16 Apr

Kuwait Times

April 16, 2010

NO: 14700

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INSIDE

When paper money buys big companies PAgE 5

Poland to reveal black box details from crash PAgE 12

Senior members of trade unions assemble in front of the National Assembly main entrance in protest against the draft privatization bill. (Inset) A member of the oil workers’ union scuffle with Assembly guards during the parliamentary session yesterday. — Photos by Fouad Al-Shaikh

Privatization: Yay or Nay? Bill passed in first reading amid protests; next vote in two weeks Ancient scribe’s tomb unearthed in Egypt PAgE 55

Brilliant Barca go 6-point clear PAgE 64

By B Izzak KUWAIT: The National Assembly yesterday passed the privatization law in the first reading amid strong protests by opposition MPs who described the law as an attempt to sell Kuwait and transfer its assets in the hands of a few wealthy businessmen.

Thirty-three MPs voted for the law while 10 were against as around 17 MPs walked out of the session during the voting in protest against the law.

The second and final reading will take place after at least two weeks when the financial and economic affairs committee has completed studying a number of amendments proposed by some MPs, head of the committee MP Youssef AlZalzalah told reporters after the vote.

Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi ordered guards to evict a number of trade union activists from the gallery after they started to protest against MPs who supported the bill during the voting.

Highly-emotional speeches by opposition lawmakers about the negative impacts of the law on low and middle income Kuwaiti families electrified the session which witnessed heated exchanges between some MPs and also with Khorafi.

MP Mussallam Al-Barrak, who launched a scathing attack on the law, called on trade unions to

assemble in protest against the law.

MP Falah Al-Sawwagh warned that Kuwaiti workers could go on a nation-wide strike if the law was approved by the National Assembly.

The law stipulates to transfer all governmentheld services to the private sector and excluded the health, education and oil and gas production with a special law for each of these services.

Privatization in oil production must be limited to a definite timeframe.

It calls for setting up a higher privatization council to be headed by the prime minister. It will include five ministers and three experts to be appointed by the government.

The council will regulate the process of privatization including announcing services to be privatized in a transparent way.

The law stipulates that a public shareholding company should be established before privatizing any public service. Forty percent of the company shares will be sold to citizens in an initial public offering.

Twenty-percent will be held by the government, five percent to be distributed equally on Kuwaiti employees and the remaining 35 percent will be sold at an auction to a strategic local or foreign investor.

Kuwaiti employees will have the right to retain

their jobs in the privatized service for at least five years with the same salary and benefits.

But several MPs expressed concern that the privatization will lead to thousands of Kuwaitis losing their jobs and creating a major catastrophe for them. They cited a number of privatization programs like petrol stations which they have fired Kuwaiti employees after privatization.

MPs opposed to the law also said the legislation will only lead to transferring government assets into the hands of a few influential people. MP Barrak said resources of Kuwait will be controlled by four highly influential people after privatization.

MP Khaled Al-Adwah said privatization will humiliate many Kuwaitis after private owners control currently state-owned companies.

“We accept the government hell rather than the privatization paradise,” he said, adding that “we will not allow the government to lose control over Kuwait’s lifeline, the oil resources.”

But MP Abdulrahman Al-Anjari said Kuwait is heading for catastrophe “if it does not create sufficient jobs. This law is to be or not to be for Kuwait.”

The financial and economic affairs committee will study a number of amendments to the law including a possible article to emphasize that oil production is not included in the law.

LOCAL

Page 2 Friday SpotligHt

Friday, April 16, 2010

iN My ViEW

Hitler and smoking

By Muna Al-Fuzai

uring my school days, like my peers, I read and heard even examined and Hitler’s life and leadership. I recall how books about his life, beliefs, hopes were translated into Arabic and published.

Interestingly, none of these books ever mentioned his ‘proxy war’ against smoking. Recently, I read some reports on how Hitler tried to fight cancer by exuding his leadership qualities, and discourage the German youth from smoking tobacco which he called ‘the wrath of the Red Man against the White Man.’ It was a campaign that he associated with the virtue of better health and purity of German blood, although I fail to see the connection.

I guess it was impossible for anyone to oppose his wishes. Yes, smoking is dangerous and harmful to health. However, the controversy associated with it continues to rage. Some support smoking as part of advocating human freedom, while others advise refraining from the practice in public places.

The bottom line here is that this campaign against smoking was undertaken a long time ago for the most unbelievable of reasons.

For example, Hitler wanted to discourage the public from smoking by circulating posters that depicted smoking as a common practice among jazz musicians, gypsies, Indians, homosexuals, Blacks, communists, capitalists, cripples, intellectuals and prostitutes. So, yes, he wanted his people to stop smoking. He did that by manipulating their minds and lending elements of bigotry. Maybe that is the way he believed how his policies could be implemented.

Is smoking dangerous? Yes, even a five-year-old child can confirm that. Why is this message not sent across to a majority who think it is okay to smoke in public places like restaurants? Why do we see policemen smoking while on duty? The same applies to doctors who advise their patients not to do so! A law that banned smoking was applied a few years ago. I can’t remember it being implemented on anyone though.

Hitler maybe had an idea about why he wanted his people to stop smoking. We are more knowledgeable about the health hazards that smoking causes, yet we don’t say a word. Why don’t we call for fight smoking in public places, at family gatherings and schools? Maybe we should come up with a different tactics. Surely, not the one Hitler used!

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muna @kuwa itti mes .net

She’s pretty... pretty nasty Beauty may be skin deep but ugliness goes right to the bone

By Priyanka Saligram hat’s the first thing you notice when you meet a new person?

The color of their eyes? The person’s build - whether they are lean or on the prosperous side; or the way they walk? Maybe he has a slight limp and drags his feet when he walks or she has a stammer and takes more time to say the words that you mouth off without a second thought.

Let’s say you start seeing them on a regular basis, like every day. Perhaps you meet at the same health club every morning and spend a while by the water-station talking about your lives or you work with them and interact as colleagues and professionals. What would you notice then? Would you still notice that he has a funny walk? Would it still strike you as odd that she can’t complete a sentence without pausing and contorting her tongue in an effort to speak?

Let’s assume you guys hang out and begin to spend more time. After a few days or weeks of regular communication, when you think of the person, you find yourself recalling a funny incident they related to you, or the way their voice exudes genuine warmth and enthusiasm when they greet you on seeing you. You smile to yourself when you remember how both of you huddle up conspiratorially while gossiping about a common enemy or the way they were really concerned and worried when you said you were feeling feverish.

Over time, you realize that what attracted you towards the person initially, their long and silky hair or what you noticed as “different”, like the walk or

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speech is the last thing that would matter to you - or even come up in the conversation - when you talk about them with your family or friends. You are more likely to quote one of their favorite jokes and laugh or describe how she has a deep dimple on her left cheek which looks beautiful every time she laughs. You finally find yourself telling everybody that they must meet the individuals you are talking about because they are now a part of your life and you think they are simply wonderful.

That, is the power of the human personality over looks.

Consider a different scenario: One morning you head to your yoga class and encounter someone. She is dropdead gorgeous and looks like she stepped out of some fashion glossy. Your head feels like it’s spinning because she is all that you can see in the whole room - not because she is that huge but because she is that indescribably beautiful. Her skin is porcelain, eyes like crystals, hair advertised by L’Oreal and the rest, you can imagine.

You want to get to know her, talk to her and become friends - and it happens. You guys spend time together, shopping, eating out and talking about everything under the sky. After a hundred cups of coffee, you begin to notice something that you hadn’t earlier: She bitches about everyone. She has no prejudices; she hates everyone equally.

Nobody or nothing is worth her time.

She speaks nastily about the people she calls her best friends, has a bad opinion of her family members, swears about her colleagues, and is a compulsive liar.

After a few weeks, when you find yourself speaking about her to your family, you forget to mention how pretty her new hair-do looks. Funnily, when someone asks you what you think of her, you find yourself thinking, ‘She’s not a nice person really...’

That, again, is the power of the human personality over looks.

It’s no breaking news that in today’s world, beauty - as perceived by the billion-dollar cosmetic industry - is marketed left, right, and center. While there are innumerable products to hide our blemishes, and make our dark circles “vanish” overnight, it’s a pity that there is nothing available over the counter to fix an embittered heart.

When you give it a thought, you realize that physical appeal is sometimes tremendously overrated. While no one can really choose their height or skin tone, being sensitive and considerate towards another individual or doing social service and making a difference to some less fortunate soul’s life is a choice well within everyone’s reach because beauty without character begins to look jaded over time but character without beauty has its own radiance. I think that it is better to have a heart as large as your hips rather than a mind that is as narrow as your waist because the one who you reach out to help, will see you as the most beautiful person - no matter how you look to the rest of the world.

Ultimately, it’s great to be hot but it’s more important to be warm. priyankasaligram@kuwaittimes.net

LOCAL

Friday, April 16, 2010

Where the heck is swine flu?

SATIRE WIRE

By Sawsan Kazak oes anyone know what happened to swine flu?

Planning an upcoming trip to the US, I remembered the recent hoopla surrounding this virus.

About a year ago swine flu was all the rage. You couldn’t open a paper or watch a news broadcast without hearing about this disease’s debilitating effects on the world. We were bombarded with what

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seemed to be staggering statistics of infected people and the rapid worldwide spread of this flu.

Airports purchased expensive feverdetecting machinery that could scan your forehead and determine whether you were infected or not. While traveling we were forced to fill out questionnaire, reporting our whereabouts and the status of our health.

The World Health Organization warned us to stop greeting each other with kisses and handshakes, but rather a nod of acknowledgment. People invested in surgical masks that they would wear in crowded areas to avoid contamination. Populations were turned into

masses of hypochondriacs with anti-bacterial gels in their pockets and suspicion in their eyes.

Shortly after, we were presented with the miracle cure and prevention: the medication and the vaccine, which countries and people fought over and stocked up on like it was an elixir for doomsday. While we were ‘gripped by this disease’ we changed our social behavior, traveling patterns and kill many innocent pigs in the process.

But nowadays, swine flu seems to be a disease from the past like the plague. We no longer hear about infected cases or methods to prevent it. Have we eradicated swine flu

Dirty hands

IN MY VIEW

By Abdulla Alnouri ne hand washes the other,’ it’s a common enough saying. I grew up with a funny understanding of this phrase. To me, it has always meant that every problem has its sources. No single part of a problem deserves all the blame for an undesirable outcome.

For instance, I caught a flat tire driving around Hawally the other day.

Chances are that a better driver could have avoided the pothole, or curb in my case. Maybe the pressure in the tire was off, or maybe that tire just couldn’t stand being abused by a neglectful driver anymore. Either way, I should not have been driving around Hawally while the schools were letting out. One hand washed the other and I had to get my hands dirty putting on my spare.

Kuwait has a problem; the violence against women in this country is undeniably high and out of control.

The chauvinism and apathy of this country is contributing to a culture of kidnappings, rape, murder and domestic violence.

I am always surprised by the discussions I have with people who are in complete denial about the situation women face here. I know that I, and others, have written about this before, but a story we published in the paper recently caught my attention. A woman, Kuwaiti, reported being physically abused by her brother for the

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past 10 years. She kept silent until one day her brother tied her up on the stairs and burned her with a candle until she passed out. The next day, the brother brought his sister to the hospital where she was treated for third degree burns.

I don’t mean to speak for this woman’s experience, but I know that often people live with all kinds of abuse, physical, sexual, or drug-related, until one day something really intense happens that makes them reevaluate the people in their lives, or their lifestyles.

I wonder what it will take for Kuwait to take a harder look at the violence that exists for women in this country and take active steps toward solving the issue. Currently, instead of addressing the problem, many of our political representatives and public figures promote a culture of chauvinism by demanding stricter segregation laws, travel bans for women, and keeping them from playing football.

They pretty much believe that the best way to “ensure the safety of our daughters,” as one of them put it at a seminar in Jahra recently, is to put more rules on them. This idea is obviously flawed, and does not deserve much more consideration.

On the other hand, and contributing to this societal problem, is the lack of a voice against conservatives who promote these archaic ideas. Many of us just roll our eyes at those conservatives who are still trying to come to

grips with that ‘crazy rock and roll music’ mentality instead of seriously realizing how harmful their policies are.

Thankfully, we have enough liberal thinkers in political authority to keep these rules from being legally enforced. Without them, women in this country would probably be locked up somewhere, chained to a stove and unable to even speak of travel or football “for their own protection.”

Those who choose to remain ignorant to the violence against women in this country are just as much to blame as the conservatives who think that more hijabs will solve the problem.

How many opportunities were there for that girl who was being abused by her brother to be asked if everything was okay by loved ones? How can abuse happen for 10 years without someone taking notice? Perhaps if someone spoke out against her brother’s inappropriate actions a long time ago, the woman never would have been hospitalized.

I know most people understand the phrase ‘one hand washes the other’ to mean it takes an effort to fix a problem. One hand can get dirty easily enough on its own, but it takes two to clean them up again. Either way, there is a problem worth addressing here and the solution starts with the realization that there are some dirty hands in this country.

Abalnouri@kuwaittimes.net

DIGEST

Focusing on ‘other’ issues part from Kuwait’s raging political issues, there are several others like problems related to society, health and culture that plague it. However, sparse efforts are being made to address these concerns, especially since more attention is directed towards the political game plan,’ wrote Dr Abdulmuhsin Jamal in his column that appeared in Al-Qabas.

Among the non-political issues that need to be addressed carefully is the first Food Security Conference that was inaugurated at the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) under the patronage of the Minister of Public Works Dr Fadhel Safar. This conference demonstrated how countries around the world have already taken advanced measures to provide food security to their people.

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At the same time, such measures have been ignored in Kuwait, the writer feels.

Furthermore, the conference demonstrated how focusing on food security can become a great opportunity for investment in Kuwait, through various ventures in food products, agriculture and livestock. The event also demonstrated the efforts made by the KISR and the Public Authority of Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR). All that is required for these issues is to garner more media attention or at least as much as political issues are given.

‘Another issue that caught my attention is the inauguration of the dialysis center at the Farwaniya Hospital, in an event held under the patronage of the Minister of Health Dr

Hilal Al-Sayer. During the event, an announcement was made indicating that 55 dialysis units were installed at the center. That, it turns out, indicates that the kidney-related diseases have been spreading more rapidly in the country than previously thought,’ he wrote. Therefore, this issue should also be given more attention instead of all focusing entirely on the political field.

Kuwait enjoys many bright aspects and has created various job opportunities in different fields. ‘However, it would have been more helpful for ministers to be left to do their job and focus on bringing these bright spots to the surface, instead of keeping them engaged in political issues, which can neither achieve food security nor cure our kidney patients,’ he concluded.

in our lifetime? If so, why aren’t we able to eradicate other maladies like the common flu or chickenpox? Or is swine flu no longer worth reporting? Does it no longer sell newspapers or medication for that matter?

We saw the disease from its first appearance, followed by devastation and deaths and concluded with a solution (medication/vaccine). What a happy, openended story; but is it truly? Why are we not hearing about swine flu or its second cousin ‘bird flu’? Are we truly in the clear or are we simply waiting for the next craze? sawsank@kuwaittimes.net

HalluciNations

Austrian tolerance!

B y Ahmad Saeid t really sounds like some sort of a disease, “your husband is suffering from an advanced stage of ‘Austriantolerance’ madam, and there’s nothing we can do about that, we are very sorry!” - could be a sentence from a cheesy science fiction movie. The funny part is, this is not too far from the truth, the only difference is that it’s not a disease by itself, but rather a symptom of a social disease called Islamophobia.

I am sure many people noticed the new wave of Islamophobia that is taking place in various parts of Europe. Be it legislation such as the ban of Hijab, Niqab, Burqini, or Minarets, the rise of right-winged parties, or even the refusal of accepting Turkey as a member of the European Union. I’ve always enjoyed listening to the funny justifications given by different countries in Europe for their actions. You know like forcefully inserting Hijab into the law for banning ‘religious symbols’ in French schools, even though they know it is not a symbol, I mean come on guys, who are you fooling?

Anyway, the latest amusement I got in this context was the result of a survey that was carried in Austria about the way Islam is viewed in the country. The poll came out with a number of interesting findings, like the fact that “Austrians older than 50, people with lower education and those living in the countryside feared Islam the most”, according to AustrianTimes.at. The most interesting finding of the poll however was that 71 percent of polled Austrians believed that “Islam does not match western beliefs in democracy, freedom and tolerance!”

Emphasis on the last word of the sentence - ‘tolerance’. A statement like this one that judges a major world religion such as Islam to be intolerant, is in itself an indication of intolerant society. Let aside the other manifestations of intolerance in many other European countries.

Don’t get me wrong, I do respect Europe, and have a very high esteem for European worldview, and that is exactly why I am particularly disappointed in this ‘unEuropean’ attitude towards Islam. It was in Europe itself that Islam created a model that is acknowledged by even European historians to be the best case of tolerance and coexistence between various religious groups. I am talking about Andalusia.

I am not denying that the current state of Muslim countries, and Muslims in general is nothing to brag about, but what I am trying to say is that the Islamic civilization, at the peak of its blossoming, produced a model that is ‘brag-worthy’ for tolerance and coexistence. Why can’t Europe, during the peak of its civilization be tolerable to its own Muslim citizens? Let aside accepting a Muslim country into the EU! If this is the maximum tolerance Europe can show, then excuse me guys - you just don’t have it. Therefore, claiming that Islam does not match western beliefs would be a correct claim, but only because Europe has not yet risen to the level of tolerance practiced in Islamic civilization. sa eid@kuwa ittim es. ne t

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LOCAL

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Friday, April 16, 2010

Transsexuals in Kuwait:

Criminals or victims?

By Hassan A. Bari

he term ‘transsexual’ (third gender or she-male as they are locally known) is often mistaken for homosexuality in the Arab world and is considered highly sinful in Islam. This is why most Arab transsexuals, especially men, prefer keeping a low profile. In some Arab countries, they can face jail sentences for dressing or acting like the opposite sex. In some cases they can even be punished or killed by their families.

It is far easier for a woman to have a sex change operation and become a man. For instance, the recent Yemeni case of Nabila who discovered after a two-year marriage that she had been born male with a deformed masculine

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not allow transgender people to change their legal identity to match the gender they live, or to adapt their physical appearance through gender reassignment surgery.

As a result of the new dress-code passed in December 2007, 14 transsexuals were arrested and reportedly ill-treated in detention, according to the Human Rights Watch. All of those detained were held in the Tahla Prison, where police and prison guards reportedly subjected the detainees to physical and psychological abuse.

Reportedly, according to prison authorities, the ‘confused men’ were held in solitary confinement and their heads were shaved as a punishment.

A number of them later met with several parliamentarians. They

? reproductive organ that had been reversed into her body since birth.

On the other hand, a man who becomes a woman is seen to have dishonored the family since women are more vulnerable than men in the Arab world.

Locally, in January 2003, the first case of its kind in Kuwait, an unnamed transsexual submitted papers to the court proving that she had a sex-change operation and asked for a legal gender change to become a female. In April 2004, in an unprecedented ruling, a Kuwaiti court ruled that a 25-year-old man who underwent a sex-change surgery could be officially considered a woman. The judges were apparently guided by a religious edict allowing gender change if there are medical reasons for it, according to an AlAzhar fatwa (religious edict). The ruling was approved by a higher court before it was finalized.

In an attempt to ‘protect its youth’ in June 2008, the Kuwaiti government stepped up a campaign to ‘rid’ the country of gay and transsexual citizens. This came after Kuwait’s Parliament passed a law criminalizing ‘imitating the appearance of the opposite sex’ in December the previous year.

The amendment states that “any person committing an indecent act in a public place, or imitating the appearance of a member of the opposite sex, shall be subject to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year or a fine not exceeding KD 1,000.” Kuwait does

handed them a petition and asked for their support because they suffered from an ‘illness.’ They complained that the current legislation does not take their psychological and physical circumstances into consideration.

His own story “I’m completely fed up with the way people gaze at us in disgust, or even with lust in many cases,” said D, a 19-year-old transsexual citizen.

“I’ve never considered fleeing my home country to the West where people like me are valued or, at least, granted enough freedom to ‘live and let others be.’”

D spoke to Friday Times on condition of anonymity. I overheard his conversation with another transgendered person. They kept addressing each other as girls and competed for the attention of other men in the room. I asked him whether he was born the way he was. With a pink mobile phone in his hands, clutching a small pink purse, colored eye-contact lenses, lingerie for underwear (as he told me later on), a very feminine body D responded that he indeed was born ‘a normal baby boy.’ He narrated his story of being trapped between two worlds.

Childhood “Ever since my early childhood I had a tendency to play with girls. I hated mingling with boys or men. I never liked playing with toy cars. I loved Barbie dolls ever since I was four. I have a normal sister and normal half brothers. My father is

married to another woman and has divorced my mother,” he said. He added that his uncles, on his mother’s side, tried hard to change the way he acted and behaved. “They would beat me up, they shaved my head. They even hospitalized me in the Psychiatric Diseases Hospital and had doctors inject me with male hormones that only stiffened my skin a little bit. Deep inside, I still felt like a woman,” he emphasized.

He explained that he dresses like a woman in venues where nobody knows him. “Strangers can never tell the difference.” He admitted that deep inside, he was always attracted to men. He added that he never experienced an erection like other men, even though he has complete male reproductive organs.

“I can’t reveal my true feelings because I realize that we are living in an oriental society and because I, myself, and my whole family, are religious and pray regularly. I know that this would be a sin.”

Marriage is not on his to-do-list.

He said he has suffered rejection and mockery ever since he was in third grade. His schoolmates used to call him ‘Gense’ (a term used in Kuwait for transsexuals), at a time when he himself did not realize the meaning of the word. “My suffering continued in school until the secondary stage, where some of my schoolmates’ parents would complain about my presence in the same school with their kids. “The likes of him will spoil our kids,” he said, quoting the parents that got him kicked out of the school.

When asked whether he was on any female hormones, he said that he got fed up with his family’s attempt to straighten him and started using hormones to help him grow breasts and have a more complete feminine appearance. “People hate nondetermined genders, that is why I decided to look and act more like a woman; to avoid people’s sarcasm and disgust,” he stressed.

He is quick to point out that undergoing a sex change surgery is inconceivable to him and would be against Allah’s will. He claimed to know 25 transgendered individuals in Kuwait who have had sex change operations. He noted that finally, his family conceded to his choice and started to accept him as he is.

Trouble with authority “Some policemen give us hell based on the law passed by the Parliament,” he said. He claimed that when he is stopped at check-points, or by police patrols, some policemen ask him for his mobile phone number or ask him to go somewhere to ‘have fun together.’

“We are not criminals or drug dealers to be arrested in such a humiliating manner,” he said. “I gave up driving my own car to avoid such harassment.” He pointed out that boyish girls are lucky compared to ‘she-males’ like him. “Some guys tried to kidnap me recently, but I managed to escape,” he said.

D said that he hopes he will be

Psychiatrist Dr. Saeed Al-Jilani

Psychologist’s viewpoint consulted Dr. Saeed Al-Jilani, a psychiatrist at the Psychiatric Diseases Hospital, about what caused the spread of this phenomena. “There are many factors causing this problem,” he started, noting that some transsexuals were sexually abused as children. He added that others have hormone disorders or physical deformities, like hermaphrodites who possess both male and female reproductive organs.

“There are other social reasons behind this phenomena, such as drug addiction, parental oppression, family disputes, being raised by a single divorced or widowed parent, being raised around females in the absence of a father or being brought up wrongly,” he said. “I believe that the main reason behind these cases is that people are not religious enough and not following Islamic regulations in various aspects of their lives,” he emphasized.

When asked whether he has been able to cure any of his gender orientation disordered patients, Dr.

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able to finish a training course and get employment. “I know many transsexuals working in Kuwait and I will be no different,” he added. He expressed regret about the way people view his case and force him to disguise himself as a man when going to work or to the barber. “I urge officials to reconsider our rights.

Many of us are fleeing our beloved homeland, but I won’t,” he stressed.

In Islam Sheikh Ahmed Hoja, who is a post graduate student studying the prophet’s (PBUH) traditions and Hadith and who works as a Moazen with the ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs said that transsexuals and hermaphrodites existed even during the time of prophet Mohammed (PBUH). “One of them actually worked for the Prophet

Jilani said that he tended to five and that in most cases he had problems dealing with them. “I noticed that I was more shy when discussing the case than the patient himself,” he added. He noted that the first step towards a cure was the need for the patient to realize his illness and express a sincere wish to be treated. “Most of them are actually content with their status quo,” he said. He pointed out that most of the cases he tended to were drugaddicted transsexuals seeking help for their addiction.

Commenting on D’s case, Dr. Jilani stressed that since D only has a ‘vegetative’ masculine organ, without a trace of a feminine hidden one, he needed a tri-partite treatment strategy. “He needs a psychological phase of therapy to help him get rid of his feminine feelings, another phase involving the use of masculine hormones to help his body retain its masculine appearance, and medical treatment in the final phase to boost his organ’s vitality and effectiveness in performing its normal function, provided he himself wants to do so,” he said.

(PBUH) as a domestic assistant to his wives. He was considered harmless until he expressed an opinion about the beauty of women, which ended his term in serving the prophet’s household,” he explained.

“According to Islam, hermaphrodites (known as khontha in Arabic) are usually born with one reproductive organ more effective than the other. In such cases, it is permissible to operate on the patient and change his or her gender to the most dominant one,” he said. He stressed that a ‘Mokhannath’ was different. “He is a man with psychological or hormone disorder that can, as well, be treated,” the cleric said. Sheikh Ahmed agreed with Dr Jilani’s opinion that the main reason behind the phenomena was an alienation from religion and the practicing of its rituals.

LOCAL

Friday, April 16, 2010

When paper money buys big companies

By Nawara Fattahova

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t all started in 2009 when a group of 18 Kuwaiti high school students participated in a competition called ‘The Company.’ As part of the competition, they had to establish a company that lasted for three months with a capital of KD 75.

Soon, this group of inventive students came up with the idea of creating the first marketing board game called Al-Dallal - something similar to Monopoly, but with the distinct setting of Kuwait’s corporate world.

Injaz, organizers of the competition, provided the competitors with a consultant.

Otherwise, the competitors would have had to start their business venture from scratch.

“We were only 18 and we were limited to a starting capital of only KD 75. We had no sponsors either,” explains Mubarak AlGhruba, the Vice PR. That is how the company ‘Made In Kuwait’ was conceived. “Abdullah Al-

companies for prices ranging from KD 250 up to KD 1,000, depending on the size and place.

The contract included 3,000 pieces of Al-Dallal. We calculated that 3,000 games were sold, and four players played it. At least 12,000 people will see it and read the information about the companies. In this way, it is much cheaper for the companies to advertize on Al-Dallal,” AlKahmiri stressed.

In essence, Al-Dallal is a marketing board game that promotes companies from different commercial fields. These companies, Al-Gruba says, put their logo on the space set for the company, and with each card a player reads the information and the profile of the company. “It is a good idea for the companies,” noted Al-Gruba.

What started as a competition has grown into a full-fledged business for the group of 18.

Today, they have all the departments that any real company (officially registered)

Marketing board game teaches Kuwaiti culture, history Khamiri, the PR Manager of our firm conceived this brilliant idea, and the rest of the group shared their opinions and added ideas to it. That is how our own game ‘AlDallal’ (meaning real estate broker) was born,” said AlGhruba.

Playing Al-Dallal The game is played in a manner similar to Monopoly but in a Kuwaiti style. “Instead of buying houses or hotels on commercial lands, you buy companies,” explains Al-Ghruba.

“There is no loser in this game.

Every player gains information.

Each player will find information about Kuwaiti islands, traditional Kuwaiti words, and information about various companies,” said Al-Ghruba.

Al-Dallal is not only about profit or money-making as one of the main ideas of the game is to provide useful cultural and historical information about Kuwait. “We aimed to provide historical information about forgotten Kuwaiti landmarks. On the other hand, we also market the companies by providing all information about them,” AlGhruba added.

Abdullah Al-Khamiri observes that Al-Dallal was very successful as some 2,550 pieces of the game were sold within a year. “And we won the first place in the Injaz competition with our game,” said Al-Khamiri.

Advertizing with Al-Dallal offers a new approach towards marketing. “We sold the space on Al-Dallal’s board to various

has. Also, the revenues obtained from games sold are deposited in a bank account of the company and the accounting department divides the dividends and profits.

Their board of directors meet regularly every three months and discusses all important issues of the company.

The ‘Made In Kuwait’ brand has more projects and products in the pipeline. “We made 3,000 pieces of Al-Dallal, and after selling the last piece we plan to produce a new game. We haven’t decided how it will look yet, because there is a possibility to make another part of Al-Dallal with some differences,” explains Mohammed Khaleel Haidar, the Human Resource Manager of ‘Made in Kuwait.’ “Now we are busy with preparing for the final exams of the school leaving certificate, as it is very important.

We also think seriously to register our small company and make it an official company,” he added.

As part of their social responsibility, ‘Made In Kuwait’ had sponsored different activities that have social implication. In the words of Haidar, they had sponsored and supported the ‘Amazing Training’ program consisting of three seminars presented by speakers from UAE, KSA, and Kuwait. He said, “we are planning to organize more activities in the future.”

Currently, the group of students don’t have much facilities but have big plans for the future.

They market their product and sell it only by participating in

some exhibitions, and through the internet. Al-Dallal costs KD 6.500 and can be ordered from www.Taw9eel.com. Al-Dallal is suitable for kids older than eight

years. Even adults enjoy playing it.

The game can be ordered from www.Taw9eel.com or at Telephone: 1821010.

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Designation: Permanent Temporary

By L Ross

A

n expat, and a proud father of two siblings, Sabu arrived in the country with a small suitcase - enough to provide him for a short one-year sojourn in Kuwait. Today, some two decades later, Sabu in his midfifties has missed not only his daughters’ births but also their first steps, first loves and graduation parties. Close to retirement, he has decided to go home for his elder daughter’s marriage ceremony. Sabu is the sole bread-winner for a family of four who owns a plot of non-arable land in India. This is also the reason why he was away from home for a long time. He is a second generation Non Resident Indian - or someone, as here expats define it, who lives in the Gulf, shares accommodation with at least five other expats and wires more than half of his salary home.

Sounds familiar?

However, what is more intriguing about Sabu’s life were the plans he had when he landed in Kuwait one hot summer in what he calls “the bygone era.” “I wanted to stay for a year or two, to save enough and to go back

‘Companies invest in people who have a sounder connection to Kuwait and not to someone who is about to leave his responsibilities behind at the first disastrous call from home.’ home to be with my family.” He admits to not making long-term plans and not being ready to befriend people who he will have to leave soon. Things turned out differently once the newly married Sabu arrived with the socalled plans for short business and money-saving.

In reality he came here to stay, live and be mostly miserable. His father, just like him, would work for the meager salary of a driver bringing up, educating and providing for Sabu and his sister.

Today, Sabu who is a father himself, makes a KD 150 salary, has schooled his daughters, fed his ageing parents and took care of his unemployed wife.

On his own admission, he has never had a chance to climb the social mobility ladder in a country, where employees, friends and the society as a whole takes you as a

‘transitory individual.’ “You are just a [temporary] ID number,” he says and shrugs with a smile the notion of long-term employment, regular promotion and a sense of permanence which translates into more security.

Seclusion Sabu, just like other NRIs have come for a year, devoted himself to work and lived a very secluded bachelor lifestyle currently sharing accommodation with some six other men in a two-room apartment in Farwaniya.

Initially, he never paid attention to the sound of clicking time.

Later, he would stay up late for nights on end counting the days to his holidays - which would come once every two years or even less.

Lastly, he would fall asleep to the memories of his children trying to talk, walk or swim in the sea.

Transitory job search Sabu was a job-hopper in search of better-paid work and more understanding employers who would see him as a reliable asset to the company, and not as someone who would board the first plane and return home. “Companies invest in people who have a sounder connection to Kuwait and not to someone who is about to leave his responsibilities behind at the first disastrous call from home,” he laments. What exacerbates his feeling of insecurity and lack of respect on behalf of his current employers, tend to be the lack of bonding. He perpetually feels like a transitory staff member.

Employees just like friendships in Kuwait are transitory. People do not invest their feelings into someone who is on a one or twoyear contract. “You just get to know a person and they leave the country

My eureka moment...

“I

Nedal Abdelaziz Abusal shows his work place and demonstrates his affection for books. said. He believes his breakfast, a few dates, a spoonful of honey and an apple, is a good start. He is at the school from 7 to 3.

“After the students, it would be teachers’ turn to check-in and check-out books,” he said. “And sometimes they are more

Friends for a term More often than not expats who land in Kuwait on a short-term contract spend a lifetime in the country and have their children studying in local schools. Or rather, people who once came on a oneyear business contract would later return for longer, or in many cases, even for good. Such is the case with Sarah, a Canadian of Egyptian origin who was born in Kuwait.

Her parents had their lives established here, but wanted to pursue better opportunities elsewhere only to return to the country that gave them a decent lifestyle and opportunities for personal growth.

Shorter-term residents are seen as transitory employees, and friendships with them are less likely to remain un-nurtured.

Investing feelings in someone who is leaving soon is a tough call. A female expat has established a strong bond of friendship with a Kuwaiti classmate but speaks of the ‘reservation’ her family has for establishing bonds of friendship with someone who might not be in the country for their marriage, son’s birth or baby shower.

A day in the life of a librarian

By Sunil Cherian magine Saudi Arabia as a person. You can put Jordan in his pocket.

That is the difference in size of both the countries,” explained Nedal, the school librarian to fourth graders in one of his regular library classes. Then there was a young hand raised, asking permission for interruption. The young lad’s question was “What country can go into Jordan’s pocket?” “Well, that’s for you to find,” said the librarian, pointing to the reference shelves.

Nedal Abdelaziz Abusal, 40, has been librarian for the past 17 years. “Being among books gives me mammoth pleasure,” he said.

When he left his country, Jordan, five years ago, his friends advised: “Remember you are going to Kuwait to make money.

Do not hesitate to do any job, whether you are happy or not,” they said. “I disagree,” said Nedal who works at a private school in Jahra in the morning and part time at Kuwait University, Keifan in the afternoon. “My job as librarian gives me something my friends here and back in my country can’t have: job satisfaction.”

Nedal’s day starts at 4.30am and ends at 10.30pm. This has been routine for years now, he

for greener pastures,” says an Egyptian girl who was born and raised in Kuwait.

challenging than the kids.”

“From periods to periods I’ve to pole-vault between the roles of a story teller, actor and

sometimes dictator,” he said half jokingly.

But his face turned serious when asked about reading trends among the students. “First graders want story books and as the grades go up they look for non-fiction, particularly science books,” he said. Story books like Sultan Al-Mashoor, Aladdin, Zanafar, Alf Laila and the like are elementary stuff.

Agatha Christie translations are a big hit among the intermediate students.

After school Nedal has lunchrice and chicken-from takeaway.

Before heading off for his threehour evening job he takes a nap.

“Otherwise my (body) system will collapse,” he said stressing on keeping a regular timetable.

He is back at 8pm-time for some light reading, mostly Arabic newspapers. “My dinner is just a glass of milk which I prepare,” he said. “I think the more food the mind needs, the less the body”.

The student who raised his hand to ask about a country smaller than Jordan came up to Nedal at the end of the class.

“Luxembourg can go into the pocket of Jordan,” he said, adding, “I guess Lebanon can also go if Jordan has a big pocket.” ‘Eureka!’ His friend shouted. “That was my eureka moment too,” said Nedal.

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Oil sector workers demonstrate against privatization

By Ahmad Saei d KUWAIT: Oil sector unions held a sit-in to protest against a new draft law that will open the door for privatization of government-owned corporations, including oil companies. The demonstration was held outside the premises of the Oil and Petrochemical Industries Workers Confederation (OPIWC) in Ahmadi on Wednesday.

The demonstrators called the legislation ‘an attempt to sell Kuwaiti fortune to a group of merchants.’ “Selling national companies to merchants is not acceptable,” said AbdulRahman Al-Khulaif, Head of Kuwaiti government employees and laborers’ union. He added that privatizing a sector that makes up 90 percent of the country’s income will be catastrophic in nature.

Speaking to hundreds of oil sector employees who attended the demonstration, Al-Khulaif questioned the need for privatizing national companies at this juncture, claiming merchants will be the only ones that benefit from such a step.

“Didn’t you take enough from Kuwait already?” he asked, “What else do you want? Enough is enough, Kuwait hasn’t moved a single step ahead in 30 years now,” he argued.

The Head of Kuwait Oil Tanker Company workers’ union, Yousef Al-Shaiji asked the reason behind the need to privatize profitable companies, “usually only losing companies are privatized,” he pointed out.

Khaled Al-Hamlan, the former head of OPIWC, accused the government of ‘lying down’ for the Chamber of Commerce. He called the legislation a government ‘suicide,’ and called the development plan a ‘catastrophe’. “The development plan was approved in five minutes,

‘Do not sell Kuwait to a bunch of merchants’

KUWAIT: Employees of Kuwaiti oil companies take part in a sit-in against a privatization draft bill in Ahmadi, 35 kilometers south of Kuwait City, on Wednesday. Parliament Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi has invited MPs to a special session on April 15 to discuss the bill. — Photo by Ahmad Saeid and I swear, half of the MPs didn’t even read the plan,” Al-Hamlan asserted.

The ex-union head noted that previous efforts at privatization did not bear fruit. “Five years have passed since the privatization of a number of fuel stations in Kuwait was undertaken, and it is exactly the same amount of time that the government promised to guarantee Kuwaiti workers with their jobs in these stations. Now,

the workers have to choose between agreeing to work according to the conditions set by the company, or leave,” he argued, saying that this is likely to happen again with other workers in the oil sector.

Muhammad Al-Ajmi, Head of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) workers’ union said that if the government is incapable of managing the oil sector, it should hand over the

administration of the sector back to the British, “They will be much better at doing it, rather than Kuwaiti merchants,” he claimed.

Ahmad Al-Deyaen, a Kuwaiti writer said that adopting the ‘sell Kuwait’ law will be a clear violation of the legislation that stipulates nationalization of the oil sector, adopted in 1975.

“This law contradicts the 20th Article of the Kuwaiti Constitution, and it is aimed to transform us into servants in [their] companies,” he claimed.

The demonstrators urged MPs not to pass the legislation. “We hope our representatives will not let us down, and betray their promises,” said Salem Al-Ajmi, Head of Kuwaiti Trade Union Federation, adding “Elections are coming up, and people will hold them accountable.”

Anwar Al-Dahoom, Head of Civil Service Commission employees’ union said that people will ‘knock off’ any MP who votes for this legislation. “Even if we have to knock off the Prime Minister,” he said.

Demonstrators also threatened to hold a major strike and paralyze the oil sector. “The oil sector is not an ‘easy bite’ that the privatization monster can swallow; its fire will burn any one that comes close to it,” said AbdulAziz Al-Ajmi, Head of OPIWC. “We will paralyze them as soon as they attempt to touch the heart of our country, and the ‘bread’ of our generations, even if that means holding a general strike that affects the entire oil sector, and all other government sectors,” AlAjmi concluded.

MOI thwarts attempt to smuggle alcohol in Kuwait

Drug smuggler apprehended

By Hanan Al -Saado un KUWAIT: The General Department for Drug Control (GDDC) recently arrested a citizen in connection with possession of 31 kilograms of hashish in Salmiya.

Officials added that according to initial investigations, the suspect had collected the contraband on a sea voyage.

Smugglers had dropped the shipment at a particular point for him to pick up.

Furthermore, officials highlighted that in collaboration with coastguards, narcotic detectives had been monitoring the suspect and waited until he returned to mainland before placing an arrest. A case was filed and further investigations are in progress.

Smug g l i ng attempt fo i l ed Customs inspectors recently foiled an Iranian’s attempt to smuggle a large

quantity of medicines and medical equipment out of the country through the Doha port, officials said. He pointed out that the total value of the smuggled items was estimated at over KD 10,000.

They were stolen from the Ministry of Health (MoH).

During initial interrogation with the suspect, he claimed that the consignment belonged to a citizen and that he was authorized to carry it out.

crimes Citizens arrested for drug peddling KUWAIT: Under the aegis of Brigadier Sheikh Ahmed Al-Khalifa, narcotic detectives recently arrested two citizens, a former Ministry Of Interior (MoI) employee and his unemployed brother with possession of a kilogram and a half of hashish and KD 2,000 in cash. Case papers indicate that AlKhalifa was tipped off on the suspects’ activities and that an undercover agent posing as a customer struck a deal with them to purchase a bar of hashish for KD 100. The suspects were arrested while trying to deliver the contraband

near their residence in Salwa. Officials added that after raiding their place of residence, a kilogram and a half of the drug was confiscated. A case was filed and the suspects were referred to relevant authorities.

Bootlegger, drunk arrested Ahmadi detectives recently arrested an Asian man with possession of 36 spurious liquor bottles that were concealed in a minibus. He would sell the banned beverage for KD 3 each, officials said. In another case, an Asian was arrested in Jleeb in a state of drunken stupor and clutching a plastic bag

containing liquor bottles, officials said. He pointed out that the man resisted arrest and tried to assault officers but he was eventually overpowered and referred to Jleeb police station.

Drug abuse A citizen was arrested in connection with possession and abuse of drugs in Abu Halifa, officials said. He noted that a police patrol vehicle had spotted a suspiciously parked vehicle and upon accosting and checking it, the man was found in a heavily drugged state. A bar of hashish and five pills were found near him.

KUWAIT: The Ministry of Interior successfully thwarted an attempt to smuggle a large shipment of alcoholic drinks into the country.

In a press release issued yesterday, the Interior Ministry said that based on a tip-off to the General Department for Combating Drugs, two individuals - a nonKuwaiti and a Gulf national - were smuggling alcohol into the country. Accordingly, the department’s personnel conducted the necessary investigations and verified the accuracy of this information.

The alcohol was being shipped in seven large containers through Shuwaikh Port, and the department, in cooperation with the General Customs Department’s Investigation Bureau, took action to arrest the two smugglers. It explained that the alcohol bottles had been concealed in pipes, inserted into the iron coating of the containers. — KUNA

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Kuwait accuses Israel of trifling with Mideast peace process UNITED NATIONS: The State of Kuwait has, on behalf of the Arab Group at the UN Security Council, condemned the Israeli against malpractices Palestinians in the occupied territories notably the recent decision to expel thousands of Palestinians from the West Bank.

The recent Israeli move contradicts Israel’s claims about sincerity in seeking peaceful settlement with the Palestinians based on the twostate solution, Kuwait Permanent Delegate to the UN Ambassador Mansour AlOtaibi said in a statement to the monthly open debate on the Middle East conflict held by the UNSC on Wednesday.

Ambassador Al-Otaibi the international urged community to shoulder its responsibility for protecting the Palestinian people from expulsion and adopt practical measures to help establish the independent state of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital. “The illegitimate measures in the occupied territories such as the Jewish settlement expansions, the inhumane embargo on Gaza Strip, the construction of the separation wall, the restriction of movement of civilians, the judaization of holy city and the mandate to the Israeli military forces to expel the Palestinian residents of the West Bank are evidence to the fact that Israel, the occupying authority, trifles with the international community and international legitimacy,” he said.

“All these measures refute

Israel’s claims that it is a serious peace partner and committed to the two-state solution,” the Kuwaiti senior diplomat underscored. Instead of heeding the calls of the international community to pull out from the occupied territories, Israel is doing its utmost to undermine the peace process and legitimize the occupation of the Palestinian territories including Jerusalem in a blatant defiance to the international community, he argued. The prolongation of the Israeli occupation can be blamed not only on the occupying authority but on the UNSC which failed to exercise its legal mandate as specified in the UN Charter.

“The UNSC must shoulder its legal responsibilities and face up to the serious challenges through practical measures to establish an independent state of Palestine on the borderlines of June 4, 1967, with Jerusalem as its capital,” Ambassador Al-Otaibi urged. Dealing with the Arab peace initiative, he said Israel interpreted the initiative as “a sign of weakness” and persisted in its arrogant aggressive policies against the Palestinian people.

“Israel tightened the unfair total blockade on Gaza which risks triggering a horrible humanitarian disaster as documented by the UN agencies and seen on the ground by UN SecretaryGeneral Ban Ki-moon during his recent visit to the enclave,” Ambassador AlOtaibi noted. —KUNA

Briefs Sheikha Fareeha holds banquet in honor of Moroccan princesses RABAT: Chairperson of Kuwait’s Higher Committee for the Ideal Mother Award Sheikha Fareeha Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah held a dinner banquet Wednesday evening in honor of the spouse of the Moroccan leader Lala Salma, and other princesses. In a speech on this occasion, Sheikha Fareeha lauded the historic relationship that bound Kuwait and Morocco, and the deep bilateral cooperation in all fields, under the wise guidance of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and Morocco’s King Mohammad VI. She also underscored the important role that Moroccan princesses played in improving the circumstances of women and children in their country, as well as their unlimited support to humanitarian and chartable efforts.

Sheikha Fareeha also noted the commonalities between the two countries in terms of social and humanitarian volunteer committees. The banquet was attended by Moroccan princesses, Sheikha Anoud Al-Ibrahim Al-Duaij Al-Sabah of Kuwait, spouse of the Kuwaiti Ambassador in Rabat Suad Al-Rumaih, as well as female Moroccan ministers and top state officials. A documentary was aired, showing the different activities in which Sheikha Fareeha was involved. Kuwaiti and Moroccan folklore music was also played.

‘Kuwaiti women have walked a long way’ AMMAN: Kuwaiti women have gone a long way since the appointment of the first female undersecretary some 50 years ago, drawing sense from an inborn zeal for wandering into unchartered areas, said a Kuwaiti law professor yesterday. Dr. Mashael Al-Hajri, a professor at Kuwait University’s Faculty of Law, who was presenting her experience in the field to female Jordanian law students, encouraged the young women to set down their priorities and to create a balance between their careers and social obligations, through proper time management.

She said that Kuwait was a model for Arab states in terms of its civil law, derived from the French, noting that laws had to be flexible and dealt with as dynamic tools in order to be effective.

Al-Hajri is the first female member of the Faculty of Law at Kuwait University. The presentation, organized by the Arab Women’s Legal Network, was attended by Jordanian officials and academic figures.

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Kuwaiti PM’s visit to France seen as ‘strategic partnership’ PARIS: The official visit of Kuwaiti Prime Minister, HH Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, which begins today, is viewed here as part of an ongoing “strategic partnership” whose construction particularly dates from 2009, when President Nicolas Sarkozy visited Kuwait and it follows in the footsteps of other major, Kuwaiti visits to this country.

While political ties between the two nations have been at an excellent level for a number of years now, economic ties have lagged behind and there have been renewed efforts to bolster relations and cooperation in a number of areas, officials indicated ahead of HH Sheikh Nasser’s official visit.

The revival of the FrancoKuwaiti economic commission and a boost in high-level exchanges at official and business level have also helped set out the potential for more cooperation but progress has so far been moderate, at best.

This Kuwaiti Prime Minister’s visit “is within the framework of the strategic partnership that our two countries are building,” said Christine Fages, deputy spokeswoman at the French Foreign Ministry.

The visit “stresses the reinforcing of our relationship of friendship and close and confident political dialogue that we have at the highest level with the Kuwaiti authorities, in particular on regional and international questions,” Fages said.

In this respect, France will reiterate during the visit its attachment to Kuwaiti sovereignty and the security and stability of the region and particularly the security of Kuwait with which France has signed a defence agreement that was “reinforced” and updated last October during a visit here by the Kuwaiti Defence Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak AlSabah.

HH Sheikh Nasser will meet with President Nicolas Sarkozy today to discuss these issues and he will also be received for an honorary banquet by Prime Minister Francois Fillon the same day.

“France will recall on this occasion (of the visit) its attachment to the sovereignty of Kuwait and respect for the United Nations Security Council resolutions, in particular 773 and 833,” which address Kuwait’s sovereignty and border security, the French Foreign Ministry indicated.

Kuwait and France are expected to sign a number of agreements during the visit, particularly relative to “the development of peaceful use of nuclear energy” as discussed during Sarkozy’s visit to Kuwait in February 2009. There has been talk that Kuwait might take a 5.0 percent stake in Areva, the French-owned nuclear entity, but this was not confirmed by senior officials here.

France’s Economy Minister, when asked about the issue

PARIS: Kuwait Prime Minister, HH Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed AlAhmed Al-Sabah, (right) arrives in Paris. — KUNA earlier this week, declined to comment as she said it had implications for the French Stock Market.

But she did say it was a project “under construction” in her answer. Qatar and Mitsubishi are also said to be considering taking a 5.00 percent stake in Areva, alongside Kuwait.

France and Kuwait are also to sign today an accord on “durable development” and another on “reinforcing cooperation between Foreign Ministries” is expected to be signed by the two Prime Ministers.

“The signature off these texts is an illustration of the ambitious partnership that we are building with Kuwait, a global partnership, which is on the one hand political and on the other covering all forward-looking

sectors like energy, protection of the environment and the fight against climate warming,” the French official remarked.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Bernard Valero indicated that for France this was “an important visit” and followed on several others, including a visit by HH The Amir, Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in late 2006. Previously, HH The Prime Minister came to France in September 2006 and Amiri Diwan Minister, Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad came to Paris in July the same year to inaugurate a well-received exhibit of Mogul Jewels in the Louvre museum.

Despite all these very good ties between the two nations, economic relations are relatively minor. In 2008, France had a 3.7 percent market share in Kuwait

but ran a substantial trade deficit with the Gulf nation although more French companies were reported to be setting up operations there. Reforms are underway in Kuwait, both for foreign companies and for internal operations, were also being presented to attract enterprises to the Kuwaiti market.

Banque Nationale de Paris has set up an agency in Kuwait and construction company Lafarge has also started work in Kuwait, as has Hypermarket Carrefour, but these are only a handful of operations compared with what Kuwait has to offer.

France, today, still remains well behind the large investors in Kuwait like the United States, Germany, Japan, Italy and Great Britain. — KUNA

Kuwaiti humanitarian aid delivered in Yemen SANAA: Kuwait Red Crescent Society delivered on Wednesday the fourth batch of relief supplies to the Yemeni authorities.

Minister of parliamentary affairs, Ahmad AlKahlani, who received the aid supplies, expressed deep gratitude for this great humanitarian action by the State of Kuwait, noting that such aid depicted sentiments of brotherhood bounding the two countries. Al-Kahlani praised HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah for ordering dispatch of the medical and relief supplies for the Yemenis who fled the province of Saada, scene of recent fighting between government troops and local rebels. The Kuwaiti consul, Saud Al-Harbi, said the batch included six truckloads of various humanitarian supplies, food and medical vehicles. The aid has been sent in line with instructions of HH the Amir, he confirmed. —KUNA

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Iraq airport to reopen after 9/11-style plot BAGHDAD: An airport in southern Iraq will reopen for domestic flights, a spokesman said yesterday, a week after its closure due to a purported 9/11-style plot by Al-Qaeda’s affiliate to fly hijacked planes into Shiite holy shrines.

Transportation Ministry spokesman Aqeel Hadi Kawthar said it was not clear when international flights would resume at the airport near the holy city of Najaf, which is home to the gold-domed Imam Ali shrine, one of the world’s most revered Shiite mosques.

The announcement came a day after intelligence officials in Baghdad and Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation, said the Sunnidominated Al-Qaeda in Iraq was planning to

attack Shiite religious sites in an attempt to rekindle sectarian violence that brought the country to the bring of civil war several years ago.

Two US intelligence officials in Washington confirmed the plot but said it did not appear to be fully planned out, nor was it clear that militants would be able to carry out any attacks.

Iraqi officials said they shut down the Najaf airport and temporarily closed the one in Baghdad last week. They said they have arrested two men — one of the intended pilots and an airport worker — suspected in the plot that apparently was aimed at undermining the country’s stability while US troops prepare to go home.

Iraqi Defense Minister Abdul-Qader al-Obeidi

told reporters in Najaf on Wednesday that the intelligence about the attacks was unclear but “at the same time, we can’t neglect” it. He did not confirm or comment on any of the specific allegations.

Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mohammed Al-Askari acknowledged general “threats” but denied there was a specific plot to hit holy shrines.

Kawthar yesterday declined to say why the airport had been closed, and Iraqi and U.S. officials have refused to publicly comment on the plot.

Al-Qaeda in Iraq has been blamed for a recent violence in Baghdad, and security officials believe the terror network is trying to regroup

during the political disarray left by the March 7 parliamentary elections, which failed to produce a clear winner.

The alleged plot also comes as American forces plan to send home all but 50,000 troops by Aug. 31, with the rest scheduled to follow by the end of 2011 as required by a US-Iraqi security agreement.

Targeting holy sites has long been once of the hallmark of the Sunni-dominated al-Qaeda in Iraq. Najaf is also home to Iraq’s senior Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani and is the site of one of the first car bombings as the Sunniled insurgency got under way: a blast outside the Imam Ali mosque that killed at least 95 people on Aug. 29, 2003. — AP

Voting to conclude after five-day election

Killings, harassment mar last day of Sudan vote JUBA/KHARTOUM: Sudan’s ruling party said yesterday that the southern army had killed nine people, including at least five of its officials, stoking tensions during voting in the first open elections in 24 years. Oil-producing Sudan entered the last of a five days of presidential and legislative polls that Agnes Lokudu, head of the northerndominated National Congress Party (NCP) in semi-autonomous south Sudan said the region’s separate army had targeted and murdered at least five of its party officials and four other people earlier this week.

South Sudan’s army said it was an individual crime of passion by one of their soldiers who had found the local NCP chief in bed with his wife.

“At night some (southern army) soldiers came to the home of the president of the National Congress Party in Raja, and killed him and eight other people, Lokudu said.

Raja county is in Western Bahr alGhazal state in a remote part of south Sudan. The attack was earlier this week.

Yesterday southern Sudanese observers said security forces had removed 19 monitors from polling stations, assaulting one.

Analysts said the violence was a worrying sign of rising tensions as the

mark a key test of stability for Africa’s largest country, emerging from decades of civil war and preparing for a 2011 southern referendum on independence. Voting has been largely peaceful, despite logistical problems and reported harassment of independent and opposition candidates.

polls enter the crucial stage of counting, which begins today. Results are due by April 20.

“The coming days are really when things are going to potentially get heated,” said Maggie Fick, an analyst from the USbased Enough project.

“Maybe these are isolated incidents but the last thing we need is out of control security personnel and that could easily happen in the coming stages.”

The ex-southern rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) head Salva Kiir, is likely to retain his title of south Sudan president, vital ahead of a January 2011 southern vote on independence which many expect to result in secession.

A wave of boycotts by political parties in much of the north left little doubt the NCP’s President Omar Hassan al-Bashir would win the national presidential elections. Facing an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for war crimes in Darfur, he hopes a victory would legitimise

UM DURMAN: A Sudanese election worker prepares voting forms next to a ballot box at a polling station during the last day of polling for the multiparty general elections, in the city of Um Durman, Sudan, yesterday. — AP

his rule.

Darfur’s UN-African Union peacekeepers (UNAMID) confirmed that four of its South African police component were abducted in the western region wracked by a seven-year uprising.

Yesterday a group purporting to be the kidnappers of the two men and two women told Reuters they wanted a ransom of around $450,000 but gave no further details.

But in both north and south Sudan, the two dominant parties have been rattled by competition from independent or opposition candidates in some of the simultaneous elections for state and national parliaments and 24 state governors.

Many opposition and independent candidates have complained of harassment by authorities in both the south and north.

“There has been intimidation against supporters who are being told if they support me they will be arrested, that after the general elections are over they will kill supporters of the independent candidates,” said Adil Senderi, an independent candidate for the largely separate southern Sudan parliament.

Senderi was just one of many independent candidates, opposition groups and Sudanese election monitors decrying what they said was an attempt to alter the outcome of the vote by ruling powers in both the north and south.

The African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies said “systemic mechanisms to confuse the electorate and hinder engagement, such as the switching of symbols and manipulation of the registration list, are beginning to emerge.”

In Khartoum, two members of youth activism group Girifna said they were beaten by NCP officials on Wednesday.

“They were beating us and we were begging the police around the voting station for help-but they did not intervene,” Nagla Sid Ahmed told Reuters.

International observers from the Carter Center and the European Union cannot comment until after the elections, But former US President Jimmy Carter has made largely positive comments about the voting process. — Reuters

BAGHDAD: US Lieutenant General Michael Barbero (R) presents to Samir Al-Haddad, Secretariat for the Committee for Receiving Real Property, a symbolic key during a handover ceremony to the Iraqi government of Camp Phoenix in Baghdad’s Green Zone yesterday. — AFP

Iran wants inclusive Iraqi government TEHRAN: Iran said yesterday that all Iraqi parties that fared well in the inconclusive March election should be included in the government after the secular front-runner sent a delegation to Tehran. Former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, who won the vote by a razor-thin margin, is vying with incumbent Nouri Al-Maliki to collect enough support to form a government after neither gained an outright majority in the parliamentary vote.

His sending a delegation to Iran was significant because Allawi drew major support in the vote from Sunni Muslims, who deeply distrust mainly Shiite Iran, and Allawi himself spoke out often in the campaign against Tehran’s influence in Iraq.

The visit may be an attempt to ward off an attempt by al-Maliki’s party and the other top Iranianbacked Shiite bloc to form a merger that would allow them to form a government and sideline Allawi.

Iranian state TV reported that Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani expressed hope that all Iraqi political groups would “participate in the future of Iraq, based on their political weight” during a meeting with Sunni lawmaker Rafia al-

Issawi, a member of Allawi’s secular Iraqiya list. Iran has been accused of trying to tip the balance in favor of hard-line religious Shiites who would be more likely to promote its policies in Iraq.

Many in the region fear the Islamic Republic is poised to gain influence in the neighboring country as the US withdraws forces by the end of next year.Representatives from the two Shiite blocs — al-Maliki’s State of Law and the Iraqi National Alliance — reportedly met weeks ago in Tehran to discuss a merger, raising concern among Allawi and his followers. Allawi’s secular bloc edged out al-Maliki’s group by just two seats in the election.

Saeed Jalili, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, called the election and political negotiations a “positive” process and said Tehran is seeking the formation of a government in Iraq through the “participation of all political groups and ethnicities in the election based on realities and constitution of Iraq.” Jalili and Larijani’s remarks reflected the traditional public stance of Iran on Iraq — that it does not interfere in its politics — although Iran supports the Shiites, who comprise some 60 percent of Iraq’s population. —AP

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Syria, Israel exchanging heated rhetoric for months

Damascus denies arming Hezbollah with Scuds JERUSALEM: An Israeli woman walks past posters pasted up by political opponents of former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, and Defense Minister Ehud Barak in Jerusalem, yesterday. —AP

Ex-PM Olmert named key suspect in Israel scandal JERUSALEM: Former prime minister Ehud Olmert was named as a key suspect in a massive real estate scandal in Jerusalem after a court yesterday lifted a gag order on the case, Israeli media reported.

The reports said Olmert, also an ex-mayor of Jerusalem, was suspected of having taken a 3.5-millionshekel (almost one-milliondollar) bribe, while police declined to comment and the court could not be reached.

Olmert returned from a European trip on Wednesday night shortly after his successor as Jerusalem mayor, Uri Lupolianski, was arrested for his alleged involvement in the scandal over Jerusalem’s Holyland residential complex.

Israelis riveted by the affair had awaited the court’s decision on whether to lift the gag order on naming the main suspect, in the latest in a list of graft cases to face Olmert.

Police last week also arrested a former Olmert associate, Uri Messer, and several other men suspected of bribing officials to smooth the way for the construction of the grandiose Holyland residential complex.

Israel’s “real estate scandal of the century” has been splashed on the front pages, with papers running Olmert’s photograph while pointing to the gag order which had prevented the naming of a “leading public figure” allegedly involved.

Olmert spokesman Amir Dan said the former premier denied any involvement in the affair although he was ready to answer police questions.

Police have a state witness to testify against Olmert and the former premier is expected to be questioned in the next few days, according to the media reports.

The website of the

Haaretz daily said police suspect Olmert received the bribes through two channelshis close friend Messer, a lawyer, and through another aide, Shula Zaken.

Messer is himself a witness in a separate graft trial currently under way against Olmert.

“The net is tightening” was the headline in Israel’s Maariv newspaper above an old photo showing Olmert and Lupolianski together at a construction site.

After the appearance of Wild West-style posters of Olmert marked “Wanted” in Israeli cities over the past week, police said they had arrested two suspects in Tel Aviv yesterday.

Newspapers and readers, meanwhile, have had a field day lambasting the controversial hilltop complex of high-rise buildings that make up Holyland, describing it as a monstrosity, an eyesore and a blot on Jerusalem’s landscape.

In December, Olmert, 64, pleaded not guilty to charges of corruption linked to three other cases. He had resigned under pressure in September 2008 after police recommended he be indicted.

He is accused of unlawfully accepting gifts of cash-stuffed envelopes from Jewish-American businessman Morris Talanski and of multiple-billing for foreign trips.

Olmert has also been charged with cronyism in relation to an investment centre which he oversaw when he was trade and industry minister between 2003 and 2006.

The 61-page indictment includes allegations of “fraud, breach of trust, registering false corporate documents and concealing fraudulent earnings.”

That case is expected to drag on for several months, if not years. If found guilty, Olmert could face jail time, although it is unclear how long. —AFP

DAMASCUS: Syria warned yesterday that Israel was officials have said they believe Hezbollah has Scud paving the way for new military action in the region with missiles capable of hitting all of Israel and earlier this its allegation that Damascus is providing Scud missiles to week, Israeli President Shimon Peres accused Damascus the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Israeli defense of providing the weapons.

Syria strongly denied the charge, saying it “believes that Israel aims through these claims to further strain the atmosphere in the region,” according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry. It added that Israel could be setting the stage for a possible “Israeli aggression in order to run away from the requirements of a just and comprehensive peace.” Defense Minister Ehud Barak insisted earlier this week that Israel does not have aggressive intentions in the area. expect and “We recommend that everyone keep the current calm but as we’ve said, the introduction of systems that disturb the balance endanger the stability and the calm,” he said.

The allegation comes at a sensitive time in US-Syrian DAMASCUS: A magazine vendor displays a picture of Syrian President Bashar relations.

Assad, left, and Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, right, in Damascus, Washington has reached Syria, yesterday. Syria warned that Israel was paving the way for new military out to Syria in recent months action in the region with its allegation that Damascus is providing Scud missiles by nominating the first US to Hezbollah. —AP ambassador to Damascus since 2005 and sending top diplomats to meet with Assad.

Washington is hoping to draw Syria away from Iran, Hezbollah and the Palestinian CAIRO: The Egyptian president resumed Mubarak ordered all government employees Islamic group Hamas. his duties yesterday after recovering from be paid a monthly bonus equivalent to 10 The US said Wednesday it last month’s gallbladder surgery in Germany, percent of their paychecks, starting with the was “increasingly concerned” the state MENA news agency reported. The new fiscal year in July. The raise is likely about the transfer of more report said Hosni Mubarak chaired a meeting meant to drum up support for his sophisticated weaponry to of several government ministers in his first government, which is under criticism for its Hezbollah. economic policies. official appearance since the procedure.

Some Scud missiles have a The 81-year-old Mubarak went to Sharm The president “discussed a host of range of hundreds of miles domestic issues” at the meeting in the Red el-Sheikh to recuperate after the surgery. (kilometers) and could reach Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, it said. Prime His absence from public functions had set off any target in Israel if fired Minister Ahmed Nazif, as well as ministers new speculation about his frail health. from Lebanon. They can carry Mubarak has ruled Egypt for nearly 30 of finance, housing and economic an explosive warhead of up to years. He has no clear successor and has development attended the meeting.

1 ton.

Later yesterday, MENA reported never appointed a vice president. —AP The Israeli defense officials stopped short of stating unequivocally that Scuds are now deployed in Lebanon.

In August, Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said his militants were now capable of hitting any Israeli city or village. Nasrallah had earlier said Hezbollah has more than 30,000 rockets of different ranges but the group’s officials never mentioned Scuds.

Hezbollah fired nearly 4,000 rockets at northern Israel, including several medium-range missiles that for the first time hit Israel’s third-largest city, Haifa, during a 34-day conflict in 2006.

The Israeli officials said tensions have risen along Israel’s border with Lebanon HEBRON: A Palestinian girl wearing a checkered scarf and handcuffs flashes after media reports that the v for ‘victory’ sign during a protest in the West Bank city of Hebron Hezbollah was seeking the yesterday to demand the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails missiles, and they believed ahead of the Prisoner Day on April 17. —AFP Hezbollah now has them. —AP

Mubarak resumes duties after surgery

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Friday, April 16, 2010

Gunfire at rallies heightens Kyrgyz tensions OSH: Competing rallies held by the ousted president of Kyrgyzstan and the new interim government broke up amid chaos and gunfire yesterday as concerns mounted over the risk of new bloodshed.

Automatic gunfire rang out as toppled president Kurmanbek Bakiyev started to address supporters at Osh, in southern Kyrgyzstan, where he has many loyalists.

Supporters of the new government held their rally close by.

The unrest came as international concern grew over instability in Kyrgyzstan a week after the deadly protests that ousted Bakiyev, forcing him to flee to the south and bringing the interim government to power.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, whose country is backing the interim government with promises of financial aid, held telephone talks with Bakiyev for the first time since the protests which killed 84 people.

Putin’s spokesman Dmitry

Peskov told AFP the talks were held late Wednesday, but gave no other details.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned that Kyrgyzstan is standing on the brink of civil war, in an apparent effort to put pressure on Bakiyev into formally resigning.

The shots in Osh were fired when Bakiyev took to the podium to address around 2,000 supporters, while the rival rally took place a few hundred metres (yards) away, an AFP correspondent reported.

The Interfax news agency reported that Bakiyev’s guards fired the shots into the air.

Bakiyev shouted “Don’t run, don’t run!” as the crowd panicked and fled the square.

Witnesses said the president took refuge in a theatre, and a few minutes later he was seen driving away.

Later, dozens of Bakiyev supporters were involved in an uneasy standoff with batonwielding police in front of the regional offices of national television and radio network

OSH: Zhanybek Bakiyev, center back in uniform, former head of the state guard service, and brother of Kyrgyzstan’s deposed President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, is surrounded by bodyguards at a rally in the city of Osh, southern Kyrgyzstan, yesterday. — AP LTR in Osh, as they demanded access to the airwaves.

Many Bakiyev supporters in the south have expressed anger in recent days about what they say is one-sided

reporting by the interim government, which controls the main television networks.

Police stood in front of the building, refusing to let the crowd in while Bakiyev

Poland to reveal black box details from crash Thousands queue for hours to see coffins of first couple WARSAW: Poland promised yesterday to release details of the cockpit voice recorders from the plane crash that killed its president and dozens of other top officials in Russia to end speculation about who was to blame.

President Lech Kaczynski, Polish military leaders and senior opposition figures were travelling to mark the 70th anniversary of the massacre of over 20,000 Polish officers by Soviet secret police in Katyn forest last Saturday when their plane went down.

Russian air traffic controllers in Smolensk say they urged the pilot to divert to another airport because of thick fog, but say he ignored the advice and made four attempts to land before hitting tree-tops and crashing.

Some Polish media have speculated that Kaczynski, in his determination not to miss the Katyn event, may have ordered the pilot to try to land the plane.

“The conversations, their content, will be vital in terms of proving or disproving the various hypotheses. I will not oppose revealing the contents unless they are of an intimate nature,” Andrzej Seremet, Poland’s chief prosecutor, told Tok FM radio.

Interfax news agency quoted what it said was a source close to the investigation commission saying the pilots did not seem to have been under pressure from Kaczynski.

WARSAW: A young woman with a bouquet of flowers stands in a line with thousands of people near the Presidential Palace in Warsaw, yesterday, to pay tribute at the coffins of late Polish President Kaczynski and his wife. — AP “So far there is no evidence that any of the high-ranking passengers demanded that the pilots land at Smolensk. The voice recorder, whose decoding has been completed, did not register any pressure on the crew from their conversation,” it said. Russian investigators are decoding two cockpit voice recorders recovered from the Russian-made plane and a third Polish-made “black box” with flight data in it was to be returned to Poland on Thursday,

Polish agency PAP reported.

Russian and Polish officials have indicated that they should finish reviewing the flight information in the next few days.

Speculation that Kaczynski may have ordered the pilot to land in Smolensk is based in large part on an incident in 2008, when the president flew to Georgia to show his solidarity with that country during its brief war with Russia.

Kaczynski grew irate when

his pilot refused to land in the capital Tbilisi because of safety concerns, later accusing him publicly of cowardice for diverting to Azerbaijan and even pushing for him to be fired.

Belarussian leader Alexander Lukashenko, who has stormy relations with Warsaw after a crackdown on ethnic Poles, said Kaczynski, as president, had the “final say” and was thus responsible for the crash, according to Interfax.

— Reuters

supporters yelled at them and demanded to be allowed inside.

With tensions flaring, Kyrgyzstan’s interim leader Roza Otunbayeva said time for Bakiyev to give himself up to

the new authorities had run out.

“The ultimatum for Bakiyev has passed. International organisations and leaders of world powers are putting great pressure on him,” she said in the capital Bishkek.

“We do not have the intention of resorting to force (against him) but we will not allow him to plunge Kyrgyzstan into the chaos of civil war.”

A day earlier, she demanded that Bakiyev face trial for “spilling blood” during the protests.

The toppled president has offered to resign, but only on the condition that the security of himself and his family was guaranteed.

With Russia apparently pressuring Bakiyev, a top US envoy has offered guarded support for the interim government, telling its officials that the United States was prepared to help. Robert Blake, US assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian affairs, was the first senior US official to visit Kyrgyzstan since the uprising. —AFP

Church abuse scandal can hurt other faiths: Mufti SARAJEVO: A scandal over the sexual abuse of children by priests could harm the credibility of other religions as well as Roman Catholicism, a senior European Muslim leader says.

Mustafa Ceric, the spiritual leader of Bosnia’s Muslim majority and a key figure in Christian-Muslim dialogue, told Reuters he hoped Pope Benedict would act decisively to tackle the paedophilia problem and prevent further harm.

“The Church is going through a very difficult time and I wish the current pope will be capable and up to the challenge that he is put in,” the grand mufti of Bosnia said in an interview on Wednesday. He stressed his reluctance to comment on what he called an internal matter for the Church.

“It is unfortunate not only for the Catholic Church but for any religious association, and the damage to the moral credibilty of the Catholic Church is going to have consequences on the credibility of other religious communities as well.”

Ceric, who has met the pope and championed Muslim interfaith dialogue with Christians and Jews, also warned against exaggerating the extent of the child abuse issue.

“I hope that the current pope will be able to grasp this problem with courage, with moral clearness, but at the same time I hope that exaggerations that are now against the Catholic Church and the pope will not go too far to make double damage,” he said, adding: “Two wrongs don’t make a right.” Ceric is widely respected for espousing a moderate European form of Islam and speaking out against the use of terrorism by Muslim militants and radical clerics who condone such actions.

He was one of a group of 15 leading Islamic scholars who last month refuted a famous 14th century fatwa, or religious edict, on jihad used by radical Islamists to justify killing.

So far, the pope has not spoken out directly on the new wave of sexual abuse allegations that is besetting the Church in countries including the United States, Italy, the Netherlands and his native Germany.

He last spoke about it in a letter to the Irish people on March 20, expressing “shame and remorse” to the victims of child sex abuse by clergy in Ireland and ordering an official inquiry there. The Vatican has rejected accusations the pope helped cover up abuse by priests in jobs he held before his election in 2005 and has accused the media of waging a “despicable campaign of defamation” against him. But the crisis shows no sign of abating, with new revelations emerging almost daily. Gay groups and politicians condemned Pope Benedict’s number two on Wednesday after he called homosexuality a “pathology” and linked it directly to sexual abuse of children. —Reuters

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Six killed in shootout on Acapulco’s main shore road ACAPULCO: A gunbattle erupted on the main coast boulevard in the heart of this Pacific resort Wednesday afternoon, killing six people, including a mother and her 8-year-old child. None of the victims appeared to be tourists.

One federal police officer died in a shootout with gunmen, but at least three of the dead seemed to have been bystanders caught in the crossfire. Five other people suffered wounds and about a dozen vehicles were riddled with bullets.

Federal police said they detained a 26-year-old and said he apparently worked for Edgar Valdez Villarreal, a US-

born drug capo who has been engaged in a bloody battle in the Acapulco area with former colleagues in the Beltran-Leyva drug cartel.

Police said the gunbattle started when “armed men traveling in several vehicles opened fire on the occupants of another vehicle,” killing both men. It was unclear why the men were targeted.

Drug gangs have staged shootouts in Acapulco before, but seldom in broad daylight amid heavy traffic, and never with such a toll among bystanders.

Police tried to intercept the gunmen’s vehicles. “In their attempt to escape, the assailants opened fire on

several private vehicles, killing three people, including a child,” federal police said in a statement. While police officers may have tried to return fire, the area was littered with hundreds of shell casings from AK-47 assault rifles — a weapon used almost exclusively by Mexico’s drug cartels.

The battle caused a huge traffic jam on the busy Miguel Aleman Boulevard, after some drivers crashed into each other and others tried to cross the palmlined median strip in a desperate attempt to flee the shooting. “An 8-year-old girl died when she was being transferred in an ambulance, and her mother also

died,” city police said in a statement. A policeman at the scene said the mother had apparently just picked her daughter up from school when they were caught in the hail of bullets. The intersection where the shooting occurred marks the start of a strip where high-rise hotels alternate with open strips of beach and is among the city’s most heavily traveled and best-known areas.

Also Wednesday, the Mexican army said two soldiers and two gunmen died in a shootout in a northern Mexico area that has seen a recent spike in drug violence. The army said soldiers patrolling in the border state of Nuevo

Leon gave chase to six suspicious cars that crossed into neighboring Tamaulipas state, where a gunbattle ensued in the town of Comales.

The army said in a statement Wednesday that three soldiers and several gunmen were wounded in the clash on Tuesday. It said that 200 soldiers and two helicopters were deployed to the area to locate the assailants.

The northeastern states of Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon, across from Texas, have seen a surge of violence in recent weeks that authorities blame on a fight between the Gulf cartel and the Zetas. — AP

Britain holds first US-style televised election debates Expectations are high for Cameron LONDON: Britain is holding its first US-styled televised political debates — and bookies are taking bets on who will sweat or stumble first.

The three showdowns began yesterday, adding even more suspense to the country’s most unpredictable election in decades.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the Labour Party, Conservative leader David Cameron and Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats will take audience questions on issues such as crime and health care.

The following debates on April 22 and April 29 will focus on foreign policy issues and the economy, the most significant of all issues in the May 6 election.

While British governing parties have been reluctant to agree to such prime-time spectacles, debates have been near regular fixtures in US presidential elections since 1960, when front-runner Richard Nixon, pale after a hospital stay, gave a lackluster performance against the tanned and affable John F. Kennedy.

Nixon rallied in following debates but the damage was done. Some 70 million people saw him sweat. They also saw his razor stubble after he reportedly refused full makeup.

Afterward, more than half of all US voters said the debates had influenced their opinion. “I could see the same situation where David Cameron is the Kennedy figure and Gordon Brown is the Nixon figure,” said Frank Luntz, a US Republican political consultant.

“Cameron is from the next generation where Brown is old enough to be his father. That dynamic usually doesn’t look good on television, especially when people want a change.”

Brown, 59, is perhaps the most desperate of the three candidates, but pollsters say expectations are so low for him that even a modest performance could be seen as a win.

Although Brown is praised for his intellect, he

HALIFAX: David Cameron, leader of Britain’s opposition Conservative Party, pours tea for supporters, during a visit to the Mixenden Parents Resourcing Centre in Halifax, England, yesterday. — AP often appears clumsy on screen — he uses the same phrases, speaks in a monotone and frequently looks disheveled or tired. Analysts say the big risk for Brown is stepping too far out of character — he was skewered for a recent YouTube appearance in which he was smiling wildly.

“The expectations of debates play a large role,” said Scott Keeter with the Pew Research Center in Washington, D.C. “In the Nixon-Kennedy debates, Nixon was considered to be a real political powerhouse while Kennedy was not viewed in the same way as he is now.

Because the expectations were on Nixon doing really well, Kennedy’s performance was seen as a real victory.” In this race, however, expectations

are high for the 43-year-old Cameron — favored by bookmakers to win the first debate with 5/6 odds. Brown is at 7/4 odds while Clegg has 5/2.

Articulate, privileged and married to an aristocrat’s daughter, Cameron has been trying to convince voters that Margaret Thatcher’s party cares about the poor and disadvantaged.

Often compared to the charismatic Tony Blair, who brought the Labour Party back to power 13 years ago, Cameron is often seen cycling or doing Web cams of his family life.

But it’s unclear whether his folksy “Just call me Dave” campaign or his pregnant wife’s visits to soup kitchens have convinced a dubious electorate. Luntz said it won’t be enough for Cameron to just

look or sound good _ he’ll need to back it up with substance.

“The key for Brown beating Cameron will be putting him on the defensive,” he said.

Swing votes will be crucial in this election. Polls suggest it could be the first time since 1974 that no UK party wins an majority in outright Parliament. Britain’s peculiar voting system still favors Labour even though the Conservatives have a slight lead in the polls.

The Conservatives need to win a bigger share of the vote than Labour to earn an overall majority this time — a major swing of more than 6 percent, according to some polls.

British voters are still fuming over an expenses scandal that tarred all three major parties last year — lawmakers were found making claims on everything from porn to chandeliers while the country plunged into recession. A Populus poll on Thursday for the Times newspaper showed the Labour Party closing in on the Conservatives. The poll gave the Conservatives 36 percent — a drop of 3 percentage points — to Labour’s 33 percent. The Liberal Democrats had 21 percent. The margin of error was 2.5 percentage points. A ComRes poll for the Independent newspaper and ITV television also showed a slight drop for the Conservatives. That poll put Cameron’s party at 36 percent, down 1 percentage point, with Labour up 1 percentage point to 31. Its margin of error was 3 percentage points. Clegg, 43, is the least experienced politician and considered the hothead of the three. But just by participating, the third-place Liberal Democrats have achieved some parity with the two larger parties and can promote their socially liberal, fiscally conservative platform.

Bookmakers say Clegg is the most likely do badly in the debates. PaddyPower put Clegg at 11/10 for the first to visibly sweat. —AP

LONDON: Young passengers sit on the floor while awaiting information about flight cancellations in Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport, west of London yesterday. No flights will be allowed into British airspace from 1100 GMT until at least 1700 GMT due to an ash cloud from a volcanic eruption in Iceland, air traffic control services announced. — AFP

Iceland’s volcanic ash halts flights across Europe LONDON: Ash clouds from Iceland’s spewing volcano halted air traffic across Europe yesterday as authorities closed air spaces over Britain, Ireland and the Nordic countries. Tens of thousands of passengers were stranded in one of most disruptive events to hit air travel in years. Authorities said it was not even clear when it would be safe enough to fly again.

In one sobering prediction, a scientist in Iceland said the ejection of volcanic ash — and therefore the disruptions in air travel — could continue for days or even weeks.

Britain’s Civil Aviation Authority said non-emergency flights would be banned in all airports until at least 6 p.m.

(1700 GMT, 1 p.m. EDT). Irish authorities also closed their air space for at least eight hours, as did aviation authorities in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland. The move shut down London’s five major airports including Heathrow, a major trans-Atlantic hub that handles upwards of 1,200 flights and 180,000 passengers per day.

Shutdowns and cancellations spread to France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Ireland, Sweden, Finland and Switzerland.

In Iceland, hundreds of people have fled rising floodwaters since the volcano

under the Eyjafjallajokull (ayyah-FYAH’-plah-yer-kuh-duhl) glacier erupted Wednesday for the second time in less than a month. As water gushed down the mountainside, rivers rose up to 10 feet (3 meters) by Wednesday night, slicing the island nation’s main road in half.

The volcano still spewed ash and steam Thursday, but the floods had subsided. Some ash was falling on uninhabited areas, but most was being blown by westerly winds toward northern Europe, including Britain, about 1,200 miles (2,000 kilometers) away. The volcano’s smoke and ash poses a threat to aircraft because it can affect visibility, and microscopic debris can get sucked into airplane engines and can cause them to shut down. “It is likely that the production of ash will continue at a comparable level for some days or weeks. But where it disrupts travel, that depends on the weather,” said Einar Kjartansson, a geophysicist at the Icelandic Meteorological Office. “It depends how the wind carries the ash” In Paris, all flights north were canceled until midnight.

At Copenhagen’s international airport, where spokesman Henrik Peter Joergensen said some 25,000 passengers would be affected there. —AP

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Friday, April 16, 2010

S Korea raises stern of sunken warship, 25 bodies found SEOUL: South Korea yesterday salvaged part of a sunken warship along with the bodies of 25 sailors trapped inside, a move which could provide clues to its sinking near the North Korean border three weeks ago. A giant floating crane lifted the stern section of the 1,200-tonne corvette, which was split in two by what survivors called a big external explosion on March 26 with the loss of 46 lives.

Military officials said 25 bodies, mostly in their 20s, had been found by the evening. Two were recovered earlier in the month, leaving 19 still missing. A total of 58 crewmen were rescued soon after the disaster in the Yellow Sea. The battered grey stern of the Cheonan was hoisted on to a barge to be taken to a naval base for examination. The bodies were being flown by helicopter to the base.

The disputed Yellow Sea border was the scene of deadly naval clashes between the North and South in 1999 and 2002 and of a firefight last November which left a North Korean patrol boat in flames.

South Korea’s defence minister has raised the possibility that a mine or torpedo may have hit the Cheonan. The government has not so far accused Pyongyang of involvement but the incident has raised cross-border tensions. South Korea has launched a multinational investigation into the disaster to ensure the eventual findings cannot be disputed.

After the wreckage was placed on the barge, 38 civilian and military investigators including two US experts began examining the stern, Yonhap news agency quoted military officials as saying.

PYEONGTAEK: Family members of Petty Officer 1st class Lee Sang-joon cry as Navy personnel carry his body, one of the 46 missing sailors of the sunken South Korean naval ship Cheonan, at the naval port in Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul, South Korea, yesterday. — AP More than 120 local experts, along with seven Americans and three Australians, will search for clues to the cause of the sinking — a process that could take weeks. Four experts from Sweden were expected to join the probe. President Lee Myung-Bak said he could not find words to console the bereaved families.

“The people will have the same feelings as mine,” his spokesman quoted him as saying.

KBS television showed navy Seals and hard-hatted salvage workers standing on the deck after the stern was lifted slowly above the surface in the morning.

They rigged a huge net across the severed edge of the

hull to stop debris falling out. “It seems that the ship was broken apart by a very powerful impact,” former navy admiral Ahn Ki-Seok told the TV station.

The bow section is expected to be raised in about 10 days. Lee has promised “stern measures” against whomever is found to be responsible.

The sinking may have scuppered hopes for an early resumption of six-party talks on North Korea’s nuclear disarmament, a senior US official said Wednesday in Washington.

“Let’s find out what happened in the sinking of the corvette,” Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said when asked by reporters about moves to revive the talks.

“At this juncture, we told our South Korean friends that our primary objective is to work with them on the recovery of the ship and at that point, we will be able to make some judgments about the way forward.”

Campbell said the United States and South Korea would have to agree on any next steps on restarting the talks.

“We want to be very clear that there is a complete agreement between South Korea and the United States about next steps, if there are to be next steps given recent developments,” he said.

The North quit the nuclear talks a year ago.

As preconditions for returning, it wants a US commitment to discuss a permanent peace treaty and the lifting of UN sanctions. Washington says it must first return to the nuclear forum and show seriousness about negotiating. — AFP

Appeal for tents in near-freezing temperatures

Concern for shelter after China quake kills 617 YUSHU: The dea th toll from Wednesda y’s ea rthquake in China’s remote a nd mountainous Yushu county has climbed to 617, even a s convoys of trucks carried in supplies and tents yesterday for survivors braving the cold. The death Tents have sprung up around a statue of a warrior on a horse in windswept Gyegu, where most of the region’s 100,000 people live. Monks dug at the rubble with shovels as soldiers handed out rice and gruel to shaken survivors.

The sports stadium is now a makeshift hospital, but inadequate for the number of people with broken bones and other injuries.

Dozens of injured and distraught Tibetans lay outside, their broken limbs crudely splinted with wooden lathes.

The main 6.9 quake was centred in the mountains that divide Qinghai province from the Tibet Autonomous Region. The

toll is expected to rise further, in freezing temperatures that leave little hope for those still trapped under the rubble of homes, schools and monasteries in the ruined county seat, J iegu, know n in Tibeta n as Gyegu.

Tibetan plateau is regularly shaken by earthquakes, though casualties are usually minimal because so few people live there.

Nearly 10,000 people have been injured in the latest quake, almost 1,000 of them severely, the official Xinhua news agency said, citing a spokesman with the rescue headquarters in the ethnically Tibetan town.

Hundreds are still unaccounted for. Buses carrying rescue workers and trucks filled with food and medicine rumbled all night through sleet, sandstorms and fierce icy winds along the 1,000 km-long (620-mile) highway separating Yushu from the Qinghai

YUSHU: Residents carry an injured survivor who was rescued from the rubble of a collapsed building yesterday after a 6.9magnitude earthquake hit Yushu county in northwest China’s Qinghai province on April 14. — AFP

provincial capital, Xining.

Tibetan Buddhist monks have turned out in force to help rescue efforts, although the town’s main Buddhist monastery lay in ruins on a nearby hillside.

“We were the first to help when the earthquake came. We monks are here to help the people just as much as the government,” said one monk, digging through rubble in the main square.

Tibetan Buddhists have often been at odds with China’s ruling Communist Party, which is wary of the ties between the monasteries and Tibetan exiles. That tension could complicate rescue efforts by nongovernment organisations, some worry.

“They say the army is helping us here but look, it’s all up to us,” said Tashi, a volunteer outside the stadium who said he was trying to transfer patients to outside hospitals.

For many Chinese, images from Yushu recall the devastating May 2008 earthquake in Sichuan province, which killed 80,000.

Volunteers and donors traded information on Twitter accounts, while Tibetans and Chinese living in Beijing organised an impromptu fund-raiser near the Chinese capital’s largest Tibetan Buddhist temple.

In the Sichuan quake, the widespread collapse of school buildings when many other surrounding buildings remained standing, caused anger and accusations of corruption.

In the Yushu quake, 66 students and 10 teachers were confirmed dead at three schools, including a collapsed vocational school, Xinhua said.

Experience from that rescue effort was evident in the speedy deployment of material after the quake.

President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao have called for all-out efforts in rescue attempts, and sent Vice-Premier Hui Liangyu to Qinghai to oversee relief work. China declined an offer of help from Japan, that government’s spokesman said. — Reuters

MANILA: A doctor takes the temperature of Andal Ampatuan Jr., a scion of a powerful southern clan, before his transfer to another detention facilities at the National Bureau of Investigations headquarters in Manila, Philippines. — AP

Deadly election attack in Philippine province COTABATO: A grenade attack on a political gathering left two people dead and 12 wounded in the same area of the Philippines where 57 people were massacred last year, police said yesterday.

The attack on a meeting at a resort in the southern province of Maguindanao late Wednesday was linked to next month’s national elections, said provincial police chief Senior Superintendent Alex Lineses. A mayoral and vicemayoral candidate were meeting with supporters when two men aboard a motorcycle threw a grenade over the resort fence where it exploded. The candidates were unharmed, said Lineses.

The attack came despite tight security that has been imposed on Maguindanao after 57 people

were massacred there in November allegedly by gunmen working for the Ampatuans, a powerful political clan.

The November massacre was carried out allegedly to keep a rival from running against a member of the Ampatuan family, and the province remains under a state of emergency.

However the latest attack is not believed to be linked to the November massacre. Elections in the Philippines are usually accompanied by a surge in violence as politicians use force to intimidate or eliminate their rivals.The national police said it had recorded a total of 53 cases of election-related violence with 26 deaths and 25 wounded since January, excluding the victims from the new grenade blast. — AFP

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Indian government criticised over anti-Maoist strategy NEW DELHI: India’s government came under attack from the opposition yesterday over its tactics to tackle Maoist insurgents who killed 76 policemen in an attack earlier this month that shook the country.

The parliament reconvened after recess for a session that will see a new budget passed, but immediately set aside all other business to debate the growing attacks from the outlawed left-wing rebels.

The government is under fire from leftist allies who favour softer tactics and solutions to the underlying problems fuelling the rebellion and right-wing opponents

who favour a hard-line military solution.

The April 6 police carnage in the Dantewada forests of the central state of Chhattisgarh was the bloodiest single blow by the Maoists in their decades-long struggle against India’s regional and central governments.

“No one in India is safe after Dantewada and we will not be secure as long as we do not have control on the insurgency,” said Yashwant Sinha, who was finance minister in a rightwing opposition BJP party-led national government.

Sinha nevertheless offered the support of his Hindu nationalist party

to the government in its fight against the Maoists, who hold sway in 20 of India’s 29 states.

Home Minister P. Chidambaram has become the focal point for criticism over his advocacy of the use of force against the Maoists, in a huge police and paramilitary operation begun last year called Operation Green Hunt. This approach has been questioned by some within the Congress, including party general secretary Digvijay Singh. In a newspaper article Singh slammed Chidambaram for treating the uprising merely as a “law and order problem.”

“I have differed with his strategy

that does not take into account people living in the (Maoist) affected areas who ultimately matter,” Singh said.

The opposition stressed the comments indicated fissures in the government.

“The nation and the opposition want to fight the Maoists but there are conflicting voices coming from the government,” said BJP leader Arun Jaitley.

Chidambaram has vowed to hit back at the Maoists but has ruled out the use of the military.

“We must hold our nerve and we must stay calm,” Chidambaram said, adding that federal forces were “facing restrictions” in counter-

insurgency operations because of the presence of tribal civilians in rebel bastions.

The rebels draw huge support from the tribals, who have faced decades of neglect and marginalisation, Congress MP from Chhattisgarh, Charan Das Mahant, told parliament.

“Also, bullets will be answered with bullets,” he said in a warning to the Maoists, believed to be around 20,000 in number in India.

The insurgency, which started as a peasant uprising in 1967, has been identified by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as the number one threat to domestic security. —AFP

Shortage of manpower to distribute rice and medical aid

Relief workers battle in tornado-hit India In this photo taken on April 8, 2010, an Afghan National Army (ANA) soldier inspects seized guns recovered during a house-to-house search in Shembowat village of Khost province. —AFP

Obama says US making progress in Afghanistan SYDNEY: President Barack Obama hit back at claims the United States had stalled in Afghanistan and vowed foreign forces would not be needed “in perpetuity”, in a rare Australian TV interview aired yesterday.

Obama, speaking to public broadcaster ABC’s 7.30 Report in Washington, also backed President Hamid Karzai, dismissing recent controversies.

“I would dispute the notion that it’s not getting better. I do think that what we’ve seen is a blunting of the momentum of the Taleban which had been building up in the year prior to me taking office,” Obama said.

“What I have said is that we need to begin drawing down our troops in 2011, and start handing over more and more responsibility to the Afghans,” he added.

“We can’t be there in perpetuity.

Neither the American people nor the Australian people should be asked to carry that burden any longer than it needs to be carried.”

Obama suggested Karzai, who came to power after the US-led invasion of 2001 ousted the Taleban, may have been misquoted in recent reports that said he had threatened to join the militants.

But he said Washington would continue to “put pressure” on Karzai to deliver reforms that would tackle corruption and improve the lives of ordinary Afghans.

“I think that President Karzai is capable of leading his country into the 21st century and stabilising it. He’s got a tough task but the reason we’re there ultimately is not to support one man,” Obama said.

“We think it’s necessary for the world’s security that we dismantle Al-Qaeda and its affiliate networks, and we need a strong partner in that process,” he added.

“I think Karzai has the capacity to be that strong partner and I think that we’re going to have to... continue to put pressure on him to make the kinds of reforms and improvements that will not only mean success for us but also ultimately success for him.”

Karzai also recently accused Western powers of trying to rig last year’s presidential election, drawing an initially strong response from Washington. Obama paid a surprise visit to the Afghan leader last month.

In the wide-ranging interview, Obama also said China can’t be allowed to wait before tackling climate change.

“Right now their understandable impulse is to say, ‘Well, let’s let the developed countries, the Australias, and the Americas deal with this problem first and we’ll get to it when we’ve caught up a little bit in terms of our standard of living’,” he told ABC. —AFP

RAMPUR: Indian aid workers battled blocked roads and downed power lines yesterday as they rushed aid to victims of a giant tornado that ravaged hundreds of thousands of homes and killed 131 people. In West Bengal state, 250,000 people were made homeless by the twister, which packed winds of up to 120 kilometres (75 miles) an hour as it tore across isolated rural areas of northeast India and Bangladesh overnight Tuesday.

“We are facing a crisis in the relief operation. There is a shortage of manpower to distribute rice and medical aid among the victims,” West Bengal minister for civil defence Srikumar Mukherji told AFP. Uprooted trees blocking roads and broken electricity lines slowed attempts to deliver shelter and food, with officials admitting that frustration was growing among the destitute.

“We know homeless people in the affected areas are aggrieved as relief is reaching them late,” West Bengal relief minister Mortaza Hossain told AFP by telephone in state capital Kolkata.

The storm, which brought torrential rain and high winds RAYGANJ: Commuters move in an open cart past an uprooted tree in over a wide area, also killed Rayganj about 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of Calcutta, India, thousands of cattle and ruined summer crops in yesterday. —AP several northeastern states, where most struggle to eke out a living as subsistence farmers.

Indian state officials said a total of 129 people had been killed, with new victims reported yesterday in West Bengal, Bihar state and northeastern Meghalaya.

Two others lost their lives in ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani air strike on initially denied civilians died. Then military neighbouring Bangladesh. suspected Taleban militants which killed officials said the strikes killed 30 militants and In Rampur village, 200 civilians in a village could alienate those the then another assault killed up to 20 civilians miles (320 kilometres) north army needs most in its struggle to stabilise who gathered afterwards at the site and were of Kolkata, the roof of every mistaken for Taleban fighters. the country-pro-government tribesmen. house had collapsed or been “Saravilla is a place where the Taleban Before the attack on Saturday, remote blown away. Thousands of Saravilla was one of the few villages in cannot dare enter. The government well stranded people were taking northwest Pakistan where the Pakistan knows where are the hideouts of the shelter in schools and militants,” Ameer Baz, a villager whose Taleban were too scared to go, residents say. temples.

After details of the operation became clear relative was wounded in the attack, told Food aid in the form of this week, analysts wonder whether the Reuters. rice and dried fruit was “If the army kills civilians then people will assault may turn some of the few Pakistanis beginning to arrive as well as brave enough to resist the Taleban against the not support operations against militants.” tarpaulins and plastic sheets, Pakistan can’t afford to anger civilians in army as it widens a crackdown on al Qaedathough distribution efforts the ethnic Pashtun tribal northwest, where it backed Taleban insurgents. were still not reaching most Villagers and local government officials needs more intelligence and cooperation on of the victims. —AFP said 63 civilians were killed. The military the ground to fight the Taleban. —Reuters

Civilian deaths hurt anti-Taleban drive

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Friday, April 16, 2010

Agility replaced as US military supplier Analyst believes Kuwait firm will withstand blow KUWAIT: Kuwait-based logistics firm Agility has been replaced as the main supplier to the US military in Kuwait and Iraq, following US authorities indictments for overcharging.

The Gulf’s biggest logistics firm said in a bourse statement yesterday the US Defense Logistics Agency has appointed a new company as the main supplier in the area, but that Agility will continue to supply the US military for six months “to guarantee continuity of supplies”.

Agility declined immediate comment when contacted by Reuters, and it was not clear who has been named as the new supplier.

The firm, formerly Public Warehousing Co KSC (PWC), is in talks with the US government to settle indictments accusing it of overcharging the US Army on supply contracts in Iraq, Kuwait and Jordan.

“This will affect them in the short-term with the contracts they lost, but they had three to four years ago diversified activities,”

independent economic analyst Mustafa Behbehani, told Reuters.

He said Agility’s deferred profits and operational revenues will help it overcome difficult times. However, Behbehani said the firm would now have to cut expenses.

On Sunday, Agility said its profits for 2009 rose 11 percent and declared a surprise cash dividend.

Agility’s first indictment was in November. On Monday, US authorities extended the charges to include two company affiliates: USbased Agility DGS Holdings Inc and

Agility DGS Logistics Services KSC, which is based in Kuwait.

If convicted under the False Claims Act, prosecutors say the company faces probation and a fine of up to twice the gain it realized or twice the loss to the US. The company says the original indictment was invalid because it was served against the US subsidiary rather than the parent company it named.

The bourse statement did not mention Agility’s contracts in Jordan. Naser Al-Nafisi, general

manager of Al Joman Center for Economic Consultancy said matters were still “suspended”.

“I don’t see their ties have been 100 percent severed,” he said. He said the US hasn’t clearly announced it was not doing any business with Agility and there was still room for positive developments.

Shares of the logistics firm, which were temporarily halted earlier in the day, closed 5 percent down on the Kuwait exchange yesterday. —Reuters

OPEC to mull oil output boost at $100 : Kuwait Oil not high enough to damage economic recovery

SUKHUMI: The President of Georgia’s breakaway republic of Abkhazia Sergei Bagapsh (second right) and the CEO of Russian oil corporation Rosneft Sergei Bogdanchikov (2nd L) attend a ceremony at the beginning of the construction of a Rosneft gas station in Sukhumi yesterday. —AFP

Nakheel to pay $8.2bn to creditors in June DUBAI: Nakheel aims to pay about $8.2 billion to its creditors in June, but the Dubai developer needs approval for its March debt proposal before making the payment, a source familiar with the matter said.

The source also said Nakheel’s creditors did not unanimously approve a restructuring plan at a meeting held earlier this week. Earlier yesterday, Arabic daily Al-Ittihad reported that Nakheel would repay creditors $8.2 billion in June, citing a source attending the creditors meeting.

On March 25, Dubai World unveiled a long-anticipated restructuring proposal, mainly

linked to its property units, including Nakheel, to pay the roughly $26 billion it owed to creditors.

Under the proposed plan, Nakheel would meet its 2010 and 2011 obligations to its Islamic bondholders and would repay its creditors 100 percent of its debt through a mix of 40 percent cash and 60 percent tradable security. The source said the $8.2 billion would represent the first payment to creditors, who are owed about $23 billion. But the timing of repayment is still unknown because under the terms of the proposal, all creditors would have to back the plan in order

for the payments to go through.

On Wednesday, construction firm Arabtec and Aabar Investments called off their agreement for Aabar to acquire 70 percent of Arabtec as analysts said that Arabtec no longer needed the deal following Dubai World’s repayment proposal.

Dubai will spend up to $9.5 billion restructuring its debtladen Dubai World conglomerate in a plan to give back lenders their money in five to eight years and to repay two key bonds. It said it will pour in $8 billion into Nakheel, with a $1.2 billion debt-for-equity swap. —Reuters

KUWAIT: OPEC would make a decision on whether to boost output to calm oil prices if the market passed $100 a barrel, Kuwait’s oil minister said yesterday.

US crude traded around $85 a barrel yesterday, a little above the $70 to $80 range that OPEC’s largest producer Saudi Arabia has said was fair for both consumers and producers.

“Above $100... we would take a decision in this regard,” Sheikh Ahmad alAbdullah Al-Sabah told reporters at Kuwait’s parliament, when asked how high the producer group would allow prices to rise before acting. Oil is within sight of an 18 month high of just over $87 a barrel reached earlier this month. Yet there has been little sign from OPEC that it might increase output to cool prices.

OPEC delegates said earlier this week an oil price above $90-$95 would prompt the group to consider raising output.

Oil prices so far have stayed below levels that would damage the global economic recovery, Sheikh Ahmad said. The world’s fourth-largest exporter was happy with the current price level, he added.

The price recovery from a low near $32 in December 2008 has boosted revenues for Gulf countries, allowing them to keep fiscal stimulus packages in place at a time many countries are considering spending cuts and facing mounting debt.

Higher-than-expected oil revenues boosted Kuwait’s budget surplus in the first 11 months of the 2009-2010 fiscal year to 8.33 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($29 billion).

Kuwait’s fiscal year begins in April. —Reuters

HANNOVER: A man works on the rotor head of a windmill as preparations are underway for the Hannover Messe fair yesterday in Hanover, central Germany. More than 4800 exhibitors from 64 countries will present innovations, new technologies and materials during the industry fair running from April 19 to 23, 2010. —AFP

Dubai utility places $1bn bond at 8.5% DUBAI/LONDON: Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) placed a $1 billion, five-year bond with a coupon of 8.5 percent, said two sources from arranging banks, the first bond from Dubai since its debt troubles emerged.

State-owned Dubai World announcement in November it would ask to delay repayment on $26 billion in debt made it difficult for other Gulf firms to tap the debt market.

However, the government’s restructuring plan for Dubai World last month has opened the door for statelinked issuers. “It is important in terms of reopening the debt capital markets for Dubai, said Chavan Bhogaita, head of credit research at National Bank of Abu Dhabi.

“Its success will provide a further catalyst for investor sentiment towards the Dubai credit story.”

The final terms of the 144a issue-open to qualified institutional investors in the U.S.-was confirmed by two bankers from two of the lead banks on the issue and two market sources.

DEWA saw strong investor interest for the dollar bond, allowing it to cut the yield to 8.5 pct, at the tighter end of guidance for issue, which was set at 8.5 percent to 8.625 percent late on Wednesday. The book for the benchmark bond stood at over $11 billion, one of the sources said.

The utility is rated Ba2 by Moody’s and BBB- by Fitch Ratings.

State-owned DEWA had been looking since last year to tap the bond market to fund some ambitious projects but held off after investors raised alarm bells about Dubai’s credit risk environment.

As a result, Gulf fixed-income markets remained largely shut for months, but are now slowly coming back to action with a series of issues already priced or in the pipeline.

In the United Arab Emirates, National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD), the Gulf oil producer’s largest lender by market capitalization, raised $750 million from a five-year bond in March, which was largely oversubscribed. Pricing on the much higher-rated NBAD paper was about half of what DEWA investors are getting but bankers are wary of encouraging what are inevitable comparisons. —Reuters

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Despite discovery signs jobs are hard to come by

US jobless claims rise for second straight week WASHINGTON: The number of newly la id off people signing up for unemployment benefits rose sharply for the second straight w eek, suggesting that jobs are still hard to come by even a s the economic recovery gains tra ction. The La bor Depa rtment reported yesterda y tha t first-time

NEW DELHI: Indian customers walk out of a shop offering huge discounts in New Delhi yesterday. India’s inflation rate has crept closer to double digits, data showed boosting chances of another interest rate hike to prevent the world’s second fastest-growing economy from overheating. —AFP

India’s inflation at 9.9% in March MUMBAI: India’s headline inflation stuck at 9.9 percent in March as food and fuel prices rose sharply, adding to pressure for an interest rate hike, data showed yesterday.

Food prices climbed 16.7 percent in March over a year earlier amid shortages caused by a drought, while the cost of fuel and power rose 12.7 percent, the Ministry of Commerce said. The price of manufactured goods rose 7.1 percent. Most economists expect the Reserve Bank of India to raise key interest rates by 0.25 percentage points on April 20th and require banks to put aside more cash, in an effort to curb inflation. Last month, the RBI unexpectedly hiked rates by 0.25 percentage points, citing price concerns. Rising prices have quickly become a political issue and hindered efforts by the ruling Congress Party to roll back costly fuel subsidies, which would help trim India’s

swelling budget deficit.

Food prices eased slightly from February but the cost of fuel and manufactured goods increased, suggesting inflation is spreading from the farm to the factory. Inflation rose to 9.9 percent in February and the government yesterday raised its estimate of January inflation to 9.4 percent from 8.6 percent. Goldman Sachs says core inflation — excluding food and fuel costs — has been rising steadily since mid-2009, suggesting resurgent demand rather than weather is becoming the dominant driver of price increases. It has raised its inflation forecast for this year from 6 percent to 7.5 percent.

“With inflation remaining sticky, and monetary policy still very accommodative, we think the RBI will have to continue to hike rates,” wrote Goldman Sachs economists Tushar Poddar and Pranjul Bhandari in a recent research note. — AP

HONG KONG: Starbucks Corp CEO Howard Schultz smiles during a ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of the first open Starbucks coffee shop in Hong Kong yesterday. — AP

A government analyst, however, cautioned against reading too much into both weeks’ figures, saying they were clouded by seasonal adjustment difficulties related to the Easter holiday, which falls on different weeks each year. Even with the increases over the last two weeks, the trend in claims have been slowly drifting downward.

Fewer people overall have been seeking unemployment insurance as the job market recovers.

For instance, for the same week a year ago, first-time claims totaled 609,000, compared with the current 484,000.

Applications for jobless claims peaked during the recession at 651,000 in late March 2009.

The four-week moving average of claims, which smooths out weekly volatility, also moved up. They grew by 7,500 to 457,750 last week, the highest since mid-March. The number of people continuing to draw unemployment benefits moved higher. They rose to 4.64 million, from 4.57 million.

That figure lags the initial claims by one week. It doesn’t include millions of people who have used up the regular 26 weeks of benefits typically provided by states, and are receiving extended benefits for up to 73 additional weeks, paid for by the federal government.

Approximately 5.97 million people were receiving extended benefits in the week ended March 27, the latest data available.

On Capitol Hill, a bill restoring jobless benefits to people struggling to find work is back on track in the Senate.

The $18 billion measure could pass yesterday and prevent even more people whose 26 weeks of state-paid benefits have run out from losing an average of $335 a week in federally funded benefits.

With the economy on the mend from the worst recession since the 1930s, employers are starting to add to their payrolls again.

Employers in March added 162,000 jobs, the most in three years. But the pace of the economic recovery and job creation won’t be robust enough to quickly drive down the unemployment rate. It’s been stuck at 9.7 percent for three months, close to its highest levels since the 1980s.

And, competition for the jobs that do become available is fierce. — AP

requests for jobless benefits rose 24,000 la st w eek to a sea sonally a djusted 484,000, the highest level since la te February. Economists were predicting cla ims would fall. It ma rked the second w eek that cla ims took a n unexpected lea p. In the prior w eek, claims rose 18,000 to 460,000.

CINCINNATI: Job seekers wait in line to interview with a potential employer, at a National CareerFair in Cincinnati. The number of newly laid off people signing up for unemployment benefits rose sharply for the second straight week, suggesting that jobs are still hard to come by even as the economic recovery gains traction. — AP

EU sees deflation risk if no reforms BRUSSELS: The European Union’s economy commissioner warned that Europe’s debt crisis could trigger deflation across the 16 nations that use the euro if Greece and others don’t make tough reforms.

He said it wasn’t enough for Greece and other “deficit countries” to reduce their budget gaps in coming years and not make reforms to the wider economy — such as opening up the labor market, allowing more competition between companies and training workers for skilled jobs. Ultimately, a failure to reform these economies could trigger deflation — or a fall in real prices — across the entire 16-nation euro area, he warned. “We may face a situation where we have deflationary developments in the whole euro area,” he said. Greece is under pressure to make its economy more competitive in the long-term. Countries often do that by devaluing their currency, a choice Greece does not have because it is part of Europe’s currency union. This means it must make other efforts, such as curbing wage levels — or risk its problems affecting other euro nations. Rehn praised Greek moves to slice 10 percent of the public sector wage bill as “an important signal which should be followed in the private sector.” He also said Greece, which now has access to a last-ditch financial backstop from other euro-zone governments, would not default on its debts.

“Default is not an issue. There will be no

default,” Olli Rehn told a conference organized by the European Policy Centre think-tank. He also said he had “no reason to doubt” that Germany would join a bailout for Greece even though the German parliament will likely debate and vote on whether to grant a loan. Germany’s share, at §8.4 billion, is the largest part of a 30 billion euros euro-zone financial backstop.

“Germany is committed like the other 15 euro area member states to participate ... if requested and if needed,” he said.

Financial markets are charging higher interest rates for Greek bonds because they believe the country may be unable to repay growing debt while its economy grows slowly. Greece says it can’t afford to keep borrowing at such high rates and has secured a loan package from other eurozone nations and the International Monetary Fund to be used as a last resort if it can’t borrow from markets for the §54 billion it needs this year.

As part of tighter oversight over eurozone economies, Rehn also suggested that euro-zone governments should submit their draft budgets and overall spending targets to the European Commission for it to analyze — before they have sent them to national parliaments.

He said he backed some euro-zone bailout fund to lend to member countries in trouble. EU President Herman Van Rompuy will set out options by year-end for EU governments to decide on. — AP

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KSE stocks drop again GLOBAL DAILY MARKET REPORT KUWAIT: The Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) ended the last trading session of the week in the red backed by declines that were witnessed in several of the bluechip stocks. Yesterday’s decline marked the third consecutive drop for Global General Index (GGI).

On a weekly basis the index is down 3.16 percent.

GGI shed 0.84 points (-0.40 percent) during yesterday’s session to reach 207.34 points. In addition, the KSE Price Index decreased by 15.90 points (-0.21 percent) yesterday and closed at 7,384.50 points.

Market capitalization was down KD125.92mn yesterday to reach KD34.22bn.

Market breadth During the session, 132 companies were traded. Market breadth was skewed towards decliners as 56 equities retreated versus 53 that advanced. A total of 102 stocks remained unchanged during yesterday’s trading session.

Trading activities ended on a negative note yesterday as volume of shares traded on the exchange decreased by 37.09 percent to reach 290.21mn shares.

Furthermore, value of shares traded dropped by 47.88 percent to stand at KD60.33mn. The Services Sector was both the volume and value leader today, accounting for 32.64 percent of total market volume and 40.24 percent of total traded value.

Ikarus Petroleum Industries Company was the volume leader today, with a total traded volume of 16.84mn. Zain was the value leader with a total value of KD7.06.

In terms of top gainers, Housing Finance Company took the top spot for the day, adding 8.62 percent and closed at KD0.126. On the other hand, Oula Fuel Marketing Company shed 8.3.3 percent and closed at KD0.495, making it the biggest decliner in the market.

Sector-wise Regarding Global’s sectoral indices, they ended the day on a negative note except for Global

Insurance Index which was unchanged during today’s trading session and Global Non-Kuwaiti Index which was the only gainer.

The index ended the day up 1.77 percent backed by Egypt Kuwait Holding Company and Ithmaar Bank, the top gainers in the sector, ending the day up 7.94 percent and 5.38 percent, respectively.

In terms of decliners, Global Food Index took the top spot with a 4.42 percent drop. Contributing to the index’s decline was heavyweight Kuwait Foodstuff Company (Americana), the only decliner in the sector, ending the day with a loss of 6.41 percent to close at KD1.460.

Global Banking Index posted a 0.84 percent decline, making it the second biggest loser in the market. Contributing to the index’s decline were Burgan Bank and Kuwait Finance House which ended the day down 4.35 percent and 1.79 percent, respectively.

Regarding Global’s special indices, they ended in the red with Global High Yield Index being the top decliner. The index ended yesterday down 1.91 percent backed by heavyweight Kuwait Foodstuff Company (Americana).

Oil news The price of OPEC basket of twelve crudes stood at $82.63 a barrel on Wednesday, compared with $81.52 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations. Kuwaiti crude oil went up 52 cents and came to $81.35 per barrel on Wednesday, according to Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC).

Kuwait’s crude oil revenues grew to nearly $13bn in the first quarter of 2010 due to higher oil prices. If prices remain at their current levels, the country will be able to achieve oil revenues of $52bn for the full-year 2010, and that Kuwaiti oil sales totaled $41bn in 2009.

Market news Updating its announcement on March 10, 2010 the KSE declares that Combined Group Contracting Company inked a contract for tender No RA/188 that was earlier

Bahrain, Iran meet to discuss gas imports MANAMA: An Iranian official met with Bahrain’s top oil official yesterday to discuss gas imports, the Bahrain News Agency reported, signaling a diplomatic spat between the two countries last year no longer burdens talks.

The agency said that Ali Agha Mohammadi, assistant vice-president of Iran, met with Abdul-Hussain bin Ali Mirza, head of Bahrain’s National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA).

“They also addressed the matter of importing gas from the Islamic Republic of Iran to Bahrain,” it said. Bahrain, like its Gulf Arab neighbors, has seen a rapid increase in natural gas consumption as its economy has

grown with a petrodollar-fuelled boom in the region.

The island kingdom is looking to boost both domestic supply and imports and in 2008 signed a preliminary agreement with Iran to import 1 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day.

Iran has signed many preliminary deals to export gas but has yet to pump any to southern Gulf neighbors. From the north, it pumps gas to Turkey.

Bahrain suspended gas talks in February 2009 for several months after an Iranian official reportedly made comments that appeared to question the country’s sovereignty. —Reuters

awarded by the Ministry of Public Works (MPW). Accordingly, the Kuwait-based company will build and maintain the intersections in

Road Fahaheel Highway to Southern Alsobaheya and Mangaf.

The 720-day tender is valued at KD27.65mn.

Friday, April 16, 2010

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Friday, April 16, 2010

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Agility plunges as US ends deal DUBAI: Kuwait’s Agility tumbled yesterday after saying it had been replaced as the main supplier to the US military in Kuwait and Iraq in a move that could negatively impact future earnings.

Agility stands accused of

MIDEAST STOCK MARKETS defrauding the US military on Middle East supply contracts. The firm will continue to supply the US

military for six months “to guarantee continuity of supplies”. “This contract accounts for about 40 percent

of Agility’s revenues, so this is pretty bad news for the stock and we are not sure how much of the remaining

60 percent comes from other US contracts,” said Essa AlHasawi, a dealer at Noor Financial Investment Co in Kuwait.

Agility’s shares fell 5 percent to 570 fils. There are 1,000 fils in a dinar. Most of the likely hit to Agility’s revenues has already been priced into the stock, Hasawi said. “I don’t think it will fall below 500 fils,” he added.

Agility is down 47 percent since US authorities brought a first indictment in November.

Kuwait’s index fell 0.2 percent to a seven-week low.

“Kuwait’s market has enjoyed a good run and now some profit-taking is kicking in,” said Shakeel Sarwar, Sico investment bank head of asset management. “Agility is weighing on sentiment.”

Egypt’s Orascom Telecom dropped 0.1 percent, having been up 6.4 intraday, after percent reaching a deal with France Telecom to settle a row over ownership of Mobinil in which both firms will remain major shareholders. Mobinil lost 4.9 percent.

In Dubai, Arabtec dropped 1.9 percent, giving up most of Wednesday’s gains that were sparked by the cancellation of a 70 percent stake sale to Abu Dhabi’s Aabar Investments.

The latter dropped 1.7 percent.

“The deal would have provided Arabtec with cash flow needed for its long-term commitments, while at the same time helping it pursue expansion plans outside the UAE and giving it a stronger balance sheet,” said Marwan Shurrab, vice-president and chief trader at Gulfmena Alternative Investments.

“The deal cancellation will bring back concerns for

Arabtec’s balance sheet and its medium- to long-term liabilities. This is what educated investors are concerned about - the strong move yesterday came from retail investors focusing on share dilution now being off the agenda.”

Dubai’s index dropped 0.4 percent. Volumes slipped to a six-week low, while Abu Dhabi trading slumped to its lowest level of 2010 as the UAE capital’s benchmark rose 0.1 percent.

“People are still reluctant to take new positions and Q1 numbers will offer some direction for the market,” added Shurrab. “We need confirmation that companies are in a new phase of earnings. Most of Abu Dhabi’s defensive and dividend plays have been exhausted.”

Qatar Islamic Bank fell 3.4 percent after reporting a 14 percent drop in firstquarter profit, missing forecasts.

Industries Qatar slipped 0.9 percent, taking its losses to 2.5 percent since reporting a 14 percent decline in quarterly profit, narrowly below estimates.

HIGHLIGHTS DUBAI The index fell 0.4 percent to 1,816 points.

KUWAIT The measure fell 0.2 percent to 7,385 points.

QATAR The index dropped 1.2 percent to 7,627 points.

ABU DHABI The measure rose 0.1 percent to 2,857 points.

EGYPT The measure fell 0.2 percent to 7,573 points.

OMAN The index edged up 0.04 percent to 6,930 points.

BAHRAIN The index rose 0.6 percent to 1,561 points.

— Reuters

Invest AD abandons investment banking ABU DHABI: Abu Dhabi government-owned Invest AD said yesterday it is abandoning its investment banking activity due to market conditions.

Invest AD, a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Council, had set up an investment banking arm over a year ago with a small team. “After careful consideration of market conditions, Invest AD has decided to close its small investment banking advisory team,” it said in a statement.

The firm will continue to offer third party investment opportunities in listed equities and private equity, while being an active proprietary investor in all sectors of the market, the statement added.

Late last month, Invest AD and UBS Global Asset Management scrapped a joint venture infrastructure fund, citing weak market conditions. Invest AD was set up in 1977 as Abu Dhabi Investment Company. The name was changed last year. — Reuters

Page 20

Business

Friday, April 16, 2010

Chinese GDP growth backs tightening case Yuan rise still on cards; jury out on need for rate rise

HONG KONG: A man walks past a collage of copies of Chinese RMB, US dollar and other foreign bills at a money exchange store in Hong Kong yesterday. China’s economic growth reported yesterday surged to 11.9 percent in the first quarter, possibly giving Beijing room to allow its currency to rise. —AP

French Total refinery workers on strike PARIS: A strike by workers at oil giant Total disrupted production at most of the six refineries across France yesterday but union officials said filling stations would not be affected.

The protest action, the second staged by the refinery workers in less than two months, is to press demands for job security after Total last month announced the closure of its plant in Dunkirk, northern France. Total has said it will keep the five others running for the next five years and pledged to find new jobs for the 370 workers employed at the Dunkirk plant.

Industry Minister Christian Estrosi hosted a round-table discussion in Paris on the future of the oil refining sector in France, inviting union and business leaders to the table for talks.

“I want a full debate on this issue,” Estrosi told LCI television. “We know that we are headed

toward a drop in fuel consumption and at the same time we need to have alternative projects.”

In the southern Bouches-du-Rhone region that produces a third of the refined products, three out of four plants were affected by the strike, managers and union officials said.

The CGT main union said the one-day strike would not affect supplies to fuel stations.

Deliveries were halted out of the Donges site on the Atlantic, management said, while 70 percent of workers were on strike at the Gonfreville l’Orcher site in northern France, union officials said. The French UFIP industry group of oil companies has warned that Europe has too many oil refineries and that closures are inevitable. The world’s major oil companies are grappling with a crisis in the refining sector which is forcing them to cut back heavily to staunch losses. —AFP

FORT-MARDYCK, France: French oil giant Total workers from the Flandres refinery attend a general assembly yesterday in FortMardyck near Dunkirk, northern France, during a national day of strike in France’s refineries. —AFP

BEIJING: China chalked up unexpectedly strong annual growth of 11.9 percent in the first quarter, prompting renewed calls for tighter policies to prevent the economy from overheating and stoking speculation of when Beijing will loosen its grip on the yuan.

The rate of expansion, the fastest since 2007 and above the median forecast of 11.5 percent in a Reuters poll, was flattered by a low base of comparison a year earlier, when the economy was reeling from the global financial crisis. But economists said the figures, released yesterday by the National Bureau of Statistics, were unquestionably sturdy and would justify a firmer policy stance.

Some, but by no means all, economists advocated a preemptive rise in interest rates to curb inflationary pressures, while Glenn Maguire with Societe Generale in Hong Kong said he favored a prompt revaluation of China’s currency.

“Yuan stability and China’s stimulus package made an enormous contribution to global stability in the aftermath of the crisis, but now that China’s economy is growing by 12 percent, it’s time for China to share some of that growth with the rest of the world via appreciating its exchange rate,” he said.

The Commerce Ministry promptly reaffirmed its opposition to a stronger yuan. A spokesman said Washington was wrong to argue that, by holding down the currency, Beijing was giving Chinese exporters an unfair competitive edge and thereby contributing to near double-digit US unemployment.

The yuan, also known as the renminbi, rose modestly in the offshore forwards market, which was pricing in a 3.3 percent rise against the dollar over the next year.

That was only a bit stronger than the day before, even though Singapore had fanned market talk of yuan appreciation by pushing up the value of the Singapore dollar on Wednesday in response to blistering growth data.

Mark Williams with Capital Economics in London said the mildness of price pressures in China meant there was no pressing economic reason for Beijing to let the yuan rise after keeping it pegged near 6.83 per dollar for the past 21 months.

The consumer price index rose just 2.4 percent in the year to March, below market expectations of a 2.6 percent increase. “However, economic rebalancing would in the long run be better served by having a stronger currency,” Williams said.

He expects a shift in both interest rates and the yuan over the next quarter-but with an eye on the medium-term benefits of a stronger currency and higher interest rates. —Reuters

TAIPEI: Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou gestures at the Presidential Office in Taipei yesterday. Ma said Taiwan could sign an historic trade deal with China as early as June and that it would ring major benefits to the whole Asian region. — AFP

Rio Tinto lifts iron ore production LONDON: Rio Tinto Group PLC is lifting its production of iron ore after demand from China drove a 39 percent jump in first quarter output. The update from the world’s third largest miner came as workers locked out of one of the Rio’s mines in California over a contract dispute flew to London to protest outside the Anglo-Australian company’s annual general meeting. Rio reported that iron ore, the key component in steel production, reached 43.4 million metric tons in the first three months of this year. That compares with 31.2 million for the same quarter last year.

The company is boosting iron ore production to take advantage of rising prices and Chinese demand, forecasting an 8 percent rise in production this year. “Chinese demand grew strongly and we saw some recovery in Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development markets, but we are still cautious about short term volatility,” Chief Executive Officer Tom Albanese said in the statement.

“The long term outlook remains very strong and we are now ramping up our growth projects.” But the numbers were still short of many analysts’ expectations and — combined with a 16 percent drop in mined copper output over the quarter — resulted in a fall in the company’s share price.

The stock was down 1.3 percent at 3,909 pence in

midmorning trade on the London Stock Exchange. The company was also facing negative publicity from an internationally-coordinated demonstration outside its meeting in central London to support around 560 workers who have been locked out of Rio’s open-pit mine in the tiny Mojave Desert community of Boron.

The miners have been locked out since Jan. 31 when they turned up to work after refusing to accept a new contract from the company.

“We have come to London to highlight the courage of ordinary workers and their families in standing up to a powerful global business,” said Ray Familathe, International Vice-President of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, the union representing the Boron workers. “This is not just a problem for the small community in Boron, California which relies on the mine for its survival but a global threat when a corporate giant such as Rio Tinto gets away with riding roughshod over its employees.” Dave Irish, one of the locked out miners who traveled to London, said that his family has been surviving on unemployment insurance and handouts since the lockout began.

“Rio Tinto wants to starve us into submission, forcing us to accept a contract that we fear will destroy decent, familysupporting jobs,” he said. — AP

BUSINESS

Friday, April 16, 2010

Factory revival spurs India rate hike fears

F

actory output grew at a double-digit rate for the fifth month in a row on the back of strong consumer and investment demand, setting the stage for a likely increase in interest rates by the Reserve Bank of India, or RBI, in its annual monetary policy due on 20 April.

The Index of Industrial Production, or IIP, grew 15.1% in February, lower than expected by economists, but further proof that the recovery in the non-farm economy is healthy and can take a withdrawal of fiscal and monetary support in its stride.

The central bank increased two of its key policy rates on 19 March, a month ahead of schedule, as it shifted attention from supporting the economic recovery to concern about spiralling inflation. Inflation touched a 16-month high of 9.89% in February as the initial food inflation spilled over into manufactured products.

RBI raised repo and reverse repo rates by 25 basis points each to 5% and 3.5%, respectively. These are rates at which the central bank lends and borrows overnight money from banks.

Rohini Malkani and Anushka Shah, economists with Citigroup India, in an advisory released on Monday said they expect RBI to increase rates by a minimum of 100 basis points in 2010, including the expected rate hike on 20 April.

Fourteen of the 17 industry groups reported production expansion during February, a sign that the recovery in industrial activity is broadbased. Significantly, consumer non-durable goods grew 2.3% in February, compared with a

contraction of 3.65% in January on fears that high food prices were leaving families with less disposable income to purchase home and personal care products.

“Falling agricultural output and high inflation have taken their toll on production of nondurable goods, which should receive a boost in coming months from favorable weather conditions,” said Nikhilesh Bhattacharyya, associate economist with Moody’s Analytics.

“Based on capital goods production, investment looks set to grow strongly over coming quarters,” Bhattacharyya added. Capital goods production grew 44.45% in February, lower than 56.2% in January, led by machinery and transport equipment.

Malkani and Shah said that with industrial production averaging 10.1% during AprilFebruary during fiscal 2009-10 against 3% in the previous fiscal year, the economy is now showing clear signs of a demand revival. “Latest trends in non-oil imports (+56% in February) and bank credit (+17%) coupled with buoyant numbers in auto and cement dispatches also indicate that the momentum is picking up,” they said.

The CNBC-TV18 Boston Analytics Consumer Confidence Index for March released on Monday also rose by 0.9 percentage points to 73.3% from 72.6% in February.

“Consumer confidence in the March 2010 survey continues the improving trend observed in January of 2010,” said Sam Thomas, director, research and development at Boston Analytics. —MCT

Page 21

Topping 11,000 came more than a decade after the market breached the barrier for the first time in May 1999 during the tech stock bubble. But buy-and-hold small investors were already painfully aware that they had basically broken even during what pundits are calling “the lost decade.”

NEW YORK: Financial professionals work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at the end of the trading day as a television screen records the breaking of the 11,000 mark in New York.

The Dow Jones average closed above 11,000 for the first time since the financial crisis gripped the nation’s economy, amidst a stream of positive economic news. — AFP

Dow exceeds 11,000, but will it stay there?

Less informed retail investors could start their engines

H

KOLKATA: Indian workers move steel beams at a yard in Kolkata. India’s industrial output grew 15.1 percent in February, less than expected, after government moves to unwind stimulus measures in the face of rising inflation, official figures showed on Monday. — AP

ere we go again. After breaching the 11,000 barrier for a fleeting moment on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Monday slipped above that round number and hung on through the day just above a milestone that means little to seasoned investors but could encourage less informed retail investors to start their engines.

The broad market index started trading Monday at 10,996.75 and climbed above 11,000 early. The Dow closed at 11,005.97, up 8.62 for the day. Other major market indexes also advanced tentatively Monday, with the S&P 500 finishing up 2.11 at 1196.48 and the Nasdaq climbing 3.82 to close at 2,457.87.

Topping 11,000 came more than a decade after the market breached the barrier for the first time in May 1999 during the tech stock bubble. But buyand-hold small investors were already painfully aware that they had basically broken even during what pundits are calling “the lost decade.”

The experience has made many of them sit out the market’s latest rally, which began after the bottom bottomed out in March 2009. “The weakest part of the bull [market] is the volume being light. Most Americans have missed the rally on the way up,” said Federated Investors senior vice president Linda Duessel.

Duessel said trading volume was down 30 percent from year-ago levels, citing figures from Miller Tabak & Co, an institutional trading firm. She attributes that to retail investors, still shaken by the market’s sudden decline in late 2008, continuing to sit on the sidelines.

After dropping below the 11,000 mark when the tech stock bubble burst, the Dow traced its steps and climbed above that level in January 2006.

“Crossing 11,000 in 2006 was completely different than 1999. It was painfully slow to get there,” said John Frankola, of Vista Investment Management in Pittsburgh.

A few Dow members who were along for the ride four years ago aren’t making the climb this time. American International Group, the governmentowned derivative kingpin, was ousted from the index in September 2008 and replaced by Kraft. Citigroup and bankrupt General Motors, two other Dow members on government life support, were replaced by The Travelers Companies and Cisco Systems in June 2009.

Geoffrey Gerber, of Twin Capital Management in McMurray, said a major difference between now and September 2008, when the Dow slid under 11,000 on its way to a March 2009 closing low of 6,547, is stability.

“The real difference is volatility. Back

then, it was huge. It’s a quieter market today,” Mr. Gerber said. Where the index goes from here depends on what kinds of first-quarter profits companies produce.

Earnings season kicked off in earnest Monday when Dow bellwether Alcoa reported a $201 million loss for the first quarter in part as a result of significant one-time charges. That compared to a $497 million loss during the same quarter a year ago, and management said markets for the company’s products are gradually improving.

While better than expected earnings may not getter retail investors worried about job security back into the market, Ms. Duessel said, it would encourage mutual funds, pension funds and other institutional investors to buy.

“As we’re in the second year of this bull run, earnings are more important,” she said. “Now it’s all about earnings growth.”

She believes that the S&P 500, a broader measure of the market’s health, could reach 1,300 to 1,350 in the next 12 months.

Frankola also is cautiously optimistic.

“While the economy and stock market still have a long way to go for full recovery, there are many signs that indicate business fundamentals are finally moving in the right direction,” he said. — MCT

CAREER

Page 22

E

vent management is basically the management of an occasion that happens at a given time. Management of an event can be a complex and involved task; depending, of course, on the type and size of the event.

Although extremely large events such as the Olympic Games require many years of preparation to succeed, the planning and preparation phase of any event will always require at least 60-80 percent of the total time involved in staging the event. The same principles will apply no matter how small or large the event being planned.

Events have become a way of life in today’s society.

They are used to recognize special occasions whether public or private. Most societies throughout the world use organized events as a form of expression, whether it is for public grief, private celebration, as a show of strength or solidarity, to welcome others and so on. As such, organized events can reflect a society’s position in the world or demonstrate public opinion. Public response to incidents that occur in their own country or internationally may also instigate an organized event i.e. fund raising for a natural disaster.

Today in modern society organized events are also used to help create business image, launch products, and to celebrate milestones and change. Events can be profound and moving i.e.

Friday, April 16, 2010

What’s better than meeting new people and networking - and getting paid for having a good time? inauguration of a country’s new leader, as a mark of respect after disaster for loss of life through earthquakes, flood, war or other dramatic occurrence. They can be intimate and private i.e. a wedding, or a large public celebration i.e. federation, a coronation, independence etc. Events whether large or small present an opportunity for a well organized Event Manager to take a leading role.

Getting resources together Event management includes organizing the supply of equipment, materials and services well ahead of time. This enables: The use of alternatives should any of these prove to be difficult to obtain Marketing to be effective with a good ‘lead in time’ Advertising to be booked well in advance i.e. advertisers sell space many months before publication People travelling from other cities or regions to organize their commitments and plan for accommodation, transport or any other needs with ample time Publicizing the event is also important as it gives people the opportunity to attend by planning their lives

around the event. A visually pleasing pamphlet or leaflet to promote the event will go a long way to encourage people to attend A well managed event needs to meet all the needs of its patrons and encourages attendance, well

in advance of the event.

Private clients using event managers to plan and implement their event will often also have pre-set ideas on how it should be run or have very high expectations.

They pay the Event Manager to ensure that all

Skills and knowledge

Y

ou should decide as early on as possible which area of the event industry is best suited to your personality and skills and construct your career path in this area. While skills are always transferable, it is all the same not so easy to change from event management to exhibitions for example. You should visit event job sites regularly and read relevant trade magazines, visit trade shows. Privileging yourself with up to date knowledge of the event industry will ensure you hold the edge against the competition.

Experience Experience is of course a great asset, but for graduates, a degree in event management is the most recognized and useful asset. There are also a range GNVQ’s and other vocational courses in event management which are also worthwhile, however the best way to get a job in the event industry is to get some direct events experience. As with all career sectors gaining experience can become a frustrating task; every employer seems to require at least some experience yet few are prepared to give non experienced candidates a chance to gain experience!

However while salaries are generally on the up in the event industry, yet still lower than other sectors, employers are more open minded and work placements and short-term voluntary positions are one of the best ways to get into the event industry. Once you have found such a position, then you have the opportunity to excel and be offered a permanent role. www.event-jobs.net

their ideas will work and the event lives up to their expectations. They may also expect the organizer to come up with a range of innovative and interesting ideas. This requires skills beyond those of an organizational and management nature.

An example may be a birthday party for a very wealthy client; the client may expect the Event Manager to show an extraordinary depth of imagination i.e. in the decorations used, the layout of the room, the menu planning and so on. The wealthy client may want the ‘party to beat all parties’.

Second best may not be good enough. It is wise for the event manager, irrelevant of the size and nature of the event, to use the approach: “That’ll do” won’t do!

event being held for, who are the supporters, and who is to be involved ?

Where to from here?

You don’t necessarily need to have formal training to be an event manager; but doing one or more relevant courses can help you get started and will often result in your career moving forward faster than it otherwise might have.

A general foundation course will give you a perspective on the industry and help you better decide what aspects of event management most interest you. It can also help you see the pitfalls of this industry before you encounter them in a real life situation.

Another way to start may be to take a more “specialized” course, such as Wedding Planning This type of course provides skills that may be used in most areas of event management; but can also provide an opportunity to perhaps start into the industry by commencing a small part time business (in this case -as a wedding planner).

Education in general If you already have Developing an experience and/or training in excellent reputation business or management, Event managers need to you may not need any more have a firm understanding of than a short professional the event planned and the development course to kick reasons for holding it: the off a career in Event What, Where, Why and Management. For most Who? What type of event is people though, a more to be held and what is the substantial course of training budget? Where is it to be will greatly enhance their held? Why is the event chances of achieving a being held? Who is the successful career.

technology

Friday, April 16, 2010

Page 23

Give me some space!

arge hard drives may be plentiful these days, but you can still face storage constraints. You could be coping with a small hard drive provided by your company. Or maybe you’re trying to squeeze some life out of an older hard drive that you arenít ready to upgrade.

Those splurging on today’s fast solid state drives (SSDs) are pleased with their performance, but must constantly worry about running out of disk space, as SSDs have a lower capacity than traditional drives. Bottom line: itís still important to know how to recover some disk space, while retaining the applications that you need. Hereís a checklist of how to proceed: You cannot begin to know how to recover hard-drive space until you can get an overview of which files and folders are occupying the most space.

Windows doesn’t give you any built-in tools for seeing, at a glance, just how large some folders are relative to others.

Luckily, you can turn to the free F o l d e r S i z e (http://sourceforge.net/ projects/ foldersize). Install this open source program and your Windows Explorer file manager will be enhanced with a “folder size” option in the file and folder display area. Just click on a drive, and right-click one of the column headings in the file pane (name, date modified, type, etc). There, in the right-click menu, youíll see a folder size option. Select it and a new folder size column appears. In it, Windows will calculate and display the total size of the folders on your hard drive. Double-click a folder to drill one level down, activate folder size, and youíll see the sizes of the subfolders. You can use this tool to quickly hone in on disk-eating files and folders.

When Windows is set up to hibernate, it creates a hidden file called Hiberfil.sys that’s large enough to hold the contents of installed memory. That means the file could be big—multiple gigabytes—and therefore consume extra disk space that you might need for other purposes.

To get rid of the file and free up disk space, you’ll need to turn the hibernation feature in Windows off. To do so in Vista or Windows 7, open the Start menu and type “power options.” Select the Power Options entry. In the resulting Select a Power Plan dialog box, click “Change plan settings” for the currently selected power plan. In the next dialog box, click “Change advanced power settings.” From the Power Option dialog box that appears, expand the Sleep entry, followed by the Hibernate entry, and then change the Hibernate setting to “Never.” Click OK. Windows will delete the Hiberfil.sys, and you should notice considerably more disk space almost immediately.

L

The temporary internet files folder can start to overflow with thousands of tiny files, easily sapping multiple gigabytes on your main drive. It’s easiest to use the Windows Disk Cleanup utility, which is included with every copy of Windows, to delete these. The added benefit is that you can use the tool to delete other types of files as well. Open the Start menu and type “disk cleanup.’ Click the first entry you see, which will start the Disk Cleanup wizard. Select the drive you wish to clean, and in the following dialog box, you’ll be able to select the types of files you want to remove. Temporary internet files will be among them.

If you find yourself deleting files constantly in an attempt to conserve drive space, but feel like you’re fighting an uphill battle, the problem could be that the Windows Recycle Bin is reserving too much space for keeping track of deleted files.

Right-click the Recycle Bin and select Properties to remedy the situation. In the Recycle Bin Properties dialog box, you can do two important things: determine the maximum amount of disk space per drive that is reserved for tracking deletions and establish whether to have the Recycle Bin active on a particular drive. Adjust or disable the Recycle Bin on a per-drive basis, and you should see and retain more usable disk space.

There are plenty of other ways you can free up disk space.

For instance, move your data files to another drive or partition.

Segregating your files by type is a wise move anyway, since youíll then be able to back up just certain types of files with ease.

Also, you might want to consider employing Windows’ little-used disk and file compression feature.

It’s available only at the drive level. To use it, right-click your C drive (or another drive, if appropriate) and click Properties from the pop-up menu. On the General tab in the resulting Properties dialog box, select the option labeled “Compress this drive to save disk space.” From that point forward, Windows will use compression techniques to reduce the amount of disk space that files require. The downside will be some extra processing overhead, but on fast machines this should not result in much of a performance hit.

You can also use a free tool such as 7-Zip (http://www.7zip.org) to compress individual files or folders. This approach to increasing disk space works best when you have a lot of highly compressible files on your drive.

Some types of files, such as those created by standard office applications, are good candidates for file-level compression. Other types such as jpg images, which are already compressed, will not benefit much from additional compression. — dpa

6 ways to get more from your hard drive

Passwords hackers love the most y their very purpose passwords are aimed to keep us safe. But, there are passwords that are hacker’s dream.

So, for passwords to save us, we need to have safe passwords.

Internet security firm Imperva recently unveiled a list of most commonly used passwords on the Web, which it say are also the most “unsafe” passwords. The list is based on Imperva’s analysis of 32 million passwords. Read on to find out the 10 most easily hacked passwords.

The study reveals that ‘123456’ is the most commonly used password.

Imperva found that nearly 1 percent of the 32 million people it studied were using “123456” as a password.

The second most vulnerable password is 12345. Amichai Shulman, of internet security firm Imperva, said, “With only minimal effort, a hacker can gain access to one new account every second — or

B

1,000 accounts every 17 minutes.

“Everyone needs to understand what poor passwords mean in today’s world of automated cyber attacks.

The next most dangerous password according to the study is again combination of digits — 123456789. Security experts at Imperva suggest taking a sentence and transforming it into a nonexistent word. For instance “This little person went to market” might become “tlpWENT2m”. The fourth most vulnerable password is the word ‘Password’ itself.

At No 5 on the list of easily hacked password is ‘iloveyou’. This is followed by ‘princess’ at No 6.

According to the study, nearly 50% of users used names, slang words, dictionary words or trivial passwords (consecutive digits, adjacent keyboard keys, and so on).

Researchers advice mix upper and lower-case letters, numbers and

even symbols such as %,* or $.

‘Rockyou’ is at No 7 on the list of easily hackable passwords. The study reveals that almost 60 percent of users chose their passwords from within a limited set of characters. About 40 percent of the users use only lowercase characters for their passwords and about another 16 percent use only digits. Less than 4 percent of the users use special characters.

Rockyou is followed by 1234567 at No 8. Next on the list is 12345678 followed by abc123 at No 10. Researchers at security firm Imperva advice to use a different password for all sites. Also, the password should contain at least eight characters. The report reveals that just one half of the passwords contained seven or less characters.

A staggering 30 percent of users chose passwords whose length was equal to or below six characters. www.indiatimes.com

Beauty

Page 24

Friday, april 16, 2010

Knowing your skin type is the first step in choosing proper skin care I

n order to care for your skin properly you must first determine the type of skin you have. There are 5 types of skin: Normal, Dry, Oily, Combination and Problem Skin.

Normal: The skin is soft, supple and smooth. It is finetextured and free of blemishes (with the exception of periodic blemishes). It has a nice glow and never feels oily or dry.

Less than twenty percent of women have this skin type. If this is your skin type you are fortunate; however, this does not mean that you shouldn’t take care of it.

Dry: This type of skin has a fine texture and is transparent looking. It feels tight and drawn without moisturizer and tends to have fine lines around the eyes and mouth. It feels especially dry after washing and may have whiteheads around the eyes and dry patches. This type of skin needs proper care because it shows signs of aging early.

Oily: The oily complexion is greasy, sallow and course. It has large pores and tends to have pimples, blackheads and whiteheads. Within hours of washing the oiliness will reappear and makeup is usually absorbed quickly.

Combination: This type of skin is oily in the T zone and the rest of the face is dry. The T zone is the forehead, nose and chin. The extent to which both areas are dry and oily may vary; however, both areas require a separate cleaning routine to restore them to balance.

Problem Skin: Problem skin is usually oily and has a course texture and is subject to acne. It has large pores, blackheads, red blotches and may become more irritated under stress. If the problem is serious it will require the assistance of a dermatologist.

There are also 2 skin conditions that may occur either together or separately and may occur with any skin type. These are sensitive and allergic conditions. If when applying skin care products you begin to sneeze, wheeze, itch or breakout you are probably allergic. Skin that appears thin, pale and flushes easily and may be sensitive and be subject to allergies. If this is the case, treat your skin gently and use hypoallergenic products. (www.ambafrance-do.org)

Fight the effects of stress on your beauty

W

e all experience stress from time to time, but when stress occurs frequently (chronic stress) and is left uncontrolled it can cause both health concerns and a hazard to your appearance. Stress is a natural response to emotional or physical threats. This can be from work, a daily commute or family life. Stress causes a state of alarm, which produces adrenaline and increases levels of cortisol. Cortisol is a hormone that can effect oil production in the skin and creates higher levels of visceral fat (abdominal fat). Increased oil production can lead to skin condition flair ups such as eczema, rosacea, psoriasis, hives and acne. Stress also makes the body more susceptible to infection and causes the skin to repair itself more slowly.

Stress, beauty and skin affects Stress affects beauty through skin condition worries such as blemishes as well as the loss of moisture, which occurs more rapidly when under stress. Dryness of the skin can create more fine line/wrinkles appearance and causes the skin to look dull and aged. Creating a skin care regimen can help fight stressed skin worries.

It is important to wash and cleanse the skin with a mild cleanser that is appropriate for ones skin type (oily, dry or normal). Apply a daily

moisturizer with sunscreen in the morning and a heavier cream or facial lotion at night. There are a number of products now that contain antioxidants that can combat stress effects by protecting the skin from free radicals. Dermatologists suggest not only using a skin care regimen for the outside of the skin but a healthy diet to nourish from within.

Counteract beauty stresses with healthy diet A healthy diet rich in omega 3 fatty acids can help keep skin, hair and nails conditioned from the inside out. Foods such as fish, olive oil and nuts provide healthy sources of this essential healthy fat. Stress not only

affects the skin but the hair and nails as well. Both can become dry and brittle from excess stress. Eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables will keep your body in proper function to counteract the affects of stress. As part of a healthy diet drinking plenty of water will keep the skin hydrated and youthful.

Relaxation techniques to fight stress With this in mind those who are feeling stressed should add one more tool to fight stress, which are relaxation techniques. These techniques help ease stress in order to provide a healthier life style. There are five relaxation techniques that have proven to relieve tension and

relax both the mind and body.

Meditation- You don’t have to get a guru for this relaxation tool. Simply close your eyes and breathe. Let your mind go blank and focus on the sound of your breath as you inhale and exhale slowly. It will relax you and refresh you.

Aromatherapy- Scents can create a soothing affect. Try using scented oils, potpourris or candles in scents such as chamomile, lavender, rose or vanilla.

Tai Chi- This form of exercise is performed through slow focused movements combined with breathing.

It allows you to leave behind stressors and focus on the movement, which slows the heart rate creating a peaceful sensation.

Yoga- Much like Tai Chi, Yoga is a fitness method that focuses on slow, gentle postures with a combination of breathing that relaxes both the mind and the body.

Massage- It never hurts to treat yourself to a professional massage but if this isn’t in your budget a loved one is certain to help melt the stress away from your neck and shoulders where stress can hide causing headaches and irritation. Stress can cause health concerns and beauty woes but by incorporating the tips and tools mentioned above you can protect your health and your beauty. (www.freebeautytips.org)

Beauty

Friday, april 16, 2010

Page 25

Create your personal home spa S

queeze in a few extra minutes to your every day self care time and you’ll see how easily these step by step pampering recommendations will turn even the toughest days around. Or if you can negotiate a few minutes here and there from your day to get even more time by all means? do it! Your family, friends and co-workers will meet a much happier, more chipper, fantastically refreshed you!

Here are 10 personal little home spa tips that will make you look and feel like a million bucks!

In Preparation: First things, first. No shopping, buying or leaving the house. Scour the house for a few fun spa essentials and make a decadent ‘Home Spa Day’ just with what you have tucked away! Why put off what you could be doing right now?! I suppose if you are out and about and feel so inclined to pick up special bath salts, moisturizers or essential oils? so be it. I admire your level of commitment! ●

Grab your robe and slippers

●

Find a soothing CD that you absolutely love

●

Scented candle

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A washcloth, loofah, bath brush or a new scrubbie back there in the drawers you forgot about

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Fluffy cotton towel

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Bath salts or essential aromatic oils (if you have them)

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Your cleansers, toners and moisturizers

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Coarse sea salt

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Plenty of chilled spring water (with a splash of lime or lemon) in the fanciest glass you can find

●

Steep a cup of green tea

Let go of your day? your obligations? responsibilities? stress? and strain. Toss out the barrage of thoughts streaming through your mind (even if it’s just for a moment). Trust me... they’ll still be around later for you to poke at, ponder or peruse.

Try to relax. Take yourself on a far away vacation in your head, tell yourself a “Once Upon A Time” story, remind yourself what a princess you are and remember how essential these precious moments are to your happiness and sanity!

Welcome to your at home spa vacation!

1. Take it easy and slow down your breath, your thoughts and your movements. Put on your

favorite CD and start prepping a very simple shower or bath in a wonderfully slow, deliberate and unhurried way. Take time to watch the candle burn, smell the fragrance, feel the soft robe or towels, look at the sparkling drops of water and run your hands through it? take in the joyful process of an everyday activity that we just fly through without a second thought!

2. Use essential oils. Not only do they smell great, but they are extremely good for your skin. The rule to applying essential oils is to never apply them directly on your face or skin. Just add about five drops to a bowl of warm water. Soak a washcloth in the water and then apply to your face and neck as a compress for five minutes.

Repeat three times. Gently towel dry and finish yourself off with an anti-oxidant, antiinflammatory facial splash.

If you have a choice of essential oils to choose from, select one that suits your mood and purpose. If you are desparking the stress level this holiday, choose soothing oils (like lavender, chamomile, jasmine, sandalwood and ylang-ylang).

Good revitalizing and energizing oils when you need them are peppermint, eucalyptus, rosemary, basil and juniper. The aroma can

also provide psychological and physical benefits too!

Essential oils can help with physical conditions, rejuvenate the skin, eliminate waste, alleviate stress, enhance your mood, restore vitality and facilitate the regeneration of new, healthy cells.

3. Basic Body Scrub and Cleansing If you decided you only have time for an indulgent, relaxing shower? start with a basic body scrub and cleansing. I found this fabulous new product called Spongeables (www.spongeables.com). It’s a soap and a sponge all in one.

It lasts for a full month of frothy fragrant showering. My favorite fragrance is fresh lavender? and they have them fragrance free too if that’s more your style.

Whatever sponge, cloth or brush you decide on? scrub mindfully and only gently brush your skin. Gentle circular motions will increase your circulation and eliminate toxins and excess water.

Another in home spa trick is to mix an ounce of ground sea salt with 10 or so drops of your favorite essential oil.

Add water and make a paste so it spreads easily. Apply it to your entire body and slough off the dead skin with big circular strokes. This salt scrub will exfoliate dead skin

cells, cleanse the pores and help your body get rid of any toxins.

4. Draw a bath. Add 5 to 10 drops of an essential oil to bath salts. Grab an extra pillow, put a kitchen trash bag over it to keep it dry and then put a pillow case over that.

You just bought yourself 10 extra comfy minutes in the bath tub. You might as well take a book too! Follow it with a warm shower and a dry yourself off with a fluffy cotton towel. If someone in the house really loves you? get them to toss it in the dryer for 5 minutes and greet you with fluffy warmth. If you have a body toning lotion handy, apply to your body (not your face) for additional firming and toning so you’ll look even better in that little black dress.

5. Be nice to yourself.

These are your precious rejuvenating moments. Take your time. Pamper yourself and try not to get caught up in the have-to’s and the should-do’s. Don’t be in a rush. Not only will you lose some of the benefits of this quality time to refresh and relax, you may start sloughing off and using rough, damaging strokes.

6. Hurrying has its risks.

Without slow, mindful, attentive movements, you could cause inflammation and

jeopardize that fresh, healthy, glowing complexion that will make you a bright shining super star. You can actually accelerate the aging process by being too rough! Now there’s a good enough reason in and of itself to slow down.

7. Care for your hair. It is taking a beating in these winter elements. Add 1/4 ounce of lavender to sixteen ounces of shampoo. Or for oily hair, add 1/4 ounce of lemongrass or rosemary to 16 ounces of shampoo. Essential oils can make invigorating scalp massages. Rosemary is awesome! If you decide not to use the oils, make sure you at least give yourself a long, sudsy scalp massage. Close your eyes, lay your head back and drift for a moment.

8. Replenish lost moisture to your skin and hair this winter by taking two tablespoons of organic flaxseed oil twice a day. You’ll get rid of the itchies and combat wrinkles and sagging skin.

9. Treat your fabulous face.

All the treatments above were just for your bod. Your face is special and delicate. The skin on your face is thinner and more fragile than your body.

Treat your face with extreme care and gentleness. Even though it’s cold avoid extremely hot water, harsh soaps or any drying cleansers.

Grab a new wash cloth or small sea sponge, add a few drops of your favorite cleanser (preferably an anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory liquid cleanser) and then rinse thoroughly with warm water.

Apply face firming treatment then put an ice cube inside of a small plastic bag and gently rub over the face and eye area for several minutes to tone and plump up the skin.

10. Rejuvenate from the inside Drink 8 to10 glasses of water every day. Eat lots of whole foods, green vegetables, fresh fruits, grains, nuts and lean protein to reduce inflammation, replenish moisture and bring back a youthful glow.

Take 3 full, deep breaths from your abdomen (keep your shoulders still) to complete your simple happy essential home spa experience.

The benefits and joy you experience during your at home spa day will be more colored by your desire and your intentions than any fancy, expensive products you can buy. Be mindful, set your intentions and gradually transition in to or out of your work day? always cherishing these simple, sacred rejuvenating moments. (www.ambafrance-do.org)

health

Page 26

Friday, april 16, 2010

Weight loss: Spotting fad diets here are literally hundreds of different diets that have at one time or another been promoted as the best approach to losing weight.

Unfortunately, most of them, in their efforts to succeed, involve omitting certain foods, and sometimes even entire food groups (for example, high-protein diets suggest significantly reducing the percent of carbohydrates in the diet, an important component of the recommended eating guidelines based on the food pyramid).

Fad diets take form in many ways: low-fat, lowcarbohydrates, high-protein, or focusing on one particular food item such as grapefruit.

These diets lack major nutrients such as dietary fiber and carbohydrates, as well as selected vitamins, minerals, and protective phytochemicals, such as antioxidants (substances found in vegetables, which are protective against disease). Over the long term, by not receiving the proper amounts of these nutrients, you may develop serious health problems later in life.

For the food groups that these diets do permit, the proportions are either well above or well below those recommended by major health organizations such as the American Heart Association and the

T

Fad diets take form in many ways: low-fat, low-carbohydrates, high-protein, or focusing on one particular food item such as grapefruit. These diets lack major nutrients such as dietary fiber and carbohydrates, as well as selected vitamins, minerals, and protective phytochemicals.

American Dietetic Association, as well as the Surgeon General and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Some common claims of these diets include blaming particular hormones for weight gain, suggesting that food can change body chemistry, or touting or banning a particular food.

However, they all have one

thing in common: They offer only a temporary solution to what for many people is a lifelong and chronic condition. Once the diet is stopped, the lost weight is usually regained quickly, and when weight is lost rapidly, chances are it is not fat that is lost but water weight and precious muscle-but when it is regained, it is usually all gained as fat. This is because

none of these diets teach you how to eat right.

How Do I Spot a Fad Diet?

While there is no set approach to identifying a fad diet, many have the following characteristics: Recommendations that promise a quick fix.

Dire warnings of dangers from a single product or

regimen.

Claims that sound too good to be true.

Simplistic conclusions drawn from a complex study.

Recommendations based on a single study or testimonials.

Dramatic statements that are refuted by reputable scientific organizations.

Lists of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ foods.

Recommendations made to help sell a product.

Recommendations based on studies published without review by other researchers.

Recommendations from

studies that ignore differences among individuals or groups.

Eliminating 1 or more of the 5 food groups Devoting yourself to a lifestyle that includes exercise and eating a proper diet with moderate portions is still the best method to lose weight and to keep it off.

Most people who make the change from a typical high-fat diet and sedentary lifestyle to one that follows a diet based on the recommended food pyramid will slowly and safely lose weight. (www.women.webmd.com)

health

Friday, april 16, 2010

Page 27

The truth about belly fat

aving a flat belly or socalled “six-pack abs” is a dream of most adults. If you’re middle-aged, have ever been pregnant, or sometimes indulge in too much food or one too many beers, you probably have a spare tire you’d like to get rid of.

So what’s the best strategy for banishing belly fat? Is it as simple as adding certain foods to your diet, or doing particular exercises?

H

What’s the best way to trim your tummy?

Can exercise flatten your abs?

Hundreds of crunches each day won’t flatten your belly if you need to lose weight. If your abdominal muscles aren’t covered with excess fat, strengthening them can help you look tighter and thinner. But spot exercises won’t banish belly fat.

“If you want to lose weight and keep it off, you must eat a healthy, controlled-calorie diet and get regular exercise-around 60 minutes a day of moderate activity, like brisk walking,” says Rosenbloom.

And the harder you exercise, the more belly fat you may lose. Jensen suggests that people who engage in high-intensity aerobic exercise tend to be leaner around the abdomen.

The answer to flatter abs Don’t despair; you can lose that spare tire, experts say. But there’s no secret formula. “There is no magic bullet, diet plan, specific food, or type of exercise that specifically targets belly fat. But the good news is belly fat is the first kind of fat you tend to lose when you lose weight,” says Michael Jensen, MD, a Mayo Clinic endocrinology specialist and obesity researcher.

Whether you’re an “apple” shape with excess belly fat, or a “pear” with wide hips and thighs, when you lose weight, you’ll most likely lose proportionately more from the abdominal region than elsewhere. “Ninety-nine percent of people who lose weight will lose it in the abdominal region before anywhere else-and will lose proportionately more weight from the upper body,” says Jensen, also a professor of medicine.

And why is that? “Visceral fat, the kind tucked deep inside your waistline, is more metabolically active and easier to lose than subcutaneous fat under the skin, especially if you have plenty of it,” explains Penn State researcher Penny Kris-Etherton, PhD, RD. And the more weight you have to lose, the more quickly you’re likely to start losing your belly fat, experts say. “People who are significantly overweight may see quicker results in their belly than someone who has less to lose in that area, such as a postmenopausal pouch,” says Georgia State University nutrition professor, Christine Rosenbloom, PhD, RD. Can whole grains help you lose belly fat?

A recent study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that a calorie-controlled diet rich in whole grains trimmed extra fat from the waistline of obese subjects. Study participants who ate all whole grains (in addition to five servings of fruits and vegetables, three servings of low-fat dairy, and two servings of lean meat, fish, or poultry) lost more weight from the abdominal area than another group that ate the same diet, but with all refined grains.

“Eating a diet rich in whole grains while reducing refined carbohydrates changes the glucose and insulin response and makes it easier to mobilize fat stores,” says study researcher Penny KrisEtherton, PhD, RD, a distinguished professor of nutritional sciences at Penn State University.

“Visceral fat is more metabolically active and easier to

and proteins, which have four calories per gram. “Fats have to be controlled, because it is easy to overeat nuts or guacamole-which can undo the health benefits by packing on the pounds,” cautions Rosenbloom.

The risks of excess belly fat Why is it important to lose belly fat? Carrying around extra pounds in your midsection is serious business. Extra weight in your midsection is more dangerous than fat around your hips and thighs, as visceral fat is worse for your health than the subcutaneous fat that sits under the skin.

“Extra weight around the midsection is associated with inflammation and a higher risk of health problems such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, metabolic syndrome and more,” Jensen says.

According to a recent study in Circulation, belly fat appears to boost inflammation and is linked to hardening of the arteries.

lose than subcutaneous fat, especially if you have plenty of it and the right conditions are met, such as the ones in our study.”

When you eat refined foods like white bread, it triggers a series of events, starting with elevated blood sugar levels followed by an increased insulin response, which can cause fat to be deposited more readily. But eating a diet rich in whole grains (which also tend to be higher in fiber) helps improve insulin sensitivity. This, in turn helps the body more efficiently use blood glucose, lowers blood glucose levels, and reduces fat deposition. The US Department of Agriculture’s 2005 Dietary

Guidelines recommends that half of your grain servings come from whole grains.

“Eating whole grains exclusively may be difficult and unrealistic for many people,” says Rosenbloom. Instead, she recommends, “work toward consuming more whole grains, as they tend to be high in fiber, which satisfies hunger for longer periods and helps you eat less than refined grains.”

Can monounsaturated fats banish belly fat?

A recent diet book called The Flat Belly Diet posits the idea that you can lose belly fat by eating a

1,600-calorie diet rich in monounsaturated fats.

Most people will lose weight on a 1,600-calorie diet. And there is little question that when it comes to choosing fats, the monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAS) found in avocados, nuts, seeds, olives, soybeans, chocolate, olive and canola oils are among the best choices, with proven health benefits, such as reducing the risk of heart disease.

But these are not magic foods capable of targeting belly fat, experts note. While the MUFAS are healthy fats, they are still fats, with nine calories per gram-more than twice that of carbohydrates

Is your middle too big?

Beyond the body mass index (BMI), waist circumference has been touted as a simple and reliable test to measure health, weight status, and hidden fat, says Rosenbloom. To assess your risk, use a soft tape measure. Lie down and wrap it around your natural waistline, located above your hip bone and below your belly button.

Take the measurement without holding your breath or holding your stomach in. If your waist is larger than 40 inches (for men) or 35 inches (for women), you have too much belly fat and are at risk for heart disease and other conditions.

And one of the best things you can do for your health is to lose weight, says Rosenbloom.

The Bottom Line About Belly Fat Most scientific evidence suggests that a calorie-controlled diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, beans, nuts, seeds, lean meat, fish, eggs, and poultry is the foundation for a diet that provides all the nutrients you need while helping to whittle your waistline. The real secret to losing belly fat is to lose weight on a balanced, calorie-controlled diet and exercise at least an hour a day. (www.webmd.com )

Page 28

RELATIONSHIPS

Friday, April 16, 2010

Some of the Ironman medals that Mickie Shapiro has earned over the years are proudly displayed on her kitchen wall.

— MCT

Meet superwoman grandmom!

W

hen the world’s grande dame of Ironman triathlon trains, her movements are so fluid, so strong, you can’t help but wonder about this 73-year-old. In the last two decades, Mickie Shapiro has packed in more than 20 Ironman races, considered by many to be the toughest races on the planet. Think a 2.4-mile open water swim, a 112-mile bike race and a full marathon, 26.2 miles - all on the same day. If you were meeting Shapiro for the first time, you might think she was super human.

But Shapiro, 5-foot-3, allowed she has osteoporosis, thyroid problems and deformed feet. She has to wear extra large running shoes and sometimes takes as long as five minutes in the morning before she can place one foot in front of the other. Regardless, Shapiro is redefining what it means to age.

So how can the rest of us turn back the clock? The answer may be more about mind than body. Did I mention Shapiro knows her podiatrist’s phone number by heart? “I see myself as a normal person,” the practicing therapist told me during a recent visit to her home, which is decorated with reminders of her four children, the sport she loves and pop art. Her latest piece? A present from all of her children. It is a brightly painted woodwork of a woman holding up a banner of a swimmer, a cyclist and a runner. The words “Love, courage, dedication, hope, passion” swirl at the woman’s feet.

They are words that Shapiro lives by and, perhaps, they are words that can build a bridge between what separates the rest of us from someone as active as Shapiro. Like many women of her generation, Shapiro grew up inside a fence of expectations. She was expected to play safe games like “Red Rover,” go to college, meet a man, devote her life to raising children and, later in life, play with her grandchildren. Shapiro stayed pretty much inside the fence for four decades. With a few exceptions.

When 11-year-old Mickie went to dance class in Chicago she took the subway. Alone. It gave her a taste of freedom. More importantly, it gave her confidence to be on her own. Perhaps there’s a lesson in that freedom. My mom grew up in New Jersey.

For her, it was public buses at age 9. When she was in her early 60s, Alice Marie Conroy Whiting fulfilled a dream and bought a small cabin in Southern Oregon and told her desert-loving husband he could follow - or not. My dad followed.

Sometimes, though, we need a little kick. It was Shapiro’s daughter, Spencer, who got her off the couch and into running. The year was 1978 and her daughter became enthralled with running after seeing a kid’s race. Like many moms of yesterday and today, Shapiro became the shuttle driver. Then one day, waiting for a

Pageant of the Masters performance in Laguna Beach, Calif., Spencer asked to squeeze in a run. Shapiro, ever the good mom, ran along. Shapiro discovered that rather than feeling tired and hurt after the run, she felt great - alive in a way she hadn’t felt before.

When Shapiro hit her 40s she had two kids in college and two more soon to follow. She decided to use her extra time to earn a master’s degree in therapy, dance therapy to be exact. She did that.

Then she got a second master’s, this one in guidance counseling.

Then she got a job. Then she got a divorce. Through it all, Shapiro kept running. In 1981, she was fast enough to qualify to run the Boston Marathon. The accomplishment made her feel powerful, independent. In 1982, Shapiro watched television as athlete Julie Moss crawled across the Ironman finish line in Hawaii. Like thousands of others, Shapiro was galvanized. Anybody can ride a bike, she figured. And she already knew how to swim.

“I’m going to do a triathlon,” she promised herself. Since that day, Shapiro has won eight Ironman races in her age group, come

Triathlete, 73, tells how to turn back time in second three times in her age group in the world championships and won the half-Ironman world championships twice. “My habits and my lifestyle and who I am are because of Ironman,” Shapiro told me, her taut frame atop a chrome chair with rainbow splashes on its cushions. Along the way, she also suffered three serious crashes, one which required her being helicoptered to a hospital.

“You fall off the horse, you get back on,” she said. “There are no short cuts to Ironman,” Shapiro explained. “Training is not easy.

You have to have a passion.” Some may think someone like Shapiro never has a bad day, always feels like cycling, running or swimming. Not so. “Training is not easy,” she repeated. If it sounds like Shapiro was talking about life, you would be correct. “A sign of maturity is delayed gratification. It’s the essence of life.” After missing some cutoff times in several Ironman races over the years, does she see another world championship in her future? “This year, I’m ready,” Shapiro said, smiling and clenching her fists with excitement. “I’m ready.” Like all of us, Shapiro wasn’t born ready.

She worked to get there. — MCT

Mickie Shapiro, 74, prepares to take a ride through her neighborhood in Costa Mesa, California. —MCT

Pets

Friday, April 16, 2010

Page 29

Gorillas use their smarts to help their hearts

Human heart problems are entirely different from that of these primates

Zawadi, a 17-year-old Lowland gorilla, eyes guests at the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail. — MCT

G

ino the gorilla knows the drill. He reaches way up with his left hand and puts his right hand out to the side. When his keeper asks, he pushes his right leg out and presses his left thigh and chest against the crisscrossed bars of his enclosure. He knows that striking this unusual pose - it looks like an upright round of Twister - earns him a treat.

He doesn’t know that the ultrasound machine rolled up to the bars will collect information that could help gorillas beyond his Disney’s Animal Kingdom home. The animalprograms team at Walt Disney World began this work late last year and is pioneering the process, which is notable because it uses no sedatives. This allows veterinarians to monitor vital signs of fully awake animals.

“We’ve seen over the past 20, 30 years that as these big silverbacks get older, they have heart problems,” said Dr Mark Stetter, director of animal health for Disney’s Animal Programs.

Gorillas commonly are sedated to get snapshots of their hearts. That disturbs the animals, and it only allows at-rest readings. The result is an incomplete picture of the effects - good or bad of heart medication.

Now at Animal Kingdom, a sonogramist rolls an ultrasound machine near each gorilla’s enclosure - not too close, of course - and a keeper places a probe against the posing gorilla’s chest. “It’s a neat combination of fields that may not always overlap,” said Kristen Lukas, curator of conservation and science at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. “This whole notion of fusing training and using that relationship between the keeper and the animal to develop some of these behaviors helps us take better care of the animals.”

Each of Disney’s eight grown gorillas, which folks may spy along the theme park’s Pangani Forest Exploration Trail, have an individualized ultrasound regimen that factors in elements from their temperament to the thickness of their chest. “You’ll see animals in different stances just because they need to orient their chest cavity in order to get the right angle on

the probe,” said Matt Hohne, animal-operations director at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

A few gorillas learned quickly that the exams had tasty payoffs. “It’s really a give-andtake relationship based on trust with their keepers,” Hohne said. The animals’ personalities shine through in the process.

Kashata dislikes the cool gel used for sonograms, so keepers warm the gel before applying it to her chest. But when it is boisterous Gino’s turn, he takes a swipe of the gel with his fingers and tastes it. He sometimes prefers the unflavored goo to the treat offered from his keeper. During a recent session, Gino was so enamored with the gelsmeared sensor that he attempted to pull it through to his side of the bars.

Keepers reward the gorillas after they assume the proper positions. The animals also respond to specific movements, sounds and commands - as simple as the handlers saying

“closer” or tapping a stick. Once the probe is in place, the sonogram machine records video and still images of the heart. A cardiologist later uses the data to check the organ’s walls, effectiveness of ventricles and blood flow.

Results are shared through an Association of Zoos and Aquariums cooperative group cardiologists, pathologists, curators and veterinarians - that looks at cardiac diseases.

Other institutions are trying the no-sedation method but not to the extent that Animal Kingdom has, Hohne said. ‘“Our ultimate goal is making sure that every institution with gorillas benefits as well,” Hohne said. “It does nothing but benefit the species.” Disney is preparing a video tutorial of its process, including the challenges.

“It’s so meaningful that we have a place like Disney that’s taking the lead on things, not only doing it themselves but then working to get the information to the other institutions,”

said Lukas, who also serves as the chairwoman of AZA’s Gorilla Species Survival Plan. “It’s the future of where zoos are going.” One finding: The sources of humans’ heart problems are not the causes of gorillas’ heart problems. “We’re certainly seeing that it’s age-related; it seems to be mostly in males,” Stetter said. “But it doesn’t appear to be cholesterol. It doesn’t appear to be diet. And it doesn’t appear to be the hardening of the arteries.”

Now that the Animal Kingdom gorillas are cooperating with the ultrasound procedure, the Disney team is working on another task: low-key blood-pressure checks. Naturally, there have been challenges, such as convincing the gorillas that they’re not being given a new plaything. “How do you get a blood-pressure reading from a gorilla voluntarily without him sort of ‘borrowing’ that cuff?” Hohne wonders.

— MCT

Guests at the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail at Disney’s Animal Kingdom watch Zawadi, a 17-year-old Lowland gorilla in Orlando, Florida. — MCT

FOOD

Page 30

Everyday cooking

Friday, April 16, 2010

By Sawsan Kazak our, yet just a little bit sweet with a freshness that is all their own, lemons are a great additions to many savory as well as sweet dishes. Adding balance to salad dressings, tang to meat dishes and freshness to desserts, lemon is a very versatile fruit.

The smell of summer, lemons lighten up any dish they are incorporated in. Enjoy the following lemon recipes and put the highlight on lemons.

S

Please send suggestions to: sawsank@kuwaittiems.net

5 fun facts about lemons 1-Lemon trees bloom and produce fruit year-round. Each tree can produce between 500 and 600 pounds of lemons in a year.

2-Next time you have a sore throat, reach for a lemon!

Add the juice of one lemon to an equal amount of hot water for an anti-bacterial gargle.

3-Food historians say lemons have been in cultivation around the Mediterranean from as early as the first century A.D. 4-High in vitamin C, lemons prevent scurvy, a disease that causes bleeding gums, loose teeth and aching joints.

To this day, the British Navy requires ships to carry enough lemons so that every sailor can have one ounce of juice a day.

5-The demand for lemons and their scurvy-preventing properties hit a peak during the California Gold Rush of 1849. Miners were willing to pay huge sums for a single lemon. As a result, lemon trees were planted in abundance throughout California. — (www.sunkist.com)

FOOD

Friday, April 16, 2010

Page 31

Chinese lemon chicken

ombine cornstarch, salt and pepper. Blend in water and egg yolks.

Dip chicken pieces into cornstarch-egg mixture. Fry chicken in oil for about 5 minutes until golden. Drain.

Sprinkle with green onions.

Pour sauce over chicken.

For the sauce: Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan.

Cook over medium heat, stirring, about 5 minutes until sauce boils. Pour over chicken. This recipe also works well in a wok.

C

fresh lemon Spaghetti 1 pound spaghetti 2/3 cup olive oil 2/3 cup grated Parmesan 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 3 lemons) Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 tablespoon lemon zest 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

8 chicken breast halves 1/2 cup cornstarch 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon pepper 1/4 cup water 4 egg yolks, beaten 2 cups Cooking Oil

Green onions, sliced Lemon Sauce 1 1/2 cup water 1/2 cup lemon juice 3 1/2 tablespoons light brown

sugar 3 tablespoons cornstarch 3 tablespoons honey 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules 1/4 teaspoon ginger, or more if desired

ix the crushed garlic and mustard in a small dish then gradually add the lemon juice to form a paste. Add the oil and whisk with a fork briskly to combine. Serve with your favorite vegetables.

M

C

Tangy lemon Cake

Lemon and mustard dressing 1 1/2 tablespoon of Fresh lemon juice.

1 Clove garlic, crushed.

1 teaspoon of French mustard.

3 tablespoons of Salad oil.

Freshly ground pepper to taste.

ook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the oil, Parmesan, and lemon juice in a large bowl to blend. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Toss the pasta with the lemon sauce, and the reserved cooking liquid, adding 1/4 cup at a time as needed to moisten. Season with salt and pepper.

Garnish with lemon zest and chopped basil.

3 medium eggs 3 cups of flour 2 cups of sugar 1 cup of buttermilk 1/2 cup of shortening 1/4 cup of butter 2 tablespoons of lemon juice 2 teaspoons of grated lemon rind 1 teaspoon of vanilla 1/2 teaspoon of salt 1/2 teaspoon of soda Lemon glaze (optional) reheat your oven to 350ยบF (175ยบC). In a suitably sized mixing bowl, cream the sugar, shortening, and butter.

Individually add each egg, mixing thoroughly.

Combine the flour, salt and soda; then add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk. Stir in the lemon juice, grated rind and vanilla. Mix thoroughly.

Pour into a greased 10-inch tube pan. Bake for 60 minutes. Once cooked, remove from oven while still hot, and pour lemon glaze over top.

P

THEY ARE THE 99!

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

THE STORY SO FAR : Jami the Assembler asks Fattah, Hadya, and Baeth to help him teleport a dangerous object to his new laboratory: F.R.A.N.K.I.E., a robot that once nearly destroyed the 99 Steps Foundation. But during the transfer, Baeth suddenly cries out in pain…

The 99 ® and all related characters ® and © 2010, Teshkeel Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

www.the99.org

travel

Page 34

By Kevin Gould

I

fell in love with Turkey 28 years ago. Denim jeans were a rare western luxury then and every time the politicians got uppity the army rolled in, imposing swingeing curfews and outlawing anything cultural that seemed vaguely fun. How times change — yet it’s Turkey’s culture and history that makes her so attractive today.

Nearly 2.5 million Brits will holiday in Turkey this year. The face she shows most of us is thoroughly modern — sort of like Italy, but with moustaches and headscarves.

Outside of the euro zone but with Mediterranean, Aegean and Black Sea coastlines, the country offers everything the fun-hungry all inclusive traveler wants. But a step away from the tourist areas is a Turkey of such original beauty that you’d need a thousand lifetimes to spend here, and there’d still be more to discover.

I’ve spent nearly 30 years travelling in luxury coaches, dodgy taxis, Dolmus buses, army helicopters, by boat and on foot and never fail to be thrown by the sheer diversity of a country that’s more like a continent.

Hip, cultural Istanbul is where many travelers start their voyages of discovery. Like New York isn’t America, Istanbul isn’t really Turkey, but a state in its own right.

Unlike New York, Istanbul has 3,000 years of civilization to inspire herself with. On the same latitude as Rome (and also built on seven hills), this was the perfect capital for the Emperor Constantine to establish the Eastern Roman empire from, just when old Rome was tearing itself to pieces.

The Byzantines came next.

They were Greek-speaking Christians that were nonetheless mullah’d by thuggish crusaders,

Friday, april 16, 2010

I’ve spent nearly 30 years travelling in luxury coaches, dodgy taxis, Dolmus buses, army helicopters, by boat and on foot and never fail to be thrown by the sheer diversity of a country that’s more like a continent. who carried off her many treasures (check out the golden lions in St Mark’s Square, Venice, for example), leaving the door open to the (Muslim) Ottomans, whose empire stretched from the gates of Vienna all the way round the Med to Mauritania. Istanbul is still the headquarters of the Greek Orthodox church. Awe-inspired pilgrims thought Haghia Sofia’s great dome was suspended from heaven by a golden chain as even you might today. Gorgeous churches, chapels and synagogues are yours to happen upon in her huddled quarters.

Check out the sixth-century Kucuk (or, Little) Haghia Sofia around the corner from the crowds at the Blue Mosque. Properly known as the church of St Sergius and St Bacchus, its fresco’d and mosaic’d saints look so sharp and fresh, they could have been dressed by Vivienne Westwood.

Boating 10 minutes over to Asia for a cup of tea, or taking the slow ferry to the traffic-free, bougainvillea-crazy Princes’ Islands for a seafood lunch or hilltop picnic you may well be the only British traveller, but you’ll still be amongst friends, for the Turkish welcome is as genuine as it is legendary.

A meander up the Bosphorous

brings you to the Black Sea with its shoals of anchovies and wild waves.

Within an hour of Istanbul you’re in an Alpine land of tea gardens, hazelnut coppices and Lazspeaking, line-dancing locals who trace their roots back to Jason and his Argonauts.

Turkey’s north east, bordering Georgia and Armenia, is little visited, but the Kackar mountains are the intrepid walker’s paradise, with lost valleys, endless vistas and rare wildlife. The village of Yaylayar is home to 130 types of butterfly alone. Englishwoman Kate Clow has previously established two spellbinding walking trails in the Taurus Mountains; her latest is here in the Kackars.

Inland from here is Ankara with its art deco embassies, established

by Mustafa Kemal Atat¸rk as Turkey’s modern capital; from here Catalhayak, is an easy drive. This is where wheat was first cultivated: Neolithic people lived here in organised towns about 9,500 years ago.

At school, I was rubbish at history but in Turkey, history is easy to read, and worn on everyone’s face. Turk’s ancestors were once subject to those great colonising, civilising empires, so you see pale-skinned Slavs; ginger-

haired Syrians; grizzly Alpine mountain villagers; oval-eyed horse-riding farmers; triangularfaced Mongolian steppe-dwellers; flashing Arabs; proud beautiful Kurds; faded, haunted Thracians; boat-bound Aegean islanders. You see history also in every town and village.

Cappadocia is established on the tourist trail, but its pastel-painted underground churches are definitely worth the visit. Cut from the soft tufa rock, this is where early Christians hid from marauding Romans ñ a case of true faith made concrete.

Van, near where Turkey meets Iran, was the capital of the Urartu people in the ninth century BC, and is also famous for its swimming cats. Further south is Upper Mesopotamia, where the great Tigris and Euphrates rivers rise. Urfa is where Abraham was born and Job learned his patience.

Gaziantep is where baklava was invented, and Malatya is where your supermarket’s dried apricots come from. In Mardin, people speak Aramaic, just as Jesus did, and if you carry on west to the Mediterranean, you fetch up in ancient Antioch and Tarsus, where St Paul was born.

Turkey’s coastlines are

beautiful, and her waters, er, turquoise. The Datca peninsula is as rocky, bird-loud and gorgeous as anywhere in the Med. As you follow the Aegean north, there’s Ephesus, of course, which is beautiful in the late afternoon after the tour buses have left. Meryem Ev is where the Virgin Mary is said to have spent her last days, and when the sun’s setting over these graceful Grecian ruins, you might want to stay here forever, too.

Izmir is olive oil and wine country — Turkey is one of the world’s largest grape producers, and Turkish wines can now take their place with the best of the New World. Even if they’re really from the Ancient one.

Before you hit Troy there are the tiny Aegean islands of Bozcaada and Gokceada, famous in Greek mythology and also as where Allied troops waited before wasting their lives at Gallipoli.

Gallipoli, like neighboring Trakya (Thrace) is wild, weird and possessed of a hauntingly empty beauty. This is where the Persian king Xerxes had the Dardanelle Straights whipped because their currents would not obey his majesty when he so badly wanted to invade Greece. This is also where I love to eat garlicky clams and salads of sea vegetables, and drink cold Truva beers.

Along the Marmara Sea you’re back in Istanbul, having travelled thousands of miles and through ten thousand years of history. Turkey’s climate ranges from snowy Alpine through wind-whipped steppe, waterless desert and balmy Mediterranean. You’ll have eaten some of the most delicious food in the world, and the Turks you’ve met will have treated you with kindness and joy. The truth is, Turks just love having visitors. —Guardian

travel

Friday, april 16, 2010

Page 35

Getting around:

Tips about Orlando’s major parks Y ou can easily spend your entire vacation at the various Disney attractions, all of which are connected by monorail, boat, trolley and bus. If you stay off-site or plan to visit any nonDisney attractions, you’ll need a rental car. I got one from a locally based company called EZ Rent-a-Car (www.e-zrentacar.com) at the Orlando airport for about $25 a day, which undercut the rate that competing national companies were offering. Almost all of the hotels charge for parking; I paid $15 a day, so you might want to consider renting only for the day you’ll need the car.

Lodging: There are thousands of on-site rooms, but I stayed at the recently renovated Holiday Inn Downtown Disney (www.holidayinn.com/hotels/us/en/dislb/hoteldetail?; 1-407-828-8888). The hotel is within walking distance of Downtown Disney, which is packed with restaurants and shops. It and several others are known as “good neighbor” hotels; they are on Disney property, but are not owned or managed by the company. I got a brand-new double room for about $100 per night. Most good-neighbor hotels offer transportation to various parks.

Splurge: Any trip to Disney is a splurge, but if you really want to break the bank, eat at the ultraexpensive Victoria & Albert’s in the Grand Floridian resort. Children under 10 aren’t allowed, and a meal will cost at least $100 per person. I opted instead for the California Grill restaurant on the 15th floor of Disney’s Contemporary Resort, where there’s a terrace that offers spectacular views of the nightly fireworks over the Magic Kingdom. I also splurged at Jiko on the lower level of the Animal Kingdom Lodge. It features more than 200 South African wines and an exotic menu that includes grilled ostrich and flatbreads prepared in wood-burning ovens.

Save money: Save money, and your sanity, by going off-season, generally winter and autumn, or any time that kids are in school. More information: http://disneyworld.disney.go.com.

Universal Orlando Getting around: Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure are adjacent, so you can move freely between them.

Lodging: Universal Orlando has three resorts, but there are plenty of other options nearby.

Splurge: Mythos Restaurant in the Lost Continent is in Islands of Adventure. There’s a high-end Emeril Lagasse restaurant in CityWalk, Universal’s answer to Downtown Disney.

Save money: A two-day, two-park pass is $120 for adults, vs. $75 for a one-day, one-park pass, and it lets you move between the two parks. Bring bottled water; it costs $2.50 inside the park. More information: www.universalorlando.com.

Worlds of discovery Getting around: You’ll need a car. Discovery Cove, Sea World and Aquatica are near one another, but not close enough to walk. The other attraction, Busch Gardens, is in Tampa.

Lodging: There is no on-site lodging, but plenty of large hotels nearby.

Splurge: Discovery Cove’s dolphin swim, which can cost about $100 over the price of admission, which starts at about $199 depending on demand.

Save money: Entrance to SeaWorld is $70 per person, but you can buy a multipark pass. Save 10 percent by buying tickets online. Or buy the Orlando Flex ticket. For $259 you’ll get access to a variety of parks. FlexTicket Plus is $299 and includes Busch Gardens. Order tickets at www.seaworld.com. More information: www.worlds ofdiscovery.com. —MCT

A visitor poses with the Simpsons s character at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.

—MCT

Manta is one of the newest roller coasters a t SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida.

—MCT

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Islands of Adventure o, in Orland Florida, is still a on constructi site.

—MCT

BOOKS

Page 36

Friday, April 16, 2010

Hot new releases!

The Shadow of Your Smile

By Mary Higgins Clark

I

n The Shadow of Your Smile, worldwide bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark weaves a spellbinding thriller revolving around a long-held family secret that threatens to emerge and take the life of an unsuspecting heiress.

At age eighty-two and in failing health, Olivia Morrow knows she has little time left.

The last of her line, she faces a momentous choice: expose a long-held family secret, or take it with her to her grave.

Olivia has in her possession letters from her deceased cousin Catherine, a nun, now being considered for beatification by the Catholic Church-the final step before sainthood. In her lifetime, Sister Catherine had founded seven hospitals for disabled children. Now the cure of a four-year-old boy dying of brain cancer is being attributed to

her. After his case was pronounced medically hopeless, the boy’s desperate mother had organized a prayer crusade to Sister Catherine, leading to his miraculous recovery.

The letters Olivia holds are the evidence that Catherine gave birth at age seventeen to a child, a son, and gave him up for adoption.

Olivia knows the identity of the young man who fathered Catherine’s child: Alex Gannon, who went on to become a world-famous doctor, scientist, and inventor holding medical patents.

Now, two generations later, thirty-oneyear-old pediatrician Dr. Monica Farrell, Catherine’s granddaughter, stands as the rightful heir to what remains of the family fortune. But in telling Monica who she really is, Olivia would have to betray Catherine’s wishes and reveal the story behind Monica’s ancestry.

The Gannon fortune is being squandered

by Alex’s nephews Greg and Peter Gannon, and other board members of the Gannon Foundation, who camouflage their profligate lifestyles with philanthropy.

Now their carefully constructed image is cracking. Greg, a prominent financier, is under criminal investigation, and Peter, a Broadway producer, is a suspect in the murder of a young woman who has been extorting money from him.

The only people aware of Olivia’s impending choice are those exploiting the Gannon inheritance. To silence Olivia and prevent Monica from learning the secret, some of them will stop at nothing-even murder.

Clark’s riveting new novel explores the juxtaposition of medical science and religious faith, and the search for identity by the daughter of a man adopted at birth.

By Anna Quindlen

By Joyce Meyer

E

ngrained in our culture is the belief that unbending discipline is the only sure way to success. You must go to the gym five times a week, never order the dessert, and don’t even think about buying that dress you keep staring at in the store window. Breaking from such a regimented lifestyle is a sign of weakness, right? Wrong!-and Joyce wants to tell us why...

Though setting rules in our lives are important, it’s just as important that we break them from time-to-time. Structure is a powerful tool, but when diverging from your own goals is seen as catastrophic, it can have a hugely negative effect on us. Balance is a core value in life and every once in awhile we deserve to indulge in a guilty pleasure or two. So don’t feel bad about straying from your goals every once-in-awhile and in fact, embrace it: eat the cookie and buy the shoes!

Elegy for April

Eat the Cookie; Buy the Shoes

Every Last One

I

n this breathtaking and beautiful novel, the #1 New York Times bestselling author Anna Quindlen creates an unforgettable portrait of a mother, a father, a family, and the explosive, violent consequences of what seem like inconsequential actions.

Mary Beth Latham has built her life around her family, around caring for her three teenage children and preserving the rituals of their daily life. When one of her sons becomes depressed, Mary Beth focuses on him, only to be blindsided by a shocking act of violence.

What happens afterwards is a testament to the power of a woman’s love and determination, and to the invisible lines of hope and healing that connect one human being with another.

Ultimately, as rendered in Anna Quindlen’s mesmerizing prose, Every Last One is a novel about facing every last one of the things we fear most, about finding ways to navigate a road we never intended to travel, and about living a life we never dreamed we’d have to live, but find ourselves brave enough to try.

By Benjamin Black

Q

uirke-the hard-drinking, insatiably curious Dublin pathologist-is back, and he’s determined to find his daughter’s best friend, a well-connected young doctor April Latimer has vanished. A junior doctor at a local hospital, she is something of a scandal in the conservative and highly patriarchal society of 1950s Dublin. Though her family is one of the most respected in the city, she is known for being independent-minded; her taste in men, for instance, is decidedly unconventional.

Now April has disappeared, and her friend Phoebe Griffin suspects the worst. Frantic, Phoebe seeks out Quirke, her brilliant but erratic father, and asks him for help. Sober again after intensive treatment for alcoholism, Quirke enlists his old sparring partner, Detective Inspector Hackett, in the search for the missing young woman. In their separate ways the two men follow April’s trail through some of the darker byways of the city to uncover crucial information on her whereabouts.

And as Quirke becomes deeply involved in April’s murky story, he encounters complicated and ugly truths about family savagery, Catholic ruthlessness, and race hatred.

Both an absorbing crime novel and a brilliant portrait of the difficult and relentless love between a father and his daughter, this is Benjamin Black at his sparkling best.

BOOKS

Friday, April 16, 2010

Page 37

Shameless

By Karen Robard

The Hand That First Held Mine

I

By Maggie O’Farrell Lexie Sinclair cannot stay. Enclosed within her parents’ genteel country lawn, she yearns for more. She makes her way to the city, and meets a magazine editor, Innes, a man unlike any she has ever imagined. He introduces her to the thrilling world of bohemian postwar London, and she learns to be a reporter, to know art and artists, to live her life fully and with a deep love at the center of it. She creates many lives-all of them unconventional. And when she finds herself pregnant by a man wholly unsuitable for marriage or fatherhood, she doesn’t hesitate for a minute to have the baby on her own.

Later, in present-day London, a young painter named Elina dizzily navigates the first weeks of motherhood. Her boyfriend, Ted, traumatized by nearly losing her in labor, begins to recover lost memories. He cannot place them. But as they become more disconcerting and return more frequently, we discover that something connects these two stories-these two women-something that becomes all the more heartbreaking and beautiful as they all hurtle toward its revelation.

A stunning portrait of motherhood and the artist’s life in all their terror and glory, Maggie O’Farrell’s newest novel is a gorgeous inquiry into the ways we make and unmake our lives, who we know ourselves to be, and how even our most accidental legacies connect us.

Excerpt

P

rivate Investigator Regan Reilly and her husband, Jack “no relation” Reilly, head of the NYPD Major Case Squad, are about to celebrate their first wedding anniversary. They are looking forward to a quiet romantic weekend out of town. Wouldn’t you know their choice of destination provides them with anything but!

Regan and Jack had considered going to Bermuda, but instead they decide to spend four days at his parents’ beautiful beachfront home on Cape Cod, a wonderful spot where they’d never been alone. During the summer the house overflowed with Jack’s family, bubbling with activity from morning until night.

But to be up there for a weekend in April, just the two of them, sounded like a perfect escape.

Arriving at the Cape late at night, Regan and Jack are just in time to experience the beginning of a major storm. The next morning, Cape Cod Bay is quite a sight, churning with whitecaps. The wind is howling ferociously. Sheets of rain are pelting the house. Regan is looking forward to

n Regency England, a beautiful young woman finds her life thrown into turmoil by the arrival of a handsome scoundrel. Lady Elizabeth, the youngest and most headstrong of the three Banning sisters, has been engaged three times, and has most scandalously broken off all three engagements. Her fear of becoming any man’s property has kept her from marriage and earned her a reputation in the ton as a heartbreaking flirt.

Neil Severin is a wicked rogue, black of heart and black of reputation. A man of no morals, devoid of compassion, he is a government sanctioned assassin.

And his newest target is a man Beth holds dear. When the flame-haired beauty thwarts his plan, Neil exacts his own brand of spicy revenge.

Beth despises him. Neil doesn’t care. But circumstances most unexpectedly throw them together, and with Beth’s life in

danger, Neil finds himself in the unexpected role of hero, racing to save her before it’s too late.

What he never expects is the twist fate hands him: instead of his saving her, Beth winds up saving him.

When the ruthless organization he works for turns its agents loose on him, only Beth stands between him and a death he thought he didn’t fear.

In a fight for their lives, Neil and Beth travel the British countryside, fleeing the ruthless killers out for Neil’s blood, the men after Beth, and their growing attraction to each other.

Can Neil forgive himself for his past and accept Beth’s love? Can Beth overcome her fear and trust Neil?

Will she have to choose between him and her family? And most important, can they both survive long enough to begin a new life together?

The third in the Banning Sisters trilogy that began with the New York Times bestsellers Scandalous and Irresistible, Shameless marks a dazzling return to historical fiction for Karen Robards.

The Man from Bejing

By Henning Mankell

T

he acclaimed author of the Kurt Wallander mysteries, writing at the height of his powers, now gives us an electrifying stand-alone global thriller.

January 2006. In the Swedish hamlet of Hesjovallen, nineteen people have been massacred. The only clue is a red ribbon found at the scene. Judge Birgitta Roslin has particular reason to be shocked: Her grandparents, the Andrens, are among the victims, and Birgitta soon learns that an Andren family in Nevada has also been murdered. She then discovers the nineteenthcentury diary of an Andren ancestor-a

gang master on the American transcontinental railway-that describes brutal treatment of Chinese slave workers. The police insist that only a lunatic could have committed the Hesjovallen murders, but Birgitta is determined to uncover what she now suspects is a more complicated truth.

The investigation leads to the highest echelons of power in presentday Beijing, and to Zimbabwe and Mozambique. But the narrative also takes us back 150 years into the depths of the slave trade between China and the United States-a history that will ensnare Birgitta as she draws ever closer to solving the Hesjovallen murders.

Wrecked settling in the den with Jack and watching the storm.

However, the best laid plans . . .

In the bedroom, Regan opens the curtains to find Skip, the Reillys’ young caretaker, pressing his nose against the glass, supposedly checking for leaks. A moment later, Jack arrives home from the market, two gossipy older women who live up the street in tow. A branch crashed through their living room window, and they need a place to stay.

When Regan thought things couldn’t get any worse, Skip comes running into the house, distraught that he’d just discovered Adele Hopkins, the woman renting the house next door, in a heap at the bottom of her staircase to the beach.

Regan and Jack run back down with him, but huge waves are crashing on the shore. Hopkins is gone, presumably swept out to sea.

Who was Adele Hopkins? No one knows. The sixty-ish loner, who moved in five months ago, shunned her neighbors. Even her landlords, friends of the Reillys, have no idea how to locate her next of kin. Discovered in her dining

room are stacks of apology cards she’d not yet sent and bags of decorative pillows that are embroidered with the saying grudge me, grudge me not.

Regan and Jack begin an investigation to help their friends track down Hopkins’s family. They start by interviewing two young women who own the shop where Adele had bought the pillows. Pippy and Ellen opened Pillow Talk after they both lost their jobs. When a newspaper article revealing the terrible way the women had been treated by their former employers was posted on the Internet, business took off, they started to become well-known, and the Pillow Talk website became a place for people who had had similar experiences to vent their feelings.

Pippy and Ellen just received an anonymous e-mail from someone who spews venom about her former rowing coach-Adele Hopkins. Could she be the same Adele Hopkins?

Regan and Jack’s search for clues to this mysterious woman’s identity makes for an anniversary weekend they’ll never forget!

children

Page 38

Sudoku for Kids

Friday, April 16, 2010

Solution

Friday, April 16, 2010

children

Page 39

The Real Princess O

nce upon a time... there was once a Prince who wished to marry a Princess; but then she must be a real Princess. He travelled all over the world in hopes of finding such a lady; but there was always something wrong.

Princesses he found in plenty; but whether they were real Princesses it was impossible for him to decide, for now one thing, now another, seemed to him not quite right about the ladies. At last he returned to his palace quite cast down, because he wished so much to have a real Princess for his wife.

One evening a fearful tempest arose, it thundered and lightened, and the rain poured down from the sky in torrents: besides, it was as dark as pitch. All at once there was heard a violent knocking at the door, and the old King, the Prince’s father, went out himself to open it.

It was a Princess who was standing outside the door. What with the rain and the wind, she was in a sad condition; the water trickled down from her hair, and her clothes clung to her body.

She said she was a real Princess.

“Ah! we shall soon see that!” thought the old Queen-mother; however, she said not a word of what she was going to do; but went quietly into the bedroom, took all the bed-clothes off the bed, and put three little peas on the bedstead. She then laid twenty mattresses one upon another over the three peas, and put twenty feather beds over the mattresses.

Upon this bed the Princess was to pass the night.

The next morning she was asked how she had slept. “Oh, very badly indeed!” she replied. “I have scarcely closed my eyes the whole night through. I do not know what was in my bed, but I had something hard under me, and am all over black and blue.

It has hurt me so much!”

Now it was plain that the lady must be a real Princess, since she had been able to feel the three little peas through the twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds. None but a real Princess could have had such a delicate sense of feeling.

The Prince accordingly made her his wife; being now convinced that he had found a real Princess. The three peas were however put into the cabinet of curiosities, where they are still to be seen, provided they are not lost. www.free-short-stories.org.uk

OPINION

Page 40

Friday, April 16, 2010

The West’s dubious export of democracy As the US and Britain slide towards oligarchy, the forced elections in Afghanistan and Iraq have brought no good

By Simon Jenkins

T

he west’s proudest export to the Islamic world this past decade has been democracy.

That is, not real democracy, which is too complicated, but elections. They have been exported at the point of a gun and a missile to Iraq and Afghanistan, to “nation-build” these states and hence “defeat terror”.

When apologists are challenged to show some good resulting from the shambles, they invariably reply: “It has given Iraqis and Afghans freedom to vote.”

As British electors don democratic finery and troop to the polls next month, elections in both war-torn countries are looking sick. Last month’s poll in Iraq, blessed (or cursed) with a UK-style constitution, has failed to yield a coherent government. It appeared to show the incumbent prime minister, Nouri AlMaliki, just beaten by his predecessor, Ayad Allawi. If so, it would be a remarkable case of a third world democracy actually ejecting a sitting leader. In that respect, Iraq would be ahead of Britain, where the opposition must lead by at least 10 percentage points to be certain of power.

For the time being, Baghdad’s government has been in abeyance.

The Sunni militias, reportedly backed

by Al-Qaeda, have returned to the streets, and the death rate is again soaring. Kurdistan is all but a separate country, and the odds are on the Sunnis being forced back into a semiautonomous region. Tens of thousands of Iraqis have died and millions been driven from their homes - including almost all Iraq’s ancient population of Christians. The import of democracy has so far just inflamed local tension and fuelled fundamentalism. Like precious porcelain, elections were exported without instructions on their care. In the absence of adequate security, they are little more than tribal plebiscites.

At least in Iraq western troops are leaving the country to its fate. The west’s guilt at the mayhem left behind will start to diminish with time.

People will blame George Bush and Tony Blair, leaving them, as they wish, to render their account not to the Iraqis but only to God. In Afghanistan, a similar saga has been running for nine years, and is growing ever more tragic. Last year saw the deaths of more Afghans (2,412) and more western troops (520) than since the 2001 invasion.

NATO is locked in a struggle to hold Helmand province for the government of the president, Hamid Karzai, against insurgents who can wait as long as they like to defeat the hated invaders.

NATO is only now seeking control, nine years on, of the country’s second

In this April 11, 2010 photo, Afghan President Hamid Karzai listens to local elders in Kunduz, Afghanistan. – AFP city of Kandahar, in which the Taleban is dominant and the president’s brother, Ahmed Wali Karzai, is the power broker. Karzai is said to have told local elders that there will be no assault on Kandahar “without their permission”. If NATO cannot negotiate a deal over the city, rather than reduce it to rubble, its mission is surely doomed.

The fact that Hamid Karzai was elected, by whatever dubious means, seems to infuriate western leaders.

Barrack Obama, Gordon Brown and their respective foreign ministers rage and telephone and pay visits and expostulate. The repetitive criticism hurled at Karzai for being corrupt and in the pocket of drug lords has become near comical, not least because of his eccentric response. Last week he threatened privately to swear allegiance to the Taleban himself (which might solve many problems).

The west is constantly telling Karzai to “clean up his act” or, as the New York Times harrumphs, “stop doing whatever he and his aides choose”. This is not because there is any likelihood of his obeying, but to help make the domestic case for the war look less shaky. As the joke in Kabul goes, as long as the west pretends to uphold his regime, Karzai

must “pretend to be Swedish”. He is America’s exhibit A for world democracy. The idea that he might regard himself as the elected representative of the Afghan people, warts and all, with a future to consider and his neck on the line, is beyond consideration.

Autocracy Democracy in both America and Britain is coming under scrutiny these days. Quite apart from the antics of MPs and congressmen, it is said to be sliding towards oligarchy, with increasing overtones of autocracy. Money and its power over technology are making elections unfair.

The military-industrial complex is as powerful as ever, having adopted “the menace of global terrorism” as its casus belli. Lobbying and corruption are polluting the government process. In a nutshell, democracy is not in good shape.

How strange to choose this moment to export it, least of all to countries that have never experienced it in their history. The west not only exports the stuff, it does so with massive, thuggish violence, the antithesis of how self-government should mature in any polity. The tortured justification in Iraq and Afghanistan is that elections will

somehow sanctify a “war against terrorism” waged on someone else’s soil. The resulting death and destruction have been appalling.

Never can an end, however noble, have so failed to justify the means of achieving it.

The high-minded attacks on corruption in Muslim states from London and Washington is futile. In most countries corruption is the lubricant of power. Nor is the west that clean. Britain showered corruption on the Saudis to obtain arms contracts. The activities of American firms in “rebuilding” Iraq were wholly corrupt. In 2001 the British in Kabul were put in charge of suppressing Afghan opium, fuel of most of that country’s corruption.

Britain allowed it to continue, when the Taleban had been in the process of stamping it out.

The Tories and Liberal Democrats are dishonest to say that the Afghan war is justified “provided” Karzai ends corruption, stops rigging elections, and trains his army and police. None of this will happen, and is merely cover to avoid saying what these politicians know to be true - that British soldiers are dying for a dud hypothetical.

As Britons go to the polls, they

should challenge their candidates to justify what is being done in their name. A system of government that they have spent two centuries evolving and still not perfected is being rammed down the throats of poor and insecure people, who are then hectored for not handling it properly. Why should they? The invasions of their countries was not their choice. They did not ask to be a model for Britain’s moral exhibitionism. They did not plead for their villages to be target practice for western special forces.

Karzai is told he will lose NATO protection if he continues to associate with drug dealers and warlords - many of whom appear to be his relatives. He knows - as we know - that this is bluff.

There can be no counter-insurgency without a client regime. Obama and Brown need him as much as he needs them. Amid this bluff the only certainty for Karzai is that, one day, Nato will get fed up and leave him to his fate, as it is now leaving Maliki in Baghdad. If he wants to live, he must make his peace with Afghans, not Americans, and that means on Afghan terms. Free and fair elections and a stop to corruption will have no part to play in that survival game. Democracy has been greatly oversold. — Guardian

ANALYSIS

Friday, April 16, 2010

Page 41

Mexico a failed state?

From Mexico’s point of view, interrupting the flow of drugs to the United States is not clearly in the national interest or in that of the economic elite

By George Friedman

S

tratfor argued March 13, 2008, that Mexico was nearing the status of a failed state. A failed state is one in which the central government has lost control over significant areas of the country and the state is unable to function. In revisiting this issue, it seems to us that the Mexican government has lost control of the northern tier of Mexico to drugsmuggling organizations, which have significantly greater power in that region than government forces.

Moreover, the ability of the central government to assert its will against these organizations has weakened to the point that decisions made by the state against the cartels are not being implemented or are being implemented in a way that would guarantee failure.

Despite these facts, it is not clear to Stratfor that Mexico is becoming a failed state. Instead, it appears the Mexican state has accommodated itself to the situation. Rather than failing, it has developed strategies designed both to ride out the storm and to maximize the benefits of that storm for Mexico.

First, while the Mexican government has lost control over matters having to do with drugs and with the borderlands of the United States, Mexico City’s control over other regions - and over areas other than drug enforcement - has not collapsed (though its lack of control over drugs could well extend to other areas eventually). Second, while drugs reshape Mexican institutions dramatically, they also, paradoxically, stabilize Mexico. We need to examine these crosscurrents to understand the status of Mexico.

Mexico’s Core Problem Let’s begin by understanding the core problem. The United States consumes vast amounts of narcotics, which, while illegal there, make their way in abundance. Narcotics derive from low-cost agricultural products that become consumable with minimal processing. With its long, shared border with the United States, Mexico has become a major grower, processor and exporter of narcotics. Because the drugs are illegal and thus outside normal market processes, their price is determined by their illegality rather than by the cost of production. This means extraordinary profits can be made by moving narcotics from the Mexican side of the border to markets on the other side.

Whoever controls the supply chain from the fields to the processing facilities and, above all, across the border, will make enormous amounts of money. Various Mexican organizations labeled cartels, although they do not truly function as such, since real cartels involve at least a degree of cooperation among producers, not open warfare - vie for this business. These are competing businesses, each with its own competing supply chain.

Typically, competition among businesses involves lowering prices and increasing quality. This would produce small, incremental shifts in profits on the whole while dramatically reducing prices. An increased market share would compensate for lower prices. Similarly, lawsuits are the normal solution to unfair competition. But neither is the

A helicopter of the Mexican police overflies Ciudad Juarez on April 8, 2010. – AFP case with regard to illegal goods.

The surest way to increase smuggling profits is not through market mechanisms but by taking over competitors’ supply chains. Given the profit margins involved, persons wanting to control drug supply chains would be irrational to buy, since the lower-cost solution would be to take control of these supply chains by force.

Thus, each smuggling organization has an attached paramilitary organization designed to protect its own supply chain and to seize its competitors’ supply chains. The result is ongoing warfare between competing organizations.

Given the amount of money being made in delivering their product to American cities, these paramilitary organizations are well-armed, well-led and wellmotivated. Membership in such paramilitary groups offers impoverished young men extraordinary opportunities for making money, far greater than would be available to them in legitimate activities.

The raging war in Mexico derives logically from the existence of markets for narcotics in the United States; the low cost of the materials and processes required to produce these products; and the extraordinarily favorable economics of moving narcotics across the border.

This warfare is concentrated on the Mexican side of the border. But from the Mexican point of view, this warfare does not fundamentally threaten Mexico’s interests.

A Struggle Far From the Mexican Heartland The heartland of Mexico is to the south, far from the country’s northern tier. The north is largely a sparsely populated highland desert region seen from Mexico City as an alien borderland intertwined with the United States as much as it is part of Mexico.

Accordingly, the war raging there doesn’t represent a direct threat to the survival of the Mexican regime.

Indeed, what the wars are being fought over in some ways benefits Mexico. The amount of money pouring into Mexico annually is stunning. It is estimated to be about $35 billion to $40

billion each year. The massive profit margins involved make these sums even more significant. Assume that the manufacturing sector produces revenues of $40 billion a year through exports. Assuming a generous 10 percent profit margin, actual profits would be $4 billion a year. In the case of narcotics, however, profit margins are conservatively estimated to stand at around 80 percent. The net from $40 billion would be $32 billion; to produce equivalent income in manufacturing, exports would have to total $320 billion.

In estimating the impact of drug money on Mexico, it must therefore be borne in mind that drugs cannot be compared to any conventional export.

The drug trade’s tremendously high profit margins mean its total impact on Mexico vastly outstrips even the estimated total sales, even if the margins shifted substantially.

On the whole, Mexico is a tremendous beneficiary of the drug trade. Even if some of the profits are invested overseas, the pool of remaining money flowing into Mexico creates tremendous liquidity in the Mexican economy at a time of global recession. It is difficult to trace where the drug money is going, which follows from its illegality. Certainly, drug dealers would want their money in a jurisdiction where it could not be easily seized even if tracked. US asset seizure laws for drug trafficking make the United States an unlikely haven. Though money clearly flows out of Mexico, the ability of the smugglers to influence the behavior of the Mexican government by investing some of it makes Mexico a likely destination for a substantial portion of such funds.

The money does not, however, flow back into the hands of the gunmen shooting it out on the border; even their bosses couldn’t manage funds of that magnitude. And while money can be and often is - baled up and hidden, the value of money is in its use. As with illegal money everywhere, the goal is to wash it and invest it in legitimate enterprises where it can produce more money. That means it has to enter the

economy through legitimate institutions - banks and other financial entities - and then be redeployed into the economy.

This is no different from the American Mafia’s practice during and after Prohibition.

The Drug War and Mexican National Interests From Mexico’s point of view, interrupting the flow of drugs to the United States is not clearly in the national interest or in that of the economic elite. Observers often dwell on the warfare between smuggling organizations in the northern borderland but rarely on the flow of American money into Mexico. Certainly, that money could corrupt the Mexican state, but it also behaves as money does. It is accumulated and invested, where it generates wealth and jobs.

For the Mexican government to become willing to shut off this flow of money, the violence would have to become far more geographically widespread. And given the difficulty of ending the traffic anyway - and that many in the state security and military apparatus benefit from it - an obvious conclusion can be drawn: Namely, it is difficult to foresee scenarios in which the Mexican government could or would stop the drug trade. Instead, Mexico will accept both the pain and the benefits of the drug trade.

Mexico’s policy is consistent: It makes every effort to appear to be stopping the drug trade so that it will not be accused of supporting it. The government does not object to disrupting one or more of the smuggling groups, so long as the aggregate inflow of cash does not materially decline. It demonstrates to the United States efforts (albeit inadequate) to tackle the trade, while pointing out very real problems with its military and security apparatus and with its officials in Mexico City. It simultaneously points to the United States as the cause of the problem, given Washington’s failure to control demand or to reduce prices by legalization. And if massive amounts of money pour into Mexico as a result of this US failure, Mexico is not going to

refuse it.

The problem with the Mexican military or police is not lack of training or equipment. It is not a lack of leadership. These may be problems, but they are only problems if they interfere with implementing Mexican national policy. The problem is that these forces are personally unmotivated to take the risks needed to be effective because they benefit more from being ineffective. This isn’t incompetence but a rational national policy.

Moreover, Mexico has deep historic grievances toward the United States dating back to the Mexican-American War. These have been exacerbated by US immigration policy that the Mexicans see both as insulting and as a threat to their policy of exporting surplus labor north. There is thus no desire to solve the Americans’ problem.

Certainly, there are individuals in the Mexican government who wish to stop the smuggling and the inflow of billions of dollars. They will try. But they will not succeed, as too much is at stake.

One must ignore public statements and earnest private assurances and instead observe the facts on the ground to understand what’s really going on.

The US Strategic Problem And this leaves the United States with a strategic problem. There is some talk in Mexico City and Washington of the Americans becoming involved in suppression of the smuggling within Mexico (even though the cartels, to use that strange name, make certain not to engage in significant violence north of the border and mask it when they do to reduce US pressure on Mexico). This is certainly something the Mexicans would be attracted to. But it is unclear that the Americans would be any more successful than the Mexicans. What is clear is that any US intervention would turn Mexican drug traffickers into patriots fighting yet another Yankee incursion. Recall that Pershing never caught Pancho Villa, but he did help turn Villa into a national hero in Mexico.

The United States has a number of choices. It could accept the status quo. It could figure out how to reduce drug demand in the United States while keeping drugs illegal. It could legalize drugs, thereby driving their price down and ending the motivation for smuggling. And it could move into Mexico in a bid to impose its will against a government, banking system and police and military force that benefit from the drug trade.

The United States does not know how to reduce demand for drugs. The United States is not prepared to legalize drugs. This means the choice lies between the status quo and a complex and uncertain (to say the least) intervention. We suspect the United States will attempt some limited variety of the latter, while in effect following the current strategy and living with the problem. Ultimately, Mexico is a failed state only if you accept the idea that its goal is to crush the smugglers.

If, on the other hand, one accepts the idea that all of Mexican society benefits from the inflow of billions of American dollars (even though it also pays a price), then the Mexican state has not failed - it is following a rational strategy to turn a national problem into a national benefit. — Stratfor

sPotlight

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Friday, April 16, 2010

The unstoppable rise of Russell Brand hen Russell Brand 16, he was inscribed a schoolleaving card to his first girlfriend. “You might be as famous as me one day,” he wrote. “If so, see you at the top.” There was no “might”, not from the very beginning, about how famous Russell Brand expected to be.

But the rest of us might have been forgiven for thinking the game was up for Brand after the 2008 incident when, egged on by Jonathan Ross, he prankcalled the elderly actor Andrew Sachs to boast he had slept with his granddaughter. The incident cost him his show on Radio 2 and turned much of the UK media against him. Yet, a year-and-a-half on from “Sachsgate”, while Ross’s star is falling, Brand has become a transatlantically famous name.

Having been eagerly photographed waltzing up the red carpet into Vanity Fair’s post-Oscars party with pop star fiancee Katy Perry, Brand now has six feature films either in or postdevelopment production. A sequel to his bestselling autobiography, My Bookie Wook, is under contract with a new publisher, and Oliver Stone who has said that Brand reminds him of Jim Morrison - is reported to be executive-producing a documentary about him.

Less than two years after many were predicting the end of his career, this spindleshanked loon in women’s trousers looks set to take over the world. How, it’s fair to wonder, did this come about?

Comedian Russell Brand In fact, though it didn’t quite fit the UK’s media narrative at the time, Sachsgate struck at a time when Brand was in a position of some strength - internationally, at least. On the same day that his and Ross’s suspensions from the BBC were announced, pending an investigation, Brand resigned from the BBC, and within days was in the US. He was already slated for a one-hour standup showcase on the Comedy Central channel, and had a toehold in Hollywood following the hit 2008 comedy, Forgetting Sarah Marshall. He had gone for the role - originally written as a blond-haired surf-instructor - in a regular audition, but impressed enough that the part was rewritten for him as a degenerate, anarchic British rock star called Aldous Snow. Then Brand stole the show to such an extent that in this year’s sequel, Get Him to the Greek, he reprises Snow as the lead.

Paul Duddridge, a former UK agent who now works

W

as a “fame coach” in LA, says: “In the UK, he did something eminently sensible: he quit. Ross hung around and hung around, and it became more painful.

“The thing about Brand is that, because of his form in standup, he brings an audience: he can sell thousands of tickets a night whether or not he’s offended Andrew Sachs. If you can bring 100,000 paying fans to a project, you’re launched. Once you’ve got your fiefdom, it doesn’t matter if you lose the opinion-formers. If Jonathan Ross had been in the position to say, sod you, I’ll go on the road for a year, he would have.”

Duddridge explains Brand’s appeal in Hollywood as “finding the one note that works . . .

What he does is what George Clooney or Hugh Grant did. You find a demeanour or character or side of yourself that’s appealing - and then you keep doing it. Versatility kills most careers.”

Brand, says Duddridge, has “found this dandy, littered it with a huge flowery lexicon, and it’s like selling shortbread. They lap it up [in the US]: he’s every Englishman you ever want Jack Sparrow, Keith Richards, Kenneth Williams.”

To his degenerate, anarchic British rock star, Brand will add a degenerate, anarchic British millionaire with the forthcoming remake of Dudley Moore’s 1981 comedy, Arthur. The script was written specifically for him by Peter Baynham, a comedy writer who has worked with Chris Morris and Steve Coogan, as well as co-writing Sacha Baron-Cohen’s Borat and Br¸no films. One producer who has read the script describes it has having “a ferociously large number of great gags in it, so could be a really big hit if they don’t make the central character too dislikeable”.

Remake Also on Brand’s groaning slate of work is a remake of Drop Dead Fred, in which he inherits a part originally written for Rik Mayall - the (degenerate, anarchic British) imaginary friend who returns to solace a shy woman in the grip of a crisis. He’s also lending his voice to two CGI projects one as supervillain Dr Nefario (whom we can only assume to be degenerate, anarchic and British) in Despicable Me; the other perhaps not casting so very far from type, given the habits of rabbits - voicing the Easter Bunny in I Hop. But Brand has also wrapped a film of The Tempest, in which he plays

Eighteen months ago, the comedian’s career seemed on the edge of collapse.

Now he’s on the verge of international stardom. So what went right?

Trinculo opposite Helen Mirren and Alan Cumming.

Steven Gaydos, executive editor of US entertainment industry paper Variety, describes Brand as being in “a really great position to make a breakthrough: he’s not a traditional leading man but he’s kinda young, kinda handsome, kinda British, kinda funny. He’s got a lot of visibility. Where do we go from here?”

Gaydos compares Brand’s career to that of the “Saturday Night Live gang Will Ferrell, Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy . . . He brings a lot to the table intellectually that actors don’t.” Gaydos predicts that Brand is just now at the level where he’ll have acquired “a very clever team . . . but I hope he doesn’t get mired in that. It can create inertia. When Leonardo DiCaprio did Titanic, he stopped taking risks. At that stage, you’re no longer managing an

actor: you’re managing an industry. Russell is not at that level, but it’s something to be careful of.”

Gaydos thinks the next question, career-wise, is: “Can he find a franchise, do an Austin Powers-type thing that he can run to the bank with for three movies?

That’s what would likely work best for him. He has a lot of opportunities in front of him - and they will be being . . .” Gaydos chuckles, “scien-ti-fically vetted. It would be tremendous fun to sit in on a planning session.”

Brand has come a long way - not only from his suburban origins, but from the destruction and chaos of his early career. He grew up in Grays; an Essex town on the northern side of the Thames estuary which he describes as “ordinary mundane suburbia”. The young Brand was clever, but hopelessly ill-disciplined, self-conscious about his looks - he was slightly tubby

as a child - and unhappy at home.

Honesty We know all about this because his comedic keynote, amid all the archness and vamping, is remorseless self-exposure.

Brand has described himself as someone whose life is “a series of embarrassing incidents strung together by telling people about those embarrassing incidents”.

He has written and spoken in painful detail about addictions to heroin, alcohol and sex, his recurrences of bulimia and self-harm, his childhood sexual abuse and his manic depression. And he writes more thoughtfully than his detractors would expect about the way he used first drugs and then sex as a way of fleeing his own mind.

In his early career as a comic, Brand was intoxicated by the influences of Richard Pryor

and Bill Hicks. Also, just plain intoxicated. As his heroin addiction got worse, he stopped rehearsing material and simply went on stage high: “Releasing locusts, cutting up pigs’ heads, smashing up dead mice and birds with a hammer, and then throwing them into the audience.” A friend who ran a major Edinburgh comedy venue during this period says: “I was of course offered him, but never booked him because I thought he was nuts. Turned out I was right, and still made the wrong decision.”

Brand, notoriously, was sacked as an MTV presenter after turning up to work on 12 September 2001 dressed as Osama Bin Laden. If that alone was not enough to lose him the job, he sealed the deal by stumbling out of the disabled toilet after a fix and introducing his crack dealer to Kylie Minogue.

That period of his life culminated in his being marched to rehab by his agent, John Noel. In the 12step recovery program, everyone gets to choose a Higher Power, and it wouldn’t be out of order to speculate that Brand’s was not the Almighty, or the Group, but his own ambition, which he calls “the most powerful force within me”.

It was, subsequently, as ringmaster of what was to become Big Brother’s Big Mouth that Brand came to wide public attention. He was, depending on your tastes, either electrifying or unwatchable irritating, but his ambition had decisively conquered his addiction.

As his biographer Tanith Carey notes, there was a period of eight months in 2006 during which Brand hosted four different television programmes, two weekly radio shows, released a DVD of his live show, shot a Hollywood film, wrote the pilot for a radio sitcom and started a national tour as a standup comic. Even before Sachsgate, the signs were there: Brand is the most colossal show-off imaginable, but he is also a very hard-working, extremely self-aware, pathologically ambitious and highly intelligent showoff.

It takes, of course, a lot of work to appear as dishevelled as Brand manages. He looks not so much like a man that’s been dragged through a hedge backwards, but a hedge that’s been dragged through a hedge backwards. In a parenthesis in his autobiography, Brand writes that “Collins defines cool as ‘Worzel Gummidge dressed for a bondage party’.” —Guardian

art

Friday, april 16, 2010

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The Conman: How one man fooled the modern art establishment An illuminating view of the man who conned the art world G

ood art forgers have received what amounts to an endorsement from an unexpected quarter.

Promoting the National Gallery’s forthcoming exhibition Close Examination: Fakes, Mistakes and Discoveries, the director Nicholas Penny said: “I wish we had more fakes [in the collection]. You only get good at spotting them by seeing them.”

Penny touches a sensitive nerve in the secretive international art market which, according to expert estimates, is awash with forgeries. Astonishingly, some put the figure at up to 40%.

Forgers are a peculiar breed and money is only one motive.

Anonymous by necessity, they yearn for recognition.

Technically adept, often with formal training and a keen sense of colour and form, they have produced work, down to the singular brushstroke or cut of the clay, that rivals the originals.

But, by definition, they have not found their own voice; they are unable to put their name to pieces of modest integrity and flair when they know that they are capable of simulating the greats. Lacking the prerequisite metropolitan social connections, they find the international art market - the galleries and auction houses of New York, London and Paris - intimidating, haughty and false: a mercenary, self-regarding conspiracy against the blooming of a thousand flowers. So beating the market is a challenge and a game: fraught with danger but ultimately exhilarating.

To varying degrees, of course, they are aware of the necessity for other technical subterfuges: the choice of paper and frame, the particular hue of the blue, the varnish and the sense of age and how exactly did that painter scrawl his name? Experts who arbitrate authenticity often have only an instinct. “It’s off,” they might murmur. Or “It’s not quite right.”

It’s extraordinary that John Myatt, an impoverished parttime art teacher and failed songwriter from Staffordshire, managed to get away with it for so long - producing more than 200 paintings over 10 years, which were sold around the world for a total of about £2m.

With an aversion to the smell of expensive oils, which also took a long time to dry, he used house paint mixed with turpentine, linseed oil and lubricant jelly. His favorite targets were the modernists, the cubists Gleizes and Braque, Ben Nicholson, Nicolas de Stael, Giacometti and a dozen others.

But whatever doubts were harbored by the experts - and there were many - they were assuaged by that other essential ingredient of the good fake: the provenance. Laney Salisbury and

Aly Sujo, two American journalists, have produced a riveting and perceptive account of Myatt and his Svengali - the obsessive and enigmatic fantasist John Drewe, who, with charm and apparent wealth, insinuated himself into some of Britain’s leading art institutions and then systematically falsified and corrupted their archives to create bogus histories for Myatt’s fakes. The two men met in 1986 when Myatt, struggling to bring up his two children, placed a personal ad in Private Eye offering “genuine fakes”. He

So beating the market is a challenge and a game: fraught with danger but ultimately exhilarating. was impressed when a Professor Drewe called and offered him commissions. It took a while before Myatt realised - only halfreluctantly - that he was being drawn into a gigantic fraud.

Drewe was in fact the son of a telephone engineer and had left school at 16. But, brimming with self-confidence and erudition, he passed himself off as a nuclear scientist as he cruised around London in his chauffeur-driven Bentley, dining the great and the good of the art world at expensive restaurants. The Tate was a particular target and his £20,000 donation earned him privileged assess.

Salisbury never met Drewe

John Myatt (he was sent to prison for six years in 1999). But she and Sujo (who died in 2008) have beautifully captured his manic, intense and unstable personality, one moment oozing with charm, the next with menace. The gullibility and the greed, deliciously described, make for compulsive reading. They have even caught his loose-limbed gait, his obsequiousness smirk, and strange staccato laugh disconnected from humor. I can testify to their uncanny accuracy.

Shortly after his arrest in 1996 but before he was charged,

Drewe pitched up at the Guardian with a convoluted and utterly improbable tale of being a high-level physicist involved in selling a secret cache of art to fund shady Balkan arms deals and much more. I was invited to his substantial house in Reigate to see his “evidence”. At the time the Guardian was embroiled in its high-profile libel battle with the Tory politician Jonathan Aitken and, sure enough, the canny Drewe had inserted into one of his files an intriguing reference to Aitken.

Every one of his assertions

that could be checked out proved to be a lie, and when confronted he flew into a rage, dashing off a five-page denunciation of me to the editor. It became clear later, when he drove the prosecution (and the judge) in the case against us to despair with his rambling, conspiratorial rants, that his approach to the paper was just another attempt to spread algae on muddy waters.

Drewe’s downfall came from an unexpected source, which pitches Salisbury’s tense narrative into the realm of thriller.

In 1993 Drewe left his Israeli partner, Batsheva Goudsmid, an eye doctor, for another woman and wrongly accused her of mental instability and abuse of their children. Goudsmid took her suspicions and a briefcase full of Drewe’s forgery kit, which he had left at their house, to the police.

Scotland Yard’s art and antiques squad were alerted and Goudsmid turned up two black rubbish bags full of incriminating documents.

The story of the painstaking, twoyear investigation that led to Drewe’s appearance at Southwark crown court is a wonder.

And Salisbury is able to sign off with a happy ending. Myatt served four months of a oneyear sentence and has since become a celebrity - selling “legitimate fakes”, lecturing and starring in several TV series, the latest of which, Virgin Virtuosos, is currently being shown on Sky Arts. —Guardian

Page 44

Friday, April 16, 2010 CROSSWORD 960

Word Sleuth Solution

Yesterday’s Solution

ACROSS 1. A very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk.

5. Diabetes caused by a relative or absolute deficiency of insulin and characterized by polyuria.

7. Altered from an originally straight condition.

11. Chief port of Yemen.

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

13. The capital of Western Samoa.

14. The cry made by sheep.

16. Noisy talk.

17. An honorary arts degree.

20. (Akkadian) God of wisdom.

21. The sense organ for hearing and equilibrium.

24. The face or front of a building.

30. An Arabic speaking person who lives in Arabia or North Africa.

31. A family of Afroasiatic tonal languages (mostly two tones) spoken in the regions west and south of Lake Chad in north central Africa.

32. An unofficial association of people or groups.

34. A public promotion of some product or service.

36. A rare silvery (usually trivalent) metallic element.

41. Thigh of a hog (usually smoked).

43. The arch of bone beneath the eye that forms the prominence of the cheek.

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

47. The elementary stages of any subject (usually plural).

48. French cabaret singer (1915-1963).

49. (British) A waterproof raincoat made of rubberized fabric.

50. A flexible container with a single opening.

51. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solely the razorbill.

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

DOWN 1. A small cake leavened with yeast.

2. The sixth month of the civil year.

3. (informal) Very tired.

4. Half the width of an em.

5. A light touch or stroke.

6. A master's degree in business.

7. Common Indian weaverbird.

8. A federal agency established to coordinate programs aimed at reducing pollution and protecting the environment.

9. Pleasant or pleasing or agreeable in nature or appearance.

10. The basic unit of money in Bangladesh.

15. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind.

18. A cylindrical drawstring bag used by sailors to hold their clothing and other gear.

19. A light strong brittle gray toxic bivalent metallic element.

22. A rare heavy polyvalent metallic element that resembles manganese chemically and is used in some alloys.

23. Having undesirable or negative qualities.

25. A colorless and odorless inert gas.

26. A compartment in front of a motor vehicle where driver sits.

27. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

28. The branch of computer science that deal with writing computer programs that can solve problems creatively.

29. A white trivalent metallic element.

33. A town in southwestern Idaho.

34. A light touch or stroke.

35. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

36. Take in solid food.

37. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

38. Informal terms for a mother.

39. Any of numerous local fertility and nature deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples.

40. Type genus of the family Arcidae.

42. One millionth of a gram.

44. Aromatic bulb used as seasoning.

45. Resinlike substance secreted by certain lac insects.

Yesterday’s Solution

Page 45

Friday, April 16, 2010

COUNTRY CODES

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY Aries (March 21-April 19) Photons work hard to get from the heart of the sun to the surface. They can take up to 160,000 years to complete the 400,000+-mile journey. And yet once Earthbound photons get topside, they travel the 93million-mile distance to our planet in just over eight minutes. I foresee a metaphorically similar situation unfolding in your life in the coming weeks. A development that has been a long time in the making will accelerate tremendously in its last phase of ripening.

Libra (September 23- October 22) Present the following dare to a person or persons with whom you would like to go deeper: "You think you know me, but you really know just a tantalizing fraction. Would you like to experience the rest of the story?" And if anyone expresses interest, take him or her on a magical tour they won't forget.

Reveal the sides of you that are too mysteriously interesting to show the general public, or too intimate to reveal to anyone you don't trust, or so potent they might intimidate those who don't have a lot of self-possession.

Taur us (April 20-May 20) Taurus genius Irving Berlin (1888-1989) has been called the greatest songwriter who ever lived. Among his 1,500 compositions were iconic tunes like "God Bless America" and "White Christmas," as well as scores for 18 Hollywood movies and 19 Broadway shows. And yet he never learned to read or write music. Was he embarrassed about his handicap? Not at all. He even bragged about it. He felt that having such a minimal grasp of the conventions of songwriting was an advantage, giving him the freedom to be extraordinarily original. Is there any way in which you're like Irving Berlin, Taurus? Do you have a seeming limitation that is actually an aid to your creativity and uniqueness? Celebrate it this week.

Scorpio (October 23-November 2 1 ) In North America, California Condors are the biggest flying birds that live on land. Their wingspans are up to ten feet. Once sacred to certain Native Americans, these members of the vulture family can live for 60 years and soar as high as 15,000 feet. But they came close to extinction in the 20th century, mostly because of human activity. In 1987, conservationists intervened. In the hope of replenishing the population in captivity, they captured every last one of the 22 remaining wild condors. Painstaking efforts gradually yielded results, and today there are 348 birds, including 187 in the wild. I bring this to your attention, Scorpio, because I believe now is an excellent time to begin a project to save your own metaphorical version of an "endangered species."

Ge mini (M ay 21- June 20 ) "Every changed circumstance contains opportunities, which accrue to the first people to recognize them," wrote poet Charles Potts. "Since circumstances are in constant flux, there is a steady stream of opportunities. Learn to spot them and make them your own." I offer you this advice, Gemini, because you'll soon be in a prime position to derive great benefit from it. If you tweak your attitude just right -- aligning your novelty receptors to be on high alert -- the clattering commotion of metamorphosis that's headed your way will bring with it a bustling welter of unforeseen openings.

Sagittarius (November 22December 21) According to Us Weekly, baseball star Alex Rodriguez owns two paintings of himself in which he's portrayed as half-man, half-horse. This is an excellent time for you to be inspired by his example. Gazing at a picture of a mythical centaur who looks like you would speak to your subconscious mind in just the right way.

Bypassing your rational ego, that stirring icon would animate and cultivate the wise animal in you. It would stimulate the sweet spot where your physical vitality overlaps your visionary intelligence. Do you know anyone who could Photoshop this powerful image for you?

Cancer (June 21-July 22) First the negatives: Don't be a martyr to what you've won. Don't let your success oppress you. Don't become a slave to the useful role you've earned. Don't neglect your own needs as you serve the needs of those who admire you for what you give. Now let's try a more positive way to frame the challenges ahead of you: Keep questioning whether the fruits of your victories are still enjoyable and fulfilling to you. Make sure the triumphs of the past don't get in the way of the potential triumphs of the future. Find out how your success may need to evolve. Push beyond what's good and head in the direction of what's great.

Leo (July 23-August 22) My rage against the machine began early. I joined my first protest march at age 15, led a boycott at 17, and was tear-gassed by cops at a demonstration when I was 18. In the intervening years, my anger at injustice has broadened and deepened.

I've lent my rebel yells to hundreds of righteous causes. But in 2006, I decided to shif t my approach. Instead of fighting every single abuse that incited my ire, I chose three to concentrate on: the obscene militarism of the American government, the extreme financial disparities between the rich and poor, and the environmental degradations caused by corporations and corporate culture. Since then, my crusading energy has been more focused and effective, and my general mood has brightened. I recommend you consider a similar change, Leo. It's an excellent time for you to give more of your passion to fewer causes.

Virgo (August 23-September 22) Do you remember the monster that sometimes lived under your bed when you were a kid? Recently it found its way back to you, and has been spending time in your closet. It's not as frightening as it used to be, and I'm not alarmed by its return. In fact, I think it has an important message for you that would be valuable to discover. I encourage you to invite it out for a conversation. As you might suspect, as soon as it delivers its crazy wisdom, it will leave you in peace.

C ap ric orn (D ec emb er 22 January 19) Here's my startling prediction: More Capricorn spiritual seekers will become enlightened in the next five weeks than in any comparable period of history. Hell, there'll be so much infinity mixed with eternity available for your tribe that even a lot of you non-seekers could get a lightning bolt of illumination or two. That's not to say that you have to accept the uplifting revelations, or even tune in to them, for that matter. If you'd prefer to ignore the sacred hubbub and go about your practical business without having to hassle with the consequences of a divine download, that's fine.

Aquarius (Januar y 20Febr u ar y 18 ) Can you imagine what it would be like to venture into the opposite of the Bermuda Triangle? You know, a zone where wonderfully odd things occur rather than bad strange things? I think that such a place exists, and I think you'll soon find it. The luck that unfolds for you will be a blend of dumb and brilliant. The discoveries you make may be useless on the outside but valuable on the inside. Lost keys may reappear and missing links will materialize out of nowhere. Here's the piece de resistance: An apparent memory of the future could provide a secret passageway to a previously hidden enclave that contains "magic garbage."

P i s c e s ( Fe b r u a r y 1 9 M a r c h 2 0 ) In honor of the new identity you're evolving into, I hereby give you the nickname of "Miracle Player," or else -- if you like one of these better -- "Sleek Cat" or "Giant Step" or "Fate Whisperer." You may hereafter also use any of the following titles to refer to yourself: "CEO of My Own Life" or "SelfTeacher of Jubilance and Serenity" or "Fertile Blur of Supple Strength." Feel free, as well, to anoint your head with pure organic virgin olive oil, fashion a crown for yourself out of roses and shredded masks, and come up with a wordless sound that is a secret sign you'll give to yourself whenever you need to remember the marvelous creature you are on your way to becoming.

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) 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

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 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

Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Liberia Libya Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Macedonia Madagascar Majorca Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar (Burma) Namibia Nepal Netherlands (Holland) Netherlands Antilles New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Nigar Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island Northern Ireland (UK) North Korea Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Romania Russian Federation Rwanda Saint Helena Saint Kitts Saint Lucia Saint Pierre Saint Vincent Samoa US Samoa West San Marino Sao Tone Saudi Arabia Scotland (UK) Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Korea Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tanzania Thailand Toga Tonga Tokelau Trinidad Tunisia Turkey Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom Uruguay

00996 00856 00371 00961 00231 00218 00370 00352 00853 00389 00261 0034 00265 0060 00960 00223 00356 00692 00596 00222 00230 00269 0052 00691 00373 00377 00976 001664 00212 00258 0095 00264 00977 0031 00599 00687 0064 00505 00227 00234 00683 00672 0044 00850 0047 00968 0092 00680 00507 00675 00595 0051 0063 0048 00351 001787 00974 0040 007 00250 00290 001869 001758 00508 001784 00684 00685 00378 00239 00966 0044 00221 00284 00232 0065 00421 00386 00677 00252 0027 0082 0034 0094 00249 00597 00268 0046 0041 00963 00886 00255 0066 00228 00676 00690 001868 00216 0090 00688 00256 00380 00976 0044 00598

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Friday, april 16, 2010

Announcement Bicolanos meeting Attention Bicolanos please attend a ‘getting to know better’ meeting of the Bicolanos in Kuwait today at 4pm-5pm at Delights Restaurant & Bakery in front of Al-Muthanna Building in Kuwait City. For details please contact Milleth-65121830, Cora-97650411, Julie-99530637, Tony-66476918, Lito-66399035 and Gerry-99489155.

AUK holds second annual Al-Kout Festival

T

he American University of Kuwait’s Arabian Heritage Project (AHP) will hold its second Annual ‘Al-Kout Festival’ under the Patronage of Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, State Minister for Housing Affairs and State Minister of Development Affairs, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad AlAhmad Al-Sabah on April 21-22, 2010, from 12 pm to 7 pm. The festival is open to the public and will host many prestigious organizations throughout Kuwait, including the National Museum, Youm Al-Bahar, Sadu House, Dar Al-Athar AlIsalmiya, and leading artisans in the community.

Different units on campus will also have displays or present presentations, including the student clubs and the academic programs.

Also, several noted craftspeople will be giving demonstrations and there will be repeated performances by at least two sea bands as well as musicians and bands from Bahrain and India.

Under the motto of “Where Kuwaiti Past Meets Kuwaiti Future” the festival will present a microcosm of old Kuwait where the community visitors and students can see up close what life was like in the past. One can ride a camel, taste Kuwaiti bread cooked on an open fire, watch a carpenter make part of a boom, hear traditional poetry and listen to old sea songs. But also, we will present the Kuwait of the future, with examples of future dara’a clothing, poems by

Friends of Kannur anniversary Friends of Kannur Kuwait expatriates association is all set to celebrate their 5th anniversary today at Daiya auditorium. The celebration will begin by 2:30 pm and Indian ambassador to Kuwait Ajai Malhotra will inaugurate the function. Third Golden FOKE award will be presented to famous theater artist Sri Ibrahim Vengaara for his great contributions for Drama. Golden Foke award has been given to famous personalities who excel in various socio cultural arena from Kannur district. The cultural events will begin after the inaugural function. Colorful events by FOKE family will be staged on the occasion.

Television fame Comedy team ‘Rasika Raja’ will present an evening with full of comedy entertainments to the audience. A Stage Drama ‘Porul Mozhi’ will be staged for the first time in Kuwait by FOKE family members. For more information contact 97910261 (Abbasiya), 66086344 (Fahaheel), 99192494 (Jahara), 66577124(Kuwait City) and 99793558 (Farwaniya).

Basil Arts A revival meeting of the Basil Arts will be held tomorrow at 7 pm at Hidine Auditorium Abbassiya. All duly registered members are requested to attend the meeting on time.

young poets, and the union of modern and traditional music.

The ‘Al-Kout Festival’ is sponsored by KIPCO Holding Co, Gulf Insurance Company, Burgan Bank, GulfNet and Kuwait Hotels.

The Arabian Heritage Project (AHP) is a center at AUK dedicated to fostering, documenting, and celebrating the traditional cultures of the Arabian Peninsula. The project is involved with a variety of traditions,

including those of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the Yemen, and related Middle Eastern countries and parts of Africa and India. The project serves the needs of Kuwait and the region through education and outreach pertaining to a myriad of customs including music, crafts, folklore, literature, poetry, ritual, and community traditions.

The American University of

Congratulations

Aby Mathew Abraham and Shiney Oommen married on April 14 2010 at N E C K Church, Kuwait.

Good wishes from friends & well-wishers.

Kuwait (AUK) is a liberal arts institution, based on the American model of higher education. It is dedicated to providing students with knowledge, self-awareness, and personal growth experiences that can enhance critical thinking, effective communication, and respect for diversity. AUK seeks to create leaders and life-long learners who aspire to the highest standards of moral and ethical responsibility in their societies.

Holiday Inn revamps brand image

H

oliday Inn is making spectacular changes to its image evolving the iconic script logo, energizing the signature color green and eliminating the current shield shape. The brand will replace more than 11,000 signs around the world to reflect this refreshed and contemporary look. A new signature arrival including new lighting, landscaping and design features - will create an energized and branded sense of welcome that is universally recognizable.

In October 2007, IHG announced a worldwide relaunch of the Holiday Inn brand family, the biggest relaunch in the hospitality industry. This meant that all Holiday Inn properties would need to implement a series of property enhancements and upgrades to create a more contemporary brand image reflecting higher quality and drive consistency.

Holiday Inn has upgraded all its hallmarks, hotel collaterals, rooms, restaurant collaterals, signage, vehicles,

etc to have the new logo and convey its new image.

The General Manager of Holiday Inn Salmiya Ramy Haykal said “There is no question that you either take charge of change - or change will take charge of you!

Referring to Kummons Wilson, the founder of Holiday Inn, we have initiated this re-launch to ensure the brand moves into the future with a strong and confident new image, so that our guests get as much enjoyment from Holiday Inn hotels over the next 50 years as they have over the last 50 years.”

Since a differentiated lodging experience cannot be delivered through imagery and product alone, Holiday Inn is committed to providing hest in-class service. As part of the re-launch, the brand will initiate a new service culture “Stay Real” - to further ensure staff develops the skills to best serve guests by treating them as real people and consistently delivering the real, genuine service for which Holiday Inn is known.

Fun Day at KES Kuwait National English School (Hawally) will be holding its annual Fun Day tomorrow from 10 am -8 pm to raise funds for Haiti and we would like to invite you to come! It promises to be a very exciting day with rides, swimming, games, and lots of entertainment for the whole family!

Unveiling fashion of the Middle-East Reflections of Who We Are: AWARE & Kuwaiti Youth Volunteers Present: Thursday, April 22 Reflections of Who We Are - “Unveiling the Fashions of the Middle-East” A MiddleEastern-Gulf Country Cultural Clothing Fashion Show & Charity Event (All proceeds will be donated to Animal Friends League) from 7-9 pm at PAAET College, Adaliya.

Radiating confidence and reflecting on their cultural roots, Kuwaiti youth join hands with AWARE to model the culturally rich backgrounds of fashion from the MiddleEastern Gulf Countries. Fashion is a prevailing custom or style of dress selected primarily on one’s national identity & religious beliefs.

Nationals of Middle Eastern Gulf countries enjoy a style uniquely their own while sharing an element of modesty in their traditional dress. We invite you to join for a lively, traditional clothing fashion show as our models present, for the first time, costumes from Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. For further details contact AWARE at 2-533-5280 or email: info@aware.com.kw CHRISCCAA annual meeting Christian College Chengannur - Alumni Association, Kuwait Chapter (CHRISCCAA), executive committee, have decided to conduct its annual general body meeting on Saturday, April 24, at United Indian School, Jleeb, from 8 pm onwards. Presentation of Annual Report, Annual Accounts, selection of Office bearers and executive committee will be held during the meeting. All the association members are requested to attend the meeting. Contact any of the following office bearers for more details.

Mathew Alexander, President (99553036), George Mathew, vice president (94060522), Sunil Thomas, Gen.Secretary (66265702), Jacob Varghese, Treasurer (66223348).

what's on

Friday, april 16, 2010

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Embassy information Embassy of Lao The Embassy of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic will be closed today and April 18, 2010 on the occasion of Lao’s New Year and will reopen on 19th April 2010.

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.

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.

Kuwait English School honors Arabic teachers

K

uwait English School High Management and Heads of Department honoured Arabic staff members on Tuesday with a special lunch as a token of appreciation. “This is a communal celebration in appreciation of all the work done by the Arabic staff, particularly on the occasion of National Day” said KES Director, Rhoda Elizabeth Muhmood “celebrating the things we see and the things we don’t see”.

Naela Al-Saddah, KES Vice Chairman, said the lunch was a token of appreciation for the hard work by the staff from the beginning of the term until now.

Rula Al-Saddah, Financial Director, thanked the staff for the “very very lovely” National Day and Liberation Day celebrations, saying they were better than productions she had seen before, even at local theatres and on Kuwait Television. “This is a wonderful chance to thank you” said Muhmood, School Manager, “Thank you very much”.

“I think you so deserve this

and I want to thank you for all you do” said Janet Carew, Head of the Senior Department who is retiring at the end of this term. “I’m leaving the Arabic Department in such a fantastic state. You are doing a wonderful, wonderful job”, Carew said.

Ann Gurnett, Head of the Junior Department, praised the rising standard of Arabic in the school and the increased involvement of children in Arabic and related activities.

Searle, Head of the Prep Department, thanked all the Arabic staff for all the work they

do. “The National and Liberation Day celebrations and costumes were fantastic” said Christine Dunne, Green Unit coordinator. Dunne thanked all the Arabic staff members for their involvement and work with the Green Unit.

High Management then presented flowers to Ehab, Head of Arabic who has worked at KES for 12 years, and Fadia, Head of Primary Arabic, who has worked at KES since 1985.

“A team is as good as its leader”, said Muhmood. “All these jobs I did with my team,

not by myself” said Ehab graciously, adding that the staff are always improving and getting better and better.

“The school always appreciates our efforts” said Wafa, an Arabic teacher of Junior students who has been working at KES for 18 years. Wafa added that KES always works hard to improve teachers by organizing workshops and inset days.

Jihan, teaching Arabic to Seniors AT KES for the past 3 years, said “It is good here. The Arabic staff are all working very hard”.

Aware diwaniya

T Youth India delivers social message

I

n this cutting edge technology era, where the technology itself undergoes rapid and spontaneous changes, the youth need to be more focused on the overall development of themselves and utilize their vibrant period in a more creative way for the welfare of the society, commented P Sameer Muhammed, Resource person of Centre for Information Guidance India (CIGI). He was presenting his topic “Expatriate Life and Youths” at a gathering organized by Youth India, Fahaheel zone.

Youth being the richest asset of our country, should be nourished and developed in a healthy atmosphere and should enjoy a fair, just and inclusive education system where every section of the

society feels that there is scope for their youth to acquire knowledge and skills as per their needs and become partners in the progress of our great nation. Let’s not just pay attention to the deficits of our youth, let’s pay attention to their health and notice how healthy youth come from their relationships with the neighborhood, with the family, and the community. This fact become very important when we discuss the situation of expatriate community of which majority are living away from their family? At this point in time they become more vulnerable to drugs, alcoholism and easily get exposed to antisocial elements and thus become a nuisance to the society rather than becoming an asset to our

society. We have to be very careful in dealing with the situation, Sameer continued.

In a yet another session, Anwar Shaji the Convener of Youth India relief wing while handling the topic “Expatriate youths area of activity’, said that the potential of Expatriate Youth living in Kuwait has to be better utilized so that we can solve in a collective manner the various problems that we face today in our daily life.

Songs from M K Abdul Ghafoor, Ejas Abdullah, Shehnar, Mohanan and Rafeeque Babu, gave a different ambience to the audience. Earlier Youth India, Fahaheel zone president Yousuf Zachariya welcomed the audience and Secretary Mohammed Shakir proposed the vote of thanks.

he AWARE Center cordially invites those interested to its diwaniya on “Communication and time management,” by Linda Fouke. When asked to identify stress in their lives, adults list ‘time’ as one of the top three sources of stress. Dr Linda is currently a school administrator and former founder of “Room4 Improvement,” a management consulting company, where Linda helped her clients get better organized, increase productivity and decrease their stress levels. If you are looking for tips to improve work performance and remain in control of a busy life, join Dr Linda as she shares ways to hone time management skills on Tuesday April 20 at 7 pm. For more information, please call 25335280/60 ext 105 or e-mail: htaware.hassan@gmail.com or log onto: www.aware.com.kw”

T

Swimming classes

he British School of Swimming is not full! Many might believe that admissions have closed but now new classes have been started in the Red School on Sundays and Wednesdays at 4:00 pm and in the Yellow School at 11:00 am on Saturdays and 5:15 pm on Tuesdays. We also still have the option of 3 new classes at 12:20 am on Saturdays and 6:35pm on Tuesdays and they could well be open next week. We have opened a new class for Water Babies at 3:30pm on Tuesdays and there are three places left. There are still places for men to learn to swim, but ladies who register now are going on a waiting list. Our policy of continuous enrolment means that new students can be accepted at any time during a course, and they will be placed in a class that best suits their ability. Jayne and David would also like to inform you that registration for our Sizzling Summer Swim School, which will begin on June 6 and end on July 8, will be available next week.

This is a five-week course where students swim three times a week. Please direct all enquiries to David, phone 9965 6305 or mail to bsswim@gmail.com

Page 48

Friday, April 16, 2010

FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION 161

FLIGHT SCHEDULE

IN CASE YOU ARE NOT TRAVELLING, YOUR PROPER CANCELLATION OF BOOKINGS WILL HELP OTHER PASSENGERS TO USE SEATS. Airlines Wataniya Airways Tunis Air Wataniya Airways Kuwait Gulf Air Wataniya Airways Pakistan Turkish A/L Wataniya Airways Jazeera Jazeera DHL Emirates Jazeera Etihad Qatari Air France Ethiopian Jazeera Kuwait Jazeera British Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Fly Dubai Kuwait Kuwait Kuwait Kuwait Emirates Arabia Kuwait Qatari Etihad Jazeera Iran Air Wataniya Airways Gulf Air Midddle East Wataniya Airways Jazeera Jazeera Jazeera Yemenia Jazeera Egypt Air Jazeera Kuwait Jazeera Royal Jordanian United A/L Wataniya Airways Wataniya Airways Jazeera Kuwait Kuwait Jazeera Qatari Kuwait Jazeera Bahrain Air Mihin Lanka Jazeera Etihad Emirates Gulf Air Wataniya Airways Jazeera Wataniya Airways Jazeera

Arrival Flights on Friday 16/04/2010 Flt Route 188 Bahrain 327 Tunis/Dubai 306 Cairo 544 Cairo 211 Bahrain 408 Beirut 215 Karachi 772 Istanbul 322 Sharm El Sheikh 513 Sharm El Sheikh 267 Beirut 370 Bahrain 853 Dubai 241 Amman 305 Abu Dhabi 138 Doha 6770 Paris 622 Addis Ababa/Bahrain 503 Luxor 3020 Mumbai 527 Alexandria 157 London 416 Jakarta/Kuala Lumpur 481 Sabiha 206 Islamabad 529 Assiut 302 Mumbai 063 Dubai 876 Dubai 352 Cochin 284 Dhaka 362 Colombo 855 Dubai 121 Sharjah 286 Chittagong 132 Doha 301 Abu Dhabi 425 Bahrain 619 Lar 182 Bahrain 213 Bahrain 404 Beirut 102 Dubai 165 Dubai 447 Doha 113 Abu Dhabi 825 Sanaa 171 Dubai 610 Cairo 457 Damascus 672 Dubai 525 Alexandria 800 Amman 982 Washington DC Dulles 432 Damascus 422 Amman 257 Beirut 552 Damascus 744 Dammam 693 Shiraz 134 Doha 546 Alexandria 173 Dubai 344 Bahrain 403 Colombo/Dubai 427 Bahrain 303 Abu Dhabi 857 Dubai 215 Bahrain 402 Beirut 217 Isfahan 510 Riyadh 239 Amman

Time 00:30 00:35 00:50 00:50 01:05 01:05 01:15 01:15 01:20 01:45 01:45 02:15 02:25 0255 02:55 03:25 03:25 03:30 05:15 06:05 06:05 06:30 06:35 06:40 07:15 07:30 07:50 07:55 08:00 08:05 08:10 08:20 08:25 08:40 08:45 09:00 09:25 10:25 10:40 10:45 10:45 10:50 11:05 11:05 11:10 11:20 12:00 12:50 12:55 13:10 13:15 13:20 13:35 13:35 13:35 14:10 14:10 14:35 14:40 14:45 15:05 15:30 15:55 16:40 16:40 16:45 16:50 16:55 17:15 17:15 17:20 17:20 17:35

Jazeera Arabia Jazeera Sri Lankan Wataniya Airways Kuwait Wataniya Airways Kuwait Kuwait Kuwait Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Kuwait Kuwait Kuwait Indian Kuwait Fly Dubai Oman Air Middle East Rovos Jet A/W Saudi Arabian A/L Wataniya Airways Jazeera DHL Gulf Air Qatari Emirates Jazeera Lufthansa Egypt Air Shaheen Air Jazeera KLM Egypt Air Wataniya Airways Jazeera Airlines Bangladesh India Express Lufthansa Indian Pakistan Jazeera Tunis Air Turkish A/L Pakistan D.H.L. Emirates Etihad Ethiopian Qatari Air France Wataniya Airways Jazeera Jazeera Jazeera Jazeera Jazeera Gulf Air Wataniya Airways Jazeera Wataniya Airways British Kuwait Jazeera Fly Dubai Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Kuwait

367 125 497 227 304 166 106 502 542 818 786 177 614 674 102 774 575 562 061 647 402 081 572 506 404 459 372 217 136 859 429 638 612 441 185 0447 606 108 263

Deirezzor Sharjah Riyadh Colombo/Dubai Cairo Paris/Rome Dubai Beirut Cairo Doha Jeddah Dubai Bahrain Dubai New York/London Riyadh Chennai/Goa Amman Dubai Muscat Beirut Baghdad Mumbai Jeddah Beirut Damascus Bahrain Bahrain Doha Dubai Bahrain Frankfurt Cairo Lahore/Karachi Dubai Amsterdam/Bahrain Luxor Dubai Beirut

Departure Flights on Friday l6/04/2010 Flt Route 044 Dhaka 390 Mangalore/Kozhikode 637 Frankfurt 982 Ahmedabad/Chennai 206 Lahore 528 Assiut 328 Tunis 773 Istanbul 216 Karachi 371 Bahrain 854 Dubai 306 Abu Dhabi 622 Addis Ababa 139 Doha 6770 Dubai/Hong Kong 101 Dubai 524 Alexandria 164 Dubai 112 Abu Dhabi 422 Bahrain 446 Doha 212 Bahrain 181 Bahrain 456 Damascus 431 Damascus 156 London 545 Alexandria 256 Beirut 054 Dubai 177 Frankfurt/Geneva 170 Dubai 671 Dubai 551 Damascus

17:40 17:40 17:55 18:00 18:35 18:40 18:45 18:50 18:50 18:55 18:55 19:05 19:20 19:20 19:25 19:25 19:30 19:40 20:05 20:15 20:20 20:30 20:30 20:35 20:50 20:55 21:00 21:05 21:35 22:00 22:15 22:30 22:55 23:00 23:05 23:10 23:15 23:55 23:55 Time 00:15 00:25 00:50 01:05 01:10 01:25 01:25 02:15 02:30 03:15 03:45 04:00 04:15 05:00 05:15 06:50 07:00 07:00 07:15 07:35 07:40 07:45 07:50 08:05 08:10 08:25 08:35 08:35 08:40 08:55 09:00 09:00 09:10

Wataniya Airways Arabia Emirates Kuwait Qatari Etihad Gulf Air Wataniya Airways Iran Air Middle East Kuwait National A/L Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Jazeera Jazeera Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Yemenia Kuwait Jazeera Egypt Air Jazeera Roya Jordanian Wataniya Airways Kuwait Jazeera Jazeera Kuwait Wataniya Airways Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Qatari Kuwait Rovos Bahrain Air Etihad Mihin Lanka Gulf Air Wataniya Airways Emirates Jazeera Arabia Saudi Arabian A/L Jazeera Jazeera Sri Lankan Wataniya Airways Kuwait Kuwait Fly Dubai Kuwait Kuwa1t Oman Air Middle East Jet A/W Wataniya Airways Gulf Air Saudi Arabia A/L DHL Kuwait Qatari Kuwait Kuwait Emirates Jazeera Jazeera Jazeera United A/L Kuwait Egypt Air

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

421 122 856 117 133 302 214 401 618 405 303 743 172 541 692 366 103 238 501 825 785 426 611 216 801 105 561 176 496 673 403 617 458 773 135 613 082 345 304 404 216 305 858 262 126 511 184 428 228 107 283 361 062 331 343 648 403 571 187 218 507 373 675 137 203 301 860 526 502 636 981 411 613

Amman Sharjah Dubai New York Doha Abu Dhabi Bahrain Beirut Lar Beirut Cairo Dammam Dubai Cairo Shiraz Deirezzor London Amman Beirut Doha/Sanaa Jeddah Bahrain Cairo Isfahan Amman Dubai Amman Dubai Riyadh Dubai Beirut Doha Damascus Riyadh Doha Bahrain Baghdad Bahrain Abu Dhabi Dubai/Colombo Bahrain Cairo Dubai Beirut Sharjah Riyadh Dubai Bahrain Dubai/Colombo Dubai Dhaka Colombo Dubai Trivandrum Chennai Muscat Beirut Mumbai Bahrain Bahrain Jeddah Bahrain Dubai Doha Lahore Mumbai Dubai Alexandria Luxor Aleppo Washington DC Dulles Bangkok/Manila Cairo

09:10 09:20 09:40 10:00 10:00 10:10 11:35 11:35 11:40 11:50 11:50 11:55 11:55 12:00 12:00 12:20 12:30 12:30 13:00 13:00 13:30 13:50 13:55 14:05 14:30 14:30 14.35 14:55 15:00 15:10 15:10 15:35 15:50 16:05 16:20 16:20 17:00 17:25 17:35 17:40 18:05 18:05 18:05 18:15 18:20 18:35 19:00 19:10 19:10 19:40 20:00 20:20 20:50 21:00 21:00 21:15 21:20 21:30 21:35 21:55 21:55 22:00 22:10 22:35 22:40 22:45 23:10 23:20 23:30 23:35 23:40 23:40 23:55

CLASSIFIEDS

Friday, April 16, 2010

Page 49 bridge, near Al Bahar complex. Contact: 22662734.

(C 2120)

ACCOMMODATION One room available for 2 executive bachelors (Indian) share with Mangalorean family in a CAC 2B/R flat in Salmiya behind Apollo hosTel: 25610431/ pital.

97821037. (C 2133) 15-4-2010 Sharing accommodation available in Abbassiya for visiting family or two working ladies or couples in new CAC fully furnished two bedroom two bathroom (attached) flat from 6th June 2010. Contact: 66013882.

(C 2127) Sharing room available for rent in CAC flat opp.

Farwaniya bridge on airport road Khaitan just one minute to all bus routes for family/couple.

Contact: 97468551. (C 2126) 14-4-2010

No: 14700

Single room accommodation available for bachelor (1 or 2) in Abbassiya opposite to Choice restaurant from 01.05.2010. Tel: 60630829.

(C 2124) Accommodation available for family or working ladies in Abbassiya opp German clinic in front of bus stop.

Contact: 66455687.

(C 2118) Sharing accommodation available in Abbassiya behind Caesers bakery with Keralite family in two bedroom flat only for Christian Keralite bachelor. Call: 99153497. (C 2119) Accommodation available bachelor Manglorean or Goan with food opp Jabriya

Sharing accommodation available in Abbassiya working ladies or small couples near Neethi store. Contact: 97501647. (C 2122) 13-4-2010

CHANGE OF NAME I, Alfred Fernandes, R/o H.No.1103 Socorro Zosvaddo, P.O. Porvorim Bartzes-Goa, S/O late Matias Fernandes, would like to correct my name on my passport no.:F7953723, issued in Kuwait, from Alfredo Fernandes to Alfred Fernandes. (C 2129) I, Sebastiana Sousa, R/o Katem Baina, Vasco-DaGama Marmagoa, D/o Late Antonio Sousa, would like to correct my surname on my passport no F-0508935 issued in Kuwait from Sebastiana D’sousa to Sebastiana Sousa. (C 2129) I, Ana Rita Sousa, R/o 343, next to M.P.T. Hospital Vasco-Da-Gama Goa, D/o Late Antonio Sousa, would like to correct my surname on my passport no. F1471318, issued in Kuwait, from Ana Rita Godinho to Ana Rita Sousa. (C 2129) 14-4-2010

MATRIMONIAL Wanted groom for 26 years, young, slim, normal complexion girl, from KK district, (Tamil Nadu) CSI Christian Nadar, working in Kuwait MOH. Vacation: May - June. Contact: nesamvinitha@yahoo.com (C 2123) 14-4-2010 Christian Jacobite girl 27 years, 160cms, Perumbavoor, Ernakulam dist, going on leave April 23 - June 3 seeking proposal from parents of suitable boys . Email: eldhopaulc86@gmail.com (C 2125) RC, SC, 168 cm, M.Tech hailing from financially sound family working in Kuwait as sales engineer looking for professionally qualified girls.

Email: antony45@gmail.com (C 2114) 13-4-2010

SITUATION WANTED Indian male, M.Com, well experienced in accounts and finance, seeks suitable position. Should have transferable residency.

Please contact: 99158323.

(C 2130) 15-4-2010

FOR SALE

SITUATION VACANT

Nissan Jeep, first owner, model 2002, black, excellent condition.

Tel: 99649749. (C 2132) 15-4-2010

Kuwaiti decent family looking for live-in maid, any nationality. Tel: 66104141.

(C 2131) 15-4-2010

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists: Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 5622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 5752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 5321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 5739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 5757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 5732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 5732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT): Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz

4555050 Ext 510 5644660 5646478 5311996 5731988 2620166 5651426

General Practitioners: Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi Dr. Yousef Al-Omar Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem Dr. Kathem Maarafi Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae

4555050 Ext 123 4719312 3926920 5730465 5655528 4577781 5333501

Urologists: Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 2641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 2639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 2616660

Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 5313120 Plastic Surgeons: Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari Dr. Abdel Quttainah

2547272 2617700 5625030/60

Family Doctor: Dr Divya Damodar

3729596/3729581

Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan

2635047 2613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians: Dr Adrian Harbe Dr. Verginia s.Marin Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly Dr. Salem soso

3729596/3729581 572-6666 ext 8321 2655539 5343406 5739272 2618787

General Surgeons: Dr. Abidallah Behbahani 5717111 Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer 2610044 Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher 5327148

Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra Dr. Mobarak Aldoub Dr Nasser Behbehani

5728004 5355515 4726446 5654300/3

Paediatricians: Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed Dr. Zahra Qabazard Dr. Sohail Qamar Dr. Snaa Maaroof Dr. Pradip Gujare Dr. Zacharias Mathew

5340300 5710444 2621099 5713514 3713100 4334282

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada) 5655535 Dentists: Dr Anil Thomas Dr. Shamah Al-Matar Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan Dr. Bader Al-Ansari

3729596/3729581 2641071/2 2562226 2561444 2619557 2525888 5653755 5620111

Internists, Chest & Heart: Dr. Adnan Ebil Dr. Mousa Khadada

2639939 2666300

Neurologists: Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri 5633324 Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan 5345875

Gastrologists Dr. Sami Aman 2636464 Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly 5322030 Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali 2633135 Endocrinologist: Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman 5339330 Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 5658888 Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 5329924 Physiotherapists & VD: Dr. Deyaa Shehab Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees

5722291 2666288

Rheumatologists: Dr. Adel Al-Awadi 5330060 Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah 5722290 Internist, Chest & Heart: DR.Mohammes Akkad 4555050 Ext 210 Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Tel: 5339667 Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Consultant Cardiologist Tel: 2611555-2622555

Page 50

Friday, April 16, 2010

TV Listings Orbit /Showtime Channels

00:00 Big Love 01:00 Dawson’s Creek 02:00 Bones 03:00 One Tree Hill 04:00 Dawson’s Creek 05:00 Sons of Anarchy 06:00 CSI 07:00 Big Love 08:00 Without a Trace 09:00 Ghost Whisperer 10:00 Bones 11:00 One Tree Hill 12:00 CSI 13:00 Sons of Anarchy 14:00 Bones 15:00 Dawson’s Creek 16:00 Without a Trace 17:00 Ghost Whisperer 18:00 Big Love 19:00 Inside the Actors Studio 20:00 The Pacific 21:00 Survivor 22:00 The Closer 23:00 The Janice Dickinson Modelling Agency

00:45 Animal Cops Phoenix 01:40 Untamed & Uncut 02:35 Jungle 03:30 Animal Cops Houston 04:25 Miami Animal Police 05:20 Monkey Business 05:45 Animal Battlegrounds 06:10 E-Vets: The Interns 06:35 SSPCA: On the Wildside 07:00 Wildlife SOS 07:25 Pet Rescue 07:50 Planet Earth Stevens: Most 08:45 Austin Dangerous...

09:40 Beverly Hills Groomer 10:05 The Planet’s Funniest Animals 10:30 The Planet’s Funniest Animals 10:55 Monkey Business 11:20 SSPCA: On the Wildside 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 SSPCA: On the Wildside 15:30 Planet Earth 16:25 The Planet’s Funniest Animals 16:50 The Planet’s Funniest Animals 17:20 Beverly Hills Groomer 17:45 Animal Battlegrounds 18:15 Amazon Abyss 18:40 Amazon Abyss 19:10 Polar Bears: Living on Thin Ice 20:10 Animal Cops Phoenix 21:05 Untamed & Uncut 22:00 Animal Witness 22:25 Animal Witness 22:55 Animal Cops Houston 23:50 Polar Bears: Living on Thin Ice

00:15 00:45 01:35 02:05 02:35 03:05 03:40 04:10 04:40 05:35 06:20 06:45 07:05 07:25 07:50 08:10 08:30 08:55 09:15 09:40 10:25 11:15 11:45 12:15 13:00 13:30 14:00 14:45 15:15 15:45 16:15 17:00 17:30 18:00 18:30 19:00 20:00

The Fast Show Days That Shook The World 2 Point 4 Children 2 Point 4 Children Hyperdrive Carrie And Barry The Keith Barret Show The League Of Gentlemen Days That Shook The World Bargain Hunt Teletubbies Me Too Tweenies Teletubbies Me Too Tweenies Teletubbies Me Too Tweenies Bargain Hunt Days That Shook The World 2 Point 4 Children 2 Point 4 Children The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Bargain Hunt Cash In The Attic 2 Point 4 Children 2 Point 4 Children The Weakest Link Doctors Eastenders Blackadder Ii Blackadder Ii Coast The Weakest Link

20:45 21:15 22:45 23:35

00:05 00:30 00:55 01:20 01:45 02:10 03:00 03:50 04:15 04:40 05:10 05:30 05:55 06:45 07:10 07:35 08:05 08:25 09:10 10:00 10:50 11:15 11:40 12:05 12:30 13:20 14:10 14:55 15:40 16:30 16:55 17:20 17:45 18:10 18:55 19:45 20:15 20:40 21:10 21:35 22:00

01:00 03:15 04:45 07:00 09:00 11:00 13:00 15:00 17:00 19:00 21:00 23:00

Doctors New Tricks Robin Hood Holby Blue

Ainsley’s Gourmet Express Come Dine With Me Come Dine With Me Sweet Baby James Sweet Baby James The Home Show The Home Show New British Kitchen Ainsley’s Gourmet Express Daily Cooks Challenge Cash In The Attic USA Hidden Potential The Home Show New British Kitchen Ainsley’s Gourmet Express Cash In The Attic USA Cash In The Attic USA Bargain Hunt Antiques Roadshow Antiques Roadshow Cash In The Attic USA Hidden Potential Sweet Baby James Sweet Baby James The Home Show The Home Show Bargain Hunt Bargain Hunt Antiques Roadshow Cash In The Attic USA Hidden Potential Sweet Baby James Sweet Baby James The Home Show Antiques Roadshow Daily Cooks Challenge Come Dine With Me MasterChef Goes Large The Naked Chef The Naked Chef Living In The Sun

The Indian Runner-PG15 Sexy Beast-18 A Few Good Men-PG15 Under The Same Moon-PG Chariots Of Fire-PG Napoleon Part 2-PG Max And Co.-PG All Hat-PG15 Napoleon Part 3-PG Ripley’s Game-PG15 Unfaithful-18 Heart Of The Beholder-PG15

00:00 Border Security 00:30 Destroyed in Seconds 01:00 Miami Ink 02:00 Street Customs 2008 02:55 Heartland Thunder 03:50 Mean Machines: Transatlantic Challenge 04:20 Mean Machines: Transatlantic Challenge 04:45 Mythbusters 05:40 How It’s Made 06:05 Dirty Jobs 07:00 Mean Machines: Transatlantic Challenge 07:30 Mean Machines: Transatlantic Challenge 07:55 Top Trumps 08:20 Street Customs 2008 09:15 Mythbusters 10:10 Ultimate Survival 11:05 Heartland Thunder 12:00 Border Security 12:30 How it’s Made 12:55 How It’s Made 13:20 American Chopper 14:15 Miami Ink 15:10 Mythbusters 16:05 Dirty Jobs 17:00 LA Hard Hats 18:00 Border Security 18:30 Street Customs 2008 19:30 Destroyed in Seconds 20:00 How it’s Made 20:30 How It’s Made

00:30 01:20 02:10 03:00 03:50

Human Body: Ultimate Machine Science of the Movies I, Videogame Beyond Tomorrow Ten Ways

04:45 05:10 05:40 06:10 07:00 08:00 09:00 09:55 10:20 10:50 11:45 12:10 12:40 13:35 14:30 15:25 15:55 16:50 17:45 18:40 19:05 19:30 20:20 20:45 21:10 22:00 22:25 22:50 23:40

How Does That Work?

Mean Green Machines Weird Connections Human Body: Ultimate Machine The Kustomizer Ten Ways Science of the Movies How Does That Work?

Stunt Junkies Human Body: Ultimate Machine Mean Green Machines Weird Connections Ten Ways Science of the Movies Ecopolis How Does That Work?

The Kustomizer Brainiac Mega World The Gadget Show The Gadget Show Space Pioneer How It’s Made How It’s Made Mythbusters The Gadget Show The Gadget Show Space Pioneer Mega World

00:00 00:20 00:45 01:10 01:35 02:00 02:25 02:45 03:10 03:35 04:00 04:25 04:45 05:10 05:35 06:00 06:10 06:35 07:00 07:20 07:45 08:10 08:35 09:00 09:25 09:45 10:10 10:35 11:00 11:25 11:45 12:10 12:35 12:55 13:20 13:40 14:05 14:30 14:55 15:15 15:40 16:00 16:25 16:45 17:10 17:35 18:00 18:25 18:45 19:00 20:35 21:00 21:25 21:45 22:00 22:25 22:50 23:15 23:35

My Friends Tigger And Pooh Lazytown Special Agent Oso Imagination Movers Jungle Junction Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Handy Manny Special Agent Oso Brandy & Mr Whiskers Fairly Odd Parents Hannah Montana I Got A Rocket Wizards Of Waverly Place Phineas & Ferb Higglytown Heroes My Friends Tigger And Pooh Lazytown Special Agent Oso Imagination Movers Jungle Junction Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Handy Manny Special Agent Oso Brandy & Mr Whiskers Fairly Odd Parents Hannah Montana I Got A Rocket Wizards Of Waverly Place Phineas & Ferb Suite Life On Deck Replacements American Dragon Kim Possible Famous Five Fairly Odd Parents Phineas & Ferb Replacements A Kind Of Magic Wizards Of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Sonny With A Chance Fairly Odd Parents Phineas & Ferb Suite Life On Deck Wizards Of Waverly Place Hannah Montana The Replacements Wendy Wu Wizards Of Waverly Place The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody The Replacements American Dragon Kim Possible Famous Five Fairly Odd Parents Phineas & Ferb

00:15 Streets Of Hollywood 00:40 E!es 01:30 25 Most Stylish 02:20 Sexiest 03:15 Beauty Queens Gone Wrong 05:05 Dr 90210 06:00 E!es 07:45 25 Most Stylish 08:35 E! News 09:00 The Daily 10 09:25 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 09:50 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 10:15 E!es 11:05 E!es 12:00 E! News 12:25 The Daily 10 12:50 Bank Of Hollywood 13:40 Ths 15:25 Behind The Scenes

15:50 Behind The Scenes 16:15 E!es 16:40 E!es 17:10 Leave It To Lamas 17:35 Leave It To Lamas 18:00 E! News 18:25 The Daily 10 18:50 Streets Of Hollywood 19:15 Battle Of The Hollywood Hotties 19:40 Ths 20:30 Ths 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 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 21:00 22:00 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 Food Network Challenge Everyday Italian Iron Chef America Great British Menu Iron Chef America Chopped Great British Menu 30 Minute Meals Kitchen Criminals Barefoot Contessa Best Thing I Ever Ate Barefoot Contessa Food Network Challenge Iron Chef America Kitchen Criminals Teleshopping Teleshopping Grill It! with Bobby Flay Teleshopping Barefoot Contessa Teleshopping Barefoot Contessa Teleshopping Tyler’s Ultimate Teleshopping Tyler’s Ultimate Throwdown With Bobby Flay Food Network Challenge

01:00 Inside the PGA Tour 01:30 MLB: Atlanta Braves at San Diego Padres 04:30 World of Athletics 05:00 NHL: Playoffs - Tentative Date and Time, Teams TBA 08:00 Golf Central International 08:30 The Golf Channel - TBA 11:00 PGA Tour: Verizon Heritage Rd. 1 from Hilton Head Island, SC 13:30 MLB: Atlanta Braves at San Diego Padres 16:30 European Tour Volvo China Open Rd. 2 Suzhou, China 19:30 NHL: Playoffs - Tentative Date and Time, Teams TBA 22:00 PGA Tour: Verizon Heritage Rd. 2 Hilton Head Island, SC

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 22:00

A Haunting FBI Files On the Case with Paula Zahn Crimes That Shook the World Forensic Detectives Real Emergency Calls Dr G: Medical Examiner Ghosthunters Ghosthunters Forensic Detectives FBI Files CSU Mystery ER Forensic Detectives FBI Files Diagnosis: Unknown Solved Mystery ER Forensic Detectives FBI Files CSU Mystery ER Forensic Detectives FBI Files Diagnosis: Unknown Solved Mystery ER Undercover

Iron Man on Show Movies 22:50 Fugitive Strike Force 23:40 Dr G: Medical Examiner

01:30 03:30 05:00 06:35 08:15 10:20 11:55 13:45 15:25 16:55 18:55 20:20 22:00 23:25

Knightriders Love Chronicles Marshal Law Mad Dog Coll The Russians Are Coming Babes In Toyland Popi Man in the Moon Mannequin Hair Miracle Beach Untamed Heart A Girl To Kill For Outback

00:00 00:30 01:30 02:00 02:30 03:00 03:30 04:00 04:30 05:00 05:30 06:00 06:30 07:30 08:00 08:30 09:00 09:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12:00 12:30 13:30 14:30 15:30 16:00 16:30 17:00 17:30 18:00 18:30 19:30 20:30 21:30 22:00 22:30 23:00 23:30

Chasing Time Lonely Planet Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Wild Rides First Ascent Bondi Rescue Cycling Home With Rob Lilwall Surfer’s Journal Treks In A Wild World Madventures Chasing Time Lonely Planet Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Wild Rides First Ascent Bondi Rescue Cycling Home With Rob Lilwall Surfer’s Journal Treks In A Wild World Madventures Chasing Time Lonely Planet Don’t Tell My Mother...

By Any Means Bondi Rescue Finding Genghis Surfer’s Journal Treks In A Wild World Madventures Chasing Time Lonely Planet Don’t Tell My Mother...

By Any Means Bondi Rescue Finding Genghis Surfer’s Journal Treks In A Wild World Madventures

00:00 Modern Family 00:30 New adventures of old Christine 01:00 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 01:30 The Colbert Report 02:00 Late night with Jimmy Fallon 03:00 Family Guy 03:30 Hung 04:00 Sauturday Night Live 05:00 Modern Family 05:30 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 Tyler Perry’s House of Payne 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 The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson 13:00 New adventures of old Christine 13:30 Tyler Perry’s House of Payne 14:00 The Nanny 14:30 Three sisters 15:00 Modern Family 15:30 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 16:00 The Colbert Report 16:30 Family Biz 17:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 17:30 Frasier 18:00 The Bernie Mac Show 18:30 Dharma & Greg 19:00 How I met your mother 19:30 Two and a half men 20:00 Late night with Jimmy Fallon 21:00 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 Cougar Town 22:30 American Dad 23:00 Sauturday Night Live

00:00 01:00 01:30 02:00 03:00 04:00 Leno 05:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 09:30 10:00

What’s Good For You 10 Years Younger Look A Like The Ellen DeGeneres Show The Monique Show The Tonight show with Jay GMA (repeat) GMA Health What’s the Buzz The Martha Stewart Show Look A Like 10 Years Younger Jimmy Kimmel Live!

Page 51

Friday, April 16, 2010 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 Leno 18:00 18:30 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 Leno 23:00

The View The Ellen DeGeneres Show What’s Good For You GMA Live GMA Health What’s the Buzz The Tonight Show with Jay

00:00 00:50 01:40 02:30 03:20 04:10 05:00 05:10 06:00 06:50 07:00 07:50 08:40 Pooh 09:20 10:10 11:00 11:20 11:50 12:10 12:40 12:40 13:30 14:20 15:10 16:00 16:40 17:30 18:20 19:10 20:00 20:50 21:10 22:00

Imagination Movers Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jo Jo’s Circus Jo Jo’s Circus Higglytown Heroes Higglytown Heroes Happy Monster Band My Friends Tigger And Pooh Handy Manny Happy Monster Band Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Special Agent OSO New Adventures Of Winnie The

Look A Like 10 Years Younger The View The Ellen DeGeneres Show Jimmy Kimmel Live!

The Tonight Show with Jay The Monique Show

Imagination Movers Handy Manny Special Agent OSO Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Handy Manny Handy Manny Handy Manny Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Imagination Movers Lazytown Handy Manny Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Special Agent OSO Imagination Movers My Friends Tigger And Pooh Lazytown Little Einsteins Handy Manny Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Little Einsteins

00:15 Jolene-18 02:15 Romulus My Father-PG15 04:00 This Christmas-PG 06:00 Son Of Rambow-PG 08:00 The Prestige-PG15 10:15 Angus Thongs And Perfect Snogging       -PG15 12:00 Hotel For Dogs-FAM 13:45 Valkyrie-PG15 15:45 The Prestige-PG15 18:00 Eagle Eye-PG15 20:00 Swing Vote-PG15 22:00 Sex And The City The Movie-18

01:00 03:00 05:00 07:00 09:00 11:00 13:00 15:00 17:00 18:30 21:15 23:00

Gangster Exchange-18 Cloverfield-PG15 Twin Daggers-PG15 Street Fighter Alpha-PG Newton Boys-PG15 Monster Ark-18 H.I.T.-PG15 Newton Boys-PG15 Dark Mind-PG15 The Abyss -PG15 Felon-18 The Cottage-18

00:00 Rat Race-PG15 02:00 Art School Confidential-PG15 04:00 Girl’s Best Friend-PG15 06:00 The Other Half-PG15 08:00 Bridal Fever-PG 10:00 Ping Pong Playa-PG15 12:00 City Slickers-PG15 14:00 Mr. Baseball-PG 16:00 Rat Race-PG15 18:00 Martha Meet Frank, Daniel And Lawrence-PG15 20:00 Play Dead-PG15 22:00 The Foot Fist Way-PG15

00:00 Babar: King Of The Elephants02:00 Hey Arnold! The Movie-PG 04:00 Dark Crystal-PG 06:00 Free Willy 3: The Rescue-FAM 08:00 Barbie And The Three Musketeers-PG 10:00 Dark Crystal-PG 12:00 Au Pair 3: Adventure In Paradise-PG 14:00 Hey Arnold! The Movie-PG

16:00 Chitty Chitty Bang Bang-PG 18:30 Sunshine Barry And The Disco 20:00 Never Ending Story 2: The Next Chapter-FAM 22:00 Au Pair 3: Adventure In Paradise-PG

00:00 01:00 02:00 02:30 03:00 04:00 04:30 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

Wallender Dollhouse Breaking Bad Sex and the City Beauty and the Geek Every Body Loves Raymond Coach Life on Mars Emmerdale Huey’s Cooking Adventure Cold Case Every Body Loves Raymond Coach Beauty and the Geek Life on Mars Cold Case Emmerdale Huey’s Cooking Adventure Every Body Loves Raymond Coach Wallender Dollhouse Life on Mars Lipstick Jungle Better off Ted Billable Hours Demons Demons Flash Forwards Life on Mars Sex and the City Sex and the City

01:30 Premier League World 02:00 Goals Goals Goals 02:30 Barclays Premier League Highlights 03:30 Scottish Premier League Highlights 04:00 Premier League 06:00 Premier League Classics 06:30 Premier League Classics 07:00 Premier League World 07:30 Brazil League Highlights 08:00 Premier League 10:00 Barclays Premier League Highlights 11:00 Premier League Classics 11:30 Scottish Premier League Highlights 12:00 Premier League World 12:30 Premier League 14:30 Premier League 16:30 Barclays Premier League Highlights 17:30 Brazil League Highlights 18:00 Scottish Premier League Highlights 18:30 Premier League 20:30 Goals Goals Goals

01:00 01:30 06:00 06:30 07:00 10:00 10:30 12:30 14:30 15:00 17:30 19:30 21:30 22:00 22:30

00:00 01:00 01:30 02:00 02:30 06:30 07:00 07:30 08:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 13:30 14:00 14:30

Mobil 1 The Grid European PGA Tour Golf Futbol Mundial European Tour Weekly AFL Toyota Premiership ICC Cricket World Live Super 14 Live Super 14 Premier League World AFL Toyota Premiership Super 14 NRL Premiership Premier League Preview Show ICC Cricket World Super 14

AFL Premiership Highlights ICC Cricket World SPL Highlights Mobil 1 The Grid Premier League Darts World Sport Mobil 1 The Grid European Tour Weekly Live PGA European Tour ICC Cricket World Premier League World Futbol Mundial Goals Goals Goals Mobil 1 World Sport

01:00 UFC - The Ultimate Fighter 02:00 WWE NXT 03:00 Bushido

Jolene on ShowMovies 04:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 09:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 12:00 13:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00 20:00 22:00 23:00

NCAA Basketball UFC Unleashed WWE NXT V8 Supercars Series Highlights Brain Cell UAE National Race Day UAE National Race Day FIM World Cup Bushido WWE NXT NCAA Basketball V8 Supercars Series Highlights V8 Supercars Series Highlights UFC - The Ultimate Fighter UFC All Access Mobil 1 The Grid WWE NXT WWE Smackdown WWE Bottomline UFC - The Ultimate Fighter

01:00 Fired Up!-18 03:00 The Secret Life Of Bees-PG15 05:00 Centre Stage 2: Turn It UpPG15 07:00 Mr. Magoriums Wonder Emporium-FAM 09:00 Fred Claus-PG 11:00 Iron Man-PG15 13:00 The Moon And The Stars-PG 15:00 Take The Lead-PG 17:00 Fred Claus-PG 19:00 Race To Witch Mountain-PG15 21:00 The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button-PG15

01:50 02:15 04:00 06:30 07:00 08:50 10:20

The Screening Room After The Fox Where Eagles Dare The Screening Room Beau Brummell Elvis On Tour Lust For Life

12:20 14:20 16:10 17:45 19:20 21:30 22:00 23:55

The Yellow Rolls-Royce Beau Brummell Penelope I’ll Take Sweden Some Came Running The Screening Room The V.I.P.S Sweet Bird Of Youth

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The Universe 3 Human Weapon Ice Road Truckers 3 Life After People Evolve Dinosaur Secrets Prehistoric Mega Storms The Universe 3 Human Weapon Ice Road Truckers 3 Life After People Evolve Dinosaur Secrets Prehistoric Mega Storms The Universe 3 Human Weapon Ice Road Truckers 3 Life After People Evolve Dinosaur Secrets Prehistoric Mega Storms The Universe 3 Human Weapon Ice Road Truckers 3 Ax Men 2 Tunnellers The Universe Extreme Trains

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Dr 90210 Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane Dallas Divas & Daughters How Do I Look?

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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 Giuliana & Bill Clean House Clean House Comes Clean Dress My Nest How Do I Look?

Split Ends Dallas Divas & Daughters Style Her Famous Running in Heels Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane Split Ends Clean House Dress My Nest Style Her Famous Clean House Ruby

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Hit US Urban Hit Playlist French Only Playlist Urban Hit Playlist Africa Playlist Urban Hit Playlist Trace Video Mix New Playlist Club 10 Playlist

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Globe Trekker Angry Planet The Thirsty Traveler How To Holiday Greener Culture Shock Distant Shores Wild At Heart Temples In The Clouds Globe Trekker Planet Food The Thirsty Traveler Angry Planet Globe Trekker Essential Dream Destinations Distant Shores Distant Shores Chef Abroad Entrada Planet Food Globe Trekker Chef Abroad The Thirsty Traveler Sophie Grigson in the Souk Entrada Top Travel Culture Shock Globe Trekker Essential Journey Into Wine...

Chef Abroad The Thirsty Traveler Globe Trekker Globe Trekker Intrepid Journeys Angry Planet

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Vh1 Rocks So 80’s Greatest Hits Vh1 Music Chill Out Vh1 Hits Vh1 Music Aerobic Top 10 Nelly Furtado Music For The Masses Vh1 Pop Chart Vh1 Music Music For The Masses Vh1 Music Vh1 Viewer’s Jukebox Rock Vh1 Viewer’s Jukebox Rock Top 10 Nelly Furtado

00:05 Cow & Chicken 00:30 Cramp Twins 00:55 George Of The Jungle 01:20 Adrenalini Brothers 01:45 Eliot Kid 02:10 Ed, Edd N Eddy 02:35 Class Of 3000 03:00 The Powerpuff Girls 03:15 Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends 03:40 The Secret Saturdays 04:05 Codename: Kids Next Door 04:30 Ben 10 04:55 Best Ed 05:20 Samurai Jack 05:45 Cramp Twins 06:10 Eliot Kid 06:35 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 07:00 Codename: Kids Next Door 07:25 Chowder 07:50 Best Ed 08:15 Chop Socky Chooks 08:40 Ben 10: Alien Force 09:05 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 09:30 Knd 60 10:30 Squirrel Boy 10:55 Robotboy 11:20 Camp Lazlo 11:45 The Powerpuff Girls 12:10 Class Of 3000 12:35 Ed, Edd N Eddy 13:00 Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends 13:25 Codename: Kids Next Door 13:50 Ben 10 14:15 My Gym Partner’s A Monkey 14:40 Squirrel Boy 15:05 Eliot Kid 15:35 Casper’s Scare School 16:00 Skunk Fu! 16:25 Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes 16:50 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 17:15 The Secret Saturdays 17:40 Ben 10: Alien Force 18:05 Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends 18:30 Squirrel Boy 19:00 Star Wars: The Clone Wars 19:25 Chop Socky Chooks 19:50 My Gym Partner’s A Monkey 20:05 The Powerpuff Girls 20:30 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack

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Friday, April 16, 2010

Pamela Anderson owes almost $500,000 in taxes

Sienna Miller offers beauty tips

S

ienna Miller’s best beauty tip is to use bronzer under the jaw-line. The stunning actress says it’s important to add color below the chin as it adds “depth” to the face and helps it to blend in with the rest of the

body. She said: “Always bronze underneath your jaw-line - it contours the face and adds depth.

The bridge of the nose, cheekbones and temples are also essential.” Sienna - who is famed for her laid-back style - also says it’s important to wear a fragrance everyday as it helps to change your mood. She told vogue.com: “Fragrances have a nostalgic element to them and are an important part of who you are and how you present yourself. They are a sensory weapon and have the power to change your mood. I like the citrus notes of the BOSS Orange fragrances - they are young, fresh and uplifting.” Sienna is often voted one of the world’s most beautiful women but says there’s only a couple of rituals she swears by. She said: “I have facials by Linda Meredith and I get my hair colored with Marie at Sally Hershberger when I am in New York or Leister at John Frieda if I am in London.”

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he former Playboy model and ‘Baywatch’ actress was sent a demand for $493,144, largely in Personal Income Tax in April last year and has been named by the California Franchise Tax Board as still owing the sum in its annual list of taxpayers who owe the board over $100,000.

Pamela, 42, and her lawyer, Robert T Leonard, have declined to comment on the claims. However, the actress has previously defended herself against financial “mistakes”. She said: “Mistakes may have been made in calculating taxes owed.” The star also faces a legal battle in New York, with US clothing firm Maggy London International filing proceedings over the name of Pamela’s own fashion line. The firm claim the actress ignored their demands to change the

name of her A*Muse clothing label, launched earlier this year - insisting it infringes the trademark of their Muse clothing line, which they registered in 2002. Last year, it was rumored Pamela was in financial difficulties, after building companies said she owed them $1 million for renovations made on her house in Malibu, California. However the blonde beauty issued a statement at the time rubbishing the claims. She said: “I’m financially secure. It is true that I am in a dispute with some of the contractors working on my home. “My lawyers are reviewing the work done to see if the bills are fair. If they are, they’ll be paid. If they aren’t, they won’t be.” Singer Ron Isley of the Isley Brothers is also on California Franchise Tax Board’s list, owing over $303,000.

Gwyneth Paltrow gets guitar lessons from hubby

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he actress plays an alcoholic country singer in her forthcoming movie ‘Love Don’t Let Me Down’ and admits she was “embarrassed” when she asked Coldplay frontman Chris Martin - with who she has a fiveyear-old daughter Apple and fouryear-old son Moses - to help her master the instrument. She said: “He was so helpful, so sweet and encouraging. I mean, it’s embarrassing to be playing in front of your husband, especially when he’s in one of the world’s most successful bands. “He is so great because he’s so supportive of me as an artist... I really lucked

out with him. He’s deeply lovely and special.” The 37-year-old star gave up exercising and relaxed her strict diet regime when making the movie in Nashville, and admits her figure has suffered as a result of the calorific treats she ate. She added to America’s Harper’s Bazaar magazine: “I was so bad with the food and alcohol in Nashville. “If you saw me naked now compared to what I looked like when I did ‘Iron Man 2’, when I was exercising every day... I’ll get it back together, but I’ve never eaten so much fried food and white flour in my life, ever.”

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Friday, April 16, 2010

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he Oscar-winning actress stripped off for her first ever nude photo shoot for Allure magazine but admits she wasn’t daunted by the prospect because she’s confident with her body. The 40-year-old beauty said: “That’s when your dancing days and being in theatre pay off. When you’re doing a quick change, you don’t give a damn who sees you.” While Catherine - who has two children, Dylan, nine, and six-year-old Carys, with husband Michael Douglas - has no problems

getting naked she recently admitted it’s harder to do now the family live in New York rather than Bermuda. She said: “In Bermuda, the children were like naked, opening the back door. So was I. Just running out into the garden. It’s really hard to do that in Central Park!” Welsh-born Catherine says the family are used to moving around and admits they would love to sail around the world in a boat. She added: “I wouldn’t be surprised if we do that.”

Lady Gaga wants to be a role model

Catherine Zeta-Jones has no problem getting naked

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he ‘Telephone’ singer claims she feels a responsibility to her fans and therefore tries not to be a “self-obsessed” artist like some of her contemporaries. She said: “When you’re in the public eye, you’re a role model whether you want to be or not, and I want to be. “I’m not one of those self-obsessed artists who don’t care about their fans.

It’s not just about the music. I look out into the O2 and there are 18,000 screaming young people and I have a responsibility to them - and you’re an idiot if you don’t know that.” The 23-year-old star also admits she is celibate at the moment and thinks avoiding sex is fine if you don’t have the time to get to know a person. She told You magazine: “I’m single right now and I’ve chosen to be single because I don’t have the time to get to know anybody. So it’s ok not to have sex, it’s ok to get to know people. I’m celibate. Celibacy’s fine.” The star recently revealed she wrote the first single for her new album while on the UK leg of her Monster Ball Tour in Liverpool. She said to her fansite Gagadaily.com: “I’ve already written the first single for the new album and I promise you, that this album is the greatest of my career. It is the anthem for our generation. “I wrote it for you because of you, when I was in Liverpool, I wrote the greatest music I’ve ever written.”

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Amanda Seyfried worries about her looks every day

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he ‘Dear John’ actress admits she takes a lot of pride in her looks and knows she has to work hard in order to maintain her svelte figure. She said: “I’m in my mid-20s and I know how to look after my body on my own. I clearly like being fit and thin, but it’s not thin without a hell of a lot of work. I run and exercise a lot and then I eat. But I’m not going to deny that I don’t think about it every day, it’s always on my mind.”

The 24-year-old beauty has previously said is important for her to be slim because of the job

she has even though she sometimes finds it hard. She said: “If I didn’t run and work out, there’s no way I would be this thin. But I have to stay in shape because I’m an actress.

It’s f**ked up and it’s twisted, but I wouldn’t get the roles otherwise. If I’d been bigger, I don’t think they would have cast me for ‘Mamma Mia!’. “If I have to diet, it’s salad with protein, salmon and broccoli, no desert.

But what kind of life is that? So I work out a lot and I’m just pretty moderate about what I eat.”

Jessica Simpson wants a ‘normal’ boyfriend The singer - who has refused to confirm reports she is dating Smashing Pumpkins singer Billy Corgan - has admitted she isn’t picky when it comes to men and hopes to settle down with someone who is ordinary.

She told In Touch Weekly: “I’m just looking for somebody that’s normal! That’s it!” However, the 29-year-old beauty’s mother Tina has different ideas and is desperate for the singer-and-actress to meet someone with a good career who will

look after her for life. She explained: “A doctor. A businessman. Someone who will take care of me when I’m old. That’s good!” Jessica has gone out of her way to appear “normal” recently, after she posed on the front cover of America’s Marie Claire magazine without any make up on.

She said: “It was important for me to make sure they absolutely did not retouch.”

Since then the blonde beauty has been experimenting with different hairstyles and

Naomi Watts wants a daughter

tried out a number of wigs - one which was based on Spice Girls star Victoria Beckham’s cropped locks - while on a plane with her stylist Ken Paves and her mother. He said: “We had a ball. We annoyed everyone on the flight because we laughed. Tina was wearing it. I was wearing it. We put it on the flight attendants. People see us and say, ‘Oh, not them again!’”

— BangShowbiz

he ‘Mulholland Drive’ actress - who has two sons, Sasha, two, and 15-monthold Samuel, with long-term partner Liev Schreiber - is considering extending her family further but is worried she will have another boy. She said: “If I could guarantee myself a girl, I’d say yes to having more children... but I’d be sure to have another boy.”

The 41-year-old actress also admitted she constantly questions her choices when she is trying to juggle her family life with her career, but knows in her heart she is doing her best.

She added to She magazine: “I see myself as any other working woman. Every day I’m struggling to get it right, do the best I can, make the right choices for work, be a good mother and have time for my relationship with Liev. I’m never sure whether I’m doing any of it right, but I’ve finally got to the age where at least I know that I’m just doing my best.”

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Friday, April 16, 2010

In this undated portrait, author Mark Twain, born Samuel Langhorne Clemens is shown with his family at Hartford House in Hartford, Connecticut.

— AP

A century later: The death of Mark Twain remembered M

ark Twain died here on April 21, a century ago. He was 74, and in failing health, his heart - his tobacco heart, he called it - so weak that he interrupted a restful cruise to Bermuda to return and die at the house on a hill built for him just two years earlier. “Mark Twain is dead!” cried The San Francisco Examiner. “In those four words America announces to a weeping world the loss of her foremost literary man.” It had been a quarter of a century since Twain’s classic “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” but Twain remained the country’s most famous and beloved writer, the slouching, white-suited, frizzy-haired humorist and storyteller. The records of Twain’s final days were in bold headlines, with Twain’s doctor providing updates carried by news outlets around the world.

“Yesterday was a bad day for the little knot of anxious watchers at the bedside,” The Associated Press reported just before his death, adding that health concerns had led Twain to cut his smoking from 20 cigars a day to four. “No deprivation was a greater sorrow to him. He tried to smoke on the steamer while returning from Bermuda, and only gave it up because he was too feeble to draw on his pipe. Even on his deathbed, when he had passed the point of speech and it was no longer certain that his ideas were lucid, he would make the motion of waving a cigar, and, smiling, would expel empty air from under the mustache still stained with smoke.”

Twain had suffered a decade of trials. He lost his beloved wife, Olivia, and two of his children, one of whom - Jean - died suddenly at the end of 1909, a tragedy that led Twain to vow he would never write again.

Bad investments had forced him out of his eccentric Victorian mansion in Hartford and brought him to Redding, where he lived in a Tuscan-style house he named Stormfield, in part for his story “Extract from Captain Stormfield’s Visit to Heaven.” Age saddened, but did not silence him. He was a leading opponent of the war in the Philippines and other military actions by the emerging American empire. He composed some of his toughest short pieces, such as the novella “The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg,” or his mocking inquiry into Christian Science and an even harder hit on religion in “Letters From the Earth,” in which Satan documents the follies of man’s worship.

“He prays for help, and favor, and protection, every day; and does it with hopefulness and confidence, too, although no prayer of his has ever been answered,” Satan reports. Twain was fascinated, puzzled and eventually resolved about the nature of humans. “What Is Man?” was a Socratic dialogue in which an older man teases a

In this undated portrait released

by The Mark Twain House & Museum, author Mark Twain, is shown. — AP younger man for believing we had control of our actions. God or no God, we are who we are, our lives determined by forces beyond us - by history and by nature.

“You can’t eradicate your disposition, nor any rag of it,” the older man advises. “You can only put a pressure on it and keep it down and quiet.” Mark Twain, the pen name Samuel Langhorne Clemens concocted for himself, was a serious man who couldn’t help but make folks laugh. As surely as Benjamin Franklin was the founding father who “winks” at us, as biographer Walter Isaacson once wrote, Twain’s eye catches ours like no other “classic” American author.

He is unstuffy, one of us. The line that begins Chapter 1 of “Huck Finn” (“You don’t know about me without you have read a book by the name of ‘The Adventures of Tom Sawyer’; but that ain’t no matter”) seems no less cheeky and disruptive than it did 125 years ago. Favorite maxims such as “an uneasy conscience is a hair in the mouth” need no updating or explanation.

Born in Florida, Missouri, in 1835, and raised, for the most part, in Hannibal, Twain was bred in a

border state, sharpened in the West and polished in the East. He told wild tales, wrote merciless parodies and made poetry out of his rustic youth. He worked as a river pilot on the Mississippi (according to river pilots, the author once explained, “mark twain” means the water is at a safe depth to navigate), a journalist in San Francisco and carried on everywhere from New Orleans to Nevada.

Twain, by nature, was a contradictory soul, a drinker and freethinker who married a proper Christian; a satirist and protester who wanted to be loved.

The young Twain, like Huck Finn, may have dreaded home and hearth, but the elder author had warmed to a steady roof over his head. “The Redding house was a dream home,” says biographer Michael Shelden, author of “Mark Twain: Man in White,” published this spring. “He had been without a proper home for well over 10 years, because he had to leave the house in Hartford. For all that time, he was a wanderer.” Lured to Redding by authorversefier Albert Bigelow Paine, who became his biographer and neighbor, Twain lived a modern life.

His house in Hartford was among the first private residences to have a telephone. In Redding, he had his own heating system and water supply. He was so fascinated by new technology that he happily let himself be filmed by Thomas Edison, ambling in front of his home and puffing a cigar. The electricity system was so bright that residents were reminded of the glow given off by an all-night factory.

“This is a man who wanted to be a part of the future, who wondered what the world would be like, not so much out of fear, but because he was excited about it,” Shelden says. Redding doesn’t compare to Hannibal as a Twain shrine, but his name is no harder to spot than by visiting the library he helped start, the Mark Twain Library, featuring bronzed sculptures of the writer outside, and his characters and famous sayings painted on the walls inside.

Stormfield burned down in 1923, but a pretty fair replica (privately owned) has been built in its place; much of the 340 acres purchased by Twain has been bought and preserved by Redding. The Redding Roadhouse, a restaurant constructed on the same grounds where a favorite tavern of Twain’s once stood, features a portrait of Twain over the bar room’s fireplace and rents out a “Mark Twain” room for parties. “For many years, Twain’s time in Redding was known but was not a focus. That has changed quite a bit in the present day,” says local historian Brent M. Colley.

A famous author would fit in without notice in 21st-century Redding, a small, well-stocked community where residents have included Leonard Bernstein, Jessica Tandy and Barry Levinson. But in Twain’s day, Redding was an unpaved farming

village, with little more than a train station and a general store. Twain was a shock to Redding if only because he was the first resident who consulted an architect to build his house.

“It was a big deal when he came,” says Twain scholar Kevin McDonnell. “Redding didn’t have a public sewer system. It didn’t have electricity. It was a very rural community and not the enclave of wealthy New Yorkers that it is today.” Until the death of his daughter, Twain was a social man. He befriended several local schoolgirls and dubbed them the “angelfish.” He chatted with farmers and hosted great names from out of town, such as Helen Keller, whose caretaker, Annie Sullivan, Twain helped immortalize by giving her the nickname that became the title of a play and movie, “The Miracle Worker.” Twain worked hard to set his story down.

He not only cooperated with a biographer, but wrote hundreds of pages for a planned autobiography. At the same time, he became obsessed with Shakespeare and the latest theories over whether the Bard even existed, tickled that so little was known about the life of a writer he acknowledged as his superior.

“When Shakespeare died in Stratford it was not an event,” Twain wrote. “It made no more stir in England than the death of any other forgotten theater-actor would have made. Nobody came down from London; there were no lamenting poems, no eulogies, no national tears, there was merely silence, and nothing more.” Twain knew death well and thought closely about it. He told jokes, of course (“the report of my death was an exaggeration”; “there is no humor in heaven”), but also reflected.

Death was a challenge (“dying is nothing to a really great and brave man”) and a conclusion. It was a relief and a responsibility, especially for the famous.

“A distinguished man should be as particular about his last words as he is about his last breath,” he noted. “He should write them out on a slip of paper and take the judgment of his friends on them.

He should never leave such a thing to the last hour of his life, and trust to an intellectual spurt at the last moment to enable him to say something smart with his latest gasp and launch into eternity with grandeur.” Twain’s final words were brief, abbreviated, unwritten, uncertain. Laying in his death bed, he indicated a couple of unfinished manuscripts and whispered to Paine, his biographer, “Throw away.” Hours later, he held the hand of his remaining child, Clare, told her goodbye, and added, apparently, “If we meet ...” What remained, according to Paine, was a “fluttering sigh, and the breath that had been unceasing through seventy-four tumultuous years had stopped forever.” — AP

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Friday, April 16, 2010

he Greek national opera has been forced to cancel performances at a German music festival next month so as to save money in the cash strapped country, a spokeswoman for the opera said yesterday.

“We have no economic margin to allow us to travel abroad, even for the very important Wiesbaden festival,” the spokeswoman said.

The opera company was due to perform Giacomo Puccini’s “La Boheme” and Richard Strauss’s “Ariadne auf Naxos” on May 7-8.

“Our finances are at their lowest and we already cancelled a tour in March in Liverpool” in Britain, the spokeswoman said. The Greek national opera now has no foreign dates planned for 2010 as several productions planned for the autumn have also been scrapped. The Greek government has imposed strict budget cuts as the country struggles to bring down a giant public deficit.

The Greek economy shrank by 1.2 percent last year, according to government forecasts.

Greek Culture Minister Pavlos Geroulanos had indicated earlier this month that the national opera could be shut down altogether because of to its crushing debts. “Given the crisis we will have to see whether we will keep the national opera or not,” the minister told Spain’s La Vanguardia daily on April 4 in an interview later reprinted in the Greek press. “We are trying to save it, we want to keep it open, but it has exceeded its budget to such an extent that it will take enormous sacrifices to find funds,” he said.

As minister in charge of tourism and sports, Geroulanos has also prescribed cuts in the 2013 Mediterranean Games which Greece is scheduled to host in the central cities of Volos and Larissa. His top sports supervisor in January announced that the organization’s budget would be cut from 186 million euros (254 million dollars) to 60 million euros.

— AFP

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In this photo provided by Pillsbury, host Oprah Winfrey, smiles as Sue Compton, of Delanco, NJ (left) reacts after being named the winner of the 44th Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest for her Mini Ice Cream Cookie Cups recipe on Wednesday, April 14, 2010, during the ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show,’ in Chicago. Compton’s recipe won a $1 million dollar grand prize and beat out 99 other recipes during the annual contest held in Orlando on Monday. —AP

Ancient scribe’s tomb unearthed in Egypt T he elaborate tomb of an ancient royal scribe has been unearthed in a discovery that Egypt’s chief archaeologist said will help illuminate the relationship between Egypt and its eastern neighbors in antiquity. The intricately decorated tomb belonging to Ken-Amun, who was in charge of overseeing the royal records during the 19th Dynasty (1315-1201 B.C.), was unearthed in the village of Tell

el-Maskhuta, 75 miles (120 kilometers) east of Cairo, said Zahi Hawass, head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.

Tell el-Maskhuta was a settlement in the Ismailia governorate containing a garrison that supplied and armed the ancient Egyptian army before the troops went on military campaigns east of the border. Ken-Amun’s tomb is that first Ramesside tomb to be discovered in Lower Egypt and

In this undated photo released by the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities on Wednesday, April 14, 2010, details are seen in the tomb of Ken-Amun, an overseer of the royal records during the 19th Dynasty (13151201 B.C.), near Ismailia, 75 miles (120 kilometers) east of Cairo in Egypt.

In this photo, the above-ground site of the tomb of Ken-Amun, is seen. — AP photos

Netherlands hosts first-ever exhibit of royal trains

Greek opera cancels German music fest to save money

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oors with gilded handles leading to an Art Nouveau lounge, Louis XV-style furniture and a 148-year-old locomotive: remnants of some of the world’s oldest royal trains are on display in the Dutch city of Utrecht. From Britain, Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, the Czech Republic and Portugal-the trains were brought together for the first-ever exhibition of its kind, and opened to the public in the Dutch Railway Museum yesterday.

Entitled: “Royal Class, regal journeys”, the exhibition was officially opened on Wednesday by the Dutch monarch, Queen Beatrix, who arrived for the occasion in her own private train from The Hague.

Hosted in a colonial-era station, the exhibition starts with the Dutch royal family’s 19th century waiting room at The Hague Central Station, restored in Utrecht with all its wood paneling and a fireplace decorated with tiles made from the Netherlands’ famous blue-and-

D

is built from mud brick, consisting of a rectangular room with a stone-domed ceiling.

Hawass, in a statement released Wednesday, said the inscriptions would aid in the understanding of Egypt’s relationships with its neighbors to the east.

white glazed Delft pottery.

A green train constructed in 1862 for the Portuguese queen Maria Pia is the only specimen on show in its entirety. A gift from her father, Italian king Victor Emmanuel II, the 33-metre-long (36-yard) train comprises the steam locomotive and its tender (a compartment that held the coal and water), the queen’s carriage and another wagon. The queen’s coachlavishly upholstered in gold and red velvet and cream-colored silk brocade, has a sleeping compartment with a porcelain toilet and a separate compartment for her attendants. The smallest wagon in the exhibit, all of 6.4 meters long, is also “the oldest preserved royal wagon in the world,” museum curator Jos Zijlstra told AFP. Constructed in 1842 for the excursions of the English queen Adelaide, it resembles an oldfashioned stage coach and included an innovative feature: a foldaway bed. —AFP

Inside the tomb, the walls are decorated with reliefs of funerary scenes, including Chapter 12 of the Book of Dead an ancient text intended to help the deceased in the afterlife - and a scene of women mourning.

The wall’s inscriptions tell that

the scribe’s wife was called Isis and worked as a musician for the God Atum. A large limestone pillar also was discovered depicting the God Set, the god of darkness and chaos, in front of the 19th Dynasty king of the time, whose name was not written. On the same pillar, the name of the capital of the Hyksos - an Asiatic people who invaded the eastern Nile Delta in the 12th Dynasty was found.

People continued to use the site as a cemetery, and 35 Roman-era graves were also discovered during the same excavation. The Supreme Council of Antiquities also said that a stolen toe belonging to the father of King Tutankhamun has been returned to Egypt.

The toe of King Akhenaton, which was stolen in 1907 during the examination of the pharaoh’s mummy, was returned by Frank Ruehli, a DNA specialist, according to Hawass. Hawass made the announcement Wednesday after signing an agreement with Switzerland to combat smuggling antiquities. — AP

Dutch Queen Beatrix (center) steps out of the replica of the saloon car No 1, belonging to Dutch Queen Mother Anna Paulowna, during the opening on April 14, 2010 of the ‘Royal Class, regal journeys’ exhibition at the Dutch Railway Museum in Utrecht. — AFP

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Friday, April 16, 2010

Canadian tribute to the art of the perfect turban I

n a banqueting hall in British Columbia, hundreds watched enthralled as the fierce competitors faced off to tie the perfect Sikh turban and pay tribute to the colorful headgear. “A good turban is all about practice, neatness and experience,” said Ravi Sharma, engrossed in his art as about 2,000 people looked on. Some 75 competitors were taking part in the eighth annual turban competition, the largest in North America.

The colors were bright, loud and the designs intricate as the competitors, all Sikhs, either from or descended from India’s northern Punjab state, whipped up a variety of turban styles. Sharma, a 35-year-old welder, says he can tie about six turban styles, including those for Sikhs in the military and another for performers.

“The cloth measures about five to six meters and it should never hit the ground (out of respect for what it represents). The judges are looking at speed, neatness of the turban and if the hair is covered. It takes me about six or seven minutes.” Sharma was competing in the 31-45 years category.

Despite hoping to improve on his bronze medal last year, he again finished third this year, behind winner Gurpreet Singh Tung, a 32-year-old truck driver originally from the Punjab village of Tugal near Ludhiana, and runner-up Omandeep Singh.

While children ran around the vast hall, a troupe of sari-clad women and girls performed a traditional dance. Harjit Singh Gill, one of the organizers sporting a saffron turban, a favored color for celebrations, said the event has grown rapidly since its first year when 400 people attended. In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks when turban-wearers faced some suspicion, the contest was created to promote a positive awareness of the headgear worn by millions of Sikhs, Muslims and others worldwide.

Gill called the turban a symbol of the Sikh faith, representing honor and pride. He added Sikhs used to wear it battle, where it was used to protect the head, both in India as well as in the western Canadian province, home to about 250,000 South Asians. In Surrey, the largest municipality in the Greater Vancouver district, the 2006 census listed 107,810 IndoCanadians. Over the years Sikhs have legally

A Sikh boy has a turban tied over his head (left) during a gathering for World Turban Day at the Gurdwara Pipli Sahib Sikh shrine in Amritsar. (Right) In Amritsar, India, with Baba ‘Avtar’ Singh, a member of the traditional Sikh religious warriors’ Nihang Army, clad in a 300 meter-long turban, speaks as he attends the 91st anniversary of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. — AFP won the right to be exempt from wearing a motorcycle helmet in favor of a turban, and are also contesting that they have to wear them in some industrial jobs.

Local constable Baltej Dhillon became the first turbaned East Indian to join the national police force in 1990, earning the moniker “Turbo Cop”. Sukh Dhaliwal, a Liberal member of Parliament, says the traditional employment of the Indian community, such as farming and lumber mills, has changed as young East Indians, first-generation Canadians, enter every profession.

While Sikhs have been in Canada for over 100 years, he said it was the championing of a multicultural society by former Prime Ministers Lester Pearson and Pierre Trudeau that opened the door for the mass Indian migration that started in the early 1970s.

Today, Canada is the second most favored destination for Indian migrants after Britain.

“This is a very welcoming nation where every individual has equal opportunity,” said Dhaliwal, who emigrated from the Punjab in 1984. “They come here with hope, faith.

From that faith, hope we know that everything becomes possible for them so that is a success story.”

Dhaliwal, who owns a land surveying engineering company, says Indian migrants have done particularly well in Surrey, where he says 52 percent of the property is owned by people of Indian origin. “If you look at Indian history, and the history of India as well, Sikhs have always gone to underdeveloped parts of the country. They have worked very hard, and in helping each other, like a bank, that has helped open

opportunities.”

Raghbir Bhinder is among those who have prospered in Canada. After living in Slough, England, for nearly 30 years, he moved to Surrey in 1996 and now has four insurance offices and 50 staff. The native of Jallander in the Punjab said despite his success, his children have all rejected wearing a turban.

He says his own hair is about two feet long and has never been cut, according to his faith, although he admits to snipping his beard, something that should also be left natural. “My kids grew up in England.

Sometimes they don’t speak the Indian language, so it is hard to explain to them the traditions,” he said. “They respect (the turban), but they are sorry they can’t do it.

Young kids nowadays are more interested in shaving their head.” — AFP

Mel Gibson, Russian girlfriend break up A model wears a creation by Mexico’s designers Jesus Ibarra and Bertholdo at the Mercedes Benz Fashion show in Mexico City, Wednesday, April 14, 2010. — AP

A

ctor Mel Gibson and his Russian-born singer girlfriend were reported on Wednesday to have split up five months after the birth of their baby daughter. Celebrity websites People.com and UsWeekly.com, among others, cited unnamed sources as saying the “Braveheart” actor, 54, and Oksana Grigorieva, 39, had gone their separate ways some weeks ago. Gibson’s spokesman declined to comment on the reports.

The Oscar-winning actor and director of blockbuster “The Passion of the Christ” went public about his romance with Grigorieva shortly after filing for divorce in April 2009 from his wife of nearly 30 years, Robyn.

People.com said the pair “just drifted apart” and quoted an unnamed friend as saying the split was amicable and that they hoped to raise their baby, Lucia, together. Grigorieva, a classical pianist and model, released a debut pop music album in August. Gibson directed the music videos for four of the songs. She also has a teenage son with former James Bond actor Timothy Dalton. Gibson, who made headlines worldwide in 2006 for a drunk driving arrest and anti-Semitic tirade, returned to movie acting in January with the thriller “Edge of Darkness” after an eight-year break. He has seven children from his first marriage. — Reuters

An Indian bride sits with her groom during a mass marriage ceremony for some 125 poverty-stricken couples from the India-Pakistan border areas, at Gurdwara Baba Jallan Dass in the village of Naushehra Dhala, some 50kms from Amritsar yesterday. Marriage is a costly affair in India prompting some parents to have their children married at mass marriages, allowing them to save money on organizational costs. — AFP

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Major Picasso exhibit to open in New York City P

ablo Picasso fans, rejoice. The Metropolitan Museum of Art will soon be exhibiting its complete holdings of the Spanish artist’s paintings, drawings, sculptures and ceramics, plus 200 works on paper. And auction powerhouses Sotheby’s and Christie’s are offering two rare Picassos in early May not seen on the art market in decades. One could surpass the current $104.17 million record. The expansive Picasso exhibit, starting April 27, will be a first for the museum. It will include “The Actor,” which underwent conservation after being accidentally damaged at the Met in January.

In preparation, conservators used X-rays and infrared reflectography to closely examine all of the museum’s Picasso paintings and discovered that he more frequently painted over other paintings than originally thought, said exhibition curator Gary Tinterow. The practice, known to art specialists, is not widely familiar to the public. All the compositions in the exhibition “show traces of revision and correction,” he said. Some have earlier works by Picasso underneath while others are painted over the

works of other artists.

In creating “La Coiffure,” for instance, Picasso painted over at least four compositions and several beginnings of compositions, said Tinterow. The practice saved Picasso money “at a time when he was very poor ... when he wasn’t selling very much,” added Tinterow.

In the case of “The Actor,” which depicts an acrobat posed dramatically against an abstract background, the museum discovered that Picasso had painted the image on the back of a previously painted canvas after covering the earlier work with heavy paint.

The painting on the reverse side appears to be a landscape and could have been painted by him or another artist. The 1904-1905 oil underwent conservation after sustaining a 6inch (15-centimeter) gash in the lower righthand corner when a museum visitor lost her balance and fell on it.

The Met exhibition, comprising 34 paintings, 58 drawings and 12 sculptures and ceramics, represents every period of Picasso’s long career - from his self-portrait “Yo,” made when he was 19 years old to “Standing Nude and Seated Musketeer” when

This picture provided by the Metropolitan Museum of Art shows Pablo Picasso’s 1905-06 oil painting ‘Gertrude Stein’.

he was 87. Highlights also include the famous 1906 portrait of Gertrude Stein, which was a bequest from the American writer in 1946 and the Met’s first Picasso acquisition.

Hundreds of Picasso’s works on paper, which have rarely, if ever, been shown at the museum, will be part of the exhibit. And a video of nine Picasso paintings will demonstrate how the artist revised his compositions, styles and themes in reworking specific paintings. The exhibition could help draw even more attention to Christie’s and Sotheby’s sales.

The two paintings have an impeccable provenance, one belonging to President John F Kennedy’s sister, Patricia Kennedy Lawford, and the other to California art patron Frances Lasker Brody. “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust,” a striking 1932 painting of Picasso’s mistress Marie-Therese Walker, is estimated to bring $70 million to $90 million at Christie’s on May 4. Exhibited only once in the United States in 1961 and coming on the heels of the Met’s exhibition, the work could potentially go even higher.

“Both thematically and formally, it’s a masterpiece of the highest order,” said

This picture shows Pablo Picasso’s 1900 selfportrait ‘Yo’. — AP photos

Christie’s expert Conor Jordan. “There aren’t any Picassos like this remaining in private collections.” Brody purchased the painting in the 1950s. Part of the sale proceeds will benefit the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California, where she sat on the board. At its May 5 sale, Sotheby’s is offering “Femme au Chapeau, Buste,” a 1965 work inspired by Jacqueline Roque, the last love of Picasso’s life. It hung for 50 years in the Manhattan apartment of Patricia Kennedy Lawford and is estimated to sell for $8 million to $12 million. The painting is being sold by Lawford’s estate.

The “work was not public knowledge until we recently published our catalog,” said Emmanuel Di-Donna, vice chairman of Sotheby’s Impressionist and Modern Art. The current record for a work by Picasso is $104.17 million for “Boy With a Pipe (The Young Apprentice),” attained in 2004 at Sotheby’s New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, citing a long-standing policy of not commenting on acquisitions, declined to say if it was interested in buying the works. — AP

This undated photograph provided by the Metropolitan Museum of Art shows Pablo Picasso as photographed by Man Ray in 1933. — AP

Bookings open for mega Monet exhibition

F

ive months before the opening of the first major Claude Monet exhibition in 30 years, Paris’s Grand Palais yesterday announced the opening of bookings from next week. Scheduled to run from September 22 to January 24, 2011, the show will be the biggest dedicated to

the Impressionist master since 1980, gathering 200 works from both French and foreign museums. With at least half a million visitors expected, Internet bookings open from Monday, April 19 on www.monet.com. The show, a major event on this year’s Paris arts calendar, will trace the 19th

century painter’s long career, from his first landscapes in Normandy and in the Paris region in the 1870s through to his iconic depictions of his garden in Giverny at the end of the century. A major Picasso show at the Grand Palais in 2008 pulled in 784,000 visitors. — AFP

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Friday, April 16, 2010

Bulls clinch unclaimed playoff spot Mavs grab second seed in West

lost for the seventh time in 10 games.

CHARLOTTE: The Chicago Bulls clinched the NBA’s last unclaimed playoff spot on Wednesday night, as Derrick Rose scored 27 points and Joakim Noah added 21 points and 13 rebounds in a 98-89 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats. The Bulls closed the regular season with a three-game winning streak to beat out Toronto for the right to face Eastern Conference top seed Cleveland.

Needing a win or a Raptors loss to New York to get in, the Bulls quickly took it to the Bobcats, never trailing and leading by as many as 18 points. Tyrus Thomas scored 16 for the Bobcats, who had already locked up the seventh seed in the East and a first-round matchup with Orlando.

Magic 125, 76ers 111 At Orlando, Jameer Nelson had 21 points and Vince Carter scored 17 as Orlando broke the single-season record for 3-pointers made in a season. Dwight Howard added 15 points and 12 rebounds to help the Magic finish with 841 from beyond the arc and the NBA’s second-best record. Marreese Speights’ 23 points capped a sorry Sixers season and perhaps the last game in Eddie Jordan’s tenure as coach.

Hawks 99, Cavaliers 83 At Atlanta, Jeff Teague set career highs with 24 points and 15 assists as Atlanta cruised past a Cavaliers lineup missing LeBron James. The Cavs rested James and Shaquille O’Neal the night off. At the other end of the court, Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford watched in street clothes; the Hawks played only one regular starter, Marvin Williams. Both teams were already locked into their playoff seedings.

Warriors 122, Trail Blazers 116 At Portland, Oregon, Stephen Curry scored 42 points as Golden State finished its season with victory over playoff-bound Portland. The injury-depleted Trail Blazers finished as the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference and will face the third-seeded Phoenix in the first round. The Suns defeated the Utah Jazz 100-86. Rookie Jeff Pendergraph led the Blazers with 23 points.

Heat 94, Nets 86, 2OT At Miami, Michael Beasley had 25 points and 13 rebounds and Mario Chalmers scored 15 points as Miami wrapped up the No 5 seed in the Eastern Conference. The Nets became just the fifth team in NBA history to lose 70 games in a season. Dorell Wright and James Jones each added 11 points for Miami, which played without Dwyane Wade, Udonis Haslem and Jermaine O’Neal and will meet Boston in the first round. Yi Jianlian scored 23 points and pulled down 15 rebounds for New Jersey.

Wizards 98, Pacers 97 At Washington, Andray Blatche scored 26 points for the hosts in a season-ending game for a pair of lottery-bound teams.

Rookie Cedric Jackson made a 3-pointer

NBA results/standings WASHINGTON: Results and final standings on Wednesday in the National Basketball Association: Atlanta 99, Cleveland 83; Milwaukee 106, Boston 95; Chicago 98, Charlotte 89; Dallas 96, San Antonio 89; New Orleans 123, Houston 115; Miami 94, New Jersey 86 (OT); Detroit 103, Minnesota 98; Oklahoma City 114, Memphis 105; Orlando 125, Philadelphia 111; Toronto 131, New York 113; Washington 98, Indiana 97; LA Clippers 107, LA Lakers 91; Golden State 122, Portland 116; Phoenix 100, Utah 86.

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT Boston 50 32 .610 Toronto 40 42 .488 NY Knicks 29 53 .354 Philadelphia 27 55 .329 New Jersey 12 70 .146 Central Division Cleveland 61 21 .744 Milwaukee 46 36 .561 Chicago 41 41 .500 Indiana 32 50 .390 Detroit 27 55 .329 Southeast Division Orlando 59 23 .720 Atlanta 53 29 .646 Miami 47 35 .573 Charlotte 44 38 .537 Washington 26 56 .317 Western Conference Northwest Division Denver 53 29 .646 Utah 53 29 .646 Portland 50 32 .610 Oklahoma City 50 32 .610 Minnesota 15 67 .183 Pacific Division LA Lakers 57 25 .695 Phoenix 54 28 .659 LA Clippers 29 53 .354 Golden State 26 56 .317 Sacramento 25 57 .305 Southwest Division Dallas 55 27 .671 San Antonio 50 32 .610 Houston 42 40 .512 Memphis 40 42 .488 New Orleans 37 45 .451

GB 10 21 23 38 15 20 29 34 6 12 15 33 3 3 38 3 28 31 32 5 13 15 18

POTLAND: Portland Trail Blazers Jeff Pendergraph (middle) scores as Golden States’ Reggie Williams (right) and Monta Ellis watch during the second half of their NBA basketball game in Portland. —AP with 1:31 to play to give the Wizards the lead, and the scoreboard didn’t budge the rest of the way. Danny Granger missed a 15footer at the buzzer that would have given the Pacers the win.

Thunder 114, Grizzlies 105 At Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant scored 31 points to finish the season as the youngest scoring champion in NBA history. The 21year-old Durant finished with an average of 30.1 points, 0.4 ahead of LeBron James, and supplanted 22-year-old Max Zaslofsky of the 1947-48 Chicago Stags as the youngest scoring champ in NBA history. The Thunder let most of a 27-point lead dwindle away before closing out their 50th win of the season. They will meet the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the playoffs. Rudy Gay scored 25 points and Zach Randolph had 21 points and 11 rebounds for his 57th double-double of the season as the Grizzlies lost for the ninth time in their final 11 games.

Raptors 131, Knicks 113 At Toronto, DeMar DeRozan scored a career-high 24 points and Andrea Bargnani also scored 24 for Toronto, which owned the tiebreaker with Chicago and would have earned the No. 8 seed had the teams finished with the same record. Amir Johnson scored 21 points, Sonny Weems had 18, Jose

Calderon had 15 and Marco Belinelli 14 for the Raptors. Toronto’s 131 points were a season high.

Mavericks 96, Spurs 89 At Dallas, Jason Kidd and Jason Terry led a 16-2 run at the end of the first quarter, putting the Mavericks ahead for the game and setting up a first-round playoff matchup between these teams. Dallas clinched the No 2 seed in the Western Conference and San Antonio the seventh. Before tipoff, Mavs owner Mark Cuban jokingly said this season finale was “Game Minus-1” of that series and that was before the Spurs helped ensure the matchup by giving Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili the night off. Both were on the initial lineup turned in by coach Gregg Popovich, but neither ended up even sitting on the bench.

Celtics 106, Bucks 95 At Boston, Jerry Stackhouse and Luke Ridnour scored 17 points apiece as the Milwaukee Bucks won their regular-season finale while Boston rested its Big Three in preparation for the playoffs. With Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen sitting out to avoid possible injury, the lack of defense and excitement had spectators moving toward the exits midway through the fourth quarter. Rajon Rondo had 21 points and 15 assists for the Celtics, who

Pistons 103, Timberwolves 98 At Minneapolis, Charlie Villanueva scored 13 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter to help Detroit win on the road. Tayshaun Prince added 20 points for the Pistons, who trailed by 16 points in the third quarter.

Corey Brewer had 27 points and Al Jefferson had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Timberwolves (15-67), who lost 29 of their final 31 games of the season to equal a club record for fewest victories in a season.

Hornets 123, Rockets 115 At Houston, David West had 35 points and 10 rebounds, and rookie Darren Collison added 26 points and 11 assists to lead New Orleans. Marcus Thornton scored 20 points for the Hornets, who won for the second time in their final 14 road games.

Suns 100, Jazz 86 At Salt Lake City, Steve Nash had 11 assists in just three quarters, and Amare Stoudemire finished with 20 points and seven rebounds, as Phoenix earned the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. Channing Frye scored 10 of his 15 points in the second quarter and Goran Dragic added 12 points for the Suns. The Jazz finish fifth in the West and will open the playoffs at Denver, which claimed the Northwest Division with and No. 4 seed by holding the tiebreaker over Utah.

Deron Williams led Utah with 24 points and Mehmet Okur finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds.

Clippers 107, Lakers 91 At Los Angeles, Steve Blake scored 23 points as part of his first career triple-double and Chris Kaman added 22 points as the Clippers ended their season by beating the Lakers. Blake finished with 10 rebounds and 11 assists for the Clippers, who ended with a 29-53 record to miss the postseason for the 15th time in 17 years. Lamar Odom scored 21 points, Pau Gasol had 18 points and 17 rebounds, and Shannon Brown added 18 starting in place of Kobe Bryant. —AP

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NFL to help produce Broadway play NEW YORK: The National Football League is making its first foray into live theatre, helping produce a broadway play about Vince Lombardi. The NFL will serve as a special producing partner of “Lombardi,” which will star Dan Lauria, a regular on the TV show “The Wonder Years” and former college football player and high school coach. “Lombardi” is scheduled to open Oct. 21 at the Circle in the Square Theatre. It will be directed by Tony Award nominee Thomas Kail.

Thongchai, Kim set pace with 64s at China Open SUZHOU: Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee and Kim Do-hoon of South Korea were tied for the firstround lead on eight-under 64 at the China Open yesterday.

Playing alongside Ryder Cup captains Colin Montgomerie (Europe) and Corey Pavin (US) at the Jinji Lake Golf Club, Thongchai made his mark by sinking short putts for birdies at the par-four 16th and par-three 17th. Kim later joined him on top of the leaderboard with birdies at his two closing holes - the eighth and ninth.

Thongchai was back in action after an elbow injury caused him to withdraw in the second round of last week’s US Masters. “If my health stays okay over the next few days I hope to get better and better,” the Thai told reporters.

“I hit a lot of fairways and greens and made a lot of putts today.”

Kim followed up victory on his home tour last week by reeling off eight birdies and an eagle. “I played very well, it was my third 64 in three weeks,” said the Korean.

WOOLLY HATS Woolly hats were the order of the day on a cold and windy morning that must have felt more like Scotland than Suzhou to the early starters but China’s Liang Wenchong and Pablo Larrazabal of Spain set a hot pace. Both players had seven birdies and a bogey to shoot 66s, a score matched later by Briton Jamie Donaldson. One stroke further adrift on 67 were Irish pair Damien McGrane, the 2008 winner, and Peter Lawrie, Hong Soon-sang of South Korea and American Pavin.

World number 16 Henrik Stenson of Sweden and US PGA champion Yang Yong-eun of South Korea carded 68s. Chinese amateur Zhang Jin, 14, the youngest player to qualify for the $2.5 million European Tour event, opened with a creditable 73. The teenager looked very much at home early on, playing a fine tee shot to 15 inches at the par-three sixth and reaching the ninth tee at two under. But he slipped back with bogeys at the ninth, 14th and 18th. —Reuters

“Football and Broadway are both iconic American forms of entertainment, and the NFL is proud to bring these two unique and passionate audiences together under one roof,” said Tracy Perlman, NFL vice president of entertainment marketing and promotions. “Lombardi’s charisma and coaching style were legendary and intensely theatrical.

Football fans will learn more about the dramatic private life of the sports hero for whom the Super Bowl trophy is named, and

Broadway audiences will be captivated by the story of a family chasing the American dream.”

Although the NFL is not putting up any money for the play, it will promote and market “Lombardi” through NFL Network, nfl.com and its teams, specifically the Green Bay Packers. Lombardi won five NFL titles, including the first two Super Bowls, with the Packers.

Lauria will be at next week’s draft and will journey to Green Bay at some point this offseason.

The actor hopes to “get a sense of what Vince Lombardi meant and continues to mean to the fans, particularly in Green Bay,” said Brian McCarthy, NFL vice president of corporate communications. The original concept for the play was brought to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell

by Tony Ponturo, who was behind heavy Anheuser-Busch’s involvement in sports sponsorship and now runs a sports and entertainment management and marketing company.

Ponturo will serve as producer of “Lombardi,” which is based on a book by David Maraniss. Academy Award winner Eric Simonson has written the Broadway adaptation.

The league also is involved with a film project on the Hall of Fame coach that will star Robert De Niro. “There are few actors who could accurately portray the fire, passion and grit of Lombardi,” said Charles Coplin, NFL vice president of programming, “and we’re thrilled to have Robert De Niro on our team.” —AP

Senators surprise Penguins Devils, Sharks upset; Red Wings stumble PITTSBURGH: Erik Karlsson and Chris Kelly scored on power plays in the second period as the Ottawa Senators surprised the Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins with a 5-4 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference first-round series Wednesday. Evgeni Malkin scored twice following penalties on Peter Regin, the first barely 3 minutes into the game, but the Penguins looked mostly flat and

uninspired. Sidney Crosby, who piled up 15 points in his final five regular-season games, had three assists but didn’t get a shot until the third period and the Penguins seemingly unprepared for Ottawa’s defensive pressure - were held to a single shot during a stretch lasting 21 minutes, 53 seconds. Ottawa constantly matched shutdown defensemen Anton Volchenkov and Chris Phillips against the Crosby

line. Kelly also had two assists, and Regin, Jarkko Ruutu and Chris Neil added goals for Ottawa. Craig Adams and Alex Goligoski also scored for Pittsburgh.

Flyers 2, Devils 1 At Newark, New Jersey, Brian Boucher had 23 saves in his first playoff start in eight years as Philadelphia beat New Jersey in Game 1 of their Eastern

Conference series. Chris Pronger and Mike Richards scored secondperiod goals, and the Flyers rode the momentum of claiming the NHL’s last playoff berth on the final day of the regular season to yet another win over New Jersey.

While the Flyers are the No 7 seed in the conference, they won five of six games against the Devils in the regular season and second-seeded New Jersey had few answers in the postseason against a rock-solid Boucher. New Jersey gave its unhappy fans some hope when Travis Zajac scored on a somewhat flubbed slap shot that seemed to bounce in front of Boucher with 2:43 to play. Boucher, however, stopped Patrik Elias in close with about 10 seconds to go and the Flyers cleared the puck out of the zone on the ensuing faceoff.

Avalanche 2, Sharks 1 At San Jose, California, Chris Stewart’s shot deflected off San Jose defender Rob Blake’s skate and into the net with 50 seconds left in regulation to lift Colorado past the Sharks in the opener of the Western Conference firstround series. The loss was just the latest playoff disappointment for the Sharks, who have made a bad habit of following up stellar regular seasons with early postseason exits. San Jose has lost Game 1 at home in its past four playoff series.

With a second-period goal by JohnMichael Liles, 25 saves from playoff novice Craig Anderson and a fortunate bounce off the skate of one of its former star players in Blake, the Avalanche are off to a roaring playoff start. Ryane Clowe scored for San Jose.

PITTSBURGH: Pittsburgh Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin (center) of Russia, celebrates his second-period goal against the Ottawa Senators with teammate Alex Goligoski (3) during an NHL playoff hockey game in Pittsburgh. —AP

Coyotes 3, Red Wings 2 At Glendale, Arizona, Derek Morris broke a tie early in the third period and assisted on two other power-play goals in Phoenix’s victory over Detroit in Game 1 of the Western Conference series. Keith Yandle and Wojtek Wolski also scored, and Ilya Bryzgalov made 38 saves to help the Coyotes win a playoff game for the first time since April 20, 2002, the last year they were in the postseason.

Tomas Holmstrom and Nicklas Lidstrom scored for Detroit. —AP

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Real’s coach won’t throw in the towel

MADRID: Real Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini is refusing to throw in the towel as arch-rivals Barcelona close in on a second straight La Liga title. Following exits from the Champions League and King’s Cup, Real are in danger of ending the campaign with no silverware despite spending close to a quarter of a billion euros ($341 million) in pre-season on players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka.

They trail Barca by six points ahead of their match at mid-table Almeria and also host third-placed Valencia on Sunday but Pellegrini said his side could still dethrone the Catalans. “Any advantage at this stage of the season is significant but we still have 21 points to play for,” he told reporters. “We have to fight for the league title.

Spanish League Preview “The thing I am least concerned about is my future and I am not worried about what can happen,” added the Chilean. “We will sit down at the right moment to make assessments. I have one more year on my contract and I hope to complete it and there has been no indication from the club that it won’t be completed.” If points are dropped against Almeria or Valencia, Madrid’s demanding fans could turn against Pellegrini and president Florentino Perez may decide enough is enough.

The Madrid-based sports media are already speculating about a potential replacement, with Liverpool’s Rafa Benitez, Inter Milan’s Jose Mourinho and Chelsea’s Carlo Ancelotti among the names being mentioned. Attention is also focusing on which players Perez might bid for in the close season. Marca daily reported yesterday, without naming a source, that Real were planning a swoop for Valencia and Spain midfielder David Silva. Bayern Munich’s France playmaker Franck Ribery has also been linked by the media with a move to the Spanish capital.

GLOOMY MADRID European champions Barca, who play at city rivals Espanyol tomorrow, crushed Deportivo Coruna 3-0 at the Nou Camp on Wednesday and have 83 points with six matches remaining. Real, who have a game in hand, are on 77 and Valencia have 56. The mood in the Catalan capital could scarcely be more different to the gloom in Madrid, with Barca and La Liga top scorer Lionel Messi earning praise from all quarters for their spectacular form. With midfielder Xavi controlling the match, Depor became the latest Barca opponents to spend long periods chasing the ball and managed only five shots to the home side’s 21, according to figures on the club’s website (www.fcbarcelona.cat).

Pep Guardiola’s side made 808 passes to Depor’s 275 and if both teams had scored from all their shots on target the result would have been 11-3.

Guardiola said tomorrow’s match at Espanyol was the key game in the run-in to the end of the season and predicted a “terribly difficult” match. “We have to prepare very well because they are serious,” he said. Injured Barca striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is unlikely to be fit although defender Eric Abidal may be available after returning to training this week. — Reuters

Friday, April 16, 2010

Blanc feels the pressure as Bordeaux’s title bid fades MONACO: Marseille’s bid to win the French league is gaining momentum at the right time, while Bordeaux’s defense of its title is fading so badly that Laurent Blanc’s team is in danger of not even qualifying for the Champions League. Wednesday’s 2-1 loss at struggling Le Mans left Blanc feeling exasperated with his players, a third straight defeat seeing Bordeaux drop down to fifth place. A loss at home to Lyon tomorrow would make it difficult to secure a top-three finish. Blanc feels several players have let the team down and are not performing well enough compared to earlier in the season.

“That’s what’s incredible about football, it’s the same players who did so well in the first part of the season,” Blanc said. “At the moment, there are individual mistakes being made in every match.”

Marseille, which is top by five points after its 1-0 win at Sochaux on Wednesday, looks for a sixth league victory in a row when it visits lowly Boulogne. Bordeaux had led Marseille by eight points at the winter break, was still on course for a domestic treble and was also involved in the Champions League after finishing its qualifying group unbeaten and ahead of Juventus and Bayern Munich.

But Bordeaux has won only two of its last 10 league

games, lost the League Cup final to Marseille and was knocked out of the Champions League at the quarterfinal stage by Lyon. Marseille has 65 points after 32 games, five more than Auxerre. Lyon has 58 points and leads fourthplace Montpellier on goal difference, while Bordeaux has 56 points and has played a game less. Lille is one point behind Bordeaux in sixth.

Blanc said he will now play “young and carefree players”

French League Preview against Lyon, meaning he will certainly pick a few players from the youth team to serve as a wake-up call to some of his senior men.

Lyon coach Claude Puel will be without defender JeanAlain Boumsong (calf), midfielder Jean II Makoun (adductor) and midfielder Mathieu Bodmer (hamstring).

Defender Dejan Lovren is struggling to shake off a knee injury.

Blanc is being increasingly linked with the France coach’s job, as a replacement for Raymond Domenech, who is leaving the role after the World Cup. Sports daily L’Equipe reported Thursday that Blanc will be named as the new coach on May 20. —AP

Bayern host Hannover

MADRID: Real Madrid’s coach Manuel Pellegrini attends a training session in Madrid. — AFP

FRANKFURT: While trying to save itself from relegation, Hannover also has a major role in the Bundesliga title race. The struggling team surprisingly beat Schalke 4-2 last week at home to deal Felix Magath’s team perhaps a crucial blow to its hopes of a first championship in 52 years.

Now, Hannover travels to Bayern Munich, which needs a win to cement or extend its two-point lead atop the standings.

There are four rounds left in the season, and with Bayer Leverkusen six points behind Bayern, it’s a two-team race for the title. Bayern is on course for a treble, having reached final of the German Cup and the semifinals of the Champions League. But club officials have stressed that the Bundesliga title remains the primary objective.

“I believe that the Bundesliga title is the key to possible further success,” Bayern chairman Karl-

Heinz Rummenigge said. After beating Schalke and drawing with Leverkusen in successive weeks, Bayern is well placed to finish its first season under coach Louis van Gaal with at least one piece of silverware. Van Gaal has baffled the German media by stating that he would leave Bayern if he managed to win all three titles - “there would be nothing to improve then,” he said.

Although the statement in a German television interview appeared to be at least partly in jest, the other media have not been sure what to make of van Gaal’s statement. Hannover may have been encouraged by its win over Schalke, but it has only one victory in 20 trips to Munich. The club has recovered slowly from the suicide of captain and goalkeeper Robert Enke and is in 16th place, one point from safety. —AP

Ribery to decide on Bayern future BERLIN: Bayern Munich playmaker Franck Ribery is to put an end to speculation on his future next week as the Bundesliga leaders march towards their first championship in two years.

Ribery has been the subject of transfer rumors for the past year with the 27year-old France international repeatedly saying his sights were set on Spain. “We have still some games to play and little recovery time,” Ribery told Sport1 television this week. “Therefore I believe I will decide soon what I will do

next year. I hope to have taken a decision in the next week or 10 days.”

Ribery denied his destination had been decided, despite reports that Real Madrid, Barcelona and Chelsea were

midfielder, who has created a lethal partnership with Dutch winger Arjen Robben, steering Bayern to the German Cup final and the Champions League last four where they take on Olympique

German League Preview interested in the player. “No. There is at this time no club which says that I will come or to whom I am going,” he said.

Bayern are desperate to hold on to the

Lyon next week. Bayern board chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said he would want Ribery, with a contract until 2011, to stay on for at least another year and

insisted Bayern had also not decided yet whether to let the player go if he wanted to. “I assume that Franck will play for Bayern next season as well,” Rummenigge told reporters on Thursday. The league leaders, given two days off this week after playing seven games in just 21 days, host relegation-threatened Hanover 96, eager to maintain their two-point margin over second-placed Schalke 04 with four matches left this season.—Reuters

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Mourinho under microscope as Inter slip ROME: His Inter Milan side having reached the last four of the Champions League and the Italian Cup final, Jose Mourinho’s methods are still being questioned in Italy after surrendering the Serie A top spot. The champions face Juventus at the San Siro today (1845 GMT) with ground to make up in the league for the first time since October after last weekend’s 2-2 draw at Fiorentina enabled AS Roma to go a point ahead of them in the standings.

Mourinho’s reluctance to rotate a squad engaged on three fronts is widely seen as a big factor in the champions’ slide in Serie A. They have picked up 14 points fewer than Roma so far in the second

half of the season. “It’s not possible that they always play with the same team,” Catania forward Giuseppe Mascara, who scored in the Sicilians’ surprise 3-1 win over Inter last month, told Rai television.

completed a 2-0 aggregate win but they will need high-flying Roma to cool off from their remarkable 23match unbeaten run. Mourinho, who will be without suspended Cristian Chivu against Juve, has also been

outbursts and has suggested the Italian football establishment do not want Inter to win the title. “Mourinho has got Inter used to a climate of tension ignited on demand,” wrote La Gazzetta dello Sport correspondent

Italian League Preview “In the Champions League it’s always the same, in the league it’s always the same.” Mourinho gave some of his overworked troops, such as playmaker Wesley Sneijder and forward Diego Milito, a rest in Tuesday’s Italian Cup semi-final second leg at Fiorentina. Inter

accused of creating too much tension around his team.

TOUCHLINE BANS The Portuguese has stopped speaking to the media after domestic games after a series of touchline bans for controversial gestures and

Luigi Garlando. “By doing so he has created an addiction. “While in the Champions League he has always managed to give the right charge, in Serie A he hasn’t. It’s either been too much and exhausting or too little and led to snoozy draws.” Another theory is that Mourinho has let complacency

set in after his men led by nine points in February.

“One of the causes (of the domestic slide) was the conviction that the scudetto was already in the bag,” former Italy coach Arrigo Sacchi wrote in his column in Gazzetta. “Now there’s (the Champions League semi with) Barcelona, which will require an extreme physical, psychological and competitive effort — 20 to 30 days of stress and tension that sooner or later they’ll pay for.” Leaders Roma face a stiff test against city rivals Lazio on Sunday (1630). AC Milan, who are four points behind Roma in third, also have a tough game at Sampdoria earlier that day (1300). — Reuters

Title, Europe at stake for Inter and Juventus ROME: Inter Milan host Juventus in a vital Serie A clash today with both sides desperate for three points for very different reasons.

Normally this fixture at this stage of the season - there are five matches remaining in the league - would be billed as a title decider but that is far from the case this time around. Inter, after four years of domination, find themselves in the unaccustomed position of scudetto chasers, one point and one place behind leaders AS Roma.

They must win this game to put the pressure firmly back on Roma ahead of the Rome derby on Sunday where in-form Lazio will be the nominal hosts at the shared Stadio Olimpico.

But Inter are engaged on three fronts and their resources are stretched to bursting point as they play two matches a week, every week.

Having beaten Chelsea home and away in successive weeks to reach the Champions League semi-finals, they beat Fiorentina 1-0 away on Tuesday to qualify for the Italian Cup final with a 2-0 aggregate success. But next week they are back on Champions League duty as they host Barcelona in their semi-final, first leg. That was one reason that coach Jose Mourinho rested the likes of top scorer Diego Milito, defensive midfielder Esteban Cambiasso, centre-back Walter Samuel and playmaker Wesley Sneijder against La Viola.

Every game is a must win game for Inter now according to captain Javier Zanetti and he says they cannot afford to let anything slip right through to the end of the season if they are to become the first Italian team ever to win the treble. “We always go out onto the pitch to win and that’s why from now to the end we will approach every game with determination,” said the veteran Argentinean defender. “We’re playing on all three fronts, we won’t give an inch, not in the league, not in the Champions League and not in the Cup. “I repeat, we always take to the pitch with the intention of winning every game, sometimes we manage it and sometimes not.

“We’ll approach the next games with the same intentions and then we’ll see what happens.”

While Inter are on the verge of completing their greatest ever season, Juventus are in the midst of one of their worst of all time. They crashed out of the Champions League in December following a 4-1 home reverse to Bayern Munich in the group stages and their stay in the Europa League was then also short-lived.

Another 4-1 defeat, this time away to Fulham in the round of 16 in March, saw them lose their 3-1 first-leg advantage and ended their interest in continental competition. In between they had lost to Inter in the Coppa Italia at the end of January, after which coach Ciro Ferrara was sacked and replaced by Alberto Zaccheroni. But all those cup disasters have been the least of Juve’s worries this season - it is in the league where they have really suffered. They have already lost 12 times in 33 matches and have leaked a porous 47 goals, three more than Atalanta who are in the relegation zone. —AFP

SANDTON: A football fan wearing a Makarapa ((plastic helmet) stands on the queue outside a FIFA ticketing centre yesterday in Sandton. — AFP

WCup ‘fever’ kills one S African dies queuing for World Cup tickets

JOHANNESBURG: A pensioner died in the queue yesterday as thousands of South Africans queued overnight to grab 500,000 World Cup soccer tickets being sold for cash for the first time. Police said the 64-year-old man suffered an apparent seizure as he waited in a queue in central Cape Town. He was number 565 in the line. The Cape Town queue, like others around the country, began on Wednesday afternoon as South Africans rushed to get World Cup tickets, some of them for the final on July 11. Thousands of excited fans waited patiently in line, some blowing vuvuzelas, the noisy trumpets which are a fixture of South African matches.

Around 120,000 of the tickets are available to South Africans for $20, the lowest price at a World Cup for many years. Ticket sales in South Africa had been below expectations until recently and soccer’s governing body FIFA was criticized for selling them in a complex system over the internet which was alien to poor black soccer fans accustomed to

getting tickets for cash on match days.

Officials acknowledged mistakes had been made and launched a new system of sales through ticketing offices and supermarkets yesterday, hoping to sell out the tournament after disappointing overseas sales and returned tickets.

“I’m going to kiss my ticket when I get it,” said one man called Godfrey at the Maponya Mall in South Africa’s biggest black township, Soweto. He did not want to give his name because he was skipping work to stand in line.

‘LIKE MANDELA VOTE’ “The last time I waited in a line like this was when I voted for Mandela,” he said, recalling the elections won by Nelson Mandela at the end of apartheid in 1994. FIFA had previously said the final was sold out, but on Wednesday announced 300 late tickets would be released for the biggest match in world football.

“I’m just waiting in anticipation,” said

Marlin Fisher, training to be a church minister.

“I would love for South Africa to go all the way and I will also put my money on the Brazilian team.” Tickets are still well above normal prices for top-level football in South Africa.

Even the special cheap tickets are more than five times the cost of normal top class games and costs escalate drastically in higher categories for better seats and after the firstround group phase. Tickets for premier seats at the final cost $900.

Demand in South Africa had initially been sluggish but the most recent phase saw locals snap up 85 percent of the 240,000 tickets sold between February and the beginning of this month. FIFA said last week 2.2 million tickets had been sold for the tournament, which kicks off on June 11. A few months ago FIFA officials complained there was not enough atmosphere in South Africa around the continent’s first World Cup but the over-the-counter sales seemed to have changed that with excitement building rapidly. — Reuters

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Corinthians, Universidad de Chile qualify in Libertadores BUENOS AIRES: Corinthians, aiming to win the Libertadores Cup for the first time in their centenary year, reached the knockout phase with a game to spare when they beat Racing of Uruguay 2-0 in Group One on Wednesday.

Universidad de Chile also qualified as Group Eight winners with one match to spare thanks to Santiago rivals Universidad Catolica’s 2-0 home win over Brazilian champions

Flamengo. Goals from Dentinho and Elias gave Corinthians the win over modest Racing in Montevideo that put them six points clear of their second-placed Uruguayan rivals with one match to go in Group One. The Brazilian side have 13 points, seven, Colombian Racing champions Independiente Medellin six and Cerro Porteno of Paraguay one. Striker Dentinho, so called because of his toothy grin, put

Corinthians in front when he netted an attempted clearance of Roberto Carlos’s hard, low cross from the left midway through the first half.

Elias headed the second three minutes from time.

In Group Eight, Universidad de Chile, who beat Caracas FC 3-1 on Tuesday, were indebted to fellow Chileans Catolica. Catolica who scored first half goals through Argentine Damian Diaz after two

minutes and fellow midfielder Francisco Silva on the stroke of halftime. “The U” have 11 points, Flamengo seven, Catolica six and Caracas two. Flamengo will need a good win over Caracas next week to try to qualify as one of the best six second-placed teams from the eight groups.

In Group Five, Ecuador’s Emelec made life difficult for another Brazilian team by holding

Chelsea hope for United loss

City’s ambitions give derby unusual edge LONDON: It is not often that an end-of-season Manchester derby is more important to City than United but tomorrow’s clash could go a long way to deciding whether the home side can break up England’s big four. United, of course, are not out of the Premier League title running but even victory at Eastlands would still leave Chelsea strong favorites for the silverware. City desperately need the points to tighten their grip on the fourth place that secures a foothold on the Champions League. United were in pole position three weeks ago but home defeat by Chelsea followed by a 0-0 draw at Blackburn Rovers has left them four points behind the Londoners with four games remaining.

It is not an insurmountable gap, even with Chelsea’s recent big wins giving them a fivesuperior goal difference, but the bigger issue for United could now be holding off Arsenal for second place. Arsene Wenger’s side are third, two points behind, after their 2-1 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday. City are fourth on 62 points, one ahead of Spurs, who next face Chelsea and Manchester United. Liverpool, on 56 and Aston Villa, on 55 after their 2-2 draw with Everton on Wednesday, are also still in the hunt for fourth but it is very much City’s to lose.

Tomorrow’s game (11.45 GMT) is the fourth Manchester derby of the season and will have to go some to live up to the previous three. United won the Old Trafford league clash 4-3 in September as Craig Bellamy’s brilliant lastminute equaliser was trumped by Michael Owen’s stoppage-time winner. City won the first leg of their League Cup semi-final 2-1 with a double from former United forward Carlos Tevez, only for United to snatch a place in the final with Wayne Rooney’s last-gasp goal for a 3-1 Old Trafford success in the second leg.

LONDON: After Tottenham all but ended Arsenal’s title hopes, Premier League leader Chelsea is hoping Harry Redknapp’s side can’t make its two derby wins in four days tomorrow.

Chelsea has a four-point lead over Manchester United and a further two-point advantage over Arsenal with four games to go. But Chelsea hasn’t won a league match at White Hart Lane since August 2005 and Tottenham is still in contention for the fourth Champions League spot after beating Arsenal 2-1 on Wednesday.

“Sometimes you have a big series when you beat your opponent every time you play them and then one day it stops,” Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech said. “I have been at Chelsea for six years

English Premier League Preview and just kept my first clean sheet at home against Bolton (on Tuesday) so now it’s time for our record at White Hart Lane to change too. “Last season everything went wrong. There was a bomb alert, the game was delayed, we were kept waiting and then we started slow and lost 1-0. Even though we had chances, it was not our day. This time it’s going to be different for us.” Chelsea would be even closer to a first championship crown since 2006 if United also loses at Manchester City in tomorrow’s early kickoff.

Morale is low at Untied after failing to win its last two league matches and being ousted from the Champions League. “We’ve just got to keep going,” United midfielder Ryan Giggs said. “It’s been a bad 10 days or so for us - results haven’t gone our way and neither has the luck, and you need both of those things to go in your favor at this time of the season.

“We’ve just got to bounce back from the disappointment of the last couple of weeks and we’re definitely not going to give up. We’re going to keep fighting until the end.” Spurs will be hoping for the opposite outcome at Eastlands as they are just a point behind fourth-place City. “I said to the players if we could beat Arsenal we could still get fourth place,” Spurs manager Harry Redknapp said. “It’s still going to be hard but we’re right in there and this will give us a big lift now for Chelsea tomorrow.

“It will be another difficult game against a strong team but on the back of this we will go into it with a bit of confidence. We are in great form with six wins in the last seven in the league.”

Liverpool’s hopes of capturing fourth spot are faint as the 18-time champions trail City by six points.

But the Reds can have a big say on the outcome of the battle against relegation as they host West Ham, which is just four points above the drop zone.

Below the Hammers, Hull and Burnley are tied on 27 points, while bottom-place Portsmouth has already been relegated. Wigan and Bolton are level on 32 points, while Wolverhampton is a point further ahead. While Wigan hosts Arsenal on Sunday, Bolton is at Stoke tomorrow, when Wolverhampton travels to Everton. In the push for Europa League qualification, seventh-place Aston Villa is at Portsmouth on Sunday and Everton, which is four points behind the Birmingham side, is at Blackburn tomorrow. — AP

Internacional 0-0 at home in Guayaquil, preventing them from overtaking leaders Deportivo Quito. Inter’s Kleber was sent off in the 73rd minute. Deportivo have 10 points from five matches to Inter’s nine with Cerro of Uruguay on seven and Emelec one. All hinges on next week’s final matches in the group when Inter host Deportivo and Cerro are at home to Emelec. — Reuters

BIRMINGHAM: Everton’s Russian midfielder Diniyar Bilyaletdinov jumps for a high ball against Aston Villa during their English Premier League football match at Villa Park in Birmingham, central England, on April 14, 2010. — AFP

Bank threatens to sale Birmingham Unpaid debt hits $3.3 million LONDON: An investment bank is threatening to sell English Premier League side Birmingham City due to an unpaid debt of 2.2 million pounds ($3.3 million) they claim is owed to them by club owner Carson Yeung. Seymour Pierce says it is owed the money for advising Hong Kong based businessman Yeung in his takeover of Birmingham, which was completed in November. The bank won a court order requiring Yeung to pay by Monday. But as the money was not received Seymour Pierce can now gain a charge of the shares held by Yeung’s company, Birmingham International Holdings.

“Seymour Pierce can take a charge over the shares of Birmingham City and do what they need to do with them to recover the money it is owed, so that means they could potentially sell them to

another owner,” Seymour Pierce spokesman Neil Bennett told Sky Sports News yesterday. Seymour Pierce advised Yeung prior to the takeover of Birmingham, but Yeung used a different firm to help him seal the purchase of the Midlands club from former owners David Sullivan and David Gold, now in charge at West Ham. But Seymour Pierce argued successfully its contract remained valid and it was owed the money.

Bennett said: “Seymour Pierce advised Carson Yeung and his company, which was then called Grandtop and is now called Birmingham International Holdings, a Hong Kong company, and they advised them on the takeover of Birmingham City and they were due to pay Seymour Pierce a success fee for 2.2 million pounds. —AFP

UNLIKELY ALLY The England striker remains a doubt for tomorrow through a twisted ankle that kept him out of the Chelsea and Blackburn games. United fans, unimpressed by the efforts of Dimitar Berbatov in Rooney’s absence, will be desperate to have him back and they found an unlikely ally this week in the form of City manager Roberto Mancini.

“I think it is better if Rooney plays tomorrow,” he told the club’s website (www.mcfc.co.uk) “He is a fantastic player and has had an amazing season. He will be a danger, of course, but United have many fine players in their team-but we have beaten them once at home already and can do it again. “I think it’s best if both teams are full strength and then the side who takes the three points can truly say the best team won and there is no reason that cannot be us.” City are certainly the form team going into the game, having won three league games in a row and scored 14 goals in the process. “We’ve gelled as a squad at the right time and we’re hitting the right notes just when we need to,” said midfielder Gareth Barry.

“We’re finishing the season strongly.” United’s Ryan Giggs is hoping to recover from a hamstring strain in time to play tomorrow, maintaining his remarkable record of never missing a derby since he began playing in 1991. The 36-year-old has played in all 32 meetings between the sides in all competitions since. “This game was always going to be huge at this time of the season; they’re going for fourth place and we’re going for the championship. Derby days are always massive anyway, but there’s a bit of extra spice to this one,” Giggs said. —Reuters

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CAEN: Quevilly’s Anthony Laup (center) vies with Paris’ Sylvain Armand (left) and Claude Makele during their French Cup football match in Caen. —AFP

PSG end Quevilly dream to reach French Cup final CAEN: A second-half goal from Mevlut Erding fired Paris St Germain into the French Cup final with a 1-0 victory that broke the hearts of fourth division Normandy side Quevilly on Wednesday.

PSG booked their ticket to their 11th French Cup final at the Stade de France on May 1 where they meet fellow first division side Monaco, in a rematch of the 1985 final which the Riviera outfit won. An extra-time goal by substitute Moussa Maazou earned Monaco a 1-0 victory over Lens on Tuesday that took them into the final after a tight, tense tie.

In a lackluster first half, after missing four shots on goal in a ten minute period, Franco-Turkish striker Erding finally found the goal six minutes after returning to the pitch. The Normandy outfit had looked set to open the scoring two minutes before the break only for PSG goalie Apoula Edel to push out a shot from midfielder Sebastien Vaugeois with the tips of his fingers. The Parisians, who were playing without their fans who are banned from travelling with the team, avoided their first exit to a fourth division side since Clermont in 1997, as they bid to lift the French Cup for the

eighth time.

“I have to pay tribute to these Quevilly players. They created problems for us and we had a lot of difficulty qualifying,” said PSG coach Antoine Kombouare. “The hardest part was making the final. That was tough, complicated, it was a difficult season.

I hope it will be a crowning moment in the final against Monaco.” Kombouare added that PSG’s top scorer Erding had suffered a leg muscle injury which resulted in his substitution by Serbian striker Mateja Kezman six minutes after his goal and was not certain to be fit for Sunday’s league game against St. Etienne.

Quevilly coach Regis Brouard conceded: “We gave it everything we possibly could with what was available to us. PSG deserved their win but I have to congratulate my players as well.” The adventure was over for Quevilly, finalists in 1927 and semi-finalists in 1968, who had claimed the scalps of top flight sides Rennes and Boulogne on their way to the final four. Monaco and PSG are both bidding to finish their season with a title as they sit ninth and tenth respectively in the French league. —AFP

Ajax blank Willem 2-0 AMSTERDAM: Ajax moved to within a point of Dutch league leader FC Twente after cruising to a 2-0 win over Willem II on Wednesday. Marko Pantelic scored in the 59th after Luis Suarez had converted a fourth-minute penalty as Ajax took full advantage of Twente’s 1-0 loss at AZ Alkmaar on Tuesday. Twente, which has 80 points, needs to beat Feyenoord and NAC Breda to capture the title while Ajax faces Heracles Almelo and NEC Nijmegen in the last two rounds. Third-place PSV Eindhoven lost ground after a 2-2 draw at SC Heerenveen. Georginio Wijnaldum, Luigi Bruins and Jon Dahl Tomasson scored as Feyenoord beat crosstown rival Sparta Rotterdam 3-0. Also Wednesday, it was: FC Utrecht 1, FC Groningen 1; ADO The Hague 2, NEC Nijmegen 3 and Roda JC 4, VVV-Venlo 2. —AP

Rangers held by 10-man Dundee DUNDEE: Rangers may have to wait longer than they would like to wrap up the Scottish Premier League title after being held to a 0-0 draw by 10-man Dundee United on Wednesday. If Walter Smith’s team had beaten United they would have been able to claim the championship with another victory over Hearts on Sunday, but they now need Celtic to drop points against Hibernian 24 hours earlier for that to happen.

The Ibrox club are 11 points clear of second placed Celtic and are certain to retain the title, but they will be disappointed not to have killed off United at Tannadice after Mihael Kovacevic’s second half dismissal. Smith said: “That’s us another step towards the championship - albeit maybe a slower one than we would have hoped for. “It’s a natural thing that the players want to win it, but just because we have had a consistency this season that maybe a lot of the others teams haven’t had, doesn’t mean to say that we don’t get difficult matches.

“This was a difficult one and

we were maybe unfortunate not to shade it at the end. We are getting there.”

Madjid Bougherra made his longawaited return for Rangers after finally recovering from the hamstring injury which had sidelined the Algerian defender since February. Smith’s side threatened first as Steven Davis curled a free-kick just wide, but the hosts went straight down the

Scottish Premier League Preview other end to force Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor into action as Garry Kenneth tried his luck from long-range.

United had two good chances to take the lead when Prince Buaben slipped a clever pass through to Danny Cadamarteri, only for the former Everton striker to scuff his shot into the side-netting. Then Francisco Sandaza then nodded just over the crossbar, but Rangers striker Kenny Miller was also close to opening the scoring as his dipping volley was kept out by

Dusan Pernis.

Maurice Edu tried his luck from distance at the start of the second half but the Rangers star failed to hit the target. But it was United who could have taken the lead when Cadamarteri squeezed between Bougherra and Steven Whittaker only to drag his leftfoot shot wide. United found themselves down to 10 men with 20 minutes to go when Kovacevic was shown a straight red card by referee Brian Winters for foolishly kicking out at Kyle Lafferty.

Rangers tried to make the most of their numerical advantage and Miller stabbed wide before Bougherra saw his attempt to lob the goalkeeper land on the roof of the net. Kris Boyd then found himself through on goal after pouncing on a Kenneth passback but Pernis raced off his line to block and deny the striker the opportunity to end his goal drought.

Substitute Nacho Novo had the ball in the back of the net in stoppage time but Boyd had already been flagged for offside, before Miller crashed his shot off the post. —AFP

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BARCELONA: Barcelona’s forward Pedro Rodriguez celebrates after scoring against Deportivo La Coruna during their Spanish League football match at Camp Nou stadium. —AFP

Brilliant Barca go 6-point clear MADRID: Barcelona followed up their impressive win over Real Madrid five nights ago with a convincing 3-0 home win over Deportivo La Coruna on Wednesday to go six points clear of Real at La Liga summit. After scoring against Real, winger Pedro Rodriguez was on the scoresheet again with a fantastic second half strike from 45 yards out in the pick of the goals after Bojan Krkic had opened the scoring on the quarter hour mark. Yaya Toure netted the other goal in a comfortable night for the champions.

It was a seventh successive league win for Barca who are six points clear with six games left although Real Madrid can close back to within three points with a win at Almeria on Thursday. Barca coach Pep Guardiola called for his team not to drop their standards following the dazzling display in the 2-0 ‘El Clasico’ win over Real and the treble winners ran Depor ragged to warm up for Saturday’s derby with Espanyol. There was again no sign of veteran French forward Thierry Henry, who played no part in ‘El Clasico’ win, in the Barca line-up with teenager Bojan starting while Ivory Coast midfielder Toure came in for Seydou Keita.

Pedro hit the post from close range in the ninth minute and it was a sign of things to come. On the quarter hour mark Xavi, who set up both goals in the Real win, slid a clever pass to Bojan who produced a cool finish to give the hosts the lead, Goalkeeper Daniel Aranzubia then produced a fine save from Jeffren Suarez who had collected a terrific pass from

Barcelona crush Deportivo 3-0 Lionel Messi. Dani Alves saw an acrobatic overhead kick come back off the crossbar as Barca could have been 4-0 up inside the first 20 minutes.

Depor, with one point from the last 15, were packing the midfield allowing Alves a lot of space to roam into and the Brazilian was wreaking havoc with his crosses.

Barca were not as formidable in the second half but Pedro got the second goal the hosts craved on 68 minutes. Aranzubia came out to clear a long ball and his miskick fell to Pedro and the 22-year-old had no hesitation in going straight for goal and his 45 yard effort looped in. Four minutes later Barca struck again with Toure

showing good control before dispatching a shot into the bottom corner.

Champions League hopefuls Real Mallorca moved a point above Sevilla into fourth with a 1-1 draw at Real Zaragoza on Wednesday although the islanders will see it as a missed opportunity to turn the screw on their rivals. Sevilla lost 2-1 at

We’ve blown title hope, says Wenger LONDON: Arsene Wenger conceded Arsenal’s Premier League title dreams had been shattered by their 2-1 defeat to north London rivals Tottenham. Wednesday’s loss at White Hart Lane leaves Wenger’s side six points adrift of leaders Chelsea with just four games remaining and while the Gunners manager insists his team will not give up the fight, he accepts that realistically their chance has gone.

Having clawed their way back into contention on several occasions during the season, Wenger believes his young side’s lack of maturity ultimately cost them dearly against the top teams. “We lost a game we couldn’t afford to lose in the title race and that shows we are not mature enough,” he said. “If you want to win the title this is the kind of game you can’t lose.

There is too much to do to win the title. We are very unlikely to win it, but we will continue to fight; you never know. Even a point would not have been good enough.” Goals from teenage winger Danny Rose, whose stunning first half volley marked his Premier League debut in style, and Gareth Bale secured Tottenham’s victory, while Nicklas Bendtner’s 85th minute strike came too late to spark an Arsenal comeback.

Wenger could take heart from the impressive performance of Holland forward Robin van Persie, who returned as a second

half substitute after a five month lay off with ankle ligament trouble. But seeing his side’s title hopes killed off by their first league defeat to Tottenham since 1999 was hard for Wenger to take. “Van Persie has not kicked a ball in five months in a team and you could see straight away that he gives us something different and special,” he said.

“Our bad luck is that in the final sprint we have many good players out and it is too much. In the first half we were 1-0 down and a bit unlucky because we never felt under threat. We had a lot of possession we could not turn into dangerous situations. Until Van Persie came on and transformed our game in the final third, today we had a lot of possession but were relatively inefficient because our passing was not quick enough.” Wenger’s mood was not helped by seeing Thomas Vermaelen limp off with a calf strain and he admitted the Belgium defender will now be out for two to three weeks.

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp was thrilled with his side’s performance, which went some way to erasing the painful memories of the shock FA Cup semi-final defeat to Portsmouth on Sunday. This win moves Spurs to within one point of fourth placed Manchester City and Redknapp is convinced his team can still claim a place in next season’s Champions League. —AFP

Valladolid on Tuesday but Mallorca, surprise challengers for the top four, could not punish the slip-up as their dismal away form continues to hinder their push for fourth. “We had to get points to move above Sevilla and we managed to do that,” said Mallorca coach Gregorio Manzano. “It is one game less and on Sunday we will defend fourth against Osasuna.”

Defender Ruben Rocha put Mallorca into a 13th minute lead but Humberto Suazo equalised on 21 minutes. Mallorca have just two wins on their travels all season - the same as bottom side Xerez compared to 13 victories from 15 games at home. Malaga are one of those and twice came from behind to draw 2-2 at Osasuna on Wednesday as they hover three points above the drop zone. Malaga lie three points above Tenerife and four ahead of Valladolid who both won on Tuesday to close in.

Bottom side Xerez have clearly not waved the white flag in the relegation dogfight stunning Atletico Madrid with a 2-1 win at the Vicente Calderon on Wednesday. Emiliano Armenteros had a free header to bag the winner on 72 minutes for only their second away win of the season. Xerez are six points from safety with six games left while Atletico are eight points off the top six although they have a Kings Cup final and Europa League semi-final to look forward to.

Elsewhere Racing Santander took a giant stride towards safety with a 3-1 home victory over Espanyol to move six points clear of the relegation zone. —AFP