open champion, and defending champion Thomas Bjorn will also be in Doha and eager to build on their strong showings in Abu Dhabi. Both players finished in a tie for third.

Joining them will be Hunter Mahan, who becomes the latest American to make his debut in the Middle East.

Mahan said he was feeling good despite the long trip to the Middle East. Calling it something he wanted to do after hearing fellow players rave about it, the 19th-ranked American said the Qatar tournament offers him a chance to test his game against some of the world’s top golfers and also to immerse himself in a new culture.

“I think it’s somewhat beneficial, I think, to be an American player coming over here because it’s not all about golf,” Mahan said.

“I really enjoy the opportunity to kind of travel and see different parts of the world,” he said. “When it’s time to play golf, it’s time to play golf. But like I said, getting out of your comfort zone is kind of a good thing, kind of makes you forced to focus and bear down a little bit and make sure you’re doing what you need to do to prepare for the week.” —AP

Baek hunting maiden victory in Myanmar YANGON: South Korea’s Baek Seukhyun says he has banished last year’s problems with his driver and is ready to claim a maiden Asian Tour title at the Zaykabar Myanmar Open which starts today.

Baek is among several highly-rated young guns vying for glory at the $300,000 event, including Thailand’s Panuphol Pittayarat, Gaganjeet Bhullar of India and Miguel Tabuena of the Philippines.

Speaking ahead of the curtain-raising tour event, Baek recalled last year’s debilitating problem, saying he shivered every time he used the driver.

“I didn’t use a single driver for nine tournaments. I just used three wood to tee off. I couldn’t hit using a driver,” the 21-year-old explained.

“Every time I picked up the driver I shivered. My drives were going from left to right and it gradually got worst until I couldn’t hit a single drive.”

But after two months of intense training, Baek is ready to challenge for honours in Myanmar as he looks to go one better than the second place he took at the tour’s Indian Open in 2010.

To do so he will have to fend off a strong field including 19-year-old Thai sensation Panuphol, nicknamed ‘Coconut’, who is hoping to shine after recovering from a back injury at the season-ending Thailand Golf Championship.

“I was playing too many tournaments but didn’t really take care of my body,” he said. “I’m okay now but not 100 percent,” added Panuphol, who turned professional at the age of 14.

Defending champion Tetsuji Hiratsuka, Thais Kiradech Aphibarnrat and Boonchu Ruangkit, Filipino Frankie Minoza and Rick Kulacz of Australia, are also in the 144-strong field at the Royal Mingalardon Golf & Country Club event. —AFP

VANCOUVER: Vancouver’s Daniel Sedin scored the overtime winner to lift the Canucks to a 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday, extending their points lead in the NHL’s Northwest Division into double figures Ryan Kesler and Cody Hodgson scored in regulation for Vancouver, which is 5-0 this season in games decided in overtime, and now stands 11 points clear of nearest rival Minnesota. Jamal Mayers and Viktor Stalberg had goals for Chicago, which has lost three straight to drop to fourth in the closely contested Central Division, albeit only four points off the top.

The Maple Leafs appeared to be in complete control after Tyler Bozak and Clarke MacArthur scored 19 seconds apart in the third period to give Toronto a 4-1 lead. Pittsburgh put together a rally that Malkin finished when a slap shot caromed off his shoulder and into the net.

Matt Cooke snapped a 19-game scoring drought for Pittsburgh, and Steve Sullivan and Joe Vitale keyed the Penguins’ third-period surge. Mikhail Grabovski scored twice for Toronto.

Jets 2, Flyers 1 In Philadelphia, Bryan Little had the only goal during a shootout, lifting

deficit to force overtime despite playing without suspended star Alex Ovechkin.

Ducks 4, Coyotes 1 In Glendale, Arizona - Andrew Cogliano scored three straight goals in the second period as Anaheim opened the second half of the season with a win over Phoenix.

Phoenix had the jump in the first period,but Cogliano took it away quickly in the second, notching his first career hat trick in a 7-minute span. Teemu Selanne scored late for the Ducks. Ray Whitney scored in the first period for the Coyotes.

51.1 seconds remaining.

Thomas Vanek, who leads the Sabres with 19 goals, left after the first period because of an undisclosed upper body injury and didn’t return.

Sharks 6, Blue Jackets 0 In San Jose, Joe Thornton scored twice to get San Jose off to a fast start out of the All-Star break and set up the big win over hapless Columbus.

Antti Niemi posted his 17th career shutout, while atrick Marleau, Joe Pavelski, Jamie McGinn and Michal Handzus also scored for the Sharks, who have beaten the Blue Jackets 19

Bruins 4, Senators 3 In Boston, Dennis Seidenberg scored the tiebreaking goal on a slap shot from center ice in the third period, rallying Boston to victory over Ottawa in Tuesday’s clash of the top two teams in the Northeast Division.

Brad Marchand and Zdeno Chara had power-play goals for the Bruins, who fell behind 3-1 while being dominated in the second period.

Milan Lucic’s goal with 45 seconds left in the second got the Bruins within one, and Marchand’s power-play goal 2:20 into the third tied it.

Seidenberg put Boston ahead with 12:51 remaining and that stood as the winner, giving the Bruins a six-point lead over the Senators.

Devils 4, Rangers 3 In Newark, David Clarkson scored the tying goal for New Jersey in the final minute of regulation, and Ilya Kovalchuk netted the only goal in the shootout as New Jersey edged New York. Kovalchuk had the first attempt in the shootout and beat the goalie between the pads. That was enough to give the Devils a 9-2 mark in tiebreakers this season. Martin Brodeur preserved the win by stopping all three Rangers shooters, and the Devils celebrated a victory that ended a three-game skid.

Kovalchuk and Zach Parise also scored in regulation for the Devils, who had trailed 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2.

Anton Stralman, Brian Boyle and Michael Del Zotto had the Rangers’ goals.

Predators 5, Wild 4 In St. Paul, Minnesota, Mike Fisher scored two of Nashville’s three goals in the last 31/2 minutes as the Predators stunned Minnesota for their fifth straight victory.

Dany Heatley’s first two-goal game for Minnesota was wasted when the Wild squandered a 4-1 lead they held at the halfway mark of the third period.

Brandon Yip’s first goal for Nashville brought the Predators within two after a video review reversed a dead-puck call on the ice. Patric Hornqvist scored his team-leading 15th goal, and Fisher added a goal 21 seconds later. Fisher connected again with 21 seconds remaining.

Matt Halischuk had a goal and an assist for the Predators. Cal Clutterbuck added a goal in the second period for the Wild, and Kyle Brodziak also scored.

Red Wings 3, Flames 1 In Calgary, Jiri Hudler scored the go-ahead goal in the third period to lift Detroit past Calgary. Drew Miller made it a two-goal cushion four minutes later. Cory Emmerton also scored for Detroit. Mike Cammalleri scored the lone goal for Calgary, which has lost three straight at home following an eight-game winning streak there.

Penguins 5, Maple Leafs 4 In Pittsburgh, Evgeni Malkin tied it with 6 seconds left in regulation and then scored the lone shootout goal to lift Pittsburgh over Toronto.

Malkin’s 27th goal capped a furious third-period rally by the Penguins, who trailed by three with 13 minutes to play. The NHL’s leading scorer later flipped a wrist shot past the goalie in the second round of the shootout to extend Pittsburgh’s winning streak to eight games.

TAMPA: Tampa Bay Lightning center Steven Stamkos (right) scores the game-winning goal past Washington Capitals goalie Tomas Vokoun (29) during the overtime period of an NHL hockey game. —AP Winnipeg over Philadelphia. The Jets have won six straight games in Philadelphia, including four when they were the Atlanta Thrashers. Chris Thorburn scored his first goal in nearly a year for Winnipeg’s lone tally in regulation. Brayden Schenn scored for Philadelphia in the first period.

Lightning 4, Capitals 3 In Tampa, Steven Stamkos scored his NHL-leading 33rd goal at 2:45 of overtime, lifting Tampa Bay over Washington.

Martin St. Louis had a second-period goal and assisted on the gamewinner, sending a point-blank shot off the goalie’s pads and giving Stamkos an opportunity to tap in the rebound.

Matt Hendricks, Mathieu Perreault and Troy Brouwer scored for the Capitals, who rallied from a two-goal

Oilers 3, Avalanche 2 In Edmonton, Taylor Hall scored in the third period to give Edmonton a two-goal cushion and a win against Colorado. Jordan Eberle and Eric Belanger also scored for the Oilers.

Peter Mueller and Gabriel Landeskog had goals for the Avalanche, who have lost three in a row and fallen below the postseason cutoff in the Western Conference.

Sabres 3, Canadiens 1 In Montreal, Paul Gaustad had a goal and two assists to lift Buffalo to a win against Montreal. Gaustad set up Ville Leino’s fourth goal 4:01 into the second period to tie it 1-1. Gaustad beat the goalie from the goal mouth to give the Sabres the lead 6:17 into the third and assisted as Patrick Kaleta scored into an empty net with

times in 21 games at HP Pavilion.

Four of San Jose’s goals came on second chances as Blue Jackets goalie Steve Mason struggled to control his rebounds all game. Columbus lost its fifth straight game.

Islanders 5, Hurricanes 2 In Raleigh, John Tavares had two goals and two assists to lead New York over Carolina. PA Parenteau and Matt Moulson scored power-play goals to give the Islanders a 2-0 lead after two periods and help New York move two points ahead of Carolina at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. Carolina rallied with goals from Brandon Sutter and Tim Brent early in the third period to get even, but Tavares put the Islanders back in front. Kyle Okposo added an emptynet goal with 1:22 left. —AP

NHL results/standings NHL results and standings on Tuesday.

Boston 4, Ottawa 3; New Jersey 4, NY Rangers 3 (SO); Winnipeg 2, Philadelphia 1 (SO); Pittsburgh 5, Toronto 4 (SO); NY Islanders 5, Carolina 2; Buffalo 3, Montreal 1; Tampa Bay 4, Washington 3 (OT); Nashville 5, Minnesota 4; Detroit 3, Calgary 1; Anaheim 4, Phoenix 1; Edmonton 3, Colorado 2; Vancouver 3, Chicago 2 (OT); San Jose 6, Columbus 0. (OT = overtime, SO = shootout)

NY Rangers Philadelphia Pittsburgh New Jersey NY Islanders

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L OTL GF 31 12 5 135 29 14 6 163 29 17 4 157 27 19 3 133 20 22 7 120

Boston Ottawa Toronto Buffalo Montreal

Northeast Division 32 14 2 175 27 20 6 160 25 19 6 155 21 24 5 122 19 22 9 131

Washington Florida Winnipeg Tampa Bay Carolina

Southeast Division 26 19 4 139 22 15 11 122 23 22 6 126 22 23 4 140 18 25 9 132

GA 100 144 131 139 145 105 164 152 150 137 141 136 144 168 164

PTS 67 64 62 57 47

Detroit Nashville St. Louis Chicago Columbus

Western Conference Central Division 34 16 1 163 31 16 4 145 29 13 7 124 29 15 7 164 13 31 6 115

66 60 56 47 47

Vancouver Minnesota Colorado Calgary Edmonton

Northwest Division 31 15 4 161 24 19 7 119 26 24 2 133 23 22 6 121 19 26 5 125

124 131 147 140 144

66 55 54 52 43

56 55 52 48 45

San Jose Los Angeles Dallas Phoenix Anaheim

Pacific Division 28 14 6 137 24 16 10 111 25 21 2 126 22 21 8 131 19 23 7 128

110 111 136 138 145

62 58 52 52 45

118 131 102 147 169

69 66 65 65 32

Note: Overtime losses (OTL) are worth one point in the standings and are not included in the loss column (L)

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

sp orts

The Olympian was told he’d never walk again PARIS: All that stuff about the Olympic ideal, how it’s all about taking part, not winning, can often seem like so much hot air, rendered hopelessly quaint and outdated by the ultra-competitive and mercenary world of modern sport. Until, that is, you speak to Kieran Behan.

Ireland’s first gymnast to qualify for an Olympic Games is a vaulting, somersaulting advertisement for believing in the bright side of life, for picking yourself up, dusting yourself off and starting all over again.

Should headliners like Michael Phelps or Usain Bolt spot his tousled, reddish hair and size XXL grin at breakfast in the Olympic village this July, they’d be well advised to pull up a chair, because Behan has an amazing story.

Had the 22-year-old listened to his doctors, he might still be in a wheelchair, unable to walk, not training 30 hours a week on the acrobatic routines he’ll perform at the London Games. Behan has no illusions: he’s not a favorite for gold. But his tale of triumph over adversity is tough to beat.

It starts with what should have been a routine operation to remove a benign, golf ball-sized tumor from Behan’s left thigh when he was aged 10. The surgical staff, he explains patiently, didn’t regularly check the tourniquet on his leg while he was anesthetized, leaving him with “severe nerve damage” that caused “excruciating pain” if someone so much as brushed against the damaged limb.

Not for the last time, Behan confounded doctors who “told me I was never going to walk again, let alone do gymnastics.” “It was a long old road,” he says matter-of-factly of the 15 months he took to recover.

Then, back to the gym. As a kid, glued to the 2000 Sydney Games, Behan had told his dad, Philip, and mum, Bernie, that he wanted to become an Olympian.

“To get some energy out of me, stop me climbing the curtains and the door frame,” they steered their bouncing ball of a boy toward gymnastics. The variety of moves — “there’s hundreds of skills that you can learn” — instantly appealed.

“I loved it as soon as I did it,” he says. “It’s very thrillseeking, as well. I mean, I just love to fly around, really, and jump about.”

But, at age 12, came what Behan calls his “freak accident.” Doing handstands on the high bar, he slipped off and whacked his head. “Took a hell of a hit,” he says. “It knocked everything silly.”

The worst damage was to his vestibular canal in the inner ear, “which is the balance organ, so it tells you whether you are going left or right or upside down.”

Again, the prognosis was grim. “I even had to see a psychiatrist to sit me down and tell me that, ‘It is very unlikely that you’ll walk again and you have got to come to terms with that.’”

Again, Behan set about proving the physicians wrong. This time, the road back was longer still. “I had

to learn absolutely everything again” — how to sit up in a hospital bed, hand-eye coordination, catching a ball, being able to look at fast-moving objects without blacking out. To help with that, Bernie would wheel her son to a window, so he could watch cars go by.

“You don’t really want to be there counting each day,” he says. “You just think about the positive side of it all, you just think about, ‘Right, well, I’m going to get back, I’m going to get back on my feet, I’m going to get back to the sport that I love. And that’s what drove me on.”

When finally well enough to return to school, he walked first with a frame, then with a cane. In all, some three years passed before he recovered sufficiently to return to the gym and, even then, “I still would occasionally black out.” On the first day back, “I was so excited, I was a like a little kid waiting to open a Christmas present.”

Since then, he has also ruptured cruciate ligaments and had reconstructive surgery on both knees. He blew out the left one six weeks before what was to have been his first senior appearance for Ireland, at European competition, in 2010. He was practicing the floor, his strongest apparatus, but rolled his ankle and dislocated the knee on the final tumble of his routine.

“That was the hardest injury out of all of them,” he says. “The closest I have ever been to quitting.”

He also climbed financial mountains to qualify for London. Competing at the worlds in Tokyo last

October — he was 98th out of 262 in the all-around competition — cost him 5,995 pounds (7,177 euros; $9,439). “I had to raise all that myself.” He sold cakes and bacon rolls at his gym club, held raffles and washed cars, and lived on a shoestring — sometimes taking the train (he grew up and lives in the suburbs of London) without paying his fare. “I know that sounds really bad,” he says. Not really, Kieran.

What’s important is that he made it. He got word in January, during a test competition at London’s O2 arena that will host the Olympic gymnastics events, that he had qualified for the games. “I was with my coach, and we were just literally jumping around the room, crying our eyes out.”

Barry McDonald was the first and so far only gymnast to represent Ireland at an Olympics, in Atlanta in 1996. But, as Behan quickly points out, McDonald benefited from a wild-card invite, so “technically, I’m actually the first” to reach the games by qualifying.

What a journey. It makes terms like “win” and “lose” seem shallow and irrelevant. “I’m just going there to do as well as I can,” he says. In other words, to be an Olympian and everything that means.

“I’ve got goose pimples just thinking about it,” he says. “Maybe sitting there, having breakfast with Usain Bolt or Roger Federer or someone like that. ... Oh. It’s absolutely amazing. It’s just so surreal. It really hasn’t sunk in. All the hairs on the back of my neck are standing up even just talking about it.”—AP

Australia defeat India in T-20

India cricket captain MS Dhoni

Dhoni gets backing from former skippers NEW DELHI: Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s offer to step aside as India captain if a “better” candidate can be found is a noble gesture given the team’s woeful run of Test form, but several former skippers believe the wicketkeeper remains the best man for the job.

Under Dhoni, India won the Twenty20 (2007) and 50over (2011) World Cups and also became the top-ranked test team, prompting many observers to hail him the country’s greatest ever leader.

In less than a year since India hit those heady heights, that assessment has been revised after India’s eight consecutive overseas test defeats, seven under Dhoni, and some believe the side need a new captain in the longer format of the game.

Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram, however, is not among them. “Captain-bashing is a favourite pastime of cricket pundits in the Indian subcontinent and the media just loves it,” Akram wrote in his column for www.espnstar.com. “I believe Dhoni is the best man to lead India and will remain so in the immediate future,” wrote the former player, considered one of the greatest left-arm bowlers the game has seen.

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar agreed. “In my view, he is still the best bet,” Gavaskar told NDTV channel, hailing Dhoni’s announcement to pave way for a more suitable candidate after his team got blanked in Australia.

“Dhoni must have deeply felt it, the 4-0 loss. So what he wanted to say is that he is ready to play under a captain if the BCCI (India board) can get one, and that is exactly what you expect from a team man like him,” Gavaskar added.

Former Australia captain Steve Waugh also saw no logic in the demand to replace Dhoni. “...there is no point in changing captains for the sake of it,” Waugh wrote in a column that appeared in yesterday’s Times of India newspaper.

Especially if it meant entrusting swashbuckling opener Virender Sehwag with the duty, as has been suggested in the Indian media.

“I don’t think Sehwag has shown the inspiration, responsibility and form to assume the mantle right now, and truth be told, I’m disappointed with the way he has not shouldered his responsibility in the series,” Waugh said.

With Dhoni serving a one-match ban because of the team’s slow over rate in the previous test at Perth, Sehwag led India in the fourth and final Test at Adelaide, where Australia won by 298 runs to complete the rout.

Akram too laughed off the suggestion. “What did Sehwag do to salvage India’s pride at Adelaide? I sometimes see streaks of {Pakistan all-rounder) Shahid Afridi in Sehwag. That dreadful propensity to self-destruct,” he said.— Reuters

SYDNEY: India have still to win on their Australia tour after losing the first of two Twenty20 internationals by 31 runs to the home side at the Sydney Olympic stadium yesterday. Before the biggest crowd for a single day’s cricket in Sydney of almost 60,000, Australia rattled up 171 for four off their 20 overs after being sent into bat and reduced India to 140 for six. India were hoping to bounce back to form in the shorter version after being thrashed 4-0 in their Test series against Michael Clarke’s Australians.

Matthew Wade, who is keeping wicketkeeper Brad Haddin out of Australia’s T-20 and one-day teams, justified his selection with a man-of-the-match performance with 72 off 43 balls and slick glovework behind the stumps.

“I got a little taste for it a few months back in South Africa and I’m looking to take my opportunity batting at the top of the order with Dave (Warner),” Wade said.

“It’s always good to be scoring runs and I’m just looking to play my role in the team and I’ll do that in Melbourne (T-20 tomorrow) and hopefully make my one-day debut in Melbourne (on Sunday) too.”

Wade smashed three sixes and five fours opening the innings with David Warner, who made 25 off 14 balls before he was the first wicket down.

Warner, coming off Australia’s Test series win over India, thrilled the large crowd with an audacious six as he switched from his normal left handed grip to right hand to send the ball careering over deep extra cover into the stands. Warner hit two sixes and took 19 off Ravi Ashwin’s second over before he was out when he skied Vinay Kumar to Suresh Raina at extra cover.

Wade raced to 70 before a rain delay affected his concentration and he was out two runs later after the restart in play.

David Hussey cracked 42 off 30 balls with three sixes and a four before he was out attempting a big slog only to be bowled by Rahul Sharma on the penultimate delivery of the innings.

India again started disastrously, losing Virender Sehwag on the third ball of Brett Lee’s opening over for four and he was followed by a steady procession of teammates back to the dressing room.

Opening partner Gautam Gambhir made 20 off 14 balls and Virat Kohli was splendidly caught near the boundary ropes by Warner for 22 giving 40-year-old legspinner Brad Hogg his first wicket for Australia in four years. Rohit Sharma, who has waited all tour for a chance to bat for India in the Test series, was bowled for a first ball duck by David Hussey and Raina scored 14 off 15 balls before he was bowled by Dan Christian.

Only skipper MS Dhoni showed any resistance with three sixes and a four in an unbeaten 48 off 43 balls, while Ashwin remained 15 not out.

Christian and Hussey finished with two wickets each for Australia. The crowd of 59,659 broke the previous record of 58,446 set 83 years ago when Australia played England in a Test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground on December 15, 1928. The second T-20 match takes place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground tomorrow. — AFP

SCOREBOARD SYDNEY: Scoreboard after Australia beat India by 31 runs at Sydney’s Olympic stadium yesterday in the first of two Twenty20 matches.

India won the toss and chose to bowl Australia innings D. Warner c Raina b Vinay Kumar 25 M. Wade b Raina 72 T. Birt c Raina b Ashwin 17 D. Hussey b Sharma 42 G. Bailey not out 12 M. Marsh not out 0 Extras: (w-2, lb-1) 3 Total: (for four wickets, 20 overs) 171 Did not bat: D. Christian, J. Faulkner, B. Hogg, B. Lee, X. Doherty Fall of wickets: 1-38 2-79 3-135 4-170 Bowling: Ashwin 4-0-34-1, Kumar 3-034-0, Vinay Kumar 4-0-28-1 (w-1), Raina 30-22-1, Sharma 3.4-0-27-1 (w-1), RG Sharma 0.2-0-2-0, Jadeja 2-0-23-0.

SYDNEY: Australia’s Brett Lee celebrates taking the wicket of India’s Virender Sehwag (right) during their Twenty20 International cricket match. — AP

India innings G. Gambhir c Marsh b Hussey 20 V. Sehwag c Hussey b Lee 4 V. Kohli c Warner b Hogg 22 S. Raina b Christian 14 RG. Sharma b Hussey 0 MS. Dhoni not out 48 R. Jadeja c Warner b Christian 7 R. Ashwin not out 15 Extras: (w-6, lb-3, nb-1) 10 Total: (for six wickets, 20 overs) 140 Did not bat: R. Sharma, R. Vinay Kumar, P. Kumar Fall of wickets: 1-6 2-47 3-53 4-53 5-72 6-81 Bowling: Lee 4-0-36-1 (w-4), Doherty 40-23-0 (w-1), Faulkner 2-0-18-0, Christian 4-0-35-2 (nb-1), Hussey 2-0-4-2, Hogg 40-21-1.

England desperate to avoid Pakistan sweep DUBAI: Spin-weary England will be desperate to avoid the humiliation of a series whitewash against Pakistan in the third and final Test which starts at Dubai Stadium tomorrow.

Andrew Strauss’s men, pulverised by Pakistan spinners Saeed Ajmal and Abdul Rehman, are also in danger of losing their world number one spot after a dismal 10wicket defeat in Dubai and the 72-run capitulation in Abu Dhabi.

Pakistan have never inflicted a Test series whitewash on England, who topped the Test rankings in August last year with an unbeaten nine series sequence, but have seen 34 of their 40 wickets tumble on tour to Pakistan’s spinners. Off-spinner Ajmal has led the destruction with 17 scalps while left-armer Rehman has claimed 12 wickets and Mohammad Hafeez five.

England need to win to guarantee their top spot on April 1 — the cut-off date for a $175,000 award to the side sitting at the top of the ICC Test championship table. But their celebrated batting order has so far failed to answer the challenge laid down by Pakistan’s wily spinners. Jonathan Trott (141 in four innings) tops their batting chart, while Andrew Strauss (68) and Alastair Cook (109) have failed to provide strong starts.

Key batsmen Kevin Pietersen (17 in four innings), Ian Bell (36) and Eoin Morgan (41) have also struggled to cope with the slower ball as England lost the first Test in three days and the second in four. The tourists will resist the temptation of replacing Morgan with Ravi Bopara whose last Test innings was a 44 not out, against India at The Oval. Speaking after the Abu Dhabi defeat Strauss said his chastened team needed to bounce back after two dismal

performances.

“Pakistan have thoroughly deserved their victory in the series,” he said. “We’ve been below where we want to be and we need to come back and bounce back strongly from this. “As a batting unit we have to hold our hands up and say we haven’t been good enough, it’s been pretty apparent, we need to be better than that,” said Strauss, whose last hundred came 30 months ago.—AFP

DUBAI: Pakistan’s cricketers Saeed Ajmal (left), Adnan Akmal (center) and Junaid Khan (right) warm up during a practice session at the ICC Global Cricket Academy. —AFP

McLaren unveils new F1 car to stop Bulls

WOKING: In a handout picture released by Vodaphone McLaren Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton (left) and Jenson Button (right) of Britain pose behind the newly unveiled McLaren MP4-27 Formula One car during McLaren’s 2012 technical launch for the new season in Woking. — AP

WOKING: A light-hearted Lewis Hamilton laughed at the past and looked forward to a happier season ahead after helping Jenson Button take the wraps off McLaren’s sleek new Formula One car yesterday.

Highlighting the re-profiled wing mirrors on the silver and red MP4-27, 2008 world champion Hamilton joked that the rear-view improvements would also be appreciated by Ferrari rival Felipe Massa.

The two drivers clashed repeatedly last year in a controversial and crash-happy season that Hamilton was only too happy to leave behind.

“We’ve changed the wing mirrors, so hopefully we’ll be able to see a little bit better,” said Hamilton, admiring the smooth, flowing lines of the Mercedes-powered machine. “Felipe will be happy with that.”

The new car had none of the ‘ugly’ bumps

on the nose predicted to become a feature of this year’s crop after Caterham last week revealed a ‘platypus’ front wing that received an immediate thumbs down from the aesthetes.

“This is a beautiful car. Many of those that you see will not be,” said Button. Hamilton agreed that the car looked the business and should be able to do it as well.

“I think it looks fantastic. I think it’s probably the most refined looking car we’ve had for some time now,” said the 27-year-old. “When the car looks good, it generally is good.”

Hamilton and 2009 world champion Button, overall runner-up in 2011, won three races each last year but Red Bull won both championships for the second year in a row.

McLaren, without a constructors’ title since 1998, finished distant runners-up after launching their car with great optimism and

then struggling to get an elaborate exhaust system to function properly in testing.

They made sweeping changes but still had to play catch-up in the early races while Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel chalked up a string of wins and took his second title.

Button said he had no idea where McLaren stood this year but hoped he would have a good impression when the car hits the track in Jerez, southern Spain, next week.

“We’re all positive now and hopefully that will continue in testing,” he said. “We’ve got to come out of the box and be strong. We are excited but I’m sure every team is a little bit apprehensive when it comes to testing.”

While Hamilton took comfort from the car being an evolution of the one that ended 2011 so strongly, the car is substantially revised from last year’s with all major systems updated or re-designed.— Reuters

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

sp orts

Grizzlies end skid with OT win over Nuggets DENVER: Memphis’ OJ Mayo scored 18 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 35 seconds left in overtime, as the Grizzlies snapped a four-game losing streak with a 100-97 victory over the Denver Nuggets in Tuesday’s NBA action.

Mayo’s basket gave Memphis a 98-97 lead, and two free throws by Mike Conley with 8 seconds left completed the scoring. Rudy Fernandez’s potential tying 3-point attempt in the closing seconds for Denver bounced off the rim, sending the Nuggets to a defeat that kept them 2-1/2 games behind divisional rival Oklahoma City.

Rudy Gay and Marc Gasol both overcame poor shooting nights to lead Memphis with 20 points apiece, each also grabbing 13 boards as the Grizzlies outrebounded the Nuggets 48-42. Al Harrington led Denver with 23 points, 21 after halftime, and 10 rebounds.

INDIANAPOLIS: New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning throws a football during Media Day for NFL football’s Super Bowl XLVI.—AP

Manning casts large shadow over Super Bowl INDIANAPOLIS: For a Manning who isn’t in the Super Bowl, this one sure is making headlines. It happened again Tuesday, when Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning - the NFL’s only four-time MVP and older brother to New York Giants counterpart Eli Manning - denied whispers that he was pondering retirement. “I have no plans on doing that,” he said.

It’s the strongest indication that, despite having his third neck operation in September, he hopes to play in the NFL when the new season kicks off later this year - something the league is happy about.

“My plan hasn’t changed,” he said. “I’m on track with what the doctors have told me to do, and I’m doing that. I’m rehabbing hard.”

The NFL would prefer to keep the focus on this week’s juiciest story lines-Eli Manning trying to outdo his older brother by winning a second Super Bowl; Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and coach Bill Belichick chasing their fourth titles and maybe exacting a little revenge for their loss to New York four years ago.

But as everyone knows, this is Peyton’s place, his town, and fans hang on every detail of his recovery. “It’s not the way it should be,” he said earlier Tuesday in a taped interview with ESPN. The Colts ended their most tumultuous month in more than a decade with another flurry of moves. Team officials confirmed Tuesday that they had hired Bruce Arians, Manning’s former quarterbacks coach, as offensive coordinator, and Harold Goodwin as offensive line coach. They also fired tight ends coach Ricky Thomas and assistant offensive line coach Ron Prince.

The whirlwind of changes began Jan. 2, the day after the Colts clinched the No. 1 overall draft pick with a league-worst 2-14 record. Irsay has since fired vice chairman Bill Polian, general manager Chris Polian, and dismissed coach Jim Caldwell and most of his staff-a series of changes that prompted Peyton Manning to voice his complaints two days after the conference championship games. Two days later, Irsay called Manning a “politician,” fueling a public spat that drew national attention. The two tried to put out that fire before the team’s scheduled arrivals,

but the fallout has continued into this week.

“I would think he’s very uncomfortable, especially with the Giants here and Eli,” former Colts coach Tony Dungy said. “When you get to a Super Bowl, even though it’s the second (recent) one for the Giants, you want the focus to be on that achievement. He would much rather have the focus on Eli and what they’ve done to get here, and unfortunately, that’s not going to happen.”

If there were any doubts, they were answered in a strange 24-hour period that began with the host committee’s news conference Monday.

Irsay joined the mayor, governor and two committee officials to discuss game-week preparations, but wound up taking most of the questions, nearly all of which focused on Manning’s future. Afterward, Irsay said he didn’t plan to discuss the Manning situation again this week.

On Tuesday, Manning piped in. Shortly after the NFL’s annual Super Bowl media day event ended, Peyton Manning met with a small group of reporters with the idea of turning the attention back to Sunday’s game. That didn’t work too well, either.

“I’m working hard, I had a really good session today,” Manning said after repeatedly being asked about his rehab. “I continue to make progress and work hard. The doctors are encouraged and that’s encouraging to me.”

The four-time league MVP hasn’t played in more than a year because of a damaged nerve that caused weakness in his throwing arm. He had neck surgery in May, then underwent his third and most invasive neck surgery in 19 months in September. Doctors fused two vertebrae together, a procedure that forced him to miss the Colts two-win season.

Since then, there has been rampant speculation about his recovery, the potential risks of a return, whether the Colts will pay Manning a $28 million roster bonus in early March to prevent him from becoming a free agent or whether the soon-to-be 36-year-old might retire.

“My plan hasn’t changed,” Manning said.

“I’m on track with what the doctors have told me to do, and I’m doing that. I’m rehabbing hard.”—AP

Valverde ready to leave doping ban in his wake MADRID: Spain’s Alejandro Valverde says he is ready to take aim at some of the most prestigious podiums in cycling this season as he looks to put the disgrace of a two-year doping ban behind him.

Former Tour of Spain champion Valverde marked his recent return to competition with an impressive victory ahead of Australian champion Simon Gerrans on the only hilltop finish of January’s Tour Down Under.

But despite the win allowing him to taste victory after a frustrating two-year absence, he knows the real tests of his credentials lie elsewhere.

The 31-year-old is aiming for stage success at Paris-Nice in March before targetting the hilly one-day classics-he has twice won the oldest and arguably the hardest, LiegeBastogne-Liege and is a previous winner of the semi-classic, Fleche Wallonne.

Last year, in Valverde’s absence, Philippe Gilbert became only the second rider in history to win the series of three hilly one-day races known as the ‘Ardennes Classics’-the Amstel Gold Race, Fleche and Liege.

Valverde knows Gilbert will be one of his biggest rivals this year, especially at the classics and the world championships. “It’s a busy schedule, that’s for sure,” Valverde said yesterday at the 2012 launch of his Movistar team.

“First off there’s Paris-Nice, then the (oneday) classics. It won’t be easy. Philippe Gilbert is very strong, he’s a real force to be reckoned with and showed that throughout last year. I

hope I will be up to standard this year.

“After that it’s the Tour (de France), although I haven’t singled out any stages.

Then there’s the Olympics.” With the London Olympics road race destined for sprinters, such as reigning world champion Mark Cavendish, riders of Valverde’s ilk will have their chances on a hilly world championships course in the Netherlands this September.

He added: “After that, of course, I’d like to do the Tour of Spain and coming off, I’d be looking to do the world championships. The course suits me well.”

Banned for his implication in the ‘Operation Puerto’ affair that initially erupted in May 2006, Valverde was dealt a further blow when the cycling authorities annulled all his victories from 2010.

Having claimed his innocence in the past, Valverde refused to discuss the details of his ban. Instead, he wants to look to the future.

“Of course there were ups and downs but overall it went well, inasmuch as you can endure a period like that well,” he added.

“I’ve served my ban. All I want to do is look to the future. People can judge whether I’m innocent or not. I’m relaxed in my mind, and I’m happy.

“I worked really hard to come back to the top level. My first victory (in Australia) after that enforced stoppage was very important, and very emotional for me. “It was reward for a year and a half of hard work, and a lot of sacrifices in training.”—AFP

Sacramento.

Rush finished 4 for 5 from 3-point range and highlighted a 9-0 run to start the final period that carried new Warriors coach Mark Jackson past his predecessor Keith Smart, now coaching the Kings.

Jackson also benched stars Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis for almost the entire fourth quarter, putting faith in his bench. Tyreke Evans had 22 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in Sacramento’s fifth straight loss.

Knicks 113, Pistons 86 In New York, Carmelo Anthony scored 25

points in his return to the lineup as New York ended a three-game losing skid by comfortably beating Detroit.

Landry Fields added 16 of his 18 in a flawless first half for the Knicks, whose slumbering offense awoke and shot 60 percent from the field - amazingly the first time they bettered 50 percent all season - and fell just a point short of matching their highest score.

Anthony had missed two games because of injuries to his ankle, wrist and thumb.

Jonas Jerebko scored 15 points for the Pistons, who lost their sixth straight.—AP

Hawks 100, Raptors 77 In Toronto, Joe Johnson needed just three quarters to match his season high with 30 points as Atlanta recorded its sixth straight win over Toronto.

Johnson matched his average of 30 points in each of his past four games against Toronto, while Tracy McGrady added 15 for the Hawks.

Jerryd Bayless scored 14 points for the Raptors, who lost their third in a row at home game. Toronto has done better on the road this season than at home, where it has a 2-6 record.

Pacers 106, Nets 99 In Indianapolis, Paul George scored a career-high 24 points to lead Indiana past New Jersey. Danny Granger had 21 points and seven rebounds for the Pacers, who went on a 12-0 run midway through the third quarter and eventually led by as much as 18 in the fourth.

George, who shot 8 of 11 in this one, also scored 21 points against the Nets on Jan. 2.

Deron Williams scored 34 points for the Nets, who have lost nine straight against the Pacers.

New Jersey turned the ball over three times and missed three shots in Indiana’s big run and shot just 40 percent overall in the third.

Celtics 93, Cavaliers 90 In Cleveland, Paul Pierce scored 20 points as Boston avenged a disappointing loss to Cleveland two days earlier by barely holding off the struggling Cavaliers.

Ray Allen had 12 in the third quarter for the Celtics, who blew an 11-point lead at home Sunday in the final four minutes, saw a 22point lead late in the third quarter evaporate but this time they held on.

The Cavs rallied behind rookie Kyrie Irving who finished with 21 points - and got within two with 1:18 left.

Lakers 106, Bobcats 73 In Los Angeles, Kobe Bryant scored 24 points as Los Angeles cruised past slumping Charlotte. Andrew Bynum added 20 as the Lakers extended their home record to 11-2 and sent the Bobcats to their ninth consecutive defeat.

The Lakers’ bench had a big night, outscoring their counterparts 48-30. The 33-point margin was Los Angeles’ biggest ever against Charlotte, which had performed well in these contests in recent years.

Gerald Henderson scored 14 points in his return from a lower back contusion for the Bobcats, who fell to 1-11 on the road.

Warriors 93, Kings 90 In Oakland, Brandon Rush scored 15 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter to spark a late rally that lifted Golden State above

NEW YORK: Carmelo Anthony No. 7 of the New York Knicks drives against Austin Daye No. 5 of the Detroit Pistons at Madison Square Garden.—AP

NBA results/standings NBA results and standings on Tuesday.

Boston 93, Cleveland 90; Indiana 106, New Jersey 99; Atlanta 100, Toronto 77; NY Knicks 113, Detroit 86; Memphis 100, Denver 97 (OT); Golden State 93, Sacramento 90; LA Lakers 106, Charlotte 73.

Philadelphia Boston NY Knicks Toronto New Jersey

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT 15 6 .714 10 10 .500 8 13 .381 7 15 .318 7 15 .318

Chicago Indiana Milwaukee Cleveland Detroit

Central Division 18 5 .783 14 6 .700 9 11 .450 8 12 .400 4 19 .174

Miami Atlanta Orlando Washington Charlotte

Southeast Division 16 5 .762 16 6 .727 12 9 .571 4 17 .190 3 19 .136

GB 4.5 7 8.5 8.5

Western Conference Northwest Division Oklahoma City 16 4 .800 Denver 14 7 .667 Utah 12 7 .632 Portland 12 9 .571 Minnesota 10 11 .476

2.5 3.5 4.5 6.5

2.5 7.5 8.5 14

LA Clippers LA Lakers Golden State Phoenix Sacramento

Pacific Division 12 6 .667 13 9 .591 7 12 .368 7 13 .350 6 15 .286

1 5.5 6 7.5

.5 4 12 13.5

Dallas San Antonio Houston Memphis New Orleans

Southwest Division 14 8 .636 13 9 .591 12 9 .571 11 10 .524 4 17 .190

1 1.5 2.5 9.5

Stoner bounces back in Sepang SEPANG: MotoGP world champion Casey Stoner shrugged off an ailing back to post the fastest time yesterday in pre -season tests on the sport’s new 1,000cc bikes at Malaysia’s Sepang circuit. The Australian Honda rider, who won the championship in 2007 and again last year, had been sidelined on day one

Tuesday after pulling a back muscle while stretching.

But he bounced back to outpace his Yamaha rivals in conditions that, while hot and humid, were drier than on day one and led to faster lap times as teams appeared to get the feel for the new bikes.

Stoner, who won 10 races last

season, hit the top of the timesheet in late practice runs, logging 2 min 00.895 seconds while his Honda teammate Dani Pedrosa of Spain was fourth with a time of 2:01.508. “When I went out the track was good. The bike was performing pretty well. It was nice to feel the wind on your face again,” Stoner told reporters.

SEPANG: MotoGP rider Casey Stoner of Australia steers his Honda during a pre-season test run at Sepang circuit yesterday. —AP

MotoGP has moved to 1,000cc bikes this year in place of the earlier 800cc engines.

American Yamaha rider Ben Spies, who was fastest in early practice Wednesday, ended up in second place on 2:01.052 while his teammate Jorge Lorenzo of Spain, the 2010 world champion, was third with a best time of 2:01.068.

Yamaha’s British rider Cal Crutchlow rounded out the top five with a time of 2:01.565.

“Yamaha (is) looking strong and competitive,” Stoner said. “Jorge is doing a great job. Ben is starting the season strong. Hopefully they can continue that.”

The testing session marked an emotional return for riders to the Sepang circuit for the first time since Honda rider Marco Simoncelli died there in a shocking crash in October’s Malaysian MotoGP. Seven-time world champion Valentino Rossi of Ducati, who is looking to make up for a disappointing 2011 campaign, ended in 7th place on 2:01.886. The 32year-old Italian last year failed to win a race for the first time in his 15-year career. Testing ends today and is followed by another three - day session at Sepang beginning Februar y 28. The MotoGP 2012 season will officially start April 8 in Qatar.—AFP

18

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

S P ORT S

Africa’s big guns caught resting on laurels MALABO: UEFA President Michel Platini, a staunch supporter of Europe’s smaller teams, may be casting an envious eye towards Africa which has seen a dramatic levelling out in the last two years.

Poor management, ageing players and outdated coaches are blamed for the downfall of teams such as Nigeria, Cameroon, Egypt and South Africa, who all failed to qualify for the African Nations Cup being held in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.

They have made way for the likes of Niger and Botswana, making their debuts at the tournament, Sudan and Libya.

The trend has continued at the tournament itself. Senegal, whose attack included Moussa Sow, top scorer in Ligue 1 last season, Papiss Cisse, the Bundesliga’s second top scorer last term, Mamadou Niang and Demba Ba, went home early after losing all three games. Morocco, another of the pretournament favourites, also fell at the first hurdle along with oil-rich Angola.

Meanwhile, Zambia, whose squad includes only one player from a European first division club, are through to the last eight along with an Equatorial Guinea side

based largely on Spanish lower league players, unfancied Gabon and Sudan.

It is all far less predictable than Europe where, despite Platini’s encouragement for smaller teams, the qualifying competition for Euro 2012 produced a dull procession of easy wins for the likes of Spain, Germany, Netherlands and Italy.

“Everybody is improving, governments are behind their team in many countries,” Zambia coach Herve Renard said.

“They help with preparations for the Nations Cup. The qualification for Nations Cup is difficult and that means that we all deserve to be here.”

Sudan’s progress is a testament to the benefits of having a well-developed, solid domestic league rather than depending on foreign-based players who fly in from Europe and, increasingly, the Middle East and China.

All 23 members of Sudan’s squad are based at home, most of them with the Al Hilal and Al Merreikh clubs who, with the backing of wealthy owners, have done well in African club competitions.

Libya, Tunisia, Botswana and co-hosts Gabon also have large contingents of home-

based players which allows the coach to spend time with his squad without the restrictions of the international calendar.

“The ambition is higher because players in small teams are searching for a move to bigger clubs and they are motivated to play better,” Sudan coach Mohamed Abdallah said.

Burkina Faso coach Paulo Duarte said there were European-based players who slackened when they returned to play for their country.

“African players, when they leave their European clubs and return to Africa, have a tendency to relax, a tendency to go back to old ways ... a bit more indiscipline,” he told Reuters. “They lose out in that sense.”

The Confederation of African Football (CAF), often criticised for confusion in the organisation of its competitions, is also credited with encouraging the development of the game in smaller countries.

“Something is changing and CAF has a played a good, influential role in this,” said Sudan’s Abdallah. One positive development was the introduction of a Nations Cup with home-based players (CHAN) held last year.

“It’s very useful for me because when we played in the qualifying group, my players had already played six matches in the CHAN, they get the experience of playing abroad,” he said. Smaller countries suffer from less of the in-fighting which plagues Cameroon, Nigeria and Senegal.

Equatorial Guinea’s government has been lavishing players with generous bonuses, a stark contrast to Cameroon where a row over the non-payment of appearance fees led to a strike last year forcing the cancellation of a friendly against Algeria.

Samuel Eto’o, seen as the ringleader, was banned for 15 international matches by the federation, later reduced to eight months.

Nigerian soccer is perpetually disrupted by judicial and government interference which has led to threats of suspension by FIFA. Older players and coaches may also have outstayed their welcome in the established nations.

“Some teams have not brought in new players,” Duarte said. “Nigeria, Cameroon and Egypt are old teams who didn’t take care to renovate their teams.

“They have players who are 35 years old and now they have paid the price for having a slow team which lost to younger, more evolved teams.” The 42-year-old Portuguese suggested African teams were shooting themselves in the foot by naming big-name foreign coaches just before major tournaments, and depending on a small, closed circuit of coaches who flitted from country to country in a form of musical chairs.

“The fact that they are big name coaches does not mean they are the solution,” he said. “What matters is the logic of football which is, the logic of the coach to have to train players, time for the players to adapt to the coach’s methods.

“Hiring a coach one month before (a tournament), as if a big name is worth the same as knowledge, adaptation to the country and its reality and the team, is a mistake that African teams continue to make. “To hire coaches who are 65 years old is questionable. I’m not saying there aren’t any good 65-year-olds but a lot of them are out of date, they haven’t followed the evolution of football and they don’t have the same ambition to progress.” —Reuters

Ghana top group after Guinea draw

LIBREVILLE: Mali’s Garra Dembele (left) is challenged by Botswana’s Mogogi Gabonamong during their African Cup of Nations Group D soccer match. —AP

Mali beat Botswana to seal quarter-final place LIBREVILLE: Mali secured their first Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final spot in eight years after a 2-1 win over Botswana here yesterday.

Goals from Garra Dembele and Barcelona star Seydou Keita put Mali into the all important Group D runners-up spot after the 1-1 draw between Ghana and Guinea in the other game being played simultaneously at Franceville.

The Eagles, who finished on six points, one behind group winners Ghana, will now face coach Alain Giresse’s former team, cohosts Gabon, in the last eight in Libreville on Sunday.

Botswana coach Stanley Tshosane made four changes from the side routed 6-1 by Guinea last time out, including relegating Dipsy Selolwane, scorer of the Zebras’ first ever Cup goal on his return on Saturday, to the bench.

Giresse was missing Samba Diakite, the suspended Nancy midfielder. After a cagey opening Botswana created the first decent opportunity when Lemponye Tshireletso raced on to Ndiyapo Letsholathebe’s neat flick in the box in the 20th minute only for his shot to go the wrong side of the near post.

Mali’s attack was having trouble breaking down the Zebras’ sky blue defence but with Ghana having taken the lead in Franceville Giresse’s men only required a draw to go through as group runners-up.

And even when news came through that Guinea had levelled the Mali team and their legion of fans were still smiling as they remained in the runners-up spot thanks to

their 1-0 win over Guinea in their opening match.

Botswana dampened their spirits six minutes after the restart in a beautifully worked move with Mogakolodi Ngele finding Moemedi Moatlaping over on the far right.

Moemedi controlled the ball well with a slide rule pass for Ngele, now handily positioned in the box, to slam past Mali keeper Oumar Sissoko.

That sparked Mali into life and on 56 minutes they levelled when Abdou Traore’s floating cross from the left was headed into the hands of keeper Modiri Marumo by Modibo Maiga, with Dembele pouncing on the loose ball to convert a half-volley and send the Mali fans wild.

That was the 21-year-old Fribourg striker’s first goal for his country, and it couldn’t have come at a more opportune moment.

On 68 minutes Mali almost took the outright lead when substitute Ousmane Coulibaly struck the underside of the crossbar, the ball bouncing back into play.

They duly took it though with quarter of an hour remaining after sterling work fending off a posse of sky blue defenders in the box by Tidiane Cheick Diabete set up Keita to chip in from close range.

The Mali players had a nervous wait after the final whistle, an eerie silence descending on the L’Amitie stadium with five minutes of stoppage time being played out in Franceville — all eyes transfixed on the giant screen where the Ghana game was being shown. When the agonising wait was over the stadium erupted. —AFP

FIFA to consider allowing fourth sub in extra time ZURICH: FIFA will discuss the possibility of allowing teams to use a fourth substitute in extra time when its rulesmaking panel meets next month.

The International Football Association Board is set to decide at a meeting in England on March 3 if increasing the current quota of three replacements would help improve matches and reduce injuries.

“The FIFA Task Force Football 2014, the medical committee and the football committee support the proposal in order to maintain the technical level until the 120th minute and to protect the health of the players,” FIFA said yesterday.

Goal-line technology tests will

return to the agenda of the rules panel, which is known as IFAB. The panel will receive progress reports on tests involving eight systems, and decide which will proceed to a scheduled second round of testing starting in March.

FIFA said a final decision to approve goal-line technology can be taken at a further IFAB meeting on July 2. It could take place in Kiev, the day after the 2012 European Championship final in the Ukraine capital.

IFAB will also study trials of the fivereferee system, using additional assistants beside each goal to support referees’ decision-making, which conclude at Euro 2012. —AP

FRANCEVILLE: Ghana drew 1-1 with Guinea here yesterday to finish top of Group D and qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinals.

The Black Stars garnered seven points from three matches, while Mali also joined them in the last eight after they beat Botswana 21 in the other Group D match in Libreville.

Mali have six points, while Guinea crashed out of the competition on four points. Botswana finished pointless.

On Sunday, Ghana will tackle Tunisia in one of the quarterfinals, while co-hosts Gabon take on Mali in the other in Libreville.

Against the run of play, Ghana went in front in the 28th minute through Emmanuel Badu with an unstoppable belter from outside the box.

He collected a short corner taken by Andre Ayew and from 20 yards he let fly to give goalkeeper Naby Yattara no chance.

It was Ghana’s 100th goal at the Africa Cup of Nations. Dashing left winger Abdoul Razzagui Camara drew Guinea level in first half stoppage time when his leftfooted floater beat Ghana goalkeeper Adam Kwarasey.

Guinea were reduced to 10 men after Bah Dioulde was sent off after being booked for second time for a cynical foul on John Pantsil. Before the late rally by Ghana, Guinea controlled play as they chased an early goal.

They first threatened through the lively Camara after just three minutes. Ibrahima Traore too

gave Masahudu Alhassan some concern on the right flank as Guinea stayed on the front foot.

On 10 minutes an appeal for a Guinea penalty after Traore appeared to have been brought down by Kwarasey inside the 18yard box was ignored by the referee.

Guinea continued to put pressure on Ghana and on 20 minutes, new Nantes signing Ismael Bangoura’s cross from the right turned away for another corner to the Syli National.

In 23rd minute, Guinea striker Sadio Diallo missed with header from a corner and two minutes later, the dangerous Traore put the ball in the Ghana net but his effort was rightly ruled offside.

Ghana launched a late rally in the final minutes of the first half.

South African referee Daniel Bennett turned a blind eye to a penalty appeal by Ghana in the 40th minute after Asamoah Gyan had been pushed down by Guinea skipper Kamil Zayatte inside the box.

Ghana’s Samuel Inkoom also came close to scrambling home a rebound after some determined work by Gyan in the closing moments of the first half.

Eight minutes after the break, Kwarasey saved off the feet of Bangoura as the game opened up with both sides no longer hiding their attacking intentions.

On the hour, Diallo fired wide off a corner even when he was well positioned inside the goal area as Guinea stayed in the hunt for another goal. —AFP

GABON: Ghana’s goalkeeper Larsen Kwarasey (top right) clears the ball as Guinea’s Bobo Balde (top left) attempts a header during their African Cup of Nations Group D soccer match. —AP

Morocco search for their character after early exit LIBREVILLE: Overconfidence and a lack of mental strength proved the undoing of pre-tournament favourites Morocco at the African Nations Cup, coach Eric Gerets said as his team departed the tournament yesterday.

The need for strong character and a better fighting spirit was a priority now with qualification for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil starting in less than six months.

“We achieved a good level in the qualifiers to get to the Nations Cup, maybe too good a level and we were persuaded we could achieve something at the tournament,” Gerets told reporters.

“We discovered that in this competition you not only have to be physically strong but you also need to have character.

“You’ve got to keep playing your football. It seems to me you have to have a mentality to want to impose yourself on the game. I regret that we did not have sufficient character.”

Defeat in their opening game to

Tunisia, followed by a last-gasp loss in a five-goal thriller against co-hosts Gabon last week, meant Morocco were eliminated before they beat Niger 1-0

Belgium defender who competed at three World Cups.

“For many of my players, this was their first Nations Cup and now they

GABON: Morocco’s soccer team captain Houssine Kharja (left) and coach Eric Gerets attend a press conference in this file photo. —AP on Tuesday in their final Group C game.

“We were shaken up. We were not as ready for the tournament as we thought we were,” said Gerets, a former

have time to analyse themselves and what they did here.”

Gerets, highly rated as a coach coming into the finals co-hosted by

Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, said his own post mortem would start immediately on the plane trip home yesterday.

“I’ll take some of them aside and we’ll have a good talk,” he said. The coach’s future is also under a cloud but he hinted his job was safe. Last week after the defeat by Gabon he said he wanted to stay on and he repeated that as he departed.

“I’m not going to flee, I’m going to be working with everyone in this team.

This (experience) will help us to become a stronger team,” he said.

There will be no let-up in the pressure for Morocco, handed a tough World Cup qualifying group. They have a tricky start away to Gambia on June 1 before hosting powerful Ivory Coast a week later.

“If you had asked me before the tournament whether I thought we could qualify for Brazil, the answer would have been ‘yes’ but now we’ll have to wait and see how the players bounce back,” Gerets said. —Reuters

19

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

sp orts

Barca held by Valencia Copa del Rey semifinals

LONDON: Fulham’s Danny Murphy (left) and Philippe Senderos (right) compete for the ball with West Bromwich Albion’s Somen Tchoyi during the English Premier League soccer match. —AP

West Brom, Fulham in drab stalemate West Brom 1

Fulham 1 LONDON: West Bromwich Albion secured a point on manager Roy Hodgson’s first return to Fulham since leaving the club when Somen Tchoyi scored a late goal in a 1-1 draw yesterday.

After United States forward Clint Dempsey had scored his 10th goal of the Premier League season for Fulham in the 69th minute, Tchoyi came off the bench and latched on to a pass from James Morrison to find the net in the 82nd.

It was Hodgson’s first match back at Craven Cottage since leaving for an ill-fated spell in charge of Liverpool after having taken Fulham to the 2010 Europa League final.

Fulham rose a spot to 13th, nine points above the relegation zone. West Brom stayed in 15th spot, eight points from the drop zone.

Sunderland 3

Norwich 0

SUNDERLAND: Sunderland recorded its fourth win from its past five Premier League matches, beating Norwich 3-0 yesterday to maintain its revival since manager Martin O’Neill took over the club.

Fraizer Campbell scored with a dipping volley in the 21st minute in his first league match since August 2010 following a series of injuries.

Stephane Sessegnon made it 2-0 with a header seven minutes later, and Norwich center back Daniel Ayala ensured it was a terrible night for the visitors at the Stadium of Light by scoring an own goal in the 54th minute. Sunderland rose three spots to eighth, while Norwich dropped one place to 11th. The win extended O’Neill’s run since he replaced Steve Bruce to two losses in 11 games in all competitions. —AP

Terry faces trial in July over race claims LONDON: Chelsea and England soccer captain John Terry will go on trial in July after he pleaded not guilty yesterday to racially abusing opponent Anton Ferdinand during a Premier League match in October.

The trial, which could last up to five days, will take place after the Euro 2012 tournament when Terry is expected to line up at the heart of England’s defence alongside Ferdinand’s brother, Rio. Terry did not attend yesterday’s hearing at Westminster Magistrates Court in central London. “Now that the court has fixed a date for trial, Mr Terry looks forward to the opportunity to clear his name,” the player’s legal firm Grosvenor Law LLP said in a statement.

“Mr Terry has consistently and resolutely maintained that his well publicised remarks were made in the belief that he was being accused of racist abuse by Mr Ferdinand,” it added. “Mr Terry was shocked and disgusted by that accusation at the time. Mr Terry denies making any racist statement and will establish in court that he is not guilty of any such offence. Mr Terry has never racially abused another player in his entire career.”

In December, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) ordered Terry to be prosecuted for a “racially aggravated public order offence” over comments allegedly made to Anton Ferdinand in an on-field exchange during Chelsea’s 1-0 defeat by Queens Park Rangers. The CPS took action after video of the incident was posted on the internet and a member of the public complained that Terry had used allegedly racist language when speaking to Ferdinand.

Terry could be fined up to 2,500 pounds ($3,900) if convicted, only a fraction of his weekly wage. However, such a verdict could have an impact on his lucrative sponsorship deals and relationship with Chelsea team mates drawn from around the globe.

Allegations of racial abuse have cast a shadow over the Premier League this season.

Liverpool’s Luis Suarez was banned for eight matches for racially abusing Manchester United’s Patrice Evra during a match in October in a case dealt with by the football authorities. Chelsea Football Club has stood

by Terry, who as the long-serving club captain is revered by the Blues fans for his commitment and passion on the pitch.

Terry missed Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with Swansea on the eve of the court case with a knee injury. Coach Andres Villas-Boas said on Monday he would consider giving Terry time away from his football commitments to clear his name if it was needed. —Reuters

‘Spot-fixer’ cricketer Amir released from jail LONDON: Teenage fast bowler Mohammad Amir, one of three Pakistan cricketers jailed in England for spot-fixing, was released yesterday because of good behavior after serving half of his six-month sentence. The 19year-old Amir was freed from a young offenders’ institution in Weymouth, southwest England.

“Amir is in high spirits and he will meet with his lawyers to decide when to appeal in Court of Arbitration against ICC’s five-year suspension,” Amir’s mentor, Asif Bajwa, told The Associated Press after speaking to the player. “Now that he has served his punishment, I am very optimistic that ICC will also look into the long term suspension.”

After his release, Amir released a statement that only referred to Pakistan’s recent victories over England in their first test matches since the fixing-tainted 2010 series.

“I am delighted for the Pakistani cricket team. My thoughts are with

them,” Amir said in a statement. “I wish them every success. I will not be making any further comment.”

Amir pleaded guilty before the trial at London’s Southwark Crown Court last year. Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt and bowler Mohammad Asif are still serving their sentences after being convicted of also fixing part of a test against England at Lord’s in August 2010.

Butt was jailed for 21/2 years and Asif for 11/2 years after they and Amir ensured no-balls were bowled at specific times. Agent Mazhar Majeed received the stiffest sentence - 2 years, 8 months - after being secretly filmed by a tabloid journalist accepting 150,000 pounds ($238,000) and saying three players would help fix betting markets.

Majeed was said to be the architect of the betting scam, along with Butt.

All three players are serving five-year bans from cricket imposed by the International Cricket Council. — AP

VALENCIA: Lionel Messi missed a penalty yesterday as Barcelona was held to a 1-1 draw at Valencia in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals.

Brazilian goalkeeper Diego Alves dived to his left to stop Messi’s 56th-minute spot kick after Barcelona midfielder Thiago Alcantara had been fouled inside the area.

Valencia made a better start at its Mestalla stadium and scored first when Jeremy Mathieu sent a pass between Barcelona defenders for Jonas to rifle the ball into the top corner of goal in the 27th.

The visitors equalized eight minutes later when Carles Puyol headed a corner past Diego Alves, who was caught out of position on Cesc Fabregas’ inswinging cross.

Barcelona was lucky not to be reduced to 10 men when goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto raced to cut off Roberto Soldado and appeared to touch the ball outside of his area in the 18th minute.

The Spanish champions, who lost the domestic cup final to Real Madrid at the Mestalla in April, still hold the edge ahead of next Wednesday’s return leg at the Camp Nou thanks to the away goal.

Messi had some early chances but, led by Pablo Piatti, Valencia exerted better control before Soldado volleyed over the bar in the 21st. A minute later, Barcelona striker Alexis Sanchez rushed a shot on his wrong foot after a breakaway.

Valencia’s best scoring opportunities originated from the left, with Jordi Alba sending Mathieu flying down the flank and the France winger passing perfectly between Puyol and Gerard Pique for Jonas to redirect the ball into the net.

Diego Alves did well to deny Sanchez after Isaac Cuenca’s impressive dribble had given

the Chile international a great chance, and Barcelona capitalized on the ensuing corner as Puyol caught the goalkeeper wandering to score his third goal of the season.

Valencia fullback Miguel Brito gave away the spot kick, but Diego Alves refused to dive early to ensure Messi had a second penalty

Pique headed Messi’s flicked-on cross over and substitute Daniel Alves went close on several occasions especially a cross-goal shot that came off the far post in the 73rd.

Messi, who has looked fatigued recently, pulled a stoppage-time attempt wide of the near post. Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola

SPAIN: Barcelona’s Lionel Messi from Argentina (right) duels with Valencia’s David Albelda (left) during their semi-final, first leg, Copa del Rey soccer match. —AP saved this season. “You have to be patient,” Alves said of how he stopped the three-time Ballon d’Or winner. “I’m just glad I could help the team.” Barcelona finally found its groove to have the better opportunities late on.

accepted the European champions were lucky to escape with the draw. Athletic Bilbao leads third-tier club Mirandes 2-1 in the other semifinal. The return leg is at San Mames on Tuesday. —AP

ITALY: Cesena Swiss defender Steve Von Bergen (right) and Napoli Uruguayan forward Edinson Cavani challenge for the ball during an Italian Serie A soccer match. —AP

Milan stumble, Inter held ROME: AC Milan handed Juventus the advantage in the Serie A title race as they lost 2-0 at Lazio yesterday, with Inter Milan held to a draw in an eight-goal thriller against Palermo. Milan trail Juve by a point at the top but the Old Lady of Turin have a game in hand after their match at Parma on Tuesday night was called off due to snow.

Third-placed Udinese closed the gap to the leaders to three points with a 2-1 win at home to Lecce while fourth-placed Lazio are now just two points behind that.

It was a game of little action and few chances in the capital but Milan came closest to scoring in a tight first period. Zlatan Ibrahimovic sent over a whipped cross that found Antonio Nocerino breaking from deep but his header from 12 yards was brilliantly saved by Federico Marchetti.

Milan opened up their hosts when young forward Stephan El Shaarawy played a one-two with Ibrahimovic but was then perhaps guilty of being too honest as he took the ball around Marchetti.

There was definite contact but the teenager tried to stay on his feet, was forced wide and then saw his shot from an angle blocked. But 14 minutres from time Tommaso Rocchi’s clever dummy put Hernanes in and he hooked his shot across the Milan goalkeeper.Hernanes could have put the match to bed after that but his shot from the edge of the box whizzed just past the post.

But Rocchi then made the points safe five minutes from time as he clipped home a cross from Senad Lulic. Diego Milito scored all four Inter goals at the San Siro but Fabrizio Miccoli bagged a hat-trick

for the visitors to earn a point.

On a snow-covered pitch that made viewing the ball difficult, Palermo took the lead when Miccoli’s corner somehow found its’ way to the back post where Andrea Mantovani slid in to poke home two yards out. But a deep ball into the box from Maicon caused havoc in the Palermo backline and the ball fell to Milito to shoot home.

Miccoli restored Palermo’s lead with a left-foot shot but Ezequiel Munoz then brought down Yuto Nagatomo in the box and Milito despatched the resulting penalty.

Milito shot home from six yards to complete his hat-trick and put Inter in front for the first time just past the hour mark. But Federico Balzaretti’s driven cross from the left was met with a diving header by

Miccoli, who nipped in front of Nagatomo to resotre parity again.

Milito again put the hosts in front with his fourth from close range as Giampaolo Pazzini’s scuffed effort from Javier Zanetti’s cross fell kindly to him. But Josip Ilicic slipped in Miccoli to complete his treble with a cross-shot that beat Julio Cesar. In Udine the hosts went in front when new signing Michele Pazienza took just two minutes to open his account on his return to the club, heading home Antonio Di Natale’s free-kick.

David Di Michele scored with a stunning shot from 25 yards out on the left that flew inside the far post.

But Di Natale secured the win when he was fed by Antonio Floro Flores following a mistake from goalkeeper Massimiliano Benassi.

It was an entertaining game in Sardinia that saw Roma lose more ground in the race for a Champions League finish with a 3-2 defeat to Cagliari.

Thiago Ribeiro opened the scoring for the hosts with a great shot from 25 yards out to the left that caught out Maarten Stekelenburg at his near post. Juan equalised with a bullet header from Francesco Totti’s corner before Fabio Borini gave Roma the lead as he slotted home after Miralem Pjanic hit the bar.

Andrea Cossu teed up Mauricio Pinilla to draw the sides level and another sumptuous strike from Thiago Robeiro put the hosts back in front. Albin Ekdal put the icing on the cake in injury time after excellent work from the dogged Victor Ibarbo. —AFP

Italian Serie A results/standings Cagliari 4 (Thiago Ribeiro 6, 48, Pinilla 41, Ekdal 90) Roma 2 (Juan 13, Borini 34); Inter Milan 4 (Milito 22, 55-pen, 61, 69) Palermo 4 (Mantovani 17, Miccoli 52, 66, 85);Lazio 2 (Hernanes 76, Rocchi 85) AC Milan 0; Udinese 2 (Paziena 2, Di Natale 36) Lecce 1 (Di Michele 26);Napoli 0 Cesena 0 Postponed Atalanta v Genoa, Bologna v Fiorentina, Siena v Catania Italian Serie A table yesterday (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points): Juventus AC Milan Udinese Lazio Inter Milan Roma Napoli Palermo Genoa Cagliari Fiorentina

20 21 21 21 21 20 21 21 20 21 20

12 13 12 11 11 9 7 8 8 6 6

8 4 5 6 3 4 9 4 3 8 7

0 4 4 4 7 7 5 9 9 7 7

33 43 31 32 34 31 36 30 28 20 20

13 19 17 19 25 25 24 31 36 23 17

44 43 41 39 36 31 30 28 27 26 25

Parma 20 6 6 8 25 33 24 Chievo 20 6 6 8 16 25 24 Atalanta 20 7 8 5 24 25 23 Catania 19 5 8 6 22 28 23 Bologna 20 5 6 9 18 26 21 Siena 20 4 7 9 21 22 19 Lecce 21 4 4 13 22 38 16 Cesena 21 4 4 13 13 31 16 Novara 20 2 6 12 18 40 12 Note: Atalanta deducted six points at start of season for match-fixing

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

LONDON: Arsenal’s Robin van Persie (left) chips onto the crossbar as Bolton’s Sam Ricketts attempts to block during their English Premier League soccer match at The Reebok Stadium. —AP

Arsenal slip-up in top four bid Bolton o

Arsenal 0 BOLTON: Arsene Wenger avoided losing four straight league games for the first time in his 16 years as Arsenal manager but a goalless draw with Bolton Wanderers here yesterday was meager consolation.

The result, combined with Newcastle’s 2-0 win at Bolton’s local rival strugglers Blackburn, dropped Arsenal down into seventh in the Premier League and left Wenger’s men five points adrift of a top four spot and the accompanying Champions League place.

This draw rounded off a depressing day for the Gunners after they’d announced their England international Jack Wilshere would almost certainly miss the remainder of the season with a stress fracture of his foot.

Arsenal squandered several first-half chances, with Robin van Persie the main culprit, but were almost caught out themselves by a Bolton side currently enjoying their best form of the season.

It was Theo Walcott, however, who missed the most glaring opportunity of the game, played through by a 26th minute pass from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

The England winger was left with what appeared the routine task of beating goalkeeper Adam Bogdan in a one-on-one confrontation but saw his shot well blocked by the Hungarian’s legs.

Five minutes earlier, Bolton almost took the lead against the run of play. Chris Eagles’s header was flicked on by full-back Gretar Steinsson and forward David Ngog rolled his shot wide when it appeared easier to score.

But that was a rare moment of first half relief for Bolton who were under pressure from the fifth minute when van Persie’s header from a Thomas Vermaelen cross had to be cleared off his line by Bolton’s David Wheater.

Van Persie then turned creator for Aaron Ramsey with a pass which the young Welshman struck at Bogdan from a dozen yards.

Bogdan was quickly off his line after 51 minutes to stifle another attack as OxladeChamberlain and Alex Song linked well in an effort to play in Walcott.

Just after the hour it appeared Arsenal would take the lead when van Persie ghosted in to meet Bacary Sagna’s curling right-wing cross with a devastating first-time strike that hit the post.

The danger was still not over, with OxladeChamberlain’s fierce 22-yard strike being tipped over by Bogdan and Laurent Koscielny heading just wide from van Persie’s resulting corner.

Both teams brought on veteran talismanic strikers-Thierry Henry for Arsenal and Kevin Davies for Bolton-in a bid to end the stalemate.

The closest either side then came was an 80th minute effort from van Persie, who collected Mikel Arteta’s pass and sent a delicate chip over the head of Bogdan only for the ball to hit the cross-bar.

Bolton created a late piece of excitement of their own when Mark Davies appealed for a penalty after Arsenal keeper Wojciech Szczesny tapped the ball away from him as he bore down on goal, the home side claiming that he had also tripped their man in the process. — AFP

Cisse scores on QPR debut LONDON: Aston Villa’s Scottish midfielder Barry Bannan (right) sees his shot blocked by Queens Park Rangers’ Joey Barton (center) during the English Premier League football match. — AFP

Aston Villa 2

QPR 2

LONDON: Djibril Cisse marked his return to English football by scoring on his Queens Park R angers debut in a 2-2 Premier League draw away to Aston Villa yesterday.

The 30-year-old French striker, thrust into the side a day after completing a transfer deadline day move from Italian side Lazio on Tuesday worth a reported four million euros, took just 12 minutes to justify QPR manager Mark Hughes’s faith with a sensational strike.

Cisse, who had previous spells in England with Liverpool and Sunderland, latched onto a loose ball and struck a fierce shot past Shay Given before celebrating with a somersault.

Rangers went 2-0 up when Villa defender Stephen Warnock headed a cross from Taye Taiwo into his own net in the 29th minute when under no pressure at all.

But Villa pulled one back on the stroke

of half-time when striker Darren Bent turned in an Alan Hutton cross at the near post.

And the resurgent hosts equalised 11 minutes from time when Charles N’Zogbia

volleyed in a Stiliyan Petrov cross.

However, the draw saw QPR inch further away from the relegation zone with the London club now three points above the bottom three. — AFP

Newcastle see off Blackburn Newcastle 2

Blackburn 0

BLACKBURN: Newcastle climbed to within three points of fourth-place Chelsea after a 2-0 win at Blackburn in the Premier League yesterday.

An unfortunate own goal by Scott Dann gifted Newcsatle the lead in the 12th minute, and French winger Gabriel Obertan made the game safe in second-half injury time.

The match could have turned out differently had David Dunn converted

a penalty in the 44th minute, after debutant Anthony Modeste had been fouled by Danny Simpson.

However, the midfielder’s spot kick was easily saved by Tim Krul, leaving the hosts stuck in the relegation zone, two points from safety.

Newcastle’s fourth win in its past six games lifted the team above Arsenal with fourth-place Chelsea within its sights.—AP

EPL results/standings Aston Villa 2 (Bent 45, N’Zogbia 79) QPR 2 (Cisse 12, Warnock 29-og); Blackburn 0 Newcastle 2 (Dann 12-og, Obertan 90); Bolton 0 Arsenal 0; Fulham 1 (Dempsey 69) West Brom 1 (Tchoyi 82); Sunderland 3 (Campbell 21, Sessegnon 28, Ayala 54-og) Norwich 0

LONDON: Newcastle United’s English defender Danny Simpson (left) vies with Blackburn Rovers’ Canadian striker David Junior Hoilett (right) during the English Premier League football match. — AFP

English Premier League table after yesterday’s matches (played, won, drawn, points): Man City 23 17 3 3 60 19 54 Norwich 23 7 Man Utd 23 17 3 3 56 21 54 Aston Villa 23 6 Tottenham 23 15 4 4 44 25 49 Fulham 23 6 Chelsea 23 12 6 5 41 26 42 Swansea 23 6 Newcastle 23 11 6 6 34 30 39 West Brom 23 7 Liverpool 23 10 8 5 28 21 38 QPR 23 5 Arsenal 23 11 4 8 39 33 37 Bolton 23 6 Sunderland 23 8 6 9 32 24 30 Blackburn 23 4 Stoke 23 8 6 9 23 35 30 Wolverhampton23 4 Everton 23 8 5 10 23 26 29 Wigan 23 3

lost, goals for, goals against, 8 10 9 9 5 6 2 6 6 6

8 7 8 8 11 12 15 13 13 14

32 28 29 24 23 24 28 33 25 20

39 31 32 28 32 39 47 47 43 48

29 28 27 27 26 21 20 18 18 15

Business

KSE price index sheds 12.70 points Page 24 South Korea records 6.6% drop in exports Page 26

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

Shares and euro firm after factory surveys

Page 26

Sony’s Stringer resigns Page 25

ZHEJIANG: A worker tests compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) at a factory in Hangzhou in eastern China’s Zhejiang province. — AP

Factory output curbed by troubled Europe UK manufacturing sector surprises with rebound LONDON: Crumbling global demand restrained factory output in Asia and most of Europe in January, business surveys showed yesterday, putting pressure on policymakers to shore up growth and counter a spreading malaise. Asia’s export-reliant countries, while far more resilient, remain vulnerable to the euro zone’s messy sovereign debt crisis that threatens at best to tip the currency bloc into a recession and at worst to rip it apart. Meanwhile, the first rise in German manufacturing output in seven months was not enough to offset prolonged contraction in the currency union’s smaller economies and suggests that the bloc will not avoid that recession.

“There is an awful long way to go yet and given that the headwinds that these economies face I would be cautious about being too optimistic,” said Peter Dixon at Commerzbank. “Germany continues to motor on and show a reasonable

amount of dynamism and that will drag France along and maybe Italy but it is not really going to help the likes of Greece. You need much more buoyancy from domestic demand which at the moment appears to be sadly lacking.” The Eurozone Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), compiled by Markit, rose to 48.8 last month from 46.9, revised up from a flash reading but recording its sixth month below the 50 mark that divides growth from contraction.

French manufacturing contracted again in January, as did major economies Spain and Italy, as well as Greece and Ireland. Data from Britain was decidedly more upbeat than the figures from continental Europe, showing its manufacturing sector unexpectedly grew in January. The PMI rose to 52.1 from 49.6, easily beating expectations for 50.0. The official China PMI inched up to 50.5 in January from 50.3, which was welcome

News

in brief

KGOC, Technip ink gas deal KHOBAR: Kuwait Gulf Oil Co (KGOC) signed a contract with France’s Technip to build gas facilities in Khafji, part of a plan to boost gas output for growing domestic needs, industry sources said yesterday. KGOC, a unit of Kuwait Petroleum Corp operates in the Neutral Zone shared by Kuwait and Saudi Arabia through the Al-Khafji Joint Operations Co with Aramco Gulf Operations, a subsidiary of Saudi Aramco. The signing took place this week, the sources said, after the contract was awarded to the French firm on Jan 17 to build gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) facilities in Khafji, which will carry 40 million standard cubic feet per day (MMscfd) of gas via pipeline to Kuwait. The contract value was not immediately available but one source said Technip offered a highly competitive bid.

Kuwait, in gas-deficit, plans to nearly quadruple its gas output to more than 4 billion cubic feet per day (cfd) by 2030, which will include 0.5 billion cfd from Dorra, which it shares with neighboring Saudi Arabia.

Gazprom posts $31 bn profits in 9mths MOSCOW: Russian gas giant Gazprom announced yesterday a net profit of 940.8 billion rubles ($31.05 billion) over the first nine months of 2011, a year-on-year growth of 40.7 percent. Sales increased by 32 percent in the same January to September period, to a total of 3.3 trillion rubles. The group expanded sales especially in countries of the former Soviet Union, where it sold 62.5 billion cubic meters of gas, 33 percent more than in 2010, for a total of 458.6 billion rubles, a jump of 58 percent due to currency fluctuations. Gazprom sold a total of 371.8 billion cubic meters of gas over the nine months, 7.8 percent more than in the same period last year. The company’s operational costs grew by 23 percent to 2.12 billion rubles, and its debt balance increased by 20 percent to 1.04 billion due to long-term loans and the ruble’s weakening against the dollar and euro. Gazprom said yesterday that it expects a 25 percent growth in profit for the year to “nearly $40 billion”, an all-time record.

news. But the new export orders fell sharply, again underscoring the troubles in Europe. “As the external demand is now fading clearly, Chinese exporters are facing increasing difficulties,” China’s Finance Minister Xie Xuren said in remarks yesterday.

The HSBC Markit PMI for China told the same if slightly more negative tale, holding at 48.8 in January. “Chinese manufacturing has not yet reached a bottom. The trend so far has been consistent with our view that the current downturn will be shallower but more extended than the last downturn,” said Yao Wei at Societe Generale.

Comparable figures due later from the United States, the world’s biggest economy, are expected to show an uptick in activity as well.

Economists in a Reuters poll expect a rise to 54.5 in the Institute for Supply Management index from 53.1.

ASIA WAVERING BUT STILL RELATIVELY STRONG India bucked the gloomy trend, with factory activity growing at its fastest pace in eight months. Unlike most of its Asian peers, India’s economy is far less exposed to export demand.

The PMI reading of 57.5 in January marked almost three years of expansion in the manufacturing sector and brought some cheer to an economy hurt by monetary policy tightening and the government’s policy paralysis.

South Korea’s manufacturing sector activity and new export orders both shrank for a sixth straight month in January, the longest losing streak in three years. And in Taiwan, faltering exports bit into factory activity which shrunk for the eight straight month. South Korean exports posted a shocking 6.6 percent drop from a year earlier in January, far worse than the 0.7 percent

India manufacturing up NEW DELHI: India’s manufacturing sector in January hummed along at its fastest clip in eight months, fuelled by new order growth, according to a survey released yesterday. The HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), a key measure of factory production, registered 57.5 in January, up from 54.2 in Decemberaccelerating for the second straight month.

A reading above 50 indicates the sector is expanding while a reading below 50 suggests a contraction. HSBC said the reading pointed to the strongest improvement in Indian business conditions since May 2011.

“Activity in the manufacturing sector rebounded again in January, led by higher demand from both domestic and foreign clients,” said HSBC India chief economist Leif Eskesen. “The rebound in growth kept backlogs of work growing and employment growth in positive territory,” he added.

The news underscores government expectations of an upturn in India’s economy after it slowed under the brunt of aggressive interest rate hikes to curb stubbornly high inflation. The PMI data came a day after the government’s top economic adviser, Kaushik Basu, said India’s growth was at an “inflection point” with the economy poised to speed up in the coming fiscal year. The government expects India’s economy to grow by around 7.0 percent in the current fiscal year to March, down from 8.4 percent last year. But a preliminary government forecast for next year projects Asia’s third-largest economy will grow between 7.5 and 8.0 percent. — AFP

JAMMU: A Kashmiri horse cart driver carries plastic balls to sell at a market in Jammu, India yesterday. — AP

consensus in a Reuters poll. Its exports to the European Union tumbled 45 percent in the first 20 days compared with the same period a year earlier.

Indeed, the euro zone is expected to be in recession during the first half of this year, according to a Reuters poll, but this assumes the debt crisis will not flare out of control. Fears that Greece could face a disorderly default if it does not quickly secure a debt swap deal with private creditors, or that Portugal might require a second bailout, continue to rattle investors. On Monday, most European Union states agreed to a German-led pact that will impose quasi-automatic sanctions on countries that breach EU budget deficit limits and will enshrine balanced budget rules in national law. That, however, will not solve euro zone countries’ immediate borrowing troubles. — Reuters

Al Khaleej refinery buys Indian sugar LONDON: The Dubai Al Khaleej sugar refinery, typically supplied by raw sugar from top producer Brazil, has recently bought more than 100,000 tons of Indian sugar, general manager Cyrus Raja said yesterday. “The Indian raw sugar is refined and sold to the regular customers of Al Khaleej Sugar in the Middle East and North Africa region and other parts of the world,” Raja told Reuters in an emailed interview before the Feb 4-7 Kingsman Dubai sugar conference. “In addition to the main countries that Al Khaleej Sugar purchases its sugar from, India is included in the current purchased-from countries,” he added. Al Khaleej Sugar, one of the biggest sugar refineries in the world with a production capacity of around 6,000 tons a day, exports to some 40 countries.

India swings from a net sugar importer to an exporter depending on the size of its harvests which vary greatly from year to year. This year India has exported the sweetener, and dealers anticipate more sales in the coming months. Al Khaleej Sugar is last believed to have bought sugar from India at least two years ago, trade sources said, when favorable weather and prices last allowed Indian growers to build a sizeable exportable surplus. Raja said that due to export selling pressure, from India the local or free on board price of low-quality white sugar had dropped recently by around $50 per ton to ICE raw sugar futures plus $20 per ton.

Raja said that the white sugar premium, a measure of refining profitability, had returned to comfortable levels.

“On expectations of surplus sugar availability in the first quarter of 2012, the premium had gone down from $100plus levels, and was trading around $90 in the last three months,” he said. —Reuters

22

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

business

INFOBIZ opens to overwhelming response KUWAIT: Under the Patronage of His Highness Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad Al Sabah, the Prime Minister of Kuwait, INFOBIZ exhibition was inaugurated on Jan 29 by His Excellency Eng. Salim Musaeeb Ahmed Al Othainah the Minister of Communications, Kuwait.

Several diplomats, dignitaries and businessmen were accompanied in the official tour held by the minister to all exhibitors. In a press conference after the official tour to all exhibitors the minister emphasized the important role of the exhibition in bringing the latest global technology developments to Kuwait and its people.

INFOBIZ is Kuwait’s 5th International IT & Communications Business Solutions Exhibition to be held so far. Under the umbrella of Central Authority for

Information Technology (CAIT) - the steering committee of E-Government Kuwait, 16 ministries and authorities are participating in this exhibition to demonstrate various web-based services that are available for citizens as well as residents in Kuwait.

This year InfoConnect is spread in 3 major halls in an area of 15,000 sq ft with all major industry leaders in the Communications & Internet Service Providers in Kuwait.

Zain, Wataniya & Viva are participating along with their dealers showcasing the latest technology products and services in the IT & Communication industry.

While Qualitynet, KEMS, FastTelco and Gulfnet Communications are having the most attractive offers. Major vendors and distributors of global brands are also offering the best discounted

prices and package offers. Around 3,500 brands from the IT & Communications sector are being showcased in the INFOCONNECT exhibition. Along with major industry leaders like Toshiba, HP, Sony, Lenovo, Dell, Samsung, Epson, Panasonic many products and accessories from Far East and Western countries are also showcased.

Indian Ambassador, H E Satish C Mehta, while touring the exhibition cited the importance of the exhibition in Kuwait’s IT & Communications market.

He affirmed that this type of event would greatly benefit Indian companies to explore the Kuwaiti market and increase their market share. He extended his full support to the organizers in facilitating Indian companies for their participation in similar events in future.

Saudis to keep Arab light steady, raise heavy grades Narrower Dubai backwardation to prompt OSP cuts SINGAPORE: Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia is expected to keep the March official selling price (OSP) for its flagship Arab Light crude steady with last month on the prospect of Iranian supplies being disrupted.

However, the kingdom is likely to raise prices for its medium and heavy grades to reflect strong fuel oil cracks that are trading at more than five-year highs. “They will probably keep Arab light unchanged because of the Iranian situation, but perhaps the heavier grades will go up because of fuel oil cracks,” said a trader with a Western refiner. The weakening of the prompt intermonth spread for Middle East benchmark Dubai could also cap any price hikes, another trader said.

“The Dubai backwardation is narrowing, so based on the structure alone prices should be

Najaf completes the flydubai Iraq quartet

lowered, but the cracks say it should be supported, so I’m flattish on Arab Light,” said a trader with a North Asian refiner. Saudi Arabia could raise prices for its medium and heavy grade by between 20 cents and a $1, a poll of four refiners and traders said. Light grades such as Arab Extra Light may increase by up to 20 cents, they said.

Saudi crude prices slumped between $1.80 and $2.10 a barrel in February after refining margins fell, and to compensate for the steep backwardation in the Dubai crude benchmark, which means future prices are lower than current ones.

IRAN, SUDAN Saudi Arabia has committed to supplying more oil in the event that Iranian supplies are disrupted because of its standoff with the West over its nuclear program. Oil prices have risen on

fears that conflict between Iran and the West could disrupt exports from the Middle East, although analysts argue such a clash is extremely unlikely. China reduced by half its Iranian crude imports in January as it tussles with the Islamic Republic over payment terms for 2012 contracts. The world’s second largest oil consumer has bought enough spot crude from the Middle East, Africa and Russia to replace the lost supply. Saudi crude OSPs are usually released around the fifth of each month, and set the trend for Iranian, Kuwaiti and Iraqi prices, affecting some 7 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude bound for Asia. State oil giant Saudi Aramco sets its crude prices based on recommendations from customers and after calculating the change in the value of its oil over the past month, based on yields and product prices. — Reuters

Four operational destinations across Iraq KUWAIT: flydubai, Dubai’s pioneering low cost airline, began its three-times weekly service to Najaf yesterday, bringing its total number of destinations in Iraq to four. The inaugural flight, FZ221, departed Dubai Terminal 2 at 0700hrs, and landed in Najaf International Airport at 0840hrs local time.

The return flight, FZ222, departed at 0940hrs, arriving in Dubai at 1250hrs. The flight marks the second new Iraqi destination for flydubai this month, following the start of flights to the capital, Baghdad, 10 days ago. Ghaith Al Ghaith, flydubai’s CEO, said: “The new service reflects our strategy to link Dubai with underserved airports, making it more convenient for inbound and outbound passengers and we believe that this service will strengthen the already very strong relations between our two countries.”

The Iraqi Government has allocated $40 billion this year for development projects covering infrastructure, electricity, education and health. Telecoms is another rapidly expanding sector - the first subsea cable was recently installed, paving the way for increased broadband connectivity across the country. In an effort to further boost

relations between Iraq and GCC countries such as the UAE, officials are in discussions to host the next Arab Summit in Baghdad this March. The new route is the 48th destination to which flydubai has started operations across the GCC, Middle East, Africa, Indian Sub-Continent, Asia, CIS and the fringes of Europe.

FLIGHT DETAILS Flights to Najaf will operate three times a week on Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays from 29 January 2012. FZ221 is scheduled to depart Dubai Terminal 2 at 0700hrs, landing in Najaf International Airport at 0840hrs local time. The return flight, FZ222, departs at 0940hrs, arriving in Dubai at 1250hrs. One way fares from Dubai to Najaf start at AED 920, with fares from Najaf to Dubai starting at $225. Fares include one piece of hand luggage weighing up to 7kg and one small laptop bag or hand bag plus 20kg checked baggage. A seat with extra legroom costs AED100.

Flights between Dubai and Najaf can be purchased from flydubai’s website (www.flydubai.com), its call centre (+9714 231 1000) and through travel partners.

Amazing surprises from BEST Electronics at InfoConnect KUWAIT: BEST United Electronics, one of Kuwait’s leading electronics companies announced its participation in the InfoConnect Exhibition for the first time since its establishment. The exhibition started on 29th January and will last until the 4th of February. The booth is located in hall number 6 and has one of the biggest and most prominent locations in the hall with a huge range of products and plenty of offers and surprises.

One of the most exhilarating offers revealed is on laptops whereby customers can purchase some of the latest laptops starting from KD1 upon subscribing to VIVA Internet Service Packages for KD20 per month for a period of one year and also receive a free router. Also, customers can enjoy amazing deals on purchase of vari-

ous brands of laptops computers.

Also, BEST extended its ongoing Press & Win campaign to the customers at InfoConnectExhibition whereby customers can get a guaranteed chance to win from a huge range of valuable prizes for every KD100 purchase made by the customer.

The company strives to maintain a healthy and mutually beneficial relationship with its customers and therefore, invites everybody to visit its booth at InfoConnectExhibition and benefit from the exclusive offers. BEST United Electronics operates one of the largest electronics retail chains in Japan and works constantly to develop innovative concepts and experiences in line with the growing customer needs. The company has been continuously expanding

in the region and it entered the Kuwaiti market through its part-

nership with the esteemed Easa Husain Al Yousifi & Sons Co.

EXCHANGE RATES Commercial Bank of Kuwait US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian Dollar Australian DLR Indian rupees Sri Lanka Rupee UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi riyals Omani riyals Philippine peso Egyptian pounds

.2730000 .4350000 .3610000 .3000000 .2750000 .2930000 .0040000 .0020000 .0752140 .7327900 .3830000 .0720000 .7183680 .0040000 .0430000

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES US Dollar/KD .2760500 GB Pound/KD .4351650 Euro .3625090 Swiss francs .3009380 Canadian dollars .2762020 Danish Kroner .0487660 Swedish Kroner .0407790 Australian dlr .2945730 Hong Kong dlr .0355920 Singapore dlr .2203110 Japanese yen .0036290 Indian Rs/KD .0000000 Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 Pakistan rupee .0000000 Bangladesh taka .0000000 UAE dirhams .0751870 Bahraini dinars .7325200 Jordanian dinar .0000000 Saudi Riyal/KD .0736330 Omani riyals .7172920 Philippine Peso .0000000

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. ASIAN COUNTRIES

Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht Irani Riyal - Transfer Irani Riyal - Cash

3.598 5.337 3.154 2.436 3.341 213.250 35.672 3.580 6.336 8.873 0.271 0.273

.2800000 .4430000 .3700000 .3080000 .2830000 .3010000 .0070000 .0035000 .0759700 .7401550 .4000000 .0760000 .7255880 .0072000 .0500000 .2801500 .4416280 .3678390 .3054070 .2803040 .0494900 .0413850 .2989480 .0361200 .2235830 .0036830 .0057210 .0024670 .0031090 .0033290 .0763040 .7433990 .3962520 .0747270 .7279460 .0065720

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham

GCC COUNTRIES 74.150 76.402 722.230 738.540 75.715

ARAB COUNTRIES Egyptian Pound - Cash 47.500 Egyptian Pound - Transfer 46.282 Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.272 Tunisian Dinar 189.860 Jordanian Dinar 392.670 Lebanese Lira/for 1000 1.865 Syrian Lier 6.003 Morocco Dirham 33.814 EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 277.950 Euro 370.650 Sterling Pound 431.930 Canadian dollar 268.420 Turkish lire 153.940 Swiss Franc 300.620 Australian dollar 277.000 US Dollar Buying 277.750 GOLD 315.500 159.000 81.500

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

SELL CASH

Australian dollar Bahraini dinar Bangladeshi taka Canadian dollar Cyprus pound Czek koruna Danish krone Deutsche Mark Egyptian pound Euro Cash Hongkong dollar Indian rupees Indonesia Iranian tuman Iraqi dinar Japanese yen Jordanian dinar Lebanese pound Malaysian ringgit Morocco dirham Nepalese Rupees New Zealand dollar Nigeria

299.000 740.140 3.650 281.300 546.800 45.400 50.300 167.800 48.110 368.000 36.580 5.820 0.032 0.195 0.249 3.750 394.680 0.188 93.970 48.500 4.280 233.200 1.803

SELL DRAFT

297.500 740.140 3.310 279.800

222.800 46.177 366.500 36.430 5.615 0.032

394.360 0.187 93.970 3.530 231.700

49.100 722.890 3.170 6.750 76.990 74.310 222.810 38.250 2.658 442.700 42.400 306.100 4.300 9.330 198.263 75.880 278.700 1.290

722.710 3.085 6.495 76.560 74.310 222.810 38.250 2.439 440.700 304.600 4.300 9.330 75.780 278.300

10 Tola

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd Selling Rate

US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

278.200 280.599 438.466 370.953 302.163 736.705 75.721 76.360 74.146 391.603 46.169 2.440 5.622 3.082 3.307 6.482 682.414 3.677 8.889 5.856 3.572 92.408

Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro

444.00 3.70 3.600 5.800 2.650 4.250 3.240 76.30 740.15 48.20 394.50 728.00 77.25 74.60

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co. Rate per 1000 (Tran)

US Dollar Pak Rupees Indian Rupees Sri Lankan Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso UAE Dirhams Saudi Riyals Bahraini Dinars Egyptian Pounds Pound Sterling Indonesian Rupiah Yemeni Riyal Euro Canadian Dollars Nepali rupee

Currency

Transfer Rate (Per 1000)

299.60 281.86 306.46 366.72

440.85 3.71 3.304 5.611 2.442 3.516 3.083 75.74 740.13 46.20 395.86 723.15 76.73 74.30

278.200 3.075 5.625 2.450 3.310 6.525 75.845 74.340 739.600 46.145 443.800 3.190 1.550 369.300 283.000 3.690

Al Mulla Exchange

UAE Exchange Center WLL Currency

Sterling Pound Japanese Yen Bangladesh Taka Indian Rupee Sri Lankan Rupee Nepali Rupee Pakistani Rupee UAE Dirhams Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Jordanian Dinar Omani Riyal Qatari Riyal Saudi Riyal

Currency

GOLD 1,814.990

Rate for Transfer

Bahrain Exchange Company COUNTRY

Norwegian krone Omani Riyal Pakistani rupees Philippine peso Qatari riyal Saudi riyal Singapore dollar South Africa Sri Lankan rupees Sterling pound Swedish krona Swiss franc Syrian pound Thai bhat Tunisian dollar UAE dirham U.S. dollars Yemeni Riyal

303.00 283.00 309.00 371.00

US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

Transfer Rate (Per 1000)

277.850 366.300 440.500 279.600 3.675 5.623 46.130 2.439 3.255 6.485 3.076 740.100 75.700 74.250

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

business

Asia’s family businesses face new challenges SINGAPORE: From India’s Ambani empire to the Li dynasty of Hong Kong, family firms are a pillar of Asian economies, but rising globalization and generational shifts are throwing up new challenges.

Breaking cherished traditions to hire non-relatives to key management posts as companies diversify and compete in a fast-changing global market is one such hurdle, analysts say. The need for greater transparency and accountability, especially for non-listed family companies, is a major factor, while careful planning on leadership succession can prevent potentially ruinous feuds. Joseph Fan from the Chinese University of Hong Kong singles out family succession as an “extremely challenging issue” being addressed as many Asian firms make the transition from elderly founders to their offspring.

“If family disputes lead to decisions that damage the businesses, this could cause broader damage to these (regional) economies,” he said on the website of the International Finance Corp, the World Bank’s private sector arm. Experts say more than 70 percent of Asian firms are family-owned, defined by Credit Suisse as those where a family or individual in the clan controls at least 20 percent of cash-flow rights.

A Credit Suisse study last year showed family enterprises made up half the listed companies and 32 percent of total market capitalization in 10 Asian economies covered in the research.

They are also major employers, accounting for 57 percent and 32 percent of staff at listed companies in South Asia and North Asia, respectively.

That makes their survival crucial to the region’s emerging economies. But with such fortunes at stake, family feuds are inevitable. India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani became locked in a bitter dispute with his brother Anil over their father’s vast Reliance empire when the patriarch Dhirubhai Ambani died in 2002 leaving no will. An acrimonious five-year scrap over the assets forced their mother to intervene and carve the empire into two, although

recently there have been rumors of a personal and business rapprochement between the brothers.

Last year the family of Macau casino tycoon Stanley Ho was embroiled in a bizarre row over the future of his multi-billion-dollar empire, with the 90year-old accusing relatives of forcing him to relinquish power. Ho’s sprawling clan comprises at least 17 children born to four women who he refers to as his wives. The saga has seen Ho-a one-time playboy considered the father of Macau’s casino scene-publicly battling two branches of his family over SJM Holdings, the centrepiece of a fortune worth at least

$3.1 billion. “The needs and desires of family members and the desires of the business may not always coincide,” Sajen Aswani, a third-generation member of the family-run Tolaram Group in Singapore, said without referring to any particular case. “So the challenge of the leadership of family business is to ensure that there is harmony between the two,” said Aswani, whose firm is a member of the Family Business Network, a global organization of such firms. Asia’s richest are dominated by family money, often starting with a company founded by an entrepreneurial patriarch.

SHANGHAI: An investor looks at the stock price monitor at a private securities company yesterday in Shanghai, China. —AP

Hong Kong’s Li Ka-shing is Asia’s richest man with his flagship Cheung Kong Holdings and his billionaire son Richard is head of PCCW, Hong Kong’s largest telecom company. South Korea’s Samsung, whose founder Lee Byung-Chull started off in the 1930s selling fish and produce to China, and LG Group which is another family-controlled conglomerate, have become household names globally. But many of Asia’s lesser known small and medium-size enterprises are also run by families. Deb Loveridge, Asia Pacific managing director at human resource services firm Randstad, said that as family businesses become more sophisticated, hiring qualified nonkin to key posts has become essential.

Loveridge said research showed that a primary challenge for companies across Asia-be they family owned or not-is finding talented leaders to take the business to the next stage of growth. Non-family firms can draw from the depth of their global operations, but family firms have a much more limited pool to choose from. “Family companies will do well to acquire new talent,” Loveridge said. “The question for them though is opportunities they can provide five and 10 years on in order to retain those people and develop them so can they see the longer term career path.” “How does a person achieve that career path if within a family structure key positions are held by family members?”

Some Asian family firms are already breaking with tradition. India’s Tata group last year named a successor to its veteran chairman and business icon Ratan Tata, by appointing a non-family member at the helm for the first time in the conglomerate’s 143year history. But many are not so nimble, and choose to stick with family members even if they possess few management skills. Fan from the Chinese University of Hong Kong said his research found that five years after a company founder hands over leadership to the next generation, the firm “declined in value by an average 60 percent”.— AFP

Gold steady as US Europe data eyed Investors cautious ahead of more data

HONG KONG: Pro-democracy protesters dress as Chinese Fortune God during demonstration before Financial Secretary John Tsang will deliver the annual budget report at the Legislative Council in Hong Kong yesterday. —AP

Hong Kong warns of Q1 contraction HONG KONG: Hong Kong’s economy could shrink in the first quarter of 2012 due to weak export markets, before rebounding to post growth of 1.0-3.0 percent over the year, the finance secretary said yesterday. John Tsang warned the global economy was facing a downturn worse than the 2008 financial meltdown as he released his annual budget in the southern Chinese banking centre. Turmoil in financial markets and “unresolved economic troubles” related to the debt crisis in Europe and the United States “could deal a more serious blow to the global economy than the 2008 financial tsunami”, Tsang warned.

Delivering a budget that promised stimulus spending and one-off perks, Tsang said the semi-autonomous territory would “inevitably” experience lower growth than the average of the past decade. Exports could take a hit in the early months before recovering in the second half, he said in a speech that was interrupted by shouted protests from opposition lawmakers. “I am not optimistic about Hong Kong’s export performance in the first half of this year, and if exports of goods were to plunge in the first quarter, the overall economy might take a downturn in that quarter,” he said.

The city’s economy contracted in the second quarter of 2011 before returning to positive territory in the third quarter. “I forecast GDP growth of one to three percent in real terms for 2012,” Tsang said, adding that the economy expanded five percent in 2011. “It is difficult to predict with any certainty the possibility of a severe recession in Europe and, if so, the precise ramifications on Asia,” he said. In his last budget ahead of March elections to select a new chief executive in the former British colony, Tsang promised HK$80 billion ($10.31 billion) in relief measures to “better prepare our people for the difficult time ahead”.

He pledged to increase loan guarantees for lenders to small businesses, slash profits tax

and spend more on education, including construction of a new International Cuisine College to train chefs. Seven one-off measures included a waiver of quarterly property rates amounting to HK$11.7 billion, two months’ rent relief for public housing tenants and a 75percent cut in salaries tax to a ceiling of HK$12,000. The salaries tax cut would inject almost HK$9 billion back into the economy, Tsang said. Responding to complaints about a lack of affordable housing, the financial secretary said the government would continue to increase land supply despite the recent slowdown in the city’s property market.

A total of 47 residential sites would be released in the financial year starting April 1, with room to accommodate an estimated 13,500 residential units. Hong Kong home prices have soared 75 percent since the beginning of 2009 on the back of strong demand, tight supply and low interest rates. But the market softened in July with the first fall in prices in three years. Median household income climbed 5.1 percent in real terms to HK$20,000 over the past year, meaning an “improvement in the livelihood of grass roots” residents, Tsang said. Even so the gap between rich and poor in Hong Kong is among the largest in the world and Chief Executive Donald Tsang has identified it as one of the territory’s biggest challenges.

His government has been criticized for running up large budget surpluses-fiscal reserves stood at HK$654.9 billion on December 31, 2011 - and clinging to a low tax regime instead of spending more to stimulate growth, boost employment and improve social services. The government says surpluses are required to prepare for an ageing population and guard against an uncertain global outlook. Hong Kong Taxation Institute Vice-President Godwin Ng described the budget as a “good effort” but said there should have been more long-term solutions instead of one-off hand-outs. — AFP

SINGAPORE: Gold was steady yesterday after ending January with its biggest monthly rise since August, while investors cautiously awaited more data from the world’s key economies for trading cues. China’s official Purchasing Managers’ Index topped expectations and showed a modest expansion in January, but market sentiment remained fragile on concerns about global growth after surprisingly weak US housing and consumer data on Tuesday.

Before the disappointing US data, a string of upbeat numbers from the world’s biggest economy had helped lift commodities and pushed gold up 11 percent in January. “The short-term trend (for commodities) is still favorable, especially after encouraging data from China today,” said Peter Tse, director at ScotiaMocatta in Hong

Kong, but warned about increased volatility as a result of uncertainties over the euro zone debt crisis .

Greece and its international lenders, the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, have been in talks for weeks on a debt swap deal, which Athens needs urgently to avert a chaotic default next month. Spot gold edged down 0.2 percent to $1,733.79 an ounce by 0722 GMT, off a nearly two-month high of $1,747.39 hit in the previous session. US gold also lost 0.2 percent to $1,734.40. Hope for further monetary easing from the United States and the euro zone runs high and will likely further boost gold, especially after US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted at the possibility of more asset buying last week. “Bernanke just gave the

Indonesian exports up, inflation eases JAKARTA: Indonesian exports surge d 29 percent last year, and January inflation eased, date showed yesterday, as Southeast Asia’s largest economy targeted emerging countries amid weakness in US and European markets.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, has been basking in a welter of positive economic indicators in recent weeks, with the latest official figures showing shipments reached $203.62 billion last year. The export data was a 29 percent hike over 2010 and beat the government’s target of $200 billion, according to data from the Central Statistics Agency.

Shipments in December dipped, losing 0.22 percent to $17.2 billion from a month earlier, but still gained 2.2 percent over December 2010. Trade minister Gita Wirjawan last month set an export target of $230 billion in 2012, targeting emerging markets in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America to compensate for the slowdown in the United States and Europe. Meanwhile, inflation eased again in January, the agency said, with the consumer price index rising 3.65 percent year-on-year, slower than the 3.79 percent rise in December.

The index rose 0.76 percent on month, compared with a 0.57 percent increase in December, as bad weather drove up food prices and stoked inflation. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, slowed to 4.29 percent year-on-year in January, compared with 4.34 percent in December. Last month, Moody’s ratings agency upgraded Jakarta to Baa3 from Ba1 with a stable outlookafter a similar move by Fitch-with officials saying the stronger credit ratings would attract more foreign investment.

Indonesia’s foreign direct investment in 2011 hit a record $20 billion, with Singapore, Japan and the United States among top investors. The trade minister said the economy may grow to $9.3 trillion by 2030, a more than tenfold increase from the country’s current output.

Indonesia’s major exports include oil, natural gas, palm oil, coal, electrical appliances, textiles, and rubber. Other natural resources include copper, tin, gold and timber.—AFP

Vale-China standoff over ships deepens SHANGHAI: China banned a giant new class of ship from its ports yesterday, a move that checks efforts by mining giant Vale SA to cut the cost of shipping iron ore to its largest market and risks straining trade relations with Brazil. China’s trade ministry said it forbid the berthing of Vale’s 400,000-deadweight-tonne “Valemax” vessels and other giant freighters, to protect its own oceanfreight industry. This action comes at a time when benchmark shipping rates have fallen by twothirds since October, slashing revenue for shipowners a worldwide. “At the end of the day, they (China) want to support their own,” said George Lazardis, an analyst at Greek broker Intermodal.

“They are interested in giving support to their shipowners, which are starting to become a significant force.” As the world’s second-largest and sixthlargest economies increase their ties, China and Brazil have clashed over iron-ore, shoes, aircraft, toys, automobiles, pesticides, clothing and the right to own Brazilian farmland in recent years.

green light to buying gold,” said a Singaporebased trader.

Physical buying interest remained muted after China returned from the Lunar New Year holiday earlier this week. “There’s no physical buying interest at this price level,” said Tse of ScotiaMocatta. Data due later in the day include a euro zone manufacturing survey and the Institute for Supply Management index from the United States. Euro zone flash inflation for January and US January employment data from ADP are also expected. The reports were likely to show many economies are seeing a sluggish start in 2012 amid slowing demand, putting central banks around the world under pressure to keep an accommodative policy to support growth.— Reuters

China overtook the United States to become Brazil’s largest trading partner in 2009, and Brazil is a vital source of the raw materials and food needed to sustain the world’s second-largest economy.

China is concerned soaring prices for soybeans, iron ore and other raw materials will put it too much at the mercy of commodity exporters, while Brazilian industry says cheap Chinese manufactured goods unfairly compete with local industry.

For the China Shipowners Association and major steelmakers, the Valemaxes, some of the largest ships afloat, could be a “Trojan horse”, allowing Vale to hold out the promise of lower transport costs as a cover for what they see as its true goal: dominance of the world iron-ore market. Vale is the world’s largest iron ore miner, accounting for more than a quarter of all seaborne trade in iron ore, the main ingredient in steel. China is the world’s largest steelmaker. The giant ships are central to Vale’s efforts to compete with Australian miners BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, whose mines are closer to

China, the biggest iron-ore consumer.

The Valemax ships are large enough to hold three soccer or US football fields end-to-end on their decks. “They (China’s rulers) are not interested in whether Vale will be able to provide cheap imports in comparison to Australian imports,” Lazardis said. In December the China Shipowners Association called on Vale to “immediately stop” building its fleet in a note on its Web site and said Vale was trying to create “a monopoly” and engage in “unfair competition.” China’s decision suggests Vale may have made an unwise and costly investment in one of the most talked-about shipbuilding ventures of the past decade. Vale’s press office in Rio de Janeiro declined to comment. No Chinese ports have regulatory approval to receive dry bulk carriers of more than 300,000 tonnes. The Dec 28 arrival of the Berge Everest, a 388,000-deadweighttonne Valemax, in China’s port of Dalian carrying Vale ore from Brazil was probably a bureaucratic fluke, shipping industry sources said. — Reuters

JAKARTA: An Indonesian vendor waits for customers at a market in Jakarta yesterday. —AFP

LG unveils Optimus NET Smartphone KUWAIT: LG Electronics (LG), a global leader and technology innovator in consumer electronics, mobile communications and home appliances, have added another advanced, convenient Smartphone in their mobile offerings, the LG Optimus NET P698. Find harmony in both your work and private life with Optimus NET Dual SIM that helps you separate and manage both sides of your life. “The Optimus NET Dual SIM packs the features of several Smartphone’s and enables users to segregate it into Private and Personal applications. The ergonomic design provides easy usage of the touch screen phone while the advanced yet easy to use applications makes the phone extremely useful for business and pleasure,” said D Y Kim, President, LG Gulf FZE. The Optimus NET Dual SIM allows users to conveniently combine news, contents, friends and family in one place.

It makes your Smartphone experience rich with integrated SNS widget and DLNA content sharing, while remaining affordable. Enjoy extra functionality with the advanced 1500mAh battery as well

as a faster application start-up and web browsing experience. As the Smartphone comes with the latest Android 2.3 Gingerbread, the user does not have to worry about constantly updating the OS. The 3.2 inch screen provides a cleared and sharper optimized view for multimedia applications. The Optimus NET Dual SIM also boasts of an improved and enhanced touch performance while the Optimus 2.0 UI provides emotional enhancement. This allows users to customize the home screen and menu preference.

Compatible at sharing information with other devices through the advanced DLNA, shake and flick the phone to send and receive content. The inbuilt Social Plus application provides richer widgets enabling quicker update. LG’s latest offering comes packed with features in a slim and sleek design with minimized buttons and metallic points. LG Optimus Net P698 Key Features include; 800 MHz processor; 1500 mAh battery; Android 2.3 (Gingerbread); DUAL SIM; 3.2-inch HVGA touch screen; Smart sharing using DLNA and 3 megapixel Camera.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

business

KSE Price Index sheds 12.70 points GLOBAL DAILY MARKET REPORT KUWAIT: Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) closed the last session of short week (4 sessions) on a negative note. An eye on FY2011 company earnings. It’s worth mentioning that, Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) management announces that today, February 2, 2012 will be an official holiday on the occasion of the Prophet’s (PBUH) Birthday. Trading will resume on Sunday, February 5, 2012.

Market Indices Global General Index (GGI) ended the day down by 0.14 percent, at 178.96 point. Market Capitalization was down for the day, reaching KD29.28bn. On the other hand, KSE Price Index closed at 5,856.4 point, shedding 12.70 points (0.22 percent) from its previous close.

Market Breadth During yesterday’s session, 103 companies were traded. Market breadth was skewed toward the decliners as 49 companies witnessed losses, while only 21 reported daily gains.

Daily Trading Activity Volume and value of shares traded on the exchange dipped as investors exchanged 208.43mn shares (-31.51 percent) at a total value of KD25.96mn (-22.75 percent).

Investment sector accounted for 30.94 percent of total volume traded during yesterday’s session, as Hits Telecom Holding Company was the volume leader for the day.

Investors exchanged 37.44mn of the company’s shares. The scrip ended the day adding 2.06 percent.

Services sector accounted for 26.50 percent of traded volume.

Top Gainers and Biggest Decliners In terms of top gainers, National Petroleum Services Company was the top gainer for the day, adding

7.14 percent to its share value and closing at KD0.0.375. On the other hand, share price of Kuwait Remal Real Estate Company retreated by 7.94 percent and closed at KD0.290, making it the biggest decliners in the market for the day in a row.

Sectors Wise During yesterday’s session, all sectors indices ended the day with losses, barring services sector and non-Kuwaiti sector. Services sector soared by 0.30 percent backed by Zain, which closed at KD0.850, up 1.19 percent. Non-Kuwaiti sector rose by 0.24 percent backed by the gains in United Gulf Bank (+3.64 percent). Sharjah Cement Company also added 1.67 percent to close at KD0.061. Real estate sector topped the loser’s list yesterday losing 1.13 percent, as the sector’s heavyweight stock, Mabanee Company fell by 1.16 percent to reach KD0.850.

Among the sector’s losers also were Kuwait Real Estate Company (-3.92 percent) and National Real Estate Company (-3.23 percent). Industrial sector followed shedding 0.52 percent. National Industries Group (Holding), was the sector’s major loser yesterday as the scrip fell by 0.89 percent to KD0.222. Also, Salbookh Trading Company and Boubyan Petrochemical Company dipped by 3.37 percent and 1.79 percent respectively.

Corporate News Updating its previous announcements dated October 26, 2011, November 23, 2011 and December 28, 2011, Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) announces that Mobile Telecommunications Company (Zain) stated that Sheikh Khalifa Ali Al Khalifa Al Sabah challenged at court of cassation the rulings issued for two appeals No 3583 and

3584/2011 S Commercial/8. The company will inform KSE management duly of any relevant developments.

Further to its previous announcement dated January 31, 2012, Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) declares that the court has adjourned appeal No 359/2008 filed

by Livestock Transport & Trading Company against a UAE-based real estate office till Feb. 26th.

Oil News Price of Kuwaiti crude oil stabilized at $110.98pb on Tuesday.

Crude prices are mainly within the $110pb range, with some increasing in certain markets and decreasing in others. Oil prices are effected by many factors not only by supply and demand, but also the European debt issue and the Iranian file, under the framework of threats to close the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent rises above $111 SINGAPORE: Brent crude rose above $111 a barrel yesterday, gaining for a second straight session on fears that tensions between Iran and the West may escalate with US lawmakers mulling more sanctions on Tehran, while promising China data also supported sentiment.

Leading US lawmakers are considering adding measures to a new package of sanctions that would single out Iran’s national oil and shipping companies and restrict its ability to tap into electronic banking services.

Brent crude rose 21 cents to $111.19 a barrel by 0730 GMT. US crude gained 16 cents to $98.64 a barrel.

Oil is expected to stay rangebound this week as bullish and bearish factors tug the markets at both ends, analysts say.

“There’s the positive factor of supply worries from Iran and South Sudan while on the other side, we have a bearish factor from a weaker economy in Europe that will reduce oil demand,” Ken Hasegawa, a commodity sales manager at Newedge Japan, said. The United States imposed the harshest sanctions so far on Iran when President Barack Obama on Dec 31 signed into law new sanctions on transactions involving Iran’s central bank while the European Union last week imposed a ban on the import, purchase or transport of Iranian oil.

Iran is feeling the bite from economic sanctions imposed over its nuclear program, which is capable of producing a weapon although Iranian leaders have not yet decided to do so, top US intelligence chiefs told Congress.

Besides Iran, a dispute between Sudan and South Sudan on oil transit fees dragged on, adding to supply concerns. The newly independ-

ent South Sudan has shut its production estimated at 350,000 barrels per day (bpd).

Hasegawa sees support for Brent crude at $110 per barrel with gains capped at $112.50, and expects US crude to stay between $98 and $103 per barrel this week.

GLOBAL ECONOMY EYED Oil prices were also boosted

by China’s official Purchasing Managers’ Index that showed the manufacturing sector expanded modestly in January, with the index reading inching up to 50.5 from 50.3 in December, above a 49.5 reading forecast. But the Finance Minister warned that the country-the world’s top energy consumer-faces downward risks in 2012, as the weakening external demand add more difficulties to the growth of the country’s export sector. Worries about the euro zone debt crisis and slowing growth in the United States continue to weigh on investors’ sentiment.

Near-bankrupt Greece must make “difficult” decisions in the coming days to clinch a debt swap agreement and a 130 billion euro bailout package needed to avoid an unruly default, the government said on Tuesday. In the United States, data showed home prices dropped more than expected in November, while consumer confidence soured in January. The market is also eyeing US oil stocks data scheduled to be released later for clues to demand from the world’s largest oil consumer.

US crude oil inventories rose by 2.1 million barrels last week, the industry group American Petroleum Institute said in a report late on Tuesday, less than analysts’ expectations of a build of 2.4 million barrels in a Reuters poll. — Reuters

25

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

business

Portugal heads for short-term borrowing test LISBON: Portugal sought to sell 1.5 billion euros in treasury bills yesterday, in a test of its ability to raise short-term funds after a recent surge in its long-term bond rates have raised fears it may be forced to follow Greece and seek a new bailout.

The sell-off in Portuguese bonds in the past two weeks has sent yields and the cost of insuring the country’s debts to record highs, adding to Lisbon’s woes as it grinds through its worst economic crisis in decades and imposes sweeping austerity. Its bond prices were up slightly in early trade yesterday, with the yield on 10-year bonds at 16.49 percent, below record highs of 17.40 percent reached on Monday. These remain well over twice the level generally considered unsustainable, however.

Any sign that Lisbon can still raise shor t-term financing in markets would ease immediate concerns that it may need to extend terms or ask for more bailout money than its current 78 billion euro lifeline from the

European Union and IMF. Analysts said they expect the country to be able sell the full amount of 3- and 6month bills, although yields may rise slightly from the last auction on Jan 18. “I think demand will remain strong as the country is issuing shortterm debt, which is not very influenced by a rise in long-term yields,” said Filipe Silva, debt manager at Banco Carregosa. “The full amount should be issued and even if the rates rise it won’t be a big problem issuing all of it as has been done in the past.”

On Jan. 18 Portugal issued 2.5 billion euros in treasury bills, with the average yield on 3-month bills at 4.346 percent and 4.740 percent for 6-month bills. “I don’t expect big changes from the last auction,” said Rui Constantino, economist at Santander in Lisbon.

“It (the auction) may calm some nerves.” Concerns over Portugal have grown ever since Standard & Poor’s downgraded its debt to ‘junk’ status

earlier last month, putting it in the same category as only Greece in the euro zone.

That and the uncer tainty surrounding Athens’ efforts to restructure its debt has fuelled growing worries over Portugal, with some economists saying it could eventually have to restructure its debts as well.

But the government insists that it has no intention of extending or asking for a new bailout to top up the existing one, sticking to its strategy of meeting strict budget goals and reforming its economy to boost confidence.

Prime M inister Pedro Passos Coelho said late on Tuesday the country would meet the demands of its current bailout “whatever the cost.” The austerity demanded by the bailout, including salary cuts for civil servants and across-the-board tax hikes, has already sent Portugal into its worst recession since the 1970s and left unemployment at its highest level in decades. — Reuters

LISBON: Angela Pereira, the only ’employee’ of Riomar Store and the wife of the owner stands beside the sale jackets. In the past few years there’s been a huge decline in the percentage of sales of the small trade shops in Lisbon. — AFP

GM, AIG shares slide to add $23bn to US deficit $61bn negative swing for TARP from fiscal 2011

TOKYO: This file photo shows chairman and CEO of Japan’s Sony Corporation, Howard Stringer, smiling during a press conference at the headquarters in Tokyo. — AFP

Sony’s Stringer steps down TOKYO: Howard Stringer, the Welshborn American head of Japanese games, music and electronics giant Sony, is to step down as its president and CEO, the company said yesterday.

He will be succeeded by Kazuo Hirai, a games and music veteran, who will take over as president and chief executive in April, a company statement said, while Stringer will become chairman of the board of directors in June. “I look forward to helping Kaz in every way I can so that succession leads inevitably to success,” said Stringer.

“He is ready to lead, and the time to make this change is now.” Hirai, 51, played a major role in developing the PlayStation in the 1990s and has spent most of his career at Sony in videogames, movies, music and other software businesses.

“As challenging as times are for Sony now, were it not for the strong leadership of Sir Howard Stringer these past seven years, we would have been in a much more difficult position,” he said.

Repor ts have previously said the Tokyo-based maker of PlayStation consoles and Bravia televisions is planning a drastic restructuring under Hirai to try to return to profit after four consecutive years in the red.

Hirai’s earlier promotion to deputy president was seen by analysts as signaling a greater focus on pushing content to multiple hardware platforms such as game consoles, smartphones

and tablet computers. Sony is projecting an annual net loss this year of 90 billion yen ($1.2 billion), as it reels from the impact of a strong yen, weak sales, and severe flooding in Thailand. Two weeks ago, ratings agency Moody’s downgraded Sony’s debt to Baa1 from A3, saying the company faced “weak and volatile” earnings and a long struggle to get back on a firm financial footing. The company’s television division has been particularly troublesome, losing money in the face of severe competition and minuscule margins. In December, Sony extricated itself from a joint liquid crystal display-making venture with Korean electronics giant Samsung after seven years.

Sony had a particularly troubled 2011. A massive data breach forced it to shut down its PlayStation Network and Qriocity services in April with more than 100 million customer accounts compromised, in a crisis that quickly followed Japan’s earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis. Stringer, 69, is the latest in a series of high-profile foreigners to leave top positions in Japanese firms.

Briton Michael Woodford was sacked as CEO of camera and medical equipment maker Olympus, later revealing the firm’s cover-up of $1.7 billion in losses, while Jasjit Bhattal, the Indian-origin head of Nomura’s wholesale division, resigned from Japan’s top brokerage in January. — AFP

EU regulator blocks D Boerse-NYSE merger Exchange operators refused to sell Eurex, Liffe BRUSSELS: European Union antitrust regulators have blocked the merger of exchange operators Deutsche Boerse and NYSE Euronext, making the sector ’s four th failed tie -up attempt in a year. Deutsche Boerse and NYSE Euronext, which unveiled the plan to create the world’s biggest stock exchange as long ago as February last year, said they would now unwind the deal. The EU blocked the merger because of fears over the combined entity’s potential grip on more than 90 percent of the listed derivatives market in Europe, which would make it hard for new players to compete.

Deutsche Boerse and NYSE Euronext had refused to sell either the German operator’s Eurex derivatives market operator or the US company ’s London-based futures exchange Liffe to address such concerns. NYSE said it would return $550 million to shareholders via a share repurchase program and seek to grow its derivatives business. “While we viewed the merger as a way to accelerate our plans, our existing business model was always central to our strategy,” NYSE Euronext Chief Executive Duncan Niederauer said in a statement.

“We will also take advantage of

our financial strength to capture opportunities for growth in derivatives, and through our new initiatives, including technology services, NYSE Liffe US/NYPC and post-trade ser vices.”

EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia is scheduled to hold a press conference at 1130 GMT on the matter. The Hessian economics ministr y, Deutsche Boerse’s home regulator in Wiesbaden, Germany, had said on Tuesday that the exchanges had not eased its legal concerns over the deal. The ministry was planning to issue a decision after the Commission’s ruling.

US regulators approved the merger in December last year on condition the exchanges sell a minor asset. In the past year the sector has seen three large deals fail for different reasons.

Nasdaq and IntercontinentalExchange Inc ‘s bid for NYSE Euronext was rejected by the US Depar tment of Justice, London Stock Exchange’s takeover of TMX Group was rejected by shareholders of the Toronto Stock Exchange operator, and Singapore Exchange Ltd’s bid for Australia’s ASX Ltd was stopped by the Australian government. — Reuters

WASHINGTON: Just when Americans have largely forgotten about the US Treasury’s controversial bailout program, the Congressional Budget Office on Tuesday blamed it for an anticipated $23 billion widening in the government’s deficit. The non-partisan CBO, as part of its annual budget outlook, said that the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, will reverse $37 billion in gains in fiscal year 2011, and instead post a net cost of $23 billion this year. The net $61 billion swing is due to declines in the value of shares the US Treasury owns in General Motors Co and American International Group. The government bailed out the automaker and the insurance giant during the height of the 2008-09 financial cri-

sis, leaving US taxpayers with substantial equity stakes in each. After both firms pulled off successful public stock offerings in 2010 and 2011, their improved valuations made it seem that the government might actually earn an overall profit on TARP. But since then, the stocks have fallen. GM, despite a major comeback that has returned its crown as the world’s top-selling automaker, has seen its share price slide from $37 a year ago to $24.02 on Tuesday - significantly below the $33 IPO price and far below the approximately $53 price needed for taxpayers to break even.

AIG shares have declined from about $43 in early February of last year to end at $25.11 on Tuesday. The breakeven price for AIG is about

$28.73 per share. The CBO’s estimate of TARP outlays represents only about $3 billion in actual cash out the door, for housing rescue expenses. The remaining $20 billion is a noncash accounting adjustment. The Treasury’s most recent estimate for TARP’s net cost to taxpayers, made earlier this month, was $68 billion. The program, initially billed as a $700 billion bailout fund, ultimately invested $411 billion in financial firms and automakers. The CBO, however, on Tuesday estimated TARP’s lifetime costs at $34 billion. One major difference is that Treasury assumes that all $49 billion in TARP housing rescue funds will be spent, while CBO estimates that only a portion of these will be used. — Reuters

Greece media hit by financial woes ATHENS: The next time a scandal about Greece’s financial woes is broken by the country’s domestic press, spare a thought for the reporter who wrote it. Greece’s once-proliferating media sector has been hobbled by the ongoing financial crisis. Where once new publications would often debut, today the industry is grappling with layoffs, dwindling circulation and viewership, and sharp pay cuts.

In a country of just 11 million people, Greeks until recently enjoyed a plethora of outlets, with about 10 news channels, more than 15 newspapers and even more monthly magazines. But since the start of the financial crisis in 2010, many publications have found themselves on the ropes and two dailies have shutteredApogevmatini and To Vima-in addition to financial weekly Kosmos tou Ependyti. The historic left-leaning Eleftherotypia is near bankruptcy, and workers at private television station Alter have gone months without pay.

In 2011, losses at major media groups reached 108 million euros ($142 million), while newspaper sales drooped between nine and 20 percent, following a drop of 25 to 30 percent in 2010. Media watchers point to the drying up of state and private advertising revenue, as well as of previously easily-obtained bank loans.

“Employers aren’t investing and bank credits they previously benefitted from have been diverted into personal accounts,” said Dimitris Trimis, head of the Athens journalists union and a former Eleftherotypia writer. “This leads to asphyxiation and a massacre in the profession, together with the undermining of the public’s right to information,” he said.

Journalists’ union Poesy says it has

seen 4,000 layoffs and remaining staff are under constant pressure to renegotiate labor contracts with pay cuts of up to 30 percent. Things are no better in the publicly-funded media, with workers from three channels at Net Television, as well as the semi-official Ana news agency, hit with 25-percent salary cuts and layoffs, in line with those in other public jobs. At Athens’s Alter TV, journalists haven’t been paid for 10 months, while workers at Eleftherotypia are five months in arrears. Beyond the immediate effects of dried-up credit, observers also point to a more underhand form of funding until recently enjoyed by the Greek media.

It’s an open secret in Greece that the government sometimes provided kick-backs to media outlets in return for the soft-pedalling of contentious issues. “For years, we’ve been propping up this bubble,” government spokesman Pantelis Kapsis recently said in a radio interview. “Journalists aren’t responsible, but rather the whole political and media system,” he said. Broadcast outlets are also somewhat dependent on the government for the renewal of licenses, which are only awarded on a temporary basis.

“Audiovisual broadcast licenses continue to be temporary and rules for distributing advertising are foggy,” said Athens University media professor Manolis Hairetakis. Over the past two years, journalists have staged several strikes including one on January 17-18 that kept Greeks in the dark about crucial government debt negotiations.

Mobilization would have been greater still were it not for opposition from journalists who hold jobs in more than one outlet, including positions in ministry press offices, unionists say. — AFP

ATHENS: People sleep at a sports center in Athens. Public buildings and municipal sports centers were made available to the homeless by the municipality of Athens as temperatures in the Greek capital fell below zero degrees Celsius. — AFP

TEHRAN: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad addresses parliament before presenting his proposed budget in Tehran yesterday. — AFP

Iran predicts growth despite sanctions TEHRAN: President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad predicted yesterday that Iran’s economy would grow eight percent over the next 12 months despite severe Western sanctions, as he presented his government’s annual budget to parliament. Gross domestic product (GDP) would swell significantly, Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency, without providing any details on what components of the economy would generate the growth.

That would continue a trend seen in recent years as Iran-OPEC’s second-biggest producer-profits from historically high oil prices. Ahmadinejad set out a $416 billion (316.6 billion euro) state budget for Iran’s calendar and fiscal year, which runs this year from mid-March.

That was 14 percent less than for the 2011-2012 budget, which was set at $484 billion. The president did not quantify the size of the economy. But the International Monetary Fund estimates that 2011 GDP (from January to December) was $480 billion at the official exchange rate, around 2.5 percent higher than the previous year.

Ahmadinejad did not refer to the government’s estimated price for oil, which accounts for more than half of budget revenues. The last budget calculated oil revenues at $82 per barrel. Iran gets 80 percent of its foreign revenues from oil exports. Nor did Ahmadinejad mention the exchange rate the government was counting on for the Iranian rial against the dollar. The rial has slipped sharply against the dollar in the past three months, losing around half its value as Western sanctions have piled up.

State television, however, reported that the exchange rate would be calculated at 11,500 rials to the dollar. That was stronger than the new official rate of 12,260 rials announced last week-and far stronger than the 18,500 rate the dollar is fetching on the black market. Iran’s economy has been grappling with ratcheted up sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union in an effort to pressure Tehran to drop nuclear activities suspected to include research for an atomic bomb. US President Barack Obama said last month the sanctions had reduced Iran’s economy to a “shambles.” Iran, which insists its nuclear program is peaceful, has reacted angrily as the West has sought to isolate it by curtailing its oil exports and operations by its central bank. Ahmadinejad, though, has insisted that Iran has sufficient foreign reserves and oil customers elsewhere to shrug off the sanctions.

The chairman of Tehran’s chamber of commerce, Yahya Ale-Eshagh, said on Tuesday that Iran’s central bank holds $120 billion of foreign currency reserves, and another 907 tons of gold. The gold is worth some $54 billion at current market prices. Iran’s central bank no longer gives information on its currency and gold reserves. — AFP

26

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

BUSINESS

China subsidizing auto parts exporters: US industry WASHINGTON: A US industry and union coalition accused China yesterday of sweeping illegal subsidies to its auto-parts sector that threaten to destroy more than a million US jobs. Launching a campaign to press for trade action against Beijing, the Alliance for American Manufacturing and senior politicians said the Chinese subsidies threaten to reverse the comeback of the US auto industry.

The AAM-which brings together the US steel industr y and the United Steelworkers union-said alleged trade violations by China have already killed 400,000 jobs in the US auto supply chain, and threaten 1.6 million more.

“It’s essential that federal action be taken to challenge these abuses before they completely undermine the job recovery under way in the US auto industry,” said AAM executive director Scott Paul. He said the studies present “pretty compelling” evidence of China’s breaking World Trade Organization rules against subsidized exports. “For US makers,

the cost of their inputs is greater than what the Chinese producers sell their products for” in some cases, he said.

The campaign was launched at

the US Congress a week af ter President Barack Obama said he would step up pressure on China and other countries that unfairly subsidize exports and launch a

JINHUA: This photo shows laborers working in a factory of Chinese carmaker Youngman in Jinhua, east China’s Zhejiang province. —AFP

new government body to pursue such cases. The AAM released three reports that paint China as targeting the US auto-parts sector by supporting its own manufacturers in ways that allegedly violate WTO fair trade rules. They argued that Chinese auto-parts exports increased more than 900 percent in the decade to 2010 helped by $27.5 billion in subsidies, many of them illegal, and that the government has committed nearly $11 billion more in such support over the next decade.

They also said Chinese par ts exporters benefit from the country’s policy of keeping the yuan currency tied to the US dollar at an artificially low exchange rate. This effort is targeted at the US market, they said. “In auto parts, China runs trade deficits with ever y other major auto producer, including Japan, South Korea, and Germany.

In contrast, China’s trade surpluses on auto par ts with the United States constitutes a notable exception,” said Usha Haley of the

Economic Policy Institute, who contributed one of the studies.

The result, the studies say, is that while the US auto industry has recovered strongly since being bailed out by the government in the 2008-2009 recession, par ts makers continued to weaken. “US automakers have enjoyed a strong turnaround since the government aided the restructuring of GM and Chrysler, with US-based automakers’ sales up 29.1 percent since 2009,” one of the studies said.

“However, employment in the auto-parts and tire industry has rebounded at less than half that rate.”

Haley also blamed the practices of US carmakers themselves for buying more China-made parts.

“While other foreign auto companies operating in China have linked to auto-parts suppliers back home, US auto companies have cut ties with suppliers in the United States or encouraged them to manufacture in China,” she said. “US global auto strategy currently centers on

manufac turing in China and expor ting back home.

Consequently, China’s exports of auto parts to the United States are three times those of its next highest trading destination, Japan.”

Paul said AAM was not filing its own trade complaint against China, but that it expected the Obama administration would move by itself with the evidence from the studies. Obama “opened the door ” with his speech last week, he said. “I take the president at his word for this.” “ We have delivered to the administration actionable information.”

The complaint opened up a new front in US-China trade tensions, af ter two years of stepped up measures and counter-measures that analysts say look more and more like a trade war. “I think its more than rhetoric... The fears of a trade war are real,” said China economy expert Yukon Huang of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a Washington think tank.—AFP

Shares and euro firm after factory surveys Euro edges higher but debt fears weigh LONDON: European stocks jumped and the euro recovered from week lows yesterday after official data showed an unexpected expansion in China’s powerful factories in January and the first growth in German manufacturing

initely helping the market,” said Veronika Pechlaner, a fund manager on the Ashburton European equity fund. China’s official purchasing managers’ index showed the factory sector expanded slightly in January and the sepa-

“The core European numbers are more or less in expansionary territory,” said Peter Dixon global equities economist at Commerzbank. “Germany continues to motor on and show a reasonable amount of dynamism

HANOI: A street vendor sells fruits near a newly built shopping center in downtown Hanoi yesterday. Vietnam’s economic growth slowed to 5.9 percent and the government said it aims to achieve GDP growth of 6 to 6.5 percent. —AFP in four months. Overall the data remained relatively grim, with crumbling demand in Europe holding back more buoyant economies in Asia. But some of the key numbers were better than feared, and that positive added to hopes that Greece is edging towards a comprehensive deal on restructuring its debt to ease markets’ nerves at least for a moment.

“The good Chinese data is def-

rate indicator from bank HSBC contracted the least in three months. While euro zone manufacturing activity declined for a sixth straight month in January, there was a clear upturn in the German index that also bettered an initial flash estimate.

That helped European shares gain 1.25 percent to 1,049.96 points, adding to strong gains of nearly 5 percent in January, with banks the best performing sector.

and that will drag France along and maybe Italy but it is not really going to help the likes of Greece that much and Portugal and maybe Spain will struggle.” The MSCI world equity index, which has enjoyed a strong start to the year, seeing a rise of nearly six percent in January, was up 0.4 percent at 316.4.

GREEK DEAL Greece, which is mired in debt

Tabreed’s net profit more than doubles ABU DHABI: UAE utility firm Tabreed is bullish on growth this year with its projects fully funded, its CEO said yesterday, after posting fourth-quarter results which more than doubled from the previous year. Dubai-listed Tabreed, which received funding from state-owned fund Mubadala to restructure debt last year, saw quarterly profit rise to 52.9 million dirhams ($14.40 million) from 21.1 million dirhams yearago, according to Reuters calculations.

Profit growth was driven by strong performance at its core chilled water business and an increase in total capacity. “2012 is expected to be similar if not better. You will see the full impact of new customers, new connections of 2011,” Sujit Parhar, chief executive of Tabreed said in a phone interview. Reuters calculated the fourth quarter profit from previous financial statements. The company reported a net profit of 129.8 million dirhams for the nine-month period ending Sept 30, 2011.

Tabreed’s full-year net profit rose 34 percent to 182.7 million dirhams, the company said in a statement. Group revenues rose 9 percent to 1.1 billion dirhams, with its main chilled water division accounting for 943.8 million dirhams of the overall revenues. The company said

it added 11 plants during 2011 and an additional 8 percent in overall capacity.

Tabreed is among several Gulf companies which has had to restructure its debt after an economic boom, fuelled by recordhigh oil prices and easy credit, ended abruptly and caused a property market crash. In March 2011, Tabreed secured an extra 3.1 billion dirhams funding from state fund Mubadala, helping it to tackle its debt pile.

Asked about the capital expenditure for 2012, Parhar said the firm’s obligations are fully funded including the elements of new plants envisaged this year. “There is nothing that we envisage to go to the market in the near term,” he said. Its debtto-equity ratio stood at 0.93 percent at the end of 2011, compared with 3.15 percent at the end of the previous year.

Tabreed’s first plant in Saudi Arabia will be completed in the second half of this year, Parhar said. It also operates plants in Bahrain, Oman and Qatar. Mubadala currently owns 27.3 percent of Tabreed.

Tabreed shares were down 0.6 percent on the Dubai bourse at 0950 GMT. They have risen 9.5 percent year-to-date, having dropped 60 percent in the last year, according to Reuters data. —Reuters

structuring talks in a desperate bid to get a second bailout package and avoid a messy default, saw a record drop in production for January and a sharp decline in new orders, which could lead to more job losses. But investors are increasingly hopeful the talks will provide a deal that eases concerns of a chaotic, uncontrolled default which would ripple through the banking sector and debt markets.

Helped by resistance around the psychological 1.30 level against the dollar, the euro erased early losses after the PMI data to be modestly firmer around the $1.31 level. The dollar also fell to its lowest in three months against the yen, sparking concerns the Japanese authorities may step in, as traders adjusted positions to reflect the Federal Reserve’s pledge to keep interest rates near zero until late 2014 which left the door open to more quantitative easing. Yields on US Treasuries have fallen sharply since the Fed statement, with the five-year note near levels not seen since at least the 1960s.

Germany continued to see good demand for its debt despite low yields, selling just over 4.0 billion euros of new 10-year bonds at an average yield of 1.82 percent, down from 1.93 percent at a similar auction last month. That reflects Bunds status as a safe haven from the broader euro zone crisis although yields on riskier 10-year Italian debt broke below 6.0 percent to around 5.8 percent in morning trade. In oil markets Brent crude rose above $111 a barrel, gaining for a second straight session, on fears that tensions between Iran and the West may escalate with US lawmakers mulling more sanctions on Tehran, while the China manufacturing data also supported sentiment.—Reuters

Japan jobs treadmill grinds down workers and firms TOKYO: Third year university student Saki Fujii flips through a meticulously kept diary of her six-month job hunt and eyes the busy week of interviews ahead-another step on the treadmill for one of Japan’s would-be workers. The 22-year-old knows her best hope of finding a full-time position is by doing exactly the same thing as those before her, in an unending round of interviews, job seminars and employment fairs. “I don’t think it’s necessarily a good thing that everyone takes part in the job hunt,” she says. “With so many students looking to be recruited at the same time, we can’t really expect to be employed at the company we want to work at.” She is following in the footsteps of generations before her-but a few corporate exceptions are now beginning to offer a different path. Like most of her fellow students at the prestigious Waseda University, Fujii’s school life was one long slog of exam cramming. Straight after high school she started university, where her first two years were taken up with mandatory courses. Her third year is almost completely dedicated to the job search, and her fourth will concentrate entirely on her final exams. If all goes well she will leave university in March 2013 and start her working life as little as 10 days later.

Over the last 50 years the system has churned out a particular kind of employee, one that helped build Japan’s post-World War II economic miracle but then presided over two decades of stagnation and low growth. Kazuki Kurosawa, general director of non-profit organization Young Job-seekers Support Association, said the old recruiting methods worked in the past.

“When companies had to employ a large number of people (during times of economic growth), they hired a bundle of new graduates with an unspoken promise of securing their jobs until the legal retirement age.” —AFP

SEOUL: A woman looks at a 2 meters high and 3 meters long heel made of 60 kilograms (132 pounds) of chocolate on display for the upcoming Valentine’s Day at a department store in Seoul yesterday. —AP

South Korea records 6.6% drop in exports SEOUL: South Korea yesterday posted a shock 6.6 percent annual drop in exports for January and saw new export orders fall for a sixth consecutive month as the euro zone crisis and holidays hit, kicking off a major election year on a gloomy note. Inflation in January eased more than expected to a 1year low of 3.4 percent on drops in fresh food prices, but looked poised to stay elevated on high oil prices and anticipated hikes in public utility charges, leaving the central bank with little room to ease policy to support the slowing economy. Economists said the authorities, already known for their policy of keeping the won cheap, could try to bring the currency down to support exporters but added the impact of any such efforts were likely to be limited.

“The won is expected to appreciate modestly, which will not seriously hurt the price competitiveness of exports,” said Lee Sungkwon, chief economist at Shinhan Investment Corporation, referring to expectations that weakness in the US dollar would continue to prop up emerging market currencies. Exports fell year-on-year for the first time since October 2009, with sharp declines in shipments to debt-stricken Europe as the continent slides toward recession. The drop was more than the worst forecast from a Reuters poll of 11 analysts and compared with the median expectation for a 0.7 percent gain. The consumer price index rose less than a 3.6 percent median forecast from the poll.

EURO-ZONE HURT EXPORTS The won fell 0.3 percent versus the dollar, a relatively small but significant decline given foreign net buying of local stocks that amounted to about $300 million and helped push up the benchmark KOSPI 0.2 percent.

The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said weaker demand from Europe, long holidays and a lagged effect from the shipbuilding industry’s slump in 2008-2009 have combined to drag exports down. Exports to the European Union fell 44.8 percent in the first 20 days of January from a year earlier, it said.

With European demand fading fast, many export-reliant Asian economies are pinning their hopes on a recovery in consumption in the United States and China to cushion the blow. Indeed, South Korean shipments to the United States jumped 23.3 percent in the Jan 1-20 period, while those to China rose by a smaller 7.3 percent. China is Seoul’s largest export market, followed by the EU and the United States. Exports of completed ships plunged 41.5 percent, reflecting weak orders received two or three years back during the global financial crisis. Shipments of mobile phones tumbled 39.7 percent, mainly after Samsung Electronics started assembling more of its handsets abroad.

Even the country’s automakers, used to double-digit sales growth, suffered a setback. Reuters calculations based on company reports showed exports of domestically produced vehicles fell a combined 2.6 percent in January from a year earlier, while domestic

sales slid 17.1 percent. An official at the ministry said the average value of exports per working day excluding ships, which he said eliminates calendar and ship factors, was $1.71 billion in January this year, compared with $1.64 billion a year before. “We definitely see exports turning back to (year-on-year) growth February,” Han Jin-hyun, deputy minister for trade and investment, told reporters.

LITTLE ROOM SEEN FOR POLICY SHIFTS Adding to the gloom, manufacturing sector activity and new export orders both shrank for a sixth straight month in January, according to an HSBC/Markit survey of purchasing managers at South Korean manufacturing firms. Still-elevated inflation at a time when Asia’s fourth-largest economy is weakening leave the country’s central bank with little room to change its interest rate policy for the next several months, analysts said.

“We are keeping our view that the central bank will hike the base rate in the second half. I think it’s important to say here that the next move will not be a cut,” said Hwang Nayoung, economist at Taurus Investment & Securities. The Bank of Korea’s head of inflation research team, Lee Jae-rang, also told Reuters it was premature for the authorities to be complacent about inflation, adding pressures will remain high for the time being.

Price rises have been a key source of public discontent with the current administration.

President Lee Myung-bak on Tuesday toughened his rhetoric on prices as his conservative party faces dwindling popularity ahead of parliamentary elections in April and presidential polls in December.

The Bank of Korea began raising interest rates in July 2010 to prevent the rapid recovery from the 2008/09 global crisis from fuelling inflation, hiking it a total of 125 basis points until June last year. In the latest Reuters survey a small majority of analysts forecast the Bank of Korea would cut the policy rate during the first half, although a minority still saw room for a raise. The central bank has a target of keeping the year-onyear inflation rate at between 2 percent and 4 percent for the three years to the end of this year. It will set its next inflation target later this year in consultation with the government. Last week the government posted surprisingly weak fourth-quarter growth data.

Gross domestic product (GDP) rose a seasonally adjusted 0.4 percent in the OctoberDecember period from the previous quarter, the slowest in two years and just half the pace that economists polled by Reuters had predicted. The economy would have shrunk in the quarter were it not for a rise in inventories, and if demand does not improve those stockpiles could end up putting a drag on future quarters as companies curb production to work through excess supplies. Some global investment houses including Nomura see South Korea’s economy contracting in the first quarter as global demand cools further and Europe’s debt crisis shows little sign of abating. —Reuters

27

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

TECHNOLOGY

Amazon Q4 result sends stock lower Revenue falls nearly $1 billion

LONDON : The logo of social networking website ‘Facebook’ is displayed on a computer screen. —AFP

Will Facebook deliver an IPO surprise?

NEW YORK: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg turns up at business conventions in a hoodie. “Cocky” is the word used to describe him most often, after “billionaire.” He was Time’s person of the year at 26. So when he takes Facebook public, why would he follow the Wall Street rules?

The company is expected to file as early as yesterday to sell stock on the open market in what will be the most talked-about initial public offering since Google in 2004, maybe since the go-go 1990s.

Around the nation, regular investors and IPO watchers are anticipating some kind of twist -perhaps a provision for the 800 million users of Facebook, a company that promotes itself as all about personal connections, to get in on the action.

“Pandemonium is what I expect in terms of demand for this stock,” says Scott Sweet, senior managing partner at IPO Boutique, an advisory firm. “I don’t think Wall Street would want to anger Facebook users.” The most successful young technology companies have a history of doing things differently.

Google’s IPO prospectus contained a letter from its founders to investors that said the company believed in the motto “Don’t be evil.” Facebook declined to comment, but Reena Aggarwal, a finance professor who has studied IPOs at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, believes Zuckerberg will emulate Google’s philosophy, at least in principle. Founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin wanted an IPO accessible to all investors, and said so in their first regulatory filing. Facebook may say something similar when it files to declare its intention to sell stock publicly.

Facebook is expected to raise as much as $10 billion, which will value the company at $75 billion to $100 billion, making it one of the largest IPOs. A stock usually starts trading three to four months after the filing. The highly anticipated filing will reveal how much Facebook intends to raise from the stock market, what it plans to do with the money and details on its own financial performance and future growth prospects. Along with Wall Street investment banks, Google used a Dutch auction, named for a means of selling flowers in Holland, to sell its shares. It took private bids and allowed investors to say how many shares they wanted and what they were willing to pay.

The process wasn’t smooth, though, and Google had to slash its expected offer price at the last minute. If you bought at the IPO, for roughly $85 a share, you still did well: Google closed Tuesday at $580.

More recently, when it filed for an IPO last June, Groupon, which emails daily deals on products and services to its members, added a letter from its 30-year-old founder, Andrew Mason. “We are unusual and we like it that way,” the letter said. “We want the time people spend with Groupon to be memorable. Life is too short to be a boring company.”

It’s almost become conventional for tech companies to include an unconventional letter when they make their stock market debut. It’s widely expected that Zuckerberg, in the very least measure of showmanship, will write one. But IPO watchers wonder whether there might be a provision specifically designed to give the little-guy investor, even the casual Facebook user who doesn’t invest, a piece of the debut. “There is a feeling that there will be something unique in store for Facebook users,” Aggarwal says.

When most companies go public, they let Wall Street investment banks handle everything, with the sweet ground-floor stock price reserved for big institutional investors. But that probably won’t do for Facebook, created in a Harvard University dorm room eight years ago. Or Zuckerberg, whose antiestablishment credentials include spurning a $15 billion takeover offer from Microsoft. Few expect Zuckerberg to offer a Dutch auction because of the Google experience.

But he is at least as unorthodox as Google’s founders. People expect him to be in the driver’s seat on Wall Street, rather than hand over the controls to bankers.

Facebook is a vital part of people’s Internet lives and the most successful company in the history of social media.

Its closest competitor, Google+, has less than a tenth the active membership - 60 million people. “While there is no such thing as untouchable, Facebook is getting near there, with even Google imitat-

ing it,” says Sweet, of IPO Boutique. In “really hot IPOs,” 90 percent of the shares go to institutional investors and 10 percent to everyday investors, Sweet says. It’s a perk for the banks’ biggest clients, like Fidelity Investments or T Rowe Price or hedge funds.

The funds pay big commissions to the banks for regularly trading large blocks of stocks or bonds. Those relationships are deep and long-lasting - and lucrative for the banks. The funds expect to be rewarded. But Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, the banks expected to guide the Facebook IPO, are in an awkward place: They don’t want to tick off 800 million Facebook users - but they don’t want to tick off Fidelity, either. Most IPOs are underpriced, and the stock usually shoots up the first day. Lucky large investors get the basement price and usually a big payday if they sell on the first day. Smaller investors buy on the open market, after the price has spiked, and pay more.

And most early investors do sell. One university research paper found that about 70 percent of the new stock changes hands in the first two days.

Groupon introduced 35 million shares, but on the first day its shares were traded almost 50 million times. Ann Sherman, associate professor and IPO expert at DePaul University, raised the possibility that Facebook could set aside a portion of its shares for the small investor and use a lottery system if there is a lot of demand.

She says the US is the only country without IPO rules that put traditional investors on an equal footing. “Given that this is such a huge and popular IPO, I’ve been hoping that Facebook would use this opportunity to try a new method to bring in retail investors - a public offer where shares are set aside for only individual investors,” Sherman says. But Zuckerberg will also probably be careful how he plays his cards. He doesn’t want to anger Facebook users, but his primary goal is to raise money. The recent experience of Groupon’s faltering IPO holds tough lessons for young entrepreneurs.

After analysts started questioning its accounting, Groupon had to amend its regulatory filing several times.

Trying to salvage the IPO, founder Mason shed his trademark jeans and Tshirt and donned a suit. He dropped the irreverent talk and spoke about the company’s growth prospects at the IPO “roadshow” to impress investors. Other companies have encountered problems when they went public and tried to reward customers. Upstart Internet phone company Vonage wanted to give customers a chance to buy up to 15 percent of its 31 million shares at its IPO at $17 apiece. But when the shares fell 13 percent on the first day of trading, many of its small investors that had put in orders to buy didn’t want to pay the offer price. It gained the dubious title of one of the worst IPOs that year, something Facebook wants to avoid. It’s also more expensive to sell shares to many people. When thousands of small investors want to buy in, it becomes a logistical nightmare to make sure each investor gets a prospectus with all the important information.

Banks like large investors because it costs about the same to process an order of 50 shares as 50,000. But William Hambrecht, founder and CEO of WR Hambrecht & Co, a firm that runs IPO auctions, says companies that value their customers benefit in the long run. He gives the example of Boston Beer, maker of Samuel Adams, which went public in 1995. Its founder, James Koch, wanted to reward the people who made his company successful: the buyers of Sam Adams.

Koch set aside a quarter of his shares for the small investor. The deal was a big success and attracted more interest from his beer drinkers than there were shares available. Some people left out were dissatisfied. Hambrecht says about twothirds of the investors who bought those shares still owned the stock two years after the IPO. Even today, about a third still own it. Hambrecht says that’s because these investors appreciate the company’s product. “Our argument has always been that true buyers of your stock ought to be your own customer base,” says Hambrecht. “As the great investor Peter Lynch said: Invest in what you know.”—AP

NEW YORK: Shoppers spent more money online this holiday season than ever before, and yet, Amazon -the world’s largest Internet retailer- failed to meet Wall Street’s sales expectations with its latest financial results. In a surprise, the company’s revenue fell nearly $1 billion short of Wall Street’s expectations, even as it grew 35 percent from a year earlier. The quarter included Amazon’s headline-grabbing November launch of the Kindle Fire, its answer to Apple’s iPad. Its net income also fell sharply and its guidance for the current quarter was disappointing. Investors punished the stock. Amazon’s shares dropped $17.44, or 9 percent, to $177 in afterhours trading on Tuesday following the earnings announcement.

Though revenue grew 35 percent to $17.4 billion, analysts expected the holidays to lift sales to $18.3 billion, according to FactSet. Even so, BGC Financial analyst Colin Gillis said the company “didn’t really give a good answer” as to why its revenue fell short of expectations. And while its earnings were stronger than expected, he said the company has been “more revenue driven than earnings driven.” That explains why investors focused on the company’s sales growth.

With a stock valued as high as Amazon’s, they are looking for any sign of a slowdown as an excuse to sell. Meanwhile, Amazon’s expenses are increasing. Operating expenses grew 38 percent to $17.2 billion. The company has been investing heavily in new sales-fulfillment centers.

Investments such as these cut into profits during all of last year.

Seattle-based Amazon.com Inc said that its net income was $177 million, or 38 cents per share, in

the three months that ended Dec 31. That’s down 57 percent from $416 million, or 91 cents per share, a year earlier. Earnings

ter, Amazon is forecasting $12 billion to $13.4 billion in revenue.

Analysts were expecting $13.42 billion. The company also said it

MIAMI: File photo shows a webpage on Amazon.com featuring Kindle e-book readers on a computer screen in Miami. —AP dropped, the company said, as it continued to invest in sales fulfillment centers and increased its workforce by 67 percent from a year earlier. For the current quar-

may record an operating loss for the quarter. Its outlook was in the range of a loss of $200 million to a profit of $100 million for the three months ending in March.

Analysts had been worried about Amazon’s profit margins because of the heavy operating expenses, but they had expected stronger revenue growth.

Although the company’s earnings of 38 cents a share were well above Wall Street expectations of 17 cents, investors seemed to focus on the bad news elsewhere.

Amazon said sales of its Kindle tablet computers and e-reader gadgets nearly tripled compared with the final quarter of 2010. The company did not give exact sales numbers for the devices. The Kindle Fire, Amazon’s $199 tablet, went on sale in November. The company sees the Kindle as a way to drive sales of digital content such as e-books, music, movies and apps.

CEO Jeff Bezos said the Kindle was Amazon’s bestselling product during the holiday season in both the US and Europe.

Sales at Amazon’s media business, which includes books, DVDs, and content consumed on the Kindle, grew 15 percent to $6 billion. Sales from electronics and other general merchandise, which includes the Kindle devices, jumped 48 percent to $10.9 billion.

The company grew its employee base 67 percent from a year earlier, ending the year with 56,200 full-time and part-time workers. Chief Financial Officer Tom Szkutak said the job additions were in operations and customer service to support Amazon’s growth. For all of 2011, Amazon earned $631 million, down from $1.15 billion a year earlier. Revenue grew to $48.1 billion from $34.2 billion. Amazon’s stock dropped $17.44, or 9 percent, to $177 in after-hours trading following the earnings announcement. —AP

Kaspersky Lab is ‘Leader’ in Gartner Magic Quadrant

This undated artist rendering provided by NASA shows NASA’s Interstellar Boundary Explorer spacecraft. —AP

Scientists puzzled by outside solar system LOS ANGELES: A glimpse beyond our solar system reveals the neighborhood just outside the sun’s influence is different and stranger than expected, scientists reported Tuesday. One oddity is the amount of oxygen. There are more oxygen atoms floating freely in the solar system than in the immediate interstellar space, or the vast region between stars. Scientists were unsure why, but they said it’s possible some of the life-supporting element could be hidden in dust or ice.

“We discovered this big puzzle - that the matter just outside of our solar system doesn’t look like the material inside,” said David McComas of the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas.

The discovery came from NASA’s Interstellar Boundary Explorer spacecraft, which launched in 2008 to study the chaotic boundary where the solar wind from the sun clashes with cold gases from interstellar space. Circling 200,000 miles above Earth, the Ibex spacecraft spots particles

streaming into the solar system. A protective bubble surrounding around the sun and planets prevents dangerous cosmic radiation from seeping through, but neutral particles can pass freely, allowing Ibex to map their distribution. The presence of less oxygen outside the solar system should not have any bearing on the search for Earth-like planets, scientists involved in the exoplanet hunt said.

There’s plenty of oxygen in all the stars in the galaxy and in the material out of which stars and planets form, Geoff Marcy of University of California, Berkeley said in an email. While Ibex probes the edge of the solar system from Earth orbit, NASA’s long-running, nuclear-powered twin Voyager spacecraft are at the fringes. Launched in 1977, the spacecraft have been exploring the solar system boundary since 2004. Scientists have said it’ll be months or years before Voyager 1 exits the solar system and becomes the first manmade probe to cross into interstellar space. —AP

Kaspersky Lab, a leading developer of secure content and threat management solutions, announces that it has officially been named a “Leader” in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms.

The Gartner Magic Quadrant is based on complex analysis of endpoint protection platforms of a wide range of IT security vendors. It is the most influential benchmark for companies seeking to evaluate vendors and products in the IT security industry, and plays a very important role in purchase decisions of enterprises on a global scale.

This Magic Quadrant is based on criteria in two categories: completeness of vision and ability to execute.

Completeness of vision reflects the vendor’s standing on innovation, and whether the vendor drives or follows the endpoint protection market. Ability to execute summarizes factors such as the vendor’s financial viability, market responsiveness, product development, sales channels and customer base in the endpoint protection segment.

Commenting on the Gartner ’s report, Eugene Kaspersky, Chairman and CEO of Kaspersky Lab, said: “I can’t underestimate the importance of Gartner’s analysis. Being among the “Leaders” in the Magic Quadrant is very important for us. I believe it will help us in expanding of our corporate clients’ base and further improving the company ’s market positions. I want to stress that the work behind becoming a Leader was truly a team effort. The Kaspersky Lab team has been working hard on our latest corporate product Kaspersky Endpoint Security 8. And we are happy that we achieved the results that were estimated by Gartner.”

Among the strongest advantages of Kaspersky Endpoint Security 8 are rapid and comprehensive malware detection complemented by reducing the potential attack surface, as well as the product’s manageability, advanced HIPS features, and broad endpoint platform support. Kaspersky Lab offers a product range that meets all the main information security requirements that businesses and large state organizations must adhere to.

Kaspersky Lab’s corporate client base exceeds 200,000 companies across the globe, ranging from small and medium-sized businesses, to large government and commercial organizations, such as Generali and BASF.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

H E A LT H & S C I E NC E

With testosterone, it’s ‘my way or the highway’ PARIS: Testosterone can skew one’s judgement, creating the impression that decisions are best taken alone even in situations that call for collaboration, according to a study released yesterday.

In a clever set of experiments, scientists led by Nicholas Wright at the University of London showed that women given a dose of testosterone become less inclined to act in concert even when it was clearly in their interest to do so.

Finding the right balance between working together and going solo - and knowing when to do one or the other - is an essential life skill.

In some circumstances, joining forces with others is the best way to achieve a

desired result: that’s why lions and hyenas hunt in packs, and why humans cooperate on the playing field, in the laboratory, or in battle. Sometimes, however, decisive individual action is needed to break free of group-think, or to come out ahead of the game. To a significant extent, our ability to navigate between these two extremes is acquired through learning and experience, but some of these impulses are hardwired too.

Earlier research, for example, on the biological underpinnings of group decision making revealed that a naturallyoccurring hormone, oxytocin, promotes the urge to work side-by-side. At the same time, it was well established that

testosterone boosted risk-taking, antisocial behaviour and the kind of aggressiveness that fuels contact sports and trading floors on Wall Street. But whether the alpha male hormone par excellence - also present at much lower levels in females - also makes individuals shun cooperation and become more egocentric was not known.

To find out, Wright and his colleagues carried out a series of tests over two days, spaced a week apart, with 17 pairs of women volunteers who did not know each other. On one of the two days, both volunteers in each pair were given a testosterone supplement, while on the other day they ingested a look-alike

placebo. The researchers chose females because in men an additional dose has the effect of suppressing production of the hormone by the body. During the experiment, both women in each pairing sat in the same room but in front of separate computer screens.

The women were shown the same two images, and asked to pick the one in which a hard-to-discern high-contrast pattern appeared. If their individual choices agreed, the exercise ended there. But if they diverged, the women were told to consult with each other and reach a joint decision. Pairs of women who had taken the dummy pill were significantly more successful in coming up

with the right answer than those pairs who had been given the hormone, the researchers found.

“The higher levels of testosterone were associated with individuals behaving egocentrically and deciding in favour of their own selection over their partner’s,” even when that choice was wrong, Wright said in a statement. “Too much testosterone can help blind us to other people’s views,” he concluded. “This can be very significant when we are talking about a dominant individual trying to assert his or her opinion in, say, a jury.”

The broader conclusion, he added, is that hormonal levels can disrupt our attempts to work together. — AFP

Milking it: India looks to improve its dairy sector Venture hopes to drive up standards

This undated artist’s illustration shows Aegisuchus witmeri “Shieldcroc”. — AFP

Oldest known croc had shield-like head WASHINGTON: The oldest known species of crocodile had an armor-plated head and a body half the length of a subway car, according to research released Tuesday by US scientists who identified the now-extinct creature. Nicknamed “Shieldcroc” for its impressive head plate, the aquatic reptile swam in the waters of Africa some 95 million years ago and is the newest discovery of an ancient crocodile species, said the study in the journal PLoS ONE. University of Missouri anatomy professor Casey Holliday identified the croc, Aegisuchus witmeri, by studying a fossilized partial skull specimen that was first discovered in Morocco.

The croc’s shield was likely used as a way to intimidate foes, attract mates and even control its head temperature, researchers said. Its head was considerably flatter than other known species of crocodile.

Given the creature’s relatively thin

jaws, Shieldcroc mostly ate a diet of fish, and probably did not use his armored head as a fighting weapon but rather as camouflage. “We believe Shieldcroc may have used its long face as a fish trap,” said co-author Nick Gardner, an undergraduate researcher at Marshall University in West Virginia.

“It is possible that it lay in wait until an unsuspecting fish swam in front of it.

Then, if it was close enough, Shieldcroc simply opened its mouth and ate the fish without a struggle, eliminating the need for strong jaws.”

An analysis of the croc’s head size compared to other known creatures led the team to believe it likely boasted a 1.5 m long head and a nine meter long body.

The croc would have shared the Earth with the many dinosaurs that thrived during the Late Cretaceous Period in the Mesozoic Era, which has been referred to as the “Age of the Dinosaurs”. — AFP

France urges controls after implant scandal PARIS: France vowed yesterday to strengthen the regulation and monitoring of prosthetics and called for Europe-wide controls after a defective breast implant case sparked a global health scare. More than 400,000 women around the world are thought to have received implants made

by Poly Implant Prothese (PIP), which shut in 2010 after it was found to have used substandard, industrial-grade silicone gel.

Separately, Italy’s association of plastic surgeons filed a lawsuit against the French manufacturer and Germany ’s TUV Rheinland, a company that certified that the implants conformed to European safety rules.

French Health Minister Xavier Bertrand said inspections of manufacturers of medical devices will be reinforced following the incident, with the number of inspectors increased and the inspections “more numerous and unannounced”. He said in a statement that a report released by French health authorities Wednesday had “shown the massive deception organised by PIP” but also “the weaknesses of control and surveillance systems”. Bertrand also said that European Union rules on regulating and monitoring medical devices “must be radically overhauled”.

In the report, French health authorities urged stronger national and European regulation and monitoring of medical devices.

“This strengthening must be done at two levels, national and European,” said the report by France’s Directorate General for Health (DGS) and the consumer safety body AFSSAPS. The report also called for AFSSAPS to increase its inspections, with both regular and surprise visits. Inspections for some devices should be carried out annually and include taking samples for analysis, it said. There should also be easier ways to report defective devices, it said.

Bertrand said the health ministry had called on the DGS and AFSSAPS to prepare proposals for further reforms of the inspection system and to provide a list of at-risk prosthetics by the beginning of March. An AFSSAPS inspector discovered PIP’s use of the non-standard silicone in March 2010 and ordered its products banned, but only after the company had already used the gel

in hundreds of thousands of implants. The report noted that AFSSAPS did not carry out any inspections at PIP between 2001 and 2010. It said that reports of ruptured PIP implants prior to 2009 “were not of a sufficient number to signal a heightened risk compared to other suppliers”.

AFSSAPS chief Dominique Maraninchi stressed the importance of improving coordination with other national health and safety bodies, notably the United States’ FDA, which banned PIP from the US market as early as 2000. A French court last week charged the company’s founder, 72-yearold Jean-Claude Mas, with causing “involuntary injuries” and the courts are also pursuing a mass fraud investigation. Fears over PIP implants spread across the world late last year after French health authorities advised 30,000 women to have them removed because of an increased risk of rupture.

Between 400,000 and 500,000 women in 65 countries are believed to have implants from PIP, once the world’s thirdlargest silicone implant producer. A number of countries, including Germany and the Czech Republic, followed France in recommending that the implants be removed as a precaution, but Britain has said it will not follow suit. At least 13 countries in Europe and Latin America have also urged women to have a check-up. French officials have said that cancer, including 16 cases of breast cancer, had been detected in 20 French women with the implants, but have insisted there is no proven link.

Following the discovery of PIP’s faulty implants, AFSSAPS conducted inspections of the nine implant makers and distributors active in France and found no further problems. Mas, a former travelling salesman who got his start in the medical business by selling pharmaceuticals, founded PIP in 1991 to take advantage of the booming market for cosmetic implants.

He reportedly told investigators that he used fake business data to fool health inspectors. The substandard gel was in 75 percent of PIP breast implants, saving the company about one million euros ($1.3 million) annually, according to an ex-company executive. — AFP

MANCHAR, India: Bhagyalaxmi Dairy Farm lies tucked away up a rutted country track, among the patchwork of dusty brown scrub and lush green parcels of farmland to the northeast of the Indian city of Pune. With a herd of more than 3,000 cows, a state-of-theart milking parlour and on-site bottling plant using French technology, it’s a world away from traditional Indian village farming. The 10.5-hectare farm, owned by Parag Milk Foods Ltd, provides milk for its Pride of Cows brand, which at 75 rupees ($1.4) a litre is about three times more expensive than other milk on the market.

The product is sold directly to just 1,500 well-heeled people in south Mumbai, effectively making a staple commodity a luxury that most Indians cannot afford. But the company sees it differently, hoping the six-monthold venture will drive up standards across India’s dairy sector, where milk quality is a problem. India has the world’s largest dairy herd and is also the biggest milk producer.

The National Dairy Development Board estimates that 121 million tonnes of milk were produced in 2010-11 - about 17 percent of the global total.

But earlier last month, India’s Food Safety and Standards Authority said that more than two-thirds of the milk it tested in 33 states was contaminated with substances including salt and detergent. Skimmed milk powder, fat, glucose and added water were also found, not only reducing its nutritional value but also posing risks to human health. Edmund Vincent-Piper says it doesn’t have to be this way. As manager at Bhagyalaxmi, he’s in charge of overseeing the feeding and care of the farm’s thoroughbred Holstein-Friesian cattle.

Outside vehicles are disinfected at the gate and protective clothing is compulsory for workers to ensure the potential for contamination is kept to a minimum. “This is probably India’s best and cleanest dairy farm,” said the 52-year-old Englishman, who is known as “Piper” to his employees and bosses. “The potential (for dairy farming) in India is exponential when you look at the number of cows - 120 million, the largest single population in the world - but the downside is the output.

Improvements can be made,” he said. “I’m here to show India that the technology is out there.

If you feed cows properly and use proper hus-

bandry techniques, cows will perform.”

As Indian diets change due to economic growth, the government has drawn up a plan to help meet growing demand, recognising the need for science to help boost production and improve standards. What’s required, said Vincent-Piper, who has worked as a dairyman in Britain, the Gulf and Middle East, is for a change in attitudes towards dairy farming, as well as greater investment. “The animals come first,” he said, as 50 heifers at a time trooped on to a rotating platform in the milking parlour and had their heavy udders hooked up to computer-operated machines.

The job hasn’t been easy, he admitted, with a lack of practical experience among Indian

what’s left over from crops grown for human consumption, is also a challenge.

Reducing stress levels is seen as key: Bhagyalaxmi cows are untethered and have individual pens with rubber mats instead of straw or hard brick floors. Music plays in the milking parlour. Another part of the program is improving indigenous stock: already male calves from Bhagyalaxmi, born through artificial insemination from pedigree bulls in north America, are being given to local farmers.

Vincent-Piper cites the Pune-based poultry giant Venky’s as an example of how private enterprise can transform an agricultural sector in India into big business.

He believes that private companies like

PUNE: Holstein-Friesian breed cows are seen inside a rotary at the Bhagyalaxmi Dairy Farm located northeast of this Indian city on Jan 12, 2012. – AFP farm workers one of the main problems.

Employees have needed training to help “read” cows for signs of illness or distress that can affect milk supply while vets have taken persuading to give routine vaccinations to animals that are considered sacred to many Hindus. Convincing local farmers to prioritise proper feeding of cattle to maximise milk quantity and quality, rather than giving them

Parag, which sells dairy products from milk to mozzarella under the Go and Gowardhan brands, will help lead the way in modernising the sector. Bit by bit, experience and knowledge is increasing, he added, predicting that similar-sized high-tech farms will come up in the next decade. “You can do it by taking small steps. You can make a big difference,” he said.— AFP

Eating fish lowers colon polyps risk NEW YORK: Women who eat about three servings of fish per week have a somewhat lower chance of having colon polyps, which can develop into cancer, than women who eat less than a serving a week, according to a US study. Though the research, which covered more than 5,000 people and appeared in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, didn’t prove that seafood protects against polyps, earlier experiments in animals have showed that the omega-3 fatty acids in fish can reduce the risk of colorectal cancer.

About 140,000 new cases of colon and rectal cancer are diagnosed each year in the United States, and the lifetime risk of developing it is

about 20 percent, according to the American Cancer Society. “(The research) does increase our confidence that something real is going on,” said Edward Giovannucci, a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health, who didn’t work on the study.

The idea that researchers have been pursuing is that the omega-3 fats in fish might have an antiinflammatory effect, similar to aspirin, that could prevent the growth of polyps. For the latest study, researchers led by Harvey Murff, a professor at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, surveyed more than 5,300 people about their eating habits. All had come in for a

SINGAPORE: A supporter of the Singapore Cancer Society gives out “syringe” pens to passersby at the financial district of Raffles Place yesterday, ahead of the World Cancer Day. More than 20,000 “syringe” pens will be distributed to raise public awareness of the “global pain crisis”, a study that documented how countries manage the pain of patients suffering from cancer and other terminal diseases, and the ease at which these patients can access the pain reliever morphine. — AFP

routine colonoscopy. The team then compared more than 1,400 women without polyps to 456 who had polyps, also called an adenoma, detected during the procedure.

Among women with polyps, 23 percent were in the bottom fifth among fish eaters, while 15 percent were in the top fifth. That means that people who eat lots of seafood are somehow protected, because otherwise the percentages should have been the about the same. After accounting for differences such as age, smoking and aspirin use, women who ate the most fish, three servings a week, were 33 percent less likely to have a polyp detected than those who ate the least, or less than a serving a week.

But other factors explaining the findings can’t be ruled out. For instance, fish lovers may have other healthy behaviors that decrease their risk of polyps. The study also didn’t follow the women to see whether either group was more likely to go on to develop cancer, but Murff said that polyps are a reliable predictor of cancer risk. “You would think most things that would reduce adenoma risk would subsequently reduce cancer risk,” he told Reuters Health.

The men in Murff’s study who ate a lot of fish did not have the same reductions in polyp risk as women, however. Murff said he didn’t have a good explanation for that, but that perhaps men are less sensitive to the omega-3s in fish and need to eat more to get the benefit.

It could also be that men eat more omega-6 fats, found in a broad range of foods including chicken and nuts, which counteract the impact of the omega-3s. Omega-6 fatty acids are related to the production of a hormone called prostaglandin E2, which is associated with inflammation. Eating Omega-3 fatty acids keeps down the level of Omega-6 acids, which in turn cuts levels of the hormone, Murff said. He noted that the women in the study who ate more fish and presumably, more Omega-3s - had lower levels of the hormone. “We know people who have higher levels of this (hormone) are more likely to develop colorectal cancer. So in essence, by eating more Omega-3 fatty acids, it’s almost like taking an anti-inflammatory medication,” he told Reuters Health. — Reuters

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

H E A LT H

Drug okayed to treat cystic fibrosis’ root cause WASHINGTON: The first drug that treats the root cause of cystic fibrosis won approval Tuesday, offering a life-changing treatment for a handful of patients with the deadly illness and broader hope for thousands more patients with the inherited disease. About 30,000 Americans live with cystic fibrosis, a disease that causes sticky mucus buildup in the lungs and other organs, leading to infections, digestive problems and death in young adulthood. The typical life expectancy is about 37 years, according to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

The Food and Drug Administration approved Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc’s Kalydeco for patients with a rare form of the disease that affects just 1,200 people in the US, about 4 percent of affected population nationwide. These patients have a protein defect that prevents their cells from properly absorbing and excreting salt and water.

Studies of the drug showed it significantly improved lung function and reduced other symptoms of cystic fibrosis.

“Even though this drug isn’t for the majority of people, it proves that you can look at the mistake in the genes and design a drug in a rational way that will fix the problem,” said Dr Drucy Borowitz of the State University of New York at Buffalo, where she directs the cystic fibrosis program. The twice-a-day pill is among the first drugs designed to a correct a specific genetic defect. Its development characterizes both the promise and challenges of that approach. Scientists first identified the gene that causes cystic fibrosis in 1989, but it took more than two decades and more than $75 million in outside funding to develop a drug to treat the disease.

Borowitz enrolled several of her patients in the key study for Kalydeco, which showed that patients taking the drug increased their lung strength more than 10 percent when compared with patients taking a placebo.

Patients also had fewer infections and gained nearly seven pounds on average, a significant amount for patients who typical-

ly have trouble retaining weight. All patients in the study continued taking older medications that help loosen mucus. “Two weeks after using the drug my lung tests were above average for a healthy 15-year-old who didn’t have cystic fibrosis,” said Nick Mangano, 17, a Borowitz patient who has been taking the drug for two years. Before starting on Kalydeco, Mangano said he was hospitalized for lung infections five times in four years. Now he says he usually recovers from a cold within a week or two.

“I don’t really need medicine for it anymore, it’s totally different,” said Mangano, who is considering leaving Buffalo for college next year - a step he hadn’t previously considered because of his dependence on his family and physicians. Only a few decades ago, children with cystic fibrosis seldom survived elementary school. Today, thanks to earlier diagnosis and new focus on diet and physical therapy, 47 percent live to be 18 or older. The FDA approved the drug for patients 6 years old and up, though

Vertex is also planning to study the drug in patients as young as 2 years old. Researchers hope that by using the drug earlier they will be able to prevent permanent lung damage, which is the primary cause of death for cystic fibrosis patients.

Mangano and others with the so-called G551D mutation have a defective protein that fails to balance the flow of chloride and water across the cell wall, leading to the buildup of internal mucus. The vast majority of cystic fibrosis patients have a different genetic defect, in which the protein does not reach the cell wall. Vertex is developing another drug to try and address that problem. Study data for that drug is expected later this year. Kalydeco is part of a growing number of new medicines that target rare genetic variations found in subgroups of patients. Last year Pfizer launched a new lung cancer drug called Xalkori, which targets cancer linked to a genetic mutation found in less than 7 percent of patients.

Vertex executives said Kalydeco would

cost $294,000 for a year’s supply, placing it among the most expensive prescription drugs sold in the US. Specialty drugmakers are known to charge $300,000 or more for drugs that treat very small groups of patients. “The drug is priced for the value it will deliver to this very small group of patients,” Vertex Executive Vice President Nancy Wysenski told analysts. Wysenski said Vertex would provide the medicine for free to people with no insurance and household income of $150,000 or less. The company will also cover 30 percent of copay costs for select patients who have insurance. The FDA approved the drug in approximately three months, half the time usually needed for high-priority drugs. After scientists identified the genetic sequence that causes cystic fibrosis in 1989, many experts hoped the disease could be cured by replacing the gene with a normal one. However, attempts at so-called gene therapy proved unsuccessful, and researchers began looking for ways to correct the genetic defect.— AP

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

W H AT ’ S O N

Upcoming events KDA to hold funtion The financial assistance to families of deceased members of Kozhikode District Association (KDA) will be disbursed tomorrow 3rd Febraury 2012 at United Indian School Abbasiya. Sadanandan and Aboobakkar Koya who were members of the association passed away in Kuwait while they were in service and financial assistance is being disbursed to their family members. Asssociation President E.Rajagopalan and General Secretary Rishi Jacob requested all Kozhikode natives to attend the function.

Comedy play Indian Cultural Society proudly presents new concept of comedy play “Mujhse Shaadi Karogi” with Bhagyashree & Akshay Ananad along with Krutika Sharma, Prairna & Navin Agarwal on 17th Feb at 7 pm sharp at Dr Kamil Al Rays auditorium American International School near Police station Maidan Hawally Kuwait. The Chief Guest for the event will be Ambassador of India, Kuwait and the guest of honor will be prominent personalities from Kuwait. For more information contact: 97270386, 67030839, 66127231, or log on to ics.kuwait@gmail.com Music album An Indian music album, ‘Pranayam Madhuvasantham’, to be shot in Kuwait invites actors and associates, album’s creator Hari Paravoor said. The 9-songs audio album, which was released at a function at Gulf Indian School about a year ago is penned by Hari Paravoor and tuned by Bashir Koyilandi. The video album of the songs will be released shortly. The album creators would like creative contributions from artistes and common folks who can give a try in creative participation in the album. Please contact: 55442649.

Music festival On March 1, 2012, the “Blend Music Festival,” a mellow acoustic get-together of several local musicians, will take place in Bayt Lothan, the official sponsor, host, and curator of the event. This event will be FREE of charge and open to everyone to attend. We hope to see you all there, and here’s to a great start to 2012! The “Blend Music Festival” will be the first of many concerts to be held; there are a handful of musicians on board, and more will be added to the sets at a later stage. Here is the program for March 1st: 1- Ali Sleeq with Gary Ruston & Kevin Owen = JAZZ; 2- Hadi Sarieddine, Bader Nana, & Sarj = ROCK; 3- Lewis Chapman FOLK / ROCK.

The Regency Hotel shines at Horeca Food Exhibition 2012

T

he Regency Hotel’s team shone in the globally prestigious Hospitality and Food Exhibition “Horeca 2012”, organized recently in Kuwait by the Leader group for consulting and development, from Jan 22- Jan 24, bagging a series of prizes across a range of categories. The expert team, comprising some of The Regency’s best talents, drew from its vast experience in competitions and displayed flamboyant culinary and

artistic skills to earn the accolades.

Chef Gilman d’Costa was awarded a merit certificate for his extraordinary performance in the Chocolate Showpiece competition. Chef Mangala Chaminda won the Silver Medal for an exquisite chocolate sculpture in the Chocolate Carving category. When the same skills were applied on vegetables, the team’s artisanship befitted nothing less than Gold Medal.

A couple of Bronze Medals fell in the team’s kitty when Chef Amal Roy and Chef Mohammed Rafeef joined hands for the Team Live Cooking. Chef Subarat Kumar and Chef Kasun Dilhan too won a Bronze for a similar event. Chef Mark Serrano for Live Sushi, Chef Kasun Dilhan for Live Sandwich, Chef Ayman Ali Bakar for Wedding Cake and Chef Anuraj Nair for Cold Plated Fish Platter were the other bronze medalists.

The Regency Hotel general manager Riaz Mahmoud proudly congratulates each of the winners for their brilliant performance at the Hospitality and Food Exhibition, 2012 and wished them further progress and success.

Acting workshop The British Academy of International Arts (BAIA) is holding a world class acting workshop over three days. Nona Shepphard, Associate Director of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), will share her expertise as actor, director and playwright. The workshop will involve learning how to transform the written text into a successful performance.

Shepphard is head of the audition panel at RADA and will also discuss how best to prepare for auditions. This workshop is a rare opportunity and a must for anyone interested in improving their acting skills and/or considering a career in Theatre. When: February 2nd, 3rd & 4th. For more information: info@thebaia.com or 6005-2087 Where: Shakespeare Theatre At The British School of Kuwait (BSK) Salwa.

Infoconnect expo to be held in Kuwait From January 29th till February 4th Infoconnect will be held at the Kuwait International Fair Grounds. Infoconnect is one of the most professionally organized trade shows in Kuwait, dedicated exclusively to the computer applications and information technology sector. The show ranks high on the popularity count, drawing in a large number of exhibitors as well as qualified business visitors at each of its editions. The line of products put on exhibit at the show is quite extensive and includes computer peripherals, IT security tools, software solutions, data warehousing systems and a host of other related services and accessories.

The show draws in active participation from eminent professionals from both the public as well as the private sectors and the latest innovations and developments in the IT industry are closely looked into here. The show is held over a period of seven days at the Kuwait International Fairground and enjoys large scale media coverage too.

Mezzan Holding organizes blood donation campaign

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nder the theme that blood donation saves human lives and believing in national and human ties, Mezzan Holding Company hosted the Blood Bank Mobile Unit Team within an internal campaign launched among its employees to donate blood.

For this occasion, Garry Walsh-Chief Executive Officer said: “This was a beneficial event and we are looking forward to repeating similar events in the future”.

The event took place over two days, on Jan 18 and Jan 25, 2012, from 8 am to 1 pm, where employees stopped working to participate in this important event.

GLEE-esque show choir This Valentine’s Day step into a musical Love Story performed by Vocal Rhapsody, KLT’s first ever GLEE-esque show choir. Vocal Rhapsody’s “Love Story” - is a show choir production with hit songs from artists such as Journey, Queen, Katy Perry and Meatloaf. It promises to be an exciting evening for all with some classic songs that everyone will enjoy. contact: http://www.theklt.com Cultural program On the 10th of February 2012, Friday at 3:30 pm. A cultural program will be staged at the Carmel School Kuwait, Khaitan. This will include a Book Fair and an Art Competition with a Musical Drama (JanatarDak). It is written n Directed by Rafiqul Islam Bulu and organized by the Bangladesh Udjapon Committee Kuwait. This is an open invitation, All are welcome.

Burns Supper The Kuwait Caledonians are pleased to invite you to the 2012 Burns Supper to be held at the Movenpick Hotel, AlBida’a today 2nd February, 2012 Please email kuwaitcaledonians@gmail.com Or call 60057882 Sadu weaving workshop This workshop is of four weeks duration, and it will be held twice a week. The morning group sessions are on Monday and Wednesday from 9am to 12pm. The evening group are on Sunday and Tuesday from 4:30pm to 7:30pm. A total of 8 sessions of three hours each.

This workshop will be held from January 22nd to February 18th.

For more Information kindly contact Sadu House at: info@alsadu.org.kw SaduWeaving@gmail.com 2243-2395 or 9959-7983 Boat show in Kuwait Kuwait City, is like a magnet: indeed it has been attracting Bedouin people from the Arabian interior, in search of a sea breeze and an escape from recurring drought, for centuries. Today the metropolis is still an oasis in a land of desert plains, but rather more of the cultural and epicurean kind. Excellent museums; a corniche ornamented with combed beaches and extravagant restaurants; modern shopping complexes and marinas, and long and lazy retreats at new beach resorts mark the Kuwait City experience. The organizers of the Kuwait International Boat Show expect more than 100 marine companies to display their latest products, boats, yachts, super yachts, electronics, engines and thousands of boating accessories from major marine manufacturers. The Boat Show encompasses more than 120.000 m2 of space, both on land and in water.

Where: Souk Sharq Marina & Water Front Boat Show Timings: 5:30 pm - 10:00 pm, February 8- 12.

IMAX film program Today The Last Reef 3D 10:30 am, 11:30 am, 1:30 pm, 2:30 pm, 4:30 pm, 5:30 pm, 7:30 pm, 8:30 pm, 10:30 pm Journey to Mecca 12:30 pm

Sea Rex 3D 10:30 pm Saturday The Last Reef 3D 10:30 am, 11:30 am, 1:30 pm, 2:30 pm, 4:30 pm, 5:30 pm, 7:30 pm, 8:30 pm, 10:30 pm

Sea Rex 3D 3:30 pm Into The Deep 3D 6:30 pm

Into The Deep 3D 12:30 pm

Born to be Wild 3D 9:30 pm

Born to be Wild 3D 3:30 pm, 9:30 pm

Tomorrow Fires of Kuwait 2:30 pm The Last Reef 3D 3:30 pm, 5:30 pm, 6:30 pm, 8:30 pm, 9:30 pm Into The Deep 3D 4:30 pm

Born to be Wild 3D 7:30 pm

Sea Rex 3D 6:30 pm Note: - All films are in Arabic. For English, headsets are available upon request.

- “Fires of Kuwait” is in English. Arabic headsets are available upon request.

- Film schedule is subject to change without notice.

New Year Fest

A

ngamaly Pravasi Association, Kuwait will be celebrating a New Year fest and family get-together tomorrow at United Indian School Auditorium, Abbassiya from 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm. All members and well-wishers of Angamaly Pravasi Association and residents of Angamaly Constituency Area, whoever is interested to become members of the Association and willing to co-operate with us and support us in our social and welfare activities are cordially invited to attend this Event with their families. For this event we have arranged Ganamela and several cultural programs performed by local artists and families of Association members. For further details, please contact President Saju Geo Thachil mobile on 66543281 or General Secretary Martin Kurian on 66789502 or Treasurer Nigi Paily on 66608296 and Program convener Sajeev on 66191809.

Walsh thanked all employees who participated in this event and added: “the objective of this campaign is to give examples of the national and social responsibility which represents Mezzan Holding principles and we urge all local companies, Kuwait nationals and residents to participate in regular blood donation campaigns to help patients and people in need of blood to save lives. Such humanitarian campaigns represent the core of the founders of Mezzan Holding beliefs and we promise that we will arrange more similar social campaigns in Kuwait.”

FAWSEC Educational Company hosts International Educators’ Conference

T

he FAWSEC Educational Company, owner of Al-Bayan Bilingual School and Fawzia Sultan International School hosted its second Kuwait International Educators’ Conference at Al-Bayan Bilingual School on January 27-29, 2012. Twenty-five presenters specialized in various fields of education were invited to present in the conference from Kuwait, the region and abroad. Presenters were from the Kuwait Association for Learning Differences (KALD), Center for Child Evaluation and Teaching (CCET ), Soor Center, the American University of Beirut, the Interactive Knowledge Center in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, Buffalo State SUNY in the USA, Canada, and the UK. The conference was in part sponsored by a number of companies and associations that adopt a social responsibility towards students in Kuwait through supporting the latest in educational methods and learning strategies. Among them were the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS), Dow, The Sultan Center, Ali AbdulWahab and Sons, Al-Dawliah

Electronics, Hitachi and Wataniya Telecom.

Lynda Abdul Raheem, the conference organizer and professional development coordinator at FAWSEC Educational Company, explained that the conference registered attendance of 600 delegates from 25 English, Arabic and bilingual schools in Kuwait.

Presenters offered workshops and lectures of four hours duration that covered many subject areas and topics that are vital to the modern educator. Literacy, Understanding

by Design, Classroom Management, Special Needs, Math Assessment and Strategies, Gifted and Talented Students, Inquiry Learning in Science, Emotional Intelligence, Dealing with Work Pressure and much more. The conference also featured two keynote presentations simultaneously each day, one in Arabic and the other in English. Teachers worked very hard throughout this three-day event to upgrade their skills, expand their knowledge and continue their lifelong learning habits to be able to energize and motivate their students.

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W H AT ’ S O N

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

Embassy Information EMBASSY OF BRAZIL The Embassy of Brazil requests all Brazilian citizens in Kuwait to proceed to the website www.brazil.org.kw (Contact Us Form / Fale Conosco) in order to register or update contact information. The Embassy encourages all citizens to do so, including the ones who have already registered in person at the Embassy. The registration process helps the Brazilian Government to contact and assist Brazilians living abroad in case of any emergency. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF BANGLADESH The Embassy of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh in Kuwait will remain closed today on the occasion of the Holy Eid-EMiladun Nabi. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF BRITAIN The British Embassy will be closed today on the occasion of the Prophet’s (Peace Be Upon Him) birthday. The consular section will also be closed on the same date. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF KOREA The Embassy of the Republic of Korea wishes to inform that it has moved to Mishref.

New Address: Embassy of the Republic of Korea Mishref, Block 7A, Diplomatic Area 2, Plot 6 The Embassy also wishes to inform that it will be opened to the public on the following office hours: Saturdays to Thursday Morning: 8:00 am to 12:30 pm Lunch Break: 12:30 pm to 1:00 pm Afternoon: 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm nnnnnnn

BSK hosts Inspector Morse event

T

he British School of Kuwait again threw the spotlight on science by hosting a Murder Mystery Evening for gifted and talented students in the Middle Department. The event was patronized by the British Ambassador Frank Baker and his wife Maria who joined BSK Chairman Sadiq Al-Mutawa

and BSK Director Vera for an evening of intrigue and excitement. The aim of the event was to help students develop an appreciation of Science by enjoying relevant, exciting and dynamic science learning outside the classroom environment. Held in the Lowry Gallery at the BSK campus students used the latest

forensic techniques which involved finger printing, chromatography, blood analysis and flame and chemical tests to analyze the evidence left at the crime scene and solve the murder. After careful analysis of the clues, the students determined the murderer (a well known BSK staff member), who was then hand-

cuffed and led away to meet his fate.

Overall the students and adults agreed that it was a great way to spend an evening and a worthy component of the BSK Science Week 2012.

EMBASSY OF INDIA The Embassy of India will remain closed on the following dates during the month of February 2012.

1. Milad-Un-Nabi - Feb 5, - Sunday.

2. National Day of Kuwait - Feb 25, - Saturday.

3. Liberation Day of Kuwait - Feb 26, - Sunday. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF MYANMAR Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar would like to inform the general public that the Embassy will move its office to new location at Villa 35, Road 203, Block 2, AlSalaam Area in South Surra. The Embassy wishes to advice Myanmar citizens and travellers to Myanmar to contact Myanmar Embassy at its new location from 26 January, 2012. Tel. 25240736, 25240290, Fax: 25240749, e-mail:myankuwait11@gmai1.com nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF PAKISTAN The Embassy of Islamic Republic of Pakistan will remain closed on the occasion of Milad-E-Nabwi. The embassy will resume its services on Sunday, February 5, 2012. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF PHILIPPINES For emergency, please contact the Consular hotline at 65184433. The Philippine Overseas Labor Office and other attached agencies shall continue to operate and hold office in Jabriya until 15 March 2012. All your passports and other consular concerns will be processed at our new location, except of course labor issues.

Regular working hours of the Embassy shall resume in Faiha. nnnnnnn

KNES staff wins charity run

T

he Director of Kuwait National English School Chantal Al-Gharabally and all the staff wish to congratulate Beverley, who teaches at Kuwait National English School, on winning the Women’s Event at the Kuwait Charity Run, RunQ8, the annual 10km charity race which was held on January 28, 2012. The race is aimed at supporting health issues affecting our community and raising awareness around them; Kuwait National English School of this achievement.

MUKAM hosts festival

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uthamizh Kalai Mandram (MUKAM), Kuwait hosted the Pongal & Cultural Arts Festival at Indian Central School, Abbasiya on January 27 at 5:30 pm. The meeting was presided over by Neravi Rajasekaran (President). The Chief Guest Dr Ulaganayagi was honored with special title “Muthamizh Naayagi” by the honorable guest Muthukrishnan, Rama Muthukrishnan and Senthamizh Arasu. The program was well organized by Jayabalan (General Secretary) and K Natarajan (Treasurer).

Mohandas and Venkadamathy (Frontliners) participated in the function

Movenpick Hotel wins big at Horeca Kuwait 2012

M

ovenpick Hotel Kuwait Free Zone got the silver medal as it came second in the Culinary Competitions held during Horeca Kuwait 2012 functions in Al-Raya Ballroom January 22-24.

Some 70 hotel chefs and cooks from Kuwait took part in the competition that aimed at encouraging contestants to show their best range of innovative and stylish methods for decorating buffets and banquets.

This was truly demonstrated by Chef, Anthony Sunil Kumar over an hour-and-ahalf, as he presented his expert artistic skills in adornment, turning a pumpkin into a swan using his carving knife and exploiting his expertise to stand out uniquely. The admiration and praise of all the attendees was therefore duly deserved.

The medals and certificates of appreciation were handed over by an International Panel of Judges comprising chefs who were

invited to participate in the Horeca Exhibition from different countries including Lebanon, France, Germany, Switzerland and Kuwait.

On this occasion, Beat Peter, GM of Movenpick Hotel Kuwait Free Trade Zone, has expressed his pleasure for the hotel winning this prestigious award, saying: “Horeca Kuwait has not only given us a splendid opportunity to highlight the skills and expertise of our professional chefs and to share new food and beverage latest innovations, but also updated us of the hotel and food supplies which we intend to make available in our hotel in the near future. It also highlighted many fresh ideas, methods and styles which we can mobilize to enhance the services we offer to our guests and develop hotel management style. We believe that this real goal we seek to satisfy and meet the needs of our valued guests”.

EMBASSY OF RUSSIA Embassy of the Russian Federation invites all the Russian residents in Kuwait to visit the Consulate for registration and updating your database. This information is necessary for prompt notice, assistance and warning in case of emergency. The consulate reception hours: 10:00 - 13:00, Sunday - Wednesday. The Embassy is located in Kuwait City, Daiya, Block 5, Diplomatic campus, Plot 17. Tel: (+965) 22560427, 22560428. Fax: (+965) 22524969, e-mail: rusposkuw@mail.ru, consdepkuw@mail.ru Information also available on the website: www.kuwait.mid.ru nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF SRI LANKA The Embassy of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka will celebrate the 64th Anniversary of the Sri Lanka’s National Day at the Embassy premises at 8.30 a.m on 04.02.2012. The ceremony will include the hoisting of the national flag, reading of National Day messages, remembrance of national heroes, religious ceremonies followed by serving of refreshments. All Sri Lankan nationals and well-wishers are cordially invited for the event.

Sri Lanka Embassy - Jabriya, Block 10, Street 107, Bld 01, Kuwait. (Tel: 25339140/25339150) nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF THAILAND The Royal Thai Embassy in Kuwait, wishes to invite the Kuwaiti companies that deal business with Thai companies or those agencies of Thai commercial companies to visit the Embassy’s Commercial Office to register their relevant information to be part of the embassy’s business and trade database. The Royal Thai Embassy is located in Jabriya, Block 6, Street 8, Villa No. 1, Telephone No. 25317530 -25317531, Ext: 14.

Write to us Send to What’s On upcoming events, birthdays or celebrations by email: local@kuwaittimes.net Fax: 24835619 / 20

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00:50 I’m Alive 01:45 Animal Cops Philadelphia 02:40 Speed Of Life 03:35 Wild France 04:30 I’m Alive 05:25 Dogs 101 06:20 Animal Cops Philadelphia 07:10 Monkey Life 07:35 Wildlife SOS 08:00 Orangutan Island 08:25 Animal Planet’s Most Outrageous 09:15 The Really Wild Show 09:40 Breed All About It 10:10 Dogs 101 11:05 Dogs 101 12:00 Michaela’s Animal Road Trip 12:55 Escape To Chimp Eden 13:20 Wildlife SOS 13:50 RSPCA: On The Frontline 14:15 RSPCA: On The Frontline 14:45 Animal Cops Philadelphia 15:40 Speed Of Life 16:30 Monkey Life 17:00 The Really Wild Show 17:30 Panda Adventures With Nigel Marven 18:25 Dogs 101 19:20 Cats Of Claw Hill 19:45 Cats Of Claw Hill 20:15 Escape To Chimp Eden 20:40 Breed All About It 21:10 Dogs 101: Specials 22:05 Speed Of Life 23:00 Baboons With Bill Bailey 23:25 Baboons With Bill Bailey 23:55 Untamed & Uncut

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

Eastenders Doctors Lark Rise to Candleford Last Of The Summer Wine As Time Goes By Dad’s Army Balamory Tellytales The Large Family The Roly Mo Show Buzz & Tell Tweenies 3rd & Bird Nina And The Neurons Balamory Tellytales The Large Family The Roly Mo Show Buzz & Tell Tweenies 3rd & Bird Nina And The Neurons Last Of The Summer Wine As Time Goes By The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Casualty Lark Rise to Candleford Dad’s Army Last Of The Summer Wine The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Casualty Lark Rise to Candleford The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors As Time Goes By Last Of The Summer Wine Chimp Family Fortunes The World’s Toughest Driving Little Britain Dad’s Army Survivors As Time Goes By The Weakest Link Chimp Family Fortunes

00:15 What Not To Wear 01:05 Bargain Hunt 01:50 Antiques Roadshow

02:40 James Martin’s Brittany 03:05 James Martin’s Champagne 03:55 Indian Food Made Easy 04:20 Indian Food Made Easy 04:45 10 Years Younger 05:35 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 06:20 James Martin’s Brittany 06:45 James Martin’s Brittany 07:10 James Martin’s Champagne 07:40 Indian Food Made Easy 08:05 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 08:50 Indian Food Made Easy 09:15 Masterchef Australia 09:40 Masterchef Australia 10:25 Bargain Hunt 11:10 Antiques Roadshow 12:00 Come Dine With Me 12:50 10 Years Younger 13:40 Masterchef 14:35 Masterchef 15:25 Masterchef 15:55 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 16:40 Holmes On Homes 17:30 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 18:15 Cash In The Attic USA 18:40 Cash In The Attic USA 19:00 Raymond Blanc’s Kitchen Secrets 19:30 Raymond Blanc’s Kitchen Secrets 20:00 James Martin’s Brittany 20:25 James Martin’s Brittany 20:50 What To Eat Now - Summer 21:45 10 Years Younger 22:30 Masterchef 23:25 Masterchef

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

Johnny Bravo Scooby Doo Where Are You! The Perils Of Penelope Pitstop Droopy: Master Detective The Flintstones Johnny Bravo Duck Dodgers King Arthur’s Disasters The Scooby Doo Show Popeye Classics Tom & Jerry Popeye The Jetsons The Flintstones Looney Tunes Pink Panther & Pals Tex Avery Duck Dodgers The Garfield Show Pink Panther & Pals Bananas In Pyjamas Baby Looney Tunes Gerald McBoing Boing Jelly Jamm New Yogi Bear Show Puppy In My Pocket The Garfield Show Pink Panther And Pals The Scooby Doo Show Tom & Jerry Dastardly And Muttley Top Cat New Yogi Bear Show Puppy In My Pocket Jelly Jamm Baby Looney Tunes Bananas In Pyjamas The Jetsons Duck Dodgers Scooby Doo Where Are You! The Garfield Show Pink Panther And Pals The Perils Of Penelope Pitstop Puppy In My Pocket Looney Tunes Tom & Jerry The Scooby Doo Show Scooby-Doo And ScrappyScooby Doo Where Are You! A Pup Named Scooby-Doo Jelly Jamm Baby Looney Tunes Gerald McBoing Boing Bananas In Pyjamas New Yogi Bear Show Pink Panther And Pals The Garfield Show Dastardly And Muttley Tom & Jerry The Garfield Show Dexters Laboratory

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

TV PROGRAMS

Years

00:40 Samurai Jack 01:05 Samurai Jack 01:30 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 02:20 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 02:45 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 03:10 Best Ed 04:00 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 04:25 Adventure Time 04:50 Generator Rex 05:15 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 05:40 Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy 05:55 I Am Weasel 06:55 Powerpuff Girls 07:45 Angelo Rules 08:00 Casper’s Scare School 08:30 The Amazing World Of Gumball 08:45 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 09:15 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 09:40 Batman: The Brave And The Bold 10:05 Angelo Rules 10:30 Chowder 10:55 Adventure Time 11:20 Eliot Kid 11:35 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 12:00 Ben 10 12:25 Sym-Bionic Titan 12:50 Courage The Cowardly Dog 13:15 I Am Weasel 13:40 Best Ed 14:05 Cow & Chicken 14:30 My Gym Partner’s A Monkey 14:50 Eliot Kid 15:15 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 15:40 Ben 10: Alien Force 16:05 Courage The Cowardly Dog 16:30 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 16:55 The Amazing World Of Gumball 17:10 Adventure Time 17:35 Regular Show 18:00 Cow & Chicken 18:25 Bakugan: Gundalian Invaders 18:50 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 19:15 Angelo Rules 19:30 Total Drama World Tour 19:55 Hero 108 20:25 Sym-Bionic Titan 20:50 Adventure Time 21:25 The Grim Adventures Of Billy & Mandy 21:50 Courage 22:25 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 22:50 Cow And Chicken 23:00 Ben 10 23:25 Ben 10 23:50 Courage The Cowardly Dog

00:15 Destroyed In Seconds 00:40 Moments Of Terror 01:35 Dirty Jobs 02:30 Overhaulin’ 03:25 Ultimate Survival 04:20 Mythbusters 05:15 How Stuff Works 05:40 How It’s Made 06:05 Dirty Jobs 07:00 Mythbusters 07:50 Gold Rush: Alaska 08:45 Coal 09:40 How Stuff Works 10:05 Cake Boss 10:30 Border Security 10:55 Auction Kings 11:25 Life Or Death: Medical Mysteries 16:00 Overhaulin’ 16:55 Ultimate Survival 17:50 Mythbusters 18:45 Cash Cab Us 19:10 Border Security 19:40 Auction Kings 20:05 How It’s Made 20:35 How Stuff Works 21:00 Cake Boss 21:30 Surviving The Cut 22:25 Miami SWAT 23:20 Ross Kemp On Gangs

FADE TO BLACK ON OSN ACTION HD

00:40 The Gadget Show 01:05 The Gadget Show 01:35 Eco-Tech 02:25 The Tech Show 02:50 How Techies Changed World 03:40 How Techies Changed World 04:35 How Does That Work?

05:00 How Stuff’s Made 05:25 Kings of Construction 06:20 Prototype This 07:10 Eco-Tech 08:00 Race to Mars 08:50 How Does That Work?

09:15 How Stuff’s Made 09:40 How Techies Changed World 10:35 How Techies Changed World 11:25 Kings of Construction 12:20 Prototype This 13:15 The Gadget Show 13:40 The Gadget Show 14:05 Eco-Tech 14:55 How Does That Work?

15:20 How Stuff’s Made 15:50 Race to Mars 16:40 The Tech Show 17:05 Prototype This 18:00 The Gadget Show 18:25 The Gadget Show 18:50 Kings of Construction 19:40 Bang Goes the Theory 20:30 Science of the Movies 21:20 Prototype This 22:10 Race to Mars 23:00 Bang Goes the Theory 23:50 Science of the Movies

the the

the the

00:00 KIM POSSIBLE 00:25 Fairly Odd Parents 00:50 Fairly Odd Parents 01:15 STITCH 01:35 STITCH 02:00 REPLACEMENTS 02:25 REPLACEMENTS 02:50 EMPEROR’S NEW SCHOOL 03:15 EMPEROR’S NEW SCHOOL 03:35 STITCH 04:00 STITCH 04:25 REPLACEMENTS 04:50 REPLACEMENTS 05:15 Fairly Odd Parents 05:35 Fairly Odd Parents 06:00 HANNAH MONTANA 06:20 RECESS 06:45 GOOD LUCK CHARLIE 07:05 Suite Life On Deck 07:30 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 07:55 PHINEAS AND FERB 08:10 FISH HOOKS 08:35 MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE 09:00 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 09:15 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 09:25 HANDY MANNY 09:40 THE HIVE 09:47 MINI ADVENTURES OF WINNIE THE POOH 09:50 Fairly Odd Parents 10:15 SO RANDOM 10:40 HAVE A LAUGH 10:45 HANNAH MONTANA 11:10 Suite Life On Deck 11:35 JAKE & BLAKE 12:00 JONAS 12:25 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 12:45 PHINEAS AND FERB 13:10 SO RANDOM 13:30 Suite Life On Deck 13:55 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 14:20 HAVE A LAUGH 14:30 SHAKE IT UP 14:55 PHINEAS AND FERB 15:20 PHINEAS AND FERB 15:45 FISH HOOKS 16:10 SHAKE IT UP 16:40 SO RANDOM 17:05 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 17:30 GOOD LUCK CHARLIE 17:55 FISH HOOKS 18:20 Suite Life On Deck 18:35 HAVE A LAUGH 18:45 SUITE LIFE ON DECK 19:10 PHINEAS AND FERB 19:35 PHINEAS AND FERB 20:00 HANNAH MONTANA 20:25 PHINEAS AND FERB 20:50 SHAKE IT UP 21:15 FISH HOOKS 21:35 GOOD LUCK CHARLIE 22:00 SHAKE IT UP 22:25 SHAKE IT UP 22:50 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 23:15 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 23:35 SONNY WITH A CHANCE

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

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jake & The Neverland Pirates Special Agent Oso Little Einsteins Timmy Time Jungle Junction Handy Manny Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Special Agent Oso Special Agent Oso Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Higglytown Heroes Higglytown Heroes Jo Jo’s Circus Special Agent Oso Special Agent Oso Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Higglytown Heroes Higglytown Heroes Jo Jo’s Circus Special Agent Oso Special Agent Oso Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Higglytown Heroes Higglytown Heroes Jo Jo’s Circus Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Higglytown Heroes Higglytown Heroes Handy Manny Special Agent Oso Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Mickey Mouse Clubhouse The Hive Handy Manny Jake & The Neverland Pirates

11:50 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 12:05 The Hive 12:15 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 12:20 Lazytown 12:45 The Hive 12:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 13:20 Imagination Movers 13:45 Art Attack (Cema) 14:10 Imagination Movers 14:35 Special Agent Oso 14:45 Lazytown 15:10 Handy Manny 15:25 Jungle Junction 15:40 Imagination Movers 16:05 The Hive 16:15 Special Agent Oso 16:25 Little Einsteins 16:50 Lazytown 17:15 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 17:40 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 17:55 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 18:05 Handy Manny 18:20 Handy Manny 18:30 The Hive 18:40 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 18:55 Imagination Movers 19:20 Lazytown 19:45 Art Attack (Cema) 20:10 The Hive 20:20 Special Agent Oso 20:30 Jungle Junction 20:45 Handy Manny 20:55 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 21:10 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 21:25 The Hive 21:35 Little Einsteins 22:00 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 22:05 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 22:25 101 Dalmatians 22:40 101 Dalmatians 22:50 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 23:05 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 23:20 The Hive 23:30 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 23:35 A Poem Is...

23:40 Animated Stories 23:45 Jungle Junction

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

Dr G: Medical Examiner Ghost Lab A Haunting I Almost Got Away With It Cuff Me If You Can Dr G: Medical Examiner Ghost Lab A Haunting Mystery Diagnosis FBI Files Forensic Detectives Murder Shift Mystery Diagnosis Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared Murder Shift Mystery Diagnosis Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared FBI Files Forensic Detectives Murder Shift Real Emergency Calls Mystery Diagnosis Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared Kidnap And Rescue Fugitive Strike Force

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

Predator CSI Bears Of Fear Island World’s Deadliest Animals Bite Me With Dr. Mike Leahy Great Migrations Caught Barehanded Expedition Wild Fish Warrior World’s Deadliest Animals The Bear Evidence Fish Warrior Bear Nomad Fish Warrior Super Pride How Big Can It Get The Pack Fish Warrior Bear Nomad Fish Warrior Super Pride How Big Can It Get

00:00 02:00 04:00 06:00 08:15 10:30 12:15 14:15 16:30 18:15 20:15 22:15

Kiss Of Death-18 Malibu Shark Attack-18 Wild Things: Foursome -18 What Lies Beneath-PG15 The Karate Kid I-PG15 Bad Girls-PG15 Collateral-PG15 The Karate Kid I-PG15 Secret Window-PG15 Collateral-PG15 Fade To Black-18 The Heavy-18

01:00 Mr. Nice-18 03:00 The Way Back-PG15 05:15 Desperate Hours: An Amber Alert-PG15 07:00 Swansong: Story Of Occi Byrne-PG15 09:00 Mars Needs Moms-PG 10:45 Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides-PG15 13:00 The Flyboys-PG15 15:00 The Greatest-PG15 17:00 16 To Life-PG15 19:00 Jack Goes Boating-PG15 21:00 True Grit-PG15 23:00 A Way With Murder-18

02:30 03:00 03:30 04:00 04:30 Leno 05:30 06:00 06:30 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:30 12:00 12:30 13:00 13:30

Family Guy Friends Friends Dharma And Greg The Tonight Show With Jay Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne Yes Dear Just Shoot Me Late Night With Jimmy Fallon Dharma And Greg Friends Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne Just Shoot Me Yes Dear Dharma And Greg Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne Just Shoot Me

JACK GOES BOATING ON OSN CINEMA 14:00 Friends 16:30 How I Met Your Mother 18:00 Friends 18:30 Friends 19:00 30 Rock 19:30 State Of Georgia 20:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 The Big C 22:30 Funny Or Die Presents 23:00 Family Guy 23:30 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00 20:00 22:00 23:00

Falling Skies Strike Back Terriers Once Upon A Time The Gates Good Morning America Kojak Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show The Martha Stewart Show The View Falling Skies Once Upon A Time Kojak Live Good Morning America The Ellen DeGeneres Show Emmerdale Look-A-Like Psych American Idol Necessary Roughness The Gates

00:05 01:00 02:05 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 22:00 23:00

Cold Case Luck Falling Skies Strike Back Once Upon A Time Charlie’s Angels Cold Case How I Met Your Mother Coronation Street House Inside The Actor’s Studio Falling Skies Once Upon A Time How I Met Your Mother Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show House Cold Case The Cape The Ellen DeGeneres Show House Psych American Idol Necessary Roughness Supernatural

01:00 30 Days Of Night: Dark Days18 03:00 Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels-18 05:00 Bats-18 07:00 Age Of The Dragons-PG15 09:00 Tremors-PG15 11:00 Blue Crush 2-PG15 13:00 Behind Enemy Lines-PG15 15:00 Tremors-PG15 17:00 Set It Off-PG15 19:00 Maximum Risk-18 21:00 District 13: Ultimatum-18 23:00 Carrie-18

00:00 02:00 04:00 06:00 08:00 PG15 10:00 12:00 14:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00

Sweet Home Alabama-PG15 Paper Man-PG15 Crazy On The Outside-PG15 The Big Green-PG It’s A Wonderful AfterlifeStraight Talk-PG15 Dragnet-PG15 Napoleon Dynamite-PG Sweet Home Alabama-PG15 Ball & Chain-PG15 Whatever Works-PG15 Soul Men-18

02:30 04:30 06:30 09:00

Confidences Trop Intimes-18 Fragments-18 The Deep-PG15 Moon Over Parador-PG15

11:00 13:15 15:00 PG 17:00 19:00 21:00 23:15 PG15

01:00 03:15 05:00 07:00 09:00 11:00 13:00 14:45 17:00 19:00 21:00 23:00

Funny Bones-PG15 Return To Rajapur-PG15 Searching For Bobby FischerPrivate-PG15 Le Syndrome Du Titanic-PG15 Agora-18 The Thomas Crown Affair-

Broken Embraces-18 50 First Dates-PG15 Freestyle (2010)-PG15 Stone Of Destiny-PG15 Just Wright-PG15 I, Robot-PG15 The Open Road-PG15 Glorious 39-PG15 Just Wright-PG15 Unstoppable-PG15 True Grit-PG15 Piranha-R

00:00 Quest For Zhu-PG 02:00 Ulysses-PG 04:00 Turandot-PG 06:00 The Muppets Take Manhattan-PG 08:15 The Thief Of Baghdad-PG 10:00 Dork Hunters And The Pirates Of Tortuga Island-PG15 12:00 Quest For Zhu-PG 14:00 The Little Engine That CouldFAM 16:00 Yona Yona Penguin-PG 18:00 Dork Hunters And The Pirates Of Tortuga Island-PG15 20:00 How The Grinch Stole Christmas-PG 22:00 The Little Engine That CouldFAM

00:00 A Fork In The Road-PG15 02:00 Goodbye Solo-PG15 04:00 My Last Five Girlfriends-PG15 06:00 Africa United-PG15 08:00 District 9-PG15 10:00 A Family Thanksgiving-PG15 12:00 Bustin’ Down The Door-PG15 14:00 The Librarian: The Curse Of Judas Chalice-PG15 16:00 A Family Thanksgiving-PG15 18:00 Too Big To Fail-PG15 20:00 Scott Pilgrim vs. The World-18 22:00 Inhale-PG15

00:00 01:00 01:30 06:00 07:00 10:00 12:00 13:00 17:00 19:00 23:30

Trans World Sport Futbol Mundial European PGA Tour Trans World Sport Cricket Twenty20 Test Cricket Highlights Trans World Sport Live European PGA Tour Test Cricket Highlights European PGA Tour Futbol Mundial

01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 17:30 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00

V8 Supercars V8 Supercars Speedway Intercontinental Le Mans Cup UFC Unleashed UFC Unleashed WWE SmackDown Speedway Intercontinental Le Mans Cup V8 Supercars WWE Experience WWE Vintage Collection WWE Bottom Line Intercontinental Le Mans Cup Speedway Aquabike World Power Boats UIM UFC 143 Countdown WWE NXT UFC The Ultimate Fighter UFC

00:30 European Tour Weekly 01:00 Scottish League Cup 03:00 Golfing World 04:00 European Tour Weekly 04:30 Trans World Sport 05:30 European PGA Highlights 06:30 Top 14 Highlights 07:00 Trans World Sport

Tour

08:00 Anglo Welsh Cup 10:00 World Cup Of Pool 11:00 World Pool Masters 12:00 Bass Fishing 13:00 Cricket Twenty20 16:00 ICC Cricket World 16:30 FIVB Beach Volley Ball 17:00 Trans World Sport 18:00 Futbol Mundial 18:30 Scottish Premier League Highlights 19:00 Cricket Twenty20 22:00 Top 14 Highlights 22:30 Scottish Premier League Highlights 23:00 Trans World Sport

02:00 Golfing World 03:00 World Cup of Pool 04:00 World Pool Masters 05:00 US Bass Fishing 06:00 FIVB Beach Volley Ball 07:00 Golfing World 08:00 Trans World Sport 09:00 Futbol Mundial 09:30 Scottish Premier League Highlights 10:30 Top 14 Highlights 11:00 ICC Cricket World 11:30 Golfing World 12:30 European Tour Weekly 13:00 Scottish League Cup 15:00 ICC Cricket World 15:30 Futbol Mundial 16:00 Live Football Copa Del Sol 21:00 Live Football Copa Del Sol 23:00 Scottish Premier League Highlights 23:30 Futbol Mundial

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

Wicked Fit Jerseylicious Homes With Style Open House Videofashion Daily Videofashion News How Do I Look?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Clean House Videofashion News Videofashion Daily Open House How Do I Look?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Clean House Dress My Nest Mel B: It’s A Scary World How Do I Look?

Giuliana & Bill Kimora: Life In The Fab Lane Jerseylicious Tia And Tamera How Do I Look?

Clean House: New York Fashion Police Wicked Fit

00:00 Globe Trekker 01:00 Planet Food 02:00 Think Green 03:00 Third Class Traveller 04:00 Intrepid Journeys 05:00 Globe Trekker 06:00 Planet Food 07:00 Opening Soon 07:30 Wild At Heart 08:00 Globe Trekker 09:00 Inside Luxury Travel-Varun Sharma 10:00 Planet Food 11:00 Planet Food 12:00 Opening Soon 12:30 Wild At Heart 13:00 Globe Trekker 14:00 Sophie Grigson In The Souk 14:30 Chef Abroad 15:00 Intrepid Journeys 16:00 Third Class Traveller 17:00 Globe Trekker 18:00 Wild At Heart 18:30 Opening Soon 19:00 Sophie Grigson In The Souk 19:30 Chef Abroad 20:00 The Ethical Hedonist 21:00 Word Travels 21:30 Essential 22:00 World’s Greatest Motorcycle Rides 23:00 4real 23:30 Essential

Classifieds THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Airlines JZR QTR KLM JZR JZR ETH THY UAE DHX QTR KAC MSR FDB ETD GFA KAC THY FAH JZR JZR BAW KAC KAC FDB IRA KAC KAC JZR KAC IRA KAC UAE ABY QTR ETD FDB BAB GFA JZR KNE MSC RKM KNE MEA SYR KAC MSR JZR KAC GFA MSR FDB MSR UAL GRF OMA QTR KNE SVA KAC RJA KAC JZR KAC LMU KAC QTR JZR JZR ETD UAE KAC FDB GFA SVA ABY JZR RBG BAB ALK JZR MSC TAR FDB KAC JZR KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC FDB JAI OMA MSR KAC DHX MEA GFA LMU QTR UAE JZR KAC KLM AIC JZR UAL AXB BBC DLH

Arrival Flights on Thursday 2/2/2012 Flt Route 185 DUBAI 138 DOHA 447 AMSTERDAM/BAHRAIN 267 BEIRUT 539 CAIRO 620 ADDIS ABABA 772 ISTANBUL 853 DUBAI 370 BAHRAIN 148 DOHA 154 ISTANBUL 612 CAIRO 67 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI 211 BAHRAIN 544 CAIRO 770 ISTANBUL 201 DUBAI 503 LUXOR 555 ALEXANDRIA 157 LONDON 412 MANILA/BANGKOK 206 ISLAMABAD 53 DUBAI 617 AHWAZ 352 COCHIN 302 MUMBAI 531 ASSIUT 332 TRIVANDRUM 605 MASHAD 362 COLOMBO 855 DUBAI 125 SHARJAH 132 DOHA 301 ABU DHABI 55 DUBAI 436 BAHRAIN 213 BAHRAIN 165 DUBAI 789 JEDDAH 9621 SOHAG/ASSIUT 310 RAS ALKHAIMAH 945 JEDDAH 404 BEIRUT 341 DAMASCUS/DEIREZZOR 382 DELHI 610 CAIRO 201 DAMASCUS 672 DUBAI 219 BAHRAIN 621 ASSIUT 57 DUBAI 606 LUXOR 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 93 KANDAHAR/DUBAI 645 MUSCAT 140 DOHA 745 JEDDAH 500 JEDDAH 552 DAMASCUS 640 AMMAN 788 JEDDAH 257 BEIRUT 284 DHAKA 407 ALEXANDRIA 546 ALEXANDRIA 134 DOHA 535 CAIRO 357 MASHAD 303 ABU DHABI 857 DUBAI 118 NEW YORK 59 DUBAI 215 BAHRAIN 510 RIYADH 127 SHARJAH 777 JEDDAH 3553 ALEXANDRIA 437 BEIRUT 227 COLOMBO/DUBAI 177 DUBAI 9623 SOHAG 328 TUNIS/DUBAI 63 DUBAI 542 CAIRO 125 BAHRAIN 786 JEDDAH 618 DOHA 614 BAHRAIN 674 DUBAI 104 LONDON 774 RIYADH 562 AMMAN 61 DUBAI 572 MUMBAI 647 MUSCAT 618 ALEXANDRIA 178 GENEVA/FRANKFURT 372 BAHRAIN 402 BEIRUT 217 BAHRAIN 409 ASSIUT 136 DOHA 859 DUBAI 135 BAHRAIN 502 BEIRUT 445 AMSTERDAM 981 CHENNAI/HYDERABAD/AHMEDABAD 239 AMMAN 981 BAHRAIN 389 KOZHIKODE/MANGALORE 43 DHAKA 636 FRANKFURT

Time 0:20 0:20 0:30 0:45 0:50 1:45 2:15 2:35 2:55 2:55 2:55 3:00 3:05 3:10 3:15 4:40 4:50 5:30 5:55 6:00 6:40 6:45 7:40 7:45 7:50 7:50 7:55 8:00 8:05 8:15 8:20 8:30 9:00 9:05 9:15 9:20 9:40 9:55 11:20 11:20 11:30 11:45 11:50 11:55 12:35 12:45 12:55 13:00 13:20 13:25 13:30 13:50 13:55 14:05 14:15 14:15 14:20 14:25 14:30 14:35 14:40 14:50 15:00 15:00 15:10 15:20 15:25 16:25 16:50 16:50 16:55 16:55 17:05 17:15 17:20 17:40 17:45 17:50 18:05 18:10 18:15 18:20 18:35 18:40 18:50 19:00 19:10 19:15 19:20 19:25 19:35 19:40 19:50 20:00 20:10 20:15 20:45 20:55 21:00 21:20 21:25 21:30 21:35 21:40 21:55 22:00 22:05 22:05 22:45 23:00 23:35 23:45 23:50

Airlines AXB UAL AIC JZR DLH KLM KAC ETH THY KAC FDB UAE ETD MSR DHX QTR QTR THY JZR GFA JZR FDB KAC BAW IRA JZR KAC KAC JZR IRA KAC KAC UAE ABY ETD FDB QTR BAB GFA JZR KAC KAC KNE JZR MSC KNE RKM MEA SYR KAC JZR MSR GFA MSR FDB KAC MSR KAC KNE OMA UAL RJA JZR LMU KAC SVA KAC KAC KAC QTR JZR QTR ETD JZR FDB GRF UAE GFA ABY RBG SVA JZR BAB MSC JZR ALK FDB TAR JZR FDB KAC KAC KAC JAI OMA MSR KAC DHX KAC LMU MEA GFA FAH QTR JZR KAC UAE KAC KLM JZR KAC KAC

Departure Flights on Thursday 2/2/2012 Flt Route 394 COCHIN/KOZHIKODE 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 976 GOA/CHENNAI 530 ASSIUT 637 FRANKFURT 447 AMSTERDAM 283 DHAKA 621 ADDIS ABABA 773 ISTANBUL 381 DELHI 68 DUBAI 854 DUBAI 306 ABU DHABI 613 CAIRO 371 BAHRAIN 139 DOHA 149 DOHA 771 ISTANBUL 164 DUBAI 212 BAHRAIN 200 DAMASCUS 54 DUBAI 545 ALEXANDRIA 156 LONDON 606 MASHAD 256 BEIRUT 671 DUBAI 551 DAMASCUS 534 CAIRO 604 MASHAD 787 JEDDAH 101 LONDON/NEW YORK 856 DUBAI 126 SHARJAH 302 ABU DHABI 56 DUBAI 133 DOHA 436 BEIRUT 214 BAHRAIN 356 MASHAD 165 ROME/PARIS 541 CAIRO 790 JEDDAH 776 JEDDAH 9622 SOHAG 946 MEDINAH/JEDDAH 311 RAS ALKHAIMAH 405 BEIRUT 342 DEIREZZOR/DAMASCUS 785 JEDDAH 176 DUBAI 611 CAIRO 220 BAHRAIN 622 ASSIUT 58 DUBAI 561 AMMAN 607 LUXOR 673 DUBAI 746 JEDDAH 646 MUSCAT 982 BAHRAIN 641 AMMAN 124 BAHRAIN 408 ASSIUT 617 DOHA 505 JEDDAH 501 BEIRUT 613 BAHRAIN 773 RIYADH 141 DOHA 238 AMMAN 135 DOHA 304 ABU DHABI 538 CAIRO 60 DUBAI 82 BAGHDAD 858 DUBAI 216 BAHRAIN 128 SHARJAH 3554 ALEXANDRIA 511 RIYADH 266 BEIRUT 437 BAHRAIN 9624 ASSIUT 134 BAHRAIN 228 DUBAI/COLOMBO 64 DUBAI 328 TUNIS 184 DUBAI 62 DUBAI 343 CHENNAI 331 TRIVANDRUM 351 COCHIN 571 MUMBAI 648 MUSCAT 619 ALEXANDRIA 543 CAIRO 373 BAHRAIN 675 DUBAI 410 ALEXANDRIA 403 BEIRUT 218 BAHRAIN 102 DUBAI 137 DOHA 554 ALEXANDRIA 301 MUMBAI 860 DUBAI 205 ISLAMABAD 445 BAHRAIN/AMSTERDAM 188 DUBAI 415 KUALA LUMPUR/JAKARTA 411 BANGKOK/MANILA

Time 0:40 0:45 0:50 1:15 1:20 1:45 2:40 2:45 3:15 3:30 3:45 3:50 4:00 4:00 4:30 4:40 5:40 5:50 6:55 7:00 7:30 8:25 8:30 8:40 8:50 9:00 9:00 9:10 9:15 9:15 9:25 9:35 9:40 9:45 10:00 10:05 10:10 10:25 10:40 10:50 11:45 12:00 12:05 12:15 12:20 12:45 12:50 12:55 13:35 13:40 13:50 13:55 14:20 14:30 14:35 14:45 14:55 15:05 15:10 15:15 15:20 15:35 15:50 15:55 15:55 16:00 16:15 16:20 16:25 16:30 17:15 17:25 17:35 17:40 17:50 18:00 18:10 18:15 18:25 18:30 18:35 18:45 18:55 19:00 19:05 19:10 19:20 19:25 19:55 20:40 20:55 21:00 21:05 21:10 21:15 21:45 21:55 22:00 22:10 22:15 22:20 22:25 22:30 22:35 22:45 22:45 22:50 23:00 23:05 23:35 23:45 23:55

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

LOST Policy No. 633000545 issued by the State Life Insurance, Gulf Zone on the Life of Mr. Riaz Ahmed is reported to have been lost.

Anyone finding the same or claiming any interest in it should communicate with the State Life office. Tel: 22452208/9. (C 3856) 2-2-2012

MATRIMONIAL Proposals invited for an Ezhava girl MBA 23 years old, looking for well educated Malayali boys from India or abroad. Email: shibusviji@yahoo.co.in, shibusmini@gmail.com (C 3853) 28-1-2012

SITUATION WANTED Indian couple needs a job 12 years experience in Kuwait. Cleaning, cooking and driving, we are expecting good salary. Contact: 65585930.

(C 3851) 28-1-2012

FOR SALE Expat owned Toyota Aurion, 2007 model, silver metallic color, done 73,000 kms, single owner.

Registration and full cover insurance valid up to Nov. 2012. Price KD 4,975/-.

Please contact Thomas only between 6:00 pm and 8:00 pm at Tel: 22660301.

(C 3850) Well maintained Toyota Camr y 1998 for sale.

Contact: 99172842. (C 3852) 28-1-2012

CHANGE OF NAME I, M. Madhavan, holder of Indian Passport No. H5961296, son of M. Muthukrishanan, converted in Islam and do now hereafter be known by my new name M. MOHAMED SHARIF. (C 3855) 1-2-2012 I, Mobin Sekh Jali, holder of Indian Passport No. E3360623 hereby change my name to MUBIN SHEIKH JALIL. (C 3854) 30-1-2012 I, Chinna Ravi Raj s/o Chinta Someswara Rao holding Indian Passport No: Z1852081 place of issue Kuwait would like to change my name as CHINTA RAVI RAJ. (C 3849) 28-1-2012

TUITION Business management teacher with doctoral degree for universities, institutions, corporate & all student levels. Over 10 years experience.

Call 66495951. (C 3817) Business

management

teacher with doctoral degree for universities, institutions, corporate & all student levels. Over 10 years experience.

Call 66495951. (C 3817) Mathematics teacher, Intermediate and secondary Exams models, Easy method, Exams from past years with solutions. 97301901

MISCELLANEOUS Original guaranteed Palestinian virgin olive oil, large black and green olives for sale. Tel: 66517417 Whole Floor or small villa needed for rent in Shaab, Mansoriya, Nozha, Abdullah Al-Salem or Shamiya. Direct contact with owner. Tel: 9989018-99169016 A camp for rent in Kabed including five tents with all services. Complete privacy + game arcade. Tel: 97177714 Size 36 air pressure gun for sale in addition to a scope, safety lock. Shooting range 350 meters +bag+25 shots.

Price KD 70. Tel: 97790478 A 3700 watt, 2012 model ASTRA generator for sale.

Japanese parts assembled in China with pressure and gas meters. Price KD 85. Tel: 60066891

era, remote recording and rear sensors. Price 8550. Tel: 99301914 For rent a two storey villa and a basement in Mangaf including 8 rooms, laundry room, yard, parking. Rent value KD 1000. Tel: 97996900 A storey and half for rent in Mangaf including two 3 bedroom apartments with 2 baths, reception, kitchen, driver room each. Tel: 66989887 For rent a ground floor in Qurain comprising of four rooms, large reception, 5 baths, maid room, courtyard, parking. Rent value KD 550. Tel: 66989887 A fully central air-conditioned two room annex in Mangaf with separate exit and shaded car parking for rent to expatriates. Tel: 67753557 For rent in Ashbelia: two apartments with 3 bedrooms, bath, kitchen and maid room each plus a yard in between. Tel: 90001594 A 2005 Mini Cooper for sale. Tel: 99224855 A 2006 Lumina for sale with genuine factory paint.

Price KD 2100. Tel: 69945429

ed with good experience.

Salar y determined per experience. Tel: 97813458

FOR RENT For rent at Salmiya, Apt 3 BR + 3 toilets + hall + kitchen + satellite, excellent location. Foreigners and expats only, no mediators.

Tel: 66060299. (14183) For rent commercial Apt at the sea, excellent location, 190 square meter, suitable for (beauty saloon, consulting office, lawyers office).

Tel: 66060299. (15004) For rent Apt at Salmiya 2 BR + 2 toilets + maid room + hall + kitchen and balcony for families only. Rent KD 280/-. Tel: 66980123.

(15007) For rent basement at Hawalli, excellent location, plastic floor, C-A/C, for serious only, please call: 66980123. (C 25997) Furnished Apt for rent in Salmiya 2 BR + hall + kitchen + satellite & DSL + parking, families only. Rent KD 450/-. Tel: 66297171. (C 14941)

A 2009 Touareg for sale.

Price 6350. Tel: 96670777

For rent, one floor in a commercial complex in Salmiya, at main street suitable for Coffee Shop or Restaurant for serious only call: 66980123. (15006)

Senior English teacher for Pakistani, bilingual schools, T.M.A., Ielts, Toefl, IBT K.S.S., social studies and math. Tel: 99577430

For rent floor at South of Surra, 4 BR + maid room + 4 toilets, hall and elevator. KD 800/-. Tel: 66604095.

(15041)

For sale: a 375 square meter house in Omariya, fully rented for KD 600.

Price KD 185,000. Tel: 66815590

For rent complete floor at Jabriya, 5 BR out of which 4 are master BR + 5 toilets + hall and elevator KD 750/-.

Tel: 66604095. (15103)

Transportation ser vice available. Payment in advanced conditioned for all areas. Tel: 66678633

For rent new elegant Apt at Al-Shaab for newly Weds, 3 BR + maid room + 4 toileets + hall + elevator. KD 650/-.

Tel: 94097080. (14899)

A 2009 white, 6 cylinder Toyota Prado with 40,000 mileage touch A/C, CD, cruise control, front and rear sensors for sale. Price KD 7850. Tel: 9747750855809093

The smallest and most up to date recording device (2012 model) for sale.

Finger size, voice activated, records up to 600 hrs, made in Japan. Free delivery. Tel: 99773818

For rent new ground floor at Granada, 4 BR + maids room + 4 toilets + hall, special entrance, C-A/C and marble. KD 700/-. Tel: 94097080. (C 14893)

A 2009 YUKUN Suburban GMC XL with low mileage and beige sued interior, electric seats, cruise control, super headlights, rear cam-

Original guaranteed Palestinian virgin olive oil for sale. Tel: 55740271

For rent in Hawalli a one bedroom (4x4m) and a 7x3.5 m reception+ terrace, fully equipped kitchen and bathroom. Tunis street, behind Al-Andalus pharmacy. Tel: 99683200 A 2008 white, 1600 CC Nissan Sunny. Price KD 1700. Tel: 99553221 A 2008 dark blue 6 cylinder Toyota Prado with Beige sued interior, low mileage, touch A/C, CD, cruise control, front and rear sensors for sale. Price KD 6650. Tel: 99275550

No: 15347

Upholster and tailor need-

For rent Deluxe Apt South Al-Surra, 3 BR + maids room + 3 toilets + elevator. KD 600/-. Tel: 97713024.

(15106)

34

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

stars CROSSWORD 576

STAR TRACK

CALVIN & HOBBES

Aries (March 21-April 19) Everything is coming up roses and optimism rules the day. Life is for living and you cannot wait to partake of all those new and rewarding experiences that are waiting to captivate you. Do not go overboard, but have fun. Your energy is high and your creative mind is busy, ready to be applied to the work at hand. If you give your best effort now, much can be accomplished. Your communicative abilities are emphasized. This is an excellent time to sway others to your cause through speeches and other communications. Your thinking is most lucid and grasping. Be careful, though, of taking it to the extreme in trying to find a logical reason for every event that occurs, especially the actions of co-workers. Friendships are most rewarding now.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) You are supersensitive today and that can be rewarding or damaging. If you focus on others, your understanding will enable you to fit into any group. This ability is helpful in any job. If, however, you become caught up in your own feelings, you are likely to see only what you want to see. This attitude can cause lots of problems. In any event, save the decisions that require clear logic for another day. It is, however, a favorable time for financial dealings. Your social life also should blossom during this time, perhaps including a new love interest. Avoid the extravagance and self-indulgence that may come now. Your ability to express affections to friends and family could become distracted. You are not trying to put out a fire—save your comments.

POOCH CAFE ACROSS 1. A dark-skinned member of a race of people living in Australia when Europeans arrived.

4. An instrument of punishment formerly used in China for petty criminals.

10. How long something has existed.

13. A room or establishment where alcoholic drinks are served over a counter.

14. A slight wind (usually refreshing).

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

16. (informal) Of the highest quality.

17. Spicy fruit of the cubeb vine.

19. A fraudulent business scheme.

21. That is to say.

22. A port city in southwestern Iran.

24. Relating to the deepest parts of the ocean (below 6000 meters).

27. A region of Malaysia in northeastern Borneo.

30. United States writer (born in Poland) who wrote in Yiddish (1880-1957).

34. An informal term for a father.

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

38. Tropical American tree producing cacao beans.

39. Aircraft landing in bad weather in which the pilot is talked down by ground control using precision approach radar.

41. A small pellet fired from an air rifle or BB gun.

42. Any high mountain.

47. Having the leading position or higher score in a contest.

50. A string of more than 3,000 islands east of Asia extending 1,300 miles between the Sea of Japan and the western Pacific Ocean.

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

54. The ninth month of the Moslem calendar.

58. Gear (including necessary machinery) for a particular enterprise.

59. Cotton trousers made of corduroy cloth.

62. A island in the Netherlands Antilles that is the top of an extinct volcano.

63. A lyric poem with complex stanza forms.

64. Common house and field crickets.

66. Having leadership guidance.

67. A coenzyme derived from the B vitamin nicotinic acid.

68. African tree having an exceedingly thick trunk and fruit that resembles a gourd and has an edible pulp called monkey bread.

69. An agency of the United Nations affiliated with the World Bank.

DOWN 1. Cause to be embarrassed.

2. An indehiscent fruit derived from a single ovary having one or many seeds within a fleshy wall or pericarp.

3. (Greek mythology) One of the mountain nymphs.

4. Counting the number of white and red blood cells and the number of platelets in 1 cubic millimeter of blood.

5. Wild sheep of northern Africa.

6. The compass point that is one point east of northeast.

7. A unit of force equal to the force exerted by gravity.

8. A member of a Turkic people of Uzbekistan and neighboring areas.

9. The branch of engineering science that studies the uses of electricity and the equipment for power generation and distribution and the control of machines and communication.

10. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind.

11. Mentally or physically infirm with age.

12. A feeling of strong eagerness (usually in favor of a person or cause).

18. The capital and largest city of Yemen.

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

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

25. A white soft metallic element that tarnishes readily.

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

28. A small cake leavened with yeast.

29. A soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal.

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

32. A telephone connection.

33. A specific instance of feeling hopeful.

35. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

36. An official prosecutor for a judicial district.

40. A tricycle (usually propelled by pedalling).

41. Wild sheep of northern Africa.

43. The cry made by sheep.

44. A person who announces and plays popular recorded music.

45. A rotating disk shaped to convert circular into linear motion.

46. Type genus of the Anatidae.

48. A member of a seafaring group of North American Indians who lived on the Pacific coast of British Columbia and southwestern Alaska.

49. Having a specified kind of border or edge.

51. A unit of dry measure used in Egypt.

52. Shaped and dried dough made from flour and water and sometimes egg.

55. Surrealist Spanish painter (1904-1989).

56. In bed.

57. A quantity of no importance.

60. South American wood sorrel cultivated for its edible tubers.

61. The 17th letter of the Greek alphabet.

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

Yesterday’s Solution

Gemini (May 21-June 20) Today you may be slowed down enough to be realistic about your abilities and expectations for success. Balancing your time and commitments may be difficult but necessary if you wish to keep everything running smoothly. Your nature will most likely be apathetic at this time—as you take a serious attitude to just about all aspects of your life. In the workplace today, much can be accomplished. You have what it takes to tackle any problem involved with work. This afternoon is for people! You crave to socialize and make new friends. Others in turn are attracted to you, and this can bring all sorts of good things into your life—including a new love interest. Objects of art and beauty are especially poignant. Just keep everything in perspective—including the budget.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

NON SEQUITUR

Modernization, reform and principle are your paths to growth and gain now. New, futuristic ideas are part of this, but it’s much more than that: putting them into practice is essential. This may mean a break from the past—a willingness to move away from the regular routine. You are entering a phase of emotional directness, one marked by powerful feelings. Emotional beginnings—a fresh start, perhaps the establishment of new habit patterns—will set the tone for quite some time to come! Being appreciated for your gifts and talents is a powerful need. Taking chances can bring big rewards. You may find a new hobby or pastime this month . . . some wonderful creative endeavor is where you are headed.

There is no obstacle to slow you.

Leo (July 23-August 22) You may be selected for a particular job. You know you can do the new job or project but you may be a little nervous about beginning. The nervous beginning keeps you on your toes and makes you careful; you can do it and will find your efforts successful. Extra responsibility today will mean an addition to your paycheck. Begin now to set aside a little of everything you earn. You will want to secure your future. Your generous nature may be a problem so take care to guide others in their moneymaking adventure instead of handing out your hardearned money. Reserve some time to enjoy a favorite hobby this evening. There may be a way to make some extra money with your hobby to help send a child to a special school or give some other help.

ZITS

Virgo (August 23-September 22) You might feel a bit lost today. Try to avoid making really important decisions with finality just now. Become aware and do your best to steer clear of unfamiliar surroundings or circumstances. You may have to work hard to create a balance for now. However, this time also marks a time when many projects come to a completion, especially large ones. You should resist selling short, however, just to finish work. Away from work this afternoon, you will find the perfect place to relieve stress. Work on building a group of friends that can be available for each other in time of need and think about gathering from time to time for group celebrations. Doing just about anything with friends or family will bring much joy.

Romance is heightened this evening.

Libra (September 23-October 22)

MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM

This is a good day for making plans—your mind is clear.

Working with others proves to be quite successful. You may be sought after as just the person for a particular job. Focus on getting ahead in some way. Your vigor and confidence are strong. Your management and directional abilities are in high focus. Those around you are watching and you receive credit for the things you do, even though you may not be seeking approval or recognition. This evening you will find yourself feeling generous toward your loved ones and this will reflect back on you. Now marks a time when relations with a spouse or business partner are on a solid ground. Expressing affection should come easily at this time. The word today is harmony.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) Your heart is as big as all outdoors today, not only for those close to you emotionally, but for the general public as well. Your nerves are calm and your sense of humor is intact—ready to help customers or others and pass along your good-natured attitude. It is important during this time to effectively communicate your ideas to co-workers and those who work under you. Your happy-go-lucky mood continues this afternoon and generally marks a great day in which all relationships are exalted. Besides being creative and affectionate, you are very sociable and magnetic to the opposite sex. There is a desire for outdoor, physical activity this afternoon, but depending on the weather you will probably find a partner to play squash or some other similar activity at the gym.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) What would life be without a few challenges now and then?

Hopefully, you have done your homework and can reassure others of the validity of your position. Your ideas may not be as clear as you would like. Back away and then come back to the subject at a later time to gain a better perspective.

This is a good time to exercise caution and care in business dealings—both in the physical and financial realm. It may be time to take it easy and let others have their way. Demanding what you want could lead to frustrations and ill feelings. You will feel the urge for excitement and should consider traveling at this time—avoid extravagance. You may experience abrupt changes in fortune, good or bad, in a relatively short period this month.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

To

You have the ability to take charge in the work environment; there may be a golden opportunity that you should not hesitate to seize upon. Make sure that the new projects you take on are short-term. This is not a good time to think that good things come to those who wait. Courage and confidence reign. Others follow your lead in group efforts. You have energy gains, making it perfect for getting some exercise or running errands. Some elderly people in your living area still occupy their own homes. They may need an extra blanket this winter, a hot meal or just someone to visit. Volunteer to help by leaving your name with visiting nurses or some other home care group. They will notice where the needs exist and pass your name along. Commendable!

Yesterday’s Solution Yester

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) Your expertise in handling difficult matters puts you on the will-call list for assisting in problem-solving situations. Careful, this could inflate your ego—take care to avoid being temperamental and touchy. If you channel this energy, you can become quite influential. You know that it is best to rely on facts rather than feelings and can hold classes on problem-solving abilities. While shopping this afternoon or evening, major purchases that could increase in value would be a good bet. An announcement or letter reveals good news that you may want to share. You enjoy spending time with friends—this evening is not the best time to spend time alone. Friends and loved ones give you good feedback this evening.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Word Sleuth Solution

Your mind is open and insisting to be fed! This is a great day to study and learn new things, as well as to assess your own position.

Others’ points of view will be crystal clear, as will be yours to them. This is a good day to begin a business trip. Your ability to communicate your true feelings to friends and family is also accented. This period marks an excellent time to be with loved ones, whether at work or at play. This afternoon is a most favorable time to go on a family outing or engage in some type of social activity with friends. Being outdoors is most stimulating today. It is not a wildly romantic time, but one where small-scale endeavors will meet with success. Incredibly romantic feelings are fostered in you, intensifying love relationships.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

i n f o r m at i o n

FIRE BRIGADE STATE ST TAT TE OF KUWAIT K KUW WAIT A

112

Tel.: T e el.: 161

DIRECTORA DIRECTORATE ATE T GENE GENERAL ERAL OF CIVIL A AVIATION V VIA ATION T DEPARTMENT METEOROLOGICAL DEP D PARTMENT A DAY: DA AY: Y W Wednesday ednesday e

WWW .MET.GOV V.KW . W WWW.MET.GOV.KW

01/02/2012

Ministry of Interior

07:00

Time Issue T ime

Expected Weather Weather for the Next 24 4 Hours Unstab Unstable ble with moderate to fresh south so outh easterly wind, with speed speeed of 25 - 50 km/h with a chance chaance for rain that might be b thundery at times

BY Y DA DAY: AY:

website: www.moi.gov.kw

Unstable Unstab ble with moderate to fresh south so outh easterly changing to north norrth westerly later on wind, with w speed of 25 - 45 km/h km m/h with a chance for scattered scatterred rain that might be thundery thundeery at times

NIGHT:: BY Y NIGHT

For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128

Unstable weatherr

WARNING W ARNING A STATION ST TATION T

MAX. EXP EXP. P.

MIN.. REC.

KUWAIT KUW WAIT A CITY

20 °C

17 °C

24812000

KUWAIT AIRPORT KUW WAIT A AIRPOR RT

22 °C

16 °C

Amiri Hospital

22450005

NUWAISEEB NUW WAISEEB A

20 °C C

17 °C C

Maternity Hospital

24843100

WAFRA W AFRA A

22 °C

16 °C

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

SALMI

16 °C

14 °C

Chest Hospital

24849400

ABDALY ABDAL LY

19 °C

14 °C

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

ALIYAH JAL ALIY YA AH

19 °C

15 °C

Adan Hospital

23940620

FAILAKA F AILAKA A

18 °C

16 °C

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

PORT AHMADI POR RT

18 °C

16 °C

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

UMM AL-MARADEM M

19 °C

18 °C

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

WARBA BUBYAN W ARBA A A - BUBY YA AN

18 °C

15 °C

Hospitals Sabah Hospital

Ext.: 2627 262 27 - 2630

Fax: 24348714

Clinics

SFC. CHAR CHART T

01/02/2012 0000 0 UTC

4732263

Roudha

22517733

Adhaliya

22517144

Khaldiya Keifan

Temperratures Temperatures DA DATE AT TE

WEA WEATHER ATHER T

Thursday

02/02

24848075

Friday

24849807

Saturday

Shamiya

24848913

Sunday

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Fajr

05:16

MAX. Temp.

MA AX. T emp.

17 °C

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Sunrise S i

06:38 06 38

MIIN. IN Temp.

Temp.

MIN.

09 °C

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Zuhr

12:02

MAX. RH M

89 %

Asr

15:05

M RH MIN.

48 %

Sunset

17:26

MA AX. W ind MAX. Wind

Isha

18:45

TOT TAL AL RAI INF FA ALL L IN 24 HR. TOTAL RAINFALL

Al-Khadissiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

22451082

Al-Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

Mishref

25381200

W.Hawally

22630786

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Al-Ardhiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Al-Omariya

24719048

N.Kheitan

24710044

Fintas

3900322

DAY DA AY

22418714

Al-Shohada’a

22545171

Al-Shuwaikh

24810598

Al-Nuzha

22545171

Sabhan

24742838

Al-Helaly

22434853

Al-Fayhaa

22545051

Al-Farwaniya

24711433

Al-Sulaibikhat

24316983

Al-Fahaheel

23927002

Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh

24316983

Ahmadi

23980088

Al-Mangaf

23711183

Al-Shuaiba

23262845

Al-Jahra

25610011

Al-Salmiya

25616368

POLICE STATION

4 DA DAYS AYS Y FORECAST

Rabiya

Al-Madena

MAX.

MIN.

Wind Direction Direction Wind

Wind Wind Speed

clouds to decrease + rai ising dust raising

18 °C

12 °C

NW

25 - 50 km/h

03/02

dust cold + raising du ust

16 °C

05 °C

NW

25 - 50 km/h

04/02

dust cool + raising du ust

18 °C

04 °C

NW

20 - 40 km/h

05/02

partly cloudy

19 °C

05 °C

NW

15 - 35 km/h

PRAYER PR RA AYER Y TIMES

RECORDED D YESTERDAY YESTERDA AY AT AT KUWAIT KUW WAIT A T AIRPORT AIRPORT

unless All times are local time un nless otherwise stated.

Al-Madena Police Station Al-Murqab Police Station Al-Daiya Police Station Al-Fayha’a Police Station Al-Qadissiya Police Station Al-Nugra Police Station Al-Salmiya Police Station Al-Dasma Police Station

22434064 22435865 22544200 22547133 22515277 22616662 25714406 22530801

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FOR CIVIL INFORMATION Automated enquiry

SE E 68 km/h

about the Civil ID card is 1889988

4.86 mm

01/02/12 02:32 UTC

V1.00

T1.06

PHARMACIES

AIRLINES

ON 24 HRS DUTY GOVERNORATE

PHARMACY

ADDRESS

PHONE

Ahmadi

Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

23915883 23715414 23726558

Jahra

Modern Jahra Madina Munawara

Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 Jahra-Block 92

24575518 24566622

Capital

Ahlam Khaldiya Coop

Fahad Al-Salem St Khaldiya Coop

22436184 24833967

Farwaniya

New Shifa Ferdous Coop Modern Safwan

Farwaniya Block 40 Ferdous Coop Old Kheitan Block 11

24734000 24881201 24726638

Hawally

Tariq Hana Ikhlas Hawally & Rawdha Ghadeer Kindy Ibn Al-Nafis Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554 25721264 25380581 25628241

Kuwait Airways Jazeera Airways Jet Airways FlyDubai Qatar Airways KLM Air Slovakia Olympic Airways Royal Jordanian Reservation British Airways Air France Emirates Air India Sri Lanka Airlines Egypt Air Swiss Air Saudia Middle East Airlines Lufthansa PIA Alitalia Balkan Airlines Bangladesh Airlines Czech Airlines Indian Airlines Oman Air Turkish Airlines Aeroflot

171 177 22924455 22414400 22423888 22425747 22434940 22420002/9 22418064/5/6 22433388 22425635 22430224 22921555 22438184 22424444 22421578 22421516 22426306 22423073 22422493 22421044 22414427 22416474 22452977/8 22417901/ 2433141 22456700 22958787 22453820/1 22404838/9

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 General Practitioners Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Urologists Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 Psychologists /Psychotherapists

Paediatricians

Plastic Surgeons Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf

22547272

Dr. Khaled Hamadi

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari

22617700

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed

Dr. Abdel Quttainah

25625030/60

Family Doctor Dr Divya Damodar

23729596/23729581

Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari

22635047

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians DrAdrian arbe

23729596/23729581

Dr. Verginia s.Marin

2572-6666 ext 8321

Endocrinologist

25665898 25340300

Dr. Zahra Qabazard

25710444

Dr. Sohail Qamar

22621099

Dr. Snaa Maaroof

25713514

Dr. Pradip Gujare

23713100

Dr. Zacharias Mathew

24334282

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada)

25655535

Dentists

Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan

22655539

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami

25343406

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar

22641071/2

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly

25739272

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed

22562226

22618787

Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer

22561444

Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan

22619557

Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash

22525888

Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan

25653755

Dr. Bader Al-Ansari

25620111

General Surgeons Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer

22610044

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher

25327148

Internists, Chest & Heart Dr. Adnan Ebil Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan

22666300 25728004

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra

25355515

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub

24726446

Dr Nasser Behbehani

25654300/3

Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688

Neurologists

22639939

Dr. Mousa Khadada

info@soorcenter.com www.soorcenter.com

3729596/3729581

Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri

25633324

Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan

25345875

Gastrologists Dr. Sami Aman

22636464

Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly

25322030

Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali

22633135

Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, Ph.D. 2290-1677 Susannah-Joy Schuilenberg, M.A. 2290-1677

25339330

Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888 Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 Physiotherapists & VD Dr. Deyaa Shehab

25722291

Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees

22666288

Rheumatologists: Dr. Adel Al-Awadi

Dr Anil Thomas

Dr. Salem soso

Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman

25330060

Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah

25722290

Internist, Chest & Heart DR.Mohammes Akkad

24555050 Ext 210

Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

2611555-2622555

William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677

Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Anguilla Antiga Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Cayman Islands

0093 00355 00213 00376 00244 001264 001268 0054 00374 0061 0043 001242 00973 00880 001246 00375 0032 00501 00229 001441 00975 00591 00387 00267 0055 00673 00359 00226 00257 00855 00237 001 00238 001345

Central African Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Congo Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Cyprus (Northern) Czech Republic Denmark Diego Garcia Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador England (UK) Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia

00236 00235 0056 0086 0057 00269 00242 00682 00506 00385 0053 00357 0090392 00420 0045 00246 00253 001767 001809 00593 0020 00503 0044 00240 00291 00372 00251 00500 00298 00679 00358 0033 00594 00689

36

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

lifest yle G o s s i p

ollywood star Angelina Jolie and her partner Brad Pitt will visit Croatia and Bosnia this month for the launch of her directorial debut, a Bosnian wartime love story, a distributor said yesterday.

The movie “In the Land of Blood and Honey” will have its official debut in Sarajevo on February 14 and in the Croatian capital Zagreb three days later, the local distributor, Blitz Film, said in a statement. The film has already had a preview screening in Bosnia in late December, as a number of victims’ organizations in Bosnia had expressed concern that the film would not correctly present their plight. Most of them eventually hailed the movie as objective and sincere. The film tells the story of a Muslim woman and a Serb man who have a fling before Bosnia’s 19921995 war only to meet again when the woman is the prisoner of a unit of the Bosnian Serb army commanded by her former lover. While at first

H

he Smithsonian Institution is honoring Clint Eastwood for his six decades of work in American film, and the actor and director is cutting the ribbon to open a new theater to showcase film at the National Museum of American History. Yesterday, Eastwood would visit the museum to help dedicate the new Warner Bros Theater as a new space to present the history of Hollywood. Warner Bros. Entertainment donated $5 million in 2010 to renovate the old Carmichael Auditorium into a

T

Cyrus iley Cyrus has splashed out $127,000 on a new car. The 19-year-old star visited a Mercedez Benz dealership in Encino, California, last week and paid cash for a new white 2012 SL550 convertible which goes from 0-60 in just 5.3 seconds. According to TMZ.com, Miley drove home in her new vehicle, while her bodyguard got behind the wheel of her old car to drive it back to her house.

However, Miley - who is dating

M

adonna was inspired to write ‘W.E.’ because of the “cracks” in her marriage to Guy Ritchie. The 53-yearold singer - who tied the knot with the director in December 2000, divorcing eight years later - admits she began working on the film because she was searching to find what “perfect love” really is and questioning why the romance had left their union. She said: “I’d been married 10 years when I started writing it. And I was certainly asking a kind of existential ques-

M

her ‘Last Song’ co-star Liam Hemsworth - may not be out driving for a while as the clumsy star has suffered a painful injury at home. She tweeted yesterday : “cracked my tail bone doing a front flip... on to the couch. thats like when i tripped over a pillow and broke my arm. #onlyme (sic)” Miley is no stranger to fast cars - her first ever vehicle, which she was given when she was just 16 years old, was a Porsche. However, the ‘Hannah Montana’ star was unhappy with the sports car because it used to be long to her mother. She said at the time: “I do have a car. I took my mom’s old car. I didn’t get the one I wanted, but I got the old car which wasn’t so bad because it was a Porsche. I suppose it was a pretty good hand me down.” The singer-andactress has also previously insisted she is very good driver. She said: “I’m a good driver but I make my mum a nervous wreck, which makes me nervous. “I love driving, and I’m pretty good at it - I really am!”

tion that I think people ask when they’ve been married that long: What is the perfect love? Because when you start off, everything’s great and lovely, and the person you’ve married is flawless, and you’re flawless. “Then time goes by, and you share a life, you have children, and there are cracks in the veneer. It’s not as romantic as it used to be. You think, ‘This isn’t what I thought it was going to be,’ and, ‘How much am I willing to sacrifice?’ “ Despite their split, Madonna - who had

modern theater with 3D projection capability. On Friday, the museum will open a three-day film festival to highlight the work of Humphrey Bogart with free screenings of “Casablanca,” “The Maltese Falcon” and other films. The 81-year-old Eastwood will be awarded the James Smithson Bicentennial Medal for his distinguished contributions.

Minaj eidi Klum and Seal have always had a “passionate relationship”. The supermodel and the ‘Kiss From A Rose’ singer announced their separation earlier last month after almost seven years of marriage and while sources close to the couple have claimed they had furious rows on a recent ski trip to Aspen, Heidi admitted they always had a fiery marriage. In an interview with Britain’s InStyle magazine conducted before the split, Heidi said: “To me, his beautiful face, great body, amazing heart, voice, his ability to be a loving, car-

H

ing person and father, what can I say? He can be mad too and I have a lot of fun with him. He’s off the cuff. He’s not fixed in his ways. And he knows how to handle me. It’s always been really passionate between us.”

Heidi also revealed the attraction between the couple was instantaneous when they first met in The Mercer Hotel in New York City, when Heidi was pregnant with her daughter Leni, who Seal later adopted. She said: “We locked eyes and, well, we were immediately attracted to each other. He’d come into the hotel from the gym and he was sweaty and wanted to take a shower. I said, ‘No, stay with me. I don’t mind.’ And he said, ‘No, but I’ll be back.’ And he did go to his room. And he did come back. And knowing him now, he was very fast and he’s a man who usually really takes his time. So now, I know he really wanted to come back.”

icki Minaj’s tour rider includes three buckets of spicy fried chicken and contact lense solution.

The ‘Check It Out’ rapper’s backstage demands have been revealed and it seems the musician is happy to live up to her diva reputation. As well as the chicken - which she specifies must have “no thighs” and “lots of wings” - Nicki also asks for 2 dozen pink or white roses, two Space Heaters, one gallon of Simply Lemonade, 12 cans of Red Bull and scented candles. Food is apparently very important to the 29-year-old star and her crew as she requests different items for throughout the day, including scrambled egg whites, turkey bacon, toast, Belgian waffles, strawberries, assorted juices and a large fruit platter for breakfast and a deli tray with turkey breast meat, grilled chicken breast, whole Wheat bread or rolls, yellow mustard and other condiments (seasoned salt, hot sauce) and a large fruit platter with side of mango and one large cheese platter for after the concert. Her extravagant demands are revealed in the new issue of Wonderland magazine.

Despite her excessive requirements, Nicki says she isn’t a diva off stage and insists she takes on a persona when she performs. She told the publication: “They’re definitely two completely different people. Obviously what I would wear at home is not what I would wear up on stage and I think, when I’m at home it’s a way more introspective character and I think the person people see on stage is anything but. I watch a lot of ‘Judge Judy’. And I watch a lot of ‘Forensic Files. And I cook - I cook spaghetti really, really good; I cook macaroni and cheese really, really good; I cook chicken really, really good.”

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sons Rocco, 11, and adopted David, five, with Guy - insists she is still romantic and believes in “true love”. The ‘Hung Up’ hitmaker - who is now dating dancer Brahim Zaibat - told the new issue of Newsweek magazine: “When you get to the end of the movie, I think it’s very clear they really loved each other, and that I am a romantic and that I do believe in true love.”

he diminutive ‘Jersey Shore’ star - whose real name is Nicole Polizzi - and her boyfriend of just over a year, Jionni LaValle, are expecting their first child together and the pregnancy will feature in her new reality TV show, a spin-off with co-star Jenni ‘JWoww’ Farley. A source told America’s Star magazine: “She is pregnant and has only told her closest friends and some family. She’s been telling people that she has a big announcement coming. “They are having to redo the creative direction of her spin-off because of her pregnancy.” Snooki recently revealed she is looking forward to leaving her partying ways behind to get married and have a baby with Jionni although she wasn’t expecting it to happen so soon. She said: “I’m still waiting for that ring, I swear to God. I’ve been telling him this for months now!’ “I live my life crazy partying whatever, but I’m ready to settle down and have a little baby. “[I’m giving him] two years. I’m 24 now. He has until 26 to ask me. If he doesn’t ask me, I’m asking him!’

Snooki has previously hooked up with ‘Jersey Shore’ co-star Mike ‘The Situation’ Sorrentino and Vinny Guadagnino on the show.

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he is able to protect her, once he is transferred away she suffers abuse and rape at the hands of the soldiers. Bosnia’s 1992-1995 war, between its Croats, Muslims and Serbs, claimed some 100,000 lives. Tens of thousands of people were held in prison camps, where torture and abuse were commonplace. Some 20,000 women were raped during the conflict, according to the government’s estimates. The international premiere of Jolie’s directorial debut, filmed in 2010 with a number of actors from the former Yugoslavia, took place on December 5 in New York and it will go on general release in Europe in early February.

Johansson S

carlett Johansson is reportedly dating advertising executive Nate Naylor. ‘The Avengers’ star is said to have been secretly romancing the freelance creative director for the last six months, and they were spotted canoodling together in Manhattan, New York, at the weekend. A source told RadarOnline.com: “They’re keeping it very, very low key. He’s not one for the limelight and fame and she likes that about him.” Scarlett, 27, and Nate were also spotted having a cozy dinner with three friends together at a restaurant in the city’s Bowery Hotel. Another source told the New York Post newspaper: “Scarlett was rubbing his back and kiss-

ing his neck. “He was wearing a shortsleeve, V-neck T-shirt and had tattoos up his arm.” Meanwhile, Scarlett and her exhusband, Ryan Reynolds - who she split from in 2010 after two years of marriage - have put the home they used to share together in Los Angeles up for sale. The $3.6 million, four bed roomed house in the Los Feliz Hills area of the city is ecofriendly with solar panels, floor-to-ceiling windows in the kitchen, living room and den and a private garden and outdoor bath connected to the master suite.

The couple - who finalised their divorce in July 2010 - bought the property in 2008 for $2.9 million. — Agencies

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012

lifestyle F e a t u r e s

Annie Beurman, 14, of Olathe, Kansas, punches a bag during Fight Club at Title Boxing. — MCT photos

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he first jabs landed politely, like the boxing students were tapping the punching bags on the shoulders instead of pummeling them. Then, the music started blasting-hard, driving beats, the kind that push everyone in the club onto the dance floor. Ronnell “Bigg Ron” Jones, an aptly named wall of a man, barked instructions over the music. “Jab, righthanded! Jab, right-handed! Jab, right-handed!

Who’s the champ?” “I’m the champ,” a couple of kids called out meekly. “I don’t believe you. I don’t believe you,” Bigg Ron goaded. “WHO’S THE CHAMP?” “I’M THE CHAMP!” 14 teenagers cried out in one voice.

Holly Reynolds, left, helps Annie Beurman, 14 with her gloves during Fight Club at Title Boxing.

As Annie Beurman punched at the bag in front of her, she couldn’t help but think: “Nobody better mess with me.” The new Fight Club classes at Title Boxing Club in Prairie Village, Kan., are free to teens who are being bullied, teens wanting to stand up for friends being bullied and any teen needing to let off a little steam. It’s not a self-defense class. Holly Reynolds, the woman who started the program, can’t call it that for legal reasons. It’s not about

fighting, either, though Reynolds gave it the same name as the 1999 Brad Pitt movie about underground fight clubs. This Fight Club is about getting fit, feeling strong and fighting the good fight, she said.

These teens don’t spar with each other. They spar with their feelings. And a lot of anger gets left in those sweaty boxing gloves.”People tried to get me to change the name to make it more accessible, but I was very determined,” Reynolds said. “That was the name that came to my head, because growing up is a fight. You’ve got to fight to be heard, you’ve got to fight to be understood. Some of these kids have to fight to get themselves out of bed in the morning and drag themselves to school. It’s a constant struggle. “ The metaphor went well with what’re doing. We’re not necessarily telling these kids go out and fight. We’re giving them the mindbody connection that comes from boxing and kickboxing.” A boost of confidence is what Kelli Beurman, a grade school teacher from Olathe, Kan., wants for her daughter, Annie, who last week signed up for Fight Club. Fourteen-yearold Annie, now a freshman, has been bullied since fourth grade.

“I thought it would give her a sense of empowerment in case she would ever need to defend herself,” Beurman said. “Because part of dealing with someone who is bothering you is just knowing that you can.” Reynolds knows the pain of being bullied. Growing up in Kansas City she was a target in high school, as was a friend who was harassed about his sexual orientation.

“I was a little chunky in high school, and I walked home every day through a neighborhood ... this car full of kids would call me Jenny Craig drop-out. They’d honk their horn and yell out the window. I just got thick-skinned and let it harden me. That’s how I dealt with it,” said Reynolds, an aesthetician who runs a studio on State Line Road. “So I know from experience that ... there’s a better way to go rather than internalizing those emotions. It makes you mad at the world, really. And it doesn’t have to be that way. There are people who care.”

Those experiences kept her interested in bullying issues as an adult. She followed national cases and was especially moved by what happened to Jamey Rodemeyer, a 14-year-old in Buffalo, NY Jamey, who struggled with his sexuality, was bullied online for months. Last May he

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Photos show “El Chaco” meteorite in Gancedo, Chaco province, Argentina, 1100 km north of Buenos Aires. — AFP photos

DaRon Lash, 15, takes a breather after a vigorous workout.

posted an anti-bullying message on YouTube.

Then in September he posted final messages on his blog before killing himself.

About the same time, a friend of Reynolds’ told her of a girl she knew in town who also was being bullied in school. Wouldn’t that girl love to box to let out some of her emotions? The thought wasn’t random. Two years ago Reynolds signed up for boxing classes at Title Boxing at a friend’s suggestion. “I’m an I-onlyrun-when-chased girl,” she said. “But I was having some postpartum depression, and it was the best thing I ever did for my confidence, for my power.”

So she asked Bigg Ron, her instructor and trainer at Title Boxing, to help her organize a program for teens with an anti-bullying message. The owner of the Prairie Village location donated the space, while other members there volunteered to help. At the end of last year they handed out fliers at libraries, malls, coffee houses, places around town where kids hang out.

Reynolds lined up speakers to offer encouraging words-the CEO of the YMCA of Greater Kansas City and women from the Kansas City Roller Warriors are coming.

Reaching for higher-power help, she also contacted famous anti-bullying crusader Lady Gaga; she hasn’t heard back yet. Bullying is such a huge problem that “we’re not hoping to change the world,” Reynolds said. “Just at least create that spark.”

Bigg Ron pulls no punches. The workouts he leads are heart-pounding. One girl got sick during last week’s class. DaRon Lash, a 15-year-old freshman at Shawnee Mission West, started out slowly, kicking at the punching bag as though he were kicking dirt in its face. Then a volunteer showed him how to power his kicks from the hip, and suddenly DaRon’s kicks started landing square and solid.

DaRon stuck it out through the sit-ups, the push-ups, the laps, the punching, kicking, punching, more laps. How he hated those laps.

He has had run-ins with school bullies-”I didn’t know what to do. I just stood there and took it. I was afraid I was going to get my face punched in”-so he’s determined to help other kids being targeted. “He said, ‘Grandpa, I really don’t put up with that,’?” said his grandfather, Dan Lash of Overland Park. “That’s the reason he wanted to join.”

Fight Club wasn’t a hard sell for Grandpa,

n unlikely alliance between the native Moqoit people and leading Argentine scientists has thwarted plans to ship the world’s second largest meteorite to Germany as a prestigious art exhibit. The 37-ton space rock crashed to Earth as part of a meteor shower between 4,000 and 5,000 years ago, forming a giant 48,000 square kilometer crater field in northeastern Argentina known as Campo del Cielo, or Field of the Sky. Named El Chaco after the province it fell into, the meteorite is central to the world view of the native Moqoit people, many of whose legends, passed down from generation to generation, are based on the meteor shower.

The Moqoit First Nation was decimated following the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century and today there are only about 15,000 natives left, living mainly in far northeastern Argentina. A controversy erupted when the Chaco provincial legislature in December approved a request by a pair of Buenos Aires-based artists to ship the meteorite to Germany to feature in the Documenta modern art exhibition. The artists, Guillermo Faivovich and Nicolas Goldberg, organized a similar exhibit in Frankfurt in 2010, when they put on display for the first time the complete “El Taco” meteorite.

The smaller, two-ton space rock was discovered in 1962 in Campo del Cielo by an Argentine-US expedition, which promptly divided the find and sent half each to the respective countries. Faivovich and Goldberg hoped El Chaco-second in size only to the 60-ton Hoba meteorite in Namibia-would be the centerpiece of the Documenta show, which runs from June 9 until September 16 in Kassel, Germany.

Theresa Durnbeck, who heads the province’s eco-

who competed in Golden Gloves when he was a teenager. “It got me into really good physical condition as well as taught me how to take care of myself,” Lash said. “They told us when we trained that our fists were considered weapons.

We were told not to use them unless we were in the ring.” He has counseled his grandson to do the same: When confronted by a bully, try to talk things out first. But if you must, protect yourself. At the first class, Reynolds taped messages to the bags to give the teens something to aim at. I struggle every day to fit in.

I worry each night before I go to sleep about what’s going to happen at school tomorrow. I feel like I have no real friends. One boy asked if he could bring a photo of a kid who was tormenting him and tape it to the bag. “I said, ‘Man, I see where you’re coming from, I do. I totally understand that,’” Reynolds said. “‘But in a few weeks you’re going to see that it’s not him you want to hit. It’s those emotions that you want to hit.’”— MCT

Caleb Dopson, 14, during Fight Club.

nomic development office, claims that putting the meteorite on show in Germany would encourage tourism in Chaco, one of Argentina’s poorest regions.

“More than a million people from different parts of the world visit the Documenta show,” she said.

“For the province it would be an opportunity hard to repeat, and impossible to reach with its own resources.” Not so fast, said the Moqoit natives, supported by a coalition of scientists, astronomers, anthropologists, and defenders of Argentina’s heritage. Earlier this month more than 40 prominent Argentine astronomers wrote an open letter saying they “energetically opposed” the plans, and that taking the meteorite to Germany “violates the rights of the Chaqueno natives.”

Instead of shipping the rock “as a sort of ‘cosmic curiosity’ it would be much better” to encourage people to visit the meteorite at its home in Chaco province, the letter read. The plan was for the rock to begin mid-February its 1,000-kilometer (620mile) odyssey from Chaco to the port of Buenos Aires. From there it was to be shipped to Germany before being hauled to Kassel overland. “It’s madness,” said Jorge Castillo, who heads both an environmentalist organization and a group protecting the heritage of Chaco province. “The El Chaco meteorite is not leaving Chaco province,” Castillo told AFP. “It is part of the province’s cultural and natural heritage “and it must remain in its place,” he said. “It is not merchandise.”

Upon learning of the controversy, the Documenta organizers in Germany decided to suspend their request to borrow the meteorite. “No loan of the El Chaco meteorite will be further requested without a full endorsement by the peoples of the land of Chaco, by the local community

as a whole, and in careful consideration of the beliefs and principles of the traditional custodians today,” the organizers said in a statement. But efforts are ongoing and the statement noted that the two artists were “currently meeting with all concerned parties” to discuss the matter. — AFP

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Regaining at Tanque Verde Ranch G

ene Autry I wasn’t. Barely an hour into an all-day trail ride, my hiking boots felt like ovens and my baseball cap barely shaded my face. It was no better for my horse, Cutter. The low Arizona sun lit his red mane like flames. We were climbing, and Cutter struggled to get his footing on the rocky, steep trail. Sweat trickled down his shoulders as a dozen wannabe cowboys plodded along nose-to-tail behind a real cowboy named Joe. I could taste the desert. I was last in line, caught in sporadic clouds of dry, chalky dust on the trails of the Tanque Verde Ranch. Miles beyond the ranch’s squat pink casitas and rusty-metal-roofed barns, I spied the modern sprawl of Tucson, a green oasis fed by the rainwater and snowmelt of the Catalina and Rincon ranges.

I wasn’t complaining. Back home in Minneapolis, the first snow of the season had blown in. I’d heard about the ranch during a stay at the Grand View Lodge near Brainerd. Minn-both are owned by the same Minnesota family-and arrived there a few days earlier with two teenage nephews for a pre-Thanksgiving holiday. I was secretly hoping that my suburban nephews would come to share my lifelong love of horses, or at least that 180 horses and only one TV would hold their interest. The boys have spent plenty of time on motorcycles and snowmobiles, but almost none on horseback. I made a promise: They wouldn’t have to muck out the barns, saddle the horses or throw a single bale of hay.

We got off to a good start. During the 25-mile trip from the airport to the ranch, we discovered that the cowboy who picked us up and my nephew, Joey, shared a love of playing “metal” on their electric guitars. Although it was dark when we arrived, the boys were thrilled with Tanque Verde, a 60,000-acre “Gunsmoke” set come to life.

The working ranch, nestled in the foothills of the Rincon Mountains, sidles up to Saguaro National Park, named for the giant cactuses that dot the landscape. Guests stay in adobe-style cottages and a few small lodge rooms (perfect for solo visitors) that are scattered among several buildings, including a dining hall, a one-room nature center and a modest spa built of weathered wood and stone with a rusty metal roof.

Tough mesquite trees dot the landscape.

Across a sprawling green lawn, horses stood shoulder-to-shoulder in a big corral. On our first morning, I watched with delight as the sun rose over the Rincons from the covered front of our pink two-room casita. I later met with the lead wranglera Marlboro Man, if I’ve ever seen one. Through a well-waxed handlebar mustache, he told me there are several rides daily for people of all abilities, and we could do as many as we liked. Then he warned that we would need to pass a riding test if we wanted to do a lope ride-like the Daytona 500 of trail rides, with a fast gait and a bit of danger.

“And ours is the most difficult in the industry,” he said. I was happy for the high safety standards, but knew that it would be difficult for us to pass, so we took a group riding lesson with two wranglers and a dozen or so riders from Poland who were visiting the ranch as part of a Philip Morris employee incentive trip. I called them the Smokin’ Poles. We started with the basics: steering the horses and getting them to start and stop. Not tough for us, but the others seemed flummoxed.

“Kick!” the wrangler yelled, trying to get each rider to take his horse around the ring. It was clear that the Smokin’ Poles didn’t understand, and neither did their horses, but it made my nephews and me feel better about our riding skills. After lunch we set out on a mountain-bike ride along some of the trails that surround the ranch. We sped along the narrow trails, dodging the menacing out-

Horses and riders make their way up a trail at Tanque Verde.

stretched arms of cactuses growing toward the trails. Our guide, Casey, warned about other dangers, as well, including rattlesnakes and javelinas, small pig-like animals that run through the ranch in packs.

“Ouch!” I heard nephew Chayse yell. I came around the bend expecting to find him stuck to a cactus like a piece of Velcro, but instead he was standing next to his bike and had taken off a glove.

A tarantula bite? No, he’d been attacked by something in his glove: a thorn. Casey said that the person who had last used the gloves had fallen onto a cactus. That night we walked over to the Dog House Saloon, a one-room pub, for popcorn and a game of pool. Bob and Bobbi Abendroth, a retired couple from Mequon, Wis., were sitting at the bar.

Like most ranch guests, they’ve been coming here for years. Decades, actually. They visit Tanque Verde every Thanksgiving week with their extended family. They warned that we would become repeat visitors, as well.

Bobbi said that the ranch has been a constant in her family’s life and that in the many years they have been coming, things have stayed the same.

Well, mostly. “We’re still upset that they took away the relish tray,” she said. It was the close of our first full day, and I was already beginning to believe Bobbi’s prediction. The next morning, we set out on an all-day ride with Joe, a wrangler from Central Casting with spurs and chaps who has been guiding here for decades. That cool morning turned into a sweltering afternoon as we made our way into the foothills. We stopped for lunch in a shady cottonwood grove, where we tied our horses to a split-rail fence and ate sandwiches that we carried in day packs slung around our horses’ necks.

I worried that the boys were growing weary of the plodding pace and the silence of the desert, but they seemed stimulated by the increasingly rugged landscape and the challenge-and thrill _ of guiding their horses. We’d planned another full-day ride for the next day, our last full day, that included a trailside breakfast of blueberry pancakes made

by Bob Cote.

Bob’s father, Brownie Cote, bought Tanque Verde Ranch in 1957 even as he continued to run the Brainerd area’s Grand View Lodge; some of the summer employees headed south to work the ranch each winter. Both the ranch and the resort are still owned by the Cote family. Bob and his wife, Rita, spend much of the year on the ranch.

Bob’s pancakes fortified us for the more technically challenging ride we had in store, one that traversed several narrow ridgelines in higher elevations. I worried about the boys, but by the end-and even after two full days of riding-they wanted more time with their horses. We had only a halfday left, so I suggested another lope check. We’d already done one and none of us passed. We had

Bob Cote flips pancakes at a special Sunday trailside breakfast before riders continue into the desert .

The setting sun colors the sky behind a cowboy statue.

nothing to lose and we’d get a chance to feel some speed. Each of us had three chances to show that we could trot, lope and stop our horses on command during a spin around the ring. I passed, but the boys didn’t. They were clearly disappointed, but didn’t complain. During our four days in the Arizona desert they’d come to love horses the way I have since I was a teenager. And they made me promise that we’d come back.

The boys left to start packing. Still on horseback I caught up with a group just setting out for a 90minute lope ride. Our previous rides crisscrossed the rocky, cactus-filled foothills. This time we were on a low, dry river bed where the ground was soft and smooth. It had rained a bit that morning-nothing like the monsoons that come with summer-and the Rincons had slipped behind a velvet fog. We walked for a few minutes, and with barely a nudge our horses let loose. My heart raced and I resisted the urge to let out a joyful wail as the nine of us, our horses nose to tail, followed the dry wash like the summer rains. As we loped, barely making contact with the ground, I’d never felt so connected to a place.

While guests wear hiking boots and tennis shoes, working wranglers are seen at Tanque Verde, a ranch that sidles up to Saguaro National Park.

If you go

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The all-inclusive per-person nightly rate includes lodging, rides, lessons, food and some beverages.

Rates depend on accommodations and the season; they are highest during the winter and holidays. The nightly rate for two is $300 each; the third was less expensive. Check out “hot deals” for last-minute discounts. 1800-234-3833; www.tanqueverderanch.com. — MCT

Horses wait in a corral at Tanque Verde, a working ranch that sidles up to Saguaro National Park near Tucson, Arizona, where guests get to live a ‘Gunsmoke’-style life.

— MCT photos

Two women from Paris strolling down the covered front walk that connects the dining hall, activities center and the main lodge rooms.

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Manolo Blahnik’s

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inie Tempah has been named the UK’s best dressed man. The rapper - real name Patrick Okogwu - beat off competition from the likes of Prince Harry, ‘Doctor Who’ star Matt Smith and Robert Pattinson to top the list compiled by GQ, with the magazine claiming he has a “true passion for elegance”. Prince William, who made his debut on the list last year, did not even make the top 50.

Flame-haired Prince Harry was named at number 25 on the list, with the publication saying: “His brother may end up as king, but this year the younger son has been crowned the prince of style.

He looks good in uniforms, well cut-suits and the disheveled tumbling-out-of-a-nightclub jeans.”

David Beckham moved up three places from last year’s list to 13, while Gary Barlow was a new entry at 16. Other notable stars on the list include Andrew Garfield - who is currently dating Emma

Stone - and forthcoming Superman Henry Cavill.

This year GQ also released a top 10 worst dressed list, with rapper Chris Brown topping the poll.

GQ Magazine’s Top 10 Best Dressed British men 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Tinie Tempah Mario Balotelli Matt Smith Robert Pattinson Andrew Garfield Henry Cavill Idris Elba Christian Bale Sergio Pizzorno Ian Brown — Bang Showbiz

50s mentality

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anolo Blahnik has a “50s mentality” about fashion. The shoe designer - a favorite of stars including Sarah Jessica Parker and Kylie Minogue - does not think women have to spend a huge amount of money to look good and prefers them to wear “twin sets and tweed”. He said: “[Trends] manipulate women by making them feel they have to constantly spend money on different things to remain fashionable. “This is ridiculous.

I’d prefer to see women in twin sets and tweed. I have a very 50s kind of mentality when it comes to fashion.”

The Spanish creator - who opened his first shop in London in 1968 - admits his career has not always been easy, especially when as an inexperienced designer he forgot one key element of a shoe heel when he was asked to create a range for Ossie

Models display Autum/Winter designs by Jesus Del Pozo during the Madrid’s Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, in Madrid, yesterday. — AP photos

Clark. He told the Wall Street Journal: “I had been asked to make shoes for Ossie Clark’s show in the early 70s. I was so inexperienced that I didn’t put the steel in the heels of the shoes, which is required to support the shoe and the wearer. So the girls came out walking very strangely in these rubber, bendy high-heeled shoes I had made. I thought, ‘Oh dear god! This is the end of me.’ But after the show, even David Hockney and Cecil Beaton said to me, ‘It was so interesting that the girls were moving in such a different way.’ “ — Bang Showbiz

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Kenyan artist Cyrus Kabiru poses with an artwork resembling sunglasses yesterday in Nairobi. Kabiru has created a range of artworks called ‘c-stunners’ that resemble sunglasses but have been made with objects found on the street on the way to his studio. Each piece has its own story with the series inspired by his father, who once fell out of love with his own spectacles after receiving a beating from his parents for breaking them. — AFP

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Savannah Bresee, 17, models an outfit made out of a phone book.

Tyler Elmore, 17 models an outfit made out of tissue paper.

da Weeks’ narrative kept the parade of ingenuity flowing smoothly across the stage. “Love it! Beautiful,” she said under her breath as students in her entry-level fashion design class modeled their creations before an audience at Liberty High School’s performing arts center. “Don’t be afraid to come out a little further,” Weeks coaxed one of the shyer teens. “Don’t look at the floor.” The quirky melange of outfits was a world away from the high-fashion couture of Dior and Chanel, but they were creative in their own right: After all, the assignment had been to design and assemble a skirt out of paper and duct tape alone.

The projects included a flared, pleated piece made from the pages of two telephone books, and one fashioned out of binder paper and Post-it Notes arranged in a checkerboard pattern. One girl wowed the judge with her voluminous ballerina skirt of pink and white tissue paper, which she had attached to a glittering corset cut from a plastic tablecloth and accented with rhinestones and ribbons. “This is the best prom dress ever! I want that!” laughed an enthusiastic Michelle Prior, who was there from San Francisco’s Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising to choose the winning entries.

Weeks has the five dozen students in her beginning and advanced sewing courses use paper and tape so they can experiment on the cheap instead of going through bolts of fabric.

Their task is to fit the garment to their waist and hips using gores, tucks, pleats, darts or gathers, as well as make an underskirt to help it hold its shape.

“This was not just fun and fluff but structural issues that each student had to understand,” said Weeks, a former seamstress who specialized in custom wedding dresses and formal wear. Encouraged to let their imagination run wild, students applied the tailoring principles

to skirts they constructed with everything from flattened juice boxes, tiers of soda cans, and layers of paper coffee filters to newspapers, printer paper, and cardboard tubes from rolls of paper towels.

In preparing them for the fashion show, Weeks encourages good posture by having students walk with textbooks balanced on their heads. She adds an English lesson for good measure, requiring them to describe their project in writing — and proper grammar is a must. Weeks uses the information to provide a breezy commentary during the show.

The class is bringing Jordan Largent one step closer to her dream designing costumes in the film industry. Although the Oakley, Calif 17-year-old has been sewing since she took home economics in middle school, she’s preparing for fashion design school after graduation by enrolling in Weeks’ classes. For Gabby Espejel, the biggest challenge of learning to sew is learning patience. “When I make mistakes I have to start over,” said the 16-yearold, who’s toying with the idea of a career as a hair and makeup stylist for runway models.

Weeks reminds students that sewing offers tangible rewards in the present as well: Tailormade clothes always fit better than off-therack styles, she said. Do-it-yourselfers also can ensure their creations are well made; with mass-produced clothes, plaids on adjoining panels of fabric don’t always match up and hem lines can be uneven, Weeks said. Young people also can save money if they know how to repair a tear in a jacket or shorten a hem, she added.

What’s more, the girl who can make one-ofa-kind outfits need not worry about running into someone else wearing the same dress at the senior prom, Weeks said. With the knowhow he’s acquiring, freshman Andrew Vail hopes eventually to make Scottish battledress that he can wear to the Renaissance fairs he

attends with his father and younger brother.

“It’s kind of cool to know that you’re able to make your own stuff,” said the 15-year-old, who’s the sole boy in his class and, to his knowledge, the only one among his male friends who can handle a needle and sewing machine. Weeks acknowledges that teens in this digital age might consider needlework an outdated pastime, noting that some didn’t even know how to thread a needle when they signed up for her class.

“They can all text until the cows come home but they can’t do old-fashioned things,” she said. But young people gain confidence as they learn to work with their hands, she says, and with skills that they can apply to other creative outlets such as embroidery and quilting they can become more well-rounded. Even in the 21st century “they still need to work with their hands,” Weeks said. “I’m trying to keep that alive.” — MCT

Liberty High School teacher Ada Weeks’ fashion students fill the stage at Liberty High School, in Brentwood California, with outfits made out of paper and tape and other cheap materials. — MCT photos