6 Apr

Pt Io n rI BS C Su THE LEADING INDEPENDENT DAILY IN THE ARABIAN GULF

40 PAGES

TUESDAY, APRIL 6, 2010

RABI ALTHANI 21, 1431 AH

Kuwait Municipality marks 80th anniversary

Strong quake kills 2 in Mexico, rattles US states

PAGE 2

PAGE 9

in the news US wants $750m from Agility KUWAIT: US authorities want Kuwaiti logistics firm Agility to pay up to $750 million to settle fraud charges but the company hopes to pay less, a newspaper said yesterday. AlJarida, citing unnamed sources, said Agility wants to pay between $300 million to $500 million in compensation. Yesterday, Al-Jarida said the two parties were negotiating a schedule for repayment and whether Agility will get new contracts with the US military. A second newspaper, Al-Anbaa, quoted unnamed sources as saying that if talks between Agility and the US government do not reach a settlement this week, the case will go to US courts.

Syria scraps refinery deal DAMASCUS: The Syrian government has cancelled a deal with Kuwait’s Noor Financial to build a 140,000 barrel per day refinery in eastern Syria, Oil Minister Sufian Alao said yesterday. “This project is no longer among our current plans,” Alao told Reuters in an interview. The two sides signed a memorandum of understanding in 2007 to construct the $1.7 billion refinery. Later that year they signed an agreement with British consultants Wood McKenzie for a feasibility study. Alao did not give a reason for ending the deal.

PACI warns on IDs KUWAIT: The Public Authority for Civil Information warned citizens and residents of the repercussions of losing their civil IDs or handing them over as collateral, which can lead to prosecution, in a statement made by the head of the civil records department Abdullah Al-Turaiji. Al-Turaiji said citizens and residents are urged to refer to PACI to issue an alternate card as soon as they lose their civil IDs, instructing people to abstain from handing over their IDs at stores in order to avoid their cards being used for impersonation crimes.

Saudi cleric to visit Jerusalem RIYADH: A Saudi cleric announced yesterday on his television show that he will visit Jerusalem next week to bolster Muslim claims to the city. If Sheikh Mohammed AlAreefi goes ahead with his plan, it would be an unprecedented trip for a prominent Saudi.

Jerusalem is the third holiest site in Islam, but most Muslim countries - including Saudi Arabia - observe a strict boycott of Israel and ban travel there. Al-Areefi told his viewers Sunday on the religious satellite channel Iqra that the next episode of his show would be about Muslim claims to Jerusalem and Palestine. He said he was not afraid of any “treachery from the Jews”, as he had put his trust in God.

UFO joke sparks panic AMMAN: A Jordanian newspaper’s April Fool’s Day report chronicling a late-night visit by 10-foot-tall aliens in flying saucers sparked public panic and almost led to the town’s emergency evacuation, officials said yesterday.

The Al Ghad newspaper published a frontpage article April 1 about the fake UFO landing near the desert town of Jafr, some 300 km from the capital, Amman. The report said the UFOs lit up the whole town, interrupted communications and sent fearful residents streaming into the streets. A Jordanian security official said an emergency plan was almost enacted in Jafr. Jafr’s mayor, Mohammed Mleihan, said he may sue the daily for its “big lie”, but added that the paper had called to apologize for the inconvenience caused by the joke.

NO: 14690

Discovery launches on one of last shuttle missions

Tiger given warm reception at Masters practice round

PAGE 27

PAGE 17

Kuwait to slap ‘health’ fees on visitors

By A Saleh and Ahmad Saeid KUWAIT: Kuwait is likely to impose a monthly KD 50 fee on visitors to the country that would increase proportionally with the duration of the visit, based on a feasibility study compiled by the Interior Ministry’s General Department of Immigration.

“Revenues resulting from the fee

Expat hospitals to be built from revenue would be used to build hospitals in Kuwait’s six governorates to provide medical treatment for expatriates,” informed sources told Kuwait Times yesterday.

They said that a recent study done by the department proposes a KD 50 fee on each visit visa for every month of the visit. “The

study had previously suggested a KD 100 fee per month, but the proposed fee was slashed by a half to make it more attractive for applicants,” sources added. The study shows that a majority of expats who visit Kuwait under the sponsorship of their relatives are actually coming to receive

medical treatment for free, and the current system does not charge them for medical insurance. The new hospitals are meant to reduce crowds at government hospitals which will only be restricted to providing healthcare to Kuwaitis. The study has been referred to Interior Minister

Sheikh Jaber Al-Khaled Al-Sabah for ratification. Currently, expats only pay a symbolic fee through revenue stamps applied on visa applications. The study also suggests a hike in such a fee proportional to the duration of the visit for example, KD 100 for two months and KD 120 for three

Gunmen attack US Peshawar consulate Suicide blast hits political rally • 46 dead PESHAWAR: Militants armed with guns, grenades and suicide car bombs targeted the US consulate in Pakistan’s northwestern capital and a political rally, killing 46 people yesterday. The attacks in quick succession were among the deadliest so far this year in nuclear-armed Pakistan, where insecurity has raised concerns in the United States as Washington steps up the fight in Afghanistan and against Al-Qaeda. Pakistan’s Taleban claimed responsibility for the consulate attack, claiming it was to avenge a US drone war targeting top militants in Pakistan’s border areas with Afghanistan, and threatened further assaults on Americans.

That heavily-armed militants managed to approach the US mission, underscored the potency of their threat despite stepped up Pakistani offensives and US drone attacks focused on Taleban and AlQaeda-linked commanders. Five security officials were killed when at least eight militants armed with guns, grenades and two car bombs targeted the heavily guarded US consulate in Peshawar, a city of 2.5 million on the edge of Pakistan’s lawless tribal belt.

The United States condemned the attack and expressed “great concern”, saying at least two Pakistani security guards employed by the consulate were killed and a number of others seriously wounded, but that no Americans died. “We strongly condemn the violence,” said White House spokesman Robert Gibbs, adding that attacks killing Pakistanis had previously strengthened Islamabad’s determination to battle militants.

“Militancy and extremism have

CAIRO: Egypt’s market for the illegal drug hashish is going through a shortage that is stoking a wide variety of theories, many of them coloured by a sense of widespread distrust towards the government. The authorities have very little tolerance for hashish, and are happy to take the credit for curbing the trade in a series of busts since the beginning of the year that have netted at least six tonnes of the drug.

A report on Saturday in the official Al-Ahram newspaper, headlined “The Interior Ministry imposes its control over the drug market,” announced the end of the hashish trade. “A report by General Security confirmed... the complete destruction of the hashish trade in Egypt,” the state-owned daily reported. When contacted by AFP, the ministry presented a Continued on Page 14

months and so on.

Sources said the proposed fee would stand as a health insurance premium for visitors. They added that many visitors apply for extension while trying to land work visas. The study indicates that Kuwait does not financially benefit from visitors and applying such a fee would contribute to non-oil revenues.

Continued on Page 14

Khorafi calls MPs to give Amir’s message Shamali queried on Shiite books

By B Izzak KUWAIT: National Assembly Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi said yesterday he has invited MPs to an informal meeting at his office tomorrow to convey a message from HH the Amir and to rearrange priorities in the remainder of the current term. Khorafi told reporters that the Amir has asked him to convey a message to MPs but he did not reveal the content or the subject of the message or why it had been made.

The speaker also said that the meeting will also discuss rearranging the subjects that should be discussed in the remaining few

months of the current Assembly term, adding that time is short to debate all issues that had been selected at the start of the term.

He said that any agreement reached at the meeting regarding the subjects will be sent to the Assembly bureau and eventually will be discussed in a session.

Khorafi also said that the informal meeting will discuss finding a mechanism to prevent disputes between MPs following heated exchanges between several MPs and the use of harsh language in the past few sessions. The Assembly’s last week session witnessed heated arguments between Continued on Page 14

Acquittal sought for ‘Qaeda’ cell

PESHAWAR: Pakistani volunteers lift an injured paramilitary soldier at a hospital after a huge bomb attack on the US consulate yesterday. — AFP been the greatest threat to our national security in recent times. I assure you we will fight militancy to the finish,” Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari told parliament yesterday.

Police said two car bombs exploded - at a checkpoint 50 m from the mission and the second

laden with about 100 kg of explosives close to the consulate gate, followed by an exchange of fire.

North West Frontier Province information minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain told reporters that five security officials and six militants were killed. The security barrier near the US consulate gate was

Scarce hash sparks Egypt plot theories

CAIRO: A hashish joint burns in an ashtray in the Egyptian capital on April 4, 2010. — AFP

150 FILS

damaged, and shells from rocketpropelled grenades and hand grenades were left lying in the area, which was sealed off by Pakistani police and army, witnesses said. Although the precise number of assailants was unclear, Bashir Ahmad Bilour, a provincial Continued on Page 14

KUWAIT: Defence lawyers for six Kuwaitis with alleged links to Al-Qaeda yesterday urged the court to acquit them of plotting to attack a US military base, saying they had been tortured. The lawyers, who were wrapping up their defence, also said that the public prosecution and investigators failed to provide the court any material evidence.

“The defendants were severely beaten and tortured to extract confessions from them which they later denied in court,” said defence lawyer Dokhi Al-Hasban. Judge Hisham Abdullah said he will issue a verdict on May 10.

In February, a secret service officer told the court the men plotted to attack the US

base in Arifjan, south of Kuwait City, in collaboration with two other suspects who are now on the run. The public prosecutor withdrew the key conspiracy charge when the trial opened in December, but still pressed accusations of planning to manufacture explosives and the illegal possession of firearms.

“After the public prosecutor withdrew the main charge - the attack on Arifjan - nothing remained in the case,” said defence lawyer Jamal AlKandari. Attorney Mohammad Al-Kandari charged that the deputy public prosecutor had prevented defence lawyers from being present during the interrogations.

Continued on Page 14

Malik questioned by cops, passport seized

HEJING, China: A rescued coalminer is rushed into a hospital in this town in Shanxi province yesterday. — AP

China hails ‘miracle’ as 115 miners saved XIANGNING, China: More than 110 workers were pulled out alive from a Chinese coal mine yesterday in what has been hailed as a miracle rescue over a week after the men were trapped by an underground flood. So far, 115 survivors have been rescued

from the mine in China’s coal-mining heartland of Shanxi province, state media said. Some apparently survived on tree bark and at least one worker strapped himself to the wall with a belt. The news from Shanxi, Continued on Page 14

HYDERABAD: Hyderabad police have questioned former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik and seized his passport ahead of his planned marriage to Indian tennis star Sania Mirza about another woman claiming to be the cricket player’s wife. Malik has been asked not to leave India while the police investigate, senior police official A K Khan said yesterday. In her complaint, filed on Sunday, Ayesha Siddique alleged that Malik married her in June 2002 and she accused him of subjecting her to cruelty and harassment by denying that the wedding took place and by trying to marry another Indian woman.

Police visited the home of Mirza in Hyderabad, the capital of southern Andhra Pradesh state, where Malik was staying and recorded his statement yesterday, Stephan Ravindra, a deputy commissioner of police said.

Police are investigating complaints of criminal intimidation, cheating, fraud and harassment for dowry against the Pakistani cricketer, Ravindra told AP. Police also questioned Siddique. After speaking to the police, Malik and Mirza appeared before reporters and said they were going ahead with the wedding on April 15. “I am very upset (by the controversy),” Mirza said.

Continued on Page 14

HYDERABAD: Indian tennis star Sania Mirza and Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik give a press conference at Mirza’s family home yesterday. — AFP

2

NATIONAL

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Pollution continues to persist

Ignoring ban, people frequent beaches

By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and other dignitaries attend the 80th anniversary of Kuwait Municipality. — Photos by KUNA

organizations warned the public against taking up activities, even consuming local fish. Although several months have passed, the sewage station has not been completely restored.

Pollution continues to persist and the ban has not been lifted. Most Arabic and English local dailies have reported extensively on this environmental issue.

KUWAIT: The sea front that extends from Salmiya to Fintas was polluted as a result of the Mishref sewage plant leak that took place last year. Official authorities have prohibited swimming and fishing in this area. Also, environmental Seemingly, people do not realize the The Anjifa beach is the most polluted in the area, as it lies in close proximity to potential dangers the area poses to human Mishref. Foul smell emanates from the area, health. The Ministry of Health has issued especially when water is contaminated, warnings against the dangers of pollution lending it a brownish hue. A large red sign which may lead to many serious infections board warns people against swimming or and diseases. Also, environmental organizafishing in this area. However, few have tions have come forward to spread awarebeen paying heed to it. Visitors flock to the ness.

However, some have been vigilant and area even before the onset of summer.

During the past weekend, several Arab men exercise caution, “My sister took her kids to and women were seen swimming and fish- one of the famous clubs in Messila, and she ing here. Some children were also seen had to scrub them with soap immediately after surfacing from the sea. I advised her swimming in this polluted water.

not to take them to this area because it is really dangerous,” stated Ridha, a 39-yearold Lebanese national.

Some people have been careful enough to avoid areas that are presumably ‘clean,’ “I used to swim at Ras Al-Salmiya ‘Plajat’ beach. I know it falls under the banned area.

I don’t see any sewage here. I will continue to swim here, and is relatively odorless. I think the situation is worse in Messila. If people decide to go, it’s entirely their responsibility. They have been warned previously,” noted Sanaa, a 26-year-old Syrian.

Court dismisses case against interior minister

Municipality marks 80th anniversary KUWAIT: Under the auspices, and in the presence of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber AlSabah, a ceremony was held yesterday to mark the 80th anniversary of Kuwait Municipality at the conferences hall in the Public Institution for Social Security (PIFSS).

HH the Amir was warmly welcomed by Minister of Public Works and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Dr Fadhel Safar and several other senior officials.

The ceremony was also attended by HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, National Assembly Speaker Jassem AlKharafi, senior sheikhs, Deputy Chief of the National Guard Sheikh Meshaal Al-Ahmad AlSabah, HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah, Acting Minister of Amiri Diwan Sheikh Ali Jarrah Al-Sabah and several other

state officials.

At the onset of the celebration, the National Anthem was played and then some Quranic verses were recited.

The minister of public works then delivered a speech addressing the event.

Afterwards, a documentary on the 80-year march of Kuwait

Municipality was played.

At the outset of the event, HH the Amir awarded former and incumbent municipal pioneers and leaders. — KUNA

KUWAIT: The Ministerial Court has issued a decision to dismiss the lawsuit concerning a complaint against interior minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Khalid Al-Sabah over billboards used in last year’s elections after new evidence proving the minister’s innocence came to light.

Lawyer Nawaf Al-Fuzai had filed a complaint alleging that the minister, along with Audit Bureau head Abdulaziz Al-Adsani, had benefited from charging for candidates’ erection of election billboards, reported Al-Watan.

The new evidence, however, supported the minister’s and Al-Adsani’s protestations of innocence over the charges.

The court indicated that no substantial evidence had been presented to support Al-Fuzai’s allegations, nor was there any substantiation of the attorney’s claims that the minister had been responsible for a number of errors, leading it to decide to close the case.

The decision is final and not open to appeal, said Sheikh Jaber Al-Khalid’s lawyer Loai Al-Khorafi.

The court also found in favor of Al-Adsani, with the Audit Bureau head’s attorney Najib Al-Wuqayan revealing that Al-Adsani plans to launch a lawsuit against AlFuzai over the allegations.

KUWAIT: Interior Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Khaled Al-Sabah called yesterday for improving GCC coordination over airport security matters to eliminate any threats. This came during Sheikh Jaber Al-Khaled’s reception of GCC Interior officials who would partake in the 24th meeting for GCC Airports Chiefs in Kuwait. — KUNA

KISR promotes innovation KUWAIT: Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) promotes creative environment within its staff through a program on creative thinking and innovation, KISR’s Senior Advisor Dr Salah Al-Mazidi said yesterday.

Innovative and Creative Thinking Development Program encourages KISR employees to come up with ideas to help improve the organizations’ overall performance, Al-Mazidi said.

Projects tendered to the program’s committee should prove efficient and feasible, he said, adding they should also

help KISR improve in the fields of safety, cost saving and quality.

Innovative ideas presented by the staff are to evolve around solutions for challenges in the domains of business, management, economics, architecture, industrial design, science, and engineering, he noted.

Al-Mazidi who also serves as Chairman of the program’s committee said that the committee would evaluate feasibility of the projects tendered, recognize and award winners and work on implementing those of which comply with the criteria

and conditions set.

He noted to projects which proved profitable worldwide such as google.com and facebook.com along the hi-tech used in the movie Avatar and Malaysia’s economic and scientific breakthroughs.

Creativity is a three-stage process and it starts with the idea itself, followed by developing the product and ends with marketing, he said.

He called on employees to participate in the program through filling in the form in the program’s online page http://www.kisr.edu.kw/innovative/Home_e. — KUNA

NATIONAL

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

3 Dubai organizers visit Kuwait

Stage set for Automechanika, Beautyworld exhibitions

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: Two major trade exhibitions, entitled ‘Automechanika’ and ‘Beautyworld,’ are scheduled to take place at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Center from May 25 to 27 and June 1 to 3 respectively, with

KUWAIT: Interior Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Khalid Al-Sabah inaugurating a Citizens Service Center in Shamiya yesterday. — KUNA

local spotlight

Abuse of the freedom of expression

By Muna Al-Fuzai s it possible to call for a code of ethics to be applied over media channels, especially newspapers and blogs, or would it contradict with the freedom of expression?

I’m very supportive of attempts to develop the freedom of speech in any society. I believe that this tool is the best indicator of government and decision makers.

If criticism is made freely by a well established media, then the government should defend itself and its policy against possible allegations. In societies where freedom of speech is controlled and restricted,

I

rumors are still circulated amongst friends.

In these closed societies, this kind of sharing of information is not healthy. We should not be fooled into thinking that all societies are alike when it comes to respecting the personal lives of others, their dignity or their honor. For example, in many blog sites and internet news sites there are small icons on the bottom of each article where a reader can freely leave their own opinion.

A quick look at these comments reveal that those who leave their opinions usually focus on the author’s integrity instead of the content of the article or the subject matter!

How should governments handle such situations? I believe that it is unhealthy to allow people to talk about whatever they want on internet news sites. The government should handle this carefully by answering people’s concerns and criticisms. The gov-

ernment can examine it and apply suggestions based on what is in the best interest of the country. Opposing opinions should be acceptable as long as these views respect other people’s way of thinking and opinions as well. If that means that there should be a code of ethics then why not?

I think there should be a code of ethics to act as a guideline for everyone. It should not be used to control people’s thoughts or perspectives and it should not allow National Assembly or government officials to say what they want just because of their rank and power. That would probably just make things worse in the long run.

There is a continuous need for valid criticism from members of society. If things get out of control though, it should be considered an abuse of freedom. muna@kuwaittimes

Canadian team to run Chest Diseases Hospital KUWAIT: Following the signing of an agreement between the Ministry of Health (MoH) and Canada’s McGill University Health Center, Kuwait’s Chest Diseases Hospital will soon be run by a Canadian administrative board, which will take responsibility for management of all the hospital’s administrative and technical issues. The new administrative system is part of the health ministry’s plan to contract international medical centers to run Kuwait’s state hospitals.

MoH officials are currently working on the final details of the five-year management contract, whose value is estimated at around $23-24 million, reported Al-Qabas.

Health minister Dr. Hilal AlSayer signed the contract with the world-renowned McGill University facility during his recent visit to Canada, during which he met with several senior officials from major hospitals there. This was followed by a number of visits to Kuwait by officials from other international hospitals.

The MoH is still fine-tuning the details of the contract, which will include retaining the Chest Diseases Hospital’s current administrative staff to carry out managerial duties and training courses for the medical staff there.

Dehn met yesterday with local media representatives at a press conference held at the Sheraton Hotel in Kuwait City, to explain the purposes and objectives behind the two exhibitions.

He began by explaining that Messe Frankfurt, would like to see dealers and retailers in the fields of auto sales and beauty products to take part in the respective exhibitions and help the organizers tailor the event to their individual needs.

Dehn noted that such exhibitions offer the most effective way of canvassing and comparing products so as to meet suppliers personally and be able to see or maybe test the products first-hand, stressing that, however good the internet, these opportunities which can never be offered online.

“GCC countries are known as consumer markets. They have limited production facilities, though, so most of the products being used here are imported products which they bring in from all over the world,” he said. “So [these exhibitions] are the chance for Kuwaiti businessmen and people who are in the business of retailing products and services to come and see the products and be part of the biggest international exhibition in Dubai.”

Over 1,000 companies from all over the world have already confirmed their participation in the Automechanika exhibition, with some registering to take part as early as last year.

As at previous Automechanika events, the exhibition venue will be divided into five sectors, namely parts and systems, accessories and tuning, tyres and batteries, repairs and maintenance, and service station and car wash. “We predict that this

Michael Dehn year will be the biggest ever Automechanika exhibition. Since this is a trade exhibition we welcome people who are into business dealings and transactions and those who are going to order in bulk,” Dehn said, adding, “This is also a chance for local companies to access a wider range of products for their individual needs.

They’ll be met and handled by professional people, or maybe will negotiate better deals from the suppliers themselves.”

Meanwhile, the ‘Beautyworld’ exhibition is also expected to draw thousands of visitors from all over the GCC countries mostly suppliers and shops specializing in

KUWAIT: Kuwaiti Minister of Education and Higher Education Moudhi Al-Humoud said on Sunday that the updated English syllabus being taught in Kuwaiti schools indicated the country’s increased “openness” to the rest of the world.

Speaking to journalists while opening the second ‘For Creativity’ festival which celebrates the English language, the minister praised the joint efforts Mubarak Al-Kabeer of Education Zone and the ministry’s department of general guidance in the English language.

The minister said that the festival showcased the creativity of kindergarten and high school students, including their mastery of the English language and consideration of others’ feelings, adding, “This really indicates a positive openness to the world.”

The Director of Mubarak AlKabeer Educational Zone Badriya Al-Khaldi said that supporting talented students is one of the Ministry of Education’s (MoE) primary objectives, given that these students represent the future of society.

Another of the senior officials present, Sakina Ali, the director of the MoE’s department for general guidance in the English language, stressed that the second “For Creativity” festival reflects the ministry’s eagerness to develop students’ abilities and talents in order to enable them to become active members of society. — KUNA

KUWAIT: Col Mohammad Hashem Al-Saber (left), and Sheikh Nimer AlFahad Al-Malek Al-Sabah. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

New book sheds light on life of Fahad Al-Malek Al-Sabah

By Rawan Khalid KUWAIT: Sheikh Nimer AlFahad Al-Malek Al-Salman AlSabah, announced the launching of his book titled, ‘A Historical View of Sheikh Fahad Al-Malek Al-Homoud Al-Mohammad AlSalman Al-Sabah’s Life (19082006).’

The author and manager of the anti–money laundering bureau with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, hosted the event at his diwaniya in Daiya on Sunday.

His book is divided into three sections, the first of which

Freedom is abused KUWAIT: The Sulaibiya area witnessed a bout of heavy rainfall yesterday.

— Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Landline system under pressure KUWAIT: Kuwait’s ageing landline network is coming under increasing pressure, with some experts predicting major problems and subscribers in several areas already enduring regular accidental disconnection. Ardiya appears to be the worst-hit area, with 5,000 subscribers there regularly suffering lengthy

phone line cuts.

Four governorates reportedly have no landline maintenance service at present, with the contracts with the previous contractors not being renewed after they last expired.

Another reason for the recurrent landline connection problems is the corrosion of

underground lines by groundwater, with the lack of maintenance work on them worsening the problem, reported Al-Qabas.

These shortcomings have led to questions in some quarters about the government’s ability to implement its major development plan, given its failure to address this issue.

beauty products, says Dehn. The annual beauty exhibition has gained prestige and momentum since it first took place in 1995.

The ‘Beautyworld’ event is the largest international trade fair specializing in beauty products, cosmetics and perfumes in the Middle East. Numerous leading beauty brands such as Ajmal, Swiss Arabian, Arome Concept France, Sterling Perfumes, Afnan and Global Fragrances are expected to display their products and services.

Asked if there was any chance of the exhibition coming to Kuwait in the future, Dehn said that while this would certainly be possible, since his company deals with the largest exhibitors from around the world, it has to take into consideration the proximity and easiest way for all.

“It’s a big decision to make, for us; we would like to hold the exhibition in a much bigger venue that draws attention and at the same time attracts all sorts of people,” he explained. “In the industry right now, the more international exhibitors you can generate, the more international visitors you can attract as well.” Dehn pointed out that at present Dubai offers a more business-friendly environment than many other nations, saying, “Holding the exhibition in Dubai is one way to attract visitors from all over the world mainly because Dubai has already been attractive to many business people because of its friendlier system in terms of trade regulations, visas and accessibility. The ingredients I need for a successful exhibition at the moment can be found in Dubai. They have much greater advantages in many ways.”

New English syllabus indicates ‘openness’

kuwait digest reedom of speech and opinion is facing testing times in the country, akin to its supporters, who have failed to take up the challenges they have faced so far wrote Abdullatif AlDuaij in his Al-Qabas.

The incident that took place recently at the Abdaly border checkpoint is something that should have never happened in a democratic country whose Constitution has protected the freedom of speech, opinion, publication and observation, the writer feels. Regardless of the allegations which claim that customs officials had treated Shiite worshipers harshly by confiscating Shiite books, which is likely to be the case, Al-Duaij opined that it is important to note that people belonging to all faiths have the right to read any publications they desire.

He wrote that Salafi Islamist MPs have criticized Shiites and MPs, who supported their cause, stating that their actions interfered with the job of customs officials who violated laws. They chose

F

the organizers keen to see Kuwaiti companies taking part.

Michael Dehn, the Group Exhibition Director of Messe Frankfurt, the organizer of the two exhibitions, is currently visiting Kuwait to promote the upcoming events, which are set to bring together thousands of companies from all over the world to showcase their products and services.

to ignore the fact that there are no regulations stipulated in the Kuwaiti law that allow customs officials or the Information Ministry inspectors to carry out similar search operations. No regulations stipulate that publications be confiscated, Al-Duaij wrote. ‘Since we are living in a time where MPs call for media freedom to be curbed, and question the information minister for failing to suspend TV channels or other media outlets, it’s not a surprise to see a customs official adopt the same approach, with the aim to please a certain state official or political bloc,’ Al-Duaij observed.

He felt that this is a case of abuse of regulations and ministry decrees. The rights of citizens are being violated by including ‘publications’ among the list of contrabands that should not be allowed into the country like drugs and alcohol. ‘There are no rules that allow state officials to seize citizens’ personal belongings by any means,’ he concluded.

discusses the Al-Sabah family’s journey and migration in the 16th century.

The second section explores the life of Sheikh Fahad AlMalek Al-Sabah, while the third contains supplements of the events and special documents of Sheikh Fahad Al-Malek AlSabah’s Life.

In a statement to the press, Sheikh Nimer Al-Sabah said “it took more than five years to write and prepare this book.

This is the first book that mentions the immigration of the Al-Sabah family from their original home in Najd to the Aflaj

area in Hdarra. The book then documents their migration to Qatar in Zebara until they reached Al-Mekhraq and follows them north of the State of Kuwait in Sabiya, where they then settled in Koot.”

“I want to thank those who helped me make this book and who provided me with historical documents, photographs, supplements, and interviews,” he added.

“I especially want to thank Sheikh Nayef Al-Ahmed Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah, Sheikh Ali Al-Khaled Al-Ali Al-Malek AlSabah and Khaled Al-Mesbah.”

NATIONAL

4

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

New sanitary project to cost $693 million KUWAIT: The Ministry of Public Works is currently carrying out several sanitary projects around the nation at a total cost of KD 200 million (approximately USD 693.3 million), a senior official said yesterday. The ministry’s sanitary engineering department is working to develop and refurbish sanitary networks and erect purification and pumping stations, chief engineer Mahmoud Karam told a weekly gathering.

The sector will pay much attention to the recycling of wastewater and the implementation of related projects, he added, and described

KUWAIT: Some of the participants at the event.

KUWAIT: Sebamed participated and sponsored the event.

Kuwait as a pioneer in this field.

He said that the Mishref wastewater treatment station is expected to be operational within four months, but that it might take a year to complete all the relevant repairs.

Director of the ministry’s department, execution Mansour Bumajdad, said that the repairs include the replacement of sewage networks and the establishment of new sewage stations. He added that the department has already established an integrated sewage network to export recycled water to the border areas. —KUNA

Four injured in car accidents KUWAIT: A 27-year-old Kuwaiti man didn’t have to go far for treatment after suffering a broken foot and extensive bruising when he was hit by a car in the Amiri Hospital parking lot. In another accident, a 31-year-old Egyptian woman sustained a broken nose in a crash on the Gulf Road. She was taken to Mubarak Hospital.

In a separate incident, a 20year-old Kuwaiti man was taken to Adan Hospital after suffering a broken shoulder bone and extensive bruising in a motorcycle accident. Meanwhile, a 33-year-old Egyptian man was taken to Farwaniya Hospital after sustaining heavy bruising in a car accident in West Jleeb

Al-Shuyoukh.

Fight wound An 18-year-old Syrian man was taken to Farwaniya Hospital after being stabbed in the head during a street fight in Hasawi.

Injured in fall A 20-year-old Kuwaiti man suffered broken bones in both hands when he fell from a high building in Aquila. He was taken to Adan Hospital.

Jet ski accident A 24-year-old Kuwaiti was taken to Amiri Hospital after suffering heavy bruising to one shoulder in a jet ski accident.

KUWAIT: Senior officials at the celebration.

— Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Insurance for citizens

Hawally health zone celebrates World Health Day

KUWAIT: The Health Ministry is still studying the proposal to impose health insurance on citizens. The Health Minister, Dr Hilal Al-Sayer asserted that, in collaboration with the parliamentary health committee, the ministry is still reviewing the suggestion, reported AlRai. Al-Sayer denied that no value has been set yet.

“Meetings with the health committee will continue to discuss the project till it comes out full and complete,” added Al-Sayer.

He expressed hope that both sides have reached an agreement on the project’s final form.

KUWAIT: Dr Ziad Alyan, head of Emergency Department at Mubarak Hospital (middle) participates in the seminar.

By Rawan Khalid KUWAIT: The Health Promotion Committee in Hawally health zone celebrated World Health Day yesterday under the slogan ‘1000 cities, 1000 lives.’

It was held under the patronage and in attendance of Hawally health zone Manager, Abdulaziz Al-Farhood. Al-Sanabel Al-Zahbiya

Company (Sebamed) sponsored the event which was held at Mubarak Hospital.

Students from schools situated in the Hawally educational zone and representatives from medical companies also attended the event.

The event began with the singing of the Kuwaiti national anthem and recitation of verses from the Quran. Abdulaziz Al-Farhood deliv-

ered the welcome speech, “Every year countries from all over the world celebrate World Health Day. The World Health Organization (WHO) had coined the slogan ‘1000 cities, 1000 lives’ this year. It will be held between the 7th to 11th April 2010. Activities related to health will be undertaken during these days at most of the places to demonstrate health problems that are related to environment, and diseases

caused by smoking, unhealthy diet and lack of physical exercise and so on.”

The ‘1000 cities, 1000 lives’ campaign gives us the chance to reach a common aim which is to strengthen the society’s physical and psychological health due to the fact that health is a common responsibility where every person in society takes part,” Abdulaziz Al-Farhood added.

KUWAIT: The head of the presentation committee Hussa Al-Hasawi and the dean of the College of Engineering and Petroleum Dr Taher during the tour around the exhibition.

Architecture students launch Avenues exhibition

By Abdullah Al-Qattan KUWAIT: The Kuwait Architectural Students’ Association (KASA) is currently staging its seventh annual exhibition, ‘Module 7: The Seventh Annual KASA Exhibition,’ in Phase II of the Avenues Mall.

The event, which opened on Sunday evening, is set to last until Thursday.

The inaugural ceremony on Sunday evening, was attended by the Dean of Kuwait University’s Engineering Department Dr. Taher Al-Sahaf, and KASA President Jawad Al-Shakhs. The patron of the ceremony was Sheikh Talal Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, and the event is being sponsored by the Avenues Mall, Burgan Bank, the Commercial Bank of Kuwait and the Gulf Consult Financial Co. Following the opening ceremony, Hussa Al-Hasawi, the head of KASA’s presentation committee, gave Dr. Al-Sahaf a guided tour of the exhibition, which features numerous posters and scale models of the architecture students’ work.

The exhibition showcases the best architectural designs of students from the KU Engineering and Petroleum Faculty’s architecture department chosen from the finest designs submitted over the past year. The designs include

work from students at all course levels, from Design Basics of Architecture through all the architectural design courses up to Graduation Projects I and II. One stand at the exhibition offers free copies of ‘T-Square,’ the architecture-based student magazine featuring articles about and photographs of students’ work and designs.

The exhibition was designed and put together by the KASA board members, with the help of various committee members and alumni.

Jassem Al-Elwanit, the head of KASA’s Public Relations section, told the Kuwait Times that he’d

like to take the opportunity to thank H.E. Sheikh Talal Al-Fahad for his sponsorship of the opening ceremony and to pass on the KASA members’ deepest condolences on the sad death of H.E. Sheikh Talal’s grandmother.

“I’d also like to thank the Avenues Mall, Burgan Bank, the Commercial Bank of Kuwait and Gulf Consultants for their generosity in financially sponsoring the exhibition,” Al-Elwanit added.

KASA president Jawad AlShakhs told the newspaper that the association aims to give students an opportunity to improve their skills and broaden their experience during their studies.

It achieves this by offering software tutorials and workshops, as well as field trips to building sites and other events and activities, he explained.

The association head said that the primary goal of the annual exhibition is to give the public a clear understanding of all aspects of the architectural profession, from technical to aesthetic concepts. The work of the Kuwait University architectural department’s student body is the best reflection of these aspects of their studies, he said, demonstrating their creativity and innovation through the broad range of projects exhibited.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

NATIONAL

5

NATIONAL

6

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Origin, expiry details found altered

12 tons of foodstuffs confiscated in Hawally KUWAIT: Hawally municipality inspectors recently confiscated 12 tons of foodstuffs whose origin and expiry details had been altered, from a warehouse in the area. Ministry of Commerce and Industry Undersecretary for Commercial Affairs Ali Al-Baghli revealed that the inspectors ordered the confiscation of 431 sacks of lentils, whose country of origin had been fraudulently changed on the delivery manifest from Two deaths A 57-year-old Jordanian man died after falling from a building in Salmiya, reported Al-Watan. Paramedics responded to the incident but pronounced the man dead upon their arrival. Meanwhile, an Asian man in his 60s was found dead near the main street of Mirgab, reported Al-Qabas. Paramedics indicated that the man’s death was the result of a heart attack.

in the news Private sector Labor Law KUWAIT: Proper implementation of the recently introduced private sector labor legislation will lead directly to an increase in the number of Kuwaitis working in the private sector, according to the head of the Manpower and Government Restructuring Program (MGRP). “The national labor rate system is the best way to resolve the problem of a lack of Kuwaiti manpower in the country’s private sector, since it not only helps to increase the number of citizens working for private firms, but also ensures that companies remain committed to this system, since it connects them electronically through the system’s monitoring service,” said MGRP Secretary General Fawzi Al-Majdali. Speaking to AlQabas, Al-Majdali indicated that the quota system introduced by the MGRP had already proven successful, achieving a sharp increase in the number of Kuwaitis employed in the private sector, with 60 percent of staff in the banking sector alone being Kuwaiti. Al-Majdali also revealed that 60,000 Kuwaitis are currently working in the country’s private sector.

Ac tor refutes death rumors KUWAIT: Kuwaiti actor Weld Al-Deerah has refuted premature reports of his demise which appeared in local media, telling local daily Al-Watan in a phone call that his treatment for cancer at the American Hospital in Thailand is going well and he is determined to keep fighting the disease. False reports of Al-Deerah’s death claimed that he had succumbed to the disease, but Al-Deerah explained that he remains determined to fight the disease and upbeat despite the chemotherapy he has been undergoing to treat a tumor in his colon being temporarily suspended after another tumor was discovered in his stomach. Al-Deerah also revealed

that a false diagnosis by doctors at a Kuwaiti hospital had caused his medical condition to worsen, saying that the doctors initially wrongly diagnosed his colon cancer as a benign inflammation and failed completely to diagnose his stomach cancer. He explained that both were subsequently diagnosed by doctors at a London hospital, with the belated discovery of the tumor meaning that it had grown by that stage to the size of a tennis ball. The wellknown Kuwaiti actor said that his overall health is slowly improving and that he remains optimistic.

Proposed disabled affair s authority KUWAIT: A government body that governs disabled citizens’ affairs will be established soon. The Social Affairs and Labor Ministry’s Undersecretary, Mohammad Al-Kandari, explained that the law for the disabled stipulates that the authority be established within three months following the first publication in the State’s official gazette. Al-Kandari was speaking during the inauguration of chalets and social care homes in Al-Zoor. The event was attended by MP Salwa Al-Jassar, CEO and Managing Director of the Kuwait Finance House, Badr Al-Mukhaizeem, and the Ministry Undersecretary’s Assistant for Social Care Sector, Dr Jassem Ashkanani. The project costs KD 1.25 million, which will be funded by the Kuwait Finance House (KFH). MP Al-Jassar spoke about reports which claimed that several errors were committed at social care homes. He asserted the importance of allowing the government enough room to investigate the matter. She further suggested that the issue be referred to the Public Prosecution Office if more violations are confirmed. She also noted parliament members’ duty to take follow up action on the case.

Salmiya fire An Arab man suffered several burn injuries and bruises and was taken to a nearby hospital after his apartment in Salmiya caught fire, reported Al-Watan. Firefighters extinguished the flames and successfully evacuating all the building’s residents.

Investigations revealed that the fire was the result of an electrical short circuit.

Asian mugged An Asian man was mugged in Ferdous by a group of men, reported Al-Watan.

The incident occurred after the assailants offered to give the man a ride to his destination. As soon as he stepped inside their car the attackers stole his wallet, which contained KD 150, and left him stranded at a nearby location. Police are investigat-

Nepal to India, along with another 201 sacks of lentils originally from the UAE had been recorded as having come from India.

Another 66 sacks of popcorn were also confiscated since their country of origin had been changed from Argentina to the US, with their expiry date also altered, reported Al-Watan. The confiscated foodstuffs were removed to a ministry facility and legal procedures are underway to charge those responsible.

ing the incident.

Sulaibiya fight A 30-year-old bedoon man was admitted to Jahra Hospital with stab wounds and other injuries he sustained during a fight with another bedoon resident in Sulaibiya, reported Al-Qabas. Meanwhile in Hawally, another man was injured during a street fight and taken to Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital. In Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh, an Asian man suffered stab wounds during a fight and was taken to Farwaniya Hospital by paramedics.

Imper sonat ion Criminal investigators arrested an Asian man found using his deceased brother’s passport to enter the country, reported AlRai. He was arrested and questioned about the motives behind his criminal actions.

Kidnapper held An Asian man was arrested after he kidnapped an Asian woman, reported Al-Rai. The arrest was made after the woman informed authorities in the Jeleeb AlShuyoukh police station that she escaped from an Asian man who kidnapped her, took her to an apartment and tried to force her

into prostitution. The man was arrested in the apartment and taken to the proper authorities.

Thieves na bbed Capitol Governorate investigators arrested a citizen and a bedoon for robbing 18 homes and vehicles around the governorate, reported Al-Annahar. Authorities investigating the thefts discovered the thieves’ location and several stolen items were found in their possession. When questioned, they confessed to committing the crimes and selling the items. They were taken to the proper authorities.

Run over A 22-year-old Egyptian man suffered a broken pelvis and several other injuries after he was run over by a citizen in Naseem, reported Al-Jareedah. The Egyptian was taken to Jahra Hospital and the driver who hit him was taken into custody.

Jail theft s Two young men informed authorities at the Sulaibiya police station that KD 850 was stolen from their car as it was parked in front of the Central Jail, reported AlSeyassah. A case was opened, and a search for the thief is ongoing.

Runaway girl found in Hawally KUWAIT: A 17-year-old Kuwaiti girl who disappeared with a police officer’s help from a police station cell, where she was being held after being reported missing, was found at a male friend’s apartment in Hawally 48 hours after her escape.

After being taken back into custody, the girl told detectives that she had called the apartment tenant, a friend, after the officer, who reportedly smuggled her out of the jail in the boot of his car, dropped her off outside a shop in Hawally. The Kuwaiti police

Kuwait Towers welcomes Awqaf teams

KUWAIT: The Islamic Studies Department at the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs held its first conference entitled ‘Women’s Role in the Nation’s Development’ between March 29 to 31 at the Sheraton Hotel, Kuwait. It was held under the patronage of HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.

Following the event, the Ministry’s Undersecretary, Dr Adel AlFalah held a lunch banquet in honor of the parties that participated in the conference, at the Kuwait Towers’ Horizon Restaurant, one of the facilities of the Touristic Enterprises Company (TEC).

detective who helped her to escape has also been taken into custody and faces charges of aiding and abetting a fugitive and sexual assault of a minor, reported Al-Watan.

The incident has caused concern among senior Ministry of Interior (MoI) officials, after it exposed several weaknesses in police station security.

A number of other police officers who were on duty at the same time as the officer who helped the girl to escape are also facing strong criticism after allowing their col-

league to bring his private car into the station compound, which he justified by saying that his lunch was inside it. He then used this vehicle to smuggle the girl out.

Senior security officials have insisted that the incident was a one-off event and in no way compromises the investigation department’s integrity. The girl’s parents had previously indicated that their daughter should be rehoused in a social care facility in order to rehabilitate her and enable her to rejoin mainstream society.

INTERNATIONAL

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

7

Baghdad on alert after deadly embassy blasts ‘Terrorists are still in business’

BAGHDAD: Iraqi forces were on high alert in Baghdad yesterday after 30 people were killed in bomb attacks on foreign embassies blamed on delays in forming a new government after the general election a month ago. The suicide

KHARTOUM: Two Sudanese men shop at a supermarket with a picture of Sudanese President and presidential candidate Omar Al-Bashir pasted on the entrance in Khartoum, Sudan yesterday. Sudan’s first multiparty elections in decades have been thrown into disarray by allegations of government violations and opposition threats of a boycott. The election, set to begin April 11, were billed as a chance to bring democracy to Sudan and start to heal a history of turmoil. — AP

Bomb wounds one as Yemen goes on strike SANAA: A roadside bomb wounded one person in the Yemeni town of Daleh yesterday, one of several areas paralysed by a strike called by southern secessionists, a local official said.

Meanwhile, a security official said a vehicle carrying explosives was intercepted trying to enter Daleh, 200 kilometres (125 miles) south of the capital Sanaa.

The bomb that wounded the civilian was planted on the main road to the town, the local government official said, adding a policeman was injured in an accident unrelated to violence.

“There were no clashes or gunfire,” he said, without specifying the type of accident.

Daleh was paralysed by a general strike called by the Southern Movement, a grouping of parties,

some of which demand full secession for the former South Yemen.

The strike also was observed in the southern towns of Habilain in the Lahej region and Lawder and Moudiya in Abyan, but not in the former southern capital of Aden or other towns in the Hadramut region, witnesses said.

Pro-independence protests have multiplied in the south amid a worsening economic situation in Yemen and charges of discrimination in favour of northerners.

South Yemen was independent from 1967 until 1990 when it united with the north. The south seceded in 1994, sparking a short-lived conflict that ended when the south was overrun by northern troops. —AFP

Iran says still ready to negotiate nuclear swap TEHRAN: Iran is still ready to negotiate a solution to its nuclear stand-off with the West, but only on the condition that foreign powers agree to a fuel swap on Iranian territory, the foreign ministry said yesterday.

With Washington seeking support from fellow UN Security Council veto holders Russia and China for new sanctions, Iran remains defiant, saying such measures will not stop it developing the nuclear technology it says is for peaceful use.

“We will not withdraw from our (nuclear) rights with threats and pressure, resolutions and sanctions,” foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told Arab language TV Alalam.

At talks last October with Western powers, China and Russia, Iran agreed in principle to send low-enriched uranium abroad for further processing-addressing concerns it was getting close to developing weapons grade nuclear material.

But soon after those talks it insisted it would, instead, consider swapping its low-enriched uranium stocks directly for more highly enriched uranium, and only within its own borders.

Mehmanparast said that remained the condition for a deal and accused the other parties of reneging on their obligations.

“We told them that you are not honest and it seems like you do not want to provide (us) with the fuel and you are cheating,” he said, according to Alalam’s website.

“If they meet our conditions we are ready to negotiate about the provision of nuclear fuel for Tehran reactor right away , but we won’t negotiate over Iran’s nuclear activities,” he said.

China, a major client for Iranian oil, has so far declined to publicly back renewed sanctions, despite a direct appeal by US President Barack Obama. Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi called for “flexibility” when he met Iran’s nuclear negotiator on Friday.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who has dismissed Obama’s “extended hand” approach to Iran as empty rhetoric, will “announce a new nuclear achievement” on Friday, the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation, Ali Akbar Salehi, told ISNA news agency. He gave no details. — Reuters

Retrial postponed for Iraqi in Briton’s death BAGHDAD: An Iraqi man convicted in the 2004 kidnapping and slaying of a prominent British aid worker will be retried after he claimed he was out of the country at the time of the killing, an attorney for the victim’s family said yesterday.

The retrial was scheduled to begin yesterday but was postponed until April 18 because officials are still investigating the claim, said Sarmad al-Sarraf, an attorney for the family of Margaret Hassan.

The Irish-born Hassan, who was married to an Iraqi and had lived in the country for 30 years, was among the highest profile figures to fall victim to the wave of kidnappings that swept the country in the early years of the war. She was seized in October 2004 on her way to work in Baghdad, where she served as director of CARE International in Iraq.

Last year, an Iraqi court convicted Sunni architect Ali Lutfi Al-Rawi of kidnapping, murder and extortion and sentenced him to life in prison in the case.

But an appeals court ordered a new trial after al-Rawi alleged that he left Iraq five days before the abduction and did not return until early 2005.

Al-Sarraf said he is confident in the original trial’s outcome and does not believe the new claims will change the verdict.

Shortly after her abduction, a terrified Hassan was shown on a video trembling and pleading for her life as she urged thenBritish Prime Minister Tony Blair to withdraw British troops from Iraq.

She was killed a month later and her body has not been found. The Arab TV Al-Jazeera said in Nov. 2004 it received a video showing a hooded militant shooting a blindfolded woman in the head. The video was never broadcast but British officials said they believed the woman in it was Hassan, and her family said they believed she was dead.

Al-Rawi was arrested in 2008 after he allegedly phoned the British Embassy in Baghdad to demand $1 million in exchange for information about the location of Hassan’s remains.

Authorities first believed the contact was simply to extort money but later changed their mind after the caller mentioned an intimate, undisclosed detail about Hassan that only her closest relatives and friends knew.

In his first trial, al-Rawi told the court he had been beaten and

given electrical shocks during the interrogation and had been forced to sign a confession. But the court dismissed his claims, ruling that the voice on the tapes of telephone calls to the British Embassy matched his. — AP

There was a heavy security presence on Baghdad’s streets, with tighter measures at traffic checkpoints, especially at the sites of the explosions near the Iranian, Egyptian and German embassies.

The latest attacks came as Iraq’s political parties were battling to form a coalition government, with none of the four main blocs having the required seats to form a parliamentary majority on its own.

“This is a political attack, aimed at derailing the process, sending a message that the terrorists are still in business,” Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told AFP. “Because of the vacuum of forming the next government, they wanted to send that message.”

In the aftermath of the blasts, sitting Prime Minister Nuri alMaliki, whose coalition finished second in the March 7 election, held a meeting with the national security council, at which unspecified measures were taken, a statement from the premier’s office said.

Maliki’s State of Law Alliance finished with 89 seats in the 325member parliament, two fewer than former premier Iyad Allawi’s Iraqiya bloc.

Allawi has accused Iran of seeking to prevent him becoming prime minister again by inviting all major parties except his secular bloc to Tehran.

Security officials had warned that protracted coalition building could give insurgents an opportunity to further destabilise the country.

Two of the explosions were suicide attacks against the Egyptian and Iranian embassies, while a third struck an intersection near the German, Spanish and Syrian missions.

Baghdad security spokesman Major General Qassim Atta said a bomb-laden car had also been intercepted in Masbah, central Baghdad, apparently heading towards the headquarters of police tasked with diplomatic protection.

Its driver was arrested and the device was defused, he said.

Zebari said the attacks appeared to be the work of AlQaeda, but cautioned that this could only be confirmed once investigators have completed their task.

“They bear the same marks of previous attacks, in the timing, the targeting, the simultaneous attacks on different targets in different places to have maximum impact,” said the foreign minister.

Zebari was referring to coordinated bombings in August, October, December and January that killed more than 400 people.

In a statement, Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi called for a full review of security measures in the capital, and said an investigation was required into the continued use of a sonar bomb detector used at checkpoints across Baghdad that has been widely panned as useless.

The United Nations and United States led international condemnation of the attacks, with UN envoy to Baghdad Ad Melkert describing them as “a senseless crime,” noting that an Iraqi World Health Organisation staff member and her 20-year-old son were killed. —AFP

vehicle blasts, which a minister said bore the signature of Al-Qaeda, occurred within minutes of each other on Sunday. More than 200 people were wounded in the attacks which targeted regional and European embassies in the capital.

NAJAF: Munther Muhsen grieves over the dead body of his brother Wessam Muhsen, 28, during his funeral in the Shiite holy city of Najaf, Iraq, yesterday. Suicide attackers detonated three car bombs in quick succession near foreign embassies in Baghdad on Sunday, killing more than 40 people in coordinated strikes that Iraqi officials said were intended to disrupt efforts to form a new government. — AP

Tomb of Khatami’s father desecrated in Iran: Reports TEHRAN: A vandal has desecrated the tomb of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khatami, father of former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami, state news agencies reported yesterday. The offender “had sprayed the tombstone with white paint,” ISNA news agency quoted Ahmadi Kamali, the governor of central city of Ardekan where the late Khatami is buried, as saying.

Kamali said the paint covered an inscrip-

tion on the grave bearing a message from the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who spearheaded the Islamic revolution of 1979.

“We condemn this action and an individual has been arrested in connection with this,” he added.

Mehr news agency said the tomb was vandalised on Sunday night. Ayatollah Khatami was the representative of Khomeini in Yazd province. His son

Khatami, a reformist, has himself come under fire from hardliners since he became a major supporter of the opposition movement which refuses to acknowledge last year’s re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He was even reportedly attacked by hardliners on February 11 while on way to participate in the traditional rally marking the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution.— AFP

8

inTernATiOnAL

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Turkish police detain 20 more in coup plot probe ISTANBUL: Police yesterday detained 20 suspects, among them serving soldiers, as part of a probe into an alleged 2003 plan to topple Turkey’s Islamist-rooted government, Anatolia news agency reported.

The suspects, among them a retired general, were rounded up in Istanbul and three other provinces in the third wave of arrests since the investigation was

launched in February, the report said.

The alleged plan-codenamed “Operation Sledgehammer”-was allegedly drawn up in 2003, shortly after the Justice and Development Party (AKP), the moderate offshoot of a banned Islamist movement, came to power amid fears it would undermine Turkey’s secular system.

The plot reportedly involved plans to bomb mosques and provoke tensions with

Greece, thus sparking political chaos and justifying a military takeover.

In an unprecedented action targeting Turkey’s influential army, police initially detained about 70 serving and retired officers, among them the former chiefs of Turkey’s navy and air force.

About 40 of them were charged and jailed pending trial, but most were later released by a judge.

In a fresh twist, prosecutors Sunday secured a court ruling ordering that 21 suspects are put back in prison, among them the alleged leader of the plot, retired four-star general Cetin Dogan.

The suspects will go on trial when prosecutors draw up their indictment and detail the charges.

The coup plan was first reported in January by the Taraf newspaper, which

routinely targets the army. The daily said it had obtained documents and audio tapes indicating that a coup was planned and discussed at the Istanbul-based First Army.

Dogan-commander of the First Army at the time-has denied the charges, arguing that papers from a contingency plan based on a scenario of domestic unrest had been doctored to look like a coup plot.

Opponents have accused the government of using the probe to discredit the staunchly-secularist army, while supporters have hailed it as a milestone in pushing the generals out of politics and improving Turkish democracy.

The Turkish army, which has unseated four governments in as many decades, has seen its traditional political clout wane under the AKP. — AFP

Conservatives unveil election poster

British parties square off on eve of election call LONDON: Britain’s two main political parties squared off on the economy yesterday, a day before Prime Minister Gordon Brown is expected to call an election likely to be dominated by the country’s fragile economy. In a podcast on the 10 Downing St. Web site, Brown said only his Labour Party can be trusted to nurture the nascent recovery, claiming Conservative plans to

cut public spending risk tipping the economy back into recession. Brown defended a planned hike to national insurance, a tax paid by employees and employers. The opposition Conservatives have said they will scrap the tax increase and implement immediate public spending cuts if they win the election.

LONDON: Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg (C) meets party activists on a campaign day in Hampstead and Kilburn where the Liberal Democrat Election Battle Bus will be officially launched, Finchley, London, yesterday. With cuts to public services inevitable, the Conservatives, Labour and the third-largest party, the Liberal Democrats, are competing to win the voters’ support as the safest pair of hands on the economy. — AFP

Suicide bomber kills 2 police in Ingushetia KARABULAK: A suicide bomber killed two policemen in Russia’s Ingushetia region yesterday, the latest in a spate of attacks that underscore the threat from an Islamist insurgency on Russia’s southern flank. More than 50 people have been killed and 100 injured by suicide bombers over the past week in the Moscow metro and the mainly Muslim regions of Dagestan and Ingushetia, which flank Chechnya in Russia’s restive North Caucasus.

Yesterday’s bombing in Ingushetia came exactly a week after twin suicide attacks in the Moscow metro raised concerns of a new wave of strikes by militants from the North Caucasus against major Russian cities.

In the latest attack, a male suicide bomber, aged about 30, tried to enter police headquarters in the town of Karabulak, about 20 km (12 miles) from the Ingush regional capital of Magas, local and federal police told Reuters.

“A suicide bomber tried to get into the police headquarters during roll call, but after being stopped the bomber detonated the explosives,” Oleg Yelnikov, a spokesman for Russia’s Interior Ministry in Moscow, said by telephone. Two police were killed, the federal Prosecutor

General’s Office said.

About 45 minutes later, explosives in a car parked across the street from police headquarters were detonated by remote control, causing a powerful blast that injured Karabulak’s top prosecutor and three police officers, it said.

A Reuters cameraman at the scene said several cars were burning outside the police station and remains of the suspected suicide bomber were lying among rubble on the street. Part of a severed head, face intact, lay on the roof of an outbuilding.

Russia is on edge after the attacks in the Moscow metro killed at least 40 last Monday, twin suicide bombing in Dagestan killed another 12 people on Wednesday.

Russia’s leaders say the attacks are aimed at sowing disorder across the country and have vowed to destroy Islamist militants from the North Caucasus.

Islamist insurgents seeking a Sharia-based pan-Caucasus state claimed responsibility for the Moscow bombings on Wednesday, saying they were revenge for Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s policies in the mainly Muslim North Caucasus.

Russian authorities said one of the Moscow bombers was the

teenage Dagestani widow of a slain militant, and a Dagestani man told the newspaper Novaya Gazeta that he recognized his daughter in photos of the remains of the other suspected bomber. Insurgent leader Doku Umarov, a Chechen who is Russia’s most wanted guerrilla and calls himself the “Emir of the Caucasus Emirate”, has vowed more attacks on Russian cities outside the Caucasus..

The responsibility claim went unreported by most mainstream Russian media outlets.

But a lawmaker from Putin’s dominant party said on Monday he has proposed legislation that would bar media from reporting statements by suspected terrorists. The attacks in the past week follow a year of rising violence in the North Caucasus and present a serious challenge to Russia’s rulers, who had claimed to have tamed the mountainous region just north of Georgia and Azerbaijan.

Ingushetia and Dagestan are plagued by near-daily attacks targeting law enforcement authorities a decade after the second of two devastating wars against Chechen separatists.

Analysts say the persistent bloodshed goes largely unmentioned by the Kremlin and unnoticed by citizens elsewhere in

Russia until it spills over beyond the North Caucasus.

Bombings “mostly occur close to the Caucasus, where it is easier for the militants to operate. But only terrorist acts that have taken place in Moscow have had resonance,” commentator Yulia Latynina said on Ekho Moskvy radio on Saturday.

Putin, who cemented his power in 1999 by launching the second war in Chechnya, said last week the culprits behind the metro bombings must be scraped “from the bottom of the sewers”.

President Dmitry Medvedev has vowed “dagger blows” against those responsible for the attacks and beefed up security forces in the region, which stretches west from the Caspian Sea. But analysts say the attacks underline the failure of the Kremlin’s policies in the area, which is made up of a patchwork of ethnic groups that was conquered by the Russian Tsars in the 19th century following decades of resistance.

Locals say the heavy-handed measures of law enforcement agencies, rampant corruption, clan rivalries and desperate poverty are pushing recruits towards the Islamist rebels, who Russia says get support from abroad. — Reuters

Pope says Church in ‘times of difficulty’ CASTEL GANDOLFO: Pope Benedict XVI acknowledged yesterday the Roman Catholic Church is in “times of difficulty” but avoided direct comment on sex abuse, as the Vatican faced fresh criticism over the scandal. After a series of paedophile priest revelations which have cast a pall over the holiest week in the Christian calendar, the embattled pontiff spoke of priests’ special responsibility to society in an Easter Monday prayer. Benedict told hundreds of followers at Castel Gandolfo near Rome that “the loving presence (of Christ) accompanies the church on its path and supports it in times of difficulty”.

“Priests, ministers of Christ, have a special responsibility”, said the 82-year-old pontiff, appearing calm and smiling, adding that they should be “messengers of victory over evil and death”.

Many of the assembled worshippers waved banners of support. But Benedict again kept mum on the abuse scandals,

which have reached the pope himself with claims that he helped shield predator priests when head of the Vatican department charged with disciplining them and as archbishop of Munich.

Large-scale paedophile scandals have rocked the Irish, Austrian, Swiss, German and US churches in recent days.

The Vatican has largely adopted a strategy of blaming the media for playing up the paedophile revelations. Top prelates closed ranks around the pope on Easter Sunday, with the dean of the Vatican’s College of Cardinals, Angelo Sodano, saying in an unusual gesture that “the people are with you” and would ignore “idle chatter”.

On Friday the pope’s personal preacher, Father Raniero Cantalamessa, evoked a parallel between attacks on the pope and anti-Semitism-remarks for which he later apologised after condemnation by Jewish groups and abuse victims. — AFP

ROME: Pope Benedict XVI blesses the pilgrims gathered for his Regina Coeli prayer in the courtyard of Pontiff’s residence in Castelgandolfo, south of Rome, yesterday. — AFP

Yesterday the Conservatives unveiled an election poster showing a single green shoot emerging from a bleak landscape _ with a boot bearing the words “Job Tax” preparing to stamp on it.

“The choice in this election is very, very clear. You have either got Labour stamping out the recovery, stamping on the green shoots, or the Conservatives avoiding the jobs tax,” said Conservative Treasury spokesman George Osborne.

Brown claimed Conservative spending cuts would imperil the recovery and compared the economy to injured soccer star Wayne Rooney, saying that “after an injury, you need support to recover. ... If you withdraw support too early, you risk doing more damage.” Manchester United player Rooney is recovering from ligament damage to his ankle, a injury that has worried fans ahead of June’s soccer World Cup. Britain must hold an election by June 3.

Brown is expected to announce today that the election will be held May 6, and head to Buckingham Palace to ask Queen Elizabeth II to dissolve Parliament so campaigning can start. The economy is likely to dominate the campaign as Britain emerges from its deepest recession in decades. All the main parties say they will trim spending and slash the country’s 167 billion pound ($250 billion) deficit, but they differ on how deep, and how soon, to make cuts. Last week almost 40 business leaders, including Virgin boss Richard Branson, said they supported the Conservative plan to scrap the tax increase.

The Conservatives lave led in opinion polls for months, but the gap has tightened to less than 10 percentage points, suggesting they may not win the majority of House of Commons seats needed to govern outright.

Conservative leader David Cameron said Sunday that a hung Parliament, in which no party has an absolute majority, would damage British interests and create uncertainty at a time of economic difficulty.

Cameron has sought to replace his party’s fusty, right-wing image with a more modern brand of “compassionate Conservatism,” and tried to draw more women and ethnic minorities to a party long dominated by affluent white men.

That effort suffered a recent blow when Conservative home affairs spokesman Chris Grayling was recorded saying that Christian bed-and-breakfast owners should be allowed to turn away gay couples.

Gay rights groups called for Grayling to be fired and Labour’s Business Secretary Peter Mandelson said the remarks — secretly recorded at a right-of-center think tank last week — showed the Tories had not changed.

“When the camera is on they say one thing and when the camera is off they say another,” Mandelson said. Osborne said Grayling would keep his job, and like other senior Tories had voted for legislation banning discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. — AP

VENTERSDORP: Flowers and a poster are placed outside the farm of white supremacist leader Eugene Terreblanch situated on the outskirts of Ventersdorp South Africa, yesterday. Terreblanche, the leader of the white supremacist Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB) was killed in his bed in what police described as a wage dispute with two of his black workers. The incident has increased racial tensions in the country and added to safety fears just nine weeks ahead of the World Cup. — AP

Mom: Son helped kill South African white supremacist VENTERSDORP: The mother of a 15-year-old murder suspect said yesterday that her son struck a notorious white supremacist leader with an iron rod after the farmer refused to pay him, a slaying that heightens racial tensions as South Africa prepares to host the World Cup. “My son admitted that they did the killing,” the mother said in an exclusive interview with AP Television News conducted in the Tswana language from her two-room cement home in Tshing township on the outskirts of Ventersdorp town.

She said she spoke to the teenager at Ventersdorp police station on Saturday after he turned himself in along with his alleged accomplice, a 28-year-old farm worker, following the slaying of Eugene Terreblanche. Police have refused to identify either of the suspects by name.

Under South African law, a minor accused of any charge cannot be identified without permission from a judge.

Terreblanche, 69, was leader of the far-right Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging movement, which said it planned to march on the police station to demand the police bring out the two suspects.

Police say the two have been charged with murder and will appear in court today. Officials appear anxious to show they are swiftly handling the crime, which comes just 10 weeks before South Africa becomes the first African nation to host the World Cup soccer tournament.

Terreblanche’s slaying also comes at a time of heightened racial tension in this country once ruled by a racist white regime that only gave way to democratic rule in 1994 after years of statesponsored violence and urban guerrilla warfare waged by the now-governing African National Congress.

The mother said her 15-year-old son told her that when he and his co-worker asked Terreblanche for their money, he told them first to bring in the cows. After they had brought in the cows they again asked for their money, which he then refused to give them.

“He said that the (laborer) man told him to wait while he went to the storeroom. He came back with an iron rod. He started hitting Terreblanche, with four blows to the head. Then my son says he took the iron rod and hit him with three blows,” the mother said.

“My son was a person who doesn’t like to be in trouble,” she said softly, appearing a bit bewildered and scared. At the farm yesterday, a big grader was being used to dig a hole for Terreblanche in the family graveyard, where he is to be buried after a church service in Ventersdorp on Friday.

“This was such an unnecessary thing,” Terreblanche’s brother, Andries, told the AP, as he sat on a gray marble grave. “We are not racists, we just believe in purity of race.” AWB’s members still seek to create an all-white republic within mostly black South Africa.

The group’s leaders have been using

Terreblanche’s killing as a rallying point for their cause, with Secretary-General Andre Visagie claiming Sunday that Terreblanche’s brutal death was “a declaration of war” by blacks against whites.

He also warned countries against sending their soccer teams without protection to “a land of murder.” Visagie and other members of the group have blamed African National Congress Youth Leader Julius Malema, saying he spread hate speech that led to Terreblanche’s killing. Malema incited controversy last month when he led college students in a song that includes the lyrics “kill the Boer.” Boer means farmer in Afrikaans, the language of descendants of early Dutch settlers, but also is used as a derogatory term for whites.

The song sparked a legal battle in which the ruling ANC party challenged a high court that ruled the lyrics as unconstitutional. The ANC insists the song is a valuable part of its cultural heritage and that the lyrics — which also refer to the farmers as thieves and rapists - are not intended literally and are therefore not hate speech.

Visagie said the 15-year-old suspect was a casual worker and that the 28-year-old man was a fulltime employee who had been taking care of the garden of the family home in Ventersdorp.

Terreblanche had been spending most of his time there since he had heart surgery a few weeks ago.

Terreblanche had previously been convicted for a brutal attack on two black farm workers and was sentenced to six years in prison. He re-emerged in 2004 as a born-again Christian with renewed vigor for his cause. The movement always has been on the fringes, estimated to have no more than 70,000 member at its height in the early 1990s out of a population of nearly 50 million.

Police said Terreblanche was lying on his bed when he was attacked between 5 and 6 pm on Saturday. The mother’s account that there was only one murder weapon — an iron rod — did not fit police reports that a machete and a wooden staff with a rounded head were the murder instruments found at the scene.

Visagie said Terreblanche was bludgeoned so badly he was barely recognizable and described a gory murder scene indicative of great rage when he visited the farm on Sunday.

“There was blood all over the place, pools on the mattress, the pillow, the floor and splatters on the walls and ceiling,” he said. “The deductions I make is that he was killed almost instantaneously but the murderers kept on beating his body and chopping his corpse with the panga (machete).”

Terreblanche, who would appear at rallies astride a black horse, founded the movement that was to the right of South Africa’s apartheid government in the 1970s. Masked AWB “storm troopers” in black or khaki uniforms terrorized blacks in the years leading up to majority rule. The AWB’s red, white and black insignia resembles a Nazi swastika, but with three prongs instead of four. — AP

TASHKENT: In this photo provided by United Nations, showing U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, right, stands with Uzbek President Islam Karimov in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, yesterday. Ban made a strong call for Uzbekistan to fulfill its international human rights commitments. — AP

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

INTERNATIONAL

9

Aftershocks rattle Mexico-US border

Strong quake kills 2 in Mexico MEXICALI: Aftershocks rattled the southwest Mexico-US border yesterday morning in the aftermath of a major earthquake that killed two people, blacked out cities and forced the evacuation of hospitals and nursing homes. Sunday’s 7.2-magnitude quake, centered just south of the US border near Mexicali, was one of the strongest earthquakes to hit region in

TRINIDAD: A man kisses a flag with the colors of Bolivia’s Beni state while celebrating the victory of Primero El Beni opposition political party’s governor candidate Ernesto Suarez in Trinidad, Bolivia, Sunday. Even with two-thirds of the citizens behind him, Bolivia’s President Evo Morales continues to lose to opposition governor candidates in the country’s eastern lowland states. — AP

Small gains for Bolivia’s Morales in state votes LA PAZ: Allies of leftist President Evo Morales made modest advances in state and local elections on Sunday, according to independent exit polls.

Morales and his Movement Toward Socialism campaigned hard in opposition controlled eastern provinces where resistance is strongest to the central government’s redistribution of land and wealth.

Pro-government candidates for governor had comfortable leads in five out of nine state races, according to exit polls released by television broadcasters ATB and Unitel. The first official results were due today.

Those victories would consolidate Morales’ control over La Paz and Cochabamba states, where elected opposition governors were temporarily replaced in 2008 after challenging the president to a recall referendum and losing. But opposition candidates held on to at least three of four closely contested states there, according to the exit polls, which showed a near-tie in the northern state of Pando.

Pre-election polls had shown seven statehouses within Morales’ reach. The president acknowledged some disappointment, while challenging oppo-

nents to collaborate with the government. “The opposition should understand that this process of change is unstoppable,” Morales said. “If they don’t join it then at least contribute so that the people win.”

But incumbent Gov. Ruben Costas of Santa Cruz celebrated his re-election in stark terms.

“The forces of democracy have defeated tyranny,” he said.

Allies of the president own a comfortable majority in Congress, have the military’s loyalty and could soon win a friendly judiciary in the first nationwide elections for highcourt justices. But even with two-thirds of Bolivians behind him, Morales continues to be frustrated by opposition governors who have tried in vain to wrest away control of royalties on Bolivia’s natural gas deposits from the central government. Polls showed the opposition prevailing in Tarija, Santa Cruz and Beni state, where Morales’s allies nominated the beauty queen and political newcomer Jessica Jordan. In mayoral elections, pro-government candidates picked up three major cities but lost in La Paz, the seat of the Morales administration. — AP

Mexican druglord fears jail MEXICO CITY: One of Mexico’s most famous drug lords said in a rare interview published Sunday that he lives in fear of getting caught and believes the military has closed in on him four times.

“I’m terrified of being incarcerated,” Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada told the Mexican news magazine, Proceso, adding that he would even contemplate suicide if he was about to be caught.

“I’d like to think that yes, I would kill myself.” Zambada and Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, who authorities say control the Sinaloa cartel, are Mexico’s two most-notorious fugitives, with a $2 million reward offered for information on their whereabouts. Zambada offered to meet with Proceso founder Julio Scherer, saying he always wanted to meet the journalist. He gave specific directions on when and where the interview would take place, the publication said. The magazine offered no other explanation of why a kingpin would give an interview after a lifetime on the run. It is almost unheard for Mexican drug suspects to speak to the media while still free.

The offices of Calderon and the Attorney General said there would be no immediate comment on the interview. The magazine published the interview along with an outdoor photograph of Scherer with the mustachioed Zambada, who wore a baseball cap that cast a shadow over his eyes and had his arm around the journalist. Only brush can be seen in the background.

Zambada said he had felt the army closing in on him four times and that soldiers had gotten close to Guzman even more often.

“I fled into the countryside. I know the vegetation, the rivers, the rocks, everything,” Zambada said. “I’ll get caught if I get complacent, careless, just like El Chapo.” But he insisted that the drug trade would continue unabated even if he was arrested. “When it comes to the capos, jailed, dead or extradited — their replacements are ready,” Zambada said. Guzman, who escaped prison by hiding in a laundry truck nearly a decade ago, has made Forbes magazine’s lists of wealthiest and mostpowerful people. “El Chapo Guzman and I are friends and we talk on the phone a lot,” Zambada said. He even said he might try to arrange an interview between Guzman and Proceso.

Mexican officials blame the Sinaloa cartel for much of the country’s staggering bloodshed. Drug violence has killed more than 18,000 people since President Felipe Calderon took office in 2006, and has made the border city of Ciudad Juarez, where Sinaloa is fighting a turf battle against the Juarez cartel, one of the world’s most dangerous cities. The interview comes as Zambada’s son, Jesus Vicente Zambada-Niebla, faces trial in Chicago on charges that he conspired to import and sell large amounts of cocaine and heroin in the United States. ZambadaNiebla, who has pleaded not guilty, was arrested last year in Mexico City and was extradited to the United States in February. The US indictment accuses both Ismael Zambada and his son of using planes, boats, trucks and cars to move nearly $50 million worth of cocaine from Colombia to New York, New Jersey, Chicago and California between August 2001 and June 2002.

In the interview, Zambada refused to answer questions about his son, saying only that he “cries for him.” In November, a nephew of Zambada, Jesus Zambada Reyes, who had been cooperating with authorities, was found dead in a house in Mexico City in an apparent suicide. Zambada Reyes had been captured in 2008 and accused of smuggling cocaine through Mexico City airports.

Scherer said he and someone sent to accompany him took four cars to a sparsely furnished house where they spent the night. The next evening, he took a long car ride through the mountains until he reached a rustic, two-room house where he met Zambada. Zambada revealed no details about his alleged criminal activities, but offered some insight into his personal life. He said Zambada-Niebla was the oldest of his five children, and that he has five grandchildren and a great-grandson. He said he had a wife and five mistresses. — AP

“We were just kind of lucky that the energy went the other way,” Sigala said. “With every earthquake, the earth starts moving a certain direction. It started south of Mexicali and the rupture moved northwest.” Sunday afternoon’s earthquake hit hardest in Mexicali, a bustling commerce center along Mexico’s border with California, where one man was killed when his home collapsed just outside town and another died when he into the street in panic and was struck by a car. Across the border in Calexico, police patrolled streets littered with shattered glass yesterday, and a downtown area containing was closed because of damage.

Scientists measured about 100 aftershocks early yesterday morning, said seismologist Kate Hutton at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. They caused no new damages in Mexicali, said Alan Sandoval, a civil protection inspector. At least 100 people were injured in Mexicali, most of them struck by falling objects. Power was out in virtually the entire city and the blackout was expected to last well into yesterday, Escobedo said.

All 300 patients were evacuated from the Mexicali General Hospital because of the structural damage to the building, which also was without electricity and water. Some patients were taken to private clinics but others were

decades, shaking at least 20 million people. It had a shallow depth of 6 miles (10 kilometers).

The human toll was minimal in large part because the energy from the quake moved northwest of Mexicali toward a less populated area, said Jessica Sigala, a geophysicist from the US Geological Survey.

MEXICALI: A man gathers belongings in the early morning of April 5 at his collapsed house in Mexicali, in Mexico’s Baja California state, which was struck by a 7.2-magnitude earthquake that hit the US-Mexico border region on April 4. The 7.2-magnitude quake hit northwestern Mexico, killing two people, rocking buildings as far away as Los Angeles and sending emergency teams scrambling to survey damage yesterday. — AFP in tents. It was unclear how long the emergency generators powering the vprivate clinics could last. Sandoval said the most critical patients would be

transported to hospitals in Tijuana and the coastal town of Ensenada. Sandoval said the Easter holiday delayed damage assessments for Mexicali, as did land-

slides that slowed traffic on the toll road into the city. The parking garage at Mexicali’s city hall collapsed but no one was injured.

Scientists said the main earthquake probably occurred on a fault that has not produced a major temblor in over a century. Preliminary data suggest the quake occurred on the Laguna Salada fault, which last unleashed a similarsized quake in 1892. Since then, it has sparked some magnitude-5 temblors.

US Geological Survey seismologist Erik Pounders described the area as a “chaotic” system of faults that needed more research.

In Calexico, California, a city of 27,000 right across the border from Mexicali, the city council declared a state of emergency.

Calexico police Lt. Gonzalo Gerardo said most of the damage occurred downtown, where buildings constructed in the 1930s and ‘40s were not retrofitted for an earthquake of this magnitude.

“You’ve got a lot of cracks. You’ve got a lot of broken glass,” he said. “It’s unsafe for people to go there.” Rosendo Garcia, 44, was driving his daughter home from work when the quake struck. “It felt like I was in a canoe in the middle of the ocean,” he said, adding that homes in his trailer park were seriously damaged, including one knocked off its foundation. A home for seniors in Calexico built in the early 1900s was evacuated and its residents moved to a Red Cross shelter. —AP

INTERNATIONAL

10

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Chat transcripts in Indonesia reveal Al-Qaeda ties JAKARTA: It plays out like any ordinary chat between friends on Yahoo Messenger, but the subject matter is chilling: “thekiller” is looking to mesh his Indonesian militant network more deeply with Al-Qaeda in its Pakistan heartland.

“Come to Pak,” he is told by “SAIF-a”, the Pakistani at the other end. “The seniors say, send one of your boys here to represent your group.” But beware, “SAIF-a” warns.

With the United States stepping up its rocket attacks, “The brothers are very worried, in Waziristan all missiles hit very accurately. It means someone inside is involved.” The exchange appears in transcripts of Internet chat sessions recovered from the computer of Muhammad Jibriel, identified in the documents as the man suspected of using the screen name “thekiller”. Jibriel, a 26-year-old Indonesian and well-known propagandist for al-Qaeda, currently is on trial, accused of helping finance last year’s twin suicide bombings at luxury hotels in his country’s capital, Jakarta. He claims the transcripts are fabricated.

The 40 pages of conversations are in a police dossier that provides a rare glimpse into the inner workings of Jemaah Islamiyah, Southeast Asia’s main extremist group, suggesting it and allied networks in the region

have more international links than were previously assumed. Since the chats took place, from mid to late 2008, a sustained crackdown on Southeast Asian groups has continued, resulting in the arrest of Jibriel and the execution of the man identified in the police dossier as one of his most prominent conversationalists. The chats refer to other people engaged in contact with international extremists, and experts believe such ties probably continue.

“The transcripts are a wake-up call,” said Sidney Jones, a leading international expert on Southeast Asian terror groups. “They show that Indonesian links to Pakistani and Middle Eastern terror groups are real and dangerous, even if limited to a few individuals.” The 800-page police dossier was given to lawyers and judges involved in Jibriel’s juryless trial but is not part of the indictment.

It was obtained by The Associated Press from someone close to Indonesian law enforcement who requested anonymity because the disclosure is sensitive.

Indonesian police would not discuss the chat sessions, or say whether any Indonesian militants had left for Pakistan since the conversations took place. The participants talk about sending money and recruits to alQaeda. They discuss in detail the progress of

a credit card fraud involving several Western banks to pay for terror activities. They refer to allied militant cells or contacts in Cairo, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The man identified as Jibriel reminisces fondly about time spent in “Kash” (Kashmir), where he says he was taught to fire sniper rifles and shoulderheld rockets. He mentions a trip he made in late 2007 to the Pakistani region of Waziristan where he met with Al-Qaeda and Taleban leaders, including someone called Abu Bilal al Turki, who he says was “still looking young.” The chats are in a mix of Indonesian, English, Urdu and Arabic. Some of what is said seems to be in code. Slang, shorthand and “smiley face” emoticons stud the text. The communications take an extraordinary turn as they are joined by “istisyhad,” identified in the police dossier as Imam Samudra, a mastermind of the 2002 Bali nightclub bombing. At the time of the chats he was on death row, yet he was communicating from his cell on a smuggled laptop.

The police dossier says Jibriel used several aliases to talk to Samudra, even seeking advice on his turbulent relationship with a militant sympathizer he wants to marry. At one point he asks Samudra “to pray that she and I stay strong and become a great jihad partnership.” In another chat he offers to

help Samudra keep in touch with al-Qaeda from death row. “If you want to send an email to AQ directly there, I can arrange that,” he writes. Samudra was executed by firing squad in 2009. The prosecution is leaning heavily on an e-mail hacked by the FBI at the Indonesians’ request in which Jibriel allegedly asks his brother in Saudi Arabia for money to finance what he claims will be the biggest attack since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and talks about giving the funds to the organizer. The reference is to the twin hotel attacks, in which seven people died. Jibriel has claimed the e-mail is fabricated, and says the same of the chats.

“The police have made this up,” he said, speaking to the AP through the bars of a cell before a recent court hearing. “I know about technology, and I know how easy it is to create something on a computer.”

Occasionally a mordant sense of humor creeps into the chatter. “Thekiller” talks with someone offering to forge an ID for him.

What name would he like — “that of an unbeliever or a Muslim”?

“Abu Musab al-Zarqawi,” the late founder of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, he jokingly replies.

“There is no way that will arouse suspicions.” In one conversation with Samudra, “irhaab —007”, another name allegedly used

by Jibriel, dwells on sending recruits to Waziristan, apparently to work with alQaeda’s media wing.

“I have still got my ‘pass’ to Pakistan, his name is Muhammad Yunus,” he writes. “But the big AQ (Al-Qaeda) guys here do not agree that everyone should leave. We have to look at our guys and choose, based on their abilities because people there don’t want any hassle. “At the very least they have to be prepared to stay a long time, 2 or 3 years,” he writes. Both men also talk about being asked to send sums of $1,500 to $2,000 to al-Qaeda in Pakistan.

Jemaah Islamiyah was formed by Indonesians after they returned home from fighting and training in Afghanistan and Pakistan during the 1980s and the 1990s.

After 9/11, when Al-Qaeda began expanding into Southeast Asia, it used those connections to send money and expertise and to recruit volunteers, but was assumed to have largely given up after the crackdown that followed the Bali bombings. Jibriel’s father is an Afghan-trained cleric accused by the United States of being a Jemaah Islamiyah leader. In the early 2000s, Jibriel and a small group of other Southeast Asians lived in the Pakistani city of Karachi, and some of them were detained on suspicion of having al-Qaeda

links.

In Karachi, Jibriel attended a boarding school later linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Pakistani militant group accused of being behind the 2007 Mumbai attacks in which 166 people died.

The Australian government, which closely watches Indonesian militant groups, has said the Southeast Asians also attended Lashkar training camps in Pakistani Kashmir when they were living in Karachi. Returning to Indonesia in 2004, Jibriel made no attempt to hide his profile. He set up a well-funded online network with content praising terrorist attacks around the world, as well as alQaeda and Taleban propaganda videos. He also met several times with an AP reporter over the years.

As he arrived at a recent trial session he was greeted by supporters brandishing their fists and praising God. To the AP, Jibriel claimed that in Karachi he knew Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-professed 9/11 mastermind. Yet he also revealed a love of Hollywood films and a taste for expensive Western restaurants.

Throughout the chats, participants reveal the ever-present fear of infiltrating spies. “It is difficult to trust anyone. Many of our men are in jail,” “thekiller” tells “SAIF-a. — AP

Thai ‘Red Shirts’ pledge more protests after court ruling ‘Our demonstration is constitutional’

BANGKOK: Jubilant red-shirted Thai protesters vowed yesterday to keep up their efforts to overthrow the government after a court declined to issue a legal order to evict them from Bangkok’s tourist hub. Tens of thousands of

supporters of fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra paralysed the capital’s main shopping and luxury hotel district for a third day and also briefly stormed the offices of the election commission.

BANGKOK: Anti-government demonstrators protest outside a building where the Election Commission office is situated in Bangkok, Thailand, yesterday. About 100 protesters pushed their way into their newest target, the Election Commission, in anger that the commission has yet to rule on whether the ruling Democrat Party violated laws on financial donations, which could lead to the party’s dissolution. — AP

Elderly Swiss-born man kidnapped in Philippines ZAMBOANGA: Suspected Islamic militants wearing police uniforms kidnapped an elderly Swiss-born man from his home in the restive southern Philippines, authorities said yesterday.

Charles Reith, 72, who has been living in the Philippines for decades, was taken away from his beachside house by speedboat on Sunday night with the Al Qaedalinked Abu Sayyaf organisation immediately named as the likely culprits.

“Our reports state that it is the Abu Sayyaf group although we are looking at other angles because the victim is a long-time resident,” national police chief Jesus Verzosa told reporters.

The Abu Sayyaf have for years terrorised foreigners and locals in the Philippines’ often lawless southern Mindanao region, kidnapping dozens of people in hopes of securing ransom payments.

Abu Sayyaf militants beheaded an American hostage in 2001, and most recently chopped off the head of a local businessman on Mindanao’s Basilan island in December last year after their ransom demands went unfulfilled.

The United States lists the Abu Sayyaf as a terrorist organisation and has hundreds of soldiers based in the southern Philippines to train the local military in how to fight the group.

However, there are many other groups in Mindanao that have staged kidnappings for ransom, including members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, a 12,000-strong separatist rebel organisation.

The local military and police said at least eight gunmen raided Reith’s home on the outskirts of Zamboanga, a major port city in the south, on Sunday night.

“The raiders, disguised as policemen, arrived on several speedboats and abducted Reith,” Colonel Santiago Baluyot, commander of the army’s anti-terrorist task force in Zamboanga, told reporters.

“We launched a pursuit operation but it was too dark to track down the raiders.”

Baluyot said Reith’s friend Karl Reichling, a German national, was with him when the abduction occurred.

The gunmen also attempted to take Reichling but he was able to fend them off, according to Baluyot.

Baluyot and other army officers said Reith had been living in the southern Philippines for about 40 years and was a naturalised Filipino who had a local wife.

However regional army chief Major General Romeo Lustestica also said Reith was still a Swiss national. Officials at the Swiss embassy in Manila were not available yesterday to clarify Reith’s citizenship.

Reith was a well-respected member of the local community, according to Erico Fabian, a Zamboanga representative in the national parliament who said he was a close friend of the abducted man.

“Mr Reith is a civic-minded person and a permanent fixture in business circles here,” Fabian told reporters. — AFP

JAKARTA: Putri Munawaroh (C) is escorted by police women after her trial in Jakarta yesterday.

Siti Munawaroh who allegedly harboured fugitive terrorist Noordin Mohammed Top in her home for two months should face the death penalty if found guilty, prosecutors said. Putri Munawaroh was the only survivor of a nine-hour shoot-out with police at her house in Central Java in September, in which Noordin and three other Islamist extremists including her husband were killed. — AFP

Loud cheers rang out among the Red Shirts after a Bangkok court dismissed the government’s request for an injunction to force the protesters out of the tourist district, where they have halted traffic and caused stores to close. They are demanding immediate elections, accusing Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva’s government of being undemocratic because it took office in 2008 through a parliamentary vote after a court stripped Thaksin’s allies of power.

“It’s clear that Abhisit cannot do everything in Thailand,” Reds leader Jatuporn Prompan told the cheering crowd. “Our demonstration is constitutional and we will continue to press for House dissolution to return power to people,” he said.

But it was not a clear-cut victory for the protesters because the court also said that the government already had power to evict the Reds under a tough emergency security law, so a legal injunction was not necessary. The government has already announced a ban of the mass rally in the tourist heartland but had sought the backing of the judiciary to evict the protesters.

The authorities said they would continue to press the Reds-mostly from the country’s rural north-to leave the area, but added they wanted a peaceful end to the standoff.

“The government will explain to protesters about the authority under (the security law) but so far the government has no plan to use force to disperse the demonstrators,” said government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said. The military has mounted a heavy security response involving 50,000 personnel at its height to try to contain the protests.

Tensions grew with an earlyhours explosion outside a Bangkok massage parlour owned by the family of the commerce minister, and a grenade fired into a supermarket parking lot in northern Chiang Mai city.

Nobody was injured.

Elsewhere an unexploded hand grenade was found outside the government-run National Broadcasting Service of Thailand, in the latest unexplained attacks since the rolling demonstrations began in mid-March by Thaksin’s supporters.

The government wants to avoid a repeat of last April’s clashes with Red Shirts that left two people dead, six months after riot police took on the rival Yellow Shirts in bloody scenes outside parliament.

Business chiefs have warned the action could inflict heavy losses on tourism and other industries. But the stock exchange said it would operate as usual yesterday, urging investors to “consider the credibility of news sources” on the protests.

Despite protesters blocking Bangkok’s commercial district for a third day, the Thai market rose 0.87 percent yesterday to close at 808.15. Thai society is split between the Reds, who accuse Abhisit’s government of being elitist and army-backed, and the Yellow Shirts, supporters of the country’s establishment who accuse Thaksin of gross corruption. Thaksin, a billionaire former telecoms tycoon, lives abroad to avoid a jail term for graft at home. — AFP

ULAN BATOR: Mongolians take part in a protest against the government in Ulan Bator Mongolia, yesterday. More than 5,000 protesters surged through the center of Mongolia’s capital yesterday to demand that parliament be dissolved and promised aid be handed out. — AP

5,000 flood Mongolia’s capital, demand new govt

ULAN BATOR: More than 5,000 protesters surged through the center of Mongolia’s capital yesterday to demand that parliament be dissolved and promised aid be handed out.

The largely peaceful rally was the biggest in Ulan Bator since July 2008 when five people were killed and more than 200 hurt in riots over alleged election fraud. The protesters, many from rural areas and the slums of Ulan Bator, demanded that the government of the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party and the Mongolian Democratic Party fulfill promises from the 2008 elections to crack down on graft and better distribute the country’s mining wealth.

The two parties promised to share more of the country’s natural wealth with the public through outright cash grants or through a fund similar to the Alaska Permanent Fund, which pays dividends to the state’s residents from oil revenues.

Governments and opposition parties in the impoverished but resource-rich country tucked between China and Russia have argued for years over how to develop and share the benefits of the natural resources.

“Since both parties lied to the Mongolian people, they have no moral right to sit in the parliament,” said Uyanga Gantomor, an activist and one of the protest’s organizers. She said if the government failed to respond in 72 hours, the protests would enter the “next stage against the corrupt

authorities,” though she would not say what actions would be taken.

Mongolian media put the number of protesters at more than 5,000. Police declined to give an estimate. Uyanga called for the government to correct persisting unfairness, saying that 40 percent of Mongolia’s 2.7 million people live in poverty, a lingering problem since the country shook off communism nearly two decades ago. Poverty is likely to worsen after the coldest winter in three decades killed 4.5 million herd animals, about 10 percent of the country’s total. Some dispirited herders have in recent weeks streamed into Ulan Bator looking for work or government aid and further straining the city’s already stressed social services.

City officials banned the sale of alcohol yesterday, hoping to avoid the drunkenness that some say contributed to the 2008 election violence.

Protesters, some of whom wore blue Buddhist prayer scarves, also called for the cancellation of a recently passed mine investment agreement. Last August, Mongolian lawmakers voted to phase out a windfall profits tax in 2011, removing the last obstacle to a deal with Rio Tinto Ltd. and Canada’s Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. to develop the Oyu Tolgoi gold and copper mine in the Gobi desert. The tax was enacted in 2006 at a time of surging metals prices, but miners said it made tax rates too uncertain and would discourage investment. — AP

N Korea threatens to stop returning US war remains SEOUL: North Korea accused the United States yesterday of ignoring its efforts to return remains of American soldiers who were killed in the Korean War in the 1950s and threatened to stop collecting and returning the bodies.

The North’s military said it informed the US twice this year of “a number of” remains of US troops found during land realignment and farming preparations in 10 different locations.

But the US Defense Department has not offered a concrete response and asked the North to wait, it said.

“Though lots of US remains are being dug out and scattered here and there in our country, our side will no longer be concerned about it,” said a military statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.

The Korean War ended in a 1953 cease-fire that has never been replaced by a peace treaty — leaving the Korean peninsula technically still at war. About 8,000 US servicemen are listed

as missing from the conflict.

The US and North Korea had previously been involved in a joint project to recover remains in the North, but the effort was halted in 2005 after Washington said security arrangements for its personnel were insufficient.

In late January, a Pentagon official said North Korea offered to consider allowing the US back into the country to resume searching for remains.

Larry Greer, a spokesman for the POW-MIA office at the Pentagon, said at the time that the US would weigh the offer.

But State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said the US was more interested in getting the North to rejoin international disarmament talks aimed at ending the North’s nuclear weapons program.

The North’s statement yesterday accused the US of pushing to resolve even humanitarian issues like the return of war remains within the framework of six-nation nuclear talks

Pyongyang quit last year.

“If thousands of US remains buried in our country are washed off and lost due to the US side’s disregard, the US side should be wholly responsible for the consequences as it has developed the humanitarian issue into a political problem,” it said.

The statement said North Korea handed over the remains of 229 American soldiers to the US through 33 joint projects. It said remains include those of a soldier it identified as Philip W. Ackly, saying it turned over a dogtag bearing that name.

It said the North gave the notification to the US through an American military delegate in South Korea on Jan. 27 and Feb. 26.

David Oten, a spokesman for the US military command in Seoul, said that the Jan. 27 meeting took place at the border village of Panmunjom at the North’s request and the country conveyed its position on US remains recovery. —AP

INTERNATIONAL

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

11

Australia rushes to contain Barrier Reef oil spill ROCKHAMPTON: Workers rushed to contain an oil spill yesterday from a coal-carrying ship grounded on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, sending two tugboats to stabilize the vessel so that it would not break apart and further damage the fragile coral beneath. The Chinese-registered Shen Neng 1 rammed into Douglas Shoals late Saturday, an area that has shipping restrictions in order to protect what is the world’s largest coral reef and one that is listed as a World Heritage site because of its gleaming waters and environmental value as home to thousands of marine species. About 2 tons (metric tons) of oil have already spilled from the 1,000 tons (950 metric tons) of fuel on

board, creating a 100-yard (meter) slick that stretches 2 miles (3 kilometers), Marine Safety Queensland said in a statement.

Queensland State Premier Anna Bligh said a boom will be put around the ship by Tuesday to contain oil leaking from the hull. Aircraft sprayed chemical dispersants in an effort to break up the slick Sunday. “Our No. 1 priority is keeping this oil off the Barrier Reef and keeping it contained,” she told reporters in Brisbane.

Bligh said a salvage team had reached the ship yesterday and were attempting to stabilize it.

“It’s in such a delicate part of the reef and the ship is in such a badly damaged state,

managing this process will require all the specialist expertise we can bring to bear,” she told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio. She said it could take weeks to dislodge the ship. The ship’s owner, Shenzhen Energy, a subsidiary of the Cosco Group that is China’s largest shipping operator, could be fined up to 1 million Australian dollars ($920,000) for straying from a shipping lane used by 6,000 cargo vessels each year, Bligh said. “This is a very delicate part of one of the most precious marine environments on earth and there are safe authorized shipping channels — and that’s where this ship should have been,” Bligh said.

Authorities fear the ship will break apart

during the salvage operation and wreck more coral, or spill more of its heavy fuel oil into the sun-soaked sea. However, Bligh said the risk of the ship breaking apart appeared to have lessened since the first of two tug boats arrived and reduced its movement.

Two tugs arrived yesterday to stabilize the ship, Marine Safety Queensland said.

“One of the most worrying aspects is that the ship is still moving on the reef to the action of the seas, which is doing further damage” to the coral and hull, according to the agency’s general manager, Patrick Quirk. Initial damage reports showed flooding in the main engine room and damage to

the main engine and the rudder. A police boat was standing by to evacuate the 23 crew members if the ship breaks apart.

The bulk carrier was taking about 72,000 tons (65,000 metric tons) of coal to China from the Queensland port of Gladstone when it slammed into the shoals off Queensland’s coast in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. Numerous conservation groups have expressed outrage that bulk carriers can travel through the reef without a specialized marine pilot. Shipping lanes in Australian waters typically require a seasoned captain to go aboard an incoming ship to help navigate around hazards. Until now, the government has said there is no need for

a marine pilots around the protected area because large ships are banned there.

Maritime law specialist Michael White of the University of Queensland said oil is the major environmental threat posed by the grounding. While coal could do “considerable localized damage,” it would be quick to dissipate. Marine geologist Greg Webb from the Queensland University of Technology said the effects of an oil and coal spill could have unknown consequences.

“In the past we always just thought a reef could put up with anything,” he told ABC radio. “And I guess over the last decade or so, we’re beginning to understand that maybe they can’t.” — AP

10 killed in NATO raid on Afghan militants Karzai dismisses concerns over damage to relations with US

KABUL: NATO forces said they killed 10 militants in a raid on a compound near the Pakistani border early yesterday, while gunmen seriously wounded an Afghan provincial councilwoman in a drive-by shooting in the coun-

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan Police forcibly remove a monk supporting four Buddhist monks on a hunger strike, demanding the immediate release of the detained opposition leader, General Forseka in Colombo, Sri Lanka, yesterday. — AP

Election to strengthen Sri Lanka president

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse, accused by critics of stifling dissent and persecuting the opposition, looks set to consolidate his hold on power in parliamentary elections this week.

Rajapakse called Thursday’s vote two months ahead of schedule after his thumping re-election in January and his Freedom Alliance party is in line for an easy majority in the 225member national legislature, according to analysts.

Nearly 20,000 troops have been put on alert to reinforce police as polls have often been soured by violence in Sri Lanka. In the first death of the campaign, unknown gunmen shot a ruling party activist at the weekend.

The opposition united behind a common candidate, former army chief Sarath Fonseka, for the presidential poll. It has now split-giving Rajapakse’s party a clearer run in the election.

“The government has no issue winning the election, but their challenge is to increase the majority,” said political commentator Victor Ivan, referring to the 126 seats currently held by the ruling party.

Fonseka is now under detention and faces another hearing in an ongoing court martial process on Tuesday that could see him jailed for years for allegedly engaging in politics while in uniform and making illegal army procurements.

The opposition alliance have called on Fonseka to be released after he was arrested by the military 12 days after losing to Rajapakse, but each party is fielding separate candidates who will compete against each other.

Fonseka is running in the election from jail as head of the Democratic National Alliance, but his detention has not been the lightning rod for dissent that some hoped for and protests appear to be fizzling out.

“General Fonseka emerged as a symbol of opposition to Rajapakse, but he is not strictly a politician,” said Nimalka Fernando, of the Democratic People’s Movement, a political pressure group.

“If he does badly at this election, he will have a career in politics fighting the president, but it won’t be an influential one,” Fernando said.

Rajapakse and Fonseka were close allies in the defeat of Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tiger separatists last year which ended their 37-year violent struggle for a homeland for ethnic Tamils in the north and east of the island nation.

At the January presidential poll, Rajapakse won the votes of most of the Sinhalese ethnic group, to which he belongs, but lost out in all Tamil areas to Fonseka.

Observers say the new government must address Tamils’ desire for greater autonomy which fuelled the Tigers’ separatist struggle.

The armed uprising was snuffed out in May after the loss of up to 100,000 people over more than three decades.

“There will have to be a broad agenda for national reconciliation,” said political commentator Ivan. “The president, the opposition and the minority parties must show unity of purpose.”

“If they fail, the country will face chaos. The end of the war with the Tigers has given political parties a chance to start on a clean slate.”

Rajapakse and his family members, who hold key positions in government, stand accused by critics at home and rights groups abroad of clamping down on media freedoms and dissidents.

The Hong Kong-based Asian Human Rights Commission has accused Sri Lanka’s government of engaging in “alarming attempts to repress the avenues of the political participation of the opposition and the entire population.”

Voter enthusiasm appears to be low given that many expect a resounding ruling-party victory and there has also been scant debate.

“The main issues facing the country have not been ventilated during the campaign,” said Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, head of the Centre for Policy Alternatives think-tank.

He said the composition of minority Tamil parties in the next parliament could decide the level of agitation for autonomy. The Tamil National Alliance, which was a puppet of the Tamil Tigers before they were annihilated last year, has warned it could resort to a civil disobedience campaign to press for greater political power. — AFP

Bangladesh revokes licences of 3,000 charities DHAKA: Bangladeshi authorities have shut down nearly 3,000 charities, including a number of organizations that were allegedly “spreading militancy” in the Muslim-majority nation, an official said yesterday.

Bangladesh’s secular Awami League government has made tackling militancy a top priority after the country was hit in 2005 by a series of deadly bombings by Islamic groups seeking to impose Sharia law in the country.

Arshad Hossain, director of the social services department, said licences for 2,931 non-government organisations were cancelled this month after they were found to be breaching government guide-

lines.

“They were given licences to run social welfare projects in healthcare, education and nutrition but many were involved in unrelated work, including spreading militancy,” he told AFP. This was the first time the government has taken such significant steps against allegedly bogus charities, he said, adding that the licences of another 3,000 groups will likely be cancelled soon.

Bangladesh has been seeking to crack down on groups often bankrolled by donors in wealthy Muslim countries that it says use aid projects as a way to spread radical Islamic ideas in the South Asian country of 144 million.

In April last year police charged a Bangladeshi-born British charity chief accused of using an Islamic school on a remote southern Bangladeshi island as a cover to store weapons and explosives.

The same month authorities deported a Sudanese national after he was accused of using the local branch of Kuwait-based charity, the Revival of Islamic Heritage Society, to train Islamic militants.

Tens of thousands of charities operate in Bangladesh, where 40 percent of the 144 million population live below the poverty level.

The social welfare ministry alone has approved licences for 55,000 charities. — AFP

Such killings have strained ties between the government of President Hamid Karzai and his Western backers, which have been further inflamed by Karzai’s recent allegations of foreign manipulation of last year’s presidential election. Members of parliament said that in a closed-door meeting Saturday, Karzai twice threatened to abandon the political process and join the Taleban insurgency if pressure continued from lawmakers and foreign backers who have demanded he do more to end graft, cronyism and electoral fraud.

The lawmakers, who spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid political repercussions, said Karzai also dismissed concerns over damage to relations with the United States. He told them he had already explained himself in a telephone conversation Saturday with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that came after the White House described his comments as troubling. The lawmakers said they felt Karzai was pandering to hard-line or proTaleban members of parliament.

But such statements have also given the impression the president — who relies on tens of thousands of US and NATO forces to fight the insurgency and prop up his weak government — is increasingly erratic in his pronouncements.

Karzai’s spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment yesterday.

A NATO statement said a joint international-Afghan patrol fired on two men mistakenly believed to be insurgents in the Feb. 12 incident in Gardez, south of Kabul. It said the three women were “accidentally killed as a result of the joint force firing at the men.” Family members said they were awaiting formal notice of the NATO admission.

In yesterday’s raid, which began around 2 am (2130 GMT), US troops backed by Afghan army and police forces moved on a compound in Nangarhar province’s Khogyani district after receiving reports of militant activity there, the international forces command said in another statement. They were fired on with heavy weapons and 10 militants were killed and one wounded in the ensuing firefight, the statement said. A search of the compound found automatic rifles, rocket-propelled grenades, material for building roadside bombs, and communications equipment, NATO said. It said no civilians were harmed in the operation. In the latest of a series of targeted assassination attempts blamed on militants, Baghlan provincial council member Nida Khyani was struck by gunfire in the leg and abdomen in Pul-e Khumri, the capital of the northern province, said Salim Rasouli, head of the provincial health department.

Khyani’s bodyguard was also slightly injured. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the shooting, although suspicion immediately fell on Taleban fighters who often target people working with the Afghan government and their Western backers.

In the national parliament in Kabul, a lawmaker from Baghlan province shared details of the attack and lamented the security problems female officials face in Afghanistan. “It happened in the center of the city,” said Shaukria Esakhil. “How can a woman work under these kinds of conditions?”

One month ago, a member of the Afghan national parliament escaped injury when her convoy

was attacked by Taliban insurgents in eastern Afghanistan.

Female government officials regularly report receiving threats to their safety. Some women leaders, including a prominent policewoman, have been assassinated. —AP

try’s increasingly violent north. NATO also confirmed that international troops were responsible for the deaths of five civilians, including three women, in February.

KABUL: Afghans stand in a compound in the Nangarhar province’s Khogyani district, after an overnight raid, east of Kabul, Afghanistan, yesterday. NATO forces said they killed 10 militants in a raid on the compound near the Pakistani border early yesterday. — AP

Two men go on trial over killing of British teen in Goa PANAJI: The trial opened yesterday of two Indian men accused of killing British teenage girl Scarlett Keeling in the popular resort state of Goa two years ago.

Federal investigators formally charged the men late last year over the death of 15year-old Keeling, whose bruised and half-naked body was found on popular Anjuna beach in February 2008.

The trial began with testimony from prosecution witness Vishant Chopdekar, one of the first policemen to reach the scene. Both the accused men stood in the dock.

Keeling’s mother Fiona MacKeown will be called to testify-probably next weekand a verdict is expected by the end of the year, lawyers said.

MacKeown waged a concerted campaign to get Indian police to treat her daughter’s death as a crime rather than an accident, and has expressed anger that the two defendants were not charged with rape and murder.

Police allege that Keeling was given a cocktail of illegal drugs and dumped unconscious in shallow water where she drowned.

Two Goans, Samson D’Souza and Placido Carvalho, have been charged with culpable homicide, using force with “intent to outrage her modesty” and administering a drug with intent to harm.

Investigators have submitted a list of 72 witnesses to be examined by the court which will hold hearings three times

a week in the state capital Panaji.

Keeling and her family were on a six-month holiday in India when she died.

MacKeown left Keeling in Goa while she and her other daughters went on a trip to the neighbouring state of Karnataka.

There have been a series of high-profile crimes against foreigners in Goa which have prompted fears about the safety of tourists, as has the widespread availability of drugs, despite efforts by authorities to stamp out peddling.

Aggressive drug pushing

remains commonplace at Anjuna beach, a resort in the north of the former Portuguese colony that has been a haven for travellers since the days of the hippy trail in the 1960s and 1970s.

Some 400,000 foreign tourists flock to the tiny state every year, attracted by its sandy beaches, sunshine and all-night parties.

In Britain, Keeling’s mother is facing a possible jail term after admitting last month that she falsely claimed 19,000 pounds (29,000 dollars) in state benefits between 2005 and 2008.

The date for her sentencing has been postponed because her defence lawyer said she needed to attend the trial in India.

Before her fraud hearing, MacKeown said she was sceptical that the two accused men would be convicted.

“It’s all for show,” she said.

“It’s to show they’re doing something about it. I don’t think they’ll ever convict the two of them.”

MacKeown has repeatedly alleged a cover-up, saying police and politicians in Goa protect criminals and drug traders. —AFP

PANAJI: Samson D’Souza, face covered with a helmet, leaves the Goa State Children’s Court in Panaji, India, yesterday. D’Souza, is facing charges of culpable homicide, sexual assault and destroying evidence in the 2008 death of a British teenager whose body was found on a beach in Goa, a tiny state with a coastline crowded with tourist resorts. — AP

12

OPINION

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

THE LEADING INDEPENDENT DAILY IN THE ARABIAN GULF ESTABLISHED 1961

Founder and Publisher

YOUSUF S. ALYAN Editor-in-Chief

ABD AL-RAHMAN ALYAN EDITORIAL : 24833199-24833358-24833432 ADVERTISING : 24835616/7 FAX : 24835620/1 CIRCULATION : 24833199 Extn. 163 ACCOUNTS : 24833199 Extn. 125 / 126 COMMERCIAL : 24835618 P.O.Box 1301 Safat,13014 Kuwait.

E MAIL: info@kuwaittimes.net Website: www.kuwaittimes.net

focus

Europe abuse crisis much like US 2002

By Rachel Zoll

I

t’s 2002 all over again.

The Roman Catholic sex abuse crisis now unfolding from Ireland to Germany to Denmark has been a near replay of the scandal that hit US dioceses eight years ago.

And if the American experience is any indication, European Catholics have a long, painful road ahead. The problem of clergy abuse in the US first became widely known in the mid-1980s because of a predator priest in Louisiana, then exploded in 2002 when a court unsealed files in the case of an accused priest in the Archdiocese of Boston. The documents revealed a pattern of administrators moving guilty clergy among parishes without telling parents or police. Catholics nationwide demanded that their local dioceses explain how they had handled claims.

While the intensity of the crisis has eased, there is no endpoint in sight. US\ dioceses received nearly 400 claims of abuse last year alone, with the overwhelming majority from adults who said they were molested decades ago as children. The total number of claims since 1950 has reached over 14,000, according to surveys commissioned by the bishops. The U.S. price tag for settlements, legal fees and other abuse-related costs has surpassed $2.7 billion over that same period, according to the surveys and individual dioceses.

Revelations of abuse on both continents sparked the same mix of contrition and indignation from church leaders. U.S. and European bishops apologized repeatedly for failures to stop predators, yet often viewed the unrelenting spotlight on the issue as an attack on the church. In 2007, Chicago Auxiliary Bishop Thomas Paprocki, a civil and canon lawyer and deputy to Chicago Cardinal Francis George, said “none other than the devil” was behind the unending litigation. Many American dioceses have sold buildings and land to cover settlements.

Some of the most outraged church defenders have compared the situation to Henry VIII’s seizure of Catholic property in Reformation-era England.

The complaints of antiCatholic persecution reached fever pitch in recent weeks as the scandal moved closer to Pope Benedict XVI, who had served as archbishop of Munich and later as a Vatican cardinal directing the Holy See’s policy on handling abuse claims. Benedict’s personal preacher compared the claims against the pope to “collective violence” suffered

by Jews, although the Vatican quickly distanced the pope from the remarks.

European Catholics strug-

gling to understand how such a tragedy could happen are engaged in the same debates as American parishioners.

Was mandatory celibacy to blame? A lack of women in leadership? Or was the real problem lax enforcement of church orthodoxy? American Catholic analysts have in recent weeks been re-publishing their old commentaries on these issues - this time for a European audience.

Inevitably, some in Europe will blame the scandal on gay priests, just as some US Catholics did.

Researchers from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, hired by US bishops to trace the roots of clergy abuse, found that about 80 percent of American victims since 1950 were adolescent boys. In Europe, many coming forward now with abuse claims are also male.

However, the researchers told US bishops that sexual identity and abuse are separate issues. The prevalence of male victims likely reflects the fact that abusive priests often had more access to boys, the researchers said.

Bishops around Europe used Holy Week’s solemn call for penitence to pledge transparency in dealing with the abuse. The American church reforms are often mentioned as a model. US bishops developed a national policy in 2002 that bars credibly accused priests from any public church work while claims against them are under investigation. Clergy who are found guilty are permanently barred from public ministry and, in some cases, ousted from the priesthood.

The Vatican approved the disciplinary plan as church law for the United States.

Still, victims and church leaders vehemently disagree over how closely American dioceses have followed the policy - keeping the issue in the public eye. In defending their efforts, US church leaders point to the more than $21 million dioceses spent just last year for child protection such as background checks and training for staff.

Only a tiny number of abuse allegations now being made involve claims of wrongdoing in recent years. Yet the stain from the scandal remains.

American dioceses complain that their efforts to stop abuse have often been ignored. Bishops have tried to regain some moral authority they lost during the crisis, speaking out with renewed vigor on issues such as abortion.

But the prelates are dogged by the scandal any time new major cases come to public attention anywhere. That may be the toughest lesson of all from the United States for the church in Europe: The crisis may wane, but there’s no evidence so far that it’s ever really over. —AP

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

If dinner is still twitching, don’t eat it

By Paula Moore

E

ating out is becoming a blood sport. According to recent news stories, food adventure clubs whose members sample “gross-out” dishes such as sauteed lamb’s brains and duck embryos - are springing up across the country. During one recent outing at a Korean restaurant in New York, a group of gastro-warriors dined on freshly vivisected lobster and live octopus. The lobster’s head watches as you consume the body, and the octopus writhes as a chef clips off his tentacles - which diners eat quickly while the limbs are still wriggling.

Apparently, it’s not enough that we eat all manner of dead animals - now we have to eat live ones too. But consuming live animals doesn’t just push the boundaries of good taste: It’s animal abuse. “Live seafood,” which has been available in upscale sushi bars for some time, is increasingly finding its way onto the menus of more mainstream restaurants. Adventurous eaters might try live shrimp, “drunken prawns” (live prawns are plucked from a tank, doused in alcohol and set ablaze) or live flounder.

To prepare this last dish, chefs fillet the live fish down to the bone - leaving the head and tail intact - chop and season the raw flesh and return the meat to the fish’s skeleton. The flounder is pinned down with wooden skewers to prevent the fish from jumping off your plate. Sea animals are not merely swimming vegetables, and it’s not OK to carve up their bodies as casually as one would a carrot or a rutabaga. Fish and octopuses are smart, have unique personalities - and are sensitive to pain.

Researchers know that octopuses, for example, are extremely intelligent and curious animals. They play, just as dolphins and dogs do, and are often

mischief-makers in aquariums. Otto, an octopus in a German aquarium, has been observed juggling the hermit crabs who live in his tank. Another octopus, after being given a slightly spoiled shrimp, stuffed the offending morsel down the drain while maintaining eye contact with his keeper.

Scientists recently filmed octopuses in Indonesia collecting discarded coconut shells, emptying them out and using them as shelters - the first time an invertebrate animal has been observed using tools. Lobsters recognize individual lobsters, remember past acquaintances and have elaborate courtship rituals. Fish “talk” to one another underwater and form complex social relationships. Scientists at Stanford University say that fish have the reasoning capacity of small children.

These animals also feel pain - as all animals do. In Dec 2005, the European Food Safety Authority’s Scientific Panel on Animal Health and Welfare concluded that lobsters, crabs and octopuses are all capable of experiencing pain and distress and are worthy of legal protection. After surveying the scientific literature on fish pain and intelligence, a team of researchers at the University of Guelph in Canada concluded that fish feel pain and that “the welfare of fish requires consideration.” Researchers who conducted a two-year study on fish pain at the Roslin Institute in Scotland reached the same conclusion.

Eating dinner so fresh that it squirms is nothing more than macho posturing. Here’s the great irony of the live seafood trend: It’s actually rather stale. You never hear about “adventurous” eaters taking on beerbattered seitan or coconut-grilled tofu. No, it’s always some poor animal. But there’s really nothing new or

original about abusing animals for food - that happens every day in slaughterhouses and restaurant kitchens. I have a challenge for foodies who truly

want to push the envelope: Go vegan.

Trade in your live octopus and brains for tempeh sausages and dairy-free tiramisu cupcakes - then you’ll really

have people talking.

NOTE: Paula Moore is a research specialist for The PETA Foundation —MCT

Confessions of a hijabi

By Farah Zahidi Moazzam

I

watched the Bollywood film My Name is Khan the other day. The brilliant depiction of an autistic person by India’s leading actor Shah Rukh Khan and director Karan Johar’s surprisingly taut direction made for a good film. In one particular scene, I felt a lump form in my throat. Sonya Jehan, the actress who plays Khan’s sister-in-law, a working woman living on the West Coast of the United States, has her hijab pulled off while walking down a hallway.

This is one of several expressions of resentment against Muslims in the wake of the 9/11 attacks portrayed in the film. After the insult, Jehan’s character decides to stop covering her hair in public. However, later she puts her hijab back on because she feels incomplete without it. “It’s me,” she says. That scene reminded me of my own journey with the hijab.

I discovered my spirituality as I reached my teens.

Innately curious, I soon found myself reading the Holy Quran in translation, in an effort to better understand its meaning. A few persuasive teachers and friends guided me through this process. As I read, a new world opened up to me. I started to seriously consider wearing the hijab. After what felt like a personal tug-of-war, I clumsily covered my hair for the first time. For someone whose hairstyle was her signature trademark, this wasn’t an easy step.

At that time the hijab was less common than it is now and people were less accepting. Friends and colleagues said that I looked old and unfashionable. As someone used to receiving compliments, I found these asides difficult to handle and soon gave up; that move was an ordeal in itself.

Everywhere I went, I heard comments such as, “See? This is why I don’t do it. People start to wear hijab, then take it off. They’ve made a joke of it.” Inwardly, I kicked myself, ashamed of my inconsistency. I needed more time.

A few years later I started wearing it again, this time as a more conscious decision. This time I felt respected, protected and true to what was right in my heart and mind. This

was my choice, without force. However, there were still days when I felt lost without my hair over my shoulders.

Some people praised me encouragingly, saying I looked beautiful with my head covered. Others called me “ninja”, “fundo” (short for fundamentalist) or “Taliban”. Others gave me apologetic smiles, fumbled with their own scarves, perching them on their heads as soon as they saw me.

Amongst all these reactions, the one I most wanted was to be treated as I had always been, like a normal person. I was a woman making a choice, which is normally perceived as a sign of emancipation. It was strange to me that dressing differently was seen by some as a sign of oppression, or, worse yet extremism. As the years have passed it has gotten easier. Today, due to globalisation and a more openminded approach towards life, people - especially youth are more accepting. My daughter’s teenage friends, for example, are less judgmental than peers in my college days.

Yet even now I have to fight the stereotypical image of a hijabi - someone who wears the hijab - every day. I smile a little more to show people that I have not donned the hijab owing to depression or against my will. And until they hear me speak, people often assume I am conservative, or brainwashed, something my Muslim male counterparts who are bearded or dress conservatively often experience as well.

Through it all, amazingly, I have remained the same person. I want to look and feel good, achieve my goals and enjoy life, but within the framework I believe has been defined by my faith. I am not angry or bitter. I understand where people are coming from. I only wish they understood where I am coming from. I have been fortunate to meet people who accept the right of every individual to exercise their freedom of choice. If someone uses that freedom of choice, like me, to dress a certain way, such individuals do not see me in the context of what I wear, but gauge me in light of what I do and who I am.

NOTE: Farah Zahidi Moazzam is the Features Editor at Women’s Own magazine and writes about social issues, particularly those relating to women —CGNews

In Lebanon, all roads lead again to Damascus

By Rana Moussaoui

F

ive years after Syrian troops withdrew from their country, Lebanese leaders who were once Damascus’s staunchest critics are scrambling to heal rifts as Syria breaks out of isolation, analysts say. With nations like the United States and France warming up to Damascus, the Lebanese leaders are rekindling ties with Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, whom they initially blamed for the 2005 murder of ex-premier Rafiq Hariri.

“The Lebanese went too far in their hostility toward Damascus and have realised the international community has since let them down,” said Fadia Kiwan, head of political science at Beirut’s Saint Joseph University.

“The Lebanese are confused,” Kiwan told AFP. “Countries like the United States, which mobilised them against Syria in the days of former president George W Bush, changed course after the election of President Barack Obama.” Prime Minister Saad Hariri, son of the slain ex-premier, is readying for his second visit to Syria since taking office in November. He had initially accused Assad of ordering the February 14, 2005 Beirut bombing that killed his father.

Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad (left) meets Lebanese MP and Head of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) Walid Jumblatt at Al-shaab Palace in Damascus on March 31, 2010. —AFP Once Lebanon’s main powerbroker, Syria has consistently denied involvement in the murder but pulled its troops out of Lebanon in April 2005, ending 29 years of military and political dominance over its smaller neighbour. French President Nicolas Sarkozy made a breakthrough with his 2008 visit to Damascus, the first such diplomatic trip by a Western head of state since

Hariri’s assassination. US officials have also increased their stops in Syria, and Washington recently announced it is planning to send its first ambassador to Damascus since 2005.

Influential Druze chief Walid Jumblatt, formerly one of Lebanon’s most outspoken critics of Syria, last week visited Assad in Damascus for the first time in years, saying the past was

“over”. Jumblatt had previously accused Syria of the Hariri murder, branding Assad “the dictator of Damascus... a savage... an Israeli product, a liar... and a criminal”. He had also blamed Syria for the 1977 assassination of his father Kamal Jumblatt, but last month said his attack on Assad was “unworthy and unusual, unsuited to the ethics of politics even during a quarrel.”

Jumblatt began to show signs of an about-face after last June’s general election, when he defected from a Westernbacked parliamentary majority led by Hariri to reconcile with the rival Hezbollah camp backed by Syria and Iran. Tensions between the two camps led to week-long battles in May 2008 that left more than 100 dead and brought the country to the brink of civil war. But as regional and international politics shift, leaders like Hariri and Jumblatt have been forced to soften their stance against their more powerful neighbour.

Observers say Hariri is caught in a delicate balancing act and sources close to the premier have said his main backer, Saudi Arabia, has urged him to “bury the hatchet” with Syria. “Hariri for one has unequivocally distanced himself from his allies in the (antiSyrian) parliamentary majority through

his truce with the Syrians,” Kiwan said.

But many in the Hariri-led camp fear the premier’s rapprochement with Damascus is a sign Syria has regained its influence over Lebanon.

“Today, Damascus has made it clear that it defeated Washington in the battle for Lebanon,” said Ghassan Al-Azzi, a Lebanese University political science professor. “Syria still sees Lebanon as its back yard and that view is now reinforced by the fact that Western governments are requesting Damascus help maintain stability in Lebanon” and neighbouring countries like Iraq, Azzi told AFP. Analyst Emile Khoury voiced similar sentiments in a commentary published in the French-language daily L’OrientLe Jour. “Syria is back on track” in its involvement in Lebanese politics, Khoury wrote. “The days when Syria used the stick in Lebanon are over as neither its army nor its intelligence services are present in Lebanon,” he added. “This time around, Damascus is using the carrot. “It is no longer a question of giving the orders in Lebanon, but rather how Syria participates in the Lebanese government: by proxy (through its ally Hezbollah) or by negotiation” with Hariri or Jumblatt, he wrote. —AFP

13

ANALYSIS

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Kim: Mentored, paid, ‘betrayed’ by China

By Jon Herskovitz

N

orth Korean leader Kim Jong-il first went to China as a child for safety during the Korean War. He may soon be heading back for a trip seeking to shore up the support that keeps his destitute and derelict state alive. The North has a long, deep and troubled relationship with China that some experts liken to a marriage of convenience, where both parties must endure the pain of being together because they would be worse off apart. “China’s food and energy assistance can be seen as an insurance premium that Beijing remits regularly to avoid paying the higher economic, political and national security cost of a North Korean collapse, a war on the peninsula, or subsuming of the North into the South,” the US Congressional Research Service said in a report earlier this year.

Kim’s expected trip will likely lead to a return to stalled international talks hosted by Beijing on ending Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions, analysts said, while he will try to win sweeteners from China for heading back to the table. Kim may also be taking his youngest son Jong-un, the likely heir to the family dynasty that has ruled the North for more than 60 years, to introduce him to Beijing’s leaders and win their understanding

for his succession plans, they said.

North Korea and China began an alliance as Leninistsocialist brothers that was forged in blood when they fought together during the 1950-53 Korean War and strengthened by numerous visits Kim made to learn from Beijing’s leaders while he being groomed to take over the state founded by his father Kim Il-sung. For Kim Jong-il, China also represents the road not taken in economic reforms. For decades, China’s leaders had encouraged the two Kims to open up their economy and form their own brand of socialism that had room for markets.

“Kim has become very interested

in the China model for development and expressed admiration for it but we have seen that North Korea’s leaders are not willing to take the course that China has taken,” said Peter Beck a researcher at Stanford University who is a specialist in Korean affairs.

The rift over economic openness began in the 1980s and led Kim Jong-il and the North’s media to question whether China was betraying socialist ideals.

In 1992, when an emerging China formal forged diplomatic ties with a surging South Korea, the North lashed and against “the unfaithful actions of some traitors of the revolution”.

North Korea’s economy, meanwhile, turned into a basket case following the collapse of the Soviet Union, its main benefactor. But Kim has painted himself into a corner. Any economic reforms would open his isolated state to the outside world and could undermine his “military first” ideology, which justifies economic hardships at home to build an military strong enough to prevent foreign invaders from attacking.

“They made a critical decision that the market was a threat to the regime and not an opportunity.

That is a source of frustration for China that North Korea has not been able to break free of the ideology that they left behind,” Beck said. Late last year, Kim attacked a burgeoning merchant class with a currency revaluation designed to knock out their cash holdings. It also banned their foreign exchange transactions and set up state institutions to take over their private business. The moves led to rare civil unrest and raised questions about the stability of the Kim regime.

“There should be no doubt that the North Korean economy has basically collapsed,” said Zhu Feng, a Peking University international studies professor, at a seminar in Seoul last week. “The big question is whether increasing economic

hardship will cause social unrest and political disorder.”

China supports Kim because it is worried what could happen if Kim family rule collapses, which could brings chaos to its 1,416-km border and a flood of refugees. It is also worried about the South taking over the North and bringing its US military ally to the Chinese border.

Kim will likely try to seek Chinese investment during his trip. Beijing may be willing to help, seeing it as money spent to buy stability for its border provinces, experts said.

In 2009, bilateral trade between China and North Korea, with an estimated GDP of $17 billion, was worth $2.7 billion. As the North’s economy has grown weaker since Kim took over power in 1994, China has supplied more food, oil and goods that serve as a lifeline for his broken state. Kim, knowing that he will receive aid even if he defies his neighbour, has not bent to many of China’s wishes, particularly to end his boycott of six-country nuclear disarmament talks.

“However unpredictable and annoying the North Korean government may be to Beijing, any conceivable scenario other than maintaining the status quo could seriously damage China’s interests,” the Congressional Research Service report said. —Reuters

US boy scouts in pedophilia scandal

By Romain Raynaldy

W

ith the Vatican in the grips of a pedophilia scandal, the spotlight in America is being turned on US scouting, which is accused of keeping quiet about decades of alleged sexual aggression by its leaders against young boys. The Boy Scouts of America are being sued by a man who said he was abused five times when he was between 11 and 12 years old by his then-scoutmaster in Portland, Oregon. The identity of the alleged victim, now 37, is being concealed for fear of reprisals related to the $29-million sex abuse lawsuit he brought against

the Boy Scouts of America and its local Portland branch, the Cascade Pacific Council.

The plaintiff decried what he described as the group’s silence on sexual abuses targeting children and teenagers at the hands of trusted scout leaders. The alleged abuser, Timur Dykes, now 53, admitted after the incidents that he was a serial molester. He has been convicted three times for sex abuse against boys. Scouts have convicted before US courts time and again, but this trial has gained more notoriety as fresh accusations of sex abuse hit the Catholic Church, said Patrick Boyle,

editor of the website youthtoday.com.

“Institutional child sex abuse is really on everyone’s mind right now,” said Boyle, author of the book “Scout’s Honor: Sexual Abuse in America’s Most Trusted Institution.” He said the court case “offers people another example of how institutions and organizations have so much sex abuse and have been hiding sex abuse for so long.”

The trial is unique in that it has forced the Boy Scouts, which celebrates its centennial this year, to submit to the court for the first time in 20 years documents detailing sexual abuse recorded by the organization. Although the group has

been sued dozens of times over sex abuse, most cases settled out of court, which ensured the records were kept confidential. “The files were created almost a century ago. So it shows what the scout officials knew, how many kids were abused ... where the abuse occurs,” Boyle told AFP. He said the Boy Scouts were aware of “thousands” of children abused over several decades. Treading cautiously, the Texas-based scouts issued a terse statement saying: “Unfortunately, child abuse is a societal problem and there is no fail-safe method for screening out abusers.”

But by Friday, the state-

ment was no longer on the organization’s website, www.scouting.org.

According to Boyle, scouts say they do not chose local leaders, a responsibility that falls instead to local officials, like the Cascade Pacific Council and the Mormon Church in the Oregon case. But the scouts “do tell the troop’s sponsors what kind of person you’re allowed to take, what you have to do to check somebody out, and also to act when they do something like abusing kids,” Boyle said.

The Oregon victim’s lawyer, Kelly Clark, declined to comment on the trial, which got underway

last month. On his website, www.boyscoutabuse.com, Clark writes that victims may feel “an added sense of guilt about bringing legal action against an organization that many view in a positive light, one that no doubt has helped many boys, and, indeed, an organization that stresses ‘loyalty’ as one of its core values.”

Boyle lamented that the Boy Scouts would not admit to their sex abuse problems. “I wish the Boy Scouts would take all the files, give them to a researcher so that we know how often it’s happened, how it happened so they can try to shape their program better to stop it,” he said. —AFP

Retaliation could follow Terre’Blanche killing

By Justine Gerardy

T

he killing of South Africa’s far-right leader Eugene Terre’Blanche could tempt isolated retaliation from white extremists, amid fears of flaring racial tensions, analysts say. The attack came as South Africa’s readied to showcase 16 years of democracy at the football World Cup in June. President Jacob Zuma was quick to call for calm early Sunday, just hours after Terre’Blanche’s bloodied body was found on his farm. His extremist Afrikaner Resistance Movement (AWB), which carried out a wave of deadly bombings ahead of South Africa’s first all-race polls in 1994, also urged calm.

The AWB, known for its swastika-style emblem and paramilitary style in the past, said it would coordinate its reaction at a meeting on May 1. But some of its members have called for an immediate reprisal. “The right-wing movement in general is very fragmented,” said analyst Dirk Kotze, a specialist in the country’s politics, at the University of South Africa. “We cannot expect something as a general retaliation in terms of big, major events.” But he added: “What might be a possibility is very much isolated, singular events which are very exceptionally difficult to predict.”

Aubrey Matshiqi of the Centre for Policy Studies, which describes itself as an independent policy research body, agreed. “I do not believe this killing takes us closer to racial civil war,” said Aubrey Matshiqi of the Centre for Policy Studies. “He and his organisation were on the fringe not only of South African politics but on the fringe of even what we’d call white or even Afrikaner politics.”

Terre’Blanche’s radical AWB group have linked his killing to a controversial refrain from a sung adopted by the controversial ruling party youth leader Julius Malema: “kill the Boer”, the Afrikaans word for farmer. Outraged critics claim the slogan, recently banned in two court rulings, incites anti-white vio-

Followers of the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (AWB) leader Eugene Terreblanche bring flowers to the gate of his property near Ventersdrop, 140 km west of Johannesburg, Sunday. —AP lence. Zuma’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) has said the song is part of the history of South Africa’s liberation struggle.

Nevertheless, the controversy over the song and now Terre’Blanche’s brutal killing had created a delicate situation, said David Bruce, a senior researcher at the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation. “The combination of that song and that killing creates the motivation for a white right-wing mobilisation... but potentially, the security agencies will be able to neutralise these kind

of things,” he said. “Terre’Blanche could be seen as an embodiment of the kind of enemy described in the song,” he said: but the term was also likely to tap into fears of whites, who number some 10 percent of the population.

“The term Boer has no strict boundary: it can refer to the white farmers, to the Afrikaners or to the whites in general. That’s what makes a lot of people afraid,” said Bruce. “A lot of people see in that song a general endorsement of violence against white people.” South Africa is one of the world’s most

crime-affected nations with a daily average of 50 murders. And more than a decade after the fall of the apartheid system, massive social divisions along race lines persist.

Far-right extremism remains a marginalised but shady presence: a marathon treason trial against 21 rightwingers, which started in 2003, is still dragging through the courts. The government’s calls for calm after Terre’Blanche’s killing, echoed by opposition parties, was prompted by uncertainty about conservative reaction or retaliation, said Kotze. “That can ignite, it can

serve as a catalyst for much more serious problems.”

Zuma on Sunday urged politicians to show unity, saying it was their responsibility to “stay away from statements that might reverse nation building and racial cohesion”. “It is a key test for the leadership of Jacob Zuma: he has to make minority groups feel more secure and to distance himself from Malema,” said political analyst Daniel Silke. “If Zuma shows leadership, then we will avoid retaliation or an escalation of violence.” —AFP

­focus

Zimbabwe: How info is censored

By David Smith

S

unset in Harare, and a drowsy evening was settling on Livingstone Avenue. I sat on a wicker chair on the veranda of an art gallery that was once the colonial-style home of landscape painter Robert Paul. Guests trickled on to the lawn of the sculpture garden, among them the American and British ambassadors, and conversed casually beneath the palm trees. Drinks were served from a white marquee. Then a car pulled up outside.

Out stepped men and women with batches of framed photographs under their arms. They were greeted by cheers and a ripple of applause. The forces of democracy and free speech had apparently prevailed. For 24 hours earlier, police had barged into the gallery, seized the photographs and arrested Okay Machisa, an activist who organised their exhibition.

The police claimed the 66 pictures were “lewd” because they showed nudity and that the subjects had not given their consent.

No one doubted their real motive was that the exhibition, Reflections, contained devastating images of the political violence that wracked Zimbabwe two years ago. They included a man lying on a hospital bed, a livid wound where his leg used to be, and Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), his face battered and swollen.

Human rights activists went to the high court and obtained an order for the pictures to be returned. So they were rehung in the gallery courtyard just minutes before Tsvangirai himself arrived to formally open the exhibition. The tone was serious but there were also jokes, laughter and music.

Tsvangirai called for more such exhibitions and said that Machisa, who was nowhere to be seen, had no need to remain in hiding. He told the gathering: “He should come out. No one is going to threaten him.”

But as so often in Zimbabwe, he spoke too soon. Shortly after the prime minister’s departure, the police returned, warning that they would be back to impound the photos before the night was out. So as the last guests melted away, the organisers could be seen frantically taking the pictures down and rushing them to a car so they could be driven to a secret location. The exhibition has been cancelled, though there are plans to revive it elsewhere.

Later that week in Bulawayo, it happened again. This time an art gallery was presenting pictures of victims and families affected by the 1980s Matabeleland massacres in which an estimated 20,000 people were killed by government troops. Armed police raided the gallery and arrested its organiser too.

Zimbabwe is that kind of place right now. Just when your hopes are lifting, something comes along to dash them on the rocks. On the one hand, it’s remarkable that, in a country often seen as a dictatorship, an exhibition documenting the crimes of the regime can be displayed for anyone to see and be upheld by the courts.

On the other, the fact the state can close it down at will, forcing the curators to make an undignified exit as if fleeing a bailiff, might quickly snuff out the flicker of hope. Tsvangirai admitted: “Sometimes, when you reflect back, you feel a sense

of foreboding because I think the polarisation in this country is reaching unacceptable levels.” Such is the paradox of the nation as it nears 30 years of independence under one man, Robert Mugabe. The president is mocked at late night poetry jams when most police have gone to bed, and in satirical plays as thinly disguised as Hamlet’s “Mousetrap” to catch a king.

State press, television and radio praise the Great Leader, but critical newspapers such as the Zimbabwe Independent and The Zimbabwean can be bought from vendors on street corners. Long queues form each week to pick up the prime minister’s newsletter, such is the appetite for an alternative voice. Civil society is vibrant and eloquent despite brutal efforts at intimidation. This month thousands of MDC youth supporters marched through central Harare without incident.

Mugabe seems to lack the will or resources to censor the internet, seemingly willing to rely on poverty and decaying infrastructure to do the job for him. He has more chance of restricting information in his strongholds in the countryside.

Chinese jamming equipment has been used to block radio stations broadcast from abroad. A local journalist told me that a landlord was warned that his pub would be burned down if he put up his village’s first TV satellite dish.

But as Iran has shown, in the age of the mobile phone, information is a tide that cannot be resisted forever.

Then again, perhaps Mugabe is simply more clever than the totalitarian censors of information: in Zimbabwe there is just enough free speech to create the illusion of democracy, when in fact the thought police are waiting at the door.

Some things, it seems, cannot be said. Mugabe last week described the idea of enshrining gay rights in a new national constitution as “madness”. It was a move guaranteed to put Tsvangirai on the spot. The MDC has sworn to stay out of individuals’ private lives, but it knows that publicly supporting gay rights could be electoral suicide in this socially conservative country.

Tsvangirai reportedly said: “Why should a man seek to have a relationship with another man when women make up 52 percent of the population?” The MDC did not deny the quotation but sought to portray it as an expression of “personal opinion”. It was welcomed, of course, by the state-run media. On the way to Harare airport I thought, a little sadly, about Keith Goddard, a campaigner I interviewed shortly before he died. He had expressed hope that the MDC would finally bring legal recognition of gay rights. I mentioned the party’s dilemma on the issue to a Zimbabwean friend.

He said: “There’s no way I would vote MDC if they supported gay rights.” Why not, I asked. “You cannot be doing that. I don’t know about other cultures, but this is African culture. I give you a 100 percent guarantee, 120 percent guarantee, nobody in my clan is doing that.” My friend is a kind and gentle man. I didn’t want to argue.

But I didn’t want to let it go either. I kept cutting away with questions until I got to the roots of his beliefs. He said: “I take my knowledge and morals from the Bible. If something is not in the Bible, I don’t believe it. I don’t know about the dinosaurs.” —Guardian

14

NEWS

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

MONTD’ORZIERES, Switzerland: Buba, a baby bear born in Jan 2010 plays with her mother Ursina at the Juraparc near Vallorbe yesterday. — AP

Scarce hash sparks Egypt plot theories Continued from Page 1 more modest account of its efforts.

“There is no such thing as a crime being finished,” Deputy Interior Minister Hamdi Abdel Karim said. “We hope to keep restricting it,” he said, adding this year’s busts were “among the largest in years”.

Hashish has, by all accounts, become more scarce and costly in Egypt where an estimated eight percent of the population consumes drugs, mostly marijuana, according to a 2007 official survey.

Despite frequent arrests and harsh sen-

tences handed down to those connected with the trade, the ancient drug has flourished until recently in a country where its consumption is something of a pastime, users say.

One Cairo resident described his difficulty in procuring a satisfactory amount for his wedding party last month. “I bought 3,500 pounds ($635) worth of hashish for the wedding party. The same amount a few months ago would have cost 2,600 pounds, and I had to search for months to get it. It finally arrived on the day of the party. I got dizzy looking for it.

Everyone now says there’s nothing,” added the newlywed, who requested his name not be revealed.

Other users who spoke to AFP also reported difficulties in obtaining a supply of hashish, which is reportedly smuggled into the country mostly through Egypt’s porous western border with Libya and from Morocco. Some smokers said they were even resorting to bango, a seedy, locally grown variety of marijuana, as an alternative. But its price has also skyrocketed. “I prefer hashish. Bango drives me crazy - it’s too strong,” complained one.

Malik questioned by cops, passport seized Continued from Page 1 “It’s very painful for my family. But we are happy that we are getting married. I have full faith in him. We know what the truth is. It will come out.”

Malik said he would stay in India to clear his name. “I am cooperating with the police. I have done nothing wrong,” he said, adding that Siddique should prove her claim in a court.

Malik admitted in a statement released by his agent Salman Ahmed that he signed a nikahnama (marriage certificate) eight years ago but claimed he was duped. After developing a friendship on the Internet, Malik said in the statement he married a woman named Ayesha over the telephone in June 2002 but he believed he had been deceived by another woman claiming to be Ayesha Siddique. “I wasn’t happy doing this because I hadn’t told my parents,” he said. “There was a lot of pressure on me from Ayesha.”

Malik said Siddique introduced herself as his fan living in Saudi Arabia, but would turn down requests to meet, and instead sent photographs. “I was made to

believe the girl in the photograph was the one I was speaking to,” he said. “The truth is, I haven’t, to this day, met the girl in the photographs Ayesha sent me.”

He said when he visited Hyderabad in 2002, he was told she’d gone to Saudi to work, and said her parents told him Siddique had put on weight and wouldn’t meet him until she lost weight. He said she avoided him during two more visits to Hyderabad.

Malik said he was astonished when his brother-in-law showed him a photograph in 2005 in which a teacher in Saudi was claiming to be his wife. “I was aghast ... the woman in it was the person I called Maha “apa” (elder sister) while I visited Hyderabad,” Malik said. He confronted Maha and told her that he didn’t ever want to speak to her again. Malik said he was cheated and “I was wrongly made to believe that the pictures Ayesha had sent me were of the girl I was marrying”. “I feel terrible about the mess, created by a family that has caused great grief to my own people and the family of my bride-tobe.”

Siddique said she has a copy of the nikahnama, signed by Malik and two wit-

MPs Musallam Al-Barrak and Adel AlSaraawi in which words like “liar” were hurled. The session was interrupted a few times because of chaos. Khorafi said that the Assembly may decide to increase the number of sessions in an attempt to complete debating issues on the agenda.

Meanwhile, the head of the financial and economic affairs committee MP Yousef Al-Zalzalah said yesterday that the committee approved a draft law submitted by the government on Kuwait’s contribution to an Arab fund to support small and medium-size projects across the Arab world. He said that Kuwait’s contribution is $500 million in the fund’s capital of $2 billion. The fund was established at the first ever Arab economic summit hosted

by Kuwait in January last year after it was proposed by HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. Zalzalah said that the bill will be sent to the Assembly to be

debated in the next session.

A day after postponing the approval of a draft law on women’s civil and social laws, the Assembly’s women committee yesterday approved the bill unanimously after being reminded that 30 MPs have signed a request to speed up its approval to be debated in the Assembly’s next session.

Member of the committee MP Maasouma Al-Mubarak said that among other things, the bill stipulates to pay children’s allowance to employed women if their husbands do not get it and to reduce the working hours for women employees against reducing salaries. The bill also stipulates to ease conditions for women’s early retirement and also proposes to pay a certain salary to Kuwaiti women who decide to stay home to look after their children.

Two Islamist MPs meanwhile sent separate questions to Finance Minister Mustafa Al-Shamali about an incident on

nesses, issued by Pakistani authorities in Malik’s hometown of Sialkot in June 2002.

Farooq Hasan, a lawyer representing Ayesha Siddique in Pakistan, said in L ahore he will soon be filing a case against Malik in Pakistan’s civil and criminal courts. “We will also try to stop Malik’s marriage with Sania Mirza,” Hasan said. “If the courts in Pakistan asked, Ayesha Siddique will also travel to Pakistan and appear before the courts.

“The courts in Pakistan will decide about the authentication of nikahnama.”

Malik, who has been banned from representing Pakistan for a year due to infighting within the team during a recent tour of Australia, arrived in Hyderabad last week from Pakistan to work out arrangements for his wedding to Mirza. Mirza broke off a previous engagement this year before announcing her plans to marry Malik. The pair - who are both Muslim intend to live in Dubai after the ceremony.

The news of the Malik-Mirza wedding plans sparked instant news coverage in the region because neighboring Pakistan and India are longtime rivals, and have fought three wars since their independence from Britain in 1947. — AP

Friday with a convoy of Shiite pilgrims returning from Iraq. Customs officers at the Abdali border post refused to allow the Kuwaiti pilgrims to bring in religious books with them and decided to refer the books to the information ministry. The pilgrims refused and it was reported that Shamali ordered the customs men to allow the pilgrims to enter the country with the books.

MP Jamaan Al-Harbash asked about the number of the books with the pilgrims, the titles, the authors and if legal procedures were applied. He asked why the procedures were not applied and demanded to know the names of officials who ordered the customs officials to allow the pilgrims to enter with the books. MP Mohammad Hayef listed the names of the books that the pilgrims brought with them and asked the minister about the name of the official who ordered to allow the pilgrims to enter with the books.

Kuwait to slap ‘health’ fees on visitors Continued from Page 1 Shoug Mohammad, a Kuwaiti, believes that applying such a fee will be a fair thing to do. “All other countries charge for entrance more than Kuwait does, so if they want to come in, they need to pay for all the services they will be receiving here, including medical care,” she said.

Some expats also agree with this concept.

“I think it is a good idea in general to use these funds and build new hospitals for expats,” said Ahmad Jaber, a Jordanian.

Other expats think this decision, once implemented, will place additional financial burdens on expats living in Kuwait.

Kurien Thomas from India said that he

used to invite his children to Kuwait to visit him for a month or so, but now it will be difficult to do so. “Applying this new system will put an extra burden on me, as I will have to pay KD 50 for each of my children. It will make it much harder for me to invite them, so I hope this decision will not pass,” he said. “But I have no other option - I need to be with my kids, so even if they will pass it, I will still invite them to Kuwait,” he said resignedly.

Ahmad AbdulAziz from Egypt said that the government is already charging every expat KD 50 a year for medical insurance, in addition to one dinar on every visit to the clinic, and two dinars to every visit to a hospital. “Why don’t they use this mon-

to the topic, which remains a taboo in polite society.

“In this atmosphere of opacity, there will always be wild speculation,” he said of rumours blaming corrupt officials. “Police and the government are seen as corrupt generally speaking. There is a lack of trust on all sorts of issues,” he said. “And it is taking place at a time when Egypt is entering a period of profound uncertainty.”

The octogenarian Hosni Mubarak, who has ruled since 1981, has not yet said whether he will stand again in next

year’s presidential election, and is widely believed to be grooming his son for succession. Uncertainty over the postMubarak era and the backdoor dealing likely to decide the matter has permeated Egyptian society, with some analysts saying the lack of transparency provides fertile ground for conspiracy theories.

“In the event of a vacuum, conspiracy theories will fill it,” said the analyst.

Egypt is considered a transit country for illicit drugs bound for Israel and Europe.

Drug trafficking can be punished by death. — AFP

Acquittal sought for ‘Qaeda’ cell

Khorafi calls MPs to give Amir’s message Continued from Page 1

The scarcity has stoked alternative theories to the government’s matter-of-fact explanation for the hashish trade’s apparent decline. Some people believe a consortium of dealers is stockpiling the drug to raise prices. “The price of hashish has always been cheap and did not reflect inflation,” one user said. Others blame corrupt officials who they insist also have a hand in the trade, a reflection of the general distrust many Egyptians feel towards the government, said a political analyst.

The analyst also requested anonymity because he did not want his name linked

ey to build hospitals for expats or to enhance medical care provided for expats?” he wondered. AbdulAziz added that the country should concentrate instead on the wellbeing of expat laborers.

“If someone wants to invite his wife here for one month, and he can’t afford to do so, then he will be less productive, not to mention all the possible threats that a society filled with bachelors can create,” he said.

More than two million expats, mainly bachelors including domestic workers, reside in Kuwait. The expat population constitutes nearly two thirds of the country’s population, which adds additional burden on the state budget.

Continued from Page 1 Five of the men were arrested in August. The interior ministry said they were suspected of being members of an Al-Qaeda cell that plotted attacks on the US base and other installations. The sixth suspect is already serving a life term in jail for a 2002 attack on the US military in

Kuwait that killed an American soldier.

Some of the suspects are also accused of hiding long-time Al-Qaeda suspect Mohsen Al-Fadhli who has been on the run since 2005 and is being tried in absentia.

An eighth suspect, Mohammad AlDossari, who is on trial in Lebanon is also being tried in absentia. A US defence

department spokesman said last year US forces in Kuwait had been targeted but that it was unclear if the suspects were linked to Al-Qaeda or planned to strike Camp Arifjan. About 15,000 US soldiers are stationed in Kuwait, which is also used as a transit point for thousands of US soldiers going to and from neighbouring Iraq. —AFP

China hails ‘miracle’ as 115 miners saved Continued from Page 1 where 153 workers were trapped when the unfinished mine flooded on March 28, was a rare bright spot for an industry known for its poor safety record and more than 2,600 deaths recorded last year. “How fantastic to be on ground again,” one survivor told Xinhua news agency. The head of the State Administration of Work Safety, Luo Lin, hailed what he called “two miracles” more than a week after the accident at the state-owned Wangjialing mine, which authorities blamed on lax safety standards.

“The first is that these trapped people have made it through eight days and eight nights - this is the miracle of life,” Luo told China Central Television. “Secondly our rescue plan has been effective - this is a miracle in China’s search and rescue history.”

President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao praised the rescuers and ordered all-out efforts to save the 38 workers still trapped, Xinhua reported.

State television showed survivors being brought out one after another, strapped to stretchers and wrapped in blankets. Towels covered their blackened faces to protect their eyes, light-sensitive after so long underground. Groups of rescue workers wearing blue and orange jumpsuits loaded them into scores of awaiting ambulances, while medical personnel administered intravenous drips

and oxygen. “When we went down, we saw mine lights. We were really excited and moved. And then when we rescued them, we were even more excited,” rescuer Liu Huawei, 29, told AFP. Most were rescued from a platform above which rescuers had drilled a hole last week, ensuring those trapped had oxygen. Glucose was also sent down to them. A rescue team captain, Chen Yongsheng, said the workers had survived on tree bark from pine trees used as supports in the mine and drank dirty water from the pit to avoid total dehydration.

“The trapped workers were smart - they gathered together in groups and rotated the use of their headlamps so that rescuers could see them,” Chen said, according to the China News Service. Rescuers used five-seat kayaks to pull them out, he added. One doctor told the Shanghai Evening Post a worker had told him he had attached himself to the wall with his belt for three nights to avoid drowning. He then clambered into a mining cart floating by him to reach dry ground. Liu Qiang, chief of the medical team at the Shanxi Aluminium Plant Hospital where dozens of the workers were being treated, said many of them had unstable blood pressure and were extremely weak, but had begun to eat rice gruel. He added that 60 of the more serious patients were going to be transferred to Taiyuan, Shanxi’s capital, for “even better treatment” today. Footage of the

rescue played all day on CCTV as the country marked its annual “grave sweeping day”, a national holiday to mourn the dead. “I have two daughters and a son. I had to do mining work to earn money for them,” said one survivor being treated in hospital. As dusk fell, more than 30 ambulances and teams of white-clad nurses remained at the scene, an AFP reporter witnessed. At least 3,000 rescuers had raced to pump out water and late Sunday a team of 100 rescue workers went into the mine and found the first nine survivors, before a second team went in.

The accident occurred when workers apparently dug into an older adjacent mine that had been shut down and filled with water, press reports have said. The work safety watchdog blamed the accident on the owner, the Huajin Coking Coal Company, which failed to heed repeated warnings that water was building up days before the disaster. Safety is often ignored in China’s collieries in the quest for quick profits and to meet surging coal demands - the source of about 70 percent of the country’s energy.

Last week was disastrous for China’s mining sector, with five separate accidents that killed 37 people. About 70 others are missing.

According to official statistics, 2,631 coal miners were killed last year in China - or about seven a day. In the deadliest recent disaster, 172 workers died in a mine flood in the eastern province of Shandong in Aug 2007. — AFP

Gunmen attack US Peshawar consulate Continued from Page 1 cabinet minister, said two militants fled during the cross fire. US missile strikes have killed more than 860 people since August 2008 in Pakistan’s semiautonomous tribal belt, surging under US President Barack Obama as he steps up efforts to end the war in neighbouring Afghanistan. “We accept the attacks on the American consulate. This is revenge for drone attacks,” Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan spokesman Azam Tariq told AFP by telephone from an undisclosed location.

“We will carry out more such attacks. We will target any place where there are Americans,” he said.

Peshawar lies on the edge of Pakistan’s tribal belt - branded by Washington a global headquarters of Al-Qaeda. Around 3,200 people have been killed in suicide and bomb attacks over the last three years in Pakistan, blamed on militants opposed to the US alliance.

Yesterday, a suicide bomber attacked a rally in the northwest district of Lower Dir, where Pakistan waged a major offensive against local Taleban insurgents last

year before switching its operations to the tribal belt. “People were dancing and some were beating drums when suddenly there was a powerful explosion,” Iqbal Akbar, a shopkeeper told AFP from his bed in Peshawar’s main Lady Reading hospital. “It felt like someone thrust a hot iron rod into my shoulder. I fell on the ground and a severed hand fell on my chest,” he said.

Qazi Jamil, police chief for the northwestern region of Malakand, told AFP that 41 people were killed and 82 wounded in a suicide car bomb attack. The Awami National Party (ANP) said it organised the meeting to celebrate plans to rename North West Frontier Province - KhyberPakhtunkhwa, as laid out in a package of constitutional reform being debated in the federal parliament. The new name honours the Pashtun-majority population in the province, replaces a name that dates back to British colonial rule and is part of efforts to devolve greater authority to the provinces.

Family members of people assigned to the American embassy in Islamabad and the country’s three other consulates in

Pakistan were ordered to leave in March 2002 and have not been allowed to return.

The US is only one of three countries to have a diplomatic presence in Peshawar, which has seen repeated militant attacks over the last 18 months. The city is the largest in the northwest and home to its regional government and security force commands. It has long been a vital hub for American interests in the region.

Much of the funds that were handed to Afghans fighting Soviet rule in Afghanistan in the 1980s were channeled through the city. Post Sept 11, its proximity to the tribal areas, a likely hiding place for Osama bin Laden, has meant it is vital for US officials to be stationed there. The mission is also important for coordinating the millions of dollars in development funds Washington is spending to try to dry up support for militancy in the desperately poor and badly governed tribal regions. In August 2008, the top US diplomat at the consulate survived a gun attack on her armored vehicle.

Three months later, gunmen shot and killed an American in Peshawar as he was traveling to work for a US-funded aid program in the region. — Agencies

SPORTS

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

15

BOSTON: New York Yankees center fielder Curtis Granderson catches a sacrifice fly hit

by Boston Red Sox’s Adrian Beltre in the second inning.—AP BOSTON: Red Sox starting pitcher Josh Beckett throws against the New York Yankees in the second inning of the opening game of the baseball season.—AP

Red Sox top Yankees in MLB opener

BOSTON: Kevin Youkilis scored the goahead run on a passed ball after his third extra-base hit as the Boston Red Sox rallied to beat the New York Yankees 9-7 in the major league opener Sunday night.

Boston erased a 5-1 deficit against CC Sabathia and defeated the defending World Series champions in the first night opener in the history of 98-year-old Fenway Park.

Jorge Posada and Curtis Granderson hit backto-back homers off Josh Beckett to give the Yankees a 2-0 lead in the second inning.

It was 7-5 in the bottom of the seventh when Marco Scutaro singled and Dustin

Pedroia tied it with an opening-day homer for the second straight season. Youkilis then doubled with two outs, took third on Damaso Marte’s wild pitch and scored when the lefthander’s high pitch bounced off Posada’s glove. Pedroia added an RBI single in the eighth.

Hideki Okajima pitched a scoreless inning to get the win and Jonathan Papelbon worked the ninth for the save. Chan Ho Park recorded just two outs while picking up the loss in his Yankees debut. The right-hander was charged with three runs and three hits.

Former Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez got a

warm greeting when he threw out the ceremonial first pitch. The real starters didn’t do as well. Sabathia gave up five runs and six hits over 5 1-3 innings in his second poor opening-day start since he joined New York for a $161 million, seven-year contract.

Beckett allowed five runs and eight hits in 4 2-3 innings. It was the worst of five opening-day starts for the right-hander, who had allowed just four runs in 22 2-3 innings in his previous four. Even two aging singers beloved by Red Sox fans had better nights.

Steven Tyler, lead singer of Aerosmith and a Boston-area resident, sang “God Bless

America” during the seventh-inning stretch.

Neil Diamond, whose “Sweet Caroline” is played at Fenway Park after the top of the eighth, then stepped onto the field along the right-field line to sing it in person. The Brooklyn native wore a blue Red Sox hat with a red “B” and a dark jacket with the words “Keep The Dodgers In Brooklyn” on the back. The Red Sox were more concerned with the team from the Bronx.

The Yankees began the season as champions for the first time since they beat Kansas City 7-3 behind Roger Clemens in the 2001 opener. They finished that year in the World

Series, but lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks in seven games.

The last time the Red Sox and Yankees met in an opener was in 2005 following Boston’s first championship since 1918. New York won 9-2.

Youkilis got the first hit off Sabathia, a leadoff double in the second, and scored on Adrian Beltre’s sacrifice fly. Youkilis then tripled in two runs in the sixth before Beltre’s RBI single tied it at 5.

On the first pitch of the major league season, Derek Jeter grounded out to shortstop Marco Scutaro. Nick Johnson then flied to

Blackhawks douse Flames CHICAGO: Patrick Kane had a goal and an assist as the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Calgary Flames 4-1 on Sunday, moments after clinching their first division title since winning the Norris Division in 1992-93.

The Blackhawks secured the Central Division crown minutes before the puck was dropped against the Flames when the Detroit Red Wings lost 4-3 at Philadelphia. Antti Niemi made 25 saves for Chicago, and Tomas Kopecky, Troy Brouwer and Dustin Byfuglien had the other goals.

The Blackhawks won their 49th game to equal the team record set in 1970-71 and matched in 1990-91. It was their third consecutive win, their eighth straight regular-season victory over the Flames, and they improved to 105 points while closing within one of first-place San Jose in the Western Conference.

Ian White scored for the Flames, whose threegame winning streak ended. Their playoff hopes also took a blow, because they have just three games remaining and are level with the Colorado Avalanche for eighth place in the Western Conference.

Mormeck: Haye not ready for Klitschkos

Roberto Luongo from a sharp angle.

The dramatic comeback ended after Greg Zanon took a high-sticking penalty in overtime and Salo one-timed a pass from Henrik Sedin as the Canucks clinched the Northwest Division title.

Avalanche 5, Sharks 4

Canucks 4, Wild 3

At Denver, John-Michael Liles redirected Ryan Wilson’s shot at 2:59 of overtime as Colorado gained ground in the race for the final Western Conference playoff spot. The victory snapped the Avalanche’s season-high four-game losing streak and gave them a two-point lead over ninth-place Calgary.

The Sharks remained the top seed in the West, but the loss allowed Washington to clinch the Presidents’ Trophy for the best regular-season record. Peter Mueller, who had his third two-goal game since joining the Avalanche in a March 3 trade with Phoenix, left the game dazed after crashing into the boards following a check by San Jose defenseman Rob Blake. Kyle Quincey and Paul Statsny also scored for Colorado. San Jose tied at 4 on Patrick Marleau’s 43rd goal of the season with 11:47 left. Joe Pavelski, Douglas Murray and Jamie McGuinn also scored.

At Vancouver, Sami Salo scored on a power play at 2:15 of overtime as the Vancouver Canucks bounced back from blowing a two-goal lead in the final minute to beat the Minnesota Wild. Most of the crowd of 18,810 — the 300th consecutive sellout — headed for the exits after Alex Edler scored into an empty net with 55 seconds left to make it 3-1.

But Cody Almond went hard to the net unchecked to deflect in his first goal on Casey Wellman’s centering pass with 41.5 seconds left.

And Antti Miettinen tied it with 18.8 seconds left, parking at the side of the net alone to snap Andrew Brunette’s pass from behind the goal past

At Philadelphia, Claude Giroux and Arron Asham scored second-period goals to power Philadelphia to the victory. Kimmo Timonen added a goal and an assist and Daniel Carcillo also scored for the Flyers, who had slipped to eighth place in the Eastern Conference. Brian Boucher made 31 saves.

Despite goals from Dan Cleary, Darren Helm and Pavel Datsyuk, the Red Wings lost in regulation for the first time in 13 games. Chris Osgood, making his first start in goal since Jan. 27, had 21 saves for Detroit. —AP

Flyers 4, Red Wings 3

NHL results/standings NHL results and standings on Sunday.

Philadelphia 4, Detroit 3; Chicago 4, Calgary 1; Colorado 5, San Jose 4 (OT); Vancouver 4, Minnesota 3 (OT); (OT indicates overtime win).

New Jersey Pittsburgh Philadelphia NY Rangers NY Islanders Buffalo Ottawa Montreal Boston Toronto Washington Atlanta Carolina Florida Tampa Bay

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L OTL GF 45 26 7 208 45 26 7 241 39 34 6 229 36 32 10 210 33 35 10 209 Northeast Division 43 25 10 223 43 31 5 215 39 32 8 209 36 30 12 193 29 36 14 209 Southeast Division 51 15 12 301 34 32 13 231 33 36 10 215 31 35 12 199 31 35 12 201

GA 186 222 220 207 241

PTS 97 97 84 82 76

198 227 210 191 257

96 91 86 84 72

222 248 245 230 245

114 81 76 74 74

Western Conference Central Division Chicago 49 22 7 253 197 105 Nashville 46 28 6 221 219 98 Detroit 41 24 14 221 211 96 St. Louis 38 31 9 211 211 85 Columbus 32 34 13 212 252 77 Northwest Division Vancouver 48 27 4 260 211 100 Colorado 42 29 7 233 218 91 Calgary 40 30 9 199 199 89 Minnesota 37 35 7 213 237 81 Edmonton 24 46 8 199 269 56 Pac ific Division San Jose 48 20 11 255 210 107 Phoenix 48 25 6 215 195 102 Los Angeles 44 27 7 229 207 95 Anaheim 38 31 9 222 235 85 Dallas 35 30 14 228 244 84 Note: Overtime losses (OTL) are worth one point in the standings and are not included in the loss column (L).

center and Mark Teixeira grounded out to first. Seven pitches, three outs.

The first eight batters of the game were retired before the Yankees, who led the AL last season with 244 homers, got two longballs in a row. Posada hit a short liner off the right-field foul pole. Then Granderson sent a long drive into the center-field seats in his first at-bat as a Yankee. The Yankees went ahead 7-5 in the seventh on Robinson Cano’s RBI groundout and Posada’s run-scoring single but Boston responded with three runs in the bottom half, culminating in Youkilis’ tiebreaking scamper. —AP

VANCOUVER: Christian Ehrhoff No. 5 of the Vancouver Canucks tries to check Andrew Brunette No. 15 of the Minnesota Wild during the first period of NHL action. —AFP

PARIS: Frenchman Jean-Marc Mormeck believes Britain’s WBA world champion David Haye is still too fresh for the challenge of Klitschko brothers Wladimir or Vitali despite his successful title defence against John Ruiz.

And heavyweight rookie Mormeck, who lost his light-heavyweight title to Haye in 2007, is hoping to secure a re-match with the Englishman after his division debut against American ‘Fast’ Fres Oquendo on May 6.

“I’m convinced if he’d fought either of the Klitschko brothers instead of (John) Ruiz he would have lost the fight inside the distance,” Mormeck told yesterday’s L’Equipe newspaper. “He’s not yet ready to fight either of them. One day he will be, but it’s still too early for him.”

Haye began his heavyweight career in style last year when he deposed giant Russian Nikolay Valuev as the WBA champion.

The Englishman made his first successful defence on Saturday when he put American challenger Ruiz on the canvas four times before his corner threw in the towel in the ninth round.

A rematch clause from the Valuev fight means Haye is supposed to give the big Russian a crack at taking back his belt, however Haye is focused on unifying the division by beating both Klitschko brothers.

Vitali is the World Boxing Council (WBC) champion Vitali while Wladimir is the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and World Boxing Organisation (WBO) titles-holder.

“I want to unify the division and win the other titles and it’s my duty to make the best possible fights out there,” Haye said after his fight Saturday.

“Given the option, no I don’t want my next fight to be against Valuev.”

Mormeck meanwhile is still smarting at the “illegal” tactics he was subjected to in his November 2007 fight with Haye.

And he would jump at the chance of avenging his defeat to Haye if he overcomes Oquendo in his heavyweight debut at Levallois just outside Paris on May 6. “I’m up for it. First of all I just have to convince people that I’m deserving of my place in the heavyweight division. I think I’ll come through it.

Haye is beatable and I think I can swing a fight against him in my favour,” said Mormeck.

The big Frenchman of Guadeloupean origin knows that to have any chance of fighting Haye he would have to accept the Englishman’s terms.

But even with home advantage and the fairest of referees, he believes Haye would not change his tactics. “Even in Levallois (in 2007) when he beat me he hit me with a lot of dirty punches!” added Mormeck.

“And against Valuev .... he didn’t necessarily deserve to win. But it was swayed by business interests. He’s English, elegant and a more attractive option in the heavyweight division than a Russian giant.

“In any case, he’s the champion so I’m not in a position to dictate terms. If I come through the Oquendo fight, as I believe I can, we’ll be putting an offer (to Haye) on the table.”—AFP

SPORTS

16

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Massa on top but keeping his feet on the ground KUALA LUMPUR: Eight months ago, Felipe Massa’s life - let alone his career with Ferrari - was in grave danger. Horribly injured in an accident at the Hungarian Grand Prix, he fought for survival. He suffered serious head injuries, a fractured skull and grave damage to his left eye.

Thanks to superb medical assistance and a determination to rise again, he not only survived, but he kept his seat as a Formula One racing driver.

And on Sunday, after a measured drive to seventh in the Malaysian Grand Prix — after starting at the wrong end of the grid — he topped the world championship standings,

three races into the 2010 season.

But instead of celebrating, the 28-year-old Brazilian demonstrated all the commitment and maturity that enabled him to complete that remarkable recovery.

He did not talk of glory or titles he knows the pain of missing out on a title after losing the 2008 crown to Lewis Hamilton in the final seconds of the final race, his home Grand Prix - but, instead, warned of the speed of his rivals.

“It is always nice to be leading in the championship, but it means nothing now,” said Massa. “Things can change so fast in this title race.

It is so competitive and I know and the Ferrari team knows we have to

work very hard to improve our car because the Red Bulls are very strong, very fast, and McLaren are very strong, too.”

Massa, on 39, is now just two points clear at top of the drivers’ standings ahead of Ferrari teammate Spaniard Fernando Alonso and Sunday’s race winner German Sebastian Vettel, both on 37.

German Nico Rosberg, who supplied the new Mercedes team with their first podium by finishing third behind second-placed Australian Mark Webber, in the second Red Bull, and defending champion Briton Jenson Button of McLaren share fourth on 35. Button’s team-mate Hamilton is sixth on 31 and Pole

Robert Kubica seventh on 30.

While for Massa’s fans it may be a time to feel relief, joy and gratitude, the fact that only eight points separate the top six drivers signals a long, competitive and potentiallyenthralling season lies ahead.

“Yes, it was a very exciting race,” he said. “Especially if you look where we started, 21st, and where we finished - seventh! So, it was definitely positive.

“We know we are in the championship fight this time, but we need to work step by step to improve because many drivers are there, many things can change in one race.

We need to keep our feet on the ground.”

Bungled tactical decisions taken by the Ferrari and McLaren teams in Saturday’s storm-swept qualifying session meant all four of their drivers started at the back of the field and had to fight their way through.

Hamilton, showing searing pace and cold-blooded passing precision, rose from 20th to sixth for McLaren while Button went from 17th to eighth and Alonso from 19th to ninth before an engine failure forced him to retire as he fought Button for position.

Afterwards, the two-times champion Spaniard said it had been “probably the hardest race of my whole life.” While Alonso recovered his composure after an exhausting dis-

appointment in the sweltering conditions, Vettel swigged heavily on the victor’s champagne.

“I am sorry, maybe I had too much of that and I feel a little tipsy,” he said afterwards. His team-mate Webber, 33, who had started from pole position, was stony-faced alongside the baby-faced 22-year-old as he giggled and joked.

A bad start had cost him his third career win. “The start cost me a victory. I got a bit of wheel-spin and Seb worked the slipstream well.

After that I had to settle, but this is a sensational result for the team.

“We have had a couple of races where its been difficult for us to have a clean weekend for differing

reasons, whether it’s a bit of weather, a bit of reliability, or different things here and there.

“But no-one wants a shopping list of excuses. We’ve got to get results.

We haven’t got them in the past because we haven’t been prepared.

Well, we were prepared today and we blew everyone away.”

The teams were packing up their air-freight cases again Sunday night for another flight across Asia towards the next race, the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai on April 18.

“Now we have that win, it is a relief, and we can look ahead to China with more pleasure,” said Vettel. “Yes, it is a good feeling now.” —AFP

Roddick halts Berdych to win Miami Masters

KEY BISCAYNE: Andy Roddick of the United States holds his trophy after defeating Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic 7-5, 6-4 during the final of the Ericsson Open tennis tournament. —AP

Former England great bowler Alec Bedser dies LONDON: Former seam bowler Alec Bedser, who took 236 test wickets in a glittering England career spanning 51 matches, has died at the age of 91.

The former Surrey player passed away late on Sunday

following a brief illness and International Cricket Council (ICC) president David Morgan led the tributes.

“It was an honour and privilege to have known Sir Alec whose contribution to

LONDON: In this April 27, 1953 file photo England and Surrey bowler Alec Bedser takes part in a practice session.

cricket not only in England and Wales but also globally must never be underestimated,” Morgan said in an ICC news release.

“He was an outstanding practitioner of seam bowling and some of his contemporaries believed him to be the greatest bowler they ever faced. The game will mourn his passing.”

Bedser dismissed Australian batting great Don Bradman six times-more than any other player.

England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chairman Giles Clarke described the former Surrey player as “a true legend of the game”.

“Sir Alec Bedser deserves to be remembered as one of the greatest England bowlers of all time, a master of the craft of seam bowling,” said Clarke.

Bedser, who had spells as England manager and chairman of selectors following his retirement, took 1,924 first-class wickets in a 21year career from 1939-60.

“He was team manager when I was captain,” said former England skipper Brian Close. “He was absolutely wonderful in that role.”

Bedser made his England debut against India in 1946 and took 11 wickets in each of his first two tests. His twin brother Eric, who also played for Surrey but was uncapped by his country, died in 2006.—Reuters

MIAMI: Sixth-seeded American Andy Roddick ended the giantkilling run of Czech Tomas Berdych to secure the Miami ATP Masters 1000 title Sunday.

One break of serve in each set was enough for Roddick, who didn’t face a break point in the entire match which he won 7-5, 6-4.

“It’s a surprising stat, especially on one side,” Roddick said.

“It was real rough with the sun on first serves you’re having to adjust your toss and seeing spots on the first ball.

“I think that’s what helped me break in the first set, you know, but I think it was maybe a little bit of an advantage that I played out there in that time slot a couple times.”

His victory brought an end to the impressive run of the 16thseeded Berdych, who had survived a match point to shock world number one Roger Federer in the fourth round.

“He was really good today,” Berdych said. “He was really strong, serving well. I was really looking for maybe to get one chance - maybe one is enough.

“But he held pretty well. I didn’t get any chance in the whole match during both sets, so that’s well-played for him.”

Roddick, who beat world number four Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals, added a second Miami title to the one he captured in 2004.

In addition to a superb serving performance that included 13 aces, Roddick used a canny baseline game - varying the pace of his groundstrokes to keep Berdych on the hop.

Roddick, who dropped only two service games in the tournament, surrendered just seven points on his serve in the second set.

He gave himself his third match point when he ended an exchange at the net with an overhead, and Berdych hit a backhand into the net to finish it off.

The Czech had saved two match points in the previous game. Roddick improved to 26-4 in 2010, the best match record on the men’s tour. The American claimed his first ATP 1000 title since Cincinnati in 2006, and it came two weeks after his runnerup finish in the first of the prestigious events in 2010 - at Indian Wells in California.

“Obviously it’s a big title for me,” Roddick said. “I felt a little bit of pressure to win this one, because I had a pretty good opportunity in Indian Wells and didn’t come through there.

“I think just the last month has been real good for me,” he added. “I’ve played well on the big moments. Haven’t had an off day mentally. I’ve been able to execute. I’ve been able to have a game plan and execute it regardless of what kind of shots it takes.

“It’s all good, it’s all encouraging.” Roddick was pleased that he was able during the week to find different ways to win. His methodical approach against Berdych was far from his risky, aggressive strategy against Nadal.

“Against Rafa, when you get two feet under you and you’re not being bullied from the baseline, it’s time to take some cuts,” Roddick said. “With Tomas I can get away with my slice a little bit more. I can get away with changing paces a little bit more without the angles of the court being utilized as much.

“He hits the ball straight through a little bit more, so I can kind of rely on legs a little bit more without the court growing this way and becoming tougher.”

Overall, Berdych said, he was satisfied with his tournament.

“Well, not as satisfied as I would be if I were sitting here as a winner,” he admitted. “But I’m happy for this two weeks, 10 days, that I played a couple of really good matches.” —AFP

Dominic Waldouck in action in this file photo

Wasps ease past London Irish LONDON: Wasps moved into fourth place in the Premiership after clinching a 33-22 win over London Irish at Adams Park on Sunday.

The hosts stormed into an early 13-0 lead and although Irish hit back with a Seilala Mapusua score, tries from Tom Varndell and Dan Ward-Smith re-established a 13-point lead by half-time.

Dominic Waldouck finished off a superb Wasps move to increase their lead before Steffon Armitage and James Tideswell tries set up a edgy closing period.

But Wasps fly-half Danny Cipriani secured the victory five minutes from time with a penalty. On Saturday, leaders Leicester ended Bath’s impressive recent run by romping to a 43-20 victory at Welford Road.

Alesana Tuilagi ran in the first try with just 26 seconds on the clock and Bath, given a

rough time by the Tigers pack, looked a pale shadow of the team that had rattled off seven successive league wins.

By the break they were 25-13 behind after conceding two more tries to Tuilagi and lock Geoff Parling. Second-half scores by Anthony Allen and a penalty try confirmed the Tigers’ superiority. Bath could only muster a try in each half by wings Joe Maddock and Matt Banahan.

Northampton had to dig deep before finally earning a 14-7 win over Leeds at Headingley Carnegie. The Saints had an abundance of possession but did not seal victory until three minutes from the end with a try from the impressive Ben Foden.

Battling Leeds secured a valuable bonus point in their fight against relegation.

Harlequins ended any lingering relegation

fears with a 23-14 victory over Newcastle in which fly-half Nick Evans was the star, scoring all his team’s points with two tries, two conversions and three penalties.

Sale gave themselves breathing space at the bottom as they saw off basement side Worcester 17-3 in a crucial relegation scrap at Edgeley Park.

The Sharks led 9-0 at the break thanks to a penalty and two drop goals from Charlie Hodgson. Fly-half Willie Walker and wing Chris Pennell were off target with penalty attempts for the Warriors.

Walker eventually got the visitors on the board with a penalty but it was not enough for Mike Ruddock’s side as Hodgson added another penalty and wing Mark Cueto crossed for a try to seal the win for the hosts. —AFP

We’ll be ready for Stade, warns Noves TOULOUSE: Toulouse will be at their best when they face French rivals Stade Francais in their European Cup quarterfinal next Sunday, warned Toulouse’s fiery coach Guy Noves yesterday.

The 56-year-old supported his claim by saying he had seen much to please him in Toulouse’s 28-23 Top 14 victory over Racing-Metro on Friday which ensured Noves’ side a place in the championship playoffs. Toulouse go into the match in better form than their opponents, who have had a woeful season on the domestic front and only eased their relegation worries on Saturday with a 1910 victory over Clermont at the Stade de France.

Noves, though, is too seasoned a campaigner to take such contrasting domestic form as a

guarantee that Toulouse will prevail.

“I think that that match (against Racing-Metro) was the ideal preparation for the meeting with Stade Francais,” said Noves, who has spent virtually the whole of his career at Toulouse playing for them from 1975-88 and has been head coach since 1993.

“I prefer to play a big team before such an important match as it fine-tunes our qualities.

Last year for instance we suffered as a result of putting over 80 points past Mont-de-Marsan and the next week we lost to Clermont in the championship play-off semi-finals.

“Against Racing-Metro we won by being really focussed when we faced a tough challenge, and by rolling up our sleeves when it got tough.

“We were tested in terms of how we reacted when we were under pressure. Our spirit was good, and the players showed they were hungry for the fight.

“What is certain, is that we will be ready for Stade on Sunday. We will not be caught unawares by the intensity and aggression of the Stade Francais players. “And then of course, an added incentive for us is that they are Parisians. “And one could say that they will be thinking the same about us, that we are Toulouse people, no?” he added with a smile.

Noves, who has guided Toulouse to seven domestic titles and three European Cup trophies, said that he did not believe the critics who claimed that Toulouse’s standards had fallen from the lofty heights of previous campaigns.

“There were a lot less handling errors against RacingMetro than there had been in the defeat by Biarritz the weekend before,” said Noves, who was capped seven times by France. “We cannot keep on creating attacking plays without accepting that we will drop the ball from time to time. If that was the case then we would just resort to a kicking game. I believe it is time to re-educate people.

“Toulouse has always sought to play attacking rugby but our opponents are getting better and better and the matches are increasingly tougher.

“There are no longer the points differences than there were 10 years ago. “When everyone takes account of that, they will stop saying that we are not playing at our usual level. —AFP

Redskins acquire QB McNabb

Donovan McNabb

WASHINGTON: The Donovan McNabb era ended with the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday when the six-time Pro Bowl quarterback was traded to the Washington Redskins.

Washington gave the Eagles a secondround pick in this year’s draft and another conditional pick, either a third or fourthround pick in 2011, in order to nab the 11year veteran who had spent his entire career in Philadelphia.

“That was a tough decision to make,” Eagles coach Andy Reid told a news conference. “He’s been such a great player here for 11 years, set every record that you can set.

“Unfortunately things like this happen in the National Football League.” McNabb, 33, is likely to take over the Washington offence in place of Jason Campbell, who has been inconsistent and could only guide the Redskins to a 4-12 record last season.

The Redskins, like the Eagles, are in the NFC East and the teams will meet twice during the 2010 season. “As far was Washington goes, we thought this was best

for Donovan,” said Reid.

“Obviously the compensation was right ... I will always wish Donovan the best of luck with the exception for two weeks during the year.”

Reid said Kevin Kolb, a three-year veteran with 79 completions in just 130 attempts, would be the Eagles’ new starter.

“Obviously we have a lot of confidence in Kevin Kolb to make this decision,” said Reid.

McNabb had been the subject of trade speculation after the Eagles finished 11-5 last season but failed to advance past the first round of playoffs.

His time in Philadelphia was marked by deep runs into the playoffs only to fall short as he guided the franchise to five NFC championship games and one Super Bowl appearance.

Reid said the trade “was tough” on him, the front office and the rest of the coaching staff. “I was very close with Donovan,” he said. “And I’ll remain close with Donovan.

That part won’t change. You can’t erase the last 11 years.” —Reuters

SPORTS

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

17

Tiger can learn plenty of lessons from Kobe Bryant ATLANTA: When the subject turned to Tiger Woods, the eyelids narrowed into a defiant squint. The jaw muscles tightened up to form something between a smile and a scowl. The head shook back and forth. With that, Kobe Bryant walked away. No way he was going there.

Fair enough. Yet Woods’ road to redemption after a string of tawdry affairs will undoubtedly follow many of the guideposts that Bryant so expertly navigated on the way to atoning for his infamous trip to a Colorado spa seven years ago.

“In taking his golf game and personal morality to a higher level, Tiger Woods’ rehabilitation role model will have to be Kobe Bryant,” said Porcher L. Taylor III, who teaches business ethics at the University of Richmond.

He recently chaired a symposium on what the Woods scandal might mean to future endorsement deals. Bryant’s career was rocked by allegations that he sexually assaulted a 19-year-old hotel worker in the summer of 2003.

The Los Angeles Lakers star denied forcing himself on the woman, and the criminal charges that could have sent him to prison were eventually dropped. But he was forced

to acknowledge cheating on his wife, leading to the long, tedious process of reclaiming his once-sterling reputation.

Bryant still hears the occasional taunt from visiting fans, who have been known to shout out the room number where the sexual encounter took place. Still, he’s largely evolved from being the butt of jokes to a revered sports star, one of the two best players in the NBA along with LeBron James, a future Hall of Famer who led his team to an NBA title last season and helped the U.S. capture a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Bryant is again a marketing powerhouse, commanding millions of dollars in endorsements. His replica No. 24 jersey is not only the biggest seller in the United States, but Europe and China as well. All has been forgiven, it would seem.

“A gold medal and an NBA title sure went a long way,” said Larry DeGaris, an associate professor of marketing at the University of Indianapolis.

Winning is an absolute must in any comeback story. Americans have shown an inordinate amount of patience and understanding with their fallen sports stars, as long as they wind up with a ring on their finger or a medal

around their neck.

Fortunately for Woods, that is probably the most reachable goal on his to-do list. Not even the biggest cynic nor most vocal critic believes a five-month layoff and a lifetime’s worth of sensational headlines will turn the world’s greatest player into just another golfer. How many fans will quickly forgive and forget should Woods’ return to the game at Augusta National end with another green jacket? How many will block out the memories of his staggering fall from grace if he knocks off Jack Nicklaus’ record for the most career major titles? (Woods is four behind the Golden Bear’s mark of 18). “We live in a country that loves to see turnarounds,” Taylor said. “When there’s someone who’s on Mount Everest and they slide down the mountain, we love the return to success because it takes so much effort and energy to climb back up the mountain.” Make no mistake, it won’t be easy.

“We all thought he had this picture perfect life,” said Gemma Puglisi, who teaches media relations and crisis communications at American University’s School of Communications in Washington, D.C. “What’s devastating is not just that he cheated. That’s bad enough. But it was not just

one woman. It was all these women. He had this dark side that we never knew existed.

That’s why his fall from grace is so devastating. He had everything, and he blew it all.”

While Woods has surely received plenty of counseling on how to handle his comeback, there seems to be a consensus among academics about what he must do to regain the adoration, or at least the grudging respect, of fans: • Be humble. Woods always carried himself with an intimidating aura, certainly understandable given his success. He must now show some of the vulnerability that came through during his first public comments on the scandal, when he put the blame squarely on himself, apologized for the pain he had caused his family and friends, and conceded that he strayed off course because of an inexcusable sense of entitlement.

“I’ve always thought that Pete Rose’s biggest crime was arrogance, not gambling,” said DeGaris, referring to baseball’s career hits leader who was banned from the game for wagering.

• Make himself more accessible. Woods has always been guarded with the media and his fans. This was viewed as a necessary evil when dealing with a star of his magnitude.

But vague, snippy answers to the media won’t fly anymore, and some fans may not be as accepting of a steely-eyed Woods who refuses to sign an autograph or pose for a picture the way most other golfers do.

Puglisi said Woods might want to consider adding tournaments to his usually limited schedule, giving him more exposure to fans.

Or take up some new charitable causes, showing that he’s committed to spending his free time on worthwhile pursuits.

He could also chip away at his guarded persona by going on more public outings with his wife (assuming his marriage lasts) and two children. “He can’t just focus on his game,” Puglisi said. “He’s got to show people he’s an everyday guy.”

• Realize this is essentially a lifetime probation. Woods must accept that his offthe-course shenanigans have put a target on his back that will always be there. He can’t allow even a hint of scandal to crop up again.

Avoid the strip clubs. Never be seen in the company of a beautiful woman unless his wife is there, too. Avoid even the most minor of transgressions — even a parking ticket.

“Stay at home,” advised Phil Jackson, Bryant’s coach with the Lakers. “That does

a lot for you.” Woods was such a marketing powerhouse that his scandal could have an impact not only on his future business dealings, but those of other top athletes and celebrities.

Taylor can even foresee a day when companies may want to spy on their clients to ensure their money isn’t being frittered away by embarrassing revelations. Instead of being trailed by the paparazzi, athletes could find themselves shadowed by corporate-hired private investigators, on the lookout for any hint of public-relations trouble.

If there’s a saving grace to any of this, it’s that at least Woods didn’t get caught cheating at golf or taking performance-enhancing drugs. Those are crimes that might have stuck with him forever. Just ask Mark McGwire, who bulked up chemically and has little chance of making the Baseball Hall of Fame, despite ranking as one of the sport’s greatest home run hitters.

“Tiger really didn’t commit a crime against the sport,” DeGaris said. “What McGwire did was a career killer. He can’t go anywhere outside St. Louis. No corporate sponsors are ever going to touch him. Ever.

He’s done.” Woods, meanwhile, can only hope he’s not.—AP

Relaxed Tiger turns up early at Augusta

AUGUSTA: Tiger Woods tosses a tee in the air during a practice round prior to the 2010 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.—AFP

Valverde handed win, Freire relegated MADRID: Overall favourite Alejandro Valverde claimed a controversial victory in the first stage of the Tour of the Basque Country yesterday after a sprinting infringement by fellow Spaniard Oscar Freire.

Freire had initially won the stage after a dramatic sprint manoeuvre which appeared to block Valverde’s path up the inside of the barriers.

Despite no official complaint coming from Valverde’s Caisse d’Epargne team, race officials later relegated Milan-SanRemo champion Freire to the back of the pack after reviewing the incident.

Valverde was lively in the latter stages of the undulating 152km ride around Zierbena, quickening the pace and forcing a decisive selection in the

peloton. But his hopes of beating a 25-strong lead group to victory in a sprint finish were upset by Rabobank’s speed specialist Freire, a former three-time world champion.

In the closing metres of the home straight Freire veered sharply to the left of the road.

Valverde, in his wake, tried to come up the inside of the barriers but appeared to be blocked.

Just as Freire raised his arms in triumph, Valverde raised his in protest a few metres from the finish, and went to have words with Freire afterwards. Valverde will now start today’s stage a 217km ride from Zierbena to Viana, as race leader.

The Spaniard is among the favourites for the overall crown in the six-stage event, which ends Saturday with a 22 km time trial in Orio.—AFP

AUGUSTA: Tiger Woods sprang a surprise at Augusta National on Sunday when he turned up without notice to play the back nine at the US Masters venue.

Woods spent 10 minutes practising at Augusta’s revamped practice facility, speaking briefly to British world number six Paul Casey and 2003 US Open champion Jim Furyk.

The scandal-hit American world number one, who has been in virtual hiding since his stunning fall from grace at the end of last year, then embraced O’Meara on the 10th tee before the pair set off.

Wearing sunglasses, a purpleand-white striped shirt and khaki trousers, Woods was smiling and appeared to be in a very relaxed mood.

Also accompanied by his caddie Steve Williams, swing coach Hank Haney and around 15 security personnel, Woods shared a joke with a sheriff’s deputy once the practice round was over.

“He played great,” double major winner O’Meara told reporters. “He’s doing what he needs to do. He’s going to be fine.

I think he’s just ready to get out there and start playing. He’s one of the toughest guys mentally I’ve ever met.

In line with tradition on the Sunday before Masters week, neither the golfing media nor fans were permitted on the par-72 layout and Woods left the course without speaking to any reporters after completing nine holes.

As Williams trudged off the course after a glorious sunsplashed afternoon, he carried Woods’s black golf bag which was notably bereft of any sponsor’s names, bearing only the letters ‘TW’ in white with Tiger Woods written below.

Woods, widely viewed as the world’s wealthiest athlete, was estimated to earn about $100 million a year in endorsement deals before the scandal led AT&T and Accenture to drop him as a spokesman. Other sponsors, however, stood by him.

The 34-year-old, a 14-times major champion, has not played competitive golf since his private life spectacularly unravelled at the end of last year.

Woods took an indefinite break from the game to try to repair his marriage amid revelations about his extra-marital affairs before announcing last month he would return at the Masters, which begin on Thursday.

Although Woods was the most marketable player in the game and drives up television ratings by around 50 percent when he competes, his image needs to be slowly rebuilt if he is to win back many of the fans he has lost over the last five months.

Unquestionably the greatest golfer of his generation and arguably the best of all time, Woods can expect to receive his fair share of biting retorts from the galleries, just as he has been lampooned by television chatshow hosts in recent months.

Although the fans at Augusta are known for their respect and are tightly controlled by officials, Woods said last month he was apprehensive about the reception he would get.

“I don’t know. I’m a little nervous about that to be honest with you,” he told ESPN. “It would be nice to hear a couple of claps here and there. But I also hope they clap for birdies, too.”—Reuters

HUMBLE: Anthony Kim holds the championship trophy after winning the Shell Houston Open at Redstone Golf Club.—AFP

Kim ends title drought HUMBLE: Anthony Kim ended a nearly two-year drought when he beat fellow American Vaughn Taylor in a playoff at the Houston Open on Sunday.

Kim, who started the final round tied for the lead, squandered the chance to win in regulation when he bogeyed the last hole after missing a six-foot par putt. He carded 70 to tie Taylor, who birdied the last for 68, at 12-under-par 276 at Redstone.

Taylor, who needed to win to qualify for this week’s US Masters in his hometown of Augusta, made a mess of the first playoff hole, the par-four 18th, where Kim won with a par.

South African Charl Schwartzel (67) and Canadian Graham DeLaet (68) finished one stroke behind, tied for third. It is the third win on the PGA Tour for 24-year-old

Kim and a confidence-boosting tune-up for the Masters.

“It’s been a very memorable week, maybe not all for great reasons,” Kim told reporters. “I was in some spots on the golf course I never thought I could possibly see, but I got out of those with pars and birdies this week and feel very confident going into next week.

Kim collected $1,044,000 for his third victory on the PGA Tour, after previously winning twice in 2008 had told NBC that he had a torn thumb ligament and may have to take time off after the Masters.

“At the beginning of the week, if you told me I was in a play-off, I don’t know if I would have fully believed you, because I didn’t know what I was expecting with my golf game.

“But I did a great job just staying patient, staying loose, and got the job done.” Taylor admitted that the occasion proved too much in the play-off.

“I made a great putt at the last, before the play-off,” he told reporters. “I’m excited but hugely disappointed. It’s a tough pill to swallow.

“I didn’t quite get committed (in the play-off). So many things were going through my head and I didn’t quite get back in the mode of playing. “If I had a little more time, maybe I could have gotten focused.”

It was a quiet week for several of the Masters favourites, with Phil Mickelson finishing at two-under, Ireland’s Padraig Harrington one-under and South Africa’s Ernie Els on even par.—Reuters

Tseng holds off Pettersen to capture second major RANCHO MIRAGE: Taiwan’s Yani Tseng kept her cool to hold off Norway’s Suzann Pettersen by one shot to win her second major title at the Kraft Nabisco Championship on Sunday, then ignored an earthquake an hour later.

Tseng, who closed with a four-under 68 for a total of 13under 275 to pip Pettersen was in the middle of her champion’s media conference when the effects of a 6.9 earthquake in Baja was felt throughout southern California.

“I like it, very cool,” Tseng said as some members of the media nervously eyed the exits as the ground shook for about 30 seconds. “I hope nobody got hurt. “We have a lot in Taiwan, but this was big. It’s like my big week.”

Tseng began the final round tied for second with Pettersen and an eagle at the par-five second and a birdie at the par-four third propelled the 21-year-old to the top of the leaderboard.

As Tseng watched on nervously, Pettersen piled on the pressure and was unlucky to miss an eagle chip at the par-five closing hole.

The Norwegian could only sink a birdie to close on 276.

“Geez, that was a big chip,” Tseng said. “I was scared to look and when I looked back, I saw the ball just past the hole.

I’m happy that missed.”

South Korea’s Kim Song-hee closed with two-under 70 to take third at nine-under 279.

World number one Lorena Ochoa was fourth on six-under 282 with third round leader Karen Stupples of Britain tied for fifth after she closed with a six-over 78.

Tseng had held a four-shot lead at one stage but played conservatively down the stretch, parring her final six holes after a bogey-five at the 12th.

Pettersen moved steadily into contention with three birdies on the back nine, reducing Tseng’s lead on the par-five 18th to two shots.

Tseng sent her drive on the final hole into the primary cut of rough just off the right side of the fairway. Pettersen blasted her drive down the middle, allowing her to go for the green in two.

Tseng laid up, but hit her third shot on the green, 12 feet below the hole, setting up the dramatic finish. Pettersen thought her shot just might fall, settling for a tap-in birdie, giving Tseng two shots to win.

Her birdie putt came up short, but the tap-in par gave the 21-year-old her second major championship and third win on the LPGA Tour.

“I played very solid today,” Tseng said. “I had an eagle on the second hole and I know today is going to be my day.

“I just kept telling myself commit to the shot and keep my tempo right, and just keep smiling all 18 holes no matter how I play.” —Reuters

RANCHO MIRAGE: Yani Tseng of Taiwan proudly poses with the trophy after her one shot victory in the 2010 Kraft Nabisco Championship.—AFP

SPORTS

18

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

ACC Elite Trophy 2010 Tournament KUWAIT: Kuwait is hosting on behalf of the Asian Cricket Council its Elite 50 Overs Cup. This exciting tournament brings together the best nine teams in Asia (excluding the four Test playing nations) and Kuwait is proud to be hosting this fantastic spectacle of top class cricket.

Participating countries are Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Oman, UAE and Kuwait.

KUWAIT: One of the athletes practices prior to the GCC games.

GCC teams arrive for athletic Games KUWAIT: The athletics teams of GCC countries arrived in Kuwait to participate in the 12th Gulf youth athletics Games, hosted

by Kuwait from April 7-9, at Keifan tracks, under the patronage of Deputy Premier for Economic Affairs, State Minister for Development Affairs and State Minister for Housing Affairs Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad.

Head of Kuwait team Fahad Al-Zami said “our athletes will participate with the intention to win any event they participate in. He said preparations and training began late because of schools as most athletes are stu-

dents. Al-Azmi expected Kuwait to get at least one medal in each event despite the strong competition from Gulf teams who are well prepared.

He said such events are important to host as they have more “positive” contact between athletes of the region, so as to be prepared for the Asian and international championships. He said this tournament is considered a preparation for our athletes who will participate in the Arab Championship to be held in Egypt next May. Meanwhile, Kuwaiti athlete who will par-

Triple jump athlete Abdallah Al-Youha

ticipate in the triple jump Abdallah Al-Youha said he will strive for the gold medal, despite the expected tough competition from the rest of athletes. He said the achievement will always be great for all athletes, and wished all good luck.

Pole vault athlete Ahmad Al-Kandari expressed excitement over his participation, which he considered as the true launch for any Gulf champion in Asia and world wide, because he will be tested and will realize what he wants and how to improve himself later.

An athlete during a practice session

Argentine coach Bielsa chases glory with Chile SANTIAGO: The high point of Marcelo Bielsa’s tenure as coach of Chile so far surely came from the team’s 1-0 victory over his native Argentina in 2008.

His next one will be when he leads him team at this year’s World Cup in South Africa, where Chile will face European champion Spain, Switzerland and Honduras in Group H. The 54-year-old Bielsa coached Argentina at the 2002 World Cup, a disappointing tournament in which Argentina failed to advance from the first round. This time, Chileans are expecting the highly regarded Bielsa to get them into the knockout stage.

In a poll by South America’s national team coaches, Bielsa was voted the best in

the region by a wide margin. Another Argentine, Paraguay coach Gerardo Martino, also got a few votes.

Biesla is known as an innovator who has added younger players and more attacking to Chile’s usually deliberate style.

Known as “El Loco,” Bielsa had a brief career as a defender with Newell’s Old Boys, but moved into management early, first taking over Newell’s youth team before becoming the manager of the club in 1990.

Bielsa picked up his share of titles with Old Boys before moving to Mexico and stints with Atlas and Club America. He returned to Argentina in 1997 to manage Velez Sarsfield and then took over Argentina’s national team in 1998, replacing

Daniel Passarella.

Although he failed to win the World Cup with Argentina, he did coach the country to the gold medal at the 2004 Olympics. That made Argentina the first Latin American country to win football gold since 1928.

Bielsa resigned at the end of 2004 and was replaced by Jose Pekerman.

Chilean officials have already proposed extending Bielsa’s contract until 2015, and many are suggesting a raise. He has also won praise from former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, who left office on March 11.

“He (Bielsa) is an excellent reference point and a model for young people,” she said. “He gets results with discipline and hard work, and with enthusiasm. Hiring him continues to be a good move for Chile.”—AP

In Hitzfeld, Swiss football has a German ‘General’ GENEVA: As Germany’s “General,” Ottmar Hitzfeld built a trophy room to rival any other coach’s in world football: seven Bundesliga titles, two European club championships and a collection of cup wins.

To cap his legendary career, the former Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund coach known for his discipline and authority will be hoping to guide little Switzerland to an improbable World Cup. It will be his toughest challenge.

Hitzfeld saw his talented but young team drubbed in a home friendly against Uruguay earlier this month, and remarked afterward that he “wanted to see where we stood internationally, who can keep up with the high tempo, who can win challenges, hold the ball and play good passes under pressure.”

Based on the evidence of the 3-1 loss, the Swiss are full of youthful exuberance if short on the 61-year-old German’s trademarks of defensive stability, strong tackling and tactical astuteness.

Switzerland will need marked improvement in all areas to progress deep into the World Cup, which starts for the Swiss on June 16 in Durban against European champion Spain. “Exclaiming with joy or complaining doesn’t help,” Hitzfeld said in South Africa last year.

“Sometimes the supposedly weak groups turn out to be very difficult and the supposedly strong ones are easier to take control of.” Switzerland also meets Chile and Honduras in group play.

Counting in Switzerland’s favor is Hitzfeld’s history of guiding teams to improbable upsets.

He steered Dortmund to a 3-1 victory in the 1997 Champions League final over a Juventus team loaded with stars such as Zinedine Zidane, Didier Deschamps and Alessandro del Piero. He reshaped a Bayern team wracked by internal fighting and narrowly missed out on a second title two years later.

But Hitzfeld guided Bayern past Valencia in 2001 to

become the first manager since Ernst Happel to win European club championships with two different clubs. No German team has achieved similar success since.

To get there, Hitzfeld exerted his authority over a Bayern squad of superstars by dropping Mario Basler and disciplining Lothar Matthaeus, Bixente Lizarazu, Mehmet Scholl and Giovane Elber when they broke his rules. His flexibility was in tactics, where he often employed a revolutionary 3-43 alignment or fielded attacking wing-backs.

Hitzfeld, who grew up just across the border from the Swiss city of Basel, is under contract through the 2012 European Championship and has sought to cultivate a longterm strategy for football development in Switzerland.

As his nickname would imply, he has become the most dominant voice in Swiss football, helping former players Torsten Fink and Ciriaco Sforza become the coaches of Swiss clubs FC Basel and

Grasshoppers, and convincing national team regulars such as Alex Frei, Ludovic Magnin, Hakan Yakin and Johan Vonlanthen to return to the Swiss league to get regular matches before the World Cup. Long touted as a future Germany coach, it may be difficult for Hitzfeld to leave _ even if Switzerland manages only a respectable showing.

After being dumped out at home with former coach Koebi Kuhn in the first round of the 2008 European Championship, simply advancing to the second round at the World Cup might be enough to satisfy the bosses at the Swiss football association.

And with young talent emerging from Switzerland’s World Cup-winning under-17 team Hitzfeld may find ample reason to extend his stay. He also would have no problem facing his native Germany in a later stage of the tournament.

“If we get the Germans, it’s about one thing — beating them,” Hitzfeld said. “That would be a dream.”—AP

Kuwait honored to host major Cricket Tournament, culminating with the finals this coming Friday, April 9.

The tournament was opened last Wednesday by Frank Baker, British Ambassador on Kuwait Cricket’s magnificent pitch at Entertainment City. At the opening ceremony, the Ambassador met the two teams taking part — Kuwait and Singapore — and hit the first ball of the Tournament!

Yesterday was the mid point of the Tournament and was celebrated by Kuwait Cricket and ACC hosting all participating teams to a magnificent evening of speeches, dinner and musical entertainment, held at the Team Hotel at Al Jahra Copthorne Hotel.

This was the opportunity for all participating teams to be welcomed and awards of recognition given to all tournament officials.

A brief welcoming address was made by Jeff de Lange, Chairman of Executive Council, Kuwait Cricket. Mr. John Long, the International Relations Manager of the International Cricket Council addressed the meeting with warmth and support to all.

Guest of Honour was Bandula Warnapura, the Development Manager of the ACC. Bandula - ex-captain of Sri Lanka’s team which gained Test status for Sri Lanka — spoke at great length in support of the tournament and how cricket is spreading both in popularity and in skills level and facilities, throughout the Asian region.

There are only four more days left of the tournament.

Come and watch any or all of them, both at Ahmadi and at Entertainment City!

Particularly try to come for the semi finals on Wednesday, April 7 and finals on Friday, April 9 both at Ahmadi.

sporTs

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

19

African footballers making all the headlines in Europe

BUENOS AIRES: Boca Juniors’ Gary Medel (right) fights for the ball with Rosario Central’s Santiago Garcia during an Argentine soccer league match. —AP

Ronaldo scores in Corinthians win MEXICO: Ronaldo scored one of Corinthians’ two late goals in a 2-0 win at Ituano on Sunday to keep the club in semifinal contention in the Sao Paulo state championship in Brazil.

In other Brazilian matches, Robinho returned from injury to score for Santos in the Sao Paulo tournament, while Flamengo, Botafogo, Fluminense and Vasco reached the semifinals of the Rio Cup, the second stage of the Rio de Janeiro state championship.

Former Real Madrid striker Ronaldo tapped Corinthians’ second goal into an empty net after a cross from Tcheco in the 86th minute against Ituano, adding to Jucilei’s opener five minutes earlier.

The win pushed Corinthians into fifth place with 32 points, one behind Sao Paulo and two behind third-place Gremio Prudente, with one match left to decide the semifinal

line-up. Santos remained atop the Sao Paulo tournament as Robinho scored the third goal in a 3-1 win over Sao Caetano, while secondplace Santo Andre, also sure of a semifinal spot, played to a 1-1 draw at Rio Claro on Saturday.

In the Rio Cup, Dodo scored a 78th-minute winner as Vasco beat Duque de Caxias 4-3 to join Group B winner Botafogo in the semis. Botafogo had a 2-2 draw with Bangu. Defending Rio champion Flamengo won 3-0 over Friburguense to top Group A, and will be joined in semifinals by the Fluminense, which secured second after a 3-1 win against Macae.

In the Rio Grande do Sul state tournament, Gremio extended its winning streak to 15 games with a 2-1 win over Juventude.

In Argentina, Godoy Cruz stayed three points behind Independiente atop the Clausura standings

after Rodrigo Salinas and Cesar Carranza scored second-half goals in a 2-0 home win against Velez Sarsfield.

Boca Juniors and River Plate both lost, while Estudiantes La Plata drew 1-1 with defending champion Banfield. Boca’s season deteriorated after going down 2-1 at home against Rosario Central, leaving the Buenos Aires giant third from last in the standings.

Milton Caraglio headed the winner for Central in the 86th minute, breaking the deadlock after Boca’s Nicolas Gaitan had canceled out Adrian De Leon’s firsthalf opener. Juan Roman Riquelme was sent off for protesting against referee Rafael Furchi’s decision to award a free kick that led to Central’s winning goal.

River Plate is just a point better off than Boca after a 1-0 defeat at Lanus left the club in 16th position.

Sebastian Blanco scored the winner for Lanus in the 41st minute. Estudiantes lost ground at the top after Marcelo Quinteros scored the equalizer for Banfield in the 41st minute. Estudiantes had to hold on for a point after Enzo Perez was sent off in the 70th minute.

Independiente leads the standings with 27 points, followed by Godoy Cruz on 24, Argentinos Juniors on 22 and Estudiantes on 21. In a clash between Mexico’s two biggest clubs, Omar Arellano scored the winner to give Chivas a 1-0 win over America.

The win pushed Group 1 leader Chivas back to the top of the general standings, ahead of Group 2 leader Monterrey, which had a 1-0 win over Pumas on Saturday. Toluca thrashed Estudiantes Tecos 5-0, while Jaguares claimed a 3-0 away win at Group 3 leader Santos in Sunday’s other matches. —AP

MEXICO: America’s Juan Carlos Valenzuela (left) fights for the ball with Chivas’ Omar Bravo during a Mexican League soccer match. —AP

PARIS: African footballers who made the headlines in European leagues this weekend: ENGlANd DIDIER DROGBA (Chelsea): The Ivory Coast striker came off the bench to score his side’s second goal in their crucial 2-1 win at Manchester United on Saturday.

Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti opted not to start his star striker as he had felt pain from a groin problem while training, but he still played a decisive role as he was controversially ruled onside and slammed a 79th minute shot past Edwin van der Sar for his 31st goal of the season. Drogba’s strike means Chelsea are now two points clear of United at the top of the Premier League.

JOHN OBI MIKEL (Chelsea): The Nigeria midfielder gave an impressive display in front of his side’s back-four as the Blues claimed a vital 2-1 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford on Saturday. Mikel was able to cut off the supply lines to United’s attack as his team went top of the Premier League with five games to play.

SALOMON KALOU (Chelsea): The Ivory Coast forward was sent on as a 73rd minute replacement for Joe Cole at Manchester United on Saturday and made an instant impact. His pass to Didier Drogba allowed his compatriot to fire in Chelsea’s second goal as they earned a 2-1 win which put the Blues in pole position to win the Premier League.

EMMANUEL ADEBAYOR (Man City): The Togo striker scored his first goals since February as City thrashed Burnley 6-1 at Turf Moor on Saturday.

Adebayor opened the scoring in the fourth minute when he fired home Adam Johnson’s corner and he struck again just before half-time with an excellent finish from Carlos Tevez’s pass. He now has 11 goals this season, while City are up to fourth in the Premier League.

AYEGBENI YAKUBU (Everton): The Nigeria forward scored his fifth goal of the season against West Ham on Sunday but it wasn’t enough to secure a win as the Hammers snatched a late 2-2 draw at Goodison Park. Yakubu, on as a 65th minute substitute, powered a header past Robert Green from Leighton Baines’ cross in the 85th minute, only for relegationthreatened West Ham to equalise two minutes later.

STEVEN PIENAAR (Everton): The South Africa midfielder played 90 minutes as his side drew 2-2 with West Ham at Goodison Park on Sunday. He played a part in the build-up to Ayegbeni Yakubu’s goal in the 85th minute but the Hammers scored a late equaliser to frustrate Everton’s push for a Europa League place.

MIDO (West Ham): The Egypt forward squandered a golden chance to score his first goal for the Hammers as he missed a first half penalty in his side’s 2-2 draw at Everton on Sunday. Mido has now gone nine games without a goal since moving to Upton Park after Tim Howard saved his 36th minute spot-kick. He was eventually taken off in the 77th minute and his replacement, Araujo Ilan, headed the equaliser which moved West Ham one point clear of the relegation zone.

AARON MOKOENA (Portsmouth): The South African midfielder was forced to play through the pain barrier in Saturday’s 0-0 draw with Blackburn at Fratton Park.

He suffered a knee injury in the first half but couldn’t come off as Pompey boss Avram Grant had no experienced replacement on the bench. Despite Mokoena’s injury and Anthony Vanden Borre’s red card the Premier League’s bottom club held on for a draw.

JOHN UTAKA (Portsmouth): The Nigeria striker was substituted after 72 minutes of his side’s 0-0 draw with Blackburn at Fratton Park on Saturday. He has yet to score in the Premier League this season and has just three goals in all competitions, with his last strike coming against Sunderland in the FA Cup in January.

ITAlY MOHAMED SISSOKO (Juventus): The Mali midfielder endured a frustrating evening as his Juventus team were thrashed 3-0 by lowly Udinese, further denting their hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League. Sissoko was by no means Juve’s worst performer but despite producing a physical presence in the centre of the park he looked out of sorts alongside fellow defensive midfielder Felipe Melo.

RICHMOND BOAKYE (Genoa): The Ghanaian teenage striker made a sensational debut in Serie A to become the third youngest goalscorer of all time.

Boakye came on after just 12 minutes to replace the injured David Suazo and put his team ahead six minutes into the second period. At just 17 years, two months and six days that made him the third youngest scorer in Italy’s top flight. He was Genoa’s one bright spark in an otherwise below-par performance in the 1-1 home draw with rock bottom Livorno. Boakye faded and was replaced nine minutes from time.

PEDRO KAMATA (Bari): The Angolan winger enjoyed very little success in the 1-0 home defeat against AS Roma and was completely upstaged by Honduran team-mate Edgar Alvarez on the opposite flank. His low key afternoon ended at halftime as he was replaced by Argentine Emanuel Rivas.

ABDELKADER GHEZZAL (Siena): After missing a host of chances the previous week, the Algeria forward was quiet in

LONDON: Chelsea’s Ivorian forward Didier Drogba celebrates scoring the second goal of the English Premier League football match between Manchester United and Chelsea in this file photo. —AFP Siena’s crucial 2-0 defeat at Atalanta. The result pushes the Tuscans further towards the drop and Ghezzal had little impact in his playmaker role behind Massimo Maccarone.

MUNTARI SULLEY (Inter Milan): Ghana midfielder Muntari was largely a spectator during Inter’s 3-0 cruise at home to Bologna, entering the fray just three minutes from time. His most notable contribution was while still on the sidelines as it was to him that rebel teenage forward Mario Balotelli, an Italian of Ghanaian orgin, ran after scoring Inter’s second goal.

SPAIN FREDERIC KANOUTE (Sevilla): Mali international forward Kanoute scored the opening goal as Sevilla defeated Tenerife 3-0 at home on Saturday to end a sequence of six league games without a win. The 32-year-old Kanoute started to leave 15-million-euro club record signing Alvaro Negredo sitting on the substitutes bench and showed a cool head to slot home his seventh league goal of the season on 22 minutes.

KALU UCHE (Almeria): Nigerian international striker Kalu Uche made it five goals in his last seven league starts as Almeria drew 1-1 with Real Mallorca. The 27-year-old met Domingo Cisma’s cross with a fine header to put Almeria into a fourth minute lead before Mallorca equalised late on.

MAHAMADOU DIARRA (Real Madrid): Mali midfielder Mahamadou Diarra made his first league start for Real Madrid since December helping his side go back top of the table with a 2-0 win at Racing Santander on Sunday. A suspension to Xabi Alonso gave Diarra a chance to start and the former Lyon man had a fine game playing the full 90 minutes.

PIERRE WEBO (Real Mallorca): Cameroon forward Webo came on as a second half substitute and scored a late equaliser as Real Mallorca drew 1-1 at

Almeria. Webo came on in the 65th minute and headed in an 87th minute leveller for Mallorca who move level on points with fourth-placed Sevilla.

GERMANY PAPISS CISSE (Freiburg): Senegal international striker Cisse scored his fourth goal since his January move from Metz in France, but Freiburg were still held 1-1 by Bochum to remain in 16th place in the Bundesliga.

ANTHAR YAHIA (Bochum): The Algeria defender started for only the second time since November and scored the equaliser against Freiburg. The Ruhr side are in 15th place, three ahead of Saturday’s opponents.

MOHAMMED ZIDAN (Dortmund): Egypt international Zidan didn’t get on the scoresheet but he supplied the crucial pass for his team’s second goal in the 2-1 win over Werder Bremen which kept Dortmund on course for a Champions League place.

FRANCE ASAMOAH GYAN (Rennes): The Ghanaian international striker scored his 13th league goal of the season on Saturday when he put Rennes 1-0 ahead against Lyon after just 14 minutes, reacting quickest when Jimmy Briand’s shot came back off the post. However, Lyon hit back to win 2-1.

YOUSSOUF NADJI (Nancy): The veteran Moroccan midfielder opened the scoring in his side’s shock 2-1 win over champions Bordeaux who were made to pay a heavy price for starting the game with Hadji’s compatriot Maroune Chamakh on the bench ahead of the midweek Champions League clash with Lyon. It was the 10th league goal of the season for the 30-year-old Hadji who is in his second spell at the club. — AFP

FRANCE: Paris’ forward Guillaume Hoarau (left) vies with Auxerre’s Swiss defender Stephane Grichting (right) during the French League football match. —AFP

Auxerre held at home

PARIS: Auxerre squandered an opportunity to go top of Ligue 1 after being held to a 1-1 home draw by Paris St Germain on Sunday.

They had to settle for a three-way tie on 57 points with leaders Olympique Lyon and second-placed Montpellier. Auxerre are third on goal difference with seven games left. Romania striker Daniel Niculae put Auxerre in front from inside the box in the 11th minute but their advantage was quickly cancelled out by Younousse Sankhare.

Lyon earned a 2-1 win at Stade Rennes while Montpellier were held 0-0 at home by Monaco on Saturday. “We’re disappointed to see we couldn’t get three points but let’s wait the end of the season before drawing any conclusion,” Auxerre coach Jean

Fernandez told Canal Plus television.

Olympique Marseille closed to within one point of the top three after a first-half header from Brandao secured a 1-0 victory at home to Racing Lens earlier on Sunday.

Marseille, who ended the game with 10 men after defender Stephane Mbia was sent off with 15 minutes left, are fifth on 56 points, behind fourth-placed Girondins Bordeaux on goal difference. Both clubs have two games in hand. Former leaders Bordeaux lost 2-1 at home to Nancy on Saturday. Auxerre, the 1996 champions, opened the scoring early in the game when Niculae collected a cross from Ireneusz Jelen and fired a volley into the net from inside the box. — Reuters

www.kuwaittimes.net

NBA results/standings Boston 117, Cleveland 113; San Antonio 100, LA Lakers 81; Indiana 133, Houston 102; Orlando 107, Memphis 92; Golden State 113, Toronto 112; Washington 109, New Jersey 99; Oklahoma City 116, Minnesota 108; NY Knicks 113, LA Clippers 107.

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT GB Boston 48 28 .632 Toronto 38 38 .500 10 NY Knicks 27 49 .355 21 Philadelphia 26 50 .342 22 New Jersey 11 66 .143 37.5

Cleveland Milwaukee Chicago Indiana Detroit

Central Division 60 17 .779 42 34 .553 37 39 .487 29 48 .377 23 53 .303

17.5 22.5 31 36.5

Orlando Atlanta Miami Charlotte Washington

Southeast Division 54 23 .701 49 27 .645 43 34 .558 40 36 .526 23 53 .303

4.5 11 13.5 30.5

Western Conference Northwest Division Denver 50 27 .649 Utah 50 27 .649 Oklahoma City 48 28 .632 Portland 47 30 .610 Minnesota 15 62 .195

1.5 3 35

LA Lakers Phoenix LA Clippers Sacramento Golden State

Pacific Division 55 22 50 27 27 50 24 53 23 53

.714 .649 .351 .312 .303

5 28 31 31,5

Sout hwest Division Dallas 50 27 .649 San Antonio 47 29 .618 Memphis 39 37 .513 Houston 38 38 .500 New Orleans 35 43 .449

2.5 10.5 11.5 15.5

LOS ANGELES: Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (right) and San Antonio Spurs guard Keith Bogans fight for a loose ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game.—AP

Spurs earn playoff berth with victory over Lakers LOS ANGELES: Manu Ginobili scored 32 points and Tim Duncan added 24 as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Los Angeles Lakers 100-81 Sunday to clinch their 13th consecutive playoff berth.

The Spurs had extra incentive since a loss would have increased their chances of facing the defending NBA champions in the first round of the playoffs. Instead, they moved into the No. 7 spot, a half-game ahead of idle Portland. The Lakers got a season-high 32 points from Pau Gasol and 22 from Kobe Bryant, but failed to clinch the No. 1 seed in the West and heard boos from their fans.

Richard Jefferson added 14 points and Duncan had 11 rebounds for the Spurs, who won their third straight and 15th of 20. They’ve notched recent wins over four of the NBA’s top teams: Cleveland, Boston, Orlando and now the Lakers.

Celtics 117, Cavaliers 113 At Boston, Ray Allen scored a season-

high 33 points, hitting his sixth 3-pointer to give the Celtics a four-point lead with 48 seconds left, and Boston held on despite 42 points from LeBron James.

The win snapped a three-game home losing streak for Boston, and it kept the Cavaliers from clinching home-court advantage for the entire postseason. James scored 20 in the fourth quarter, when the Cavs erased a 17-point deficit and took their first lead at 104-103 with 2:58 left.

But he missed two free throws in the last 16 seconds and a 3-point attempt on a fast break with 3.2 seconds left when a 2-pointer would have leveled it.

Warriors 113, Raptors 112 At Toronto, Don Nelson tied Lenny Wilkens for the most wins by an NBA coach when Golden State held off Toronto for its second straight victory.

The victory was the 1,332nd for Nelson, who can pass Wilkens when Golden State

plays at Washington on Tuesday. Golden State’s players danced in a circle around Nelson after the wild finish, which saw Chris Bosh steal the inbounds pass only to have his game-winning layup attempt roll off the rim as time expired.

Stephen Curry had 29 points and 12 assists, and Corey Maggette scored 31 points for the Warriors. Bosh had 42 points and 12 rebounds for the Raptors, who lost for the first time in four games.

Magic 107, Grizzlies 92 At Orlando, Vince Carter had 26 points and seven rebounds as Orlando beat Memphis after an on-court scuffle. The scrum between Matt Barnes and Hasheem Thabeet escalated into a near 10-player shoving match.

There were six technical fouls by game’s end, plenty of pop for an Easter matchup that had little meaning in the standings.

Rashard Lewis and Jameer Nelson scored 18

points apiece for the Magic, who are all but sure to win their third straight Southeast Division title and the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed. One Orlando win or Atlanta loss will seal the division. ach Randolph had 24 points and 18 rebounds, and Rudy Gay added 18 points to help Memphis rally from a 14-point deficit.

The Grizzlies have lost four of their last five.

Thunder 116, T’wolves 108 At Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant scored 40 points to break the club record for scoring in a season. Durant hit a jumper and then threw down a two-handed alley-oop jam with 5 minutes left to restore Oklahoma City’s lead to double digits and break the scoring record in the process.

Ryan Gomes scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half to lead Minnesota’s comeback bid. Jonny Flynn also finished with 22 as the Timberwolves lost for the 24th time in their last 26 games.

Wizards 109, Nets 99 At Washington, Andray Blatche had 20 points, a career-high 13 assists and nine rebounds as Washington beat New Jersey in a matchup of two of the NBA’s worst teams.

Blatche’s performance overshadowed a game between two clubs with a combined record of 34-119. He missed 13-of-18 shots from the field, but hit all 10 of his free throw attempts. Washington had six players in double figures. Mike Miller had 17 points and a season-high 13 rebounds. Nick Young, Shaun Livingston and Cartier Martin had 16 points and JaVale McGee scored 14. Brook Lopez and Devin Harris led New Jersey with 22.

Pacers 133, Rockets 102 At Indianapolis, Roy Hibbert had 20 points and 11 rebounds, leading Indiana over Houston for its ninth home win in 10 games.

Josh McRoberts had a career-high 18 points and equaled a career high with 12

Injuries give Bojan and Walcott chance to shine MADRID: Youngsters Theo Walcott and Bojan Krkic could take centre stage when Arsenal visit Barcelona in their Champions League quarter-final second leg at the Nou Camp today.

Injuries and suspensions have forced Arsene Wenger and Pep Guardiola into changes and their ability to adapt will be tested to the full, with the European champions holding the edge having drawn 2-2 in last Wednesday’s first leg.

Arsenal are without captain Cesc Fabregas, who cracked a bone in his leg last week, while Barca have lost Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, scorer of both their goals in London, to a calf injury.

Guardiola turned to perennial substitute Bojan at home to Athletic Bilbao in La Liga on Saturday, when Ibrahimovic pulled out just before kickoff, and the 19year-old scored twice in a 4-1 win.

“He always scores when he is played in his position (striker). I feel a little indebted to him because he always rises to the occasion,” Guardiola said. “But

Newcastle promoted to EPL LONDON: Newcastle were promoted to the Premier League yesterday after Nottingham Forest’s 0-0 draw with Cardiff confirmed the Magpies will finish in the Championship’s top two positions.

Chris Hughton’s side knew they would be guaranteed to go up if third-placed Forest failed to beat Cardiff and the celebrations began on Tyneside as soon as the fulltime whistle blew at the City Ground.

The result left Forest unable to catch Newcastle as they are now 14 points behind the Championship leaders, with only 12 points available over their last four matches. —AFP

he is young and has a lot to learn. We don’t forget this.” With Thierry Henry still struggling to convince Guardiola of his commitment to the cause, not helped by a largely anonymous second-half appearance at the Emirates Stadium, Bojan could start up front. Barca are without central defensive pairing Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique, who are both suspended. In their absence, Gabriel Milito and midfielder Yaya Toure could be drafted in at the back.

Eric Abidal played his first game in over six weeks after injury on Saturday and should return at left back. Barca visit La Liga title rivals Real Madrid on Saturday for a top-of-the-table clash, but Guardiola was clear where his priorities lay. “Today is the most important game of the year, more than the Bernabeu,” he added.

Wenger will be tempted to unleash Walcott, 21, from the start in the Nou Camp as the jet-heeled winger made a huge impact after coming on in the second half last week. The Frenchman’s attacking options are restricted with Andrei Arshavin and Fabregas both missing and Robin van Persie not yet ready to return and but he must decide whether Walcott is best used from the start or as an impact substitute. Needing to win or achieve a high-scoring draw to go through, Arsenal will hope to capitalise on Barcelona’s defensive absentees although Barca’s firepower could signal a more cautious approach from Wenger. “You have big players on the bench,” Wenger, who described Barcelona’s first 30 minutes at the Emirates as “like a storm” told the club’s website. “When they come on you don’t forget they have qualities to make an impact. “Theo has a chance to start the game (on Tuesday) but he can as well come on again and make a difference. If it is 0-0 with 20 minutes to go, we will need players who can make a difference.” Arsenal suffered no fresh injuries against in the last-gasp 1-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday which kept alive their Premier League title hopes.—Reuters

rebounds, and Danny Granger scored 18 for the Pacers, who have won seven of their last nine matches. Chase Budinger had 17 points and Kyle Lowry scored 16 for Houston (3838), which has dropped four straight to Indiana.

Knicks 113, Clippers 107 At Los Angeles, David Lee had 29 points and 10 rebounds as New York beat the Clippers at Staples Center for the first time in 11 attempts. The Knicks ended a fourgame losing streak, while the Clippers lost their fifth straight and 16th in 19 games.

The victory was New York’s first on the road against the Clippers since March 25, 1998, when they won their fifth straight at the L.A. Sports Arena. Baron Davis had 23 points and 11 assists for the Clippers, who reached the 50-loss mark for the 18th time since the club moved from San Diego to Los Angeles for the 1984-85 season. Chris Kaman had 22 points and 16 rebounds. —AP

Inter’s artificial pitch test is child’s play: Mourinho

SPAIN: FC Barcelona’s coach Josep Guardiola (left) and Arsenal’s French manager Arsene Wenger (right) attend press conferences on the eve of their team UEFA Champions League football match.—AFP

Rooney could make Bayern cruncher — reports MANCHESTER: Manchester United could name injured striker Wayne Rooney in their squad for the crunch Champions League tie with Bayern Munich in midweek, according to reports yesterday.

Rooney was expected to be out of action for two to three weeks after suffering ankle ligament damage in the first leg of their quarter-final against Bayern in Munich last week.

However reports in the Daily Telegraph and Guardian newspapers Monday claimed United have been so impressed by Rooney’s progress over the weekend that they are considering naming him in the squad for tomorrow’s make-or-

break encounter.

United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has said he would not risk using Rooney if he was no 100 percent fit, and reports late Sunday said the club’s medical staff had given the striker only a 40 percent chance of playing.

However United’s 2-1 defeat to Chelsea at the weekend-a game in which Rooney was sorely missed-may have swayed the Scot.

Rooney has been wearing a protective book on his ankle since last week, but the reports said he has responded better than expected to treatment. United welcome Bayern to Old Trafford hoping to overturn a 2-1 first leg defeat.—AFP

MOSCOW: Coach Jose Mourinho believes playing on an artificial pitch will be like child’s play for his Inter Milan team as they look to knock out CSKA Moscow in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final today.

The Serie A champions carry a 1-0 advantage from last week, when CSKA had keeper Igor Akinfeyev to thank for keeping their hopes alive with a series of fine saves.

“We know how we want to play there, aware of the difficulties regarding the opposition and the artificial pitch, which will be a first for everyone,” Mourinho told the club’s in-house TV channel.

“But I was joking with some of the players before, thinking of how we used to play in the road when we were children. If you can play in the road, I said, why can’t you play on an artificial pitch too?”

CSKA’s chances of overturning the deficit to become the first Russian side to reach the Champions League semi-finals have not been helped by the absence of suspended midfielders Milos Krasic and Yevgeny Aldonin.

But Krasic was confident CSKA’s familiarity with the synthetic surface could swing the tie their way. “Unfortunately I won’t be able to help my team in Moscow but I think we still have a

good chance, especially playing at home,” the Serbia international, linked for a transfer to Inter’s city rivals AC Milan, was quoted as saying by Russian media.

“I think the synthetic surface should give us a distinct edge. It could be our 12th man against Inter.” CSKA’s city rivals Spartak made the last four of the old European Cup in 1991 but no Russian team has been able to match that feat in the Champions League.

The visitors will be confident after dominating the first leg and warming up for the second with a 3-0 win over Bologna in Serie A on Saturday.

They should be at full strength too. Brazil centre back Lucio and his midfield compatriot Thiago Motta, who scored twice against Bologna, are available after serving suspensions last week.—Reuters

Today’s matches on TV (local timings) UEFA Champion League CSKA v Inter..........19:30 Al Jazeera Sport +5 Barcelona v Arsenal ..21:45 Al Jazeera Sport +3 Al Jazeera Sport +4

Toshiba wins award at Channel ME Awards

Car of the Year 2009: Winners take it all

22

23

UK’s Brown says economy is like injured soccer player

26

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

www.kuwaittimes.net

Shuaa expects no major Gulfinvest hit Analyst expects defaults by more Kuwaiti investment companies DUBAI: Investment bank Shuaa Capital said yesterday it won’t suffer a major financial setback as a result of Kuwait’s Gulfinvest International defaulting on a 200 million dirham loan. Gulfinvest said on Sunday it has defaulted on a 200 million dirham ($54.47 million) loan to Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank for which Shuaa was a guarantor. It also said it was in talks with Shuaa to restructure the loan.

“Shuaa had entered into a guarantee in respect of this loan in 2007, and confirms that it will fulfil its obligations as they become due,” a spokesman for the group said in an emailed statement. Shares in Shuaa dipped 3.3 percent at one point before recouping losses to trade flat. The company said it expects “no further material impact or downside risks arising from legacy issues of the firm” and that it doesn’t have any similar guarantees on its books.

The Dubai-based investment bank said it already made a provision for the loan guarantee in its 2009 results. ADCB yesterday said it also doesn’t expect any material impact related to Gulfinvest. In Kuwait, analyst Naser AlNafisi said Gulfinvest International had more debts. “Its total debt according to our figures as of Sept. 30 is around 50 million dinars ($173.5 million),” the general manager of AlJoman Center for Economic Consultancy told Reuters. “That is 78 percent of assets which is a high percentage of course, and 383 percent of equity.”

Nafisi said he expected defaults by two to three more Kuwaiti investment companies.

The country’s investment sector was the most affected by the global crisis. Shuaa is one of the region’s largest investment banks but suffered heavy losses in 2009 as a result of the global financial crisis. It brought in a new chief executive, Sameer Al-Ansari, who in his first six months focused on reducing the company’s investment portfolio. Shuaa’s subsidiary Gulf Finance lends to small and medium-sized enterprises, but otherwise the Dubai-based company is not a lender. “The business of lending and providing loan guarantees is not a core activity of Shuaa,” a company spokesman said. —Reuters

Greece labels German hard line as ‘racist’

PRAGUE: Boxes with Easter eggs at the traditional Easter market in the Old Town Square are seen yesterday. —AFP

Wataniya to be listed on Qatar Stock Exchange

By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: Wataniya Telecom will be listed in Qatar’s Stock Exchange within the next two weeks. “This is the first company outside of Qatar to be listed in the stock exchange,” said Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al-Thani, Chairman of Wataniya Telecom. “This will give Wataniya a stronger international position and is a step to reinforce and solidify Wataniya’s leading position. It will pave the way for aspiring shareholders to own Wataniya stocks and trust in its strong performance and value,” he said during the General Assembly meeting yesterday at the Sheraton Hotel.

In 2009, Wataniya delivered strong results in the face of a challenging global economy and

LISBON: Germany’s hard line on aid for Greece has been based on a “moral, racial approach” and the prejudice that Greeks don’t work enough, Greek Deputy Prime Minister Theodoros Pangalos told a Portuguese newspaper. Pangalos, who accused Germany earlier this year of not properly compensating Greece for World War Two occupation, also told the paper that German leaders were too focused on catering to domestic voters at a time when the European Union required solidarity.

Polls show Germans are overwhelmingly against a financial bailout for Greece and Chancellor Angela Merkel ensured at a summit in Brussels last month that tough conditions were attached to any such aid. “Some countries like Germany have taken a moral approach to our problem,” Pangalos told Jornal de Negocios in an interview conducted last week. “The Greeks have problems. Why do they have problems? Because they don’t work enough. And why is that? Because they have a good climate, music and drink and they are not as serious as the Germans,” he added.

Pangalos said this approach was “ridiculous” and failed to take into account strong productivity gains in Greek industry and agriculture. “This is a moral, racial approach that does not correspond to reality,” he said. The German government declined to comment on the report. It previously dismissed Pangalos’s remarks about war compensation saying it had paid that as well as billions of euros in aid. The outspoken Greek politician has also accused Germany of withholding aid because its banks and exporters were profiting from Greece’s crisis, remarks also rejected by Berlin. Pangalos described the financial safety net deal for Greece agreed by EU leaders on March 25 as a “good step forward”, but said it should have been more straightforward. —Reuters

increasingly competitive markets. They have continued to drive innovation and exceptional service for all their customers.

“This was a year that validated many of the strategic decisions we have made, reinforcing the importance of our customer-centered approach and demonstrating the sustainable value of our investments in people and technology. In 2009, we also celebrated a special occasion; Wataniya marked its tenth anniversary in Kuwait,” he added.

The Kuwaiti market is a strategic market. “We invested in the infrastructure and in new services. We succeeded in keeping our base of customers in the local market while other telecommunication companies registered losses,” Al-Thani highlighted.

In Kuwait, Wataniya upgraded

their HSUPA network to support higher speeds for their customers. “We also deployed a new network to manage the increasing volume of data traffic. In Kuwait, we completed the acquisition of Fono, a leading mobile retailer with sales points across the country. In fact, integrating Fono’s quality after-sales service with our own unique approach to delivering outstanding customer experiences has helped us add significant value to our brand,” he explained.

Wataniya Kuwait continued to deliver the largest proportion of revenue, with 48 percent of the consolidated revenue, while in Algeria Wataniya marked their highest growth of customers.

Tunisiana raised its market share to 5.21 million customers by the end of 2009. Operations in

Palestine that began in 2009 have witnessed a remarkable success in which the customer base reached 0.11 million and is expected to grow further.

Overall, Wataniya has continued to make significant operational and financial progress throughout 2009. “Wataniya delivered a total revenue of KD 475.5 million for the year,” AlThani added. “Our full year consolidated net profit reached KD 108.3 million, with an increase compared to the previous year of KD 82.4 million. Our consolidated customer base increased to 15.2 million at the end of 2009, compared to 10.9 million at the end of 2008. More and more people are choosing Wataniya as their preferred service provider.

This equates to a consolidated earnings per share of 216 fils, an

KUWAIT: (From left) Fahad Al-Saeed, Abdullah Bin Mohammed Al-Thani, Nasser Marafih and Scott Gegenheimer are seen at the meeting. —Photo by Joseph Shagra

increase on the 164 fils per share earned for the same period last year. EBITDA for the year ended 2009 at KD 190.2 million compared with an EBITDA of KD 201.3 million for the same period in 2008,” he said.

In 2009, Wataniya reinvented their services across a new segmented strategic model.

“Extensive research was conducted so that we could better understand our customers and their needs, and reshape our product and service portfolio to best meet their expectations. We are already seeing stronger demand from our customers as a result of this initiative, in addition to higher customer satisfaction due to the more targeted nature of our segmented offerings,” noted Al-Thani.

“We are constantly trying to reinforce our leadership position and create new revenue streams through essential network upgrades. In particular, we see strong potential for growth in data and value-added services, and have invested in building a robust infrastructure necessary to recognize these opportunities,” he pointed out.

The Saudi market is a competitive market. “The Saudi market is big and it’s difficult to invest in. We decided to invest there and we have many negotiations there,” Al-Thani said. For Wataniya Telecom, 2009 was a successful year. “We were able to effectively deal with continued competitive pressures in our home market of Kuwait while delivering continuing positive results to our other properties.

With the successful launch of our operations in Palestine, we look forward to 2010 and the opportunity to further develop and expand our customer base, which today stands at over 15.2 million,” he said.

Qatar claims $847 million stake in Fairmont Raffles RIYADH: Affiliates of Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund have paid $847 million for a stake in hotelier Fairmont Raffles Holdings International from Kingdom Holding, to become the biggest shareholder in the group. Kingdom Holding said in a statement that Fairmont Raffles had agreed to sell 40 percent of its capital to Cayman Islandsbased Voyager Partners Ltd and Qatari Diar, which is owned by the Qatar Investment Authority.

Kingdom Holding did not say whether the stake involved new or existing shares in Fairmont Raffles Holdings. The relationship between Voyager Partners and Qatari Diar could not be immediately clarified and neither party was

immediately available for comment.

Raffles Fairmont would use the money to fund current and future expansion and Kingdom, 95percent owned by billionaire Saudi Prince Alwaleed, would see its stake fall to 35 percent from 58 percent after the deal, Kingdom added.

Kingdom Holding, a main shareholder in Citigroup Inc, posted a net profit of 156 million riyals ($41.60 million) in the fourth-quarter, following a 30.98 billion riyal loss a year earlier. It said on Jan 5 that it would cut its capital by 41 percent, a move analysts said was aimed at wiping out accumulated and unrealized losses which reached 65 percent of its capital at the end of the third quarter of 2009. —Reuters

Yuan casts pall on US-India talks NEW DELHI: US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will try to strengthen bilateral ties with India during talks in New Delhi this week, but his visit may be overshadowed by Washington’s tense relationship with China. Both the United States and India will be simultaneously pushing trade and foreign exchange agendas with China, as they discuss cooperation on infrastructure development and financial markets.

Geithner on Saturday delayed an April 15 report to Congress on whether China manipulates its yuan currency, pledging to work instead with Group of 20 members - India and China included-to persuade Beijing to de-peg its yuan from the dollar. India’s Foreign Minister S M Krishna will be in Beijing for talks this week on a range of issues, smoothing out trade flows and reducing nontariff trade barriers to shrink a $16 billion trade deficit with China. “There is one potentially big issue of common interest between the US and India - the Chinese exchange rate,” said Arvind Subramanian, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, a Washington think tank. “China’s undervalued exchange rate affects emerging market

economies like India even more than it does the United States,” he said.

Subramanian added that India might be persuaded to support a broad-based effort aimed at currency rebalancing in a large, global forum like the G20 grouping of wealthy and big emerging economies. China has intervened in currency markets to keep the yuan steady against the dollar since July 2008 at a rate that critics say effectively provides a lucrative subsidy to Chinese exports.

More than a counterbalance But India remains reluctant to provoke China and won’t want to be seen as openly supporting US demands for a rise in the yuan. “The Indians have been pissed-off in the past about being used by the US to try to counterbalance China. They don’t want to be in that position,” said Stephen Cohen, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington. US Treasury officials have downplayed the China currency issue as a major topic for the talks, referring to it only as a discussion on rebalancing the global economy, which G20 leaders pledged to try to do last year at a summit in Pittsburgh.

Most economists see that goal as impossible without a

stronger yuan. Geithner, speaking to a small group of Indian journalists on Thursday, sidestepped questions about the yuan rate, instead lauding India for its flexible currency, more open economy and less dependence on exports. “I’m going to be very careful for reasons you understand not to talk about China in India, or to talk about China to the Indian press in Washington,” he said, according to a transcript of the briefing released by the Treasury.

Limited scope Geithner’s main goal in the talks in India today will be to give more prominence to USIndian relations, which have taken a back seat to Washington’s ties with China in recent years.

In an effort to smooth relations with India, US President Barack Obama last November hosted Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for a state visit in Washington.

“It is not about doing any signing agreements or trying to procedure any specific short term deliver position. It is about the long view.” The talks, which are more limited in scope than an annual US-China dialogue, will cover three main areas: economic stability, infrastructure development and the financial sector. —Reuters

22

business

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Financial system shows signs of recovery An early read on the unfolding year 2010 points to an ongoing, albeit vulnerable, recovery. Not surprisingly, every piece of good news has usually been balanced by so-so news. It’s country up, country down, or sector up, sector down. After a bout of optimism on Europe’s prospects in the middle of 2009, the sense now is that the US recovery will outperform Europe. The latter is struggling with sovereign debt problems (Greece, Portugal, Spain, UK etc). In the US, encouraging employment and retail sales data were followed by weaker housing sector reports. World growth has resumed, and looks firmer than the perception six months ago, but the risks and arguments have not changed dramatically so far. In that light, stock markets are near their 2009 highs and interest rates

have risen, US 10-year notes are now yielding 3.95 percent.

With the improved growth environment comes the concern of the unwinding of stimulus measures, or at least the very exceptional ones. The Bank of England has put on hold its quantitative easing (QE) efforts. The Fed has raised its discount rate, a mere symbolic move, but a way to get people thinking about the coming unwind. Recall that we are only talking about unwinding exceptional measures for now. For example, the Fed, which ended its Treasury’s purchase programs last year, ended its mortgage-backed purchase program in March, after purchasing USD 1.1 trillion of said securities.

Most special QE type facilities will end in March, with only one smaller program left to lapse in June. One of the

NBK’S ECONOMIC BRIEF concerns is higher mortgage rates when the Fed stops buying. On the “regular’ measures front, the Fed just reiterated in March that it expects exceptionally low” rates for an “extended period”. Low rates (Fed funds) are still justified by the expectations of moderate growth and low inflation.

Core CPI rates are under 1 percent in Europe and under 1.5 percent in the US (even as headline CPI has risen on the back of higher energy prices). In Europe, the ECB which solely targets inflation is happy to keep rates down as well, especially given a weak in the Euro zone, and pressured government finances. In January the US unemploy-

ment rate fell from 10 percent to 9.7 percent and stayed there in February and March. Also in March 162,000 jobs were gained versus monthly losses averaging over 350,000 back in August 2009. The US labor market is improving somewhat and may start posting gains in Q2/10. However, we are still a very long way from the kind of robust labor market needed to regain many of the lost jobs and to bring unemployment back to 7 percent or under. The labor market, improving as it is, will continue to restrain the recovery in 2010. Two other impediments to faster US growth: the housing sector, and the banking sector, both plagued by rising

foreclosures among others. Bank credit is still negative year-on-year in the US for the first time since the 1949. In addition, banks still hold huge excess reserves and are buying US Treasuries in large amounts.

With a deficit over 12 percent of GDP in 2009, and a Debt/GDP ratio in excess of 110 percent and headed higher, Greece became the poster child for (beyond) naughty fiscal behavior, and the financial markets started (finally) to demand much higher rates to finance Greek debt. One recent government debt issues, a well subscribed 10-year note, had a coupon of 6.25 percent. On its third plan/attempt to cut its deficits and get its fiscal house in order, Greece managed to convince the markets and its major Euro partner (primarily tough-crowd Germany) that things

were on track. Greek spreads have tightened but remains high, as is the risk that the cuts and further political troubles may depress the Greek economy beyond current projections, and thus not yield the projected deficit/debt reductions. For now the hope (operative word) is that the recent measures will do the trick and that a European bailout will not be needed. The EU is now on record that it stands behind Greece, if needed, but along with the IMF and specifics unavailable. The Euro (EUR) has been pressured by the Greek situation and a weak recovery is expected among other things.

Greece is of course not alone in its budgetary blues. Most advanced economies, including the UK and the US, have their problems and are being watched carefully by the markets.

Moody’s’ has recently stated that, though not imminent nor very near, a downgrade of the AAA status of the US and the UK was not as distant as it used to be. The GPB came under pressure.

The current debate on healthcare reform and its cost in the US comes at a very critical point in time.

Emerging market economies remain in better shape than their counterparts, though bubble and inflation worries are prompting China to pull in the reins somewhat with very small tightening moves. India also raises its key official rate. The economies of the GCC should recover and post decent performances in 2010, led by Saudi Arabia and Qatar, though Kuwait is in the running and could move ahead once its USD100 billion 5-year plan gets closer to implementation.

ADIH reports net profit of AED17m in 2009

DUBAI: Toshiba receives the Systems and Hardware Vendor Award at the 2010 Channel Middle East Awards. (From left to right): John Maliakal, Country Manager of Saudi Arabia and Libya, Computer Systems Division, Toshiba Gulf and Leon Gifford, Country Manager UAE and Bahrain, Computer Systems Division, Toshiba Gulf.

Toshiba wins award at Channel ME Awards DUBAI: Toshiba Gulf Computer Systems Division recently won the ‘Systems and Hardware Vendor of the Year’ award at the third annual Channel Middle East Awards held at The Address, Dubai Marina. The ceremony hosted

by Channel Middle East magazine gathered together more than 350 channel executives comprised of IT vendors, distributors, resellers, retailers and senior members from the regional IT market.

Toshiba has engaged in a number of activities that covered channel management, incentive and rebates, trainings, introduction of new product portfolio and services, consumer promotions, brand and marketing activities which provided a solid platform to demonstrate Toshiba’s commitment in driving channel growth.

Andrew Seymour, member of ITP’s awards committee and

Channel Middle East Editor said: “Toshiba has placed a strong emphasis on expanding its channel teams in markets such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia to drive partner growth.

The profit incentive program it launched in the region last year has been heralded as one of the best in the market, while the investment it has made in its inventory processes has seen its focus shift from a sell-in model to a sell-out model, benefitting the channel in the process.”

Toshiba has shown channel development to its partners with the mutual objectives it shares with them. Guaranteed returns for channel partners based on margin structure offered, rebate agreements and excellent support in terms of stock movement and management are a few of the exemplary initiatives that resulted in abundant mutual returns.

Direct and consistent quality engagement with the channel has proved rewarding for both Toshiba and key channel partners. The training and development provided to the promoters and channel sales have as well provided consistent advancement of sales staff knowledge with a direct incentive offered to channel sales teams for their exemplary performance.

“We at Toshiba take pride in receiving this honor on behalf of our channel partners, who have equally shown the commitment and support in order for us to actualize all our initiatives,” says Santosh Varghese, Regional General Manager, Computer Systems Division, Toshiba Gulf. “Our partners can trust that Toshiba will continue doing what we say we’ll do, and that means keeping in touch and growing with our partners,” added Varghese.

ABU DHABI: Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH) announced yesterday that ADIH made a net profit of AED17 million (US$5 million) where the Board of Directors approved the distribution of 5 percent in cash dividends.

Rashad Y Janahi, Managing Director said, ‘we are very pleased with the 2009 positive results given the challenging economic environment we currently operate in. This success is attributed to ADIH’s clear strategy and resilient business model where risks were mitigated given the extensive research and due diligence work conducted throughout. Also, by raising provisioning requirements, we will be better positioned to weather any further turbulence from the economic downturn.’

This year’s results are a reflection of ADIH’s prudent methods and entry into diversified real economy sectors that haven’t been affected by the financial crisis. Total income for 2009 was at AED207 million (US$56 million) achieving net profit of AED 17 million (US$5 million). Total assets rose by 4 percent compared to year 2008 to reach AED1599 million (US$435 million) while total equity reached AED911 million (US$248 million) recording 4.6 percent return on capital with AED0.08 (US$0.02) earnings per share.

Janahi further said, ‘I would like

CEO Fawaz Al-Jawder to take this opportunity to thank the Central Bank of the UAE, Ministry of Commerce, our stakeholders including valuable shareholders, investors, ADIH executive management and employees for their hard work and commitment to achieve these positive results given the current economic environment.’ On the other hand, Fawaz Ali Al-Jowder, ADIH CEO said, ‘the great results in the light of a strained financial market are testament of the Board’s strategy to position ADIH as the investment house of choice within the MENASA region. We have incorporated the Abu Dhabi 2030 Vision within our strategy to diversify our

Managing Director Rashad Janahi investment product offering especially in real economy sectors and empowering our human capital.’

2009 achievements The Al-Wataniya Development Fund was launched to develop a commercial office building in the heart of Abu Dhabi’s business district. The fund was successfully closed after receiving significant interest from investors and the project is currently being implemented.

Wellpharma Holding, ADIH’s investment arm in healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors launched the Wellpharma Medical Solutions Fund in November 2009. The fund will invest in the development and

operation of a local production facility that will specialize in the manufacturing and distribution of highquality Intravenous (IV) Solutions for medical treatments.

During 2009, ADIH was able to conduct two fund exits: a partial exit from the Porta Reef fund; and a full capital exit from the Beirut Gate fund. Sales activities in some of the ADIH projects were affected by the current market conditions where delay in payment was experienced and payment extensions were requested by developers. ADIH is working diligently to find and devise solutions for its investors through debt restructure and rescheduling with local and regional financial firms. Having said that, ADIH projects are currently being implemented as planned in Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Qatar, India and North Africa - with 95 percent complete in Porta Reef; 80 percent complete in Areen Homes; 60 percent complete in Sunset Hills; as well as the ongoing progress of infrastructural work in Qatar Entertainment City and India Entertainment City. In 2009, ADIH won the ‘Fastest Growing Company’ from Arabian Business, in addition to numerous prestigious awards for its projects throughout the year. Also, ADIH was selected to be one of the Global Growth Companies, a World Economic Forum community for fast growing companies.

Gulf Bank announces Al-Danah draw date KUWAIT: Gulf Bank continues to offer more draws for its customers with Al-Danah.

The last date to deposit for the second quarter draw of KD250,000 is April 29th.

Customers are encouraged to maintain or increase their deposits to enhance their chances of winning. The Bank will also hold its first quarter draw prize of KD125,000 on April 29, 2010.

In addition, Gulf Bank’s new Al-Danah offers weekly draws of KD1,000 each to

ten winners. Quarterly draw winners are eligible to win KD125,000 in the first quarter draw, KD250,000 in the second quarter draw, KD500,000 during the third quarter draw, and finally KD1 Million during the fourth quarter.

There are various ways of depositing money for ease of convenience.

Customers can deposit their money using the ATM, online banking, Telebanking, event stands in a number of malls or by visiting any of the

Bank’s 51 branches.

Customers can also make free standing orders from other Gulf Bank accounts into Al-Danah, by using the online and Bank’s Telebanking solutions or call the Telebanking service 1805805 for assistance and guidance.

They can also log on to www.e-gulfbank.com, Gulf Bank’s bilingual website, to find all the information regarding Al-Danah or any of the Bank’s products and services.

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

.2840000 .4350000 .386000 .2690000 .2820000 .2620000 .0045000 .0020000 .0782350 .7622180 .4020000 .0750000 .7464460 .0045000 .0500000

.2940000 .4450000 .3940000 .2770000 .2910000 .2690000 .0075000 .0035000 .0790210 .7698780 .4180000 .0790000 .7539470 .0072000 .0580000

US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian dollars Danish Kroner Swedish Kroner Australian dlr Hong Kong dlr Singapore dlr Japanese yen Indian Rs/KD Sri Lanka rupee Pakistan rupee Bangladesh taka UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi Riyal/KD Omani riyals Philippine Peso

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES .2879000 .4375140 .3887350 .2713430 .2846370 .0522170 .0401950 .2645920 .0370600 .2055460 .0030430 .0064690 .0025310 .0034580 .0042180 .0784230 .7640440 .4071680 .0768120 .7481630 .0064330

.290000 .4406030 .3914800 .2732640 .2866530 .0525870 .0404790 .2664610 .0373220 .2070020 .0030640 .0065150 .0025490 .0034820 .0042480 .0789230 .7689150 .4100510 .0773020 .7529340 .0064780

US Dollar Sterling pounds Swiss Francs Saudi Riyals

TRANSFER CHEQUES RATES .2900000 .4406030 .2732640 .0773020

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES Japanese Yen 3.075 Indian Rupees 6.452 Pakistani Rupees 3.421

Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht Irani Riyal - Transfer Irani Riyal - Cash

2.535 4.048 207.300 37.230 4.171 6.416 8.957 0.301 0.292 GCC COUNTRIES 77.120 79.453 751.300 768.040 78.760

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Egyptian Pound - Cash Egyptian Pound Yemen Riyal Tunisian Dinar Jordanian Dinar Lebanese Lira Syrian Lier Morocco Dirham

ARAB COUNTRIES 55.500 52.550 1.296 207.800 408.400 194.000 6.343 35.250

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 289.050 Euro 392.000 Sterling Pound 442.400 Canadian dollar 288.200 Turkish lire 191.300 Swiss Franc 274.000 Australian dollar 266.100 US Dollar Buying 287.000 GOLD 220.000 112.000 58.500

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

SELL CASH 269.700 768.520 4.390 290.200 567.500 15.800 53.100 167.800 54.690 394.500

37.930 6.630 0.035 0.298 0.260 3.160 410.220 0.195 91.300 47.500 4.260 207.700 2.183 49.300 750.690 3.510 6.550 79.920 77.160 208.130 42.340 2.739 444.200 40.800 279.500 6.400 9.290 217.900 78.850 289.400 1.380

10 Tola

GOLD 1,206.150

Sterling Pound US Dollar

37.780 6.450

408.490 0.194 91.300 4.060 206.200

SELL DRAFT 268.200 768.520 4.172 288.700

208.100 52.542 393.000

US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Cyprus Pound Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees

Sri Lankan Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co.

278.000 9.120 78.850 289.000

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 Nepali rupee Yemeni Riyal Jordanian Dinars Syrian Pounds Euro Candaian Dollars

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 442.200 289.000

289.400 288.295 441.350 393.015 270.656 709.340 766.010 78.770 79.470 77.140 408.385 52.643 6.422 3.443

2.525 4.185 6.386 3.132 8.935 6.314 3.994

Currency 750.510 3.440 6.415 79.490 77.160 208.130 42.340 2.535 442.200

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd

Bahrain Exchange Company COUNTRY 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 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

289.050 3.435 6.460 2.545 4.180 6.450 78.760 77.250 768.000 52.550 446.300 0.000032100 4.100 1.550 410.300 5.750 395.900 300.800

Al Mulla Exchange Currency US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

Transfer rate 288.600 392.850 442.000 287.850 3.120 6.470 52.530 2.536 4.171 6.407 3.407 767.500 78.635 77.100

BUSINESS

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Car of the Year 2009:

Hatem El Hage, CEO of Media Box KUWAIT: Media box and RPM magazine have revealed the Best Car of the Year for 2009 by announcing the results of the survey conducted by RPM magazine. Guests arrived at the venue on March 30 to find out the Car of the Year in which a number of esteemed dignitaries in Kuwait were present headed by their the Ambassadors of the United States, Japan, Korea, in addition to the British commercial attachE, the German commercial attachE and the Italian commercial attachE have participated along with a number of valued guests and Kuwaiti car dealers.

Hatem Al-Hage, CEO of Media box inaugurated the ceremony by giving a speech welcoming the guests and giving a brief on the techniques used to conduct the survey to find out the readers opinion on the Best Car of the Year for 2009 in terms of performance and design. Following the CEO’s speech, the show started to reveal the winners based on the surveys. The show displayed the cars selected to participate in each category and then running a video on the 3 finalists qualified for the final stage. For each category one of the guests was chosen to announce the winning car and present the award to the car dealer representative in Kuwait.

The participating cars were classified into 22 categories with three cars from each category reaching the finalists, there were 66 candidates nominated for the Best Car of the Year for 2009. The final results were as follows: First Category: Hatchback Cars and the first place winner is VOLKSWAGEN GOLF, received 23.5 percent of votes.

Second Category: Small Size Cars and the first place winner is TOYOTA COROLLA, received 36.5 percent of votes.

Third Category: Mid Size Cars and the first

place winner is TOYOTA CAMRY, received 30.9 percent of votes.

Fourth Category: Big Size Cars and the first place winner is DODGE CHARGER, received of 26 percent of votes.

Fifth Category: Premium Small Size Cars and the first place winner is BMW 3 SERIES, received 21.6 percent of votes.

Sixth Category: Premium Mid Size cars and the first place winner is BMW FIVE SERIES, received 20.5 percent of votes.

Osama Gholmieh gives the award to Moubarak Al-Sayer for the Dealership of the Year (Mohammad Nasser Al-Sayer & Sons Co).

Astrid De La Rios gives the award to Daren Abel for the Premium Roadster Cars (Porsche Boxter).

Dubai Bank appoints new CEO

Rothschild Mideast exec to join Barclays DUBAI: Barclays Capital has poached the cohead of Rothschild’s investment banking division in the Middle East and North Africa to head the UK bank’s regional financial institutions coverage, sources said yesterday.

Michael Helou, 37, set up Rothschild’s Dubai office in 2006. At Barclays he will be driving the so-called FIG coverage, which includes mergers and acquisitions advice, as well as capital markets coverage for financial institutions.

Helou is expected to start in his new role in the middle of May, one source close to the matter

Seventh Category: Premium Big Size Cars and the first place winner is MERCEDES BENZ S CLASS, received 20.1 percent of votes.

Eighth Category: Compact Size MAV and the first place winner is FORD EDGE, received 16.5 percent of votes Ninth Category: Mid Size MAV and the first place winner is TOYOTA PRADO, received 28.5 percent of votes.

Tenth Category: Big Size MAV and the first place winner is TOYOTA LANDCRUISER, received 39.4 percent of votes.

Eleventh Category: Large Size MAV and the first place winner is GMC YUKON XL, received 28.9 percent of votes Twelfth Category: Premium Compact Size MAV and the first place winner is INFINITY EX, received 18.5 percent votes.

Thirteenth Category: Premium Mid Size MAV and the first place winner is PORSHE CAYENNE, received 20.2 percent votes Fourteenth Category: Premium Big Size MAV and the first place winner is CADILLAC ESCALADE, received 26.3 percent votes Fifteenth Category: Roadsters and the first place winner is PORSHE BOXTER, received 30.5 percent of votes.

Sixteenth Category: Premium Coupes and the first place winner is BMW 6 SERIES, received 39 percent of votes.

Seventeenth Category: Super Sports Cars and the first place winner is LAMBORGHINI GALLARDO, received 29.3 percent of votes.

Eighteenth Category: Luxury Cars and the first place winner is ROLLS ROYCE PHANTOM, received 39 percent of votes.

Nineteenth Category: Muscle Cars and the first place winner is CHEVROLET CAMARO, received 39.2 percent of votes.

Twentieth Category: Mid Size Pick Ups and

Adel Boresly (Kuwait Airways) gives the award to Abdullah Ali for the Hatchback Cars (Volkswagen Golf).

the first place winner is TOYOTA HILUX, received 30.5 percent of votes.

Twenty first Category: Large Size Pick Ups and the first place winner is CADILLAC ESCALADE EXT, received 27.1 percent of votes.

Twenty second Category: Minivans and the first place winner is TOYOTA PREVIA, received 38 percent of votes.

Following the awarding of the winning cars from each category, the moment came to reveal the discovery of the year award which went to PORCHE PANAMERA which is expected to achieve strong success in the Kuwaiti market. Also announcing the best show room in Kuwait which was awarded to

Media box and RPM announce the best of the auto lot INFINITY show room - Al-Babtain and another award was given to the most innovative car dealer in Kuwait VOLKSWAGEN, Behbahani Motors. Whereas the Dream Car award was awarded to BMW, the car dealer of the year was awarded to Mohammad Naser Al-Sayer & Sons. The ceremony was concluded by announcing the Best Car of the Year, where three finalist cars competed for the award: Toyota COROLLA (40.2 percent), Toyota PRADO (39.9 percent) and Toyota CAMRY (37.1 percent). The Best Car of the Year Award was given to Toyota COROLLA.

Dakheel Al-Dakheel gives the award to Abbass Ashmar for the Premium Small Size Cars (BMW 3 Series).

German Commercial Attache gives the award to Sanjay Kaul for the Premium Large Size Cars (Mercedes S-Class).

Japanese Ambassador gives the award to Tony Trantic for the Khaled Al-Faris gives the award to Ghazi Al-Babtain for the Large Size MAV (GMC Yukon XL).

Premium Compact MAV (Infiniti EX).

said. Following its purchase of the US business of Lehman Brothers, Barclays has completed a number of high profile hires in an effort to become a leading full-service investment bank.

In September 2009, Barcap named Rothschild veteran Stefano Marsaglia as chairman of the bank’s FIG division. During his 10-year career at Rothschild, Helou advised on the still-to-be completed merger between troubled Islamic mortgage companies Tamweel and Amlak, as well as the sale of Dubai Holding’s stake in Malaysia’s Bank Islam.

HSBC Saudi unit head likely to step down DUBAI: The head of SABB bank, HSBC’s Saudi affiliate, is likely set to step down from his current role after a little over a year in the job, sources familiar with the situation said yesterday. Richard Groves was appointed Chief Executive Officer in March 2009. “He’s likely to leave, the bank is working on finding a replacement,” said one banker who wished not to be named. Two other bankers close to SABB said Groves would step down as soon as a replacement is found. HSBC, which owns 40 percent of SABB, declined to comment. A spokesman for SABB in Riyadh also declined to comment. The Riyadh-based bank posted a 30 percent drop in 2009 earnings, mainly due to a surge in bad debt.

Iran’s April gasoline imports at 128,000 bpd DUBAI: Iran’s April gasoline imports were expected to be steady to the previous month, showing no signs of slowing down even as top independant traders and international oil firms pledged to stop sales to the Islamic Republic. Iran was expected to purchase up to 128,000 barrels per day (bpd) of gasoline from the spot market in April, or about 15 cargoes, traders said yesterday.

“This is more or less what they will do this month, so far they are still finding ready sellers on

Winners take it all

Khaled and Raghda Al-Faris with the American Ambassador.

in the news DUBAI: Dubai Bank has appointed Giel-Jan Van der Tol as chief executive officer, the Islamic lender said in a statement yesterday, after previous CEO left to take on a new role at National Bank of Oman. Van der Tol joins the Dubai-based lender from Tier One Capital in the Netherlands, prior to which he was with Dutch bank ABN AMRO for over 20 years. He has also held the role of CEO at Saudi Hollandi Bank. Dubai Bank is fully owned by by Dubai Banking Group, a subsidiary of Dubai Holding, held by the emirate’s ruler. In 2007 it was converted into a fully-fledged Islamic bank.

Former chief executive Salam Al-Shaksy joined National Bank of Oman in January.

23

the market,” a Middle East based trader said.

Europe’s largest oil company, Royal Dutch Shell, and top trading firms Glencore and Vitol have halted gasoline sales to Iran. The move comes as US politicians work on legislation to slap sanctions on suppliers of fuel to Iran to increase pressure on the Islamic Republic to halt uranium enrichment.

Western powers accuse Tehran of using its atomic program to develop weapons, while Iran insists it needs nuclear electricity. —Reuters

Jordan ex-minister, mogul go on trial Government says case part of anti-graft crackdown AMMAN: A former finance minister and a business mogul went on trial yesterday in a corruption scandal that has rocked Jordan’s political establishment. A military prosecutor has accused Adel Qudah, a former finance minister, Mohammed Rawashdeh, a senior economic adviser to the prime minister, and Ahmad Rifai, former head of the country’s sole refiner, of receiving bribes and exploiting a public position for personal gain.

Khaled Shaheen, ranked as one of the country’s wealthiest businessmen, was accused of “offering bribes and encouraging public officials to abuse their posts.” Qudah, a member of Jordan’s political old guard, is the first senior government official to answer corruption charges in a country where detention of top figures is rare.

Prime Minister Samir Rifai pledged to fight corruption when he assumed office last December. Critics accused his predecessor of failing to crack down hard enough on corruption, which they blamed for scaring away investors. Rifai’s appointment by the monarch heralded a wider shakeup to ward off popular discontent over economic contraction after years of growth and allegations of rampant official corruption.

Until the latest arrests, moves to tackle graft in the administration and state-controlled companies had been limited to minor investigations and arrests. Prosecutors say Qudah

gained personally during his tenure as the governmentappointed chairman of Jordan Petroleum Refinery when he allegedly sought to give a front company Shaheen owned an exclusivity deal to undertake a billion dollar project to expand the country’s sole refinery.

No money was involved in the deal that never went through after investors withdrew last year after the global downturn.

The media were barred at the trial’s first session in which the four defendants denied the charges read to them by military prosecutors, judicial sources told Reuters. Lawyers contested the court’s legality and said it violated the principle of separation of powers as it was not independent from government. “This is an unjust trial, which is character assassination and a settling of scores among top business interests,” said Ahmad Najdawi, a lawyer defending Qudah.

Shaheen had been for over a decade the government’s contractor of choice for big security projects.

Companies associated with Luxembourg-registered Shaheen Business and Investment Group (SBIG) undertook the construction of a US-funded police academy that has trained Iraqi and Palestinian police. Shaheen’s family concern were also in partnership with government agencies to sell Iraqi oil in the months preceding the fall of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in 2003. — Reuters

24

BUSINESS GLOBAL DAILY MARKET REPORT

KSE ends session with gains KUWAIT: The Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) along with major market indices ended yesterday’s trading session in the green boosted by gains witnessed by a majority of the market’s sectors.

Market indices Global General Index (GGI) added 0.90 points (+0.42 percent) during yesterday’s session to reach 213.76 points. In addition, the KSE Price Index increased by 13.40 points (+0.18 percent) yesterday and closed at 7,536.50 points. Market capitalization was up KD146.855mn yesterday to reach KD35.06bn.

Market breadth During yesterday’s session, 127 companies were traded. Market breadth was skewed towards gainers as 56 equities advanced versus 41 that retreated. A total of 113 stocks remained unchanged during yesterday’s trading session.

Daily trading activity Trading activities ended on a positive note yesterday as volume of shares traded on the exchange increased by 37.88 percent to reach 408.57mn shares. Furthermore, value of shares traded gained by 27.73 percent to stand at KD85.23mn. The Investment Sector was the volume leader yesterday, accounting for 33.01 percent of total traded volume. The Banking Sector was the value leader, accounting for 40.80 percent of total market value.

Boubyan Bank saw 46.44mn shares changing hands at a total traded value of KD26.36mn, making it the volume and value leader.

Top gainers and biggest decliners In terms of top gainers, Kuwait & Middle East Financial Investment Company and Hilal Cement were the top gainers for the day, both adding 9.62 percent. On the other hand, National Cleaning Company shed 8.33 percent to close at KD0.275, making it the biggest decliner in the market.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Four parties eye Garanti stake ISTANBUL: Four parties are interested in General Electric’s 20.85 percent stake in Garanti Bank including National Bank of Kuwait and sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority, a Turkish newspaper said. The other parties interested in the Turkish bank are Spain’s Banco De Sabadell and Volkswagen Financial Services, affiliated with Volkswagen Dogus Finans, the daily Sabah reported yesterday, without citing sources.

None of the parties were immediately available for

comment. Garanti shares were trading 1.37 percent higher by 1220 GMT, outperforming the index of leading Istanbul shares, which traded up 0.63 percent.

Sabah quoted an unnamed banking source as saying a strong rise in Garanti shares since February and banking regulations had deterred potential buyers.

The shares are trading some 30 percent higher since the news first emerged on Feb. 25 that General Electric wished to sell its stake. Turkish equities are also trading just shy of

record highs. GE has received non-binding bids for its stake though due diligence has not yet started, sources close to the situation told Reuters at the end of March.

No banks have come forward publically to declare their interest. There has also been speculation that private equity funds might be interested in acquiring part of the stake. The bank is just under 50 percent publicly traded, while Turkish conglomerate Dogus Group owns 30.5 percent and has first refusal on the stake. —Reuters

Industries Qatar leads Doha to 6-month high

Sectors wise Regarding Global’s sectoral indices, they mainly ended the day on a positive note except for Global Insurance Index which was unchanged during yesterday’s trading session.

Global Non-Kuwaiti Index was the top gainer with a 2.11 percent gain backed

by Egypt Kuwait Holding Company and Ahli United Bank, the top gainers in the sector, ending the day with gains of 4.62 percent and 4.76 percent, respectively.

Global Food Index posted a 1.37 percent increase yesterday making it the second biggest gainer backed by heavyweight Kuwait Foodstuff

Company (Americana) being the top gainer in the sector. The scrip posted a 2.50 percent increase yesterday and closed at KD1.640.

In terms of decliners, Global Investment Index took the top spot with a 0.03 percent drop. Contributing to the index’s decline was Kuwait Projects Company (Holding), the largest investment company in the sector, posting a 2.13 percent decline and closed at KD0.460.

Regarding Global’s special indices, they all ended in the green except for Global High Yield Index being the only decliner. The index ended the day down 0.22 percent backed by

United Ahli Bank ending the day down 1.72 percent. Global Small Cap Index was the gainer, up 1.48 percent backed by Equipment Holding Company ending the day with a loss 2.94 percent.

Market news US authorities want Agility to pay up to US$750mn to settle a dispute over US military bills but the firm hopes to pay less. Agility, the Middle East’s biggest logistics company, is seeking to pay between US$300mn to US$500mn. The Kuwaiti firm said on March 31 that it delayed announcing its 2009 results in the hope reaching a settlement.

DUBAI: Industries Qatar (IQ) led the bourse to a six-month high on Sunday as an end-of-week spike in oil prices boosted demand for petrochemicals stocks, while most other Middle East markets rose on similar sentiment. Oman’s index made its largest advance since early January and Kuwait ended a two-session losing streak, but Dubai gave up early gains to decline for a second day in three and Saudi Arabia eased from Saturday’s 17-month high.

IQ rose 2.2 percent to a 28-week intraday high.

Oil ended on Thursday at its highest close since Oct 9, 2008. “The news coming from the US was very positive and impacted regional markets today,” says Keith Edwards, head of asset management at The First Investor. “IQ is the Qatar stock most sensitive to the global economy, so with the international backdrop positive, it’s no surprise to see it rise.”

IQ will hold its annual meeting today, with the company proposing a 50 percent cash dividend.

Qatar’s index rose 1.3 percent to its highest close since Oct 8. “It’s mostly retail traders in the market - institutions sold up at the month-end, so retail investors are buying now in expectation of these institutions coming back in soon,” said a Doha trader who asked not to identified.

Emaar Properties fell 1 percent after saying it would roll over $1.23 billion of debt into long-term project financing deals. It was up 2.2 percent intraday “I don’t think it’s a big issue - it’s a matter of

Emaar restructuring its debt to a longer tenor,” said Chamel Fahmy, Beltone Financial regional senior sales trader. “The company’s debt-to-equity ratio is still low and Emaar has a low financial risk for investors, but maybe some retail traders misinterpreted the statement and so there was some selling pressure on the stock.”

Dubai’s benchmark dropped 0.5 percent and the Saudi index also declined as volumes fell to a threeweek low. Saudi Arabia has been the top regional performer over the past 12 months, rising 37 percent, although turnover has slumped. “Iran is worrying many investors and there are expectations there could be military action,” said Youssef Kassantini, an independent financial analyst.

“Investors are finding it’s difficult to gauge the risk-reward ratio in the market. Some think it’s time for a correction and technical analysis points to the market being over-run - it has risen faster than company earnings.” On Saturday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rejected a renewed US call to engage diplomatically. AlJazeera Steel climbed 1.9 percent, helping Oman’s index rise.

“Global commodity and metals prices have gone up for the past month,” said Shailendra Singh, investment manager at Oman’s Al-Shurooq Securities. “Steel is key to Oman’s infrastructure spending, so investors believe sector profits will increase.” Chinese steel prices are at a sevenmonth high, rising 12 percent in March. —Reuters

business

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

25

China dismisses Mekong dam criticism at regional summit Tao says drought unrelated to hydropower development

AMRITSAR: Indian chaiwallah Gurpreet Singh prepares tea at the 65-year old Giani tea stall yesterday. Singh sells one cup of tea for five Indian rupees and earns up to 500 daily (11 USD). —AFP

Asian stocks rise on strong US jobs data SINGAPORE: Asian stocks rose yesterday after data showed US employers created jobs last month at the fastest pace in three years, boosting hopes of a sustained economic recovery. US S&P 500 stock index futures rose 0.4 percent in the Asian day after the job report, topping an intraday peak in an abbreviated futures session on Friday. Most cash markets in the US and Europe were closed for the Good Friday holiday when the jobs data was released.

But trading in Asia was lighter than usual, with markets in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and New Zealand closed for holidays. European markets will remain closed yesterday but US markets will reopen for business. US nonfarm payrolls rose 162,000 in March, the largest since March 2007, and only the third time payrolls have increased since the recession hit in late 2007, the strongest signal yet that its economic recovery is on solid footing and needs less government help.

The unemployment rate, however, held steady at 9.7 percent for a third straight month, the Labor Department said on Friday. Economists had expected nonfarm payrolls to rise 190,000 last month, but they said a solid rise in privatesector hiring gave the report a stronger-than-expected tone.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei average closed up 0.47 percent at 11,339.30, after climbing as high as 11,408.17, a fresh 18month peak, as automakers such as Honda Motor and Toyota Motor continued to rise

following a jump in US auto sales in March.

The Nikkei also drew support from the yen’s fall last week to a seven-month low against the dollar. A fall in the yen can help Japanese exporters as it makes their products more competitive and can increase their overseas profits when repatriated back home. The dollar later eased against the yen with traders pocketing profits after the greenback vaulted to its highest in more than seven months earlier in the day.

In holiday-thinned early Asian trade, the dollar rose to near the 95 yen mark, adding to a 2.8 percent climb last week, after the generally upbeat jobs data. The Nikkei 225’s relative strength index is now reading 76. Numbers above 70 indicate a market has been overbought.

Nagayuki Yamagishi, investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities, played down worries that the Nikkei’s rally was looking overstretched. “As long as it rises along with gains in the five-day moving average, an extreme sense of overheating is unlikely to emerge,” said Yamagishi. The MSCI’s broad measure of shares in the AsiaPacific excluding Japan edged up 0.31 percent Indonesian stocks rose more than 1 percent to a record high of 2,882.99, taking its gains to over 13 percent so far this year as foreign investors snap up Indonesian stocks and bonds on strong economic growth prospects.

Dollar firm The dollar started stronger

in Asia on the jobs number before profit taking erased the day’s gains. Markets had been betting on a solid jobs number for much of last week. The dollar eased against a basket of major currencies but edged up to near the 95 yen mark, adding to a 2.8 percent climb last week. The yen was under broad selling pressure with the euro hitting a 10-week high and the Australian dollar striking an 18-month peak in holiday-thinned early Asia trade.

Traders said climbs in longterm Treasuries yields after the jobs report, with the benchmark 10-year yield rising to a 9-month high near 4 percent, also boosted the dollar’s yield appeal compared to the lowyielding yen. Some economists said relatively strong details of the nonfarm payroll report suggested the Federal Reserve could raise interest rates as early as late this year, which would further increase the yield appeal of the dollar. The central bank had slashed them to near zero during the global financial crisis to spur growth.

A solid rise in private-sector hiring also led some traders to believe the Fed may raise its discount rate again at a meeting later yesterday, but most analysts doubted it would make such a move so quickly. The Fed surprised markets on Feb 18 when it hiked the discount rate, the emergency rate at which it lends to banks, by a quarter point to 0.75 percent. US crude futures jumped 1 percent towards $86 a barrel, to their highest since October 2008, after the jobs data. —Reuters

China urges firms to boycott Australia and Brazil iron ore BEIJING: A Chinese industrial group has urged domestic steel companies to stop buying iron ore from the world’s top three miners in protest of an alleged price monopoly, state media said yesterday. The China Iron and Steel Association has asked domestic steel firms and traders not to import iron ore from Australia’s Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton and Brazil’s Vale for two months, the China Net, a government news website said.

China has 75 million tons of iron ore reserves and production of the resource by Chinese mines was up by 18 percent year-on-year during the first two months of 2010, the report said. “At present our steel enterprises have ample supplies of iron ore to ensure normal steel production for two months,” the report quoted association head Shan Shanghua as saying.

The association called for the boycott on April 2 as the most effective means to fight the “monopolistic behavior” of the three iron ore

giants, the report said. According to press reports, Asian steelmakers like Japan’s Nippon Steel and South Korea’s Posco have already accepted massive hikes in iron ore prices this year of up to 90 percent. Agreements by the Asian steelmakers in the iron ore talks have previously served as a benchmark in global negotiations.

China’s Commerce Ministry told reporters last month the state would support domestic steel mills in their thorny iron ore price negotiations even after the Australian government bluntly told Beijing to stay out of the talks. “As the world’s largest iron ore consumer, the interests of Chinese steel mills should be reflected in the negotiations,” commerce ministry spokesman Yao Jian told reporters. For the first time in decades, China’s steel industry and the mining companies failed in 2009 to hammer out a deal on prices. —AFP

HUA HIN: China rejected criticism yesterday of its dams on the shrinking heads of four Southeast Asian nations, Beijing’s Vice Foreign Minister Song Mekong River, telling Southeast Asian leaders that it was not to blame for a Tao denied activists’ criticism that the hydropower dams had exacerbated regional drought affecting millions of people. At a landmark meeting with the decades-low water levels downstream.

“Statistics show that the recent drought that hit the whole river basin is attributable to the extreme dry weather, and the water level decline of the Mekong River has nothing to do with the hydropower development,” he said. The leaders of Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam-the memberstates of the Mekong River Commission (MRC) — convened in the Thai coastal town of Hua Hin to discuss management of the river, on which more than 60 million people rely.

China-itself suffering the worst drought in a century in its southwest, with more than 24 million people short of drinking water — attended the talks as a dialogue partner of the MRC, as did military-ruled Myanmar.

“China itself is also a victim of the present severe drought,” Song told the summit, where the four MRC states signed a treaty pledging to prioritize tackling climate change and responding HUA HIN: Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen (from left) Lao Prime Minister Bounyang Vorachith, Thai to drought.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Vietnamese Nguyen Tan Dung share a toast at the end of the first Mekong The so-called “Mighty River Commission Summit yesterday. —AP Mekong” has dropped to its lowest level in 50 years in northern Thailand and Laos, alarming communities who depend on the critical waterway for food, transport, drinking water and irrigation. More than 60 million people rely in some way on the river, which is the world’s largest inland fishery, producing an annual estimated catch of 3.9 million tons, according to the HUA HIN: Leaders of four countries hit 4,800 km (2,980 miles) later into the forcing salt intrusion, destroying land.

MRC. The commission has by falling water levels in the Mekong South China Sea off Vietnam, the Mekong warned that the health of the What’s causing the dramatic drop in river, Southeast Asia’s longest water- is the lifeblood for some 65 million people.

Mekong Basin and the water levels? way, meet yesterday with China, blamed The upper reaches in China are called the river’s eco-systems could be China blamed the drop in water levels by activists for squeezing the river with Lancang River, accounting for about 44 threatened by proposed dams. Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and percent of its total length. Water levels in downstream on severe drought, which dams and expanding populaCambodia have been affected by the the upper Mekong in China are lower than saw an early end to the 2009 wet season tions.

Mekong’s biggest drop in water levels in they were even in 1993 after a serious as well as unusually low rainfall during the The abnormally low levhalf a century. Severe drought has regional drought in 1992. Thai officials monsoons due to El Nino. But non-govels have raised fears over played a part but conservationists say found the lowest level in 50 years at one ernmental organizations and villagers in already endangered species the problem has been exacerbated by point last month near Thailand’s border the lower stream say dams in China are such as the Mekong giant hydropower dams, eight of which China with Laos. Most of southwest China has contributing to the problem and accuse has built or plans to build in its south. suffered drought since November, leaving China of failing to provide adequate hydrocatfish. At the first summit The intergovernmental Mekong River about 18 million people and 11 million ani- logical data. NGOs, activists and some sciin the commission’s 15-year Commission (MRC) was set up 15 years mals without enough drinking water and entists say China’s dams cause big fluctuhistory, Thai Prime Minister ago but the summit in the Thai resort affecting 4.3 million hectares (10.63 mil- ations in water levels in the Mekong, disAbhisit Vejjajiva warned the town of Hua Hin is its most significant lion acres) of crops in Yunnan, Guizhou turbing the ecosystem and disrupting Mekong “will not survive” breeding and migratory patterns. effort yet to tackle the crisis. Beijing’s and Sichuan. without good management.

Beijing rejects claims it is choking off Tour boats and ferries came to a halt vice foreign minister, Song Tao, is “The Mekong River is being attending along with the prime ministers and cargo vessels have been stranded in the water supply, saying that existing threatened by serious probof Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and Yunnan. The crisis has also raised con- reservoirs are small and that the operation lems arising from both the Vietnam. Here are some questions and cern about falling fish stocks in one of of hydropower stations and use of water unsustainable use of water the world’s largest and most diverse for agricultural purposes upstream have answers about the crisis. and the effects of climate inland fisheries. In Thailand, the world’s little effect on water volume downstream. change,” he said, adding the largest rice exporter, drought has Beijing said the existing dams retain only How bad is the situation on the meeting was “an important destroyed tens of thousands of hectares 4 percent of water flowing to the Mekong ‘Mighty Mekong’? wake-up call.”

Originating in the Tibetan plateau and of farmland and officials warned rice pro- river. Jeremy Bird, head of the MRC, The Chinese delegation flowing through Myanmar, Thailand, Laos duction may decline. In the delta in based in the Laos capital, Vientiane, — as arrived Sunday and met for and Cambodia before emptying some Vietnam, low fresh water levels are well as Thai and Cambodian officialsbilateral talks with MRC agrees with the Chinese, saying there is countries seeking more so far “no indication that the existence of information about the ecodams upstream has made the situation nomic power’s dams, seen more extreme than the natural case”. by activists as being behind the current water shortage.

What is China doing to In a bid to end speculation address its critics? about its river projects, Going on a public relations offensive, China-which has eight China has started providing daily dry-seaplanned or existing dams on son data-water levels, flows, rainfall-from the mainstream riverhydro-meteorological stations in Yunnan recently agreed to share data since March 22.

Officials say China is from two stations during this ready for more cooperation to manage the dry season. river’s resources jointly and has extended During the talks, Beijing an invitation for MRC countries to visit its offered to release further hydropower stations. Thai Foreign information from its mainMinister Kasit Piromya says dialogue with stream dams-which was China has been positive and that Beijing hailed as a “significant step has shown itself willing to provide necesforward” by the MRC sary data to its southern neighbors. In Secretariat’s chief, Jeremy general, Southeast Asian officials remain Bird. Abhisit for his part said extremely careful in their public statements, putting a positive spin on cooperahe hoped China’s cooperation with their influential northern neightion would become “more bor. Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and regular” in the future.

Thailand rely heavily on China for investPriorities laid out in the ment and trade. summit’s declaration included identifying the opportuniWhat can be expected ties and challenges of after the summit? hydropower and other infraHigh on the agenda is better manstructure development in agement of the regional waterway and the Mekong Basin, as well as the rapid fluctuation in water levels, improvements in informawhich reached the highest in 30 years in tion sharing.

2008, causing flooding in Laos and Environmentalist Anond northern Thailand, before the dramatic Snidvongs, director of the drop this dry season. As the Himalayan Southeast Asia START glaciers shrink and more dams in the Regional Centre, which upper reaches begin operations, scienresearches environmental tists warn disputes over water may change, called for the data worsen. Smith Dharmasaroja, director also to be made available to of Thailand’s Disaster Warning the general public and scienFoundation, warned of the risk of tific communities. Thailand geopolitical conflict. “We may see more invoked a tough security law conflicts over water, especially if China and deployed thousands of continues to operate in a manner which troops in Hua Hin to ensure is not transparent. Drought is highlightprotesters did not disrupt ing diplomatic tension and difficulty in the summit, in light of mass sharing resources with a powerful anti-government “Red Shirt” PHNOM PENH: Cambodian children sort shells into a plastic bag neighbor and it will get worse over the rallies in Bangkok since midyears.” —Reuters along the Mekong river yesterday. —AFP March. —AFP

Is China to blame for the Mekong drying up?

26

BUSINESS

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Electric cars win centre stage at auto exhibitions LONDON: Electric cars are riding high, as incentives and new models make them a realistic option, but the fresh attention may highlight flaws compared with gasoline and alternatives such as biofuels. The attention rankles with some in the biofuel industry, whose own hype was abruptly halted by a glut of production in 2007, subsequent bankruptcies and a fall from grace after a link was drawn-which they dispute-between biofuels and spiralling food prices and rising hunger.

Gasoline may beat off both alternatives for decades as the least-worst option, with wider adoption of more efficient conventional cars helping to curb carbon emissions and oil dependence.

The uncertainty is striking for a $5-6 trillion global auto and fuel supply market, where there is agreement only that the number of cars will keep rising, perhaps doubling to 2 billion by 2050.

The momentum is with electricity, following an oil price spike in 2008, lavish government incentives and a crippling downturn across the wider car industry. Last week the United States finalised fuel efficiency standards, following similar rules in

Biofuels make comeback, gasoline may dominate for decades Europe.

Green cars grabbed centre stage at auto shows this year in New York, Geneva and Detroit, including all-battery cars, hybrid varieties that switch between electric and gasoline, and small, more fuel-efficient conventional cars.

Expensive But battery electric vehicles (EVs) are expensive. Mitsubishi Motors and Nissan Motor Co last week announced prices for their i-MiEV and Leaf battery-only electric cars, in production already or about to debut, at 3.98 million yen ($42,520) and 3.76 million yen respectively before state subsidies, several times the cost of equivalent cars.

Reality bites with driving ranges of about 100 miles (160.9 km), far less than for a petrol car which U.S. customers expect to exceed 300 miles.

And electric cars have to contend with the multi-billion-dollar cost of a new charg-

ing infrastructure, although they benefit from running costs at about a quarter of gasoline at today’s prices, according to electric car advocates.

“The electric vehicle sector certainly has momentum, but it’s questionable whether it has the legs for the longer term, at least at the moment, and whether it has enough scale,” said Peter Wells at Cardiff University’s Centre for Automotive Industry Research, who expected big cost reductions.

Success depends on drivers accepting limitations on range and on re-charging time, which takes several hours, said Pierre Gaudillat, research and development manager at the UK-funded Carbon Trust.

“I don’t see any major breakthrough on the horizon,” he said. Customers may have to compromise on what they expect from a car, perhaps tailored for commuting, and from ownership, for example buying the car but renting the expensive battery.

Hybrid gasoline-electric cars overcome the range problem but are still pricey because of their complexity and battery costs. Sales of hybrid-electric vehicles are expected to reach about 1.3 percent of an estimated 67 million light vehicle sales this year, according to the information company J.D. Power and Associates.

Battery-powered, all electric vehicles (EV) will only amount to about 20,000 units, but by 2015 could reach a 0.3 percent market share. The International Energy Agency says EV and hybrids must reach at least 7 percent of global car sales by 2020 to hit targets to avoid more dangerous climate change. Global biofuel production, meanwhile, will grow 16 percent in 2010, according to the Global Renewable Fuels Alliance.

Gasoline may continue to dominate both, especially if oil price rises are muted by efficiency drives. Automakers are already making smaller engines more powerful and transmissions more efficient, while the car-

bon emissions savings of both electric and biofuels are disputed.

“I think oil-based transport fuels have such a competitive advantage and dominance that you need a compelling argument to move to something different, and the case has not been made for what that is,” said Chris Mottershead, vice principal of research and innovation at King’s College London, and former head of climate change at oil major BP. Positive Technologies to replace gasoline enthuse investors, even those doubtful of any climate threat, given the vulnerability of the United States and others to oil prices.

The United States imports over half the petroleum it consumes.

HSBC is one backer of electric, investing $125 million in January in Better Place, a California-based company that wants to build charging networks and lease batteries

to customers.

HSBC climate change analyst Nick Robins stressed a wider benefit, or “positive spill-over”, from electric cars which he contrasted with the negative wider impact of biofuels. Car batteries could help balance electric grids that are increasingly dependent on intermittent wind, by re-charging at night, Robins said.

Biofuels are made from sugar, corn and oil seeds now, and perhaps in the future from grass, crop waste and wood. Rising biofuel demand has stoked prices of feedstocks such as corn, but may only have played a small part in the 2008 food price spike, analysts say.

The oil major Royal Dutch Shell is a big backer of ethanol, striking a deal in February with Brazil’s Cosan to create a $21 billion a year ethanol joint venture.

Ethanol made from Brazil’s sugar cane is economic at an oil price of $40-50 a barrel, compared with $80 oil prices now. That has created an autos market in Brazil where most new cars are flex-fuel, handling any blend of gasoline and ethanol, at no extra cost. — Reuters

UK’s Brown says economy is like injured soccer player Says economy needs recovery time like Wayne Rooney’s foot LONDON: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said yesterday the economy must be treated as carefully as injured England international soccer star Wayne Rooney to avoid the risk of falling back into recession. Brown, a keen

sports fan, seized on the footballing comparison to explain to voters his government’s decision to delay for 12 months the cuts in public spending needed to tackle a 163 billion pound ($248 billion) budget deficit.

LONDON: Conservative Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osbourne attends the launch of the latest Conservative Party poster outside the Conservative Party headquarters yesterday. — AFP

Oil on 18-month high at $86 per barrel Analysts see prices rising through to year-end LONDON: US crude futures hit an 18month high yesterday, climbing towards $86 per barrel on expectations of fasterthan-expected economic recovery. Data on Friday showed US employers created jobs in March at the fastest rate in three years. Non-farm payrolls rose 162,000, only the third increase since the US economy fell into recession in late 2007 and the largest since March 2007. US manufacturing is also expanding at its fastest pace for more than five years, while Chinese manufacturing is picking up and Japanese business sentiment is also improving.

US crude oil for May delivery rose $1.02 per barrel to a high of $85.89 in early Asian

trade before slipping back to around $85.32, up 45 cents, by 1000 GMT. The market was closed for a three-day weekend including the Good Friday holiday. US crude has risen almost 2 percent in the first five days of the quarter, versus a rise of 5.5 percent through the whole of the first three months of the year. Brent crude rose 29 cents to $84.30. The strong payrolls, positive manufacturing data and signs of rising fuel demand are all likely to support oil prices and cement crude in a new, higher range trading, analysts say.

“Our take on crude oil prices in the short-term is that we likely will push higher from here,” said senior commodities analyst Edward Meir at brokers MF Global.

“Technically, there is very little resistance showing on the charts given the upside breakout evident.” Last Thursday, crude oil settled at $84.87 after upbeat US economic data signaled better oil demand ahead, prompting fund buying as the new quarter began. In industry news, US Tesoro Corp said on Sunday crude oil intake at its Anacortes, Washington, refinery was down to about 70 percent of its 120,000 barrel per day (bpd) capacity after a deadly explosion and fire on Friday. Sustained demand for gas oil have triggered a surge in buying of crudes with high yields of gas oil and diesel in the Asia-Pacific market as demand led by Chinese buyers absorbed May-loading supplies. — Reuters

in the news Businessman plans hotel complex in Olympic city MOSCOW: A Russian businessman whose activities have sparked the ire of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin plans to build a huge hotel complex in Sochi, site of the 2014 Winter Olympics, a press report said yesterday.

Telman Ismailov “has heard the wishes of Russian authorities and is ready to provide nearly 10 percent of the hotel space necessary for the Olympics in Sochi,” the daily paper Vedomosti reported. The paper, citing regional government sources, said the facility could comprise 4,000 rooms. To date, however, Ismailov has simply signed a general agreement to invest in the southern Russian city, Vedomosti added. Another paper, Kommersant, said the complex of three- and four-star hotels would likely cost 400 million dollars (296 million euros). Ismailov had built a vast shopping centre in Moscow that was criticized for failing to adhere to sanitation standards and for the presence of counterfeit goods. When he later inaugurated a luxury hotel in Turkey with great fanfare in May 2009, he drew the wrath of Putin, who unleashed a tirade against counterfeiting.

The Moscow market was shut down several months later and Ismailov left Russia. But in December Putin declared that he was not opposed to the construction of hotels in Turkey, but would prefer to see such funds invested in

Russia, notably in Sochi. Ismailov in February travelled to Chechnya, a volatile Russian Caucasus republic, where he said he planned to invest, according to press reports.

Spain auto sales soar 63 percent in March MADRID: New car sales soared by a record 63.1 percent in Spain in March from the same month last year on the back of a government incentive program. A total of 124,756 new cars were registered during the month, up from 76,501 in March 2009 and from 124,302 in March 2008, the Spanish car manufacturers’ association ANFAC said in a statement. It was “the sharpest increase ... in the history of the market” in Spain, Anfac said. It was also the seventh straight monthly rise. Anfac attributed the increase to the government’s subsidy of up to 2,000 euros (2,700 dollars) for new car purchases that came into effect last May. The Spanish economy, the fifth largest in Europe, has been mired in recession since the end of 2008 as the global financial crisis hastened a correction that was already underway in its once-buoyant property sector. Spain posted a 17.9 percent decline in new car registrations last year, following a record drop of 28 percent in 2008 as the country’s worst recession in decades caused consumers to curb spending, especially on big ticket items.

The opposition Conservatives, ahead in opinion polls, say they will reduce public spending by 6 billion pounds this year to start reducing the deficit if they win an election expected on May 6.

Manchester United striker Rooney, recovering from damaged ankle ligaments, is top scorer in this season’s English premier league and carries the hopes of England fans in the soccer World Cup in South Africa this June.

“I believe that securing the recovery is the biggest issue facing our country. That means we shouldn’t take money out of the economy this year,” Brown said in a video message on his Downing Street website, a day before he is expected to confirm the election date. “Let me explain it a bit like this-I know Wayne Rooney’s just had an injury to his foot and I know everyone will be hoping he’s fit for the World Cup. “But after an injury you need support to recover, you need support to get back to match fitness, you need support to get back your full strength and then go on to lift the World Cup. “So with the economy —we’re not back to full fitness, we need to maintain support. If you withdraw support too early, we’ll risk doing more damage.

“That’s why I think it’s wrong to say that we should take six or seven billion pounds out of the economy this year.”

Brown’s finance minister Alistair Darling does not plan to start cutting government departmental spending until 2011, arguing that the economy is still too fragile after emerging from its worst recession for generations.

Brown said Britain risked falling back into recession, “if we try and jump off the treatment table as if nothing had happened.” —Reuters

Meijer grocery express personal shopper, Katie Dunow, loads groceries for Kathy Green in Geneva, Illinois. — MCT

Retailers testing out drive-through lane ou can pick up a hamburger at McDonald’s, your allergy pills at Walgreens, your extra foamy latte at Starbucks and the cash to pay for it at your bank - all without leaving your car, thanks to an American invention called the drivethrough. But when it comes to weekly shopping, aside from regional convenience stores like a drive-through dairy mart, staying in your car hasn’t been an option. Until now.

During the past year, the Chicago area has turned into a retail test ground for mass merchants to experiment with drive-throughs. Sears Holdings Corp started last spring by turning a Kmart store in Joliet, into a drive-through warehouse, renaming the outpost MyGofer. Meijer Inc followed suit with GroceryExpress drive-ups at stores in St Charles and Aurora, Ill. And Wal-Mart Stores Inc. opened its first drive-through at a recently remodeled store in Mount Prospect, Ill. While the concept is fledgling and there are kinks to work out, retail analysts predict that mass merchant drive-throughs will be moving into the mainstream as baby boomers age and the Internet changes the way people shop. “This is our first shot at this,” said Rob Fleener, vice president of business development at Grand Rapids, Mich.based Meijer. “There are a lot of things we’ll do to improve this once we decide to roll it out. Right now, we’re learning as much as we can.”

Wal-Mart hasn’t sent out any marketing materials to let shoppers know about the drive-through site, but instead is quietly testing it as customers ask about it. “It’s just one of the ways we continue to test options,” company spokesman Ravi Jariwala said. Sears is also testing its MyGofer format without advertising. “We are constantly improving it,” said Sears spokeswoman Brenda Storch.

The days of planning shopping trips around

Y

weekend circulars are over, Fleener said. The Internet means shoppers are comparing prices without having to leave home and shopping 24 hours a day. For traditional brick-and-mortar stores, that means finding a new way to compete against virtual merchants, particularly giants Amazon.com Inc. and eBay Inc., that are open all the time.

The rise of the drive-through also comes as an increase in older shoppers forces retailers to adapt, said Mara Devitt, a partner at retail consulting firm McMillan Doolittle LLP. Retail expert Will Ander, also a partner at McMillan Doolittle, said general merchants have tried and failed in the past to figure out how to incorporate a drive-through. Ander was part of a team of merchants studying drive-through prospects at Montgomery Ward in the 1980s and 1990s. It didn’t work because there were too many products.

“The real challenge is, how do you fill a complex order?” Ander said. “You can’t have (clerks) running all over the store.” Sears tackled that problem by eliminating the store and turning the empty shell into a warehouse where workers pick merchandise efficiently. Meijer built a separate alcove with refrigerators, cash registers and sliding glass doors overlooking a small parking lot and dedicated up to six clerks to staff it. Wal-Mart has limited the types of merchandise shoppers could order.

But it is the Internet that is driving the drivethrough movement more than anything, analyst said. Three out of four American adults use the Internet, up from 50 percent a decade ago, according to the Pew Research Center. Even more telling, 32 percent of shoppers ranked in-store pickups as valuable, up from 22 percent in 2008, according to a September report from Chicagobased E-tailing Group Inc. —MCT

Now-shuttered auto factory is a landmark O

n Thursday, the last of of 7.7 million vehicles rolled off the NUMMI assembly line, idling the last of 4,700 workers. But, far from being an industrial flop, NUMMI over the past 25 years became a landmark of American manufacturing - and proof that innovation in heavy industry was anything but extinct. “NUMMI really redefined manufacturing in the United States in many ways,” said David Cole, principal executive with the Center for Automotive Research.

A joint venture of General Motors and Toyota Motor Corp when it opened late 1984, the Fremont plant marked the first time a Japanese automaker teamed up with a US vehicle manufacturer to produce cars.

“NUMMI was an American success story,” said Perry Wong, director of regional economics with the Milken Institute. To its bittersweet end, the quality at NUMMI - measured by a paucity of vehicle defects - has rivaled or topped any auto factory worldwide, according to

workers at the plant and analysts. NUMMI’s vehicles were not among those that unleashed numerous Toyota recalls earlier this year.

When GM and Toyota struck a deal in 1983 to cobble together the oddest of industry couples, each auto titan had plenty on the line. For GM, the Fremont plant was a way to banish its ossified manufacturing practices and learn Toyota’s new ways to produce vehicles. For Toyota, NUMMI offered a US beachhead and immersion in the quirks of the nation’s creaky industrial sector. When the factory’s first vehicle - a Chevy Nova - was produced in 1984, it was not at all certain that GM and Toyota would accomplish their goals.

Both succeeded to a great extent, but maybe not fully.

Some experts think GM was not an apt enough student to avoid bankruptcy, an event that shoved the factory onto a fast track to shutdown. Others suggested that Toyota never became comfortable with the NUMMI union.

“General

A NUMMI worker on the assembly line helps builds a Chevy Nova in Fremont, California, in this 1986 file photo. — MCT Motors did try to learn the Japanese techniques and how to make the operation more streamlined and introduce quality control,” Wong said.

“Perhaps GM could have done better.”

Still, successes far outstripped disappointments,

according to several analysts.

NUMMI marked the first time that Toyota had to deal with an organized work force and the sometimes arcane work rules of the United Auto Workers.

“The big question mark was whether Toyota’s legendary production system could work,

even with a unionized American work force,” said University of CaliforniaBerkeley professor Harley Shaiken, a member of the university’s Institute for Research on Labor and Employment. The answer was yes - even a resounding yes. —MCT

TECHNOLOGY

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

27

Augmented reality puts the squeeze into virtual hugs MEGEVE: Now you really can reach out and touch someone through the Internet, with the help of a wearable robot designed by a husband-and-wife team of scientists based in Japan.

Five years in the making, the device aims to inject a little physicality into online chatter, boosting the emotional quotient of virtual exchanges between flesh-and-blood people. Forget emoticons, those annoying little smiley :-) or frowning :-( faces added to text messages with key strokes.

The quickened thump of an angry heart beat, a spine-tingling chill of fear, or that warm-all-over sensation sparked by true love — all can be felt even as your eyes stay glued to a computer screen.

The proof-of-concept robot, dubbed iFeel-IM! (“I feel therefore I am”), was presented Saturday at the first Augmented Human International Conference, held in the French Alps ski resort of Megeve.

A two-day gathering of engineers and scientists, many from Japan, compared notes on cutting edge research in a field called augmented reality, the realtime enhancement of experience through virtual, interactive technology. Smart phones that tell you not just where you are but what you are looking at, or Terminator-like visual overlays of data for soldiers in battle are both examples.

Several research teams in Megeve also unveiled breakthroughs in the use of brain

waves-captured by electrodes placed on the head — to operate computers or decipher emotions. But Dzmitry Tsetserukou, an assistant professor at Toyohashi University of Technology in Japan, said his aim was to boost feeling, to add a humanlike sense of touch to the incorporeal ether of cyberspace.

“We are steeped in computer-mediated communication-SMS, e-mail, Twitter, Instant Messaging, 3-D virtual worlds-but many people don’t connect emotionally,” he said in an interview.

“I am looking to create a deep immersive experience, not just a vibration in your shirt triggered by an SMS. Emotion is what give communication life.” For now, his

prototype robot is a collection of sensors, small motors, vibrators and speakers woven into a series of straps similar to a parachute harness, minus the parachute.

Connected to a computer, the device can simulate several types of heart beat, a realistic hug, the tickling sensation of a butterfly stomach, and a tingling feeling along the spine. It can also generate warmth. While he could have added a mechanism for sexual arousal, Tsetserukou decided doing so would ultimately distract from his focus on emotion boosting.

Software written by his colleague (and wife) Alena Neviarouskaya, a researcher at the University of Tokyo, ferrets out the

emotional messages embedded in written text, triggering the appropriate touch sensation in the robot in realtime.

It distinguishes joy, fear, anger and sadness with 90 percent accuracy, and can parse nine emotions-adding shame, guilt, disgust, interest and surprise-nearly four out of five times, according to a peerreview study presented at the conference.

“This is really state of the art, there is nothing this accurate,” said Tsetserukou.

Subjects tested the system in the online, three-dimensional environment known as Second Life, inhabited by avatars manipulated by individuals sitting before their computers.

In a demonstration, two people wearing

iFeel_IM! robots communicated at distance through the medium of their avatars.

The words “I am happy to see you” triggers a warm sensation in the person spoken to, and as the avatars hug in their virtual world, the act is mirrored in reality by a squeezing sensation around the waist.

Tsetserukou compared the system to the blockbuster Avatar, and especially the film Surrogates, set in a future when humans stay at home plugged into a cocoon while their healthier, more handsome doppelgangers venture forth into the real world. “In a few years, this could be a mobile system integrated into a suit or jacket,” he said. “It’s not that far away.”—AFP

Vietnam rejects Google hacking accusation HANOI: Vietnam has rejected accusations by Internet giant Google that Vietnamese computer users have been spied on and political blogs hacked into.

The US-based firm last week said infected machines had been used both to spy on their owners as well as to attack blogs containing messages of political dissent.

“These are groundless opinions,” Nguyen Phuong Nga, spokeswoman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told AFP. Vietnam has “specific regulations against computer viruses, harmful software and for ensuring information security and secrecy,” she said in comments received over the weekend.

Google said the malicious software infected computers of users who downloaded Vietnamese language software, and possibly other legitimate software, that was altered to infect the machines.

Leading Internet security

firm McAfee said perpetrators of the Vietnamese attacks “may have political motivations and may have some allegiance to the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam”.

Google announced last month it was redirecting mainland Chinese users to an uncensored site in Hong Kong, making good on an earlier pledge not to go along with the Communist Party government’s censorship rules.

Its decision to defy Beijing was based on what it called concerns over censorship and cyberattacks it said originated from China.

Analysts, rights groups and diplomats say the human rights situation in Vietnam has been worsening.

The country’s restrictions on news media and Internet sites such as Facebook threatened Vietnam’s rapid economic progress, Western donors said in December.—AFP

iPad smashing video goes viral on YouTube WASHINGTON: A video of a group of teenagers destroying a brand new iPad computer with a baseball bat has gone viral on YouTube. The video of the smashing of the 500-dollar device outside a Best Buy store in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Saturday has attracted more than 280,000 views on the video-sharing site.

The Los Angeles Times caught up with Justin Kockott, the 19-year-old high school student who made the video titled “Brand new iPad getting smashed by a baseball bat.” “I wanted to be the first one to do

it before other people did it,” Kockott told the newspaper. “It was just something to do.”

“I knew some people would hate it, but I didn’t think that many people would hate it,” he said. “A lot of people are leaving really bad comments (in the YouTube comments section).”

Kockott told the Times he did not have anything against Apple and had actually bought two other iPads. “I do not at all hate Apple. I love Apple, actually,” he said. Apple said yesterday that it some more than 300,000 iPads on the first day of availability on Saturday.—AFP

German minister criticizes Facebook on privacy BERLIN: A German minister has sharply criticized Facebook’s handling of personal data and is calling on the social network to upgrade its privacy settings. Consumer protection minister Ilse Aigner urges Facebook’s CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg in an open letter “to revise the privacy policy without delay.” In the letter provided yesterday to The Associated Press, Aigner refers to Facebook’s planned changes

to its privacy settings and calls on the company not to allow personal data to be passed on to third parties for commercial purposes without users’ consent.

She says “private information must remain private” and adds that “Facebook does not respect this wish.”

The minister says she will delete her Facebook account if it does not change its planned privacy settings.—AP

SAN FRANCISCO: Boxes of new Apple iPads are unloaded in the back of an Apple Store on the first day of Apple iPad sales in San Francisco, Saturday. —AP

Apple sells 300,000 iPads Lingering questions over longer-term popularity

NEW YORK: Apple Inc said it had sold more than 300,000 iPads on the tablet computer’s first day in stores, surpassing some forecasts, but leaving questions about whether the product can be its next big hit. Shares of Apple were nearly unchanged in early trading after the stock last week repeatedly hit record highs in anticipation of the iPad’s launch on Saturday.

The company said first-day sales included deliveries of preordered iPads to customers, deliveries to channel partners and sales at Apple Retail Stores. A number of U.S. stores were closed for the Easter holiday on Sunday, but some did remain open,

which suggests that total weekend figures will be higher.

Several analysts had expected the company to sell 250,000 to 350,000 units on the opening weekend. The big question is whether brisk sales are sustainable, or whether last weekend’s crowds consisted primarily of hardcore Apple fans and early adopters. At the moment, Wall Street analysts expect iPad sales to reach about 5 million units in the first 12 months. At least four brokerages raised their share-price targets and full-year earnings estimates for Apple following the debut of the highly anticipated mobile touchscreen computer that lets users watch video, read

newspapers and search the Web. For the weekend, Kaufman Brothers analyst Shaw Wu expected sales of 250,000 to 300,000 units.

Barclays Capital analyst Ben Reitzes estimated that Apple sold about 400,000 iPads. Companies found to have supplied some of the key components to the iPad received a boost in trade yesterday.

Those include Samsung Electronics, up 1.5 percent, LG Display, up 2.2 percent, Broadcom Corp up 2.0 percent, and Texas Instruments Inc, up 1.1 percent.

JPMorgan analyst Mark Moskowitz said critical mass depended on future

product generations overcoming current limitations. “In the interim ...

Apple faithful and the early adopters should help the iPad beat subdued investor expectations,” he said in a note to clients.

Susquehanna Financial analyst Jeffrey Fidacaro, who expects a smaller second wave of demand in late April for the 3G version, said the iPad was likely to take share from Amazon.com Inc’s Kindle because of its robust e-reader capabilities.

Apple has plenty riding on the iPad, which it unveiled in January and calls a new category of machine: a lightweight media consumption device that tries to

fuse the best attributes of a smartphone and a laptop. JPMorgan raised its price target on Apple stock to $305 from $240; Kaufman Brothers increased it to $295 from $253; and Thomas Weisel Partners lifted its price target to $280 from $270. Susquehanna raised its price target to $275 from $260, while Barclays kept its unchanged at $285.

Shares of Apple were down less than 0.1 percent at $235.78 in morning trading. Apple added that iPad users had downloaded more than 1 million applications from the company’s App Store and more than 250,000 ebooks from its iBookstore during the first day. — Reuters

Space shuttle Discovery, seven astronauts blast off

FLORIDA: Space shuttle Discovery lifts off from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Fla yesterday. Discovery’s seven-member crew are on a mission to deliver science racks, the last of the crew quarters and supplies to the International Space Station. —AP

FLORIDA: Discovery and seven astronauts rocketed into orbit before dawn yesterday on one of NASA’s final stockpiling missions to the International Space Station.

The launch , the last scheduled one in darkness for NASA’s fading shuttle program, helped set a record for the most women in space at the same time. Three women are aboard Discovery, and another is already at the space station, making for an unprecedented foursome. The shuttle should arrive at the orbiting outpost Wednesday.

Problems with Discovery’s main antenna cropped up as soon as the shuttle reached orbit and could affect the radar needed for the rendezvous, Mission Control said. A spokesman stressed there were other tools to work around the situation. “We probably won’t have answers for you today about what this means,” Mission Control told the astronauts.

In a rare treat, the space station passed over the launch site 15 minutes before Discovery blasted off and was easily visible, resembling a big, brilliant star in the clear morning sky with the moon as

a dramatic backdrop.

Spectators were impressed, and there was a chorus of “Oooooh.” By launch time, the outpost had traveled almost all the way across the Atlantic.

“It’s time for you to rise to orbit. Good luck and godspeed,” launch director Pete Nickolenko told the astronauts right before liftoff. “Let’s do it!” replied commander Alan Poindexter. Discovery could be seen with the naked eye for seven minutes as it shot upward, adding to the show.

And almost as an encore, the exhaust plumes fanned out in spirals across the sky, turning pale shades of rose, peach and gold in the glinting sunlight.

The six space station residents gathered around the dinner table to watch the launch on a laptop computer. “We are absolutely delighted to have our friendly comrades joining us here in a couple of days,” said spaceman Timothy Creamer. “Stand by for a knock on the door,” Mission Control radioed.

Japan celebrated its own space feat with Discovery’s liftoff. Two of its astronauts were circling Earth at the same time, one on the shuttle and the other on the station.

More than 300 Japanese journalists and space program officials crowded the launch site.

The roads leading to the Kennedy Space Center also were jammed with Easter vacationers and spring breakers eager to see one of the few remaining shuttle flights.

NASA officials noted three small pieces of insulating foam flying off Discovery’s fuel tank, too late in the flight to pose a safety concern. The astronauts will survey their ship today.

Only three shuttle missions remain after this one. NASA intends to retire its fleet by the end of September, but is unsure what will follow for human spaceflight. President Barack Obama will visit the area April 15, while Discovery is still in orbit, to fill in some of the blanks. NASA’s moon exploration program, Constellation, already has been canceled by Obama. The launch team temporarily put aside its worries about NASA’s uncertain future and basked in the glow of a successful launch.

“Folks were just immensely proud and happy,” Nickolenko said. “Certainly, in the next coming days and

weeks, I don’t doubt there will be some reflection.”

Poindexter and his crew will spend nine days at the space station, replenishing supplies.

The astronauts will install a fresh ammonia tank for the cooling system, a cumbersome job requiring three spacewalks. They also will drop off science experiments as well as an extra sleeping compartment, a darkroom to improve picture-taking from the lab’s high-quality window, and other equipment totaling thousands of pounds.

All these supplies are needed to keep the space station running long after NASA’s three remaining shuttles stop flying. NASA will rely on other countries’ vessels to deliver crews and supplies, but none are as big and roomy as the shuttle.

The space station will continue operating until 2020 under the Obama plan. The idea is for commercial rocket companies to eventually provide ferry service for astronauts. Right now, NASA is paying for seats on Russian Soyuz rockets. That’s how U.S. astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson got to the space station Sunday, two days after being

launched from Kazakhstan.

Once combined, the shuttle and station crews will number 13: eight Americans, three Russians and two Japanese.

Discovery’s flight was the 35th in the shuttle program to begin in darkness and, barring unforeseen problems, the last.

The mission was delayed more than two weeks because of this winter’s unusually cold weather. So instead of an afternoon launch, the shuttle took off before sunrise, pushing all the action into the graveyard shift. The mission will last nearly two weeks and coincide with the 29th anniversary of the first shuttle flight on April 12.

Most everything went smoothly in yesterday morning’s countdown. A half-hour before liftoff, a failure was noted in the Air Force system for sending self-destruct signals to the shuttle in case it strays off course. A backup line was working fine, though, and the launch went ahead on time at 6:21 a.m. (1021 GMT).

The only shuttle hiccups were a fleeting voltage surge in a fuel cell that delayed fueling Sunday night, and a bad sensor in the main engine system during liftoff.—AP

28

heAlTh & science

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Prosthetics is big business in Haiti

PARIS: A picture taken on March 31, 2010 shows Bounty (L) and Charlotte (R) sharing pet food in an apartment in Paris. —AFP

Junk food killing pet cats, dogs too Allergies, obesity reducing life expectancy PARIS: The junk food and poor eating habits affecting humans is also killing their four-legged pals, say veterinary surgeons and experts.

Allergies and obesity are reducing the life expectancy of Lassies and Mittens nourished worldwide on industrial foodstuffs, said Gerard Lippert, a Belgian acupuncturist for animals who has just completed a study on the diets of 600 dead dogs.

“Pets, like humans, are victims of junk food,” he told AFP. Of the 600 furry corpses he examined “those fed on processed foods died three years earlier than those fed on food made in the home.” Dogs, he added, “originally were omnivores who shared their food with humans.” Rippert said he

was increasingly called on to heal skin, motor and digestive problems as acupuncture was an all-embracing method enabling work on practically all organs.

“Dry dog food and cat food croquettes are overheated, which destroys vitamins, trace elements and other basic nutritional elements,” he said. “We don’t know the origin of the proteins in the foods,” he added.

“And there’s an excessive amount of cereal, often genetically modified, and very little vegetables.”

“We’re turning our dogs and cats into ruminants,” he said.

Laurence Colliard, a veterinary surgeon and nutritionist located in the Paris suburbs, estimates that only

five percent of French petowners cook food for their four-legged companions.

France is Europe’s top pet nation-with 7.8 million dogs and 10.7 million cats, according to a 2008 study by the Sofres/Facco polling institute.

Dogs should not eat cooked or processed food“I’m seeing an increasing number of allergies, diarrhea, vomiting, skin dermatitis as well as cases of obesity, specially amid cats because of the excessively high energy content in industrially-produced cat foods,” said Colliard.

Pet owners tend to favor processed foods because of the difficulty of preparing nutritionally balanced meals, which in an ideal world

should contain some 50 nutrients as well as meat, vegetables, rice and pasta.

An animal’s age, weight and exercise routine also need to be taken into account.

The packs on offer on supermarket shelves also claim as a bonus to reduce nasty urine smells and modify the consistency of animal poop. The pet food industry was born in England where James Spratt produced the world’s first dog biscuits in 1860. Some 150 years later, many Internet sites are calling for a return to natural foods for pets.

BARF or Biologically Appropriate Raw Food is a type of pet diet that consists of raw meat, bones, and organs,” says www.barf.com.

“It is the practice of feeding

domestic pets their evolutionary diet as a way of maximizing their health and longevity.

“Dogs should not eat cooked or processed food,” it adds. “Instead, your pet should consume foods that are similar to a dog’s wild ancestors. This includes bones, fat, meat, and vegetable materials.”

Likewise www.i-lovedogs.com/dog-food-recipes offers tips for natural homemade meals. “It’s only in the last 100 years we have we been led to believe that dogs cannot survive without packaged food. We are told it would be harmful if we were to give them the scraps from our own home cooked meals. This is pure poppycock!”. —AFP

PORT-AU-PRINCE: She stopped, chanced a step, then two. But it still felt awkward and little Stephie clung obstinately to her crutches. “She doesn’t have enough strength in her other leg,” said Fabianna Pierre, the mother of three-year-old girl, who was amputated above the right knee following Haiti’s devastating earthquake three months ago.

“Bend it! Bend your knee to walk better!” the young mother told her daughter.

But it was in vain. Stephie preferred to hop on her good leg despite her shiny new prosthesis. “It’s really difficult. She’s had this artificial leg for three days now but she still can’t do it,” added Pierre. “I really wonder how my daughter will go to school.” The earthquake that shattered so many lives in this Caribbean nation-the poorest in the Western Hemisphere-also tore apart an unfathomable number of limbs.

Handicap International puts the number of Haitians who lost a limb to between 2,000 and 4,000.

A third of them are children, noted Thomas Leblanc, a prosthetics specialist at a reeducation center opened by the aid group in a shopping district of Port-au-Prince, a neighborhood particularly hit hard by

the tremor that left at least 220,000 people dead. The actual number of amputees may be greater, as no systematic count was performed during the first wave of amputations in the immediate aftermath of the quake, said Handicap International spokeswoman Silvia Fommella.

The Haitian Health Ministry is conducting a review expected to be completed soon on the number of amputees. Faced with the sheer breadth of the Haitian amputee population, three reeducation and prosthetics manufacturing centers have been opened in the country, which only had one such center before the disaster struck and changed Haitians’ lives forever. screwdrivers, Drills, metallic tubes, shoes, pots of grease and countless other miscellaneous objects litter the workshops opened by the French organization a month ago.

Handicap International builds six to seven prosthetics each day, around 40 a week, said Handicap worker Albert Saint-Thomas. The centers’ waiting rooms are always full and the group is currently caring for some 300 patients.

“The temporary prosthetics we are currently building are manufactured much more rapidly (than perma-

nent prosthetics) and allow us to respond to emergencies and help patients stand up on their own,” Leblanc said. An adult usually wears two or three temporary prosthetics and a child wears two before receiving permanent ones after several months, according to Fommella.

Long-term follow-up is essential for amputees. So there is a renewed focus on training Haitians to replace expatriates rushed to Haiti after the quake. “I have to let go of the illusion I had when I came to receive my prosthetics yesterday,” said Brice Canelin, who had his left leg amputated. The 28-year-old had expected he would walk to Petit-Goave, a coastal town located over 60 kilometers (37 miles) southwest of Port-au-Prince.

The seminarian was trapped at his study during the quake. He was only rescued over 15 hours later, when a neighbor heard his cries and freed him from the rubble. Three other students died at the same site and another had his arm amputated. “I walk without crutches, but it’s still not normal. I need to stick to my learning routine,” said a beaming Canelin. Before the quake, he was an avid swimmer and went regularly to the gym. “I will continue to do chest dips and fixed bar training,” he vowed. —AFP

in the news US-Russian crew dock at space station MOSCOW: A US-Russian crew in a Russian Soyuz space ship docked at the International Space Station on Sunday, the Russian space agency Roscosmos said. The Soyuz TMA-18 docked successfully two days after blasting off from the Baikonur cosmodrome in the Kazakh steppe with a crew of three onboard.

Arctic thaw frees overlooked greenhouse gas: Study OSLO: Thawing permafrost can release nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, a contributor to climate change that has been largely overlooked in the Arctic, a study showed on Sunday. The report in the journal Nature Geoscience indicated that emissions of the gas surged under certain conditions from melting permafrost that underlies about 25 percent of land in the Northern Hemisphere.

IMAX puts 3D spin on science films with “Hubble 3D” LOS ANGELES: IMAX has returned to outer space with the movie “IMAX: Hubble

3D,” a documentary that harks back to IMAX’s roots in science films, but spins into a 3D, Hollywood orbit. In recent years, the company known for giant-screen films has carved out a valuable business boosting the size of big-budget studio movies like “Avatar” and “How to Train Your Dragon” to suit larger screens, both in 2D and 3D. With its newest effort, however, IMAX returns to its role of offering large-format science films, albeit this time in trendy 3D. Austria to ban solariums for under-18s VIENNA: Austria is to follow Germany and France in banning under-18s from going to solariums because of the risks of developing skin cancer, the country’s ministry for youth said yesterday. The measure, voted unanimously by parliament in November, will come into effect on September 1, the ministry said, adding that operators will have to introduce a system to enforce it. For people under 35 who regularly tan in solariums the risk of getting potentially deadly skin cancer rises by 75 percent, studies have found. Solariums which break the law risk fines of up to 2,180 euros. —Reuters

WHO starts drive for urban health GENEVA: The World Health Organization will launch a major campaign on Wednesday to counter a triple threat to health in fast growing cities, home to more than half the world’s population. The global campaign starting on World Health Day aims to rally 1,000 cities to “open up public spaces to health”, by closing off portions of streets to traffic, to encourage exercise in parks and clean up campaigns.

One of the WHO officials behind the drive, Lori Sloate, said it was important to forge a global movement for action in cities, “while there’s still time because we’ve just passed the tipping point.” The world’s urban population passed 3.0 billion in 2007, exceeding the rural population for the first time, according to the United Nations. By 2030, 60 percent of the world’s growing population is expected to live in cities. Cities are home to a “triple threat” to health, Sloate told AFP. “Infectious diseases is one, particularly in places where there’s lack of water and sanitation,” she explained. Stressful urban lifestyles fulled by fast food, smoking and alcohol also fostered chronic diseases such as diabetes, cancers and cardiovascular problems in congested cities. “This can be exacerbated by the lack of physical activity for example, by increased respiratory

problems through air pollution,” said Sloate.

“Then finally the third is also linked more specifically to the cities in the sense that they’re concentrated there: it can be violence, crime, road traffic and injuries.”

The challenges are also amplified by urban poverty, with an estimated 830 million people who currently live in slums, according to the UN’s HABITAT agency.

“The idea .... was to mobilize the efforts of cities and to focus on the importance of municipal leadership in adressing health problems,” she explained. UN humanitarian chief John Holmes has also warned that some cities housing millions of people in coastal areas would be threatened by rising sea levels with climate change, or in earthquake zones. “The risks of megadisasters in some of these megacities are rising all the time,” Holmes warned, predicting a lot more deaths in future natural disasters.

The biggest megacities include Tokyo, with a population of more than 35 million, and Mumbai, New Delhi, Mexico City and Sao Paulo with more than 20 million inhabitants each. The WHO campaign is backed by a website http://1000cities.who.int with social networking links to encourage community action. —AFP

FDA question Forest, Nycomed lung drug WASHINGTON: US drug reviewers questioned the safety and effectiveness of a proposed lung drug from Forest Laboratories Inc and Nycomed A/S, documents released yesterday said.

Improvements in lung function seen with the drug, Daxas, were “quite modest” compared with those seen with a placebo, Food and Drug Administration staff

said in a summary prepared for an advisory panel that meets tomorrow.

The reviewers also said studies of Daxas raised several safety issues including gastrointestinal problems, potential carcinogenicity, pancreatitis and weight loss.

“Of significant concern are the occurrence of three completed suicides and two suicide attempts,” the FDA staff

said.

The reviewers said they would ask the advisory panel whether the drug was safe and effective enough to win approval. Daxas was developed to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), or “smoker’s lung.” Forest shares fell 2.3 percent to $30.70 in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange. — Reuters

WUPPERTAL: The black-headed spider monkey baby “Azusa” holds a human hand at the zoo in Wuppertal, western Germany on April 1, 2010. The baby was born on October 31, 2009, but was raised by hand after integration problems with the monkey group. —AFP

WHAT’S ON IN KUWAIT

30

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Embassy information Embassy of UkrainE The Embassy of Ukraine in the State of Kuwait informs that it has started updating the information about Ukrainian citizens, who live and work in Kuwait. In this connection, we are asking you to refer to the Embassy and update your file in consular register in order not to be excluded from it.

For additional information please call: 25318507 ext.106 or visit the embassy of Ukraine in the State of Kuwait (address: Hawalli, Jabriya, bl.10, str.6, house 5). The consular section of the Embassy open every day from 09:30 till 14:30 except Friday and Saturday.

A community connection initiative

H

alliburton employees and their families participated in a cleanup of Fahaheel beach near Al Koot mall area. The clean up was sponsored by Halliburton and is part of the Environment Initiative 2010.

Halliburton employees and their families worked together to remove debris and clean the shore along Fahaheel beach on 20thMarch 2010. With their “Energy to Help(tm),” the group demonstrated Halliburton’s com-

mitment to the environment of the Ahmadi Province and surrounding areas.

Attending the event and representing Sheikh / Dr Ibrahim Alduaeej Al-Sabah, Governor of Ahmadi Province, was Khalid Al

Mulla, Manager, CitizenService Department. Al Mulla was impressed by Halliburton’s approach towards this worthy cause and he appreciated the efforts of the team and their desire to promote the importance of

maintaining and protecting our natural environment.

Samer Salous, Northern Gulf Area Manager for Halliburton Overseas Limited, thanked the Halliburton employees and families for their efforts and commended

them for their commitment to this initiative and to supporting similar future activities. Salous also commented that Halliburton’s sustainability strategy to protect the environment aligns with those of the Kuwait government and KOC.

St Peters give send-off to Bishop

T

he St Peters C S I Church Executive Committee, under the leadership of parish Priest, Rev Jacob T Abraham given a emotional send-off to Rt Rev Michael John, former Bishop of East Kearala Diocese, who was present in Kuwait during the Passion Week Services and during the St peters Church’s 40th year Anniversary public meeting. The Bishop is a known writer, able Theologian and a well known preacher. He was Vicar in Kuwait from 1977 to 1980.

Greetings

Brunch at the Movenpick Hotel & Resort Al Bida’a

M

ovenpick Al Bida’a invites you to enjoy the perfect in Breeze Restaurant. It will be special treat for your family. International culinary delights will be available from 12 noon to 4 pm. International buffet, seafood buffet, live cooking stations, BBQ and much more Whilst the parents indulge in culinary delights, the children can enjoy plenty of activities in our kids club such as egg run and egg hunt. For more information and reservations please call : 22253100

Happy birthday Rosalyn F Ringor

Lecture at the AUK

E

nvironmental Graphic Design (EGD) is one of the fastest growing fields in the discipline of graphic design. EGD, which is also called ‘wayfinding’ design, utilizes design methods and processes taught in graphic design curricula to create visual forms (such as signage) to move people and/or vehicles seamlessly through environments or spaces such as shopping malls, museums, highways, office buildings, hospitals and airports.

David Gibson, an internationally recognized published designer, is co-founder and managing principal of Two Twelve (design firm in NYC).

He studied architecture at Cornell University and received an MFA in graphic design from Yale University. Mr. Gibson has authored The Wayfinding Handbook: Information Design for Public Places.

The lecture is conducted in English. Date: Tuesday, April 6th, 2010, Time: 4 pm.

Location: Auditorium, the American University of Kuwait, Salmiya.

KEA medical awareness camp

K

asargod Expatriates Association organized a medical awareness camp last week at United Indian school, Abbassia. The camp began at 8 am and lasted till noon. More than 400 people attended the camp which included free diabetic, blood pressure, eye check up and concluded with an awareness class headed by Dr John Thomas. There was a session of audience inter-

action with the doctor, and he cleared all their doubts.

Chief patron Sageer Trikkarippoor inaugurated the camp and Gen. Secretary Anil Kallar welcomed the audience.

President Salam Kalanad began the discussion in the awareness class, during his speech he insists the audience to change life style with more physical activities and try to reduce mental stress.

Lack of exercise and

increasing mental stress are the major reasons behind the increasing number of diabetes and blood pressure in the gulf region.

Chief guest Dr John Thomas discussed the ‘control and management’ of diabetes.

Program committee convener Sudhan Avikkara gave the details about the camp. Sathar Kunnil, Eng Aboobecker and Mahmood Apsara greeted the audience. Vinod kumar,kabeer Thalangara, Hameed Madhur, Ameerali Shamnad, Ramakrishnan Kallar assisted the attendees for the medical checkup. Health ministry technician Pavithran Sreenivasan, Smitha Ramakrishanan, Bindu Sreenivasan, Sujith controlled the medical checkup. Manoj kumar Udayapuram gave the vote of thanks.

BNP celebrates Independence, National day

B

angladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Kuwait celebrated Independence & National day of Bangladesh on 2nd April Friday at

Green Island Shab Kuwait by arranging a daylong colorful program followed by sports, games, bingo, discussion & cultural Shows. The honorable Ambassador of Bangladesh Sayed Shahed Reza attended as a chief guest along with her wife Shaed Reza. Kazi Monzurul Alam General secretary B n p Kuwait presented the whole program & Mr. Shoeab Ahammad Acting President BNP presided the meeting.

Embassy of inDia The Embassy of India has further revamped and improved its Legal Advice Clinic at the Indian Workers Welfare Center, and made the free service available to Indian nationals on all five working days, i.e. from Sunday to Thursday every week. Kuwaiti lawyers would be available at the Legal Advice Clinic daily from Monday to Thursday, while Indian lawyers would be available on Sundays. Following are the free welfare services provided at the Indian Workers Welfare Center located at the Embassy of India: [i] 24x7 Helpline for Domestic Workers: Accessible by toll free telephone no. 25674163 from anywhere in Kuwait, it provides information and advice exclusively to Indian domestic sector workers (Visa No. 20) as regards their grievances, immigration and other matters. [ii] Help Desk: It offers guidance to Indian nationals on routine immigration, employment, legal, and other issues (Embassy premises; 9 AM to 1 PM and 2 PM to 4.30 PM, Sunday to Thursday); (iii) Labour Complaints Desk: It registers labor complaints and provides grievance redressal service to Indian workers (Embassy premises; 9 AM to 1 PM and 2 PM to 4.30 PM, Sunday to Thursday); (iv) Shelters: For female and male domestic workers in distress; (v) Legal Advice Clinic: Provides free legal advice to Indian nationals (Embassy premises; Kuwaiti lawyers 3 PM to 5 PM, Monday to Thursday; Indian lawyers 2 PM to 4 PM on Sunday); and (vi) Attestation of Work Contracts: Private sector worker (Visa No. 18) contracts are accepted at the Embassy; 9 AM to 1 PM; Sunday to Thursday; Domestic sector worker (Visa No. 20) contracts are accepted at Kuwait Union of Domestic Labor Offices (KUDLO), Hawally, Al-Othman Street, Kurd Roundabout, Al-Abraj Complex, Office No 9, Mezzanine Floor; 9 AM to 9 PM, Saturday to Thursday; 5 PM to 9 PM on Friday.

Embassy of PhiliPPinEs The Embassy of the Philippines wishes to inform the Filipino community in the State of Kuwait, that the recent supreme court decision to extend the registration of voter’s applies only in local registration in the Philippines under Republic Act no. 8189 and does not apply to overseas voters which is governed by Republic Act no. 9189, hence it has no impact on the plans and preparations on the conduct of overseas absentee voting. The overseas absentee voting for presidential elections will start April 10 and will continue uninterrupted until May 10 2010 daily at the Philippine Embassy. Registered overseas absentee voters are advised to schedule their days off in advance to avoid complications in their schedules. Qualified voters are encouraged to get out and vote.

EMBASSy oF NETHERLANdS The embassy will be re-open today.

Fridays and Saturdays are the usual weekend of the Embassy. Opening hours are: SundayThursday 09.0012.00 hrs (visa section) and 08.00- 15.00 hrs (all other sections).

Tulukoota Kuwait family picnic 2010

T

ulukoota Kuwait cordially invites all its members to the 2010 TKK Annual Picnic as the beautiful blue sky and warm sun announce the arrival of summer. Come and join us for a fun filled play day at Mish ref Garden on Friday 9th April 2010 9:00 am -5:00 pm. The day will be filled with fun activities for the whole family. Come out and enjoy great food, and games. This is going to be one of the biggest events of the year, spread the word out and invite all Tuluvas to come and enjoy this day. For more information call: Mohd Iqbal 99483350; Chandrahasa Shetty-55941955; Sathya Narayana-66585077

WHAT’S ON IN KUWAIT

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

31

ExxonMobil supports Diabetes Day

E

xxonMobil Exploration and Production Kuwait Limited announced its sponsorship of the ‘Diabetes Day’ organized by the Amiri Hospital and held under the patronage of His Excellency The Minister of Health, Dr Hilal Al Sayer, at The Avenues mall on Saturday April 3. The ‘Diabetes Day’ is the first of a series of activities that will be held throughout the year by Amiri Hospital to raise awareness on the rise of diabetes in Kuwait, its complications and ways to prevent it.

ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Kuwait Limited President, John Hoholick said: “We are glad to sponsor community initiatives that aim to

create awareness and help reduce the increasing number of individuals affected with diabetes and its complications.

Today a growing number of children are overweight and obese, and this leads to a growing number of diabetics affected because of unhealthy lifestyles. And of course, this directly affects our future generations who will lead our future development.”

Amiri Hospital specialists and nutritionists offered the mall’s visitors with free blood tests, nutritional consultations, special health advice and prevention methods from the Hospital’s dieticians, cardiologists, neurologists, psychologists and surgeons, as well as a fundoscopy

test for diabetes that are at risk of eyesight complications.

Amiri Hospital Head of Diabetes Department, Abdulnabi Al-Attar said: “Many people are unaware that they are at risk of diabetes. Its effects can affect their sight, heart and other health complications. Reaching out to as many individuals as possible during the day will contribute to the reduction of Kuwait’s growing health issues. We thank ExxonMobil for their ongoing support in the making of positive health and social activities a success.” The ‘Diabetes Day’ included the participation of the Amiri Hospital diabetic and pediatric departments, the Kuwait Diabetes

Society and the Kuwait Association for the Care of Children (KACCH).

In 2008, ExxonMobil Corporation, its divisions and affiliates, and the ExxonMobil Foundation provided combined community investments of US$ 189 million in cash, goods, and services worldwide. The corporation’s worldwide spending includes contributions to nonprofit organizations as well as funds invested in workforce development, community investments and social projects through various joint-venture arrangements, production-sharing agreements, projects operated by others, and contractual social bonus arrangements.

Prof Salim delivers lecture about the Holy Quran

Q

uran is the unique and everlasting divine scripture transcended generations; to provide unfathomable insight into our life and to guide us in right direction for the success in this life and the life here after, said Professor M V Salim of Shantapuram Islamic University, Kerala. He was delivering a lecture at Jam Iyyathul Islah auditorium, Rawdha, in a get together function of Qur’an learners organized by Kerala Islamic Group (KIG), Kuwait. Even after fourteen centuries, it remains a divine miracle, unchallenged. The views that emanate from the Holy Quran are in itself a whole world.

The literary artwork is unequalled.

It brings joy, calmness and deep self of understanding to anyone who tries to understand it, casting various examples from Holy Quran MV Salim continued.

Kerala Islamic Group gives prime importance to the learning of Qur’an and conducts Quran Study centers in different parts of Kuwait separately

for men, women and children. New batches for level one, level-2 and advanced courses have just been started in different Quran study centers. KIG adopts scientific method in teaching Qur’an and syllabus are being made to suite for learners of different caliber, explained VP Shaukath Ali, the General convener of KIG Quran Study Center.

Professor Salim distributed prizes for the best unit of KIG which collected record number of subscribers for Madhyamam Daily during its recent subscription campaign. The get together was formally inaugurated by Nusrat Ali, Secretary JIH, New Delhi; PK Jamal translated the Urdu speech in to Malayalam. Quran Study Centre convenor VP Shoukath Ali, presided over the function. Earlier the function started with recitation of verses from Holy Quran by Fouad Shaukath, KIG secretary M K Najeeb welcomed the gathering. The program ended with a concluding speech

by KIG president Sakeer Hussain.

Khidma service centers and Castrol reward their customers

K

hidma service centers, with its 36 locations at Soor petrol stations around Kuwait and in collaboration with Castrol Lubricants, have announced the first lucky winner of one of 3 grand prizes in the ongoing campaign “Score a goal every time with Castrol”.

Mohammed Elloumi, Business Director of Al Futooh International Group, the official distributor of Castrol Kuwait, handed the winner Feda Ahmad Golam the keys to a brand new car last week in an event attended by a representative of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Elie Zoghb, Divisional General Manager of Al Mulla Group, operators of Khidma.

This grand prize is the first in the exciting “Score a goal every time with Castrol” campaign that also offers all Castrol customers who change engine oil and filter in Khidma centers instant scratch and win coupons. Thousands of instant prizes are

up for grabs throughout the campaign, including LCD TVs, BlackBerry mobiles and refuel cards in addition to sport backpacks, caps and official World Cup footballs.

In addition, all Castrol customers get coupons which qualify them to enter the draw for the remaining two grand prizes of 2010 model cars. These lucky owners will be announced in the upcoming draws in the first weeks of April and May respectively.

Commenting on the event, Elloumi said: “We are pleased to reward our customers for their loyalty to quality and performance, the same values that represent the Castrol brand. Our partnership with Castrol gives us the chance to offer our customers high-tech products and services of a brand that speaks the people’s language as an official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup”.

Zoghb, clarified: “This campaign reflects our continuous commitment at

Khidma Service Centers to offer the best.

Oil and filter changing has never been as convenient, exciting and rewarding. With 36 centers easily accessible at Soor petrol stations, we ensure that our customers experience a unique and comprehensive set of services with efficiency, convenience and proximity”.

Khidma services all makes and models of vehicles, using the world’s best brands of quality spare parts and lubricants plus an integrated ensemble of fast auto services in 20 minutes including: changing filter and engine oil, gear and brake oil; in addition to checking vital points such as the level of water in the radiator, battery, lights, tyre air pressure and air engine cleaning. Khidma centers open 7 days a week from 7am to 9pm and. The 36 centers which cover industrial and residential areas all over Kuwait are convenient and save time and effort for the customer.

IMA youth wing conference day science exhibition

I

ndian Muslim Association YOUTH WING is glad to announce that it will conduct a Science Exhibition on the day of its “Youth conference” on the theme FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT, which will be held at the Masjid Kabir [Grand Mosque] on 23rd April 2010. Students of all Indian Schools in Kuwait are invited to take part in the exhibition by presenting their models.

Date of Exhibition: 23rd April ● Last date for registration: 10th April ● Last date for submission: 20th April

Timings: 4PM - 6PM Venue: Masjid Al Kabir Scope: Students of all Indian Schools in Kuwait.

Open to all irrespective of religion and nationality.

Participants: Students from class 7th class 12th Topics: ● Global Warming ● Quran & Science ● Way / Path to Success ● Islam’s Contribution to Medical Science Requirements: All participants have to prepare a model based on the given topics. The models can be prepared by a group of maximum 2 members. Help can be taken ● ●

from their parents, teachers & also from the Internet.

The best of the models will be displayed on the conference day at Masjid Al Kabir. All the participants whose model shall be displayed on the conference day will have to come to Masjid Al Kabir to present their Model.

Conditions: 1. The participants will have to register on or before 6th of April either by visiting the following link of our website http://www.imayouthwing.o rg/science-expo.asp or by phone on following numbers: Mohammed Zabhi (99418088), Riyaz

Ahmed (99629394) and Faheemuddin (66364720).

2. All participants have to be present on the conference day.

3. Prizes will be given on the conference day.

4. For submission of models the participants will be informed by email or by SMS with all the details.

5. The participants of the selected models for the exhibition will be contacted on or before 21st April to confirm their attendance on the conference day. If the participant is not available before 4pm on the conference day then his/her model will be disqualified.

TV PROGRAMS

32

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Orbit / Showtime Listings 13:30 Phineas & Ferb 14:00 Zeke & Luther 14:30 The Suite Life of Zack & Cody 15:00 American Dragon 15:30 Kid vs Kat 16:00 Phineas & Ferb 16:30 K9 ADVENTURES 17:00 Suite Life On Deck 17:30 Aaron Stone 18:00 Iron Man: Armoured Adventures 18:25 Kid vs Kat 18:50 NEXT X EUROPE 19:00 Zeke & Luther 19:30 The Suite Life of Zack & Cody 20:00 American Dragon

00:00 ER 01:00 The Unusuals 02:00 Life 03:00 One Tree Hill 04:00 The Unusuals 05:00 Supernatural 06:00 CSI 07:00 ER 08:00 Hawthorne 09:00 Saving Grace 10:00 Life 11:00 One Tree Hill 12:00 CSI 13:00 Supernatural 14:00 Life 15:00 Dawson’s Creek 16:00 Hawthorne 17:00 Saving Grace 18:00 ER 19:00 CSI 20:00 Dollhouse 21:00 Flash Forward 22:00 Burn Notice 23:00 The Janice Dickinson Modelling Agency

00:45 Animal Cops Phoenix 01:40 Untamed & Uncut 02:35 Human Prey 03:30 Animal Cops Houston 04:25 Miami Animal Police 05:20 Going Ape 05:45 Animal Battlegrounds 06:10 E-Vets: The Interns 06:35 RSPCA: On the Frontline 07:00 Wildlife SOS 07:25 Pet Rescue 07:50 Planet Earth 08:45 Austin Stevens: Most Dangerous...

09:40 Britain’s Worst Pet 10:05 All New Planet’s Funniest Animals 10:30 All New Planet’s Funniest Animals 10:55 Going Ape 11:20 Planet Wild 11:50 Miami Animal Police 12:45 E-Vets: The Interns 13:10 Pet Rescue 13:40 Animal Cops Houston 14:35 Wildlife SOS 15:00 RSPCA: On the Frontline 15:30 Planet Earth 16:25 All New Planet’s Funniest Animals 16:50 All New Planet’s Funniest Animals 17:20 Britain’s Worst Pet 17:45 Animal Battlegrounds 18:15 Cell Dogs 19:10 Planet Earth 20:10 Animal Cops Phoenix 21:05 Untamed & Uncut 22:00 Cell Dogs 22:55 Animal Cops Houston 23:50 Planet Earth

00:45 The Ship 01:40 Red Dwarf 02:10 Red Dwarf 02:45 Holby City 03:45 Holby City 04:45 The Ship 05:35 Bargain Hunt 06:20 Teletubbies 06:45 Me Too 07:05 Tweenies 07:25 Teletubbies 07:50 Me Too 08:10 Tweenies 08:30 Teletubbies 08:55 Me Too 09:15 Tweenies 09:40 Bargain Hunt 10:25 The Ship 11:15 Red Dwarf 11:45 Red Dwarf 12:15 The Weakest Link 13:00 Eastenders 13:30 Doctors 14:00 Bargain Hunt 14:45 Cash In The Attic 15:15 Red Dwarf 15:45 Red Dwarf 16:15 The Weakest Link 17:00 Doctors 17:30 Eastenders 18:00 Holby City 19:00 Holby City 20:00 The Weakest Link 20:45 Doctors 21:15 Eastenders 21:45 The Inspector Lynley Mysteries 22:40 Recovery

00:15 Daily Cooks Challenge 00:45 Come Dine With Me 01:15 Saturday Kitchen 01:40 Saturday Kitchen 02:05 Cash In The Attic USA 02:30 Cash In The Attic USA 02:50 How To Find A Husband 03:35 Rick Stein’s Mediterranean Escapes 04:25 Daily Cooks Challenge 04:50 Cash In The Attic USA 05:15 Hidden Potential 05:35 How To Find A Husband 06:20 Rick Stein’s Mediterranean Escapes 07:10 Daily Cooks Challenge 07:40 Cash In The Attic USA 08:00 Cash In The Attic USA 08:20 Bargain Hunt 09:05 Antiques Roadshow 09:55 Antiques Roadshow 10:45 Cash In The Attic USA

Johnny Mad Dog on Show Movies 11:10 Hidden Potential 11:35 Saturday Kitchen 12:00 Saturday Kitchen 12:25 Cash In The Attic USA 12:45 Cash In The Attic USA 13:05 Cash In The Attic USA 13:25 How To Find A Husband 14:10 Bargain Hunt 14:55 Bargain Hunt 15:40 Antiques Roadshow 16:30 Cash In The Attic USA 16:55 Hidden Potential 17:20 Saturday Kitchen 17:50 Saturday Kitchen 18:15 Cash In The Attic USA 18:35 Cash In The Attic USA 18:55 Antiques Roadshow 19:45 Daily Cooks Challenge 20:15 Come Dine With Me 20:40 MasterChef Goes Large 21:10 Big Chef Takes On Little Chef 22:00 Bargain Hunt 22:45 10 Years Younger 23:30 Rick Stein’s Mediterranean Escapes

Quadrophenia-18 Elite Squad-18 Liberty Heights-18 Max And Co.-PG Janis-PG A Few Good Men-PG15 I Love You, I Love You Not-

01:00 03:00 05:00 07:30 09:00 10:45 13:00 PG15 15:00 17:00 19:00 PG15 21:00 23:00

Yasmin-PG15 I Want You-18

00:00 00:30 01:00 02:00 02:55 03:50 04:20 04:45 05:40 06:05 07:00 07:30 07:55 08:20 09:15 10:10 11:05 12:00 12:30 12:55 13:20 14:15 15:10 16:05 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:30 20:00 20:30 21:00 22:00 23:00

Border Security Destroyed in Seconds Miami Ink Street Customs 2008 Twist the Throttle Mean Machines Mean Machines Mythbusters How Stuff’s Made Dirty Jobs Mean Machines Mean Machines Ultimate Biker Challenge Street Customs 2008 Mythbusters Ultimate Survival Twist the Throttle Border Security How it’s Made How Stuff’s Made American Chopper Miami Ink Mythbusters Dirty Jobs Verminators Border Security Street Customs 2008 Destroyed in Seconds How it’s Made How Stuff’s Made Street Customs Berlin Mega Engineering Extreme Explosions

00:30 01:20 02:10 03:00 03:50 04:45 05:10 05:40 06:10 07:00 08:00 World 09:00 09:55 10:20 10:50

Wendy And Lucy-PG15 Max-PG15 Dialogue Avec Mon Jardinier-

Nextworld NYC: Inside Out Kings of Construction Beyond Tomorrow Cosmic Collisions How Stuff’s Made Green Wheels One Step Beyond Nextworld Junkyard Mega-Wars How Techies Changed the NYC: Inside Out How Stuff’s Made Stunt Junkies Nextworld

11:45 12:10 12:40 World 13:35 14:30 15:25 15:55 16:50 17:45 18:40 19:30 19:55 20:20 20:45 21:10 22:00 22:50 23:15 23:40

Green Wheels One Step Beyond How Techies Changed the NYC: Inside Out Mighty Ships How Stuff’s Made Junkyard Mega-Wars Brainiac The Greatest Ever Ecopolis Green Wheels Green Wheels How It’s Made How It’s Made Mythbusters Specials Ecopolis Green Wheels Green Wheels The Greatest Ever

00:00 Hannah Montana 00:20 Handy Manny 00:45 Lazytown 01:10 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 01:35 Imagination Movers 02:00 Special Agent Oso 02:25 Suite Life On Deck 02:45 Replacements 03:10 American Dragon 03:35 Kim Possible 04:00 Famous Five 04:25 Fairly Odd Parents 04:45 Phineas & Ferb 05:10 Fairly Odd Parents 05:35 Suite Life On Deck 06:00 Higglytown Heroes 06:10 Handy Manny 06:35 Lazytown 07:00 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 07:20 Imagination Movers 07:45 Special Agent Oso 08:10 Fairly Odd Parents 08:35 Suite Life On Deck 09:00 Wizards Of Waverly Place 09:25 Sonny With A Chance 09:45 Jonas 10:10 Hannah Montana 10:30 Cheetah Girls: One World 12:10 Suite Life On Deck 12:35 Replacements 12:55 American Dragon 13:20 Kim Possible 13:40 Famous Five 14:05 Fairly Odd Parents 14:30 Phineas & Ferb 15:00 Tinkerbell And The Lost Treasure 16:25 Sonny With A Chance 16:45 Fairly Odd Parents 17:10 Phineas & Ferb 17:35 Suite Life On Deck 18:00 Wizards Of Waverly Place 18:25 Hannah Montana 18:45 The Replacements 19:00 Jonas 19:25 Suite Life On Deck 19:50 Sonny With A Chance 20:15 Hannah Montana 20:35 Wizards Of Waverly Place 21:00 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 21:25 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 21:45 The Replacements 22:00 Fairly Odd Parents 22:25 Suite Life On Deck 22:50 Wizards Of Waverly Place

06:00 American Dragon 06:25 Power Rangers Jungle Fury 06:50 Kid vs Kat 07:15 Phineas & Ferb 07:40 The Suite Life of Zack & Cody 08:05 American Dragon 08:30 Pokemon DP: Battle Dimension 09:00 Phineas & Ferb 09:30 Zeke & Luther 10:00 Phil Of The Future 10:30 Suite Life On Deck 11:00 Kid vs Kat 11:30 Power Rangers Jungle Fury 12:00 Aaron Stone 12:25 The Suite Life of Zack & Cody 12:50 Pokemon DP: Battle Dimension 13:20 NEXT X EUROPE

00:15 Streets Of Hollywood 00:40 Ths 01:30 Extreme Hollywood 02:20 Sexiest 03:15 Ths 05:05 Dr 90210 06:00 Ths 07:45 Style Star 08:10 Style Star 08:35 E! News 09:00 The Daily 10 09:25 E!es 09:50 Pretty Wild 10:15 Ths 11:05 Ths 12:00 E! News 12:25 The Daily 10 12:50 Kendra 13:15 Kendra 13:40 20 Acts Of Love Gone Wrong 15:25 Behind The Scenes 15:50 Behind The Scenes 16:15 E!es 17:10 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 18:00 E! News 18:25 The Daily 10 18:50 Streets Of Hollywood 19:15 Battle Of The Hollywood Hotties 19:40 E!es 20:05 E!es 20:30 E! Investigates 21:20 Kendra 21:45 Kendra 22:10 E! News 22:35 The Daily 10 23:00 Dr 90210 23:50 Wildest Tv Show Moments

00:00 00:00 01:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 05:00 06:00 06:00 07:00 07:00 08:00 08:00 09:00 09:00 10:00 10:00 11:00 11:00 12:00 12:40 13:00 14:00 14:20 15:00 16:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 20:00 20:00 21:00 21:00 22:00 23:00 23:00

Food Network Challenge Great British Menu Grill It! with Bobby Flay Iron Chef America Grill It! with Bobby Flay Barefoot Contessa Iron Chef America Barefoot Contessa Chopped Nigella Express Everyday Italian Nigella Express Great British Menu Iron Chef America Special Giada At Home Iron Chef America Chopped Nigella Express Kitchen Criminals Nigella Express Barefoot Contessa Best Thing I Ever Ate Food Network Challenge Barefoot Contessa Iron Chef America Teleshopping Kitchen Criminals Teleshopping Grill It! with Bobby Flay Teleshopping Teleshopping Barefoot Contessa Barefoot Contessa Teleshopping Teleshopping Tyler’s Ultimate Tyler’s Ultimate Food Network Challenge Throwdown With Bobby Flay

00:30 01:20 02:10 03:05 04:00 04:55 05:20 06:10 06:35 07:00 07:50 08:40 09:30 10:20 11:10 12:00 12:50 13:40 14:30 15:20 16:10 17:00 17:50 18:40 19:30 20:20 21:10

A Haunting FBI Files Forensic Justice Dr G: Medical Examiner Forensic Detectives Real Emergency Calls Dr G: Medical Examiner Ghosthunters Ghosthunters Forensic Detectives FBI Files Disappeared Solved Forensic Detectives FBI Files Guilty Or Innocent?

Diagnosis: Unknown Fugitive Strike Force Forensic Detectives FBI Files Disappeared Solved Forensic Detectives FBI Files Guilty Or Innocent?

Diagnosis: Unknown Fugitive Strike Force

01:10 02:40 04:15 05:55

Love Chronicles Love, Cheat & Steal Mad Dog Coll Marshal Law

07:30 09:20 11:10 12:40 14:10 15:30 17:10 18:40 20:10 22:00

00:00 00:30 01:30 02:30 03:30 04:00 04:30 05:00 05:30 06:00 06:30 07:30 08:30 09:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12:00 12:30 13:30 14:00 14:30 15:30 16:00 16:30 17:00 17:30 18:00 18:30 19:30 20:00 20:30 21:30 22:00 22:30 23:00

Juggernaut The Field My American Cousin Far North The Trip Prancer Nobody’s Perfect Mannequin Of Mice And Men Made In USA

Chasing Time Lonely Planet Departures Cruise Ship Diaries Bondi Rescue Destination Extreme Surfer’s Journal Treks In A Wild World Madventures Chasing Time Lonely Planet Departures Cruise Ship Diaries Bondi Rescue Destination Extreme Surfer’s Journal Treks In A Wild World Madventures Chasing Time Lonely Planet Weird And Wonderful Hotels Weird And Wonderful Hotels Cruise Ship Diaries Bondi Rescue Destination Extreme Surfer’s Journal Treks In A Wild World Madventures Chasing Time Lonely Planet Weird And Wonderful Hotels Weird And Wonderful Hotels Cruise Ship Diaries Bondi Rescue Destination Extreme Surfer’s Journal Treks In A Wild World

00:00 Billable Hours 00:30 The Office 01:00 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 01:30 The Colbert Report 02:00 Best of Late night with Jimmy Fallon 03:00 Monday night Stand Up 04:30 South park 05:00 Billable Hours 05:30 Best of Late night with Jimmy Fallon 06:30 Everybody Loves Raymond 07:00 Just Shoot me!

07:30 Malcolm in the Middle 08:00 Frasier 08:30 Yes dear 09:00 The Nanny 09:30 Drew Carey 10:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 10:30 Just Shoot me!

11:00 Frasier 11:30 Eight Simple Rules 12:00 Best of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson 13:00 The Office 13:30 Yes dear 14:00 The Nanny 14:30 Malcolm in the Middle 15:00 Billable Hours 15:30 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 16:00 The Colbert Report 16:30 Drew Carey 17:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 17:30 Frasier 18:00 Eight Simple Rules 18:30 Just Shoot me!

19:00 Scrubs 19:30 The Office 20:00 Late night with Jimmy Fallon 21:00 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 Reno 911

08:00 10:00 12:00 14:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00

Closed For Winter-PG15 God Grew Tired Of Us-PG15 The Brothers Bloom-PG15 Capturing Mary-PG15 Closed For Winter-PG15 Meet Bill-PG15 Keith-PG15 Death Race-18

01:00 Mean Machine-18 03:00 No Escape-PG15 05:00 Netherbeast Incorporated-PG15 07:00 Rock Monster-PG15 09:00 Devil’s Diary-PG15 11:00 Room 6-PG15 13:00 High Crimes-PG15 15:00 Devil’s Diary-PG15 17:00 House Of Fallen-PG15 19:00 New Town Killers-PG 21:00 Behind Enemy Lines: Columbia-PG15 23:00 Dark Ride-18

00:00 02:00 04:00 06:00 08:00 10:00 12:00 14:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00

She’s The One-PG15 Ira And Abby-PG15 Ping Pong Playa-PG15 Child Star-PG15 Sabrina-PG Heavyweights-PG Loins Of Punjab Presents-PG The Coneheads-PG15 She’s The One-PG15 In And Out-PG15 Finding Bliss-18 Surfer Dude-PG15

00:00 Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs-FAM 02:00 Space Chimps-PG 04:00 The Gold Retrievers-PG 06:00 Sunshine Barry And The DiscoPG 08:00 Barbie In The 12 Dancing Princesses-FAM 10:00 The Gold Retrievers-PG 12:00 Christopher’s Dream-FAM 14:00 Space Chimps-PG 16:00 Max Keeble’s Big Movie-PG 18:00 Velveteen Rabbit-FAM 20:00 Soccer Dog-PG 22:00 Christopher’s Dream-FAM

00:00 01:00 02:00 02:30 03:00 04:00 04:30

Ugly Betty Desperate Housewives Sex and the City Sex and the City Survivor : Samoa Every Body Loves Raymond Coach

05:00 06:00 06:30 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 13:30 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00 23:30

24 Emmerdale Coronation Street Law & Order Every Body Loves Raymond Coach Survivor : Samoa 24 Law & Order Emmerdale Coronation Street Every Body Loves Raymond Coach Ugly Betty Desperate Housewives 24 Survivor : Samoa Emmerdale Coronation Street C.S.I: NY C.S.I: NY Law & Order 24 Sex and the City Sex and the City

00:00 Premier League Review Show 01:30 Premier League 03:30 Premier League Review Show 05:00 Premier League 07:00 Premier League Review Show 08:30 Premier League 10:30 Premier League 12:30 Premier League Review Show 14:00 Premier League 16:00 Premier League Classics 16:30 Premier League Classics 17:00 Scottish Premier League Highlights 17:30 Premier League World 18:00 Premier League 20:00 Portugol 20:30 Brazil League Highlights 21:00 Premier League Classics 21:30 Premier League World 22:00 Scottish Premier League Highlights 22:30 Goals Goals Goals 23:00 Premier League

01:00 The X-Files: I Want To BelievePG15 03:00 Dr. Dolittle: Million Dollars Mutts-PG 05:00 Frame Of Mind-PG15 07:00 Familiar Strangers-PG 09:00 High School Musical 3: Senior Year-PG 11:00 Last Of The Romantics-PG15 13:00 The Visitor-PG15 15:00 Barack Obama: The Man And His Journey-PG 17:00 High School Musical 3: Senior Year-PG 19:00 Broken Lines-PG15 21:00 All Good Things-PG15 23:00 The Strangers-PG15

01:20 01:45 03:30 04:00 06:20 07:00 08:40 11:25 13:30 15:10 17:00 17:30 19:45 22:00 23:25

The Screening Room Travels With My Aunt The Screening Room 2001: A Space Odyssey The Screening Room To Have And Have Not Grand Prix Khartoum Forbidden Planet The Sunshine Boys The Screening Room Anchors Aweigh 2001: A Space Odyssey Vampira Lost Angels

00:30 01:20 02:10 03:00 03:55 04:50 05:40 06:30 07:20 08:10 09:00 09:55 10:50 11:40 12:30 13:20 14:10 15:00 15:55 16:50 17:40 18:30 19:20 20:10 21:00 21:55

Deep Sea Detectives Warriors Modern Marvels Deep Sea Salvage Ax Men Battle Stations Battle 360 Deep Sea Detectives Warriors Modern Marvels Deep Sea Salvage Ax Men Battle Stations Battle 360 Deep Sea Detectives Warriors Modern Marvels Deep Sea Salvage Ax Men Battle Stations Battle 360 Deep Sea Detectives Warriors Modern Marvels The Sinking of the Royal Oak The American Revolution

00:00 01:00 01:30 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 05:30 06:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 09:30 10:00 11:00 12:00

Dr 90210 Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane The Dish How Do I Look?

Split Ends Dr 90210 Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane Area How Do I Look?

Style Star Style Her Famous My Celebrity Home Style Star Dress My Nest Peter Perfect Whose Wedding Is it Anyway?

Ruby: The First 100 Pounds

00:00 The Martha Stewart Show 01:00 10 Years younger 01:30 Turn Back Your Body Clock 02:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 03:00 Moms Get Real / Now you know / Amplified 04:00 The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (Best Of) 05:00 GMA (repeat) 07:00 Parenting 07:30 Popcorn 08:00 The Martha Stewart Show 09:00 Turn Back Your Body Clock 09:30 10 Years Younger 10:00 The Best of Jimmy Kimmel 11:00 The View (repeat) 12:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 13:00 The Martha Stewart Show 14:00 GMA Live 16:00 GMA Health 16:30 What’s the Buzz 17:00 The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (Best Of) 18:00 Turn Back Your Body Clock 18:30 10 Years younger 19:00 The View

00:00 02:00 04:00 06:00

Johnny Mad Dog-18 The Unloved-18 Quid Pro Quo-PG15 Every Second Counts-PG

High School Musical 3: Senior Year on Super Movies

Star Listings (UAE Timings) STAR Movies 20:40 Dark Skies 22:10 Sea Beast 23:35 The Initiation Of Sarah 01:05 Sandlot 02:45 Christmas Caper 04:15 Dark Skies 05:45 VIP Access 06:15 Sea Beast 07:40 The Initiation Of Sarah 09:10 Sandlot 10:50 Wrong Turn 2: Dead End 12:20 I Love Trouble 14:20 A Woman’s Rage 15:55 The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause 17:30 The Fly 19:05 Jumper STAR World 20:00 Reaper 20:50 Charlie’s Angels 21:00 Stone Undercover 21:50 Who’s The Boss?

22:00 October Road 23:00 [V] Tunes 00:00 [V] Tunes 01:00 [V] Tunes 02:00 7th Heaven

03:00 03:30 04:00 04:30 05:00 05:50 06:00 06:50 07:00 07:50 08:00 08:50 09:00 09:30 10:00 10:50 11:00 11:50 12:00 13:00 14:00 14:30 15:00 15:30 16:00 18:00 18:50 19:00

Scrubs The King Of Queens According To Jim According To Jim Criminal Minds Jackie Chan Adventures Grey’s Anatomy Charlie’s Angels October Road Who’s The Boss?

Reaper Jackie Chan Adventures The King Of Queens THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL 7th Heaven Charlie’s Angels Grey’s Anatomy Who’s The Boss?

[V] Tunes Criminal Minds Scrubs The King Of Queens According To Jim According To Jim American Idol BOSTON LEGAL MARRIED WITH CHILDREN American Idol

Granada TV 20:00 Piers Morgan’s The Dark Side of Fame Pamela Anderson 21:00 Young, Posh and Loaded 21:30 The Sunshine Girls 22:00 Emmerdale 22:30 Coronation Street 23:00 Young, Posh and Loaded 23:30 The Sunshine Girls 00:00 The Paul O’Grady Show 01:00 Trinny And Susannah Undress (Series 2) 02:00 Mystery Tuesday: Time Of Your Life (Double Bill) 04:00 Flights From Hell 05:00 Emmerdale 05:30 Coronation Street 06:00 The Paul O’Grady Show 07:00 Trinny And Susannah Undress (Series 2) 08:00 Mystery Tuesday: Time Of Your Life (Double Bill) 10:00 Warzone 11:00 Emmerdale 11:30 Coronation Street 12:00 The Crunch 13:00 Mystery Tuesday: Painted Lady 15:00 The Paul O’Grady Show 16:00 Emmerdale 16:30 Coronation Street

17:00 The Crunch 18:00 Mystery Tuesday: Painted Lady Channel [V] 21:00 [V] Countdown 23:00 Backtracks 23:30 Double Shot 00:00 Loop 00:30 [V] Tunes 01:00 [V] Plug 01:30 Loop 02:00 Backtracks 03:00 XO 03:30 [V] Tunes 04:00 [V] Plug 04:30 The Playlist 05:00 [V] Countdown 07:00 Backtracks 07:30 Double Shot 08:00 Loop 08:30 [V] Tunes 09:00 [V] Plug 09:30 Loop 10:00 Backtracks 11:00 XO 11:30 [V] Tunes 12:00 [V] Plug 12:30 The Playlist

13:00 14:00 14:30 15:00 15:30 16:00 16:30 17:00 17:30 18:00 19:00 19:30 20:00 20:30

Parental Control Double Bill [V] Tunes Amp Around Asia Backtracks Double Shot Loop [V] Tunes [V] Plug Loop Backtracks XO [V] Tunes [V] Plug The Playlist

Fox News 00:00 Happening Now 01:00 The Live Desk 03:00 Studio B with Shepard Smith Live 04:00 Your World with Neil Cavuto 05:00 Glenn Beck with Glenn Beck 06:00 Special Report with Bret Baier 07:00 The FOX Report with Shepard Smith 08:00 The O’Reilly Factor 09:00 Hannity 10:00 On the Record with Greta Van Susteren 11:00 The O’Reilly Factor 12:00 Hannity

13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

On the Record with Greta Van Susteren Glenn Beck with Glenn Beck Fox Report Special Report with Bret Baier The O’Reilly Factor FOX & Friends First Live FOX & Friends Live America’s Newsroom America’s Newsroom Happening Now

National Geographic Channel 20:00 Don’t Tell My Mother... -Don’t Tell My Mother : That I Am In Afghanistan S1-1 21:00 Generals At War -The Battle At El Alamein 22:00 Warplanes -Airplane To Air Force 23:00 Theme Week -Secrets of The 10 Plagues : The First Curses 00:00 Air Crash Investigation -The Plane That Wouldn’t Talk S5 01:00 ABOUT ASIA -Health Secrets Behind Korean Cuisine 02:00 Situation Critical -S.A.S Jungle Rescue 03:00 Animal Extractors -Wild Horse Hazard S110 04:00 Monster Fish -Great White Sturgeon 05:00 ABOUT ASIA -Health Secrets Behind

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

33

ACCOMMODATION Sharing accommodation available for Indian working ladies or couples in a double bedroom flat near Khaitan police station roundabout with all facilities. Call 99480468. (C 2091) Sharing accommodation for two Christian bachelors with food to share with a Goan family in Abbassiya.

Tel: 66269035. (C 2092) A furnished room is available with Keralite family in Abbassiya, looking for ladies or couples. Contact: 55687453. (C 2093) 6-4-2010 Sharing accommodation available behind Caesars bakery, Abbassiya. Only Keralites, decent bachelors. One room and separate bathroom. Call: 99153497. (C 2087) 5-4-2010 Two central A/C rooms available in Benaid Al-Gar, very near to Al Salam hos-

pital, for decent working ladies. Please contact: 97879611. (C 2083) One spacious room in a decent fully furnished flat in Ashbiliya opp Farwaniya is available for a Muslim preferably Pakistani/Indian single, rent KD 100, serious person can contact.

99714430. (C 2081) 3-4-2010

FOR SALE Mitsubishi Jeep Nativa model 2008, silver color, 6-cylinder engine, alloy rims, excellent condition, cash price 3150 KD, negotiable, installment possible. Contact: 99105286.

(C 2082) 3-4-2010 Toyota Camry Grande model 2006, 6 cylinders, done 86,000 kms only, golden beige color, excellent condition, cash price KD 3,400. Contact: 66211779.

(C 2078) Toyota Camry 2006 model, GL, 4 cy, white color,

km 82,000, good condition, cash 3,200 KD. Contact: 97800987. (C 2080) 1-4-2010 SITUATION VACANT

English speaking maid for a family living in Mangaf.

Preferably Indian. If interested, please contact 60055305 or 23741548 5-4-2010

MATRIMONIAL Proposal invited for LC graduate boy from Cochin working in shipping co. in Kuwait (fair, 27 & 172 cms) from parents of graduate Keralite girls. Contact: samstanes@gmail.com (C 2086) 5-4-2010 Proposals invited from parents of well educated qualified boys for a Keralite CSI girl, 24 years, 165 cm, B.Tech (electronic & communication) working as project engineer in a reputed company. Please respond with boy’s complete personal/career details to email kamkwt@hotmail.com (C 2077) 1-4-2010

SITUATION WANTED Indian female (MBA in HR), 10 years experience in HR/Administration, specializing in recruitments, PMS, MIS reports & overall Admin functions. Proficient in MS Office. Good communication skills. Please contact: 66634322. (C 2084) I am searching a suitable job as sales executive. I have valid Kuwaiti driving license, my qualification is MBA (Marketing). I have good PR skills. I can join within a week. Please call: 55355954. (C 2085) Indian male graduate BSc 30+ years experience mainly in purchasing dept (import) in Kuwait with furniture Mfr/Trd cos. Seeking suitable position in Kuwait.

Contact: 66461406.

(C 2088) 5-4-2010

CHANGE OF NAME Sivakumar Krishnamoorthy, Passport No: F9732440, new name K Abdurrahman.

(C 2090) 6-4-2010

Flight Schedule Arrival Flights on Tuesday 06/04/2010 Airlines Flt Route Royal Jordanian 802 Amman Wataniya Airways 188 Bahrain Kuwait 544 Cairo Wataniya Airways 306 Cairo Gulf Air 211 Bahrain Turkish A/L 772 Istanbul Ethiopian 620 Addis Ababa DHL 370 Bahrain Emirates 853 Dubai Etihad 305 Abu Dhabi Qatari 138 Doha Air France 6782 Paris Jazeera 503 Luxor Jazeera 637 Aleppo Jazeera 527 Alexandria Jazeera 529 Assiut Kuwait 412 Manila/Bangkok British 157 London Kuwait 416 Jakarta/Kuala Lumpur Jazeera 481 Sabiha Falcon 201 Bahrain Kuwait 206 Islamabad Kuwait 382 Delhi Kuwait 302 Mumbai Kuwait 332 Trivandrum Fly Dubai 053 Dubai Kuwait 284 Dhaka Emirates 855 Dubai Arabia 121 Sharjah Iran Air 605 Isfahan Qatari 132 Doha Etihad 301 Abu Dhabi Jazeera 425 Bahrain Iran Air 619 Lar Wataniya Airways 182 Bahrain Gulf Air 213 Bahrain Wataniya Airways 102 Dubai Jazeera 165 Dubai Jazeera 447 Doha Jazeera 113 Abu Dhabi Kuwait 672 Dubai United A/L 982 Washington Dc Dulles Wataniya Airways 432 Damascus Royal Jordanian 800 Amman Jazeera 257 Beirut Wataniya Airways 422 Amman Kuwait 562 Amman Saudi Arabian A/L 500 Jeddah Kuwait 744 Dammam

Time 00:05 00:30 00:50 00:50 01:05 01:15 01:45 02:15 02:25 02:55 03:25 03:25 05:15 05:45 06:05 06:10 06:15 06:30 06:35 06:40 07:00 07:15 07:20 07:50 07:55 07:56 08:10 08:25 08:40 08:55 09:00 09:25 10:25 10:40 10:45 10:45 11:05 11:05 11:10 11:20 13:15 13:35 13:35 13:35 14:10 14:10 14:20 14:30 14:40

Syrian Arab A/L Qatari Kuwait Mihin Lanka Etihad Emirates Wataniya Airways Gulf Air Saudi Arabian A/L Jazeera Jazeera Arabia Jazeera Jazeera Srilankan Kuwait Wataniya Airways Kuwait Wataniya Airways Kuwait Kuwait Kuwait Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Singapore A/L Kuwait Kuwait Rovos Fly Dubai Oman Air Indian Middle East KLM Wataniya Airways Jazeera DHL Gulf Air Kuwait Emirates Global Qatari Jazeera Jazeera Jazeera Lutthansa Jazeera India Express Pakistan Jazeera Wataniya Airways

341 134 546 403 303 857 402 215 510 493 239 125 367 343 227 104 304 166 106 542 502 786 674 177 774 458 552 512 093 061 647 993 402 0443 404 459 372 217 614 859 091 136 429 117 449 636 185 389 205 263 108

Damascus Doha Alexandria Colombo/Dubai Abu Dhabi Dubai Beirut Bahrain Riyadh Jeddah Amman Sharjah Deirezzor Sanaa/Bahrain Colombo/Dubai London Cairo Paris/Rome Dubai Cairo Beirut Jeddah Dubai Dubai Riyadh Singapore/Abu Dhabi Damascus Tehran Kandahar/Dubai Dubai Muscat Chennai/Mumbai Beirut Amsterdam Beirut Damascus Bahrain Bahrain Doha Dubai Baghdad Doha Bahrain Abu Dhabi Doha Frankfurt Dubai Kozhikode/Mangalore Lahore/Peshawar Beirut Dubai

14:45 15:05 15:30 16:40 16:50 16:55 17:15 17:15 17:20 17:25 17:35 17:40 17:40 17:55 18:00 18:35 18:35 18:40 18:45 18:50 18:50 18:55 19:00 19:05 19:25 19:25 19:40 19:45 20:00 20:05 20:15 20:15 20:20 20:40 20:50 20:55 21:00 21:05 21:10 21:15 21:30 21:35 22:15 22:25 22:25 22:30 23:05 23:10 23:55 23:55 23:55

Departure Flights on Tuesday 06/04/2010 Airlines Flt Route Jazeera 528 Assiut Tunis Air 328 Dubai/Tunis Indian 576 Goa/Chennai Pakistan 240 Sialkot Lufthansa 637 Frankfurt Turkish A/L 773 Istanbul Ethiopian 620 Bahrain/Addis Ababa DHL 371 Bahrain Emirates 854 Dubai Etihad 306 Abu Dhabi Qatari 139 Doha Air France 6782 Dubai/Hong Kong Wataniya Airways 101 Dubai Royal Jordanian 803 Amman Jazeera 164 Dubai Jazeera 112 Abu Dhabi Jazeera 422 Bahrain Jazeera 446 Doha Gulf Air 212 Bahrain Wataniya Airways 181 Bahrain Rovos 094 Dubai/Kandahar Wataniya Airways 431 Damascus British 156 London Kuwait 545 Alexandria Jazeera 256 Beirut Fly Dubai 054 Dubai Jazeera 342 Bahrain/Sanaa Kuwait 671 Dubai Wataniya Airways 421 Amman Kuwait 561 Amman Arabia 122 Sharjah Kuwait 101 London/New York Emirates 856 Dubai Iran Air 604 Isfahan Qatari 133 Doha Etihad 302 Abu Dhabi Gulf Air 214 Bahrain Wataniya Airways 401 Beirut Iran Air 618 Lar Kuwait 165 Rome/Paris Wataniya Airways 303 Cairo Kuwait 743 Dammam Kuwait 541 Cairo Jazeera 492 Jeddah Jazeera 366 Deirezzor Jazeera 238 Amman Kuwait 501 Beirut Kuwait 785 Jeddah Egypt Air 611 Cairo

FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION 161

Time 00:05 00:25 00:50 01:10 01:15 02:15 02:30 03:15 03:45 04:00 05:00 05:15 06:50 07:00 07:00 07:15 07:35 07:40 07:45 07:50 08:00 08:10 08:25 08:35 08:35 08:40 09:00 09:00 09:10 09:15 09:20 09:30 09:40 09:55 10:00 10:10 11:35 11:35 11:40 11:45 11:50 11:55 12:00 12:15 12:20 12:30 13:00 13:30 13:55

Kuwait Kuwait Wataniya Airways Royal Jordanian Jazeera Wataniya Airways Kuwait Syrian Arab A/L Saudi Arabian A/L Jazeera Kuwait Qatari Kuwait Etihad Mihin Lanka Wataniya Airways Emirates Gulf Air Jazeera Global Arabia Saudi Arabian A/L Jazeera Jazeera Jazeera Jazeera Srilankan Wataniya Airways Kuwait Kuwait Singapore A/L Fly Dubai Kuwait Kuwait Oman Air Middle East Wataniya Airways KLM Gulf Air Kuwait DHL Kuwait Emirates Falcon Kuwait Qatari Kuwait Jazeera Jazeera Jazeera United A/L

551 673 105 801 176 403 511 342 501 458 773 135 613 304 404 305 858 216 262 092 126 511 116 448 184 428 228 107 283 361 457 062 343 351 648 403 187 0443 218 801 373 675 860 102 381 137 301 480 526 502 981

Damascus Dubai Dubai Amman Dubai Beirut Tehran Damascus Jeddah Damascus Riyadh Doha Bahrain/Doha Abu Dhabi Dubai/Colombo Cairo Dubai Bahrain Beirut Baghdad Sharjah Riyadh Abu Dhabi Doha Dubai Bahrain Dubai/Colombo Dubai Dhaka Colombo Abu Dhabi/Singapore Dubai Chennai Cochin Muscat Beirut Bahrain Bahrain/Amsterdam Bahrain Cairo Bahrain Dubai Dubai Bahrain Delhi Doha Mumbai Sabiha Alexandria Luxor Washington Dc Dulles

14:20 14:30 14:30 14:30 14:55 15:10 15:40 15:45 15:45 15:50 16:05 16:20 16:20 17:35 17:40 18:05 18:05 18:05 18:15 18:15 18:20 18:35 18:40 18:55 19:00 19:10 19:10 19:40 20:00 20:20 20:45 20:50 21:00 21:05 21:15 21:20 21:35 21:40 21:55 22:00 22:00 22:10 22:25 22:30 22:30 22:35 22:45 23:05 23:20 23:30 23:40

SPECTRUM

34 CROSSWORD 950

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Calvin Aries (March 21-April 19) Things are happening and the future of your career may depend on just how much you want to help the company for which you work to expand and grow. Good fortune and luck surrounds you. It is easy for you to make correct decisions, find the right path and move forward where career and success are concerned. Life’s problems seem manageable and easy to solve. Re-serve, self-confidence, self-reliance and humility will be your best attitudes over the next few months and will encourage success. Enjoy laughter with others this afternoon. This is a delightful time to enjoy your support system; family and those who give you nourishment and encouragement. You are able to dispense with some of the frustrations of your life now.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) Be aware of the distractions at work today. This is one of those times when today is a better time to sell than to buy. This applies to material things, but extends to social and romantic relationships as well. This afternoon you will make the effort to improve the channels of understanding and appreciation between friends. It could be time now, to clear up any past misunderstandings. This afternoon, take some time to enjoy some light-hearted, after work, gettogether with your friends. Stay open to the ideas of others. There is a need for new information, with fresh opinions and alternative ideas in order to fine-tune your goals. You and your family could join a recreation center— enjoy doing different things together regularly.

Pooch Cafe

ACROSS 1. The universal time coordinated time when a transmission is sent from Earth to a spacecraft or other celestial body.

4. A book of the New Testament.

8. Kidney disease characterized by enlarged kidneys containing many cysts.

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

12. A flat-bottomed volcanic crater that was formed by an explosion.

13. The cry made by sheep.

14. A port city in western Kenya on the northeastern shore of Lake Victoria.

16. A bachelor's degree in religion.

18. A state in southeastern United States.

19. A public promotion of some product or service.

20. Middle-distance iron.

21. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

22. (Irish) Mother of the ancient Irish gods.

23. A port in western Israel on the Mediterranean.

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

28. American prizefighter who won the world heavyweight championship three times (born in 1942).

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

32. 35th President of the United States.

33. Before noon.

35. Naked freshwater or marine or parasitic protozoa that form temporary pseudopods for feeding and locomotion.

40. 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.

43. The month following February and preceding April.

44. Primitive chlorophyll-containing mainly aquatic eukaryotic organisms lacking true stems and roots and leaves.

47. A city in the European part of Russia.

48. Harsh or corrosive in tone.

49. A master's degree in business.

50. A unit of absorbed ionizing radiation equal to 100 ergs per gram of irradiated material.

51. A narrow way or road.

52. A decree that prohibits something.

DOWN 1. The basic unit of money in Bangladesh.

2. A sudden short attack.

3. A form of address for a married woman.

4. The capital and largest city of Jordan.

5. Involving or constituting a cause.

6. A hard gray lustrous metallic element that is highly corrosionresistant.

7. A historical region in central and northern Yugoslavia.

8. A soft heavy toxic malleable metallic element.

9. Valuable fiber plant of East Indies now widespread in cultivation.

10. The capital and largest city of Bangladesh.

15. A benevolent aspect of Devi.

17. Made of fir or pine.

24. An independent state within the British Commonwealth located on the Fiji Islands.

26. A light strong brittle gray toxic bivalent metallic element.

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

30. (informal) Of the highest quality.

31. An official prosecutor for a judicial district.

34. English economist noted for his studies of international trade and finance (born in 1907).

36. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

37. Toward the mouth or oral region.

38. Any of numerous local fertility and nature deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples.

39. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solely the razorbill.

41. A small cake leavened with yeast.

42. A Kwa language spoken in Ghana and the Ivory Coast.

45. Strong liquor flavored with juniper berries.

46. The executive agency that advises the President on the federal budget.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) Taking time to enjoy this April day, before you get to work, may find yourself feeling upbeat all day long. After you get to work, however, your job or professional responsibilities have your attention and the day moves at breakneck speed.

Important financial decisions require more information than you have at this time? consider doing research. Moderation is the key word where money is concerned. Of course, you will not want to obligate your finances until you know all the details. Partnerships are far more exciting than you thought. You are attracted to some unusual associates—listen and learn. Find ways to expand your horizons. Social relationships are a special focus tonight. You may be introduced to a new romance.

Non Sequitur

Cancer (June 21-July 22) Other people may encourage you to make decisions prematurely today. Do not hesitate to delay decisions until you have had time to give important matters your full attention. Hastily conceived plans might seem attractive in the heat of the moment but might not look so smart when you have checked out the details.

This afternoon you have enough interest in what you are doing for sustained work that allows you to coordinate or organize your life. You can bring into fruition particular projects or results from some psychological development.

Be wise in your urge for independence. You are coming into a time of experimenting with new concepts. Having fun with the young people around you this evening, can be quite fun—enjoy.

Leo (July 23-August 22) You may discover exciting career opportunities. Your innovative ideas can gain the support of those in positions of control and responsibility.

Your mind is shrewd and practical as well as original. It’s a good time to begin new projects or a new job. You can also make progress in your professional and business ambitions today. It’s a good time for approaching those in positions of power and authority with your creative ideas. You feel efficient and comfortable with your colleagues and friends. Your happy emotional outlook makes you popular. It’s a good time for romantic and marriage relationships. This is a favorable time for family gatherings. Family relationships improve. Rest early this evening— there is much work ahead this week.

Zits

Virgo (August 23-September 22) It’s a good time to resolve any difficulties that keep you from your goals. You will see improvements in many areas of your life . . . you appropriately feel honor and pride. After your work day has ended, you and your friends may decide it has been too long since everyone gathered in a group and had fun together. You will help plan a get-together for the near future. This may mean a camping trip or sports competition or any number of things that creates the opportunity to gather and get caught up on each other’s life situation. You may even see this as a reunion of sorts. Avoid impulsive gambling or speculation for now. You may be prone to romantic infatuations; careful. You have the opportunity to make responsible choices; listen first.

Libra (September 23-October 22) Jumping into the flow of work today should be an easy challenge. Change is on the horizon, however and you can see it coming.

You are coming into a time of experimenting with new concepts and putting aside the old and learning new methods of working. Progressive people and idealistic groups or concepts play a more important role in your life. A neighborhood crime watch or community organization meeting is planned this evening. You could be really interested in the political things that are going on in your city; there are places to volunteer your talents. The process of future planning is successful and meets everyone’s idea of what they want for future changes in their neighborhood. Compromising and cooperation brings positive results.

Mother Goose and Grimm

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) It takes diplomacy, tact and patience to negotiate some strong feelings during an afternoon meeting. Acting on impulse without sufficient regard for risks can create harm. Slow down and really think about what you are saying—you will see positive results.

After work, you may enjoy spending some time at the library.

Family members have a difference of opinion about religion and you help to find some research and viewpoints for discussion. You may find yourself searching for the deeper meaning of life and how it relates to you. Your nononsense nature comes under review and you learn to be more spiritual and yielding to other people. This evening you will enjoy joking around with the young people in your family or neighborhood.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) A new sense of self, a more assertive personal style and a more dynamic approach to life are the hallmarks of this time.

Work or school projects seem to have workable solutions; now more than ever before. Doubts fade into the background and you are encouraged to do research. Rather than just accepting that which you have been taught you would begin to seek answers from more than one intelligent source. Getting the facts and making sure that people get correct information can make all the difference in the world—and any shortcomings in these areas can raise some real problems. Relaxing with your friends and joking around in positive ways are part and partial of what makes up this evening. You could be included in some team competition tonight.

Yesterday’s Solution

Capricorn (December 22-January 19) You

yester

Yesterday’s Solution

to

INTERNATIONAL CALLS Kuwait Qatar Abu Dhabi Dubai Raas Al Khayma Al-Shareqa Muscat Jordan Bahrain Riyadh Makkah - Jeddah Cairo Alexandria Beirut Damascus Allepo

00965 00974 009712 009714 009717 009716 00968 009626 00973 009661 009662 00202 00203 009611 0096311 0096321

Tunisia Rabat Washington New York Paris London Madrid Zurich Geneva Monaco Rome Bangkok Hong Kong Pakistan Taiwan Bonn

0021610 002127 001212 001718 00331 004471 00341 00411 004122 0033 00396 00662 00852 0092 00886 0049228

Word Sleuth Solution

may decide to find work that is less stressful this year. You may not make this change right away but instead you stay aware and alert to any changes that look positive. You may prefer to look for work that has more rewards mentally than monetary. At least there will be less pressure this year to earn top money. Becoming an independent contractor may be more appealing for now. This is a long-time process that you will not want to change overnight, but you will feel that inner determination. Avoid changes that you know could cause stress on your physical body. It’s time for action; your destiny is in your hands. This evening you may decide to relax a bit and play some computer games with a young person in your family.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) This morning you continue your exercise routine. This may take the form of bicycling, fast walking, or any other number of things.

Diligence pays. Something that you are good at is fun to do.

As you keep practicing, you get better and then you are thrilled with yourself. In the work place, joint projects run smoothly. Something that really seemed difficult before this time is not as hard as you thought. You can breeze through difficulties and get to the easy parts. Working with others in a business or family concern will also go well. You will benefit thorough a bit of research before coming up with solutions. Simplify, simplify. In your family, you teach the three R’s: Respect for self, respect for others, responsibility for all your actions.

Pisces (February 19-March 20) Probing discussions before work may have you realizing that some changes are coming in the workplace—you may have also seen a press release. Fresh insight comes to you through mass media; broadcasting, publishing, advertising— giving you a whole new perspective. You will make discoveries of how this affects you. For now, proceed as usual with your day. A change in Chairman or President may be in the works, but should not change the way in which you work. Pay careful attention to details today, especially if you work with legal matters. Be clear in your communications. You will learn new ways to handle everyday matters. There is harmony and ease in creative expression this evening. Let your light shine. Be ready for love.

INFORMATION

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

35 FIRE BRIGADE Operation Room 777 Al-Madena 22418714 22545171 Al-Shohada’a Al-Shuwaikh 24810598 22545171 Al-Nuzha Sabhan 24742838 22434853 Al-Helaly Al-Fayhaa 22545051 24711433 Al-Farwaniya Al-Sulaibikhat 24316983 23927002 Al-Fahaheel Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh 24316983 23980088 Ahmadi Al-Mangaf 23711183 23262845 Al-Shuaiba Al-Jahra 25610011 25616368 Al-Salmiya

Ministry of Interior website: www.moi.gov.kw

For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128 HOSPITALS Sabah Hospital

24812000

Amiri Hospital

22450005

Maternity Hospital

24843100

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

Chest Hospital

24849400

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

Adan Hospital

23940620

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

Physiotherapy Hospital

POLICE STATION 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

24874330/9 CLINICS

Roudha

22517733

Adhaliya

22517144

Khaldiya

24848075

Keifan

24849807

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

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

4892674

Al-Omariya

4719048

N.Kheitan

4710044

Rabiya

4732263

Fintas

3900322

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FOR CIVIL INFORMATION Automated enquiry about the Civil ID card is 1889988 AIRLINES

PHARMACIES ON 24 HRS DUTY GOVERNORATE Ahmadi

PHARMACY Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

ADDRESS Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

PHONE 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

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554

EMERGENCY 112

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists: Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea Dr. Masoma Habeeb Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy Dr. Mohsen Abel Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly

25622444 25752222 25321171 25739999 25757700 25732223 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-Awadi22616660 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Plastic Surgeons: Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf 22547272

22434064 22435865 22544200 22547133 22515277 22616662 25714406 22530801

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari Dr. Abdel Quttainah

22617700 25625030/60

Family Doctor: Dr Divya Damodar 23729596/23729581

Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr.

Zahra Qabazard Sohail Qamar Snaa Maaroof Pradip Gujare Zacharias Mathew

25710444 22621099 25713514 23713100 24334282

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari 22635047 Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan 22613623/0 Gynaecologists & Obstetricians: Dr Adrian Harbe 23729596/23729581 Dr. Verginia s.Marin 2572-6666 ext 8321 Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan 22655539 Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami 25343406 Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly 25739272 Dr. Salem soso 22618787 General Surgeons: Dr. Abidallah Behbahani 25717111 Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer 22610044 Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher 25327148

(2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada)

25655535 Dentists:

Dr Anil Thomas

3729596/3729581

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar

22641071/2

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed

22562226

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

Neurologists:

Paediatricians: Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed 25340300

Rheumatologists: Dr. Adel Al-Awadi 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 Tel: 25339667 Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Consultant Cardiologist Tel: 2611555-2622555 Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri 25633324 Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan

Internists, Chest & Heart: Dr. Adnan Ebil 22639939 Dr. Mousa Khadada 22666300 Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan 25728004 Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra 25355515 Dr. Mobarak Aldoub 24726446 Dr Nasser Behbehani 25654300/3

Physiotherapists & VD: Dr. Deyaa Shehab 25722291 Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees 22666288

25345875

Gastrologists Dr. Sami Aman

22636464

Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly 25322030 Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali

22633135

Endocrinologist: Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman 25339330 Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari

25658888

Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr

25329924

Psychologists/Psychotherapists Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688 info@soorcenter.com www.soorcenter.com Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, Ph.D. 2290-1677 Susannah-Joy Schuilenberg, M.A. 2290-1677 William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677

Kuwait Airways Wataniya Airways Jazeera Airways Jet Airways 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

22433377 24379900 177 22477631 22423888 22425747 22434940 22420002/9 22418064/5/6 22433388 22425635 22430224 22425566 22438184 22424444 22421578 22421516 22426306 22423073 22422493 22421044 22414427 22416474 22452977/8 22417901/2433141 22456700 22412284/5 22453820/1

INTERNATIONAL CALLS 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 Central African Republic 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)

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 00236 00235 0056 0086 0057 00269 00242 00682 00506 00385 0053 00357 0090392 00420 0045 00246 00253 001767 001809 00593 0020 00503 0044

Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guinea Guyana Haiti Holland (Netherlands) Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Ibiza (Spain) Iceland India Indian Ocean Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Italy Ivory Coast Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Liberia Libya Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Macedonia

00240 00291 00372 00251 00500 00298 00679 00358 0033 00594 00689 00241 00220 00995 0049 00233 00350 0030 00299 001473 00590 001671 00502 00224 00592 00509 0031 00504 00852 0036 0034 00354 0091 00873 0062 0098 00964 00353 0039 00225 001876 0081 00962 007 00254 00686 00965 00996 00856 00371 00961 00231 00218 00370 00352 00853 00389

SPECTRUM

36

Cilmi’s kidnap fear

Tatum wants to die in bed with wife hanning Tatum’s wife wants them to die in bed together. The ‘Dear John’ actor admits his actress spouse, Jenna Dewan, is obsessed by romantic film ‘The Notebook’ - in which the two lead characters eventually pass away in old age while cuddling each other - and has made him promise that’s how they’ll leave this planet. He said: “My wife makes me watch ‘The Notebook’ all the time - it’s one of her favorite movies. It makes me cry and it makes her cry. But every time we put it on she makes me promise that we’ll die in bed together,

Rihanna has ‘ugly weeks’

C

R

abriella Cilmi worried she would be kidnapped when she played at a palace in Moscow. The ‘Hearts Don’t Lie’ hitmaker found singing at a party in the Russian capital a daunting task, and was concerned about what was going to happen went she went through strict security checks to get into the venue. She said: “I did a show in Moscow, which was really crazy. We played in this massive palace, and they searched us - we weren’t allowed to take anything in with us. “It was pretty scary; I thought we were going to be kidnapped!”

Gabriella, 18, also explained how the show took a turn for the worse after she made a mishap with her etiquette. She explained to BANG Showbiz: “It was a private show and inside there was an American artist belly dancing and there was blue caviar on all the tables. “And so during ‘Sweet About Me’ I went up to one of the waiters, and to see if he wanted to sing along with me and everyone at the show was looking at me, horrified, like that’s a big no-no - and he was really scared too.” However, this isn’t Gabriella’s most embarrassing moment onstage as she was once left red-faced when her underwear fell off during a dance routine. She said: “I have done a few inappropriate things in different countries. In Portugal I was performing onstage and because I was wearing a dress was conscious about my underwear showing, so I wore these really big knickers. “They fell off under the dress, as I was performing. It looked like a stage act, but it wasn’t on purpose I was mortified.”

G

which is a little weird!”

Although he is a little freaked out by his wife’s hopes, Channing - who married his ‘Step Up’ co-star in 2009 - is a hopeless romantic and has even written stories for his stunning partner Channing whose alter-ego John Tyree in ‘Dear John’ stays in touch with his girlfriend by letters - told BANG Showbiz: “I don’t think I’ve ever written a love letter but I have written a story for my wife. I then gave it to her as a present at Christmas. But I would like to write more letters, I think it’s a lost art form.”

ihanna admits she has an “ugly week” once a month.

The ‘Russian Roulette’ singer - who is regularly voted one of the world’s sexiest women - says she often dislikes the way she looks and can be quite harsh on herself.

She said: “I have an ugly day every month; pimples on my face, I’m fat and in a bad mood.

It’s

more like an ugly week!” Despite occasionally feeling overweight, the 22-year-old beauty admits she works hard to maintain her stunning figure. She said: “I’ve been working out a lot and I eat pretty boring boiled egg, fruit, tons of water and some chicken. Well, this week I’ve eaten some other things but really small portions.

I hate vegetables. I hate anything healthy, but if you want the results you’ve got to do it.

I haven’t even been drinking alcohol with dinner since I’ve been with this diet.”

Rihanna recently dyed her hair blonde as says she’s enjoying her new look.

She told Insider magazine: “Being blonde is a big deal for me. I loved my black hair, but I wanted something that was different. Having this edgy cut with a pretty blonde was an interesting contrast for me.”

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

he ‘Mama Do’ singer admires the TV presenter’s quirky take on fashion and is desperate to buy the Mulberry bag named after the brunette beauty. She said: “I really like what Alexa Chung wears. Those Mulberry bags named after Alexa are wicked - I don’t have one but I’m going to invest.” Pixie also likes Sienna Miller’s fashion sense and was impressed with her latest collection for her label Twenty8Twelve, which she owns with sister Savannah. She said: “Sienna Miller always looks good. I went to the Twenty8Twelve fashion show and the clothes were gorgeous.” The 19-year-old beauty is known

T

for her blonde locks and although she recently donned a dark wig for her ‘Gravity’ music video, she would never become a permanent brunette.

She said: “It was really fun wearing that wig and I wore it out one night. But I definitely think I suit and prefer being blonde because that’s what I’ve grown up being and think it’s more me.”

Vickers plans underwear range

Lott is a huge fan of Chung’s style

iana Vickers is planning to release a range of underwear called Diana Vickers’ Knickers. The 18-year-old singer - who rose to fame through UK TV talent show ‘X Factor’ - is currently in negotiations with several companies about putting her name to the branded pants. A source told BANG Showbiz: “We are planning to launch an underwear range - Diana Vickers’ Knickers - soon. We are just trying to work out who with.” Diana recently unveiled a sexy new image in the video for her debut single ‘Once’ - in which she is seen singing in a multitude of outfits, including nothing but a white shirt and a saucy short sequined dress. She has also revealed that Gary Lightbody from Snow Patrol had given her the song ‘Just Say Yes’ for her album - but took it back to use for his band because it was too good. After coming fourth on ‘The X Factor’ in 2008, Diana took the lead role in West End production ‘Little Voice’ - for which she won London Newcomer of the Year at the Theatregoers Choice Awards.

D

s i a g a Lady G iac n m o s n an i T

longer she no truge m fa h k she s up wit caught t her fans thin razy. I’m a o s is singer worried wha I’m already c e phone’ “ it can b o he ‘Tele nsibly and is s ht. She said: I don’t think n that’s ig e e . n s u th thinks et to sleep at eps up on yo use of fame, e a g e For som gles to . I think it cr e my mind bec an anything. “ ic or the e mus person more th is to los fearless If my destiny ion still means portant than th re my fans like . s im o stopped y. But my pas ecomes more et fuel. The m nd my passion n k b A my desti me kills it and fame is like roc back to them. .” Despite her s fa e e y , a m iv le d her g r p e o fo pe e. But more I want to slept for thre ation to help ery c n a m r ic v ’t d e e n a e th perfo m v e , a v doing p-Ih ke any e. I ha what I’m ng I can’t slee refuses to ta ray and breath medication to a o p g k tr a s to ta G s, try ver e is so problem lie in bed and rson who’d ne es out.” g in p e e I le “ m s fp what co he said: e sort o relax. S e mind. I’m th ing. But I love v n e ti overac elf. It’s madd ys calm m

Seyfried keeps her old love letters manda Seyfried keeps her old love letters for “good luck”.

The ‘Dear John’ actress - who is currently dating her ‘Mamma Mia!’ co-star Dominic Cooper - used to exchange notes with a former boyfriend and says she still holds on to them as they help to inspire her. Amanda - whose character Savannah Curtis in ‘Dear John’ stays in touch with her soldier boyfriend by post - said: “The last time I wrote a letter was at Christmas, in my childhood bedroom, as a response to a letter I had received. And it was the most beautiful letter I had ever written. “But me and my previous boyfriend used to write each other love notes from time to time even though we lived close by and it was nice. I keep them for good luck and something to inspire me.” Amanda - who co-stars with Channing Tatum in the film - shot the movie in Charleston, South Carolina, and she is now keen to buy a property there and renovate it. She told BANG Showbiz: “I loved being in Charleston - it’s so beautiful and the people are amazing. I want to buy a house there and there’s actually a property I’ve seen, which I want to buy and fix up. It’s a dream life down there.” —Bang Showbiz

A

SPECTRUM

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

37

Lifestyle

Soderbergh shoots ‘secret’ film in Sydney ollywood director Steven Soderbergh has shot a ‘secret’ film in Australia about a glamorous couple who run a Sydney theatre troupe-apparently inspired

by Cate Blanchett and her husband Andrew Upton.

Soderbergh began the project last year while directing a play

H

at the Sydney Theatre Company (STC), where Blanchett and Upton, a playwright, are joint artistic directors. He used the cast from the STC play “Tot Mom” as the stars of the improvised comedic film, “The Last Time I Saw Michael Gregg”.

“It’s something that the

cast did while they were making the play,” an STC spokesman told AFP yesterday. “It was just a bit of fun between the cast and Steven.”

Soderbergh, who won the best director Academy Award for his 2000 film “Traffic”, has sent an early cut of the film to Sydney, delighting Blanchett

and Upton. “How great that the actors got a taste of working on a film with one of the true masters,” Blanchett told The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper.

“You can tell everyone had a good time with it and it was the perfect way to balance the intensity of working on the

play.” Actor Rhys Muldoon, who played one of the leads in the film, insisted the Soderbergh side project was not designed to make fun of the Sydney acting troupe, adding that the characters were very different from real figures.

“It wasn’t a piss take of the

Sydney Theatre Company or Cate or Andrew at all,” Muldoon was quoted as saying.

“I made my guy quite an angry person and Andrew is certainly not that. And also my guy is pretty much sleeping with every woman he can get his hands on, which is very much not Andrew as well.” —AFP

Turkey’s much-derided super heroes make Internet comeback ith their plush monsters, tin robots and space heroes wielding plywood swords, Turkish Bmovies dating back decades ago have found a new audience on the web, seduced by naivety and technical failure in the extreme. The most-derided examples of the genre have attracted hundreds of thousands on video-sharing sites like YouTube to win global fame for the bizarre Turkish versions of Superman, Spiderman, Star Wars and Tarzan, produced mostly between 1965 and 1985.

For Regis Brochier, a French specialist on B-movies, Turkey has offered the world a whole new genre-”very naive and absolutely uninhibited”-with a careless attitude to technical challenge, weak continuity, aberrant sound-mixing and a complete disregard of intellectual property. Some international festivals have also began to take interest in those low-budget productions that entertained generations at a time when Turkey was largely a closed economy and Western technology was hard to access.

The Paris Cinema Festival last year dedicated a night to those movies, featuring them along with the pride of today’s Turkish cinema-directors Nuri Bilge Ceylan and Semih Kaplanoglu, winners of top awards at Cannes and Berlin.

The genre’s undisputed masterpiece is “The Man Who Saved the World”, often brand-

W

In this Monday, Aug 10, 2009 file photo, Brad Pitt, right, and Angelina Jolie arrive at the premiere of ‘Inglourious Basterds’ in Los Angeles. —AP

Jolie, Pitt in surprise visit to Sarajevo ilm stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie flew into Sarajevo for a surprise visit, in a break from Venice, where Jolie is working on her latest film, a police official told AFP. “Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie arrived at Sarajevo airport, on board a private plane, from Venice,” said a senior officer with the border police.

They were met at the airport by officials from the United Nations children’s organization, UNICEF, the Bosnian daily Dnevni Avaz reported on its Internet site.

UNICEF’s representative in Sarajevo Aida Prljaca, in comments to local information website Sarajevo-X, said the couple were on a private visit.

She refused to give details of where they were staying, but dozens of photographers had staked out the luxury Hotel Europe in the centre of the Bosnian capital, said an AFP photographer. Jolie is currently filming “The Tourist” alongside Johnny Depp, a film loosely based on the French mystery “Anthony Zimmer”. Its director is Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, who was behind the critically acclaimed 2007 German film “The Lives of Others”. —AFP

F

This undated hand out picture shows Turkish actors doing a scene during a fantastic film by Turkish film director Yilmaz Atadeniz.—AFP

ed by pundits as “the worst movie in the world” along with “Plan 9 From Outer Space” by US director Ed Wood. Scores of clips from the 1982 film-known also as “Turkish Star Wars”-are on display on YouTube, with the most popular having received 440,000 hits. The online encyclopedia Wikipedia features an article in seven languages on the movie. Its makers blatantly lifted footage from “Star Wars” and soundtrack from “Indiana Jones”, used images of Egyptian pyramids to depict “another planet” and appeared to have relied heavily on household items to equip their space fighters.

As the plot advances amid countless continuity flops, the main hero makes an unlimited use of an out-of-frame trampoline-jumping with rocks tied to his ankles in one scene-as he fights enemies including red monsters reminiscent of Muppet Show characters and cave mummies made of white paper. Lead actor and scriptwriter Cuneyt Arkin-one of Turkey’s top heart-throbs at the time, now 73 — conceded years later the film was “one of the greatest examples of trash cinema” but insisted it carried “great warmth and sincerity.”

The genre had its peak in the 70s when television emerged as a competitor to cinema, then a flourishing sector in Turkey. “Families left the movie theaters to sit in front of television sets. —AFP

Jackson family to face doctor charged in death he doctor charged in Michael Jackson’s death faces a procedural hearing yesterday, but it has prompted authorities to brace for a crowd of fans and media as well as more than a dozen members of the deceased superstar’s family. Dr Conrad Murray has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter, and the hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court is aimed at assigning a judge to try the case and setting a preliminary hearing date.

Normally, such a procedural hearing would draw few spectators. But with Jackson’s death as the backdrop, crowds of fans and media are expected. And Jackson family members, including his par-

T

ents and siblings, are committed to attending all court proceedings against Murray. Some of them have suggested the charge of involuntary manslaughter is not severe enough. If convicted, Murray would face a maximum sentence of four years in prison.

Sandi Gibbons, spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office, said the Jackson family notified court officials of their plans because seats need to be reserved for them in the courtroom. “There will be more than a dozen, possibly as many as 15,” she said. Allan Parachini, spokesman for the Los Angeles courts, said a large contingent of international media also is expected and the sheriff’s

department is preparing for a crowd.

“It’s basically a housekeeping hearing, but it will be the housekeeping hearing heard around the world,” said Loyola University law professor Laurie Levenson. “I’m already getting e-mails from France. There is no detail too minute for the international media.” Among items to be addressed by supervising Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza is Murray’s fight to keep his medical license. The California Attorney General, representing the state medical board, has moved to revoke his license pending trial.

Murray says that if he can’t continue practicing medicine he will

have no way to pay for his defense.

The doctor has a history of serious financial problems and his attorneys, Ed Chernoff and Joseph Low, said in a court filing Tuesday that the effect would be devastating to Murray. “He is, without fear of overstatement, hanging on by a thread,” the attorneys wrote. “His ability to pay for his own defense depends almost entirely on his ability to continue to treat patients.” Murray, 57, a cardiologist, has clinics in Las Vegas and Houston and also has a license to practice in California. Should his California license be lifted, his lawyers suggest there would be a “domino effect” with other states moving to do the same. —AP

Steven Soderbergh

Madonna in Malawi to lay foundations of girls’ academy pop star Madonna arrived in Malawi yesterday ahead of a brick-laying ceremony at the 15-million dollar girls’ academy that her charity is building. “She will lay the first brick at the site” today, Anjimile Mtila-Oponyo, chief executive officer for the academy, told AFP. The singer arrived with her biological children Rocco and Lourdes and two adopted Malawian children David Banda and Chifundo ‘Mercy’ James, MtilaOponyo said.

Yesterday, she visited a poverty alleviation project in the Mchinji district where she controversially adopted Banda from an orphanage in 2006. The singer was accompanied by American economist Jeffrey Sachs, a special advisor to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and founder of the project which has 14 villages in 10 African countries.

Madonna, who funds several initiatives in Malawi, broke the ground in October last year for the school, which will admit 500 girls from poor back-

US

grounds. Construction of the academy was delayed over a dispute between her charity and some 200 villagers who claimed they were not adequately compensated for land used to

build the school.

The government forcibly removed the villagers, who were paid 500,000 dollars in compensation by Madonna’s charity. Malawi is one of the world’s poorest nations, with more than half of the population of 13 million living on less than

Sri Lankan fahion show

Sri Lankan models display creations by local Sri Lankan designers during a fashion event in Colombo. Clothing accounts for over half of Sri Lanka’s 7.5 billion USD export earnings and is a vital line for the economy that has been gripped by decades old ethnic conflict. —AFP

SPECTRUM

38

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Travel

A visitor poses with the Simpsons characters at Universal Studios.

The nightly parade is featured at Disney’s Magic Kingdom. —MCT photos

Orlando transports

visitors to sophisticated worlds fter two days of being shaken, stirred and over stimulated, I needed a break.

So I was relieved to wander into Epcot’s upscale Les Chefs de France, which reminded me of the bistros I’d recently visited in the real Paris. Everything from the imported French staff to my favorite French spring water made me forget for a few minutes that I was in Orlando. As my waiter served me a perfect croque monsieur sandwich, I watched as the maitre d’, Amelie, pushed a food cart down a nearby aisle.

Dessert, I supposed. She stopped in front of a table and lifted the silver dome to reveal a 6inch-tall beady-eyed rat standing in the middle of a cheese tray. It looked real, but as soon as he started talking-in a squeaky French accent, of course-I realized that I was having

A

Adventures of Spider-Man. I’m prone to motion sickness and haven’t been on a roller coaster for at least a decade, but the attendant assured me that this ride was totally different.

He was right.

Spider-Man is an intense visual experience that puts visitors in the center of the action using high-definition projectors to simulate movement. After walking through the newsroom of the Daily Bugle, I buckled my seat belt and donned my 3-D glasses. The car moved slowly into a dark warehouse-like space and then stopped. When the music started blaring, I was in the middle of a Spider-Man cartoon strip, which unfolded around me via the magic of digital projection.

As the car lurched, shook and bounced in place-all to give the impression that I was

Manta is one of the newest roller coasters at SeaWorld.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Islands of Adventure. another Disney “experience.”

As Remy, the French rat who dreams of becoming a world-class chef in the Disney movie “Ratatouille,” gyrated and serenaded the lunch crowd, I started wondering if the French-speaking families at the tables on either side of me were also animatronic characters. More than anything, the song and dance was another reminder of why Orlando is the nation’s No 1 family vacation destination. And it was further proof that more than four decades after Walt Disney built a fake castle for a fairytale princess in the middle of Florida swampland, technology is pushing the boundaries of reality farther than ever.

I arrived at Universal Orlando early to avoid the crowds and went straight to one of the newest attractions at its theme park Islands of Adventure: the Amazing

scaling the sides of buildings and leaping from one rooftop to the next, hot on the trail of some evildoer-I gripped the seat in front of me. I ducked to avoid objects that I thought would hit me in the head, and several times had to remind myself that the action wasn’t real. But by the time I was hurtling toward the ground during a 400-foot free fall from the top of a building, I was covering my eyes and hoping the young boy sitting next to me wouldn’t notice.

Universal is using some of the same technology at one of its most popular attractions: the Simpsons Ride, which takes you on a mind-bending trip through the perverse world of Krusty the Clown. After standing in line for more than an hour-and this was a slow day in the park-I strapped myself into a jalopy that looked like a shabby roller-coaster car.

Take in the American Idol Experience at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

The premise is that you’re on a Krustyland roller coaster, which malfunctions and sends you hurtling through the air over Springfield, Ill., down Maggie’s throat and

eventually into Homer and Marge’s living room. It all happens using state-of-the-art digital projectors that beam images on the walls of an 80-foot-diameter dome.

Universal hopes to push the boundaries of reality even farther with the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a 20-acre park with multiple “experiences” that the project’s producer, Paul Daurio, says will transport visitors to another time and place.

“It’ll be the new standard for what an immersion experience will be like,” he said, standing outside the tall privacy fence that now surrounds the construction site.

Details about exactly how that will happen are scarce, but it’s already clear that the soaring turrets of Hogwarts Castle will alter the suburban Orlando skyline. Set to open June 18, it’s already one of the park’s more popular attractions: Tourists couldn’t resist peeking through fencing to see what’s happening behind the scaffolding.

With few clocks and lots of lines that end at cash registers, it doesn’t take long to realize that Orlando is like Las Vegas for kidswithout the chance of winning cash. So I was feeling overstimulated and a little broke when the gatekeeper at one of the Disney parking lots asked for another $14 to park and then wished me a “magical day” as he directed me to the trolley that would take me to the Magic Kingdom. I’d spent the first half of the day at Epcot, where the most popular ride is Soarin’,

a simulated hang-glider ride through the scenery of California. Strapped into a chair that dangled 40 feet in the air, I “soared” over the beaches of Malibu, above an aircraft carrier in San Diego’s harbor and through the mountains of Yosemite Park. Similar to the other rides I’d been on, the experience seemed more real because the hang glider moved in concert with the action on the screen; bursts of scents, wind and rain heighten the experience.

Then I took a ferry boat from Epcot to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, where I made a beeline to one of the newest and most lowtech participatory attractions at Disney: the American Idol Experience. The attraction mimics the TV show by letting park visitors audition for a chance to compete in one of three daily shows.

There’s a Ryan Seacrest look-alike who hosts the show and a panel of judges, including one who’s quick with the insults, but the audience picks the winner by casting ballots electronically. The winners of the three daily competitions advance to a final evening show, and the winner of that show gets a Dream Ticket that provides a fast-track audition for the real show. I cast my vote for Jenny Curtin, who belted out a pretty good rendition of “Independence Day,” a fitting selection considering that she’d left seven of her kids at home in Brighton, Mich., to celebrate her oldest daughter’s graduation at Disney.

From Hollywood Studios I took a bus back to the parking lot at Epcot, where I picked up my car and drove 15 minutes to the Magic Kingdom. After paying for parking-again-I took the trolley to the Magic Kingdom’s Main Street, where a character show featuring Mickey and Minnie had just concluded on the steps of Cinderella Castle, followed by a spectacular parade.

As the sky darkened, the castle changed color, each one brighter than the last, and fireworks lit the sky. The night did seem kind of magical. After three days in Orlando, I needed a break from the pavement and crowds, so I headed to Discovery Cove, a sort of tropical all-inclusive experience. After putting on my wet suit-it was provided, along with snorkeling gear-I floated around in an 80-degree freshwater pool. Air temperatures were only in the 50s, so it felt like bathwater. Then I used my snorkel and mask in an artificial reef where I floated face down, watching clouds of Technicolor fish. A woman who was sunning herself on a manmade beach joked with a lifeguard who was bundled up in a scarf, hat and gloves. “I’m from New York and we’ve just had a blizzard,” she said. “This is paradise.”

I’d spent hours floating down a river that goes through an enormous aviary filled with hundreds of exotic birds. —MCT

You’re there to see Paris, not the hotel room H

otel de Londres & Anvers is perfect for the budget-conscious traveler who plans to spend most of his or her time out and about in Paris and not holed up in a hotel. First impressions always count, true, but take a deep breath upon arrival.

Located near two of Paris’ biggest rail stations, Gare du Nord and Gare de l’Est, the hotel draws a largely European crowd that apparently doesn’t mind forgoing the amenities that so many fussy American travelers insist on, namely space, decor, an elevator big enough for you and your luggage to ride together, and check-in upon arrival.

Still, the place grows on you. The room rates are relatively low, especially important with the lousy dollar-euro exchange rate.

There is an ample cold breakfast buffet free for guests. And some staffers are really lots of fun, ready with a smile or a joke. They also will book restaurant reservations for you. All speak English.

Hotel de Londres & Anvers is within walking distance of the Montmartre district.

The artists who gave that district its bohemian air may largely have been replaced by brush-wielding hacks working the tourist trade, but Montmartre’s winding narrow streets still enchant, and the white dome of Sacre Coeur still soars high into the Parisian sky. The city center is just a couple of Metro

A single bed in an alcove of a room is featured at Hotel de Londres et Anvers. stops away. And train travelers coming or going from points east or north of Paris will find the hotel a convenient stop.

Checking in: Cursory welcome.

Doesn’t matter how groggy you are from that trans-Atlantic red-eye flight, you can’t get that room until 2:30 pm-or 2:15 if they take pity on you. Have bags? You will be instructed to drop them in a dingy, unsecured storage room near the front desk. Kill time by wandering along a very tired-looking Boulevard Magenta, which seems to be, judging by the number of bridal shops, the spot in Paris for cheap wedding dresses. Just down the block, at152, Boulevard Magenta, is a cafe called Le Magenta. The menu is in French and English (not a good sign), and an English tea is offered in the afternoon. The fare is acceptable, but locals seem only to dash in for coffee .

Rooms: We had booked a room for three people. What we got was one medium-size room taken up largely by two beds and a second room holding a third bed. This second room was more of an L-shaped alcove, because much of the space had been gobbled up when the bathroom was installed. There is no decoration save for the printed sheer curtains hanging on the French doors that serve as windows. The beds are plain but quite comfortable. Each is covered with a no-nonsense blue blanket. The sheets are clean and starched. A built-in closet has four shelves, plus one extra pillow and a thick blanket.

There is no iron or ironing board. A small television is mounted on the wall near the ceiling in the larger of the two rooms. A tiny desk with chair is in the smaller room. The rooms have direct-dial telephones and Internet connections.

Bathroom: A large, up-to-date space kept very clean. The bathtub is equipped with a detachable hand-held shower attachment whose leaky hose dramatically reduced water pressure. With only two bath and hand towels in the bath, the front desk quickly gave us a third set. There were three small bars of green-tea soap and three vials of green-tea-scented shampoo. The bathroom has a built-in blow-dryer.

Kid-friendly: Children are certainly among the guests, but there is nothing particularly special for them.

Perks and peeves: No room service.

There is a complimentary breakfast buffet served in the hotel’s table-lined reception room. The acid-green chairs there will wake you up faster than any coffee. The buffet has plenty of choices, including yogurt, dried cereal, juices, coffee, croissants and rolls, jam, cheeses and butter. There are vending machines stocked with bottled water, juices, snacks and candy.

The hotel has a computer terminal near the front desk for guests. Wi-Fi is available

A view from a balcony at Hotel de Londres et Anvers in Paris, France can be seen. only in the hotel’s breakfast room. The cost ranges from1.5 euros (about $2) for 30 minutes to 7 euros (about $10) for 24 hours. The elevator is ridiculously small by US standards but is the French norm.

Price: I paid $158.51 a night for my triple room, reserving and paying dollars in advance from the United States. The hotel has 64 rooms, ranging from singles to rooms for four people. Posted rates range from 95 to180 euros (about $130-$250) a night. There

are also12 studios in a new area of the hotel.

The rate for those is 220 euros ($300) a night.

Bottom line: Located in the10th Arrondissement, Hotel de Londres & Anvers is perfect for the budget-conscious traveler.

Hotel de Londres & Anvers 131-133 Blvd Magenta, 75010 Paris Telephone: 33-01-42-85-50-00 hotellondresetanvers.com —MCT

SPECTRUM

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

39

Travel

Paris dining: mericans in France who insist on chowing down the way they do back home miss out on one of the most satisfying pleasures any visitor can experience: exploring a country through its food. There are any number of French restaurateurs who will give “famished” Americans exactly what they’re used to-after all, a euro is a euro is a euro. And, yes, you can and will find McDonald’s, KFC, Starbucks and other symbols of “our” food culture open for business

A

their budgets and taste buds will allow. For eating in France is much, much more than simply sating primeval hunger. It’s in the flavors, the rituals, the sensuality of le repas francais that you can really “get” what makes the French tick-and what really ticks them off about us.

“I often find that Americans are impatient in French restaurants,” recalled Dorie Greenspan, the cookbook author and baking expert who divides her time among New York City, Paris

Dorie Greenspan, the New York City-based baker and cookbook author, stands in the very American-sized kitchen she created inside her Paris, France apartment. —MCT photos here and feeding French people. Yet I still think the visitor pays too high a price, and I’m not talking just about what will likely be an inflated bill.

The French have spent centuries honing their food to a high and honest art. Eating and drinking well is their passion; Parisians, in particular, always seem to be on a restless quest to find the best fare

and Westbrook, Conn.

“Everything in a restaurant moves slower than it does in America,” she added. “I remember having a simple lunch in a cafe with an American friend, and she said, ‘The service here is terrible.

We’ve finished and the waiter hasn’t brought the check.’

Had the waiter brought the check, it would have been

Don’t be full of yourself

considered impolite by French standards. The check comes when you ask for it.”

Other American habits also go against the French grain, said Wendy Lyn, a Florida-born and now Parisbased guide to all things culinary: sharing of entrees, asking for substitutions and ordering a salad or just one course in a prix fixe meal. “It also confuses the kitchen and wait staff who are serving diners in a way that is efficient for them-not the diner,” added Lyn, who recounts her travels, tastings and tips on a Web site called The Paris Kitchen (thepariskitchen.com).

“The balance of power during a European meal is often with the chef and not the customer,” wrote Alexander Lobrano in an email from Lisbon. He is the Connecticut-reared author of “Hungry for Paris,” a restaurant guide I find essential in France, and formerly European correspondent for the late Gourmet magazine.

He elaborated on this point in an entry on his dining-focused Web site, hungryforparis.com.

“Raised to believe the customer is king, many Americans resent it when gastronomic discipline is imposed by a restaurant kitchen,” he wrote recently.

That, he added, is one of the “essential differences” between dining in Europe and in the United States.

He’s so right. Knowing those differences and acting accordingly can make you seem like a savvy Parisian who goes contentedly with the flow-at least until you open your mouth. My high school French instantly betrays me as an American, but my at-table behavior has left some believing I live in France like Lobrano and Lyn. That’s kinda cool.

Here’s some expert advice from Lobrano, Lyn and Greenspan on how not to stick out like an American sore thumb in French restaurants. Both Lyn and Lobrano stress the necessity of making a restaurant reservation.

The French view it as a courtesy and as a sign that you are serious about eating in that restaurant. Either walk in early and request a table for later or phone in that reservation.

The French tend to eat lunch and dinner later than Americans do. Lunch is noon

Wendy Lyn is pictured in this photo. to about 2:30 pm Dinner is 8 to 11 p m. Many restaurants close in the late afternoon to prepare for dinner service.

Those that stay open will post a sign indicating that service continues.

“Read the menus posted outside cafes and bistros to know what is on offer before sitting down and then realizing there’s nothing on the menu you are interested in,” Lyn added. “Learn enough French to communicate that you have food allergies and what foods you can eat, especially if you are a vegetarian.”

Prix fixe menus are usually more affordable than ordering a la carte, but there is a system to them: Order entree (appetizer) and plat (main course), or a plat and a dessert, or all three. “Sharing is a no-no,” Lyn warned.

Greenspan said any cheese will be served before the dessert or, if you like, in place of dessert. “In fine restaurants, where the cheeses are

wheeled out on a cart and you get to choose what you’d like, the pieces of cheese will be arranged on your plate in the

recommended order in which you should eat them. That would be from mildest to strongest,” she said. “In

bistros and other casual restaurants, you might be given a plate with a small selection of cheeses. If the server

The bustling Art Deco dining room is featured at Terminus Nord, a restaurant opened in 1925 directly across from the Gare du Nord train station in Paris’ 10th Arrondissement.

San Francisco’s North Beach

is a getaway that feels like home Saints Peter and Paul Church stands in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco.

—MCT photos

n almost any city, it’s possible to find a place that looks like a getaway but feels like home. North Beach in San Francisco is that place for me. The steep hills, crisscrossing streets and clustered shops and restaurants all reflect the urban delights that make San Francisco distinct.

Yet, the level of comfort here reminds me of home, found simply by walking around the neighborhood, sitting in Washington Square or dining in a favorite quiet Italian restaurant. My 13-year-old stepdaughter, Dana, gave my husband and me her best huff y expression when we announced plans to spend a restful day in North Beach’s Little Italy. Only the promise of a trip to nearby Ghirardelli Square for ice cream sundaes earned us her full cooperation.

But by day’s end, even she had to admit that North Beach has a charming appeal, one she wouldn’t mind experiencing again. North Beach is a treasure trove for historians, writers, artists and, to a far lesser degree, baseball fans.

After all, this is where Hall of Fame ballplayer Joe DiMaggio grew up. His name graces a playground on Lombard Street and the upscale Joe DiMaggio’s Italian Chophouse on Union Street.

North Beach also has deep roots in the Beat movement, with alleys named for writers

I

A mural decorates the inside of the rotunda at Coit Tower.

Jack Kerouac and Bob Kaufman. Most notable is City Lights, an institution among independent bookstores, where customers are encouraged to sit and read. In the basement, Dana got a kick out of a door painted, “I Am the Door.” “Well, obviously,” she quipped. To which I then explained far more than she wanted to know about poet and City Lights owner Lawrence Ferlinghetti.

From there we trekked to my favorite corner: Washington Square. On a warm day, the park is filled with sunbathers, dogs and the famed parrots of Telegraph Hill, who perch in the tall branches of the park’s trees.

Across the street sits the impressive Saints Peter and

Paul Church. Inside are works of art reminiscent of the great Italian cathedrals, just on a smaller scale. A gold-dome painting hovers above a stunning high altar. Designed by Charles Fantoni, the 40-ton altar is made of Carrara marble, the same stone used for Michelangelo’s David. Equally impressive are the Coit Tower murals, depicting life in San Francisco and the city’s working class. Even if you skip the elevator ride to the tower’s top, you can still visit the rotunda murals for free.

As part of a Public Works of Art Project in the 1930s, 25 area artists created the mostly fresco murals. Some depicted scenes led the public to denounce the artists as communists; yet, in 2008, those

murals had Coit Tower placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Parking is limited at Coit Tower, so expect delays of 10 to 20 minutes. Or if you have the stamina, try hiking up the steep Filbert Street Steps, which rise in three sections from Sansome Street. Along the way, you’ll see handsome art-deco buildings and stunning views of San Francisco.

No stop to North Beach is complete without cannoli. A popular Sicilian dessert, cannoli are fried, tube-shaped pastry shells stuffed with a thick, sweet, creamy filling.

We trudged up Columbus Avenue so I could buy a few of my favorites at Mara’s Italian Pastry shop. The cannoli there are nothing short of sinful. The sweet cream is packed with mini chocolate chips and the cannoli come either plain or partially dipped in chocolate. Dana declared these even better than the ice cream sundae.

Mara’s also serves generous portions of authentic gelato. Not to be confused with ice cream, this frozen treat has less fat and is churned more slowly, giving it a denser and smoother consistency. While Mara’s sticks mostly with the basics, Gelateria Naia across the street is more imaginative, with flavors ranging from biscotti to Numi Tea Aged Earl Grey.

doesn’t tell you where to begin on the plate or if you’re not sure, ask. Good waiters love to talk about the food.”

Coffee comes on its own at the end of the meal and not with dessert, said Greenspan, who blogs about her Parisian food experiences at doriegreenspan.com. “The after-dinner coffee of choice is an espresso. Indeed, ‘un cafe’ means ‘espresso’ in French restaurantese.” Wine is sold in various sizes from a small glass to the standard 750-milliliter bottle. Most French wines are labeled by geographical names, not grape varieties. Don’t expect a lot of table-side chat from the staff. “Servers do not want to interrupt your conversation or meal, nor have they been trained to anticipate your multiple needs,” Lyn said. “You must ask for the check, salt, pepper. They aren’t being rude; they just expect you to ask for what you need.” —MCT

North Beach is seen from Telegraph Hill.

If you go: Where to eat: Capp’s Corner: 1600 Powell St, 415-989-2589, www.cappscorner.com; open 11:30 am -2:30 pm daily, 4:30-10:30 pm weekdays and 4-11 pm Saturdays-Sundays. Joe DiMaggio’s Italian Chophouse: 601 Union St, 415-4215633, www.joedimaggiosrestaurant.com.

Mara’s Italian Pastry: 503 Columbus Ave, 415-3979435; open 7 am -10:30 pm Sundays-Thursdays and 7 am midnight Fridays-Saturdays.

Gelateria Naia: 520 Columbus Ave, 415-677-9280, www.gelaterianaia.com; open 11 am -11 pm SundaysThursdays and 11 am-midnight Fridays-Saturdays.

Ristorante Ideale: 1315 Grant Ave, 415-391-4129, www.idealerestaurant.com; open 5:30-10:30 pm MondaysThursdays, 5:30-11 pm Fridays-Saturdays and 5-10 pm Sundays.

What to do and see: City Lights: 216 Columbus Ave, 415-362-8193, www.citylights.com; open 10 am-midnight daily.

Saints Peter and Paul Church: 666 Filbert St, 415-4210809, www.stspeterpaul.san-francisco.ca.us; open 7:30 am -4 pm weekdays.

Coit Tower: 1 Telegraph Hill Blvd, 415-362-0808; open 10 am -5 pm daily; $4.50 general, $3.50 ages 65 and older, $2 ages 6-12.

Cobb’s Comedy Club: 915 Columbus Ave, 415-928-4320, www.cobbscomedyclub.com.

Beach Blanket Babylon: 678 Green St, 415-421-4222, www.beachblanketbabylon.com. —MCT

www.kuwaittimes.net

France heads for a long Indian summer ndia is flavor of the month in France with the spotlight swerving from the fairytale world of maharajas to tribal craftsmen in a buildup to a year-long celebration of one of the world’s richest and most diverse cultures. A recent exhibition of priceless autochrome color photographs nearly 100 years old drew more than 100,000 visitors-a record for the Albert Kahn museum in Paris-captivating visitors with everyday scenes and palace life in a country whose native rulers behaved like God. That was followed by an ongoing show at the Foundation Pierre Berge Yves Saint Laurent again showcasing the wildly decadent universe of the erstwhile ruling class who squandered millions a night at gaming tables in Nice and Biarritz, and ordered priceless jewelry from top Parisian bijoutiers. The Maharaja exhibition focuses on the fabulous clothes and jewelry they sported, some acquired for sums equaling the budget of a small present-day nation.

A case in point is the famed Patiala necklace ordered by the king of a former princely state in northern India-the most expensive order ever handled by the House of Cartier. The pendulous multi-layered art deco necklace delivered in 1928 comprised nearly 3,000 diamonds, including the famed 234-carat De Beers, one of the largest ever found.

Court attire covers extravagant silk and brocaded sherwanis, or long coats, turbans and womens’ costumes, with ceremonial swords, richly embroidered elephant saddles, and fabulous gems.

A zillion lights years away is the just-opened “Other Masters of India” at the Quai Branly museum portray-

I

ing the lives of tribal artisans living in remote villages, until recently far removed from modern day life.

It showcases cunning bamboo baskets crafted by the Nagas, a tribe of fierce former headhunters from fareastern India, cire-perdu (known as lost wax) brass and metal statues from the central Bastar region, and clay bas reliefs traditionally crafted by women in the nearby Chhatisgarh area. “The main aim is to show how today’s tribes portray their current predicament in their art,” Jyotindra Jain, who curated the show, told AFP. The brush with civilization often is traumatic “The brush with civilization often is traumatic. A railway station which opens near a village brings in factories, cars and the old way of life is gone forever.’ Jain shows two traditional scrolls from the Santal tribe spread in parts of central and eastern India to illustrate his point. The first is a traditional scroll showing creation according to the Santals, involving cows, divine nectar and ensuing humankind.

The second portrays police brutality and scenes of violence that Jain says the tribes encounter on coming into contact with the world around them.

“A recent report showed there are more than 100,000 people languishing in jail although their cases have not been heard,” he said. “This kind of art shows the effect it can have on a collective psyche.”

The brush with modernity also comes out in other ways as 24-yearold Kishore Mhase explained. A member of the Warli tribe from the western state of Maharshtra famed for geometrical paintings with sticklike human representations, she said

A canvas painting ‘Srilal Joshi’ sculptures presented during the exhibition ‘Other Masters Of India’ devoted to Indian indigenous populations and folk communities, known as Adivasis.—AFP photos

Sculptures presented during the exhibition ‘Other Masters Of India’

Indian artist Jivya Soma Mashe makes a painting at the Quai Branly museum in Paris. the subject matter has changed.

“We used to draw human forms, gods and goddesses and birds, trees and plants. My uncle went to Sweden recently. He now does train platforms and airports.”

The works of Sundaribai, an artist from central India whose people are reknowned for clay sculptures and earthen bas-relief works, also underline a change in subject matter. “I see new things and I get inspired,” she said, putting the finishing touches on a tile depicting the Eiffel Tower and its surroundings.

Intricate paintings by Gond tribesmen-reminiscent of Australian aboriginal art-also reflect the trend, showing bird-shaped planes and the Ambassador car, a boxy derivative of a 1950s British model which domi-

nated Indian roads for decades until its free market reforms of 1991.

Apart from the show at the Quai Branly, Paris’ newest arthouse, another exhibition offers exquisitely detailed miniatures from the courts of medieval India and drawing from Central Asian and Persian art forms.

But the icing on the cake will be a months-long Indian festival celebrating the art forms, music, food and fashion of a mini continent that opens on April 14 with a performance by famed classical dancer Mallika Sarabhai.

“It will go on for more than a year and we will be staging events in several French cities,” said Indian embassy official Namrata Kumar.

“The aim is to bring India to France like never before,” she said.—AFP

Modern Etiquette: Travel in the 21st century ho owns the middle seat arm rests on an airplane, really? How do you break away from the marathon talker in seat 12E? And what do you do, if anything, about the angelic-looking child kicking the back of your seat? Incivility and rudeness are often the product of stress, and there are few situations more primed for stress these days than travelóespecially air travel. Once glamorous, air travel is now a test of patience, and sometimes even endurance. Todayís travelers face the reality of rigorous security procedures on top of flight delays and cancellations, anxiety about flying, cramped seating and reduced or no meal service.

How to cope? Patience, courtesy and flexibility, and a sense of humor will serve you well. While you may have little or no control over long security lines, weather delays, the cabin environment or your choice of seatmate, you can control how you react to adversity. All the more reason to come as prepared as possible to circumvent predictable problems. Here are a few tips, both defensive and offensive, to get you through your travels with less stress and more civility.

• Arrive early. This may be obvious, but itís often undervalued. As your stress level rises your capacity for tolerance and civility often decreases.

• Stay calm if your gate agent gives you bad news.

Losing your temper wonít get you there faster, and it may lose you the sympathy of the one person who could possibly pull some strings.

• Dress and pack with security in mind to avoid delaying other passengers. Do your homework on current screening procedures and airline policies for checked and carry-on luggage. There are still clueless passengers who pack large bottles of liquids in their carry-on luggage-a nuisance to everyone behind them. Wear shoes that are easy to take on and off, and keep items you may have to remove from your luggage for screening, such as laptops, readily accessible. This keeps the line moving, which keeps tempers calm. If youíre a frequent traveler who knows the drill, be patient with those who are new at this-they may

W

Lola, left, and Tuffy wear Easter clothing at the Easter Parade.

Carina Bubenik, 3, tries to get a better look at some of the costumes at the Easter Parade in New York, Sunday.—AP photos

Outlandish hats go on display at NYC Easter parade osemary Ponzo came to the Easter parade decked out as Judy Garland in a lavish black tulle hat with hot pink ostrich features in tribute to the actress, who immortalized the outlandish Easter bonnet display in a 1948 movie opposite Fred Astaire. The annual event along Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue is more of a leisurely stroll than a parade, with smiling folks-and pets, too-strutting their homemade headgear concoctions as others snap their pictures or pose with them. Nicki Gallas brought her large toy poodle, Maisie, dressed up in a flower bonnet and pinafore.

Ensconced inside a makeshift bicycle basket, he happily posed for anyone who wanted to take his picture. Gallas, who’s been coming to the parade for 30 years, also brought along her Eastern box turtle, Tuck, but lef t his cowboy hat at home because “it was too much to deal with.” But, holding him up at the parade Sunday, she added: “He’d be in his shell if he didn’t love it.”

The Easter parade is a tradition that dates back more than 100 years.

It originally was a chance for prosperous New Yorkers to strut their finery after attending services at one of the churches on Fifth Avenue.

Garland and Astaire immortalized it in the musical “Easter Parade.”

Ponzo, a costume designer, completed her Garland outfit with a black cape, studded hose, black ankle

R

boots, purple fingerless gloves, Armani jeweled wrist cuffs and long false eyelashes.

German tourists Anna Tauck and Leila Maxhuni, both from Hamburg, were delighted to come across the parade. “All the costumes, they all look amazing,” said Tauck, who was in New York with her friend to attend an international student conference at the United Nations.

“We have nothing like this in

Germany,” said Maxhuni. “I’m so happy to be here.”

Canadian tourist Joanna Bubinska was attending the parade for the first time but came prepared wearing a chapeau with a bird cage and black paper cat trying to get at it on her head. She said she had heard about the parade back home in Kitchener, southwest of Toronto, and wanted to participate. “It’s great,” she said.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have any-

thing like this (in Canada).” Brooklyn resident Maria Campanella could barely keep her head straight. Her bonnet, weighing about 15 pounds (6.8 kilograms), was a tall cross anchored to an inverted basket made of 12 egg cartons filled with plastic colored eggs.

Her goddaughter, Lauren Juliano, also of Brooklyn, sported a slightly smaller version filled with black and white eggs.

“They’re in memory of my father,” Campanella said of the hats.

“This is the first Easter without him.” The only reminder that the Catholic Church is under siege for recent revelations regarding sex abuse was a handful of protesters opposite St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

“Preaching Intolerance One Fondle at a Time” and “Take Back the Church. Fire the Pope,” read some of their placards.—AP

People walk past a fiberglass artwork by Sui Jianguo entitled ‘Legacy Mantles’ with an estimated value of around 258,000 USD at a Sotheby’s auction in Hong Kong yesterday.

The auction house is currently holding its 2010 Spring Sale from April 3 - 8 with 2,400 lots at an estimated 167 million USD. —AFP

be nervous.

• If you canít choose your environment, create your own.

Bring an eye shade for napping, and use headphones to listen to music or movies (whether in the terminal or on the plane), or earplugs to block out unwanted conversations. If your seatmate wonít stop chatting with you, smile and say, ìWell, itís been nice speaking with you. Iím going to read for a bit now.î • Do your fellow travelers a favor and step away from others in the terminal to take cell phone calls, and keep calls brief while in security lines or taxi-ing to the gate after landing. The middle seat arm rests are shared property. That said, itís generous for the aisle and window seat holders to give the middle passenger a chance to claim them first • Traveling is trying for adults, and even more so for children. Crying babies are part of the air travel package, so itís a good idea to stash some earplugs in your carry on. However, if a child is kicking the back of your seat, itís okay to ask their parent to have them stop. Smile and say, ìI know itís tough for kids, but would you mind asking him not to kick the seat? Thanks.î Keep it short and offer some understanding, and itís likely the parent-and child-will comply • Reading over someoneís shoulder is nosy and intrusive.

Avoid the temptation and come prepared with books, magazines, or a laptop of your own. Privacy filters for computers and smart phones will bar wandering eyes. If 6A is taking an unhealthy interest in your screen, meet his gaze briefly. This will jolt his awarenessóthe best medicine for rude behavior.

• With airlines cutting back on complimentary in-flight meals and snacks, the smart traveler packs his own. Avoid foods with strong odors that may bother your neighbors though, such as tuna fish, egg salad, or a garlicky meatball sub-enjoy these in the terminal instead. Due to the prevalence of nut allergies, itís best to avoid these snacks altogether. You canít always choose your neighbors on the plane or in the boarding area, but you can take responsibility for your own comfort and come as prepared as possible.—Reuters