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South Sudan becomes world’s newest nation Amir sends congratulations • Kiir sworn in president

JUBA: People gather during independence celebrations yesterday. South Sudan raised the flag of its new nation for the first time yesterday, as thousands of South Sudanese citizens swarmed the capital to celebrate the country’s birth. (Inset) South Sudan’s President Salva Kiirr (left) and Sudan’s President Omar Al-Bashir stand on the podium at the start of independence celebrations. — AP

JUBA: Celebrations erupted in South Sudan yesterday as the world’s newest nation proclaimed formal independence and turned the page on five decades of devastating conflict with the north. “Our martyrs did not die in vain... We have waited for more than 56 years for this day. It is a day that will be forever engraved on our hearts and minds,” President Salva Kiir told tens of thousands of jubilant southerners at the official ceremony in Juba.

The envoy of HH the Amir of Kuwait, Deputy Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs Sheikh Ali Jarrah Al-Sabah delivered a letter on behalf of the Amir to Kiir yesterday. HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah congratulated South Sudan on its independence from Sudan in the letter. Sheikh Sabah expressed hope the event would mark development and prosperity for the newly-founded nation. The letter was delivered to the South Sudanese Minister of Defence Nhial Deng Nhial.

Earlier, parliament Speaker James Wani Igga read out the declaration of the south’s secession from the north following a near unanimous vote for separation in a January referendum. “We, the democratically elected representatives of the people, based on the will of the people of South Sudan, and as confirmed by the outcome of the referendum of self-determination, hereby declare South Sudan to be an independent and sovereign nation,” Wani Igga told the cheering crowds.

South Sudan’s national flag was then raised, to wild applause, tears and song. “I should cry for the recognition of this flag among the flags of the world,” shouted one tearful man. “We have been denied our rights.

Today, no more shall that happen.” The declaration of

Max 47º Min 28º Low Tide 10:05 & 22:25 High Tide 04:10: 15:37

independence affirmed the new state’s democratic and multiethnic and multi-confessional character, and its commitment to friendly relations with all countries “including the Republic of Sudan”.

Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir, guest of honour at the ceremony, watched a parade by thousands of members of his former military foes, the SPLA, whom he failed to defeat as head of the northern army for 16 years. In a conciliatory speech, Bashir repeated his wish to see the newborn nation succeed. “We will fulfill our commitment to help the new state of South Sudan in its first steps, because we want it to succeed, and because its success will be our success,” Bashir said.

From early morning, revellers had gathered at the venue amid tight security for the ceremony which was attended by dozens of African leaders and senior Western officials. It was the largest international gathering ever seen in the war-damaged former garrison town on the White Nile that lacks even basic infrastructure, and army generals were asked to vacate their seats to make space for foreign guests. International dignitaries attending the ceremony included UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, US ambassador to the UN Susan Rice, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and British Foreign Secretary William Hague. More than a dozen African leaders also attended. Recognition of the newly independent state flooded in from around the world, with US President Barack Obama vowing to support South Sudan in the “hard work” of nation building. “A proud flag flies over Juba and the map of the world has been redrawn,” Obama said in a statement.

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SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

LOCAL

Satire Wire

The birth of a new nation

By Sawsan Kazak

sawsank@kuwaittimes.net KUWAIT: His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and his accompanying party returned home following a Gulf tour yesterday.

Premier’s Gulf tour a big success KUWAIT: The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) tour which His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah initiated on July 4, and ended on July 9 has led to several positive results. Such good outcomes have reflected the deep-rooted bilateral ties between Kuwait and other GCC Arab states as well as the keenness of the Prime Minister on further cementing the brotherly ties, and pushing forward GCC cooperation toward a new high in various fields. Sheikh Mohammad went on a six-day tour traveling among GCC five capitals and cities including Jeddah, Muscat, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Manama, leading a big official delegation.

This tour comes within the keenness of Kuwait, represented by its leaders, and people, on consolidating the existing historic bonds between it and other GCC Arab states, along with cementing the common interests of GCC peoples, and as part of the constant meetings held among the GCC Arab states, and out of Kuwait’s interest in the continual, and perpetual consultation with other GCC Arab states.

HH Sheikh Nasser started his tour with a visit to Saudi Arabia where he was received upon his arrival in Jeddah by Prince Nayef Bin Abdulaziz, Saudi Second Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Interior.

Then, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud received Sheikh Nasser, and discussed with him the various aspects of cooperation, and the ways of boosting them in various fields in what benefits the interests of two countries, and peoples, besides the progress of GCC joint action, and the overall developments on the Islamic and Arab stages.

Sheikh Nasser performed as well the Umrah, lesser pilgrimage, rites in Makkah, then he paid a visit to Madinah, and performed prayers in the Prophet ’s Holy Mosque.

Then came the Omani capital city of Muscat as the second stop within the Prime Minsiter ’s tour where HH was received upon his arrival there by Deputy Prime Minister for Cabinet Affairs Fahad Bin Mahmoud Al-Said.

Then, Sultan of Oman Qaboos Bin Said received HH the Prime Minister at Baraka House, and exchanged with him cordial talk, and discussed all aspects of bilateral cooperation between the two countries, besides topics of mutual concern, and the latest developments at the Arab and international levels.

Following the above -mentioned expanded meeting, the Kuwaiti Prime Minister held a closed-door two-hour meeting with Sultan Qaboos.

The third stop within the Prime

Minister’s tour was the Emirati capital city of Abu Dhabi where he was received upon his arrival in Al-Ain international airport by Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Interior Lt Gen Sheikh Saif Bin Zayed AlNahyan.

Further, Sheikh Nasser met during the visit President of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, and reviewed with him the deep-rooted ties binding the two countries and peoples, and discussed as well aspects of existing cooperation between the two countries in various fields.

Additionally, the two sides mulled topics of mutual concern in light of the current developments on the Arab and international scenes.

The Qatari capital city of Doha was the four th stop within H.H. the Prime Minister’s tour, and he was received upon arriving there by State Minister for Internal Affairs Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nasser AlThani, then H.H. the Prime Minister met Deputy Amir, and the Crown Prince of Qatar, and reviewed with him the distinctive bilateral ties between the two countries, besides the GCC progress.

The meeting also tackled the latest developments on the regional, and international scenes, and the stances adopted by the two countries regarding them.

As for the last stop within the tour initiated by H.H. the Prime Minister in GCC states, it was the Bahraini capital city of Manama where he was received upon his arrival there by Bahraini Prime Minister Prince Khalifa Bin Salman Al-Khalifa.

Then, Sheikh Nasser met the King of Bahrain Hamad Bin Issa Al-Khalifa, and exchanged with him cordial talk, and reviewed the bilateral relations between the two countries under the GCC joint action, along with mulling regional and international conditions of mutual concern.

Further, the Kuwaiti Prime Minister held a round of official talks with Bahraini Prime Minister Prince Khalifa Bin Salman Al-Khalifa under a cordial atmosphere

dominated by candor and consensual opinion on issues of mutual concern, besides discussing regional and international issues, and the GCC stance on them which is always express the GCC singlemindedness.

Both the Kuwaiti Prime Minister, and his Bahraini counterpart held a one-hour closed-door meeting following the previous expanded meeting.

Then, the Kuwaiti Prime Minister paid a visit to Durrat Al Bahrain Development Project, which is one of the most important projects carried out within the investment por tfolio of the Kuwait Finance House (KFH).

Fur ther, H.H. the Prime Minister received during his Bahraini visit head, and members of the administrative board of the Kuwaiti Students Union in Bahrain, along with a number of Kuwaiti students in the Bahraini universities, and urged them to work hard in order to get the highest kind of certificates, and return home to take part in the development of their motherland.

The tour initiated by the Kuwaiti Prime Minister in the GCC Arab states shed light on the noble goals upon which the GCC was established as well as the pan-Arab Gulf body’s endeavors on achieving further unity and solidarity for the benefit of all GCC Arab states.

Meanwhile, Bahraini newspapers have allocated a lot of space to the visit that HH Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah paid to Bahrain.

The visit of the Prime Minister, and his meetings with King of Bahrain Hamad Bin Issa Al-Khalifa as well as Bahraini Prime Minister Prince Khalifa Bin Salman AlKhalifa hit the headlines of all Bahraini newspapers which also published editorials analyzing the impact of such visit and its outcomes, and how helps strengthen the brotherly ties binding the State of Kuwait, and the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Meanwhile, Al Bilad daily newspaper said in its editorial that, “the meeting between Bahraini Prime Minister Prince

Khalifa Bin Salman Al-Khalifa, and HH the Kuwaiti Prime Minister here on the Bahraini soil is but another step aiming at boosting the bilateral ties between the two countries within the framework of a higher regional system that succeeded over the past years in weathering various challenges, namely the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).”

It added that, “against such political backdrop, the recent meeting was held in what reflected a great hospitality accorded to the high-profile guest, a hospitality that went beyond the formalities, and had a stronger influence on the two sides that manifested itself in stressing the importance of consolidating bilateral cooperation, and rejecting any external interference in the internal affairs of GCC Arab states.”

The newspaper added that, “what Bahrain underwent of regrettable events should be a lesson because the imminent dangers surrounding the region do not recognize borders, and subsequent threats do not accord a preferential treatment to one people over another, and so it is imperative to deal with them collectively in order to protect rights, and further increase gains.”

Further, Bahraini newspapers of Akhbar Al-Khaleej, Al-Ayam, Al-Wasat, and AlWatan kept a high profile on the news item highlighting the visit of H.H. the Kuwaiti Prime Minister, as well as his meeting with the King of Bahrain, and Bahraini Prime Minister, noting that, “both sides discussed the ways of promoting bilateral ties between the two brotherly countries along with pushing for ward the GCC progress, while mulling regional and Arab issues, and the latest developments at the GCC and Arab levels.”

Finally, the Bahraini newspapers made a reference to the call made by H.H. the Kuwaiti Prime Minister, and the Bahraini Prime Minister, during co-chairing the official meeting between the two sides, for holding periodical meetings for GCC heads of governments. —KUNA

Stage set for Ramadan food fair KUWAIT: Emad Mohammad Al-Haroun, the beginning of the holy month of the exhibition director of the Kuwait Ramadan, aims to help citizens and International Fair Company said that expats to do their shopping for the holy month in the easiest way, more than 100 local with the specialist firms takand international speing part offering several altercialist food and native culinary options to the kitchenware firms have goods usually on sale locally, confirmed that they will with all the food items and be participating in the kitchenware products conveupcoming R amadan niently available under one Foodstuffs and roof, he added.

Kitchenware exhibition, Al-Haroun said that he which is scheduled to expects companies from take place at Mishref across the region, including Fairground from July firms from Yemen, Bahrain, 17-29.

Emad Al-Haroun Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Oman, The exhibition, one Morocco, Cyprus and Iran, to of the most popular to be organized by KIFCO, is being spon- take part in the event, where they will be sored by Kuwait Agriculture Co, KDD and offering their foodstuffs and desirable Gloria Geans Co, Al-Haroun revealed. The household wares, which are in great timing of the exhibition, two weeks from demand during the month of Ramadan.

Female gas station worker KUWAIT: Kuwaiti business student Fatima Abdullah has become the first-ever Kuwaiti woman to work in a gas station. Abdullah said that after being interviewed for the job with the Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) when she was offered the position she was keen to take up the challenge of working in a field which had previously been limited to men in Kuwait. She explained that she wished to prove that

women have the talent and ability to succeed and only need the will to achieve their goals.

She said that she has already proved herself in the job and won the respect of all her superiors and colleagues by showing commitment to her responsibilities and proving that women are good at management and at working with the public. —Al-Shahed

Cleaning firms complain at licensing ‘violation’ KUWAIT: The heads of the cleaning firms contracted by Kuwait Municipality have complained about what they describe as a violation in licensing those locations they use for storage.

According to a news report quoting a statement signed by the eight cleaning companies, the company heads say that the municipality ’s safety depar tment unnecessarily prolonged the process of licensing the areas used to store their

equipment.

They further demanded that they should not be held accountable for the violation, which occurred as a result of utilizing the storage spaces before the licensing procedures have been finalized, especially since their contracts were extended last November for one year at the municipality’s request. They further noted that terms of the contract extension already covered the storage licensing. —Al-Qabas

esterday marked the first day on which South Sudan gained its independence and became a sovereign and independent state. This separation from the north creates the world’s newest nation. The birth of a nation is not unlike the birth of a baby; exciting, new and full of surprises.

Like a newborn baby, there is literally a world of opportunity awaiting it. As with a new child, there are so many hopes and dreams for this new nation. The proud parents (the residents) have high expectations for what this fledgling state can accomplish. The sky is the limit as the residents consider the many accomplishments this newly ‘bundle of joy’ can achieve.

The residents, like new parents, must be relieved and thankful for the arrival of this longawaited day, at the same time feeling fear for the unknown and what the future holds for their new creation. The residents will be eager to show off what they just created with the same joyfulness and pride new parents feel when presenting their baby to the world.

Unfortunately, however, again like a newborn baby, it won’t take long until the world tries to corrupt its innocent little mind. External forces will pull this baby every which way, trying to shape its ‘fragile little mind and developing personality’ (ie politics, foreign policy and economy), not to mention its internal forces also struggling among themselves to try to find what actually fits.

The new addition is bound to affect the family (the surrounding nations and EU). And like a family, there are some members that are not as supportive as others. There are going to be those waiting to see if this new nation is going to fail.

The world needs to handle this nation gently at the beginning, as you would a newborn, until it can stand on its own two feet. Also, it is important for this nation to remember that it must first learn to walk before it can run with the big boys.

Truly this was a day of celebration; all the world can do now is watch this baby state grow and develop as it finds its way in the world.

Y

Interior gives second chance to residency violators KUWAIT: The Ministry of Interior is offering illegal residents who failed to use the Amiri amnesty to legalize their status an opportunity to finalize their procedures before a new July 27 deadline.

Between March 1 and June 30 of this year, the Amiri amnesty gave residency violators an opportunity to leave Kuwait without paying penalty fines or facing other legal problems, as well as offering those who wished to stay in the country the chance to legalize their status after paying the accumulated fines accrued by their illegal residency whilst avoiding prosecution.

Many illegal residents found themselves in a quandary, however, when their residency transactions which were submitted within the amnesty period, couldn’t be finished in time before the deadline passed due to prolonged official procedures.

As a result, they became automatically subject to strict measures announced against residency violators who failed to legalize their status during the amnesty period.

Local authorities have now made an exception to allow some cases to complete their procedures begun during the amnesty up until July 27th. “There are many violators who couldn’t finish their transactions because their sponsors were outside the country or had passed away”, said a ministry insider.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official explained that the new decision was taken on humanitarian grounds, especially given the medical condition of some expatriates whose residencies expired while they were being treated in local hospitals.

A committee featuring members from numerous ministry departments including the Migration General Department, the General Security Department, the General Department of Criminal Investigations and the General Department of Police Patrols, was assembled to establish security plans in pursuit of residency violators who failed to make use of the amnesty. According to security sources familiar with the issue, the committee has called for crackdowns against illegal residents to resume across the country starting at the beginning of next month after the July 27th deadline has passed.

People with residency visas that expired before the initial June 30 deadline face tough penalties when they are arrested, including deportation and having their names blacklisted to prevent them from returning to Kuwait. Meanwhile, legal action will be taken against any sponsors who cover up for residency violators, according to MoI sources. —Al-Qabas

‘Give blood, save a life’ KUWAIT: The director of the Kuwait Central Blood Bank on Friday appealed for new donors, explaining that 250 donations are needed per day or 60,000 annually simply to provide the necessary supplies needed by the country’s hospitals.

The KCBB director Dr. Rana Al-Abdulrazzaq said that the bank is doing its utmost to provide the necessary supplies by working with youth clubs and running volunteer campaigns, which it has been increasing over the past four years.

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

LOCAL

Cause of Ahmadi gas leak to be revealed shortly KUWAIT: The cause of last year’s major gas leak in Ahmadi is set to be revealed in the very near future, according to the head of the Kuwait Fire Services Directorate (KFSD).

In an interview broadcast on Al-Shahed TV on Friday, the KFSD Director General, Maj Gen Jassem Al-Mansouri, revealed that the work of the agencies hired to investigate the problem “is almost done.”

The statement came as Kuwaiti political activists held a seminar to discuss the issue, with some of those present condemning the Cabinet and parliament for what they said were the two bodies’ inadequate efforts to resolve the problem.

At the seminar, held in activist Mohammed Al-Hajri’s diwaniya, many speakers echoed the concerns of Ahmadi residents that the leak might recur, especially as summer temperatures reach their highest levels.

Local residents attending the seminar expressed frustration that the government has only managed to minimize the leak rather than sealing it off entirely.

“The government builds villages in Egypt and other countries, but fails to end the suffering of its own people in Ahmadi,” Al-Hajri stated, also extending his criticism to lawmakers “who failed to adopt the case as the top priority.”

Another activist, Fayez Al-Nashwan, said that Ahmadi’s residents had still not been informed of the real reasons behind the massive gas leak, leaving them perplexed and forcing them to accept the “temporary solution” of the KD1,000 monthly allowances, which he stated was discontinued a few months after it was implemented.

Also during the seminar, Ahmadi resident Abdulhadi Mohammad explained the difficulties he has suffered since being evacuated from his house there eight months ago, saying that his monthly pay is barely enough to cover the rent, as well as health and school expenses, which he has had to pay since moving out, further alleging that many precious items he had left inside his family’s home were stolen.

Minister, SCB to discuss women’s housing law KUWAIT: The housing minister is set to meet with officials from the Saving and Credit Bank in order to coordinate on implementing the women’s housing law, and establishing the criteria for providing suitable accommodation to Kuwaiti widows, divorcees, spinsters, and those married to non-Kuwaitis.

According to an SCB insider, Minister of Housing Affairs and of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Mohammad Al-Numas is expected to issue instructions to summon the eligible women to allow them to select the type of housing unit they wish to obtain.

The insider added that the SCB is seeking information on the number of eligible women before going ahead with purchas-

ing property and other executive procedures.

Meanwhile, the Public Authority for Housing Welfare (PAHW) plans to allocate sites for the construction of more than 93,000 housing units in nine areas of Kuwait. According to a senior PAHW official, the allocation process is planned to take place between June and December of 2012. “These plans come as part of the authority’s efforts to allocate property for residential projects to be built before 2030,” explained Fahad Al-Saied, the PAHW’s Deputy Managing Director for Planning Affairs, in a letter sent to Kuwait Municipality, notifying staff there about the PAHW’s most recent plans. — Agencies

News

in brief

Germany patients to be relocated KUWAIT: Kuwaitis receiving government-funded medical treatment at German hospitals are set to be transferred to medical facilities in France and the United Kingdom, according to a news report citing difficulties faced by those undergoing treatment in Germany. According to the report, First Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah has already given instructions to this effect due to alleged financial and administrative violations in Germany.

German authorities have reportedly frequently complained about delayed payments of Kuwaiti patients’ medical bills, whilst the Kuwaiti officials there apparently blame the independent intermediary agencies which mediate between the Kuwaiti overseas treatment office and the German medical facilities, accusing the agencies of manipulation.

MP denies grilling motion rumors KUWAIT: MP Abdulrahman Al-Anjari has denied rumors that he intends to present a grilling motion against finance minister Mustafa AlShamali. Reacting to the reports on Friday, AlAnjari said, “I woke up in the morning...then saw some websites on the internet saying, ‘Al-Anjari will grill Al-Shamali,’ and I was surprised.” The MP insisted that the claims are unfounded speculation.

Independent budget for news dept KUWAIT: Information Minister Sami Al-Nisf has reportedly approved the allocation of an independent budget for the ministry’s news department. Al-Nisf and Acting Ministry of Information Undersecretary Nasser Al-Safar have both given their approval to the new budget, said Yousef Mustafa, the Assistant Undersecretary for the News Department, adding that this would allow the department to implement existing plans and projects to enhance the current news services.

Mustafa explained that the department would now plan a new strategy to improve the current news services using the latest technology, adding that the news website has already been improved and has launched live broadcasts of news bulletins. The senior official also revealed that the ministry’s new news studios will begin operations next week, after they are officially inaugurated by the minister.

KAC captain released KUWAIT: The KAC captain accused of assaulting security officers at Kuwait International Airport (KIA) has been released after three days’ detention in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh police station. The pilot’s attorney, Khalid Al-Oweihan, insisted that what his client had been subjected to was not consistent with the principles of a state governed by law.

The leaking of the details of the case and of his client’s identity in some media outlets was regrettable, he added, especially given the basic legal principle that his client, like any other, should be considered innocent until proven guilty. The decision by some media outlets to publish photographs of his client was a breach of his human rights, the lawyer went on, adding that whoever took it, along with those who published it, appeared to have failed to take into consideration the fact that the accused man has a family and children. Al-Oweihan warned that he would be taking the necessary legal action against the photographer and those who published the pictures.

The lawyer also condemned the decision to keep his client in custody for three days, saying that a sample of the man’s blood could easily have been taken for laboratory tests to determine his blood alcohol level and there was no justification for detaining him for such a long period.

Al-Oweihan demanded that the interior minister look into the case, questioning the legality of interrogating a detainee at 1:00 AM, as he said his client was, rather than leaving this until the next day. — Al-Anba

KUWAIT: Pearl diving ships participate in the race to commemorate the historical Riqqa Sea Battle yesterday.

KSSC holds traditional Riqqa Battle Race

KUWAIT: Sixteen traditional pearl diving ships participated yesterday in the thrilling annual race held to commemorate the historical Riqqa Sea Battle, with the event forming the traditional prelude to the yearly pearl-diving voyage.

The 23rd Pearl Diving trip, organized by the Kuwait Sea Sports Club (KSSC), which takes place from June 14-23, features the participation of eleven ships gifted by the late Amir His Highness Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, and five other vessels gifted by the current Amir, HH Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.

Under the patronage of KSSC’s CEO, along with the Managing Director of the Kuwait Airways Corporation (KAC) Hamad Al-Falah, the traditional Riqqa Battle Race began at 7:00 am yesterday morning, with the vessels setting sail from Failaka Island en route to the finishing line

at the KSSC headquarters’ beach in Salmiya. The captains on board each ship were selected from among the young divers who will lead the ships during the pearl diving trip.

The competing vessels were classified into three categories, large, medium-sized and small, with the ‘Subahiya Sanbouk,’ captained by Abdulwahab Al-Hamli winning in the large ships category, with the ‘Roudhatain Shoo’ie’ and the ‘Hadiya Sanbouk’ winning second and third places respectively.

In the medium-sized vessels category, the ‘Jabriya Shoo’ie,’ captained by Abdulaziz Al-Enezi, won the race, with the second and third places taken by the ‘Ahmadiya Sanbouk’ and the ‘Qurtoba Shoo’ie’ respectively.

Last but certainly not least, the small ships race was won by the ‘Riqqa Sanbouk,’ captained

by Hamad Awadh, with the ‘Qarouh Jalboot’ and the ‘Mubarakiya Mashoosh’ taking the second and third places. The Al-Riqqa battle of 1783 took place in the shallow waters near a beach area then known as Al-Riqqa. It happened after the then-Amir, HH Sheikh Abdullah Al-Sabah, rejected the demands of the northern Bani Kaab tribe who was seeking to expand into Kuwait.

During the battle, Kuwaiti sailors used small boats which gave them a mobility advantage in the shallow waters against the large, heavy ships of the Bani Kaab. Following their triumph which came despite being outnumbered and outarmed, the Kuwaiti ships raced to land in order to deliver the happy news to the people anxiously waiting at the shore. The traditional Riqqa Battle Race is held annually to mark this significant event in Kuwait’s history.

Two Jahra restaurants closed in municipality crackdown

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: Jahra Municipality is conducting a series of operations in the run-up to Ramadan in an effort to crack down on retailers and restaurants selling foodstuffs unfit for human consumption and failing to follow health and safety regulations. The harsher approach to dealing with substandard retailers was ordered by Municipal Affairs Minister Dr. Fadhil Safar and the Acting Municipality Director, Engineer Abdullah Emadi.

A recent operation by municipality inspectors backed by police resulted in the closure of two restaurants due to a large number of health and safety violations whilst 32 outlets were issued with citations and 12 with warning notices.

The fish market was amongst the outlets inspected by municipality staff to assess that all the items on sale met with the official health and safety criteria, whilst other inspectors visited local supermarkets and grocery stores.

Sahood Al-Mutairi, the supervisor of Jahra Municipality’s markets and foodstuff outlets division, explained that whilst the operations are part of the municipality’s standard duties, the current ones are even more important than usual since some unscrupulous merchants will attempt to exploit the month of Ramadan to cut corners and make extra profit. ,

KUWAIT: Jahra Municipality officials pictured during the operations.

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

LOCAL

No plans for lawmakers to rest during summer Work starts on ‘legislative roadmap’

Iraqi parliament launches investigation into KEC land deal

By A. Saleh KUWAIT: The Iraqi Parliament has launched an investigation into a deal in which Iraqi land estimated to measure more than 280,000 dunams (one dunam = approximately 2,500 m≤) in the Southern Seeba area to the south of Basra was sold to a Kuwaiti company.

Spokesman of the Oil and Energy Committee Udai Awwad said, “We discovered a deal to sell Iraqi land with an estimated area of 280,000 dunams as part of an investment contract in Seeba fields with the Kuwait Energy Company (KEC).

He said the investment contract is within a certain period of time and cannot be sold to a non-Iraqi company.

Awwad specifically held Iraq’s Deputy Premier for energy affairs Hussain Al-Shaharstani responsible for signing the contract, which he warned would have negative effects on Iraq’s future, adding that he will submit the issue to the Parliament for discussion, along with documents proving the deal took place.

Meanwhile, Kuwaiti MP Ali AlOmair has threatened to grill Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammad AlSabah over a new issue, saying, “We will not allow the continuation of this dalliance and we will ask him about the announcement made in Moscow about Russia’s ratification

of a treaty with the Kuwait Government on cooperation in the field of the peaceful use of nuclear energy.”

Al-Omairi said that this policy a continuation of the government’s policy of squandering money for no obvious return, adding that the “minister describes the Iranian file as dangerous and worrisome.”

On a separate issue, MP Daifallah Buramya warned the education minister not to go too far in approving projects conducted under direct contracts, as they raise suspicions about the squandering of public funds. “ The education minister has launched a new era of profiteering and buying political loyalties by turning a blind eye to what is happening in those contracts and the suspicions around them.”

As a man of law, he said, the minister Ahmad Al-Mulaifi should know the legal frameworks followed in such contracts very well, and if he is serious in his work, he should stop those suspicious contracts, and submit them to the Central Tenders Committee (CTC).

He claimed that the education ministry has signed a number of construction and maintenance contracts, most of which are conducted through direct contracts without being passed by the CTC. “We were surprised that the situation is the same, and that more

contracts have been added, such as the artificial turf to be installed in some Kuwaiti schools; then matters escalated to rubber [mats for] running tracks, then special floors for basketball and volleyball and finally an outrageous contract for electrical work to serve these playgrounds, and this means opening a door to squandering people’s money even if it meant to serve the society - why is it not going through the CTC?” On another issue, it’s been reported that the cabinet is expected to discuss the progress of some proposals it has already approved during its first meeting after the current formation, which takes place today, in order to submit them to the National Assembly.

It will also discuss the report by His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed AlSabah about his brief tour of Gulf nations, which concluded yesterday.

The sources said the cabinet will discuss the proposed law to establish a stock market super visor y authority, with commerce and industry minister Amani Buresli set to present a report on it.

“The mechanism of banks financing development projects are almost ready and will be discussed in the presence of the new development minister Abdulwahab AlHaroun, soon after he takes the oath of office in front of His Highness the Amir,” explained an insider.

KUWAIT: Lawmakers are using the summer break to gear up for the resumption of parliamentary business in late October, which is set to feature the enforcement of important articles of legislation, as well as the launch of some already announced and as-yet unannounced interpellation motions.

Speaking on Friday, MP Dr. Hassan Jowhar revealed that he and a number of fellow lawmakers are working together on what he called a “legislative roadmap,” which he said aims to give priority to enforcing legislation that has already been unanimously agreed by parliament.

“There are subjects that lawmakers are all on the same page on, including the regulations concerning fighting corruption, the appointment of senior posts and enforcement of due allowances”, Dr. Jowhar explained.

Meanwhile, the Development and Reform Bloc (DRB) reportedly plans to submit proposals for the construction of further state facilities, such as new hospitals, as well as a new university, in addition to the one currently being built in AlShaddadiya. This was announced by DRB member and MP Dr. Walid AlTabtabaie, who said that most of these demands were ignored when the government was previously approached about them.

On the subject of grilling

motions, several ministers could find themselves having to prepare to mount the podium as lawmakers hinted about possible grilling motions to be filed addressing the proposed amendments on the still unenforced capital markets law, as well as the internet prices crisis and most recently, concerns over the Mubarak Al-Kabeer port project.

On the port project, MP Dr Jamaan Al-Harbish warned the cabinet in posts on his Twitter account against giving in to Iraqi pressure by backing down on the current construction plans for the major development.

Fellow MP Saleh Al-Mulla also tweeted on a variety of subjects, urging the cabinet to utilize the “golden opportunity” presented by the summer break to study subjects that are likely to be included in grilling motions.

While lawmakers will take a break from parliamentary sessions during the summer, this doesn’t mean that their parliamentary work will be entirely suspended until the recess concludes. In fact, the break presents a good opportunity for parliamentary committees to meet and study pending subjects in order for them to be ready for discussion when parliament resumes.

The majority of parliamentary committee members agree that their meetings must continue

ahead of the next parliamentary term, and have set the start of Ramadan, which coincides with the beginning of August, as a date to begin these meetings.

“Several meetings are scheduled with officials from the interior ministry and other departments to discuss all pending issues,” said MP Khalid Al-Tahous, the rapporteur of the bedoon (stateless) residents committee, adding, “There are many subjects that demand clear effort from the government for them to be solved.”

Lawmaker Al-Tabtabaei, who is the rapporteur of the parliamentary negative phenomena committee and a member of the human rights committee, also said that many subjects would be discussed during the first half of the holy month, including the draft laws to establish a Kuwaiti human rights authority and a Supreme Family Council.

MP Jowhar, who is a member of the educational committee, revealed that the committee has a “heavy schedule” for the summer, including investigation into malpractices in scholarships at Kuwait University and the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training, as well as the discussion of a draft law to dismantle the Ministry of Information into different departments to boost work efficiency.—Agencies

Drug-smuggling trucker caught

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: An Egyptian truck driver was caught at Abdally border checkpoint attempting to smuggle 75,000 narcotic tablets into the country.

Customs authorities worked with officers from the General Department for Drugs Control (GDDC), who had received a tip-off about the man’s activities, with the drugs being discovered during a search of the lorry.

The driver had reportedly been smuggling drugs into Kuwait from Iraq for some time, using his job as a cover since it allowed to travel easily between the two countries. He was taken into custody where he is awaiting further legal action.

One dead, 8 hurt in road accidents

By Hanan Al-Saadoun

KUWAIT: The honoring ceremony in progress at the NBK head office.

NBK supports excellence in education KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait strongly supports excellence in education. Recognizing and rewarding the hard work of students and encouraging Kuwait’s youth to attain their highest potential is a central part of NBK’s corporate social responsibility agenda.

To that end, NBK will honor Kuwait ’s top 10 high school graduates for the academic year 2010-2011 and their parents for their outstanding achievement.

Focusing on Arts, Religion and

Science majors, NBK will host another honoring ceremony at its headquarters under the auspices of the M inister of Education and Higher Education Ahmed Abdelmohsin Al-Mulaifi in the coming weeks.

“NBK believes in recognizing and rewarding merit and achievement. We regularly sponsor and suppor t educational institutions and ac tivities in Kuwait and feel that this strong commitment to our community and Kuwait’s youth is vital to the

future development of the country, said NBK Public Relations Manager Abdulmohsen AlRushaid. “NBK leads by example in the realm of Corporate Social Responsibility. We regularly support students with training programs, educational opportunities and awareness campaigns,” Al-Rushaid explained.

Speaking at an earlier honoring ceremony held at NBK headquarters, student Fawaz Abdulla Ghuloom Ali, who achieved 99.1.% results, thanked the bank

Five Kuwaiti artists to take part in Beirut art fair BEIRUT: Menasart, the international art fair devoted to the Middle East, North Africa, and Southeast Asia, will be held here (July 13 to July 16) with the participation of five Kuwaiti artists, and Kuwaiti exhibitors of contemporary art along with a galaxy of Arab and world artists.

Plastic artists Shorouq Amin, Amira Behbehani, and Dina Qabazard are taking part in the fair, in addition to Hamad Al-Saab, Ali Sultan who are specialized in the modern pop art, and all of them are participating in cooperation with Kuwait-based Fa Gallery. Further, Kuwait-based Arts House is participating in the fair with miscellaneous works of art ranging between paintings and sculpture made by a group of Arab artists who displayed their works in the fair including Algerian artist Hamza Bonowa, and Bahraini artist Jamal Abdulraheem.

Menasart, which is a boutique-style fair, is venue where the collectors of paintings, artists, and art experts are brought together from all over the globe in order to find out the best paintings brushed drawn by artists from the Middle East,

North Africa, and South Asia.

Menasart art fair organizes this year thirty five galleries, which are considered of the most important galleries displaying contemporary art in the region, with more than 200 paintings shown and exhibiting the art of a region extended from Morocco to Indonesia and the Middle East, besides organizing a children’s exhibition which is the first of its kind for helping children appreciate art.

Menasart also hosts a fair for contemporary Saudi art titled “Nabat, a sense of existence,” under the patronage of Saudi Princess Reem Al-Faisal, and including fifteen works of art by contemporary Saudi artists ranging between visual arts, and music to literature.

Various conferences are held on the fair’s sidelines for the collectors of paintings, and artistic pundits who are interested in addressing some issues like modern trends of the contemporary art in South Asia, and the challenges faced by the aspiring artists in the Middle East under globalism.—KUNA

for motivating high school students and suppor ting the achievement of their dreams and ambitions. Fawaz met NBK CEO Shaikha Al-Bahar as well as other NBK executive management.

Outstanding student Abrar Numan Al-Ghareeb, who earned 98.48%, also thanked NBK for honoring her and added that she was happy to see NBK valuing the role of education and supporting students’ achievements.

Govt has no plans to amend capital market law, insists insider KUWAIT: The government has no plans to introduce amendments to the capital market law passed by the parliament, but reserves the right to do so in case it finds an error that would obstruct the law’s implementation process, according to a government insider.

The issue has been the subject of speculation since recent news reports suggested that Minister of Commerce and Industry Dr Amani Buresli was pushing for his colleagues to study proposed amendments to the legislation.

Several lawmakers warned against such a move, insisting that the law came into effect after it was passed by the parliament.

A government insider rejected the rumors however, adding, “There are no rules which say that the government can’t amend the [capital market] law before it’s implemented.”

KUWAIT: An unidentified man died at the scene of head injuries sustained in a car crash on the Seventh Ring Road near the airport yesterday. In the same accident, a 19-year-old Kuwaiti man suffered a fractured skull whilst an 18-year-old compatriot sustained other serious head injuries. The two injured men were rushed to Farwaniya Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU), whilst the dead man’s body was removed for autopsy. In a separate incident, two female expatriates aged 42 and 17, were taken to Farwaniya Hospital after suffering head and facial injuries in a crash on the Sixth Ring Road opposite the Jaber Stadium.In a third accident, this time at Kabad Roundabout, two 30-year-old Kuwaiti men suffered various injuries, with both being taken to Farwaniya Hospital. Meanwhile, a 28year-old Kuwaiti man was taken to Mubarak Hospital after suffering multiple injuries in a motorbike crash near the Kuwait Towers on Gulf Road. In a separate incident, an eight-year-old Syrian boy suffered fractures to one thighbone when he was hit by a car whilst crossing the road in Abu. He was taken to Adan Hospital.

Jleeb suicide An unidentified Asian expatriate com-

mitted suicide yesterday in Jleeb AlShuyoukh by dousing himself in petrol and setting it alight. Although emergency services personnel rushed to the scene, the man had died before their arrival of the burns he sustained. It was subsequently confirmed that the man had intended to kill himself, with police finding a suicide note written by the man in which he stated that he was ending his life due to the severe financial problems facing him.The body was removed for autopsy.

Bedoon bust-up A 29-year-old Bedoon (stateless) woman and a 26-year-old Bedoon man were taken to Farwaniya Hospital after sustaining various injuries in a fight between them in a Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh mall.

Policeman insulted A Kuwaiti man was arrested after allegedly insulting a police officer on duty. The officer in question said that the abusive citizen was accompanying another person who had come to the Capital police station to report a road accident. Whilst in the station, the accused man allegedly insulted the officer using foul language. The accused man is in custody awaiting further legal action.

Kuwait’s modernity highlighted at Aseela forum ASEELA, Morocco: Hatim Al-Batawi, a bureau member of the Aseela Foundation Forum, said on Friday evening that Kuwait’s “exceptional” participation in the 33rd Aseela International Cultural Forum highlighted the Gulf nation’s modern cultural and developmental features. “ The state of Kuwait proved at this event that it is the homeland of a deeprooted Arab culture that dates back to thousands of years.”

He noted that all the exhibitions held as part of the cultural event, at which Kuwait is this year’s guest of honor, showcased the Gulf country’s history, which is filled with humanitarian works and artistic creativity that reflect Kuwait’s identity as an Arab country that has remained loyal

to its Arab roots despite its openness to different cultures in recent years.

“Kuwait has been a leading country in spreading Arabic culture and connecting intellectuals of different cultures and origins together,” he added, expressing his pride at being one of the intellectuals who were exposed to the Kuwaiti ‘Al Arabi’ magazine and all the associated publications.

Another high-level participant in the event, Mustafa Al-Nahal, a member of the executive board of the Moroccan Writers’ Union, lauded Kuwait’s participation in the cultural forum, saying that this presented a “bright image” of the state of Kuwait’s developmental advancement to the Moroccan people.— KUNA

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local kuwait digest

People have changed - not for the better

By Walid Al-Rujaib

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s a citizen who was lucky enough to live in Kuwait in the beautiful era of several decades ago, I can’t help but keep comparing old and new Kuwait, and not feeling as lucky to be living through the current sorry period. Regardless of how people describe the differences between the two eras, there’s one thing that citizens of all generations can agree on: in half a century, almost everything in Kuwait has changed.

Advancements in technology and other areas would suggest that Kuwaiti citizens’ living standards have improved significantly down the years. That’s not the case, however, because the human beings have changed for the worse.

Back in the day, Kuwaiti citizens were characterized by their respect for each other, especially older people who used to be given high status and admiration. Today, public speech has deteriorated to alarmingly low levels, affecting everything from journalism to how people talk to each other on the street, in public facilities and even in parliament.

A few decades ago, Kuwait was a pioneer in education and health, but you can’t even find a vacant bed these days at one of the country’s’ decaying public hospitals. In the old days, roads were more narrow and bridges were rare, but driving around Kuwait was smooth because motorists drove with consideration for others, unlike today.

Tolerance was much greater in the old days compared to the levels seen nowadays. People of all religions and faiths were respectful to one another, but now we find restrictions against followers of other beliefs, some of whom are even forbidden from building their own places of worship.

Back in that era, the majority of expatriates were Arab citizens. With all due respect to other nationalities, citizens of southeast Asian countries have become a dominant majority in the country now, while a majority of whom are servants and other unskilled workers, who are responsible for the increase in crime rates. We can’t put the blame solely on these individuals, of course, because the government fails to take deterrent measures against residency traders while at the same time putting restrictions on the entrance of some Arab nationalities.

Corruption and laxity have been present throughout the past few decades, but not as heavily as they are today. Back then, the wealth was less but the people’s wellbeing was considered the most important issue. There were no fraudulent merchants or traders in bad food. Infrastructure was solid, unlike today where public services give the false impression that we live in a poor country.

I know that some people might argue by saying that Kuwait’s infrastructure deteriorated because it couldn’t handle the increase in population. But what about the development plan and the billions of dinars allocated to it?

All these negative aspects weren’t created by lack of wealth, lack of democracy or other reasons that are out of our hands. The real reason behind the deterioration is the fact that the human being has changed for the worse. The government neglected the duty to improve human beings, and political activists who could push for that goal became rare.

Recovery cannot be achieved unless it starts with social and political reform. — Al-Rai

Anti-govt MP keeps up heat on prime minister Attempt to save Kuwait from mismanagement

KUWAIT: A leading anti-government MP in the Kuwaiti parliament insisted on Thursday that the continuous escalations by some parliamentarians against the cabinet are their attempt to save the country from the government’s supposed mismanagement. “Confronting [Prime Minister] Sheikh Nasser AlMohammed Al-Sabah and his successive cabinets is an attempt on our part to save Kuwait from Nasser Al-Mohammad,” said MP Ahmad Al-Saadoun speaking at a press conference held in the parliamentary building. Al-Saadoun further asserted that the anti-government MPs’ agenda to end the premier’s tenure is as accurate as his statement clearly implies.

Al-Saadoun, the leader of the Popular Action Bloc (PAB), the most outspoken of the three anti-government blocs in parliament in its opposition to the premier, further revealed that the PAB plans to

tackle numerous issues in new interpellation motions against HH Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed and other ministers. “We have a sufficient amount of prepared grilling motions against Al-Mohammed,” said the MP, “but if [the cabinet] wants us to grill ministers, we have no problems with that.” Al-Saadoun further elaborated on this topic, naming several ministers he said are responsible for transgressions on the part of the current government.

On the subject of the government’s apparent inability to curb the increases in the prices charged by Internet Service Providers (ISPs), the MP specifically blamed recently appointed Minister of Communication and Information Sami Al-Nisf, saying that he “is going to be directly held accountable for the ISPs’ drain of citizens’ money.”

Al-Saadoun added that a grilling motion on that subject can also be filed

The MP further indicated that this issue could be the subject of yet another grilling motion against the premier.

Minister of Commerce and Industry Dr. Amani Buresli also came in for criticism, with Al-Saadoun condemning her decision to delay the implementation of the legislation to establish a capital market authority pending amendments to the law that he described as “unacceptable.” Al-Saadoun also blasted the strategy adopted by the government over resolving the problems faced by bedoon (stateless) residents, describing the government’s policy towards this issue as “absurd” and “catastrophic.”

He was also scathing about the national unity law reportedly being considered by the government, saying that this is basically a copy of the existing law which restricts people’s freedom to hold public gatherings. — Al-Qabas

KU cap on new student number raised to 8,000 Minister chairs marathon meeting

KUWAIT: Residents of Kuwait are currently facing scorching temperatures of up to 50 degrees Celsius (122degrees Fahrenheit), as this car’s dashboard temperature indicator shows. Many are attempting to escape the extreme Kuwaiti summer heat by heading abroad on holiday.

— Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

MoE committed to increasing teachers’ bonuses KUWAIT: The Ministry of Education (MoE) is committed to implementing the Civil Service Commission’s resolution, known as the ‘Moudhi Al-Humoud rule,’ ordering increased bonuses for teachers from Sept 1, with the payments to be retroactive dating back to April.

One MoE insider said that the CSC resolution would be implemented as of the beginning of the 2011-12 school year, with teachers expected to meet certain requirements in order to qualify for payment.

On the recent disputes between the Kuwait Teachers Association (KTA) and MP Rola Dashti, the education ministry insider backed the parliamentarian, stating, “I’ll only say, Rola was right and the association was wrong,” adding that an earlier pay rise proposal had been approved by the parliament, as the lawmaker had asserted, so obviously had not failed because of a lack of parliamentary approval. — Annahar

NBK Assistant General Manager, Treasury Group Sulaiman Al-Marzouq in a group photo with the interns.

NBK wraps second session of Summer Internship Program KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) successfully concluded the second session of its specially designed 2011 Summer Internship Program. The program includes two weeks of custom-made courses geared toward introducing high school and college students, aged 15 to 20 years old, to a professional banking environment.

NBK Assistant General Manager, Treasury Group Sulaiman AlMarzouq honored the interns and explained to them the basics of working in the banking sector and the functions of the Treasury Group.

“NBK is always looking for talent among the young generation, which have creative ideas and are experts in media and internet technology,” Al-Marzouq added.

One of the highlights of the internship included a field trip to AlRai TV. Public Relations and Facilities Manager at Al-Rai Media Group Ragaie Al-Matarawi and Technical and IT Director at Al Rai TV Khalil Koleilat have received and wel-

against the premier if the cabinet is pushed in that direction.

The veteran parliamentarian also criticized oil minister Dr. Mohammad AlBusairi over statements concerning the fourth refinery project. MPs have called on the government to establish a shareholding company to build the fourth refinery in Kuwait, according to the existing law which identifies this as the proper method and criterion for use in implementing major projects. Minister AlBusairi said in a recent statement, however, that, according to the State Audit Bureau (SAB), the law isn’t applicable in the case of the fourth refinery project.

“Since when is the SAB consulted on implementing laws?” asked Al-Saadoun, insisting that the procedures to be followed in establishing the official bodies responsible for major projects were set down in the aforementioned legislation.

comed the interns.

Koleilat said that this visit reflects the mutual cooperation between NBK & Al-Rai TV. Koleilat spoke to the interns about the background and hands-on experience of media.

“NBK’s Summer Internship Program is an extension of our edu-

cational outreach services,” said Talal Al- Turki, NBK Public Relations Officer.

“NBK has a long standing commitment to the development of Kuwait’s youth and this program demonstrates our dedication to providing appropriate opportunities for youth to gain hands-on work experience.”

Technical and IT Director at Al-Rai TV Khalil Koleilat in a group photo with the interns in “Raicom Shabab” Studio.

KUWAIT: Kuwait University appears to have bowed to political pressure, raising its controversial cap on new student numbers for the 2011-12 academic year to 8,000 after the education ministry made it clear to senior academic staff that the previously announced upper limit of 6,850 was unacceptable. Earlier this week, Education Minister Ahmad Al-Mulaifi chaired a marathon six-hour meeting of the Kuwait University governing council, attended by KU Rector Abdullatif Al-Badr and a number of faculty heads.

The minister was reportedly dismissive of the rector’s and deans’ objections to increasing the number of new students, insisting that the upper limit on new students’ numbers must be raised, whatever the consequences.

The repor tedly tense meeting apparently grew more heated when one departmental dean objected to the minister’s approach, apparently informing Al-Mulaifi that he was no longer in parliament and enforcing his views on others, a reference to the minister’s tenure as an MP. According to one of those present, the minister flatly rejected all arguments put forward by the academics, telling the council members to either increase the number of new students or resign if they feel incapable of doing so. The university authorities had set an upper limit of 6,850 new students, saying that this was the maximum number which the university’s already overcrowded faculties could absorb without the quality of education suffering.

According to education ministry

statistics, however, almost 12,000 of this year’s high school graduates meet the admission criteria for Kuwait’s sole state university, meaning that even the increased cap level proposed by the minister is insufficient to provide places for all KU hopefuls wishing to begin their studies there this autumn.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the KU academic who attended the lengthy meeting with the education minister said that although all the department heads attempted to make the minister understand that all KU’s faculties lack both the capacity and staff capabilities to handle the increased student numbers he proposed, the minister airily dismissed their concerns, telling them to “manage...open more classes...hire teachers on loan.” — Al-Rai

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CSC began recruitment drive in June KUWAIT: With the Civil Service Commission (CSC) extending the registration deadline to July 15 for its latest mass recruitment for public sector jobs, a senior official said on Thursday that the commission had begun measures to recruit at least 4,000 Kuwaitis for the posts in June.

CSC Undersecretary Mohammad Al-Roumi added that the names of those selected for the positions will be published around mid-August, in the middle of the upcoming holy month of Ramadan, adding that they may be published slightly later than usual since the publication requires that all the individuals complete the necessary documentation.

“We wrote to ministries and government bodies to request details of their requirements in specialist areas and the necessary degrees in order to cover these requirements in the commission’s list,” Al-Roumi added.

The senior CSC official stressed that the commission’s decision to compel all government bodies to comply with CSC regulations and accept the candidates put forward would be implemented despite objections from some senior officials. — Al-Anba

Kuwaiti Embassy in Berlin bids farewell to relocated staff BERLIN: The Kuwaiti Embassy in Germany held a farewell ceremony for two of its staff on Friday as they prepared to relocate to embassies in other countries.

Ambassador Musaed Al-Haroun presented awards to Second Secretary Abdulrahman Al-Shihab who was relocated to South Korea and Diplomatic Attache Jamal Al-Bahar, who will be going to Canada.

The ceremony was attended by the Dean of the Arab Diplomatic Corps in Germany, Saudi Ambassador Osama bin Abdulmajid Shabakshy and a number of Gulf states, Arab and German diplomats and officials.

In his speech of thanks, Second Secretary Al-Shihab expressed his great delight at the ambassador’s warm initiative, commending his great efforts in the service of Kuwaiti diplomacy. Al-Shihab said he had learnt a lot from the ambassador during his tenure in Berlin, noting that these experiences would aid him in performing his duties in his new posting. — KUNA

Taxi driver dumps body of Asian in Jleeb open area Nightmare ends for abducted woman KUWAIT: Police are hunting for a taxi driver who dumped the body of a man who had apparently been stabbed to death in an open area in Jleeb AlShuyoukh on Friday. Witnesses who found the body immediately called the emergency services hotline, with paramedics pronouncing the man dead at the scene. The victim’s clothes were apparently drenched with blood. Other witnesses later came forward to tell detectives that they had seen the taxi driver throwing something out of the car earlier in the day, but had not realized that it was a body and had not thought anything more of it. Police subsequently identified the victim, whose body was removed for autopsy, as a 48-year-old Asian expatriate who had previously been convicted after being found in a local brothel.

Fatal accident A worker at a Sabhan factory died after getting stuck inside the moving par ts of a large machine there.

Although emergency services personnel rushed to the location, paramedics pronounced the man dead of the horrific injuries he sustained in the accident.

The body was removed for autopsy and the factor y owners may be facing manslaughter charges.

Counterfeit cop A staff member at Saad Al-Abdullah Police Academy’s medical unit got carried away with his dreams of being a policeman, having a uniform custommade so that he could pose as an offi-

cer. The Walter Mitty character was caught out when a senior officer at the academy grew suspicious on seeing the man, who he identified as a worker at the medical unit, in uniform outside the college. When he stopped the counterfeit cop, the man admitted that he had put on his custom-made uniform every day before leaving work since he had always dreamt of being a policeman. He further explained to stealing the captain’s rank epaulettes from the college.

The fantasist finally achieved his dream of being par t of police station life, although not quite as he had imagined, being taken directly to Shuwaikh police station and charged with impersonating a policeman and theft. He remains in custody awaiting further legal action.

Al-Zoor drowning A 39-year-old Egyptian man drowned in the waters off the beach at Zoor near the local desalination plant. Although rescuers dragged the man to shore, they were unable to resuscitate him and paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene. The body was removed for autopsy.

Cot death A six-day-old baby girl was pronounced dead on arrival at Adan Hospital where her parents rushed her after they found her unconscious and struggling to breathe at their home in Abu Halifa. A pediatrician at the hospital said that the baby had died around 15 minutes prior to her arrival at the hospital. The body was removed for autopsy to determine the cause of death.

Kuwait to host Arab Information Conference KUWAIT: Abdullatif Al-Suraie, the general manager of the Central Agency for Information Technology (CAIT) said yesterday that the upcoming Arab Conference for Information and Communications Security (ACICS) shall be held on Oct 3 and 4. Al-Suraie, head of ACICS Higher Steering Committee, added, “the new conference timing was recommended by the conference’s Scientific Committee mandated with finalizing the list of papers and research that will be presented during conference proceedings”. This decision was driven by the request of local and international specialized companies who believe that the new schedule will allow them to raise their level of participation and preparation. CAIT welcomed the enriching and committed attitude of these companies in light of the great value ACICS will add to CAIT ’s role in building and managing the e-government programs in the state of Kuwait. Al-Suraie welcomed the patronage of His Highness the Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad AlAhmad Al-Sabah of the conference. His Highness will be represented by Sami Abdulateef Al-Nisf, the minister of communications, the minister of information, and the chairman of the Central Agency for Information Technology for the inauguration ceremony.

Al-Suraie added that ACICS is a CAIT initiative that is held in cooperation with United Marketing and Organizing Exhibitions Co. (UNIEXPO) and stated that many prominent industry specialists have confirmed their

participation.

Commenting on ACICS’ objectives, Al-Suraie said that ACICS aims at presenting the latest trends and technologies in information and communications security. He added, “the conference introduces the information security systems and services implemented by other countries in their e-government projects or in their security-sensitive health or financial systems”. Al-Suraie said that ACICS shall be the venue for presenting many information security related papers and studies along with many products and services in the accompanying exhibition.

Al-Suraie added that ACICS will enable the industry specialists to exchange knowledge and views regarding the latest security threats that face information systems, and the technologies that help us counter those threats. It is very crucial that we become aware of the changing nature of security threats and the increasing efforts required to face them. Al-Suraie pointed out that the Internet adds a high level of complexity to information security considerations in many electronic services like electronic commerce and other financial transactional systems. In a concluding statement, Al-Suraie confirmed that ACICS will be an added value to CAIT and all other participating agencies, organizations, companies, specialists, and guests.

Housemaid freed Mubarak Al-Kabeer police have freed a housemaid who was abducted from outside her employer ’s home in AlQairan and held prisoner for three months, with her abductor forcing her to work as a prostitute. The woman’s nightmare came to an end after police identified her abductor, whose details were on the police database after the woman’s employer, who saw the abduction take place, reported it and gave them a description of the man, as well as his car license plate number. On arresting the man in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh, he initially denied the crime, but eventually admitted to it, leading officers to the flat in the area where he had imprisoned his victim. The traumatized woman told officers that he had forced her to work as a prostitute, using violence against her. He is in custody awaiting trial.

Brother stabbed A Kuwaiti man in his twenties is fighting for his life in Farwaniya Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit after he was attacked by three thugs who he confronted over their harassment of his sister. Emergenc y ser vices personnel rushed to the scene of the attack, near a Kuwait University campus building in Khaldiya, finding the young man bleeding heavily from a stab wound to his back. It transpired that the victim’s sister had called her brother to ask for help after three men in another car tailed her car from the moment she drove away from her family’s home to go to the uni-

versity. The gallant brother immediately rushed to the scene, confronting the stalkers harassing his sister, who immediately set on and stabbed him before fleeing the scene. Police are using the license plate number of the thugs’ car to trace them.

Delivery man mugged A restaurant deliver y driver was attacked and robbed by thugs whilst delivering a meal in Sulaibiya, with the assailants stealing his motorcycle, all the money on him and the meal he was delivering. The victim told police that he had waited for ten minutes outside the home where he had been instructed to take the food when the three attackers appeared and launched a vicious assault, beating him and stealing his wallet containing KD150 in cash, most of it the takings from earlier deliveries, as well as his motorcycle and even the meal he had been delivering.

Police discovered that the owners of the home which the delivery had been ordered for are currently out of the country, suggesting that the delivery driver was lured into a trap by the cowardly thieves.

Angry smoker An officer with the Direc torate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) was arrested after verbally abusing security officers at Kuwait International Airport who ordered him to put out a cigarette he was smoking in the entirely nonsmoking facility. He was taken to the nearest police station to be charged.

UCLA to supervise Mubarak Hospital’s transition KUWAIT: The Ministry of Health (MoH) is set to sign a contract with the prestigious University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to allow the American university to supervise the process of transferring control of Mubarak Hospital from the MoH to Kuwait University’s Faculty of Medicine by 2013. According to Dr Mahmoud Al-Abdulhadi, the director of the health ministry’s legal department,

the agreement with UCLA would allow the university to design the transitional agreement for transferring control of the hospital. “ The joint Kuwait UniversityMinistry of Health council has recommended that the articles of the transitional agreement be designed according to [Kuwait’s] laws,” he explained, adding that the decision was taken to approach UCLA about super vising the

process in order to ensure that all the state’s regulations would be complied with and the transitional process would be supervised in the best possible way.

In other news, Health Minister Dr Helal Al-Sayer has formed a team of MoH officials which is to conduct a tour of opticians’ shops in Kuwait to ensure that all the eye testing and other equipment used meet the ministry’s criteria. — Al-Rai

Health insurance for Kuwaiti students in UK LONDON: Director of Kuwait Health Office in the United Kingdom Dr Yagoub Al-Tamar revealed yesterday that Kuwait will officially sign an agreement with Bupa Health Insurance Company to provide health insurance to all Kuwaiti students in the UK. Al-Tamar said that Minister of Health Dr Hilal Al-Sayer will sign the agreement, tomorrow, in the presence of Kuwaiti ambassa-

dor to the UK and the Kuwaiti Cultural and Health attaches, representatives of the Kuwait Students Union in the UK as well as representatives of Bupa company.

The health insurance would provide quick and full health care to all Kuwaiti students, whether they are studying at their own expense or on a government scholarship.

Al-Tamar expressed appreciation to

His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad AlSabah and Kuwaiti Health Minister for their support to offer health insurance to Kuwaiti students. On his part, Cultural attache Dr Mohammad Al-Hajiri lauded this decision, urging Kuwait students who would like to get the benefits of this health insurance to send all their personal documents to the cultural attache’s website. — KUNA

KUWAIT: Kuwaiti divers working to free the stranded a steamboat on Ushairej Beach.

KDT frees stranded ship KUWAIT: Jahra Governor Sheikh Mubarak Al-Hmoud Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and Burgan Bank’s Chairman, Majed Essa Al-Ajeel, inaugurating the branch.

Burgan Bank opens third branch in Jahra KUWAIT: Burgan Bank has celebrated recently the opening of its latest branch located in Jahra district, extending the bank’s offer of financial services to the local residents of Jahra, and continued focus on client service. The Jahra branch will provide local residents with the chance to experience convenient ways of banking with Burgan Bank.

The branch was officially inaugurated by Jahra Governor Sheikh Mubarak Al-Hmoud Al-Jaber Al-Sabah as well as Burgan Bank’s Chairman, Majed Essa AlAjeel, along with senior executives of the bank’s management. The branch

will be open from Sundays to Thursdays 8:30 am - 3 pm. Majed Essa Al-Ajeel, Burgan Bank’s Chairman said: “We are extremely delighted to open yet another branch in Jahra. At Burgan Bank we are driven by our value of commitment to offer superior services to all of our clients, across all of our banking operations.”

Due to the increasing demand for innovative banking services, the opening of third branch in Jahra will continue to serve as a platform to offer the best possible customer experience for residents in this governorate.

Burgan Bank has now 24 branches across Kuwait. With the opening of its third branch in Jahra district, Burgan Bank’s new network of branches continues to complement the overall growth strategy across the local and regional markets. The new branch is located in Jahra, block 93, complex 34, Al- Aaqoul building.

For further information on any of Burgan Bank’s products and services customers are urged to visit their nearest Burgan Bank branch, call the bank’s call center on 1804080, or log on to the bank’s website www.burgan.com.

KUWAIT: Kuwaiti divers were able to free a steamboat which became stranded on Ushairej Beach in Kuwait Bay in an intensive four-day operation.

The 70-foot ship, which weighs in at a hefty 80 tons, became stranded after inadvertently sailing into shallow waters, being unable to withdraw due to its size and weight. The situation called for intervention from the Environmental Voluntary Foundation’s Kuwait Dive Team, whose members positioned large airbags around the vessel to help float it in an operation carried out for the first time in Kuwaiti waters. “[The divers] fixed the airbags along both sides of the vessel, which helped raise the ship during high tide,” explained the operation supervisor, Ahmad Al-

Dhamki in a press release issued yesterday. The KDT official further explained that the operation succeeded on the third try, with the first two efforts to free the stranded vessel failing due to strong

winds. This is the latest of many KDT voluntary operations, with another recent operation seeing the team helping to remove the wreckage of 40 sunken wooden vessels from the sea bottom.

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Police arrest 1,600 in Malaysia protest Page 12

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Rebels in Libya brace for attacks Rebel death toll rises, more attacks feared DAFNIYA/AL-QAWALISH: Rebel fighters braced for further attacks yesterday from forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi after the Libyan leader staged a show of support at home and threatened to strike his enemies abroad. Rebels in Misrata said the death toll in the western town, a longtime insurgent stronghold, had risen to seven from six, with at least 17 wounded, after a heavy attack by Gaddafi artillery the day before.

A rebel spokesman in the town on the Mediterranean coast, who gave his name as Youssef, told Reuters: “The situation is calm today in Misrata.

Yesterday seven rebels were killed. We expect fighting this evening.” Rebels have advanced on two fronts against Gaddafi forces in recent days, but government troops have fought back and Gaddafi has also sought to encourage his forces.

In a defiant speech late on Friday, Gaddafi threatened to export the war to Europe in revenge for the NATO-led military campaign against him, and to crush his enemies. The “traitors” ranged against him in Libya and elsewhere will “fall under the feet” of the Libyan masses, he said. In Tripoli and 800 km (500 miles) to the south in the desert town of Sabha, tens of thousandsswelled by representatives of the tribes of the regiongathered for Friday prayers in what appeared to be an attempt to show that Gaddafi enjoys widespread support in the areas he still controls despite the rebel gains of recent weeks.

Gaddafi supporters rallied in Tripoli’s Green Square, underscoring his refusal to step down after four decades in power and five months of fighting. Speaking on Libyan television, Gaddafi threatened to send hundreds of Libyans to carry out revenge attacks in Europe.

“Hundreds of Libyans will martyr in Europe. I told you it is eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth. But we will give them a chance to come to their senses,” he said in an audio speech.

While the insurgents have advanced on two fronts, rebels in Misrata have come under heavy artillery fire from Gaddafi’s forces. A rebel sympathizer in Misrata told Reuters opposition forces had been moving closer to neighboring Zlitan, one of a chain of governmentcontrolled towns blocking their advance to Tripoli.

As they advanced, pro-Gaddafi troops inside the city fired rounds of explosives to block their progress, the sympathizer said in an email. “The rebels are waiting for NATO backup or for Gaddafi forces to run out of ammunition to make a move to take the city centre,” he said.

On the other major front, in the Western Mountains region southwest of Tripoli, NATO warplanes bombed forces loyal to Gaddafi several times on Friday, their bombs landing about 3 km (2 miles) east of the village of Al-Qawalish, according to one rebel fighter.

After weeks of static fighting, the rebels have made significant advances this week: pushing west from Misrata to within 13 km (8 miles) of Zlitan, where large numbers of pro-Gaddafi forces are based, and seizing the village of Al-Qawalish in the southwest. Taking AlQawalish brings them closer to having control of a major highway into the capital.

Rebel advances over the last two weeks have allowed normal life to resume in towns no longer within shelling distance of Gaddafi’s troops. Rebels staged a military parade on Friday evening in Zintan, driving tanks through the streets of town in the Western Mountains. People fired rifles in the air including one small boy who opened fire with a Kalashnikov assault rifle while perched on his father’s shoulders.—Reuters

TRIPOLI: In this photo taken on a government-organized tour, a Libyan woman with her hand dyed with henna, gestures before Friday prayers in Green Square, downtown Tripoli, Libya, Friday,.—AP

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More Syria deaths as half a million flood Hama 15 killed, 200 arrested

CAIRO: Martin Schulz, leader of the Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament, center, surrounded by Egyptian demonstrators during his visit to Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt yesterday.—AP

Egypt: no Gulf pressure to halt Mubarak trial CAIRO: Egypt’s foreign minister dismissed talk of any pressure on Cairo from Gulf Arab states to prevent the trial of ousted President Hosni Mubarak, according to an interview published yesterday. Mubarak, overthrown in February by a popular uprising, is due to stand trial on Aug. 3 for the killing of protesters on charges that could carry the death penalty.

Many Egyptians, including those who took to the streets on Friday, have accused the military rulers of reluctance in trying former air force commander Mubarak and some have suggested Gulf Arabs have urged Cairo not to humiliate their former ally. Asked whether Egyptian officials had faced such pressure, Mohammed El-Orabi told Asharq Al-Awsat, “This subject was not opened, and this did not happen during our visit to the Gulf.”

He referred to visits to Gulf states by Egyptian officials. The minister also dismissed talk that mainly Sunni Gulf Arab states, who have long been wary of Shiite

Iran’s intentions in the region, opposed any move by Egypt to resume diplomatic ties with Iran that have been severed for three decades.

“We never heard of a veto from the Gulf countries making reservations on our relations with Iran,” Orabi said. “Ties (with Iran) must be woven in a healthy way between the two countries that serves the interests of both peoples,” he said. Gulf Arab states such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have offered generous economic aid to Egypt, whose economy has been hit hard by the uprising against Mubarak that drove away investors and tourists. Those contributions have also sparked talk about whether Gulf states would quietly attach strings to their support. Referring to uprisings in other Arab states, Orabi said: “Egypt supports the people’s aspirations in all Arab countries. As for Syria, we consider it important to give a chance for Syria to undertake political reforms that support stability.” — Reuters

Israel to expel 124 pro-Palestinian activists JERUSALEM: Israel was preparing to expel 124 mostly European activists who had managed to arrive on flights to the country as part of a pro-Palestinian protest, an official said yesterday. “Access to Israeli territory was blocked to 124 pro-Palestinian militants coming from Europe, who are now being held in Israel jails,” said Sabine Hadad, spokeswoman for the immigration service. They will be expelled “as soon as there are places on appropriate flights,” she said, adding that because yesterday is the Jewish Sabbath, “there are not a lot of flights and this could take a bit of time.”

She said most of the activists were French, with the others being American, Belgian, Bulgarian, Dutch and Spanish.

While awaiting expulsion, they are being held at two jails-one near Tel Aviv and the other in the Negev desert. “They are receiving the same correct treatment as all other prisoners,” prisons authority spokeswoman Sivan Weizman said.

Meanwhile, police at Ben Gurion airport remain on alert “because there are constantly flights and passengers must be very carefully vetted,” police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. The activists were participating in the “Welcome to Palestine” cam-

paign, which some have called the “flytilla,” in which up to 800 activists were to fly in on a peaceful mission to visit Palestinian families.

Israeli authorities said they largely managed to pre-empt the campaign by foreign activists demonstrating for the right of access to the occupied West Bank. Officials said that by notifying foreign airlines of ticket-holders who would not be admitted to Israel they had prevented hundreds from boarding at their ports of departure. The “flytilla” took place as a flotilla of ships was being prevented by Greece from sailing to the Gaza Strip in a bid to break the Israeli blockade on the Palestinian territory.

Israeli news website Ynet said yesterday that around 50 European pro-Palestinian activists who succeeded in breaching the checks at Ben Gurion Airport on Friday had crossed into the West Bank. Some 150 Palestinians and foreign activists protesting near the Qalandiya checkpoint north of Jerusalem in the West Bank yesterday were met with tear-gas grenades by the Israeli military, Ynet added. A military spokeswoman said “the army dispersed protesters in Qalandiya and closed the checkpoint briefly.”—AFP

SANAA: Anti-government protesters, shout slogans during a demonstration demanding the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in Sanaa, Yemen yesterday.—AP

Three soldiers killed in south Yemen ambush ADEN: A Yemeni army officer and two of his troops were killed in an ambush by gunmen near the southern port city of Aden yesterday, military sources said. They said the unidentified assailants opened fire with automatic weapons on a jeep in the village of Thalaet, west of Daleh, killing Lotf Al-Mazlum and two soldiers as well as wounding two civilians, witnesses said. The attack took place in a region that is a stronghold of the Southern Movement, which seeks independence for south Yemen, which was a sovereign state prior to unification with the north in 1990.

Also in Aden, dozens of young protesters and human rights activists rallied calling for an “end to violence” in the city of

Zinjibar, a city hit by air raids and abuse of civilians by armed groups linked to AlQaeda. “We demand the departure from the city of armed groups and the return of those displaced,” said Linda Hosni, an activist who took part in the protest.

Six Zinjibar residents died after drinking water from a well contaminated by a bomb that fell inside it two days previously, said the city’s deputy health officer Nasser Bellil.

Zinjibar has been in the hands of suspected Al-Qaeda militants since late May. “Residents only discovered the device after six people had died,” Bellil told AFP, adding that he was concerned for the health of those who remain there.—AFP

DAMASCUS: Security forces killed at least 15 people and arrested more than 200 people in Syria, activists said, as Human Rights Watch denounced yesterday a “deliberate policy” to disperse protesters with deadly force. The deaths came as Damascus accused the US envoy of inciting violence in Hama-where nearly half a million people protested on Friday-a charge roundly denied by Washington which accused the Syrian embassy of spying on demonstrators in the United States.

Opposition activists reported five deaths Friday in the central city of Homs, two in the capital’s commercial neighborhood Medan and six in the Dmeir area, east of Damascus.

Security forces machine-gunned protesters at Maaret al-Numan in the northwest, killing one and wounding five, an activist said.

Soldiers also fired at a family car on the Hama-Aleppo road near Maaret Al-Numan, killing a man and wounding his wife and two daughters, the activist added. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said security forces had also arrested more than 200 people around the country on Friday, more than half of them in Homs. The London-based watchdog’s director Rami Abdel Rahman said a record 450,000 Syrians rallied after Friday prayers in Hama, an opposition bastion, under the banner “No to dialogue” with Assad’s regime and called for its ouster.

Both US envoy Rober t Ford and French ambassador Eric Chevallier visited the city on Thursday. Damascus accused Ford of meeting with “saboteurs” there and of inciting people to violence, but the State Department said the ambassador had done no such thing and had gone as an international observer with the regime’s knowledge.

The foreign ministry called Ford’s presence in Hama “obvious proof of the implication of the United States in the ongoing events, and of their attempts to increase (tensions), which damage Syria’s security and stability.” US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said she was “dismayed” by such criticism and stressed that Syrian authorities knew of the visit in advance.

The ambassador met “average Syrian citizens” and “certainly did not incite anyone to anything,” US embassy press attache JJ Harder told AFP. Harder also took issue with government claims that armed gangs are the problem in Hama-where activists say regime forces have killed 25 people since Tuesday-stressing that Ford “saw no evidence of this.”

Dozens of regime supporters demonstrated outside the American embassy in Damascus on

Friday to condemn Ford’s trip to Hama, an AFP journalist said. State news agency SANA said “tens of thousands of people” marched in Damascus, Aleppo-Syria’s second-largest cityand Deir Ezzor in the east, against foreign intervention and to show their support for Assad’s reform programme.

Washington summoned the Syrian ambassador for talks after reports that embassy staff had filmed US protests against the crackdown in Syria, the State Department said Friday.

Imad Mustapha was called in to meet with top

DAMASCUS: In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA and according to them, Pro-Syrian President Bashar Assad protesters, wave their national country flag as they protest to show their support for their president, at al-Hijaz square in Damascus, Syria, on Friday—AP State Department officials “to express a number of our concerns with the reported actions of certain Syrian embassy staff in the United States. “We received reports that Syrian mission personnel under ambassador Mustapha’s authority have been conducting video and photographic surveillance of people participating in peaceful demonstrations in the United States.”

Rights groups say that security forces have killed more than 1,300 civilians and arrested at least 12,000 since anti-government protests

Bahrain doctor: Jailers beat opposition ‘traitors’ DUBAI: During more than two months in a Bahrain prison, the routine rarely varied: Alleged abuses by day such as beatings with a rubber hose, and then being blindfolded and dragged into a corridor at night to lie on cold tiles with others arrested in the Gulf kingdom’s crackdown on pro-reform protests.

The account - recounted to The Associated Press by a surgeon from Bahrain’s main staterun hospital - is among many claims of rights violations as authorities crushed the Gulf’s main Arab Spring uprising. It also shows the huge challenges for Bahrain’s Western-backed rulers to rebuild their image and lead reconciliation talks that began this month.

The allegations by the surgeon and other medical personnel remain some of the most politically sensitive between Bahrain’s Sunni monarchy and the majority Shiites seeking a greater political voice in the strategic island nation, which is home to the US Navy’s 5th Fleet.

“They insulted us as ‘Shiite traitors,’” said the doctor, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of fear of reprisals and worries about jeopardizing his defense in court. “They kept saying we were ungrateful to the (Sunni) king and what he did for us.

‘You don’t deserve to stay in Bahrain,’ they said.” The state hospital became contested ground after the uprising began in February as it was flooded with injured protesters some wounded by live ammunition - and authorities conducted arrest sweeps in the wards. A total of 48 Shiite doctors and nurses, including the surgeon, still face a range of charges from supporting the protests to trying to overthrow the state.

But the claims of abuses while in custody could bring further international scrutiny on Bahrain’s harsh tactics against demonstrators and are among the many bitter and unresolved tensions that could unravel the US encouraged talks between the leadership and opposition.

Bahraini officials did not immediately respond to an email request for comment on the doctor’s allegations. The office of the country’s information authority, which deals with foreign media, did not answer calls to their office. The doctor’s story cannot be independently verified, but the accusations of abuse have been repeated by detainees’ defense lawyers and by political opposition groups. “I was forced to say that people who were seriously injured and we operated on them to save their lives were not injured by the army or police during protests, but in the hospital by us doctors,” the doctor told the AP from Bahrain by Skype to avoid possible mobile phone monitoring by authorities.

He was among 28 health professionals released from custody two weeks ago as they await trial on charges of aiding the protesters and issuing “false news” - widely considered a reference to speaking to foreign journalists.

Twenty other doctors and nurses from the Salmaniya medical center face charges of trying to topple the government and remain in custody.

erupted in mid-March. New York-based Human Rights Watch issued a damning criticism of Syrian security forces for firing on unarmed civilians and for beating detainees, based on testimony from alleged defectors. “All of the inter viewed defectors told Human Rights Watch that their superiors had told them that they were fighting infiltrators (mundaseen), salafists and terrorists,” a statement said.

“The defectors said they were surprised to encounter unarmed protesters instead, but still were ordered to fire on them in a number of

The doctor said he was first summoned by police in April, just weeks after Bahrain imposed temporary martial law-style rules and received military support from a Saudiled force. He claimed he was beaten and questioned for hours before being forced to sign a confession - while blindfolded - saying that he inflicted injuries on patients and was responsible for the deaths of protesters.

He believes the documents will be used to shift the responsibility of deaths and injuries away from security forces. At least 32 people have been killed since February, including four who died in custody. Hundreds of protesters, activists and Shiite professionals such as doctors and lawyers were detained; hundreds of other suspected opposition supporters were purged from jobs and universities.

For 75 days in custody, the doctor said he was often blindfolded and handcuffed and held in one of 12 cells in a hallway inside a prison in Muharraq, north of the capital Manama. Bloggers, protesters, nurses, doctors and activists were among other inmates.

Almost every night, the doctor said guards would drag them from their cells and cram them into a hallway. They sometimes stayed for hours on the tiled floors, blindfolded and their hands bound behind their backs, the doctor said. By day, he claimed there were beaten with “a large rubber hose,” chained to the ceiling and forced to stand for extended periods. During interrogations, the detainees from the hospital were spat on, kicked and punched, the doctor said. “You are Shiite dogs and you are treated like dogs here,” the doctor said the guards shouted at them.

Later, he said they cranked up the volume of chants about killing Shiites with swords and cutting them to pieces, the doctor said.

“It was extremely loud and they played it again and again and again,” the doctor said.

“They had no evidence ... and, under torture, they make you confess.” Bahrain’s Shiites account for about 70 percent of the kingdom’s population, but they claim systematic discrimination including being effectively blocked from top military and political posts.

Their protests in February - inspired by wider Arab uprisings have been by far the biggest challenge to any Gulf ruler in decades.

The Salmaniya hospital has been a political hotspot since protests began. The mostly Shiite personnel was seen by Sunni authorities as protest sympathizers, although the staff claim they treated all who need care. For many Shiites, the sprawling complex - sitting between fancy shopping malls and Westernstyle cafes in central Manama - is now as much a symbol of the rebellion as the city’s Pearl Square, which protesters occupied for a month and the military overran in March and later destroyed the square’s landmark 300foot (90-meter) pearl monument.

Hours after marital law was declared on March 17 the army surrounded the Salmaniya hospital, set up military checkpoints and deployed commando-style troops in army green coveralls and black ski masks to patrol the outside walls. —AP

instances. The defectors also reported that those who refused orders to shoot on protesters ran the risk of being shot themselves.” One defector spoke of an incident in Homs, where “protesters had sat down in the square.” “We got an order ... to shoot at the protesters. We were shooting for more than half an hour.

There were dozens and dozens of people killed and wounded. “Thirty minutes later, earth diggers and fire trucks arrived. The diggers lifted the bodies and put them in a truck. I don’t know where they took them.”—AFP

Iran says fired missiles into Indian Ocean TEHRAN: Iran said it fired two medium range missile into the Indian Ocean six months ago under the eyes of “American spy planes,” local media reported yesterday, quoting a top military commander. “In Bahman (Iranian month which runs from January 21 to February 19, two Revolutionary Guard missiles with the range of 1,900 kilometres (1,180 miles) were fired from Semnan (central Iran) to the designated targets in the Indian Ocean,” said the unit’s aerospace chief, Amir Ali Hajizadeh said.

“This took place with the Americans present in the area ...

We allowed the American spy planes to be in the area but so far they have not said anything about it,” he added, without elaborating on the missiles fired. The elite Guards wrapped up a 10-day military drill codenamed Great Prophet-6 on Wednesday, during which a number of ballistic missiles were fired.

Tehran’s archfoe, the United States, reacted by saying that “Iran, rather than getting itself back in the good graces of the international community ... seems to be bragging about its capabilities, conducting secret programs, parading new missiles in front of the press.” Tehran says it has a wide range of missiles in its arsenal, and regularly boasts about developing projectiles with substantial range and capabilities. Western military experts, however, cast doubt over its claims. The Guards carry out such exercises every year, particularly in the Gulf region, and Tehran insists the manoeuvres are purely defensive. Iranian leaders, however, have repeatedly warned the missiles could reach Israeli territory as well as US bases in the Middle East. —AFP

Iraq blocs to take 2 more weeks on US troop issue BAGHDAD: Iraq’s fractious political blocs will take two more weeks to decide whether US troops should extend their stay in Iraq beyond a year-end deadline, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said yesterday. Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki has asked Iraq’s Sunni, Kurdish and Shiite political factions to debate and decide whether US forces should stay or leave on schedule, and indicated he would abide by the majority.

Under a security pact signed between the two governments in 2008, Washington is due to withdraw its remaining troops, numbering about 46,000, from Iraq by Dec 31, more than eight years after the US -led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein. US officials have said they are willing to consider leaving some troops in Iraq beyond the deadline, but Iraq must make a request.

Talabani, Maliki, parliamentary Speaker Osama Al-Nujaifi, a Sunni, and other leaders met yesterday to discuss efforts to finalise a government and the possible US extension. “We agreed that our brothers in the political parties are to consult their parties and come back again after two weeks with a final stand,” Talabani, a Kurd, said. The two-week deadline for the individual factions to make their choices known did not mean Iraq’s final decision was imminent. The blocs are known to have disparate views on a US troops extension. Maliki, a Shi’ite, has said repeatedly in the past two months that foreign troops are no longer needed but appeared to open the door to a continued US presence.

Any decision by the premier to extend the presence of US troops is risky. Anti-American Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, whose Sadrist bloc is a key ally of Maliki’s government, has threatened to unleash his militia of Mehdi Army if US forces fail to leave by yearend. —Reuters

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‘Colombian Madoff’ gets nine years in US prison NEW YORK: A US court sentenced an alleged fraudster dubbed the “Colombian Madoff” for ties to a multimillion-dollar pyramid scheme to nine years in prison Friday after he pleaded guilty to money laundering. US District Judge William Pauley in New York said David Murcia Guzman was facing “very serious” charges and denied the defense team’s request for clemency after the defendant tearfully pleaded for a reduction of his sentence and to be tried in Colombia, where he faces a 30-year sentence.

“I plead for your mercy to have a second chance,” an emotional Murcia said in the Manhattan courtroom just before the sentence was announced.

Murcia, who is accused of swindling investors out of a staggering $920 million, spoke on several occasions about his two young sons and his mother, who

cannot come see him in the United States. Murcia earned his nickname in reference to Wall Street conman Bernard Madoff, who was sentenced in June 2009 to 150 years in prison after pleading guilty to a multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme in which existing investors were paid returns stolen from new investors’ capital.

Pauley also sentenced Murcia to three years of supervised release and ordered him to forfeit $7 million and all rights in 10 properties located in Florida and California. “Murcia Guzman wove an intricate web of deception across continents to disguise his dirty drug money and support his lavish lifestyle,” said US Attorney Preet Bharara. “But his web has been untangled and his lifestyle dramatically curtailed by this sentence.” According to prosecutors, Murcia and five co-defendants laundered narcotics

proceeds through his firm DMG and its affiliated companies.

Because they had cash in dollars that they could not deposit into the Colombian banking system, they asked others to set up an account in the United States where these funds could be deposited. On November 23, Murcia pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder the proceeds of narcotics trafficking. Other co-defendants have previously been sentenced. As he left court, defense attorney Robert Abreau called the sentence “unjust,” noting his client would have to spend a total of 39 years behind bars when combining the sentences in Colombia and the United States.

The New York court accused Murcia of laundering millions of dollars from drug dealers through a Merrill Lynch account and of acquiring nine properties in Miami and another in California to hide the

illicit gains. The owner of DMG-named after his acronym-was captured in Panama in November 2008 and deported to Colombia, where he received his prison sentence a year later for illegal fundraising and money laundering before being extradited to the United States in January 2010.

DMG earned about $2 billion in fraudulent transactions from some 194,000 investors. Murcia drew huge interest in his fraudulent scheme by promising returns of up to 300 percent per investment.

Thousands of Colombians gave it a go and lost all of their savings, sparking widespread outrage.

The government suspected the pyramid schemes, in which people are enticed by initial profits and encouraged to enlist more participants to contribute to the savings fund, were really money-laundering operations set up by drug traffickers.— AFP

Former US First Lady Betty Ford dies at 93 LOS ANGELES: Former US First Lady Betty Ford died Friday at the age of 93, drawing tributes for her inspiring role notably in helping treat drug and alcohol addicts at her California-based health center. The widow of president Gerald Ford, who died in 2006, was also hailed for campaigning for breast cancer awareness and was outspoken on women’s rights issues.

“Throughout her long and active life (Ford) distinguished herself through her courage and compassion. As our nation’s First Lady, she was a powerful advocate for women’s health and women’s rights,” said President Barack Obama. “After leaving the White House, Mrs Ford helped reduce the social stigma surrounding addiction and inspired thousands to seek much-needed treatment,” he added in a statement. And he added: “While her death is a cause for sadness, we know that organizations such as the Betty Ford Center will honor her legacy by giving countless Americans a new lease on life.”

Vice President Joseph Biden said he believed Betty Ford’s work would live on “through the millions of lives she has touched” and many more people who will continue to look to her for inspiration.

Ford died Friday evening with family at her bedside, according to a family member cited by CNN. Former president George HW Bush said he and his wife Barbara “loved Betty Ford very much.”

“She was a wonderful wife and mother; a great friend; and a courageous First Lady. No one confronted life’s struggles with more fortitude or honesty, and as a result, we all learned from the challenges she faced. Elizabeth “Betty” Ford turned her battles with two devastating illnesses-breast cancer and drug and alcohol addiction-into triumph as she overcame them and went on to help others follow suit. Speaking openly about her fight with breast cancer and her dependence on prescription drugs and alcohol, Ford removed much of the stigma attached to both illnesses and aided others who were battling the same demons.

She notably helped create the renowned Betty Ford Center for alcohol and drug rehabilitation in Rancho Mirage, California, where tens of thousands have been treated since 1982. Born Elizabeth Ann

CALGARY: Prince William and Kate, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, watch the Calgary Stampede parade in Calgary, Canada as they continue their Royal Tour of Canada Friday.—AP

William, Kate end Canada ‘love-in’ with rodeo parade This July 1975 file picture shows President Gerald Ford and his wife Betty Ford. Betty Ford, the former first lady whose triumph over drug and alcohol addiction became a beacon of hope for addicts and the inspiration for her Betty Ford Center, has died, a family friend said Friday.—AP Bloomer on April 8, 1918 in Chicago, Ford, one of three children, grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan and studied dance at Bennington College in Vermont. She divorced her first husband, William Warren, after five years, and began dating thenNavy lieutenant Gerald Ford a short time later. The couple married on October 15, 1948, just two weeks before Gerald Ford was elected to Congress.

They lived in the Washington area for nearly three decades, as he climbed up the political ladder from the US Capitol to the White House. Ford, who entered the White House after the resignation of Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal, died on December 26, 2006, also at the age of 93.

Fellow former first lady Nancy Reagan said of Betty Ford: “She has been an inspiration to so many through her efforts to educate women about breast cancer and her wonderful work at the Betty Ford Center.

“She was Jerry Ford’s strength through some very difficult days in our country’s history, and I admired her courage in facing and sharing her personal struggles with all of us,” added the widow of president Ronald Reagan. Obama added: “Today, we take comfort in the knowledge that Betty and her husband .. are together once more. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to their children, Michael, John, Steven, and Susan. — AFP

20 dead in attack of bar in Mexico MONTERREY: At least 20 people were killed late Friday when gunmen attacked a local bar in Monterrey in Mexico, authorities said. The attackers, who came in two pick-up trucks and one car, stormed into the bar “El Sabino Gordo” and opened fire on the patrons, they said. “Up to now, we have found 17 bodies inside the bar and three more outside,” an official from the prosecutor’s office told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The assailants numbered at least 15, according to one local resident. They also strafed a hot dog stand with three people standing in front of it. The bar is located on Villagran Street, in the center of a busy nightlife district. Monterrey has been the site of a bloody confrontation among leading Mexican drug cartels feuding over lucrative narcotics supply routes leading to the United States. Earlier Friday, 11 bodies with gunshot wounds were found in Chalco, a suburb of the Mexican capital, police said.

Mexico has been convulsed by a massive crime wave, with some 37,000 people killed in battles among rival drug cartels and between traffickers and security forces since 2006, when the government launched a military crackdown. The National Commission for Human Rights (CNDH) said in a report on Wednesday that it had documented some 523 human rights violations since 2005, including murders, attacks, kidnappings and arbitrary arrests. — AFP

ACAPULCO: Forensic experts stand next to a body at a scene where gunmen attacked a tow truck business in the Pacific resort city of Acapulco, Mexico, Friday. Two men and a woman died after unknown gunmen opened fire at the tow truck business. —AP

Dalai Lama to give mass teaching at US Capitol WASHINGTON: Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will yesterday deliver a talk on world peace near the US Capitol, with organizers expecting large crowds for the widely revered monk. The Dalai Lama is in Washington for a 10-day Buddhist ritual known as the Kalachakra.

Devotees need to pay for entry to the rite at a sports arena, so the Dalai Lama has offered yesterday’s mass lecture for free to the public.

On the West Lawn of the Capitol-near where US presidents are inaugurated the Dalai Lama will be introduced by actress Whoopi Goldberg before offering a talk about peace and taking questions from the audience. The Dalai Lama, a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize enjoys a wide following around the world including the United States, with thousands attending the Kalachakra ritual. But China protests his frequent visits and meetings overseas, accusing him of being a separatist. The Dalai Lama, a pacifist, says he is only seeking greater rights for Tibetans and accepts China’s rule. —AFP

CALGARY: Prince William and Catherine on Friday ended a whirlwind tour of Canada, where they were greeted like rock stars, with a huge parade of horses, cowboys and rodeo clowns before jetting to Los Angeles for a red carpet gala. Their nine-day visit to the Commonwealth country was their first official trip abroad since the British prince and the former Kate Middleton wed in April.

“In 1939, my great grandmother, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, said of her first tour of Canada with her husband, King George VI: ‘Canada made us.’ Catherine and I now know very well what she meant,” William said in a parting speech late Thursday. “Canada has far surpassed all that we were promised,” he added. “Our promise to Canada is that we shall return.” On their last Canadian stop in Calgary, the couple took in a night of rodeo chuck wagon races, bull riding and “mutton busting” for kids, and rode in 1912 stagecoach. “Well, that was different,” the prince commented.

Friday morning, William and Kate donned white, broad-rimmed cowboy hats-made locally from rabbit fur-blue jeans and Western shirts (Kate’s blouse by Alice Temperley) to kick off Calgary’s 99th Stampede festival and agricultural exhibition with an official klaxon sounding. Hundreds of thousands gathered along the parade route from dawn for a glimpse of the couple as they barreled past in a black car, waving to the crowd, followed by local tribesmen in traditional regalia with their beaded horses, marching bands and a Cinderella pumpkin carriage.

The city’s rodeo harkens back to the days when lonesome cowboys rode Alberta’s open ranges, rolling foothills and badlands. It attracts one million spectators annually to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, and accord-

ing to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, “showcases the pioneer spirit and true grit that have made this country great.” After a visit to Calgary’s zoo, the jet-setting royals bade farewell to Canada and headed for Los Angeles for a three-day visit to the US West Coast state of California.

The Duchess of Cambridge donned a stunning red silk and wool coat dress designed by British-French designer Catherine Walker and adorned with a golden diamond-encrusted brooch in the shape of a maple leaf-the symbol of Canada. “It has been a privilege for Canada to host the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge who return home knowing the affection that Canadians from all regions of the country have for them and for all members of our Royal Family,” Harper said in a statement.

“This is the beginning of a beautiful and lasting friendship-one of deep affection and loyalty-and we look forward to sharing more of our splendid country with them on their next Royal Tour.” The young couple were to arrive in Los Angeles later Friday, but there will be no beach outings or Disneyland rollercoaster rides on the royal itinerary. Instead, they attend a British Academy of Film and Television Arts dinner honoring 42 young British filmmakers and a charity polo match in Santa Barbara before heading home today.

In Canada, the duke and duchess of Cambridge paddled in a canoe in the far north, shared the grief of thousands displaced by forest fires in Alberta and snuggled in a rustic wooden cabin in the Rockies. William also took time to pilot a Sea King helicopter into a lake in emergency water landing drills in Prince Edward Island. Huge crowds turned out daily to welcome them and millions more watched their adventure on television. — AFP

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Murdoch heads to Britain as News of the World closes Tabloid hits stands for the last time LONDON: Rupert Murdoch headed to London to take charge of dealing with a phone-hacking scandal at Britain’s News of the World tabloid, as journalists yesterday prepared the paper’s final edition. The News Corp chief was expected to arrive in Britain today, a company source said, as the sensationalist tabloid that has been in circulation for 168 years hits news stands for the last time.

SARAJEVO: A woman prays next to the grave of her relative at the Potocari memorial cemetery near Srebrenica, some 160 kilometers east of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina yesterday.—AP

Hundreds pay respects to Srebrenica victims SARAJEVO: Hundreds of people have lined Sarajevo’s main street as trucks bearing 613 coffins carrying victims’ remains pass through to Srebrenica, where the victims of Europe’s worst massacre since World War I will be buried. Whispered Muslim prayers turned louder and mixed with sobbing when the three trucks appeared yesterday, slowly approaching the Bosnian Presidenc y building where they

stopped for a few minutes.

The weeping crowd tucked flowers into canvas covering the trucks as they drove slowly down a street sprinkled with rose water. The 613 sets of remains, found in mass graves and identified through DNA tests, will be buried at a memorial center near Srebrenica tomorrow - the 16th anniversary of the massacre in which more than 8,000 Muslim men and boys were killed. —AP

Turkey hopes for Cyprus referendum in early 2012 NICOSIA: Turkey hopes terms for the reunification of Cyprus can be agreed by the end of the year so that a referendum can take place in early 2012, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said yesterday during a visit to the Turkish Cypriot enclave in the north of the island.

“We hope to find a solution to the Cyprus problem by the end of the year, and hold a referendum in the early months of next year so that Cyprus can take on the presidency of the EU as a new state that represents the whole island,” Davutoglu said in the divided Cypriot capital of Nicosia.

Cyprus was divided by a Turkish invasion in 1974 triggered by a brief Greekinspired coup. Its Greek Cypriots represent the island internationally and in the European Union, while Turkey is the only country to recognise the Turkish Cypriot state. The Cyprus dispute is a major obstacle for Turkey’s bid to join the European Union, aside from opposition from EU heavyweights France and Germany. Greek Cypriots say Turkey cannot join the bloc until the Cyprus conflict is resolved.

The EU also expects Turkey to implement the Ankara Protocol, whereby Turkish ports and airports will be opened to traffic from Cyprus. Turkey says the EU should also end its blockade of the Turkish Cypriot enclave. “A solution will bring real peace to the eastern Mediterranean and truly unite Europe,”

Davutoglu said during the joint news conference with the president of northern Cyprus, Dervish Eroglu.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said after meeting Eroglu and Greek Cypriot leader Demetris Christofias in Geneva on Thursday that he expected the two sides to overcome their differences by October. Peace talks have stumbled on since being relaunched in 2008.

The talks are Cypriot led, though in coming months the UN team acting as a facilitator could take a more active role.

In principle, both sides agree to reunite Cyprus as a two-zone federation, but they have been unable to reconcile differences ranging from re-drawing existing boundaries, to property claims by thousands uprooted in conflict. Ban said in Geneva that if the sides were able to reach convergence on all core issuesdefined by the UN as EU issues, economy, governance, property, security and territory- it would pave the way towards convening a final, international conference.

Territorial and broader security issues involving the roles of Cyprus’s guarantor powers - Britain, Greece and Turkey have barely been touched in negotiations. Any agreement the two sides reach must go to a plebiscite. In a referendum in 2004 Turkish Cypriots voted for reunification, but Greek Cypriots rejected it. —Reuters

Berlusconi fined 560m euros in bribery appeal MILAN: A Milan court ordered Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s Fininvest company yesterday to pay rival media group CIR 560 million euros after it bribed a judge to approve a company takeover. The Milan appeals court reduced by a quarter the original 750-million-euro ($1-billion) damages claim that a civil court had ordered the holding company to pay in October 2009, the ANSA news agency reported.

This was compensation for Fininvest wresting control of the leading Mondadori publishing house from Compagnie Industriali Riunite (CIR) in 1990. A judge ruled in 2009 that Berlusconi was “co-responsible” for the bribery of a judge who decided in favour of Fininvest in the takeover battle. The judge was convicted of corruption in 2007 and sentenced to two years and nine months in prison, while the Fininvest lawyer who bribed him was given a sentence of one year and six months.

CIR, whose honorary president is Berlusconi rival Carlo de Benedetti, controlled the newsweekly L’Espresso and the left-leaning daily newspaper La Repubblica, both avid chroniclers of the sex scandals that have been dogging the Italian premier. In an appeal by Fininvest, judges yesterday adjusted the fine and ruled that the damages incurred by CIR amounted to 540 million euros as of the date of the initial judgment, and a total 560 million (800 million dollars) with interest.

“Our advocates are looking into a further appeal,” the prime minister’s daughter and Fininvest president Marina Berlusconi said after the ruling. “We are convinced we are in the right, we will not let ourselves be intimidated,” she said while denouncing the damages figure as “double the value of Fininvest’s stake in

Mondadori”. The fine was payable immediately, the judges said. “It’s a hard blow for Fininvest, financially and economically, as the sentence recognises the group’s responsibility for corruption,” said Franco Pavoncello.

The ruling also represents a major setback for Berlusconi who on Tuesday withdrew a controversial law proposal to suspend all company fines above 10 million euros imposed by lower courts and over 20 million by appeals courts pending a final ruling by the country’s highest court.

The proposal, included at the last minute in an austerity plan as it was to go before parliament for debate, was widely criticised as a bid to shield Fininvest from paying any fine the appeals judges may impose.

He defended the proposed amendment as a means of protecting companies from financial troubles caused by “erroneous” court judgments, and said workers in companies that flounder under such fines should blame opposition parties for their “shameful” resistance to the now cancelled measure. Analysts said yesterday that Berlusconi would survive politically in the short term, but that he had no political future as he himself had announced this week that he would not run again in 2013 elections.

“Neither Berlusconi nor (his Northern League ally) Bossi has a future in the long-term, so they are not worried about what will happen in 2013, they continue to move ahead trying to gain time,” said Franco Pavoncello, a political science professor at the American University of Rome, predicting a “status quo” in Italian politics. Political scientist Giacomo Marramao of Rome III university agreed, explaining that “the problem is there is no unity on the Italian left, which does not have a coherent line”. —AFP

Murdoch has been keen to limit the fallout from the crisis which has cast a shadow over his bid to take full control of satellite broadcaster BSkyB, on which the government is due to decide soon. The opposition Labor party meanwhile ratcheted up pressure on Prime Minister David Cameron, a day after one of his former aides was arrested over the scandal, demanding that the establishment of an inquiry be speeded up. Murdoch’s arrival comes as about 200 staff at the News of the World face an uncertain future as the paper closes its doors.

News of the World journalists said emotions were running high as the paper prepared to go to print for the last time. Editor Colin Myler said it was a “very difficult day for us all”, in a personal e-mail to staff. “It’s not where we want to be and it’s not where we deserve to be,” he wrote. “But I know we will produce a paper to be proud of.” Murdoch took the decision on Thursday to close the publication, Britain’s biggest-selling Sunday paper which is part of his British newspaper business News International, following days of fresh phone-hacking allegations. Claims that the News of the World hacked the voicemails of a murdered girl and the families of dead soldiers rapidly deepened a crisis that has been dogging the paper for several years.

Despite the anger, Britons are expected to the snap up the final copy of the paper as a souvenir and a News International source said the print run had been substantially increased.

The paper normally sells some 2.6 million copies a week.

Political pressure meanwhile mounted on Cameron yesterday, a day after his ex-media chief

IDAHO: Rupert Murdoch walks to the morning sessions on the last day of the 2011 Allen and Co. Sun Valley Conference yesterday in Sun Valley, Idaho. —AP Andy Coulson was arrested on suspicion of involvement in phone hacking during his time as editor of the paper. The Labor party demanded that the government take steps to speed up the establishment of a judge led inquiry into the scandal following a repor t that a News International executive destroyed vital evidence. The

Conservative prime minister has announced a judge-led public inquiry into the furore, as well as a second inquiry into the way in which the British press is regulated.

“In view of the fact that the News of the World is shutting down, it is a matter of great urgency that any documentary evidence, including files and

emails, is preserved to enable a proper inquiry into these serious allegations to take place,” said the Labour par ty ‘s culture spokesman Ivan Lewis. “I t is essential that we engage in immediate discussions so that by the end of the day we are in a position to agree the appointment of the judge.”

The call came after the Guardian newspaper reported that police were investigating whether an executive deleted “millions of emails” from an internal archive. A News International spokeswoman said: “This assertion is rubbish.” Cameron’s Downing Street office however insisted it was acting “as rapidly as possible and legally permissible”, in a statement. Coulson, who was released on bail Friday until October after his arrest on suspicion of involvement in phone hacking and corruption, quit as Cameron’s communications director in January as the hacking scandal grew.

This followed his resignation from the top job at The News of the World in 2007 after a journalist and a private investigator work ing for the paper were jailed over phone hacking. As editor, Coulson said he took ultimate responsibility for the hacking but always denied any knowledge that it took place on his watch. On Friday, police also arrested Clive Goodman, the News of the World’s former royal editor and one of two men jailed in 2007 for hacking the voicemails of Princes William and Harry. He was detained on allegations of corruption and later bailed until October. A third man, aged 63, was arrested on suspicion of corruption late Friday and was later released on bail until October. —AFP

Georgian news photographers ‘spied for Russia’

MADRID: Socialist Party presidential candidate Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba, left, is seen during his first speech in Madrid yesterday.—AP

Spain Socialist candidate plays to left but vows austerity MADRID: Spain’s Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba courted disillusioned leftist voters yesterday after the ruling Socialists anointed him candidate for prime minister in an uphill battle to retain power. In a televised speech, Rubalcaba said bank profits should finance job creation and proposed reviving a tax on the wealthy, although he stressed he would maintain austerity measures to cut Spain’s deficit.

Rubalcaba will have a tough time distancing himself from unpopular Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, who cut spending and public wages over the past year and implemented labour market reforms to keep Spain from being sucked into the euro zone debt crisis. The Socialists, in power eight years, trail the centre-right Popular Party by 14 percentage points in opinion polls as voters are unhappy with the European Union’s highest unemployment rate and the government’s failure to revive the economy.

Rubalcaba is a highly respected political veteran but most voters see his opponent, PP candidate Mariano Rajoy, as a better manager for Spain’s economy, which is struggling to recover from a huge property bubble that burst four years ago. Elections must be held by next March but Zapatero, who remains in office until the poll, is widely expected to call an early vote, in October or November, so that Rubalcaba can take advantage of a summer economic upturn.

“It will soon be time to ask the banks to set aside profits to help create jobs,” said Rubalcaba, 59, who stepped down on Friday from his job as deputy prime minister and interior minister to work on his campaign full time. With one in five of the labour force out of work, he said jobs cre-

ation was paramount. “We should think about bringing back the capital tax, not on the middle class but on the wealthy, who must help and collaborate with those who have suffered the most. That’s my redistribution policy,” he said.

Zapatero has concentrated exclusively on reassuring investors who have sold off Spanish sovereign bonds, forcing up the country’s borrowing costs. “There are people who think that politics has lost the battle and that the markets run the show,” Rubalcaba said, adding politicians must regain control. He proposed euro zone bonds to fight back speculators, an idea already discarded by European policymakers as they sought responses to the fiscal crises in Greece, Portugal and Ireland that have threatened to drag Spain to the brink.

Rubalcaba and other Socialist leaders began playing to leftist voters after their party was punished severely in May local elections because alienated leftist voters stayed away or turned to smaller parties.

He said Spain’s much-admired public health system was “sacred and untouchable,” and warned the opposition would try to privatize it. But he said some savings could be found through better management of hospitals and prescriptions.

The former sprinter and chemistry professor also acknowledged the demands of the “indignant” (indignados) movement that sprang up around the country in May in which mostly young protesters called on voters not to cast ballots for the Socialists or the PP. He said he understood their call for electoral reform and proposed forming smaller voting districts to bring lawmakers more in touch with citizens’ needs and demands. —Reuters

TBILISI: Three Georgian photojournalists, including the president’s personal photographer, have been charged with espionage for allegedly giving secret data to Russia, officials in Tbilisi said yesterday. The interior ministry alleged that confidential documents, plans and pictures gathered by the photographers were passed to military intelligence agency officers from pro-Western Georgia’s bitter enemy Russia.

President Mikheil Saakashvili’s personal photographer Irakli Gedenidze, Foreign Ministry photographer Giorgi Abdaladze and European Pressphoto Agency (EPA) photographer Zurab Kurtsikidze were arrested in overnight raids Thursday. “The investigation has concluded that Zurab Kurtsikidze had links with the defence ministry intelligence services of the Russian Federation,” an interior ministry statement said.

It said that Gedenidze and Abdaladze took photographs of secret documents that they accessed through their work for the state, which Kurtsikidze then sent to Moscow. Georgia fought a war with Russia in 2008 and has repeatedly accused Moscow of running espionage operations on its territory. The ministry said counter-intelligence officers found confidential information about the president’s movements, details of his meetings and plans of his administration building when the photographers’ homes were searched.

The interior ministry website posted a video recording of Gedenidze’s statement to police, in which he said he had given photographs to Kurtsikidze but had done so under pressure. “I realised it was something to do with special services and my suspicion was further strengthened because I knew he was sending the photographs to (a photographic agency in) Moscow,” Gedenidze said in the recording.

Police surveillance tapes of telephone calls between the photographers discussing payments were also released by the ministry. But Frankfurt-based EPA that employs Kurtsikidze and has a bureau in Moscow said it believed the authorities had misinterpreted innocent conversations about payments for photographs. “They decided this could be a spy ring but of course it is far, far away from that,” EPA’s editor-inchief Cengiz Seren told AFP, adding that Kurtisikidze occasionally bought photographs from the other men for the agency.

He said the allegations were “very easily provable false” and that he would send evidence from the agency to the Georgian authorities next week. The three suspects were placed under pre-trial detention for two months by a court in Tbilisi yesterday after being charged in the early hours of the morning. If convicted they could face up to 12 years in jail, local media reported. Lawyers for the men said they had told the court that they were innocent, but no further details have emerged because the case has been classified as ‘secret’ by the authorities.

Gedenidze’s wife Natia, a local newspaper photographer, was also arrested on Thursday but has since been released.

Gedenidze had close access to Saakashvili, travelling alongside him regularly, and his pictures were widely published in the international media. But the Georgian leader has denied ordering the arrests. Saakashvili told Moscow Echo radio on Friday he was “very upset about losing my personal photographer. But my personal feelings are of secondary importance.”

Journalists at the interior ministry briefing yesterday were visibly shocked by the allegations that their colleagues had worked for Russia, and a few openly shed tears as they read the press statement. —AFP

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Indian state vows to guard Hindu treasure THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Authorities in southern India vowed yesterday to step up security at a Hindu temple housing ancient treasures worth billions of dollars. The pledge came after the Supreme Court deferred the opening of a final sixth vault at the temple in Kerala state capital Thiruvananthapuram until it could be determined how the treasure could be made safe.

“The temple treasures are the pride of Kerala and we are committed to protecting and preserving them,” state chief minister Oommen Chandy told AFP. Chandy said the state government has

earmarked 10 million rupees ($225,000) to upgrade security for the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple and more money could be allocated if needed.

Preliminary estimates peg the value of the gold, silver, statues and precious stones at up to $22 billion but experts say it is virtually impossible to determine the true worth of the treasure discovered last week. The haul catapulted the shrine, renowned for its intricate sculptures, into the league of India’s richest temples which have been endowed by pilgrims and wealthy patrons.

Over 100 police officers are stationed inside the temple which until last week relied on just a dozen security guards. More than 50 armed commandos are on guard outside temple dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu while metal detectors and security cameras have been installed. “We have set up a separate control room to monitor every movement in and around the complex,” said the state’s top police officer Jacob Punnoose.

The Supreme Court ordered the inspection of the temple after a petitioner questioned the security for the valuables. The court has been driving

efforts to establish ownership of the treasure. The temple was built hundreds of years ago by the king of Travancore and donations by devotees have been kept in its vaults ever since.

Since India achieved independence from Britain in 1947, a trust managed by descendants of the Travancore royal family has controlled the temple.

On Friday, Kerala’s former royal family renounced the temple treasure and said the fortune should be used “judiciously for religious and social purposes” such as building hospitals and schools. Hindu activists say the temple owns the treasure. — AFP

Police search Karachi as death toll rises to 98 Extra 1,000 paramilitary personnel deployed

KHOST: US soldiers from A Company, 2nd Platoon 6-4 Cavalry, fire their M4 rifles during a live fire training at camp Clark in Mandozai district, Khost province in eastern Afghanistan yesterday.—AFP

Afghan spy agency guard kills 2 American soldiers KABUL: An Afghan spy agency bodyguard shot dead two American soldiers and wounded a third yesterday before he was also killed in the roadside firefight that may have been triggered by a row. The incident happened in the northern province of Panjsher, one of the most peaceful areas in Afghanistan, and is the latest example of Afghan forces turning on foreign troops.

“Two American soldiers were killed, one American soldier was wounded and the Afghan NDS employee was also killed in the exchange of fire,” deputy provincial governor Abdul Rehman told AFP. The NDS is the Afghan National Directorate for Security. Rehman ruled out any insurgent or Taleban involvement in the incident. He said the dead NDS employee, named only as Amanullah, was working as a bodyguard for a high-ranking Afghan NDS official and was on his way back to work after a weekend holiday to the province. “He was an NDS employee and was working as a trusted bodyguard of one of the high-ranking NDS officials. We rule out any enemy role or involvement in this attack,” Rehman said.

Another provincial source said Amanullah was the “special bodyguard” of the deputy Afghan spy chief, Hessamudin Hessam. He said the clash may have been caused after a car accident or a row. The American soldiers were working for Panjsher Provincial Reconstruction Team

(PRT), said Rehman. NATO’s International Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan said they could only confirm an incident involving their troops but could not give further information immediately.

“We are aware of a shooting incident in Panjsher Province today, which is now over.

It involved ISAF personnel and there are some ISAF casualties,” the NATO press office said. Taleban insurgents claimed the attack and said they killed three PRT members and wounded another four in an ambush.

The Taleban are known to exaggerate their claims. Although the area is usually free of deadly violence, an Italian anti-drug specialist, Lt Col Cristiano Congiu was shot and killed in Panjsher by angry locals following a argument that resulted in an exchange of fire.

Congiu, 50, was travelling with an American woman and a translator to visit the local emerald mines. The province is one of the first wave of seven places due to transition from foreign to Afghan security control around July, a process which should eventually lead to a full foreign combat troop withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2014. Officials in Panjsher are trying to promote it as a tourist destination, focusing on its spectacular natural beauty and legacy as a bastion of resistance against the Taleban and the Soviet Union during the 1980s. — AFP

Pentagon chief Panetta on first Afghanistan visit KABUL: The US and its allies are within reach of defeating Al-Qaeda after killing Osama bin Laden and gaining new insights about the terrorist group’s other leading figures, new US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Saturday. The former CIA director offered an upbeat assessment about the prospects for ending al-Qaida’s threat as he spoke with reporters flying with him on his first visit to Afghanistan since taking over as Pentagon chief July 1.

In the aftermath of the May 2 raid that killed bin Laden in Pakistan, the US has determined that eliminating “somewhere around 10 to 20 key leaders” of Al-Qaeda would cripple the network, Panetta said. Those leaders are in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia and North Africa, he added.

“We’re within reach of strategically defeating al-Qaida,” Panetta said, addressing reporters for the first time since succeeding Robert Gates as defense secretary. “The key is that, having gotten bin Laden, we’ve now identified some of the key leadership within al-Qaida, both in Pakistan as well as in Yemen and other areas,” he said. “If we can be successful at going after them, I think we can really undermine their ability to do any kind of planning, to be able to conduct any kind of attack” on the United States. “That’s why I think it’s within reach. Is it going to take some more work? You bet it is. But I think it’s within reach,” Panetta said. He said the 10 to 20 top terrorist figures now the focus of US efforts include Ayman Al-Zawahri, the designator successor to bin Laden as al-Qaida’s leader.

Panetta said the US believes al-Zawahri is living in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of western Pakistan.

The only other name he mentioned was Anwar al-Awlaki, the US -born Muslim cleric living in Yemen. The US has put him on a killor-capture list. “Now is the moment, following what happened with bin Laden, to put maximum pressure on them because I do believe that if we continue this effort we can really cripple Al-Qaeda as a major threat” to America, he said.

Al-Qaeda affiliates have emerged in Iraq, Yemen, Somalia, and elsewhere. That’s led

many in the US to argue for a shift from fighting the Taleban in Afghanistan to targeting Al-Qaeda leaders in Pakistan and other places. Asked whether he thought Pakistani authorities knew that bin Laden had been living in their country, Panetta said, “Suspicions, but no smoking gun.” The Pakistani government says it did not know bin Laden’s whereabouts when Navy SEALs attacked his compound not far from Islamabad.

While in Kabul, the Afghan capital, Panetta planned to meet with US troops and their commanders, including Army Gen David Petraeus. He will leave his post as the top US commander in Afghanistan this month to succeed Panetta at the CIA. Marine Gen. John R. Allen will replace Petraeus.

A central topic of their discussion is likely to be President Barack Obama’s decision on June 22 to withdraw 10,000 US troops from Afghanistan this year and 23,000 more by September 2012. The drawdown is to begin this month, but not all details have been worked out.

Panetta said he also intended to meet with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. Karzai’s mercurial character and frequent public criticisms of the US -led international military coalition have soured his relations with many US officials, including the current US ambassador.

Karl Eikenberry.

Eikenberry is handing off that post this month to Ryan Crocker, a veteran diplomat and former US, ambassador to Iraq who was coaxed out of retirement. Crocker reopened the US Embassy in Kabul after the 2001 toppling of the Taleban Panetta said he believes he and President Barack Obama’s “whole new team” of US leaders in Kabul have a good understanding of Karzai.

“Hopefully, it can be the beginning of a much better relationship than what we’ve had over the last few years,” he said. On a lighter note, he said he has gotten a feel for his new job as defense secretary. He compared it to his official aircraft, a towering military version of the Boeing 747. “It’s big, it’s complicated, it’s filled with sophisticated technology, it’s bumpy, but in the end it’s the best in the world.” — AP

KARACHI: Pakistani security forces combed troubled neighborhoods in the country’s commercial hub, Karachi, yesterday in search of gunmen as the death toll from ethnic and political violence, which entered its fifth day yesterday, rose to 98. Police and paramilitary troops were ordered on Friday to shoot on sight in Pakistan’s largest city, where an extra 1,000 paramilitary personnel were also deployed to control violence in multi-ethnic, lower middle class neighborhoods.

“Our personnel have entered the area and are working to take full control,” said a security police official, who did not want to be identified. A police spokesman said 157 people had been arrested in the operation since last night, and 38 pistols and three AK-47 rifles recovered. A paramilitary Rangers spokesman said troops had rescued hundreds of people trapped in the troubled areas since last night.

“We have moved several families to safer places, and this exercise is continuing at the moment as well. The number of people evacuated so far is in the hundreds,” he said. According to police data, up to 98 people have been killed since the violence began on Tuesday, while more than 150 people have been wounded.

Karachi, home to more than 18 million people, has a long history of ethnic, religious and sectarian violence. It was a main target of AlQaeda-linked militants after the Sept 11 2001 attacks on the United States, when Pakistan joined the US-led campaign against militancy. A recent report from the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said 1,138 people were killed in Karachi in the first six months of 2011, of whom 490 were victims of political, ethnic and sectarian violence.

The city was completely shut on Friday and public transport idled after the city’s dominant political party, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), announced a day of mourning in response to the latest violence. But shops started

KARACHI: A group of women gather to complain their problems upon the arrival of paramilitary troops after security forces took control of a troubled area of Karachi, Pakistan yesterday. — AP reopening yesterday and public transport returned to the roads, though people were still cautious.

“I have opened my shop today but I will see how the situation goes, and if it remains uncertain, I will close early,” said Muhammad Zafar, a bakery owner. The latest surge in violence in the southern city came days after the MQM announced it was quitting the ruling coalition.

The MQM, which mostly represents the Mohajirsdescendents of Urdu-speakers who migrated from India after the creation of Pakistan in 1947 — and its rival, the ethnic Pashtun-based Awami National Party (ANP), are blamed for most of the violence, though both parties deny the charges.

In some ways, Karachi raises more troubling questions over Pakistan’s stability than the north-

Freed British author deported from Singapore SINGAPORE: A British author who spent five weeks in a Singapore prison for contempt after publishing a book questioning executions in the city-state was deported to London yesterday hours after being released. Alan Shadrake, 76, told AFP by mobile phone from Changi Airport before boarding a Singapore Airlines plane that he was in good health and “very, very happy” to be free again.

“I am now waiting for take-off and I will be at Heathrow (airport),” said the freelance journalist, whose book “Once A Jolly Hangman: Singapore Justice in the Dock” drew ire from the corridors of power in the former British colony. Shadrake said he had no regrets about writing the book, which is now on its second edition, and expected family members to welcome him in London after his more than 13-hour flight.

“It’s very tiring being locked up. I just need to get back to my exercise routine,” said the writer, who was deported nearly a year after he was arrested while visiting Singapore to launch the book. It includes a profile of Darshan Singh, the former chief executioner at Changi Prison, located close to the airport from where Shadrake was deported. According to the book, Singh hanged around 1,000 men and women including foreigners from 1959 until he retired in 2006.

It also features interviews with human rights activists, lawyers and former police officers, and alleges that some foreigners may have been spared from the gallows as a result of diplomatic and trade considerations. Singapore executes

murderers and drug traffickers by hanging, a controversial method of punishment dating back to British rule, and insists harsh penalties help keep its crime rates low.

Shadrake went to jail on June 1 after losing his appeal against a six-week sentence, the toughest ever imposed in Singapore for contempt of court.

He was ordered to serve an extra two weeks behind bars because he could not pay the Sg$20,000 ($16,000) fine that accompanied his jail term.

But his lawyer M Ravi said Shadrake, who turns 77 next month and had health problems during his trial, was released early on account of good behavior. “He is glad that the whole thing is over,” the lawyer told AFP following Shadrake’s release from prison in the morning. Shadrake said that he had been a “good boy” in the new Changi Prison. A spokesman from the British High Commission said it was aware of Shadrake’s release and deportation but declined to comment further. The spokesman said the embassy provided Shadrake with all the necessary consular assistance. Lance Lattig, Amnesty International’s researcher on Southeast Asia, said Singapore should have dropped all charges against Shadrake. “They shouldn’t have prosecuted him in the first place,” Lattig said. Critics of Singapore’s death penalty and restrictions on press freedom had demanded Shadrake’s release but the government said he insulted the judiciary without basis and went ahead with his prosecution. — AFP

AHMADABAD: A roadside tea vendor makes tea as commuters wade through a waterlogged street in Ahmadabad, India yesterday. Monsoon rains, that lash India from June to September, are crucial for farmers whose crops feed hundreds of millions of people. —AP

west border regions seen as a global hub for militants and a huge concern for the West. As the commercial hub, any trouble could disturb industrial activity, and have serious consequences for the economy. Amnesty International criticized the government for failing to control the violence in Karachi, and raised questions over its orders to “shoot on sight”. “By granting security forces the power to ‘shoot on sight’ the Pakistani government is effectively declaring Karachi a war zone,” Amnesty’s Asia-Pacific Director Sam Zarifi said in a statement.

“Given the Pakistani army’s record of human rights violations and impunity, such licence given to the security forces, in a volatile situation, can only be a recipe for disaster, encouraging lawlessness, further violence and killings.” — Reuters

Sri Lanka holds Briton over war crimes video COLOMBO: Sri Lanka has arrested a Briton for allegedly helping a British TV channel produce a documentary accusing Sri Lankan troops of war crimes, a media report said yesterday. A Colombo magistrate on Friday agreed to a police request to detain the suspect, a British citizen of Sri Lankan origin, for a month and question him, the local Daily Mirror newspaper said.

It quoted court papers which said he was accused of causing “disrepute to the country and the army by providing alleged videos to (Britain’s) Channel 4 television” for its documentary “Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields”.

The paper said the questioning would be carried out by Sri Lanka’s Criminal Investigations Department.

The British High Commission in Colombo said it had no immediate information on the case. The Lakbima daily paper said police had sought the man’s detention because he posed a “threat to national security”. Police spokesman Prishantha Jayakody declined to discuss the case, but confirmed a man was arrested in connection with “supporting terrorist activities”.

The arrest came after the military said Wednesday it had original footage that exposed the “malicious intentions” behind the Channel 4 documentary.

Sri Lanka’s military said its “unaltered” video suggested that what the documentary presented as Sri Lankan soldiers executing Tamil rebel prisoners were actually rebels clad in army fatigues. In the audio track of the footage in the documentary, aired last month in Britain and later in Australia, the soldiers spoke in the language of Sri Lanka’s Sinhala majority. The military said the video that the military had analyzed had a Tamil soundtrack, suggesting the killers were rebels.

Sri Lanka has persistently denied that its troops staged any war crimes while battling the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), who were crushed in an offensive that ended in May 2009. Colombo has also accused Channel 4 and Western nations of waging a campaign to discredit Sri Lanka’s human rights record by producing reports of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. — AFP

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Police arrest 1,600 in Malaysia protest Leaders of opposition among those detained KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian police fired tear gas and water cannon and made over 1,600 arrests yesterday during clashes with protesters who defied government warnings to rally in the capital for electoral reform. Leaders of opposition parties were among those detained during a massive security operation but it failed to thwart the outlawed demonstration which saw 50,000 people take to the streets of Kuala Lumpur, according to organizers.

With elections expected to be Anwar, who says the lurid accusa- ing to push back police lines in a ing 16 children who were brought called early next year, demonstra- tions against him are politically cat-and-mouse confrontation in along by their families, although heavy downpours. Some demon- many were expected to be tors were demanding changes to motivated.

Bersih, the broad coalition that strators fought back by picking up released on bail. Among those the voting process including eradication of vote buying and pre- organized the rare protest, wants tear gas canisters which they detained were protest leader vention of irregularities which to see the use of indelible ink to lobbed at police, AFP reporters Ambiga Sreenivasan and Maria they say marred previous polls. prevent multiple voting, equal said. Many of the protesters Chin Abdullah. Ambiga, former Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, access to the media for all parties shouted “Reformasi!” (Reforms), head of the Malaysia Bar Council, who is currently on trial accused and the cleaning-up of electoral “God is great” and “Long Live the told AFP she was freed later of sodomy, told AFP that he suf- rolls. The opposition led by Anwar People.” But police lines held firm Saturday without being charged. fered bruising to his head and a made major gains in 2008 elec- and the protesters-who num- Abdul Hadi Awang, president of cut on his leg after he was tions against the ruling coalition bered 10,000 in total, police said- the Pan-Malaysia Islamic Party knocked down in the pandemoni- but said it would have done bet- failed to break through to march (PAS), the country’s largest opposition grouping, was also arrested.

The protesters had rallied in several areas of the city after a police lockdown rendered the streets eerily quiet in some parts.

Downtown Kuala Lumpur, normally a hive of activity on weekends, was deserted as major roads into the commercial and tourist district were sealed off.

Mukhriz Mahathir, a leading member of the powerful United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), told AFP the government had to act to prevent anarchy. “We cannot allow a minority group to protest and stir trouble in the country,” he said, accusing protesters of provoking the police into firing tear gas “so that they can accuse the government of being heavy handed.”

UMNO is the dominant party in the Barisan Nasional coalition led

by Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Amnesty International criticised the government for the crackdown and urged the authorities KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian activists from Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih), to release those arrested and background, sit on a street as they face riot police during a rally in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia “respect basic freedom of assemyesterday.—AP bly.” “According to credible local sources, police have denied the ter-potentially threatening the to a stadium and to the king’s detainees access to lawyers, um when police fired tear gas.

“They shot directly (at us)... I Barisan Nasional’s half-century palace to hand over a memoran- which flouts international human rights standards,” Amnesty said in dum detailing their demands. could hardly breathe and stand rule-if voting had been more fair.

“Why is the government trying a statement.

Yesterday’s rally was Malaysia’s up at the time,” the former deputy New York-based watchdog prime minister said from a hospi- biggest street protest since 2007, to intimidate citizens?” said tal bed, where the 62-year-old when the opposition led a Mohamad Manij Abdullah, 50, a Human Rights Watch also the arrests. said he will be kept in overnight demonstration in the capital also businessman who joined the rally. denounced and was on pain killers. “I consid- demanding electoral reforms. At “We are only trying to reform elec- Meanwhile, about 30 Malaysians ered it (the demonstration) a suc- the height of the latest action, tions and have a free and fair gov- living in South Korea rallied in cess despite the fact that they protesters faced baton-wielding ernment,” he told AFP. An official Seoul in support, with another 80 (police) were really brutal in their riot police in front of a bus station, police Facebook page said 1,667 marching through central Hong action,” added a frail-looking retreating at times and regroup- people had been arrested, includ- Kong. —AFP

Japan’s Kan says nuclear clean-up could take decades TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said yesterday it will take decades to clean up and decommission the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant after the world’s worst atomic accident since Chernobyl. Kan’s comments marked the first time that Japan’s government has offered a timeframe for the clean-

of the reactors had uranium fuel meltdown, and a series of hydrogen explosions scattered radioactive debris across a wide area. Some 80,000 people have been forced to evacuate the area around the plant because of the threat from radiation.

With the four-month anniversary of the

TOKYO: A series of photographs showing the tsunami waves hitting heavy oil tanks for the Unit 5 reactor of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear complex is shown on the screen at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Stations of Tokyo Electric Power Co in Tokyo Friday. —AP up at Fukushima beyond the emergency measures now underway to shut down its reactors.

“It will take three, five, ten years, or eventually several decades to take care of the accident,” Kan told local officials from his Democratic Party of Japan meeting in Tokyo.

The Fukushima nuclear plant lost power after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Three

accident approaching, Japanese officials are due to detail progress in bringing Fukushima under control in the coming days. Kan, who has pledged a blank-slate review of Japan’s energy policy, has been under fire for his handling of the nuclear accident and the government’s response to the earthquake and tsunami. Kan has said he will resign but has not specified when he will step aside, saying

he sees it as his responsibility to see through initial recovery work and related legislation.

In a move that raised concern about power shortages stretching into 2012, officials said this week that now-idled reactors would be subject to a safety “stress test” before they would be cleared to restart. The sudden announcement of stress tests for nuclear plants similar to those conducted by the European Union marked a sharp reversal in course. It also prompted criticism from local officials who complained they had been left in the dark.

Japan’s Trade Ministry had been pushing for a quick restart of a reactor at the Genkai nuclear plant in southern Japan. Trade Minister Banri Kaieda signaled this week he would resign, saying he would take responsibility for the confusion at a suitable time. The “stress tests” are intended to assess whether Japan’s remaining nuclear plants could withstand the kind of massive earthquake and tsunami that pushed Fukushima into crisis.

Separately, a government senior official was quoted as saying yesterday Tokyo Electric Power Co has met a government-set target of setting up a cooling system at the Fukushima plant. Goshi Hosono, the government minister appointed to oversee Japan’s response to the nuclear crisis, told reporters he believed Tokyo Electric had achieved its target of establishing a stable cooling system for the reactors, the first of a series of steps needed to shut down the plant by January.

Efforts to cool the Fukushima reactors currently hinge on a complex and hastily constructed system to decontaminate thousands of tonnes of water being pumped into the reactors and then to circulate it back through the reactors. Once the cooling system is in place, officials have said that they can focus on work to bring the reactors to a state of “cold shutdown” by January. At that point, the uranium in the reactor cores would be cool enough so that it would not cause water being pumped in to boil away. It would also mean that there would be little threat from another loss of power to the plant.— Reuters

SYDNEY: In a picture taken last week a protester holds a placard featuring a caricature of Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard during a protest in Sydney against plans to introduce a carbon tax. —AFP

Australia PM warns polluters’ days over SYDNEY: Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard came out fighting over her contentious pollution tax yesterday, warning the “freedom to pollute our skies” was over, ending 20 years of denial and delay.

Gillard used some of her strongest language yet on the plan to tax Australia’s top 500 polluters for their carbon dioxide emissions linked to global warming, warning the time for inaction had passed.

“No longer will the nation’s biggest polluters be able to pollute our atmosphere for free,” Gillard told a gathering of Labor party faithful in Sydney. “From July 1 next year, the freedom to pollute our skies will cease. “Two decades of denial and delay will come to an end. Polluters will have to pay.” Gillard is due to unveil the full detail of her carbon tax package today, followed by a rare nationally televised address and two-week whistle-stop tour of Australia to sell it to voters.

Australia is among the world’s worst per capita polluters due to its reliance on coalfired power and mining exports.

The carbon tax is one of the biggest economic reforms in Australia for decades and Gillard is staking her ailing political fortunes on its success. The prime minister has the votes to get the package through parliament but selling it to the public will be tough, with polls showing it to be relatively unpopular and the conservative opposition vowing a loud anti-tax campaign. Carbon dioxide emissions will be taxed at Aus$23 ($24.70) per ton according to widely published leaks, on a par with the European Union’s emissions trading scheme but lower than the level recommended by experts in Australia.

The tax would rise by about three or four percent every year, according to details leaked to the Sydney Morning Herald, before giving way to an emissions

trading scheme (ETS) linked to global markets within three years. Companies would be limited in the number of permits they could buy offshore under the ETS and the permit price would be capped at the upper and lower ends to prevent huge price fluctuations, according to the Herald.

High-emissions exporters such as steelmakers, cement and aluminium will receive 94.5 percent compensation in recognition of the strong Australian dollar, as well as government assistance to upgrade to cleaner technologies. The burgeoning liquefied natural gas sector, expected to be a strong contributor to Australia’s future national income, will get 66 percent compensation in the form of free permits.

High methane or “gassy” coalmines will get $1.275 billion in assistance, while electricity generators-the main driver of Australia’s pollution-would receive $7.3 billion and the dirtiest be offered incentives to close. Mining giants BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata were among the top 20 companies to be hit by the carbon tax and stood liable for a combined $380 million under a conservative price of $20 a ton, according to modeling by the Australian Financial Review (AFR).

Woodside Petroleum would pay $167.8 million a year while top emitter Macquarie Generation, which runs Australia’s major coal-fired power plants, would owe $468.2 million, according to the AFR. Petrol has been exempted from the tax in a bid to shield consumers and households will see the lion’s share of the Aus$10-11 billion raised in the first year returned through tax cuts, pension boosts and one-off payments. “Most people will find that when all is said and done, they are not a cent behind, and many will come out ahead,” said Gillard. —AFP

S Korea police on alert ahead of shipyard march SEOUL: South Korean police were put on high alert yesterday in the port of Busan as thousands of protestors planned to hold a night-time march in support of striking workers, a police spokesman said. More than 7,000 riot police will be deployed to prevent the march-through the centre of the southern city to the shipyard of Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Co.-erupting into violence, the spokesman said.

Activists said more than 180 busloads of protesters from across the country were to gather outside the Busan railway station before they start marching to the shipyard, some four kilometers away. “We would intervene to stop the march if it disturbs traffic flows,” the spokesman said. The march is to support Kim Jin-Suk, a 52-yearold woman who has been holed up since January on top of a 35-metre (115-foot) high giant crane at the shipyard, demanding the company call off massive layoffs.

Police have said they would crack down hard on any violence. Last month, 22 protestors were arrested when labor activists clashed with security guards at the shipyard. In December last year, some 900 members of the shipyard’s labor union went on strike in protest at massive layoffs that affected 400 jobs. The company responded by locking the shipyard. The strike and lockout lasted 190 days until the labor union, apparently fearing that police might storm the shipyard to break the strike and arrest union leaders, reached a deal with the management on June 27.

Many of the striking workers returned to work but tens of others have been continuing a sit-in, with Kim perched up on top of the giant crane. They say the agreement failed to settle the issue of layoffs. For many workers in South Korea, losing their job is considered an economic death sentence because of weak social safety nets. —AFP

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JUBA: Southern Sudanese celebrate independence at midnight yesterday. — AFP

South Sudan becomes world’s newest nation Continued from Page 1 “These symbols speak to the blood that has been spilled, the tears that have been shed, the ballots that have been cast, and the hopes that have been realized by so many millions of people.”

British Prime Minister David Cameron called it a historic day “for South Sudan and the whole of Africa”. Ban hailed the new state’s birth “after a struggle that destroyed so many lives for so many years”, and said it was an important day for the United Nations which has been engaged in promoting peace in Sudan for many years.

South Sudan’s independence came exactly six months after southerners voted almost unanimously to split with their former civil war enemies in the north. For decades, until a peace agreement was signed in 2005, southern rebels fought successive wars with the north, leaving the region in ruins, millions of people dead and a legacy of mutual mistrust. The independence ceremony was held at the mausoleum of the late rebel leader John Garang, who died just months after signing the peace accord that ended Africa’s longest-running conflict and opened the door to nationhood.

Roman Catholic Archbishop Paulino Lokudu appealed for reconciliation after the long years of civil war. “We pray for a new mentality of mutual understanding and cooperation between our two new neigh-

bouring nations,” he said. Some at the ceremony were critical of Bashir, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity and genocide in Darfur, Sudan’s war-torn western region. Around 200 supporters of Darfur rebel leader Abdelwahid Nur held a banner reading: “The new beginning,” and “Together we must stop genocide in Darfur, Nuba Mountains.” The Nuba Mountains in South Kordofan state in the north have seen deadly clashes in the run-up to southern independence between northern troops and pro-southern militia.

But Khartoum was among the first countries to officially recognise the fledgling nation, which now needs all the help it can get to meet the challenges of building a stable and prosperous future. For this, it must strike a cooperative relationship with Bashir, given the strong ties that continue to bind the two countries, and despite the strain on relations caused by the bloodshed in the Nuba Mountains. Bashir said it was the joint responsibility of both nations to build confidence and reach agreement on outstanding issues that were not resolved before partition, during talks in Addis Ababa.

Kiir called on his people to forgive those who had caused them suffering and urged them to take responsibility for building a “strong foundation” for their nation.

Traditional dance groups drummed and waved shields and staffs in a carnival atmosphere. “Free at last,”

said Simon Agany, 34, as he walked around shaking hands after midnight -the time when officials said the South actually became the world’s newest nation. The crowd cheered as Kiir unveiled a giant statue of Garang.

Kiir offered an amnesty to rebels fighting his government and promised to bring peace to troubled border areas. “I would like to take this opportunity to declare amnesty for all those who have taken up arms against Sudan,” he said. “I want to assure the people of Abyei, Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan that we have not forgotten you. When you cry, we cry. When you bleed, we bleed. I pledge to you today that we will find a just peace for all,” he said.

In Khartoum, the former capital of the south, newspaper headlines bid goodbye, with one saying: “Time to Let Go.” “Today we have decided it is time to move forward toward the future,” wrote Adil Al-Baz, the editor of Al-Ahdath independent daily. “Great people make use of big events to create new opportunities.” One sign of the new national order was the disappearance of some English-language and SPLM-linked newspapers in Khartoum. The north said it suspended them on Friday as they were published or owned by southerners - an ominous signal for more than 1 million southerners left in the north. Many northerners see the separation as a loss of face.

South Sudan is expected to become the 193rd country recognized by the United Nations next week and the

54th UN member state in Africa. It follows on the heels of East Timor in 2002 and Montenegro in 2006 which quickly became full-fledged members of the United Nations after being recognized by the vast majority of the international community within a few weeks or months of independence. Kosovo, however, declared its independence in 2008 and is recognized by 76 nations, but is still waiting to be recognized by the UN. Though yesterday was a day of celebration, residents of South Sudan must soon face many challenges. Their country is oil-rich but is one of the poorest and leastdeveloped on Earth. The 2,100-km north-south border is disputed in five areas, several of which are being illegally occupied by either northern or southern troops.

The young government must also begin delivering basic needs such as education, health services, water and electricity to its more than 8 million citizens. While South Sudan is now expected to control of more than 75 percent of what was Sudan’s daily oil production, it has no refineries and southern oil must flow through the north’s pipelines to reach market.

But for yesterday, at least, those problems lay on the back burner. Smiles, singing and dancing instead took precedence. “I’m very grateful to see many people from other countries,” said 22-year-old Adut Monica Joseph.

“I’m appreciating that they have come to celebrate with us. I hope when we have independence we shall have freedom and education for women.” — Agencies

Top Qaeda ranks keep footholds in Iran DUBAI: On a cold March morning last year, an Iranian diplomat was flown home nearly 15 months after being kidnapped by gunmen in an ambush on the Pakistani side of the Khyber Pass. Iran hailed the release as a victory for its intelligence agents, who they claimed staged a rescue mission into the tribal areas along the Afghan-Pakistan border. Western officials and others saw it differently: A turning point in Iran’s dealings with Al-Qaeda.

Negotiations to free the captive diplomat are believed to have reached high-level Al-Qaeda figures, Western officials say. In return for its help, Al-Qaeda demanded better conditions for dozens of people close to Osama bin Laden who have been held under tight security in Iran, including some of the terror chief’s children and the network’s most senior military strategist Saif Al-Adel.

The apparent result has been greater freedom of movement for Al-Adel, who has long been a top Al-Qaeda figure and only grew in importance after bin Laden was killed by Navy SEALs in May. Bin Laden’s longtime deputy, Ayman Al-Zawahiri, took over the reins as Al-Qaeda’s leader after bin Laden’s death. Since the release of the captive Iranian diplomat, Al-Adel has been given more freedom to travel to Pakistan - making at least one trip in the past year - and allowed to open more contacts with others in Al-Qaeda leadership, said Western intelligence officials who closely follow Al-Qaeda operations.

That could mark a significant shift in the long hazy relationship between Iran and Al-Qaeda. Since 2001, Iran has appeared a somewhat reluctant host for senior Al-Qaeda operatives who fled there after the US invasion of Afghanistan, keeping them under tight restrictions. Now, though Iran remains on the edge of Al-Qaeda’s orbit, it seems to be a more comfortable haven for those operatives. Despite his travel to Pakistan, Al-Adel has so far chosen to remain based in Iran with his wife and family, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters.

This suggests that Al-Adel and perhaps lower-level AlQaeda figures now consider Iran a viable outpost, with fewer restrictions and the added security that a US commando raid or drone strike on Iranian soil is unlikely. AlAdel, an Egyptian who allegedly helped mastermind the 1998 bombings of US embassies in Africa, is among the FBI’s most-wanted terrorists and the US is offering a $5 mil-

lion reward for his capture. “There are a number of reasons an Al-Qaeda leader would feel comfortable these days in Iran,” said Theodore Karasik, a regional affairs expert at the Dubai-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis. “Chief among them is a mutual enemy: America.”

The life of the Al-Qaeda-linked exiles in Iran is still very much a blind spot to Western intelligence agencies. Very few firm details have emerged, such as how much Iran limits their movements and contacts. Iran has made no public comments on bin Laden’s family members believed to be on its soil, nor about Al-Adel and others in the Al-Qaeda brain trust believed to have spent time in the country and may still be there. They include Atiyah Abdul-Rahman, a Libyan high in the Al-Qaeda hierarchy; Abu Mohammed Al-Masri, a top figure in the Al-Qaeda’s “Military Committee”, which Al-Adel is believed to head; and Abu Hafs Al-Mauritani, a senior spiritual adviser in the terror network. “The story of Al-Qaeda and Iran is one that often is hard to figure out,” said Karasik. “But there is a sense that Iran is not just a bystander. Links to top figures like al-Adel gives Iran channels to Al-Qaeda’s inner workings if they want to go on that path.”

With Al-Zawahiri leading the Al-Qaeda, Al-Adel is likely to remain a behind-the-scenes organizer and planner of possible new attacks. “Al-Adel has been in a caretaker position since bin Laden’s death because of his military experi-

ence within Al-Qaeda,” said Noman Benotman, a security analyst in London and former jihadist with links to AlQaeda in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Sudan.

Benotman and other analysts said Al-Adel opposed the Sept 11 attacks - accurately predicting the US would topple the Taleban and force Al-Qaeda from its Afghan bases, according to the report by the Sept 11 Commission. AlAdel, however, has apparently repaired any rifts with AlQaeda chiefs and is believed to be a confidant of fellow Egyptian Al-Zawahiri.

The apparent easing of the Iran’s restrictions on AlQaeda - possibly linked to the dealmaking over the abducted Iranian diplomat Heshmatollah Attarzadeh now opens up speculation that Al-Adel could establish a “satellite office” for the group in Iran, said an Arab security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with government briefing rules.

Still, there’s long been much tension in the relationship between Iran and Al-Qaeda. Some hardline militants backing Al-Qaeda - which is made up entirely from Islam’s majority Sunnis - consider Islam’s Shiite branch, which dominates Iran, as heretical, and they view Tehran’s regional ambitions as a greater threat than the West. Sunni insurgents in Iraq have used car bombs and suicide attacks against Shiite targets, killing thousands since 2003, as well as targeting Shiite militias allied to Iran.

In January, the Al-Qaeda faction in Yemen declared “holy war” against Shiite rebels that get apparent indirect support from Tehran. Iran also was a major foe of Afghanistan’s Taleban, which sheltered Al-Qaeda before the Sept 11 attacks and remains its close ally. In 1998, eight Iranian diplomats were killed when Taleban forces overran Mazar-e-Sharif in northern Afghanistan and were accused of the systematic slayings of Shiites. The rights group Amnesty International said Taleban fighters stormed the Iranian consulate as part of its anti-Shiite purges. The UN Security Council denounced it as a “criminal act”.

Iran’s leaders sensed an opportunity when, amid the post-9/11 turmoil, bin Laden relatives and scores of AlQaeda figures and foot-soldiers fled into its territory from Afghanistan. Iran put many under house arrest-style limits but refused to send them to US allies, such as Saudi Arabia, where they could face extradition or interrogations by American forces. Tehran’s leadership believed that holding

bin Laden relatives and Al-Qaeda officials could offer a guarantee against attacks by the terror group’s anti-Shiite elements. It, too, was another chip to play in the messy shakeout in Afghanistan, where Iran has deep cultural and economic ties.

At the same time, Iran cooperated with the West against Al-Qaeda. In 2003, Iran gave the UN Security Council the names of 225 Al-Qaeda suspects detained after illegally crossing into Iran and deported to their countries in the Middle East, Europe and Africa. A former Bush administration official, Hillary Mann Leverett, told the AP in 2008 that Iran had rounded up hundreds of Arabs who had crossed the border from Afghanistan, expelled many of them and made copies of nearly 300 of their passports in an effort to help the US counter Al-Qaeda after 9-11.

It was a moment of rare common purpose between Iran and Washington that could have opened doors for greater diplomatic overtures. Instead, Iranian officials say they felt blindsided by being named in 2002 as part of President George W Bush’s “axis of evil” after cooperating on identifying Al-Qaeda suspects. In May, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said the United States has no excuse to keep troops in the Middle East after killing bin Laden.

The extent of Iran’s loosening the reins on Al-Qaeda figures and bin Laden on its soil remains unknown. Among the late terror chief’s relatives in Iran are one of his wives and several children and grandchildren. Early last year, one of bin Laden’s daughters, Iman, managed to flee one of the compounds in Iran to reach the Saudi Embassy in Tehran.

She was eventually allowed to leave Iran to resettle in Syria.

Even bin Laden’s own family has sent mixed messages to Iran. Last year, one of bin Laden’s sons, Khalid, dispatched a letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei claiming that his relatives were mistreated and “beaten and silenced” - bringing a warning to Iran from AlQaeda’s branch in North Africa. Khalid was among those killed in the US raid on bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan.

Khalid’s half-brother, Omar bin Laden, gave a sharply different assessment of Iran’s handling of his relatives. “I know 100 percent that my brothers and sisters have been well treated” in Iran, he said in March 2010 from London. “They have told me from their own mouths.” — AP

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Issues

S Sudan needs neighbours to survive

By Barry Malone hen South Sudanese president Salva Kiir joined Africa’s not so exclusive rebels-turned-leaders club yesterday, he found his new state dependent on similar men for trade, investment - and survival.

Oil-producing South Sudan declared independence on yesterday - a split approved in a referendum promised in a 2005 north-south peace deal to end two decades of conflict. For former rebels in neighbouring countries such as Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, the equation is simple. A prosperous and peaceful South Sudan will mean billions of dollars in trade and investment for those two countries and also for east Africa’s Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.

A return to war, or significant violence, with the north, will be a disaster for the revenues of every country in the region and could mean an influx of refugees. Meles told Reuters in an interview the latter option was a “ghastly” prospect, and analysts say east and Horn of Africa nations are doing all they can behind the scenes to prevent it - knowing that the new state will not be viable without their backing. “South Sudan will, for the foreseeable future, need its neighbours in east Africa more than they need it,” said J Peter Pham, an analyst with US thinktank the Atlantic Council. “In addition to relying on Uganda and Kenya for outlets to the outside world, South Sudan will also depend on Ethiopia, for security and likely for electrical power.”

South Sudan is Uganda’s main export market, importing goods worth $184.6 million in 2009, according to the Uganda Exports Promotions Board. Kenyan exports to South Sudan were worth $157.7 million the same year. A return to war could cost South Sudan’s neighbours as much as 34 percent of their combined annual GDP over a 10-year period and could cost Kenya and Ethiopia $1 billion a year, according to a report by Frontier Economics. “Meles has brokered negotiations in Addis for obvious reasons,” an Ethiopian foreign ministry official told Reuters. “None of us can afford that sort of loss but, more than that, we’re going forward with power exports and South Sudan will be a customer.”

Though three-quarters of Sudan’s 500,000 barrels a day of oil are produced in the south, its only way of exporting it is through the north’s pipelines. “This requires cooperating with Khartoum and this probably also means paying a premium for the privilege,” Pham said. “The only alternative would be to build a pipeline which would link to the one that will likely be constructed in Uganda.”

South Sudan said on Wednesday it planned to build a link to a pipeline in Kenya. In the short term, the south will depend on both East Africa and the north, but moves such as building a pipeline link to Kenya or newly oil-producing Uganda are the sort of swings away from the north that analysts expect in the longer term. “South Sudan now looks like the most likely candidate if the East African Community is enlarged to include countries beyond the five current member states,” said Joseph Lake, an analyst with the Economist Intelligence Unit.

The East African Community (EAC) numbers Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Tanzania and Rwanda and is moving forward with plans for closer integration and a single currency. Analysts say EAC membership would give South Sudan immediate clout against its former masters in Khartoum and would improve its security. Stronger security is vital, as the north and south have yet to demarcate their border and agree how to share oil revenues. The north’s army and fighters linked to the south have clashed in Southern Kordofan, the north’s main oil state. Most analysts don’t see a return to all-out war as likely, and say the new state’s survival will be threatened more by corruption in its ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) and by ethnic divisions within its own borders. “How the SPLM manages to deliver internal security and meet some of the expectations that come with independence are crucial,” said Angelo Izama, a regional security analyst with the Uganda-based think-tank Kwote.

But if conflict were to reignite, analysts say Ethiopia the main military power in the Horn and a key Washington ally - would, with backing from East Africa, support the south as it has done in the past. “Together with the United States and other Western countries, the states of east Africa are most responsible for the birth of South Sudan as a nation,” Pham said. —Reuters

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

Washington Watch

Strategic thinking needed to juggle equation

By Dr James J Zogby n the very day that the New York Times reported that the Israeli military had demolished the homes of Palestinians in the Jordan Valley in order to clear the area to consolidate Israeli control, that very same military was being rebuffed in its efforts to remove an illegal Jewish settler outpost in that very same occupied West Bank. There were also reports of violent settlers running amok in the West Bank committing violence against Palestinians and Israeli military personnel, and other news accounts of thousands of extremist rabbis demonstrating outside of Israel’s Supreme Court in opposition to government efforts to silence one of their leaders. He had been arrested for advocating violence against Palestinians (maintaining, for example, that it was acceptable to kill innocent Palestinian children before they grew to adulthood and became a real threat to Jews). These incidents combined, demonstrate, in a nutshell, why I have lost confidence in the socalled “peace process” and current US peacemaking efforts.

While Israel continues to oppress and humiliate Palestinians, and while extremist Israeli settlers continue to run roughshod over both Palestinians and the Israeli military, it just seems downright short-sighted and silly for the US to have nothing more interesting to offer than their lame mantra that “parties need to return to the negotiating table”. And yet that is

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about all they have to offer at this point - with results no more promising now than they have been for the past few decades.

As it currently stands, the IsraeliPalestinian problem is too big and too deep to be solved by pretending that simple negotiations can fix things.

Neither side is in a position to negotiate, and the US team doesn’t appear to have a creative thought that can help change this situation.

Israeli politics have moved decidedly to the right. With a half million settlers in the West Bank (many of them armed to the teeth and ideologically committed to stay on “their land” no matter what deal their government might sign with the Palestinians), the Israeli government not only has no interest in finding a solution that would be fair to the Palestinians, I’m not convinced that they could or would muster up the resolve to convince their hard-line public to accept even an unfair settlement with the Palestinians.

The Israelis have become used to having their way with the Palestinians and know that no one, including their patron and protector, the US, will do anything to stop them. For their part, the Palestinians have no real leverage to stop Israeli behaviors and they are, therefore, in no position to negotiate with their dominant occupier and oppressor. The Palestinian leadership is fragmented, and their body politic is divided. Gaza is isolated and under a blockade, while the West Bank is also under complete Israeli control

and has become dependent on the largess of international donors.

Just a few weeks ago we had a glimmer of hope that the Palestinians were ready to take steps to alter this stagnant situation. The major Palestinian factions were reconciling and their leadership was ready to directly challenge Israel and the United States by demanding that the U.N. vote on Palestinian Statehood.

But with the US and Israel opposed to Palestinian unity and a United Nations vote and pushing the Palestinians to stop both efforts, and the Palestinian factions unable to agree even on a temporary government, hopes have dimmed. It is not that a UN vote, by itself, would create a state, or that Palestinian unity would, by itself, bring peace.

Neither are silver bullets. Healing the fractured Palestinian polity is quite simply a necessity so that the Palestinian Authority can be seen to represent its entire constituency. The push for a UN vote, on the other hand, is an important effort by the Palestinians to buttress their position vis a vis the Israelis with leverage from the international community (much in the same way that the Israelis buttress theirs with votes from the US Congress).

What made both of these two Palestinian initiatives more desirable than the lame US efforts to restart talks, is that the Palestinian steps were attempts at juggling the equation, while simply restarting talks does nothing but bring together the par-

ties, as they are, to talk about a situation the Israelis don’t really want to change and the Palestinians are powerless to change.

If there is to be Israeli-Palestinian peace, the current dynamics at work in Israeli and Palestinian societies and in the Israeli-Palestinian relationship must be changed. That will require strategic thinking and a willingness to shake thing up, especially in Israel.

Both Israeli’s sense of entitlement and their ability to operate with impunity must be ended. And the Palestinians must feel supported, empowered and responsible for their own destiny.

Palestinian unity, the political boost that would come from a strong U.N. vote and an expanded mass nonviolent resistance effort in the occupied territories - just might help to do the trick. It would give the Palestinians a much needed shot in the arm and it would force the Israelis to debate and rethink their policies and the costs associated with their behaviors. On the other hand, listening to the US and backing away from reconciliation, and dropping the UN vote (in much the same way the PA listened to the US and initially dropped the UN human rights report on the Gaza War) - would be devastating to the Palestinian leadership, would only serve to further embolden Israeli hardliners, and would, in the end, make peace even more remote than it is today.

NOTE: Dr James J Zogby is President of the Arab American Institute.

Rebel gains too slow to hurt Gaddafi badly

By William Maclean ore battlefield gains in rural areas will help raise flagging morale among Libyan rebels impatient for victory but won’t shift the military balance decisively against Muammar Gaddafi soon. Without more outside help, such advances are unlikely to inflict the sort of pressure that would compel him to negotiate a peace settlement in good faith or set off an uprising by rebel sympathisers in the capital Tripoli, Western analysts say. On Wednesday rebel fighters seized Al-Qawalish, a village south of the Libyan capital, and another group advanced towards Tripoli from the east in the biggest push in weeks towards Gaddafi’s main stronghold.

The capture of Al-Qawalish is important not only for rebel momentum and battlefield morale, but because beyond it lies the larger town of Gharyan which controls the main highway to the capital. Gharyan has came under attack in recent days from NATO warplanes. While real enough, such gains are too gradual to give decisive momentum to opposition forces in a situation where Gaddafi still holds the capital, has better armed land forces than his foes, still has lots of money and confronts an alliance suffering internal strains over the war , experts say.

That being the case, there is little to erode Gaddafi’s apparent belief that he has time to sow discord among his foes. “There’s been a bit of progress by the rebels and things have slightly deteriorated in Tripoli, but the degree of both achievements ... seems not to be massive,” said Benjamin Barry, a land warfare specialist at London’s International Institute for

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Strategic Studies (IISS). “So in terms of how much longer the regime can last, it is anyone’s guess.”

On the diplomatic front, Gaddafi appeared to suffer a setback on Thursday when China’s Foreign Ministry said a Chinese diplomat met with leaders of Libya’s rebel National Transitional Council at their base in Benghazi, building deeper relationships with rebels seeking to oust the Libyan leader.

Jon Marks, chairman of Cross Border Information, a consultancy, said there were increasing signs of an endgame in Libya, but a turning point had not yet been reached. “You have a rebellion in the Jebel Nafusa (mountains southwest of Tripoli) which may not be the ultimate game changer that some people have tried to talk up, but it’s definitely an element that’s added to the stranglehold on Gaddafi, and the Western strategist planners are aware of that. But the critical question remains, is Gaddafi really going to go in a negotiated end on any terms that would be acceptable for his opponents or indeed the international community, and quite frankly that would defy

belief.” A June 29 note by the Eurasia consultancy said while the military balance had slowly shifted towards the rebels, disorganisation and rifts would continue to hurt their effort, and they were highly dependent on the pace of NATO air strikes. Other experts say the campaign’s progress was been slow because NATO’s effort, spearheaded by France and Britain, has had inadequate support from European member countries.

Former NATO Secretary-General George Robertson was quoted by Foreign Policy magazine as saying that the campaign in Libya was “taking longer to achieve than it should”. “I think the European allies - especially those that are doing nothing at the moment - need to do more,” says Robertson.

Barry, of IISS, said the “one thing that could change the game is significantly better coordination of rebel forces on the ground with NATO’s firepower in the air.”

However that would only be achieved by NATO being prepared to deploy limited numbers of boots on the ground as forward air controllers, or have Muslim allies deploy their own. In Brussels, a NATO official told Reuters there was no discussion or any indication that any of the allies or partners are

interested in exploring putting ground troops in Libya. “That has not stopped us from striking targets with great accuracy repeatedly ... there have been days when we have struck dozens of fighting units and stationary targets, so it’s not hampering us from doing what we are supposed to be doing,” he said.

Gaddafi is widely seen as lacking adequate fuel supplies. But Barry said that while this was generally very important it might not be critical in some areas. “What his heavy metal (armour) is doing is hiding in urban areas and taking pot shots at the rebels and stopping them advancing. You don’t necessary need a lot of fuel for that ... It’s not as if he is trying to send armoured brigades across the country.”

Some analysts say Gaddafi, indicted by the world court at The Hague, would be willing to quit in return for the right to live in Libya, have immunity from prosecution and have one of his sons given an official position in a post-war government. But many suspect this apparent offer is insincere and is more likely an attempt to play for time. Rebel officials have ruled out any role for him or his family after the war.

Saad Djebbar, a former legal advisor to the Libyan government, said that when Gaddafi said he was ready to negotiate, it did not mean he was ready to leave power. “I don’t trust him until I see him dead and buried.

Gaddafi is a manipulator of the first degree and he will do everything to stay in power,” he said. “It will be a big error of judgement if you bank on any deal which would allow any of his family or direct cronies to keep any position of power. They have to be defeated, and defeated to the point where they can choose only to leave or be killed.” — Reuters

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Murdoch and UK: Has ‘the music stopped’?

By Sara Ledwith et me declare my vested interests up front,” Rupert Murdoch said in a 2010 speech praising Margaret Thatcher’s years as Prime Minister. “I speak as more than an admirer of Margaret Thatcher. I speak as a person grateful for the opportunities this nation has given me -and the opportunities she has created for every other individual in Britain.”

Australian-born Murdoch did not mention the opportunities he has given Britain’s politicians. It’s become a rite of passage for leaders of Britain’s main political parties to cosy up to Murdoch while in opposition, in the hope that his newspapers help them win power. Thatcher, Tony Blair and David Cameron all received the Murdoch stamp of approval before they took office.

But his sway over Britain’s politicians, and their fear of his newspapers, can never be the same again. The phone-hacking scandal engulfing the News of the World has cost the tabloid’s staff their jobs and could end Murdoch’s plans to buy the chunk of satellite television group BSkyB he doesn’t already own. A former Murdoch employee and adviser to Prime Minister David Cameron is under arrest. There could be more arrests - especially if reports that staff at Murdoch’s News Corp deleted emails wanted by police are true.

More profoundly, though, the mess is exposing the corruption at the heart of the British establishment. “The truth is, we have all been in this together - the press, politicians and leaders of all parties - and yes, that includes me,” an agitated Prime Minister Cameron told a news conference on Friday, as he announced a raft of inquiries to show that “the music has stopped” on cosy relationships between Murdoch’s media and the country’s leadership. “The relationship needs to be different in the future.”

A former public relations executive, Cameron needs to limit the damage after revelations that journalists at the News of the World had hacked into the cellphones of ordinary people -including a schoolgirl who was later found murdered. But he also wants to end the tradition of close links between senior politicians and the Murdoch empire.

Those links have been particularly close in

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Cameron’s case: he frequently socializes with News International’s chief executive Rebekah Brooks in their Oxfordshire homes.

But the connections go back more than three decades and cross political divides, encompassing several of Cameron’s predecessors. Political figures of all stripes are regular guests at BSkyB’s annual summer party.

Murdoch’s newspapers include the Sun, an aggressive daily that is Britain’s top-selling paper. Until his company said it would close the News of the World, he controlled four out of Britain’s 21 main titles, while BSkyB - Murdoch currently owns 39 percent - reaches 10 million homes. It’s not the first time Britain’s notoriously muck-raking tabloids have been chastised. After Princess Diana was killed in a Paris car crash in 1997, a wave of outrage led to a press pledge to curb the use of paparazzi-style photos of the royal family. But this scandal is about more than press behaviour. On trial in at least one of the inquiries that Cameron called on Friday will be decades of collusion between politicians and newspaper proprietors, most especially Murdoch - collusion that could also implicate the British police. Ivor Gaber, professor of political journalism at City University, said it would be naive to think the scandal’s fallout will herald a definitive end to all that. The relationship between politicians and the media is too symbiotic. “I think as big a story that will emerge is corruption,” he said.

Nicknamed “the dirty digger” in the UK, Murdoch has long used his newspapers’ political influence to his commercial advantage. Thatcher’s government allowed his company to take over The Times and Sunday Times without referring it to antitrust authorities, even though he already owned the Sun and the News of the World.

By a 1992 general election, the Sun’s political brass neck had become legendary: on election day its front page headline urged “the last person to leave Britain” to “turn out the lights” if Labour won. The next day, when the Conservatives were victorious, the front page read: “It’s The Sun Wot Won It”.

Mostly staunchly Conservative, the paper switched allegiance to Labour ahead of the 1997 election, won by Tony Blair. Former Sunday Times Editor Andrew Neil records a 1994 meeting between Blair and Murdoch.

“Blair indicated that media ownership would not be onerous under Labour; Rupert that his newspapers were not wedded to the Tories,” he wrote. Blair later travelled to Australia to meet Murdoch again.

Less public has been the extent to which some of Murdoch’s British papers have intimidated or threatened public figures who crossed their path, or how far police officers may have been in the company’s pay. Labour MP Chris Bryant is one of several members of parliament to have said they were threatened with recriminations for airing topics that conflicted with the interests of Murdoch’s empire. “I had a phone call from a friend of mine who’d been contacted by two people quite close to Rupert saying, ‘This will not be forgotten - it won’t happen now but it will happen,’” he told the Evening Standard daily.

Another member of parliament last week accused Murdoch’s son James, who chairs the British newspaper arm of News Corp, of buying the silence of hacking victims. That accusation would have been unthinkable only weeks ago. “It is clear now that he personally, without board approval, authorised money to be paid by his company to silence people who had been hacked and to cover up criminal behaviour within his organisation,” Labour MP and former minister Tom Watson told parliament. “This is nothing short of an attempt to pervert the course of justice.” The scandal has also delayed, and may even derail, the government approval Murdoch needs to take full control of BSkyB - control Murdoch has long wanted and which would guarantee his business a rich stream of cash.

Labour MP Peter Mandelson recalls in his memoirs how Gordon Brown, who succeeded Blair as Prime Minister, reacted to hearing that the Sun was switching allegiance to back Cameron. “He was convinced that a deal had been struck

between Cameron’s team and the Murdoch media,” Mandelson wrote. The deal would yield political dividends for the Conservatives and commercial ones for the Murdoch empire, “given the prospect that a Conservative government seemed unlikely to take a restrictive view on issues of media competition.”

That may have been true, just as it was under Labour for many years. The coming weeks will show how much that will now change. Gaber, the journalism professor, believes Murdoch would be hard to keep at bay. “Never underestimate the dirty digger,” he said. “Murdoch loves politics - he can’t resist getting involved, and he loves talking to politicians.” — AFP

Biggest challenge so far for Cameron

By Jodie Ginsberg e has faced criticism over threats to impose a US-style healthcare system, plans to reduce sentences for rapists, and proposed cuts to pensions and benefits.

But it is his decision to hire a former journalist tainted by a phone-hacking scandal that is posing the greatest test of British Prime Minister Cameron’s year-old leadership.

Cameron recruited Andy Coulson as his spokesman in 2007, six months after Coulson’s resignation as editor of the News of the World over phone-hacking that saw his royal editor jailed - and which this week forced the closure of the paper.

Despite warnings from at least one senior newspaper editor that Coulson, arrested by police on Friday, could prove a liability he was kept on as communications head after Cameron led the right-leaning Conservative party into coalition government last year.

“There was this big media trial in the offing,” Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger told Reuters, noting the trial involved one of the investigators, subsequently jailed, whom Coulson’s paper had used. “I just thought Cameron ought to know because at the time he was going around saying he totally believed in Coulson... I wasn’t the only Fleet Street figure to warn about Coulson to Cameron,” said Rusbridger, whose paper has broken story after story about the scandal.

On Friday the Prime Minister defended his decision to retain Coulson, even as his former spokesman was at a police station answering questions about the affair. A police source lat-

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er said Coulson had been arrested. “On the issue of what I was told, I wasn’t given any specific sort of actionable information about Andy Coulson,” Cameron said during repeated questioning of his judgment in hiring and retaining Coulson, who resigned as communications director in January after the phone hacking claims resurfaced.

“The decision I took was the same decision right from the beginning, that ... very bad things had happened at the News of the World, he had resigned, I gave him a second chance, he had proved himself as an effective person in opposition and it was acceptable for him to come into Downing Street,” Cameron said.

But Rusbridger and others said it raised serious questions about Cameron’s judgment. The Prime Minister is also under fire for his close links with Coulson’s predecessor, Rebekah Brooks, who now runs Murdoch’s entire UK news opera-

tion and who is reportedly a frequent guest at Cameron’s country home.

Allegations have surfaced that the practice of illegally accessing voice messages with which Coulson was linked dated back to her time at the paper. The leader of the opposition Labour party has called on her to resign.

Even Cameron said on Friday he thought Murdoch should have accepted Brooks’ reported offer to resign as News International Chief Executive. Brooks and Cameron - whose party won the backing of Murdoch’s newspaper empire before the 2010 election - are said to go horse-riding together.

Along with then Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Cameron was a guest at her wedding two years ago.

Cameron is by no means the only political leader to have hired a media adviser from among the popular press - nor the only current leader to have chosen one from the News International stable. Labour leader Ed Miliband,

who on Friday said it was difficult for Cameron to speak out “because of his personal relationships and the powerful forces here,” has former Times’ journalist Tom Baldwin as a media strategist. Notorious spin doctor Alastair Campbell, one of Tony Blair’s closest advisers, was a former journalist at the Daily Mirror, the left-leaning tabloid.

But though the scandal will tarnish Cameron, few think it will topple him. The government has said previously it does not plan to hold an election until it has to in 2015.

That gives Cameron time and space to repair the damage from the News of the World scandal. “I think it will damage him, but it won’t sink him” said Tim Bale, professor of politics at the University of Sussex, who has written books on the Conservative party. “I think the Conservative Party will rally round him but he has been damaged and his judgment has been called into question.”

Andrew Russell, senior lecturer in politics at Manchester University, said the normally confident Cameron looked awkward when questioned about Coulson on Friday. “He seemed to have a slippage of authority, he seemed rather uncomfortable,” he said. “There are moments when authority bleeds from leaders. You might think of Iraq (and Tony Blair), or Nixon and Watergate.” Russell said he did not think we are in “that kind of territory but it does seem to be a developing story”. “It would be tempting to think it could be his version of Iraq, or tuition fees for (deputy prime minister) Nick Clegg. But on Iraq, don’t forget that Blair won another pretty comfortable election victory after 2003.” — Reuters

Can Romney capitalize on weak jobs numbers?

By Patricia Zengerle riday’s bleak US unemployment report boosts Republicans hoping to oust President Barack Obama from the White House next year, but translating a difficult economy into election results will not be easy. US jobs growth ground to a near halt in June, frustrating hopes the economy would bounce back quickly from a slowdown and underscoring how difficult the issue will be for Obama in his bid for a second term next year. “This is Obama’s greatest vulnerability. It’s his losing war, the economy and unemployment,” said Julian Zelizer, a professor at Princeton University.

Mitt Romney, a former governor and wealthy businessman, has in particular made job creation the center of his frontrunning campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. Co-founder of private equity firm Bain Capital, Romney tells voters he helped create tens of thousands of jobs by helping launch successful corporations. Romney has scored some points against Obama on the issue, giving a speech on the economy last week at a shuttered factory that the Democrat visited in 2009 as a potential symbol of economic renewal.

On Friday he issued a statement accusing Obama and his aides of caring too little about joblessness. “With their cavalier attitude about the economy, the White House

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has turned the audacity of hope into the audacity of indifference,” Romney said, referring to the title of one of Obama’s books. “It (the poor jobless report) makes Obama look vulnerable and therefore within the Republican party they get more serious about putting up a serious contender,” said Christopher Arterton, a political scientist at George Washington University who has consulted for Democratic candidates.

“Romney has a flavor of being a serious contender and somewhat more moderate,” he said.

Other prominent Republican candidates, such as US Representative Michele Bachmann who has leaped to second place in recent polls, are better known for conservatism on social issues such as opposition to abortion or gay marriage rights than for business expertise. And Republicans, while freely criticizing Obama, have been criticized in turn for lacking their own job creation plans, and for pushing for big cuts in government services - without tax cuts during acrimonious budget negotiations.

“Republicans really don’t have their alternative - including Romney - to what the president has done,” Zelizer said. “Budget cuts are popular, but I don’t think they are enough of an answer,” he said. “People see jobs going to other countries. I don’t see how cutting Social Security is going to solve that problem,” he said of the retirement program. Democrats have seized on

some of Romney’s campaign gaffes, such as telling unemployed workers in Florida that he was also out of work. Romney’s fortune is estimated at $250 million. They also have hammered Romney for what they say is “flip-flopping” on his view of the economy.

For instance he gave apparently contradictory statements in recent days on whether Obama’s policies made the US recession worse. “Candidate qualities do play a role,” said Richard Eichenberg, a political scientist at Tufts University which is near Boston, noting the former Massachusetts governor’s difficulties connecting with voters.

Romney’s woodenness on the campaign trail and reputation for changing his position on issues hurt his unsuccessful bid for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination. Democrats will also blast Romney’s business record, slamming Bain Capital as a firm that made money for investors by slashing jobs or reducing pay and benefits at companies in which it invested. “The Democrats will challenge Romney’s credentials as an economic steward, primarily because of his experience as a venture capitalist,” Eichenberg said.

But most experts say it will take an economic rebound for Obama’s 2012 prospects to brighten significantly, and economists said Friday’s report left them little hope for an upturn. “After kind of moving in the right direction for quite some time, we are no longer moving in the right direction,” said

Heather Boushey, an economist at the Center for American Progress, a think tank with close ties to the White House. “I cannot find anything in today’s report that gives me optimism,” she said. — Reuters

Focus

Thailand rural majority can’t be ignored

By Grant Peck hailand’s landslide election result underlines the enduring influence of fugitive, populist exleader Thaksin Shinawatra, but also confirms that the rural majority he awakened can never again be dismissed. As his allies prepare to take power, with a strong mandate from Thailand’s countryside and his sister Yingluck Shinawatra as prime ministerelect, they must tread lightly to restore equilibrium to a polarized nation and avoid any turbulent backlash from the military-backed elite in Bangkok that they have challenged.

“Winning an election in Thailand ... is very different from actually governing a divided society in which powerful interests are loath to give up their privileges,” said anthropologist Charles Keyes of the University of Washington. Much will depend on Thaksin himself, who was ousted in a 2006 coup and now lives in self-imposed exile to avoid a two-year prison term for conflict of interest. The billionaire businessman wants to return - and perhaps get back some of the $1.53 billion of his assets seized by the government.

Yingluck could ease the way, but the merest hint of rehabilitating the former leader sends his opponents into a rage. Yingluck, 44, who jumped into politics this year from her brother’s business empire, has so far ducked talking about specific plans for Thaksin’s return, and has said her priority will be “how to lead the country to unity and reconciliation”. Thaksin’s ouster, by a military that accused him of corruption and disrespect for the monarchy, sparked several years of sometimes-violent struggle between supporters seeking to restore his political legacy, and opponents contending he was a corrupt scoundrel intent on autocratic rule.

His loyalists won a 2007 election, but the Bangkok elite dismissed the outcome as bogus democracy, saying Thaksin’s political machinery won by purchasing votes or duping uninformed farmers in the provinces. But rural and poor Thais have continued to embrace Thaksin as the first leader to take their interests to heart, with programs such as subsidized housing and health care after he first won office in 2001.

The pro-Thaksin forces, this time under the banner of the Pheu Thai Party, came back even stronger for the second election held since he was deposed.

In Sunday’s vote, they won 265 seats in the 500-seat lower house of parliament, as compared with their nearest rival, the ruling Democrats, who won just 159. “The lesson is that the persons who believe they make the best decisions for Thailand - the unelected at the head of the military and in other institutions that have long had a hand in political decision-making - are not with most voting Thais,” said Kevin Hewison, a Thai scholar at the University of North Carolina.

“Even with a third-string team, the people have chosen (Pheu Thai) in what for Thailand is a landslide. That’s an emphatic statement about the wrongs that have been done since the 2006 coup. It remains to be seen if the ‘unelected bosses’ are listening.” The military, which has launched 18 successful or attempted military coups since the 1930s, has insisted it will not intervene this time. The huge electoral mandate handed to Pheu Thai would make that awkward - but not impossible - and the messy aftermath of the last coup already has left it discredited among many Thais.

Coups in Thailand used to be cut-and-dried affairs, with the losers skulking off to quiet retirement. Thaksin, with a surfeit of pride and money, broke with tradition by challenging his ouster, even though he was demonized by his usurpers, banned from politics for five years along with key lieutenants and forced to fight from abroad. Against those odds, his loyalists won the 2007 election, only to be unseated a year later by a combination of judicial rulings, military pressure and parliamentary maneuvering that brought the Democrats to power.

Thaksin’s supporters blamed it all on a conspiracy

by Thailand’s traditional ruling elite - the military and royalists - determined not to lose privilege and power to an uppity businessman. Thaksin’s foes castigated rural voters as uneducated fools for backing Thaksin and his allies and weren’t shy about doing so, some suggesting Thailand should reject the concept of “one man, one vote”.

Even former Prime Minister Anand Panyarachun, an influential elder statesman close to the palace and big business circles and who generally holds progressive views, could not contain his frustration.

“Thai voters who had elected the (pro-Thaksin) PPP government were ‘gullible’ and ‘damn stupid,’ Anand despaired,” according to then-US Ambassador Eric John’s account of a Feb 12, 2008 conversation with Anand. It was among the American diplomatic cables leaked to the WikiLeaks organization and subsequently obtained by AP. Dismissive attitudes like Anand’s effectively turned a grudge match between the Thai establishment and Thaksin into something akin to a class war. Thaksin’s supporters coalesced into the “Red Shirt” movement, staging protests last year in Bangkok that were crushed by the military and ended with more than 90 dead and 1,800 wounded.

Thaksin’s supporters were outgunned in the streets, but prevailed by force of numbers in the polling booths last weekend.

The Shinawatra brand still shines in much of the country, burnished by campaign promises - A credit card for every farmer! A tablet computer for every schoolchild! Some question whether a Pheu Thai government can afford to keep its promises. “In our view, there is downside risk on the government’s fiscal position” if it implements many of its announced policies, the credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s said last week.

“In all likelihood, the immediate aftermath of the election is going to be more about Thaksin,” said Hewison. “The group who designate themselves ‘the people who hate Thaksin’ are going to be hard at work. For Pheu Thai, much now depends on Thaksin being less aggressive and headstrong than he has been in the past. Has he learned to be more patient?” — AP

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sp orts Bae leads in South Korea

SA ready to host Games DURBAN: South Africa is ready to host an Olympic Games after last year’s successful soccer World Cup, International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge said yesterday. It was widely expected that South Africa would enter the race to hold the 2020 summer Games.

However, in May the South African government quashed the idea by announcing that they would not support an Olympic bid, preferring instead to concentrate on the delivery of “basic services to all South Africans”.

Rogge, speaking in Durban after the conclusion of the IOC session in the South African city, said that while he respected the government’s decision he felt there was a good chance the country would enter the Olympic

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

race sooner rather than later.

“I respect the decision of the government to focus on other tasks, but I felt a genuine desire, speaking to politicians and the president (Jacob Zuma), that they want to bid in the future,” Rogge told a news conference.

“South Africa proved during the World Cup that they are ready for a major event. As a nation they are ready to host the Olympic Games.” —Reuters

GOHAN: Teenage amateur Bae YoonHo capped a second-round threeunder-par 69 with back-to-back birdies yesterday to set the clubhouse lead at the weather-affected 2011 The Charity High1 Resort Open.

The 18-year-old South Korean followed up his impressive first round 66 by again dropping just one shot at High1 Country Club despite further disruptive delays due to heavy rain and low cloud at the $1 million OneAsia event. High school student Bae and playing partner Damon Welsford of Australia, who was a shot behind, took just under 10 hours to complete their rounds because of the dire conditions.

Bae was unfazed by numerous interruptions to the third day in the mountains northwest of Seoul to play

Rockets’ Yao to quit

a superb approach to four feet on the final green to set up a second consecutive gain to claim the lead from Welsford. “At the start of the season my driving was very inconsistent, but I now feel I have got it right,” said Bae, who has missed the cut on his two other appearances on the Korean Tour this season. “My iron shots were also very good and when I was faced with a challenge my putting was also very good and I was able to get a good score. “But there are still a lot of players who need to finish their second rounds so I am not thinking about winning just yet.” Welsford looked on course to top the second round leaderboard, but he three-putted the final green from 20 feet to concede the only bogey of his second round 67.—AFP

HOUSTON: Houston Rockets center Yao Ming, China’s most recognizable athlete, has announced his retirement from the National Basketball Association (NBA), according to several media reports on Friday.

The seven-foot six-inch (2.3metre) Yao, an eight-time All-Star, has been plagued by assorted injuries in recent years and missed the entire 2009-10 NBA season after suffering a fractured bone in his left foot.

He played only five games for the Rockets last season before being sidelined on Nov. 10 when he injured his ankle during the first quarter of Houston’s 98-91 loss to the Washington Wizards.

Phillies lead Braves in NL PHILADELPHIA: Philadelphia’s Raul Ibanez hit a solo homer in the bottom of the 10th inning to lift the Phillies to a 3-2 win over the Atlanta Braves in Friday’s clash of the top two teams in the National League.

Roy Halladay pitched seven strong innings and Carlos Ruiz hit a tying homer for the Phillies, who increased their lead to 3.5 games over the Braves in the NL East Division. The victory was manager Charlie Manuel’s 600th career win with the team.

Despite heavy rain throughout the day and a delay of 1 hour, 54 minutes, at the start, the game was played straight through without any stoppage after the first pitch.

D’backs 7, Cardinals 6 In St. Louis, leadoff man Kelly Johnson broke a seventh-inning tie with his second grand slam of the season as Arizona edged St. Louis. Chris Young added a two-run triple and David Hernandez earned his fifth save in as many attempts as the stand-in closer for the Diamondbacks, who closed within two games of NL West-leading San Francisco.

Arizona starter Ian Kennedy (9-3) allowed three runs in six innings, matching his careerbest victory total from last season. The Cardinals scored three runs in the eighth against three relievers but could not get the tying run.

Mets 5, Giants 2 In San Francisco, pinch-hitter Scott Hairston hit a tiebreaking home run off AllStar closer Brian Wilson in the ninth inning, lifting New York over San Francisco.

Hairston opened the ninth by sending a full-count pitch from Wilson (6-2) over the wall in left field. Carlos Beltran and Nick Evans added RBIs in the inning to help the Mets to their fifth victory in six games.

Mets reliever Pedro Beato (2-1) earned the win, and Francisco Rodriguez pitched a scoreless ninth for his 23rd save.

Brewers 8, Reds 7 In Milwaukee, Mark Kotsay hit a two-out, two-run single in the ninth as Milwaukee rallied twice to beat Cincinnati. Kotsay also homered in the sixth as Milwaukee erased a 40 deficit and took a 5-4 lead only to see its bullpen give up three runs in the seventh.

In the ninth, Nyjer Morgan hit a one-out triple off Francisco Cordero (3-2) to cut the lead to 7-6 but was thrown out at the plate on a s fielder’s choice. Prince Fielder walked, Casey McGehee hit an infield single and Kotsay ripped a hit to right for the winner. The Brewers have won three straight.

Major League Baseball results and standings on Friday. Colorado 3, Washington 2; Philadelphia 3, Atlanta 2 (10 innings); Pittsburgh 7, Chicago Cubs 4; Toronto 11, Cleveland 7; Florida 6, Houston 3; Boston 10, Baltimore 3; Texas 8, Oakland 5; Minnesota 8, Chicago White Sox 5; Detroit 6, Kansas City 4; Milwaukee 8, Cincinnati 7; Arizona 7, St. Louis 6; LA Angels 4, Seattle 3; LA Dodgers 1, San Diego 0; NY Mets 5, San Francisco 2.

PHILADELPHIA: Dan Uggla No. 26 of the Atlanta Braves throws to first base after forcing out Jimmy Rollins No. 11 of the Philadelphia Phillies at second at Citizens Bank Park. — AP Rockies 3, Nationals 2 In Washington, pitcher Jason Hammel posted a rare win as Colorado ended a fivegame losing skid with a win over Washington. Hammel (5-8) allowed two runs and five hits in 6 1-3 innings to post only his second win in 13 starts and give Colorado its first road win in eight attempts.

All three Rockies runs came in the fourth inning. Todd Helton scored on a balk and Ty Wigginton and Cole Garner each had a runscoring single. Nationals starter John Lannan (5-6) left the game in the same inning after Wigginton’s line drive hit him on the nose.

the win and Joel Hanrahan got his 26th save.

Pirates 7, Cubs 4 In Pittsburgh, the hosts are assured of having their first winning record at an AllStar break for 19 years after downing Chicago. The Pirates are 46-42 with two games left against Chicago before the break.

They have had 18 consecutive losing seasons, the longest such stretch in major North American professional sports history. Rookie catcher Mike McKenry hit his first major league home run, a three-run shot in the eighth inning. That came off Cubs closer Carlos Marmol, who blew his sixth save in 24 opportunities one batter earlier when he relieved Sean Marshall (5-3) and allowed Josh Harrison’s game-tying single.

Pittsburgh reliever Daniel McCutchen (31) got the final out of the eighth inning for

Marlins 6, Astros 3 In Miami, Hanley Ramirez continued his recent torrid hitting with three hits and three RBIs to power Florida past Houston.

Florida broke a 2-2 tie and took the lead for good on Ramirez’s run-scoring single in the third inning. He drove in Gaby Sanchez, who had reached base with a two-out double. The Marlins increased the lead to 5-2 in the fifth on Logan Morrison’s bases-loaded walk and Mike Stanton’s sacrifice fly.

Florida starter Javier Vazquez (5-) lasted seven innings, settling down after a rough first inning and in one stretch, retiring 16 of 18 hitters. He allowed two runs, struck out four and walked none. It was the first time since May that the Marlins had won three straight. — AP

Reavie leads by two after flirting with 59 CHICAGO: American Chez Reavie, red-hot with his putter, flirted with a magical 59 before bogeying his final hole to claim a two-shot lead in the second round of the John Deere Classic in Silvis, Illinois on Friday. Displaying scintillating form on the greens on another surprisingly calm day at the TPC Deere Run, Reavie fired a sparkling nineunder-par 62 to post a 14-under total of 128.

World number five Steve Stricker, in pursuit of a third consecutive victory at Deere Run, also made the most of the ideal scoring conditions, a sizzling 64 lifting him into second place with compatriot Steve Marino (66).

Venezuela’s Jhonattan Vegas (64) was a further two strokes back at 10 under, level with Americans Mark Wilson (67) and Kyle Stanley (67), and Zimbabwe’s Brendon de Jonge (66).

Reavie, who began this season on a medical exemption after having surgery on his right knee last year to repair a torn ACL and meniscus, was especially delighted with his putting form.

“The putter’s been great, and that’s been the key,” the 29-year-old told reporters after totalling only 21 putts. “I saved some poor shots, made good par shots, hit some good shots and made birdies. It’s always fun when you do that.”

Reavie, whose only PGA Tour victory came at the 2008 Canadian Open, conceded he began thinking about a 59 after recording his ninth birdie of the day at the par-three seventh, his 16th hole.

“That’s when I thought, ‘I make two more birdies, I shoot 59’. And then I hit it up there to about 10

Trumbo homer lifts Angels

MLB results/standings

feet on the eighth hole, hit a great putt and it lipped out,” he said.

“It was a hard lip-out and then I kind of took a deep breath and I was like, ‘Okay, now it’s not really in the cards’. But yeah, I thought about it (59) and I was laughing about it and joking about it.

“I hit three great shots and it just didn’t go in. But I couldn’t be upset.

I made enough putts... so I can’t really complain about a putt not going in.”

Reavie, who had raced to the turn in a sizzling five-under 31, then bogeyed his final hole of the day after his approach at the parfour ninth ended up in a greenside bunker. “I pitched it out to about six feet and hit a good putt,” he said of his finish. “I just didn’t play enough break.”

The cut fell at four-under 138 with British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa and double major winner John Daly among those failing to advance.

Big-hitting Daly had carded a 72 in Thursday’s opening round but on Friday he battled to an ugly 81 which included a stunning 13 at the par-four fourth where his tee shot ended up well right in thick rough.

“I really was hoping they wouldn’t find it so I’d have to go back to the tee,” the American said. “So I hit it a couple of times and then took an unplayable, couldn’t get it out, hit it again, took an unplayable, couldn’t get it out.

“Then I got it far enough left that I could drop and then get in the bunker and two-putted for a 13. I just hit a horrible swing on fo u r, j u s t a h e e l s h a n k . I deserved it.” — Reuters

Dodgers 1, Padres 0 In Los Angeles, Chad Billingsley pitched eight scoreless innings to steer Los Angeles past San Diego. Rafael Furcal singled in the go-ahead run in the eighth to give the Dodgers a victory over the Padres.

Billingsley (8-7) has four consecutive starts in which he has allowed fewer than two runs through the first six innings, but won only one of those games. Rafael Furcal singles in the sole run in the eighth off Mat Latos (5-10), who went 7 1-3 innings.

American League Eastern Division W L PCT Boston 53 35 .602 NY Yankees 51 35 .593 Tampa Bay 49 39 .557 Toronto 43 47 .478 Baltimore 36 50 .419 Central Division Cleveland 47 40 .540 Detroit 48 42 .533 Chicago White Sox 43 47 .478 Minnesota 40 47 .460 Kansas City 36 53 .404 Western Division Texas 49 41 .544 LA Angels 48 42 .533 Seattle 43 46 .483 Oakland 39 51 .433 National League Eastern Division Philadelphia 56 33 .629 Atlanta 53 37 .589 NY Mets 46 43 .517 Washington 45 45 .500 Florida 41 48 .461 Central Division Milwaukee 48 42 .533 Pittsburgh 46 42 .523 St. Louis 47 43 .522 Cincinnati 44 46 .489 Chicago Cubs 36 54 .400 Houston 30 60 .333 Western Division San Francisco 50 40 .556 Arizona 49 41 .544 Colorado 42 47 .472 San Diego 40 50 .444 LA Dodgers 39 51 .433

GB 1 4 11 16 0.5 5.5 7 12 1 5.5 10

3.5 10 11.5 15 1 1 4 12 18 1 7.5 10 11

Kim takes control of Women’s Open COLORADO SPRINGS: South Korea’s Kim In-kyung took control of the thunderstorm-delayed US Women’s Open by moving two strokes clear after 14 holes before darkness halted play in the second round on Friday.

Kim, at 23 and bidding for her first major title, was at four under par overall, having opened with a one-under 70 on the East Course at The Broadmoor.

The Korean has enjoyed outstanding success in her last three Open appearances, tying for third in 2008 and 2009 and finishing fourth last year.

Tied for second place at The Broadmoor were Americans Wendy Ward, after 15 holes, firstround leader Stacy Lewis, after 16, and unheralded amateur Amy Anderson, who was yet to tee off in the second round.

Lewis, who won the year’s first major and her maiden LPGA Tour title at the Kraft Nabisco Championship in April, held a three-shot lead after seven holes of her second round.

However, she began to selfdestruct when play resumed after an hour-long storm delay late on Friday, recording a bogey at the 14th and a double bogey at the 15th. “I played really good all day,” Lewis, who set the first-round pace with a 68, told reporters after parring the 16th before play was suspend in fading light. “I’m frustrated with the way I finished.

It’s unfortunate we didn’t get done today.”

Ward had opened with a 73 but she produced bogey-free golf in the second round with four birdies in the first 15 holes before

played was halted for the day.

Only 33 players in the field managed to complete the 36 holes, including clubhouse leaders Angela Stanford (70) and fellow American Lizette Salas (73) who both finished at even-par 142. Paula Creamer, the defending champion, kept herself in the mix after opening with a 72 and was one under for the tournament after 16 holes.

She began the second round by sinking a 30-foot birdie putt at the par-four 10th, her opening hole, and picked up another shot at the driveable par-four second

Neither the Rockets nor the NBA were immediately available for comment on Friday. Yao had cast doubt on his return to the NBA last month when he admitted to the possibility he may not play again because of his ongoing injury problems.

“I don’t know if I would join some champion team in the future,” the China Daily quoted him as saying when asked about leaving a new-look Rockets team. “I don’t even know if I can play again.”

However, Yao said the prospect of playing in front of his baby daughter Amy gave him extra motivation to continue his injury-plagued career in the NBA. — Reuters

with a lovely chip to within two feet.

However, Taiwan’s world number one Yani Tseng, who clinched the LPGA Championship two weeks ago, seemed somewhat out of sorts, particularly with her putting.

Having opened with a 73, Tseng was seven shots off the pace after 16 holes, which included four bogeys and three birdies.

Hawaiian Michelle Wie, who has not finished in the top 10 of a major since 2006, was in serious danger of missing the cut after battling to a 78. — Reuters

ANAHEIM: Mark Trumbo hit a walkoff homer leading off the ninth inning to give the Los Angeles Angels a 4-3 win over the Seattle Mariners in the American League on Friday.

Erick Aybar hit a leadoff homer, Vernon Wells also went long and Hank Conger hit a tying homer in the seventh inning as the Angels big bats overcame Seattle. Trumbo delivered Los Angeles’ first game-ending homer of the season against David Pauley (5-2), who had just escaped a bases-loaded jam in the eighth.

Mike Trout went 0 for 3 in the prized Los Angeles prospect’s major league debut, but the 19-year-old made a spectacular sprinting catch to end Seattle’s ninth inning. The Angels promoted Trout for the final three games before the All-Star break. All-Star selection Jordan Walden (2-2) pitched the ninth to take the win for Los Angeles, which has won 14 of its past 16 against the Mariners.

Blue Jays 11, Indians 7 In Cleveland, Travis Snider drove in five runs and Rajai Davis knocked in four as Toronto rebounded from a stunning loss a day earlier to inflict some revenge upon Cleveland.

Davis had a two-run single in the second and singled home a run in the fourth off Mitch Talbot (2-6). Snider’s two-run shot in the sixth made it 72, and he added a two-run double off the fence in center for an 11-6 lead. There was to be no late reversal this time, unlike Thursday’s game which Cleveland pinched with a walk-off grand slam.

Toronto’s Jo-Jo Reyes (4-7) pitched 5 2-3 shaky innings for his first win in four starts, giving up three unearned runs.

Red Sox 10, Orioles 3 In Boston, David Ortiz homered in Boston’s eight-run first inning, then got into a bench-clearing brawl with Baltimore pitcher Kevin Gregg as the Red Sox beat Baltimore.

Ortiz and Gregg exchanged a flurry of punches in the eighth, but neither connected before they were separated as both benches and bullpens emptied for the second time in the inning.

Moments before the fight, Ortiz started toward the mound after taking a second straight pitch inside from Gregg. The benches and bullpens emptied, but nothing developed and Ortiz stepped back into the batter’s box.

Gregg got him to pop out, then shouted something as the Boston slugger started down the first-base line. The plate umpire ejected Gregg and Ortiz charged toward the mound. Gregg and Ortiz each threw a few haymakers before being swallowed up by the mass of players rushing onto the field. It took more than 15 minutes to restore order and sort out the ejections. Gregg and Ortiz were tossed, as well as Red Sox catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Baltimore reliever Jim Johnson.

Rangers 8, Athletics 5 In Arlington, Texas, the home team’s winning streak reached five games with a win over Oakland in a game and a stadium heavy with the memories of the previous day when a fan fell to his death while catching a foul ball.

Josh Hamilton, who tossed the ball to the fan on Thursday, had another worrying moment when a foul ball of his bat hit a fan in the face. The teenage male fan had blood on his face and was tended to by stadium personnel before he walked away, smiling while he held a compress to his head. CJ Wilson (9-3) won his fifth straight decision to tie the team lead in wins, allowing five hits with eight strikeouts over seven innings.

Mike Napoli his a first-inning grand slam while Ian Kinsler and Adrian Beltre also homered off Gio Gonzalez (8-6), Oakland’s lone All-Star.

Tigers 6, Royals 4 In Kansas City, Magglio Ordonez’s two-run homer just six pitches into the game laid the groundwork for Detroit’s win over Kansas City.

Only one of the three runs the Royals scored off Rick Porcello (8-6) was earned. He went 5 1-3 innings, striking out five and walking just one.

Royals starter Kyle Davies (1-8) lost his seventh straight decision.

COLORADO SPRINGS: Suzann Pettersen of Norway blast from a trap on the 18th hole as she finishes the delayed second round of the Women’s US Open golf tournament. — AP

Twins 8, White Sox 5 In Chicago, Luke Hughes’ three-run homer capped a six-run fourth inning as Minnesota continued its mastery of Chicago.

The Twins are 6-0 against the White Sox this season, and have won nine straight going back to last year in the series between the AL Central rivals. The White Sox scored five runs in the first, but starter Gavin Floyd (6-9) couldn’t hold the 5-1 lead and was driven out after 3 2-3 innings when Rene Tosoni hit a bases-loaded single to tie it.

Hughes greeted reliever Will Ohman with a long three-run homer to left to put the Twins up 8-5. Floyd, winless in six starts, was charged with seven runs. — AP

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SILVERSTONE: Australia’s Red Bull Formula 1 driver Mark Webber, races his car during the qualifying session at the Silverstone circuit.—AP

Webber grabs pole position SILVERSTONE: A happy but grimlydetermined Mark Webber yesterday grabbed pole for the British Grand Prix and then declared the technical row that had overshadowed the weekend was ‘nonsense’. The 34-year-old Australian, known as one of the few straight-talking men in Formula One, made clear that he was dismayed at the series of rows, rule changes and uturns over the sport’s regulations for engines and exhausts. “We don’t understand it all and I am sure only 0.1 per cent of the fans understand it and we are here to go racing,” said Webber. “But, for myself, I am in good shape and I am looking forward to going for the win in tomorrow’s race.

“But as for the rules, it’s nonsense.

Nobody really understands it. We don’t know what’s going on.” Webber took pole with a typically robust effort in the final part of yesterday’s qualifying as he outpaced defending champion and Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel to grab the prime starting spot for the second time this season.

It was the seventh pole of his career and Red Bull’s fourth clean sweep of the front row this year. “This track has been kind to me in the past and I just hope it does the same for the next 24 hours,” added Webber. Vettel was typically upbeat.

“It was a pity I didn’t get a second run in Q3 and Mark did a great lap. It

was a tricky session with the rain but a great result for the team especially after all the talking about stuff this weekend.” Webber, who won last year’s race, demonstrated his liking for the Silverstone circuit with a fastest lap of one minute and 30.399 seconds in changeable conditions during an unpredictable qualifying session.

Afterwards, he said his pole performance was not a riposte to critics who had suggested that Red Bull would suffer from the saga of rule changes. “No, it is not,” he said.

“We are not looking to reply to anything. What has to be reiterated is that our team has turned up very, very early and left very, very late. Every team

works hard, but this team works incredibly hard.” Spaniard Fernando Alonso was third fastest for Ferrari ahead of his team-mate Brazilian Felipe Massa as rivals McLaren struggled to mount a serious challenge.

Briton Jenson Button, in the leading McLaren, was fifth and his teammate and compatriot Lewis Hamilton was able to qualify in only 10th place.

Hamilton said: “ There’s not too much to say.. The fans here are fantastic. The support we’ve had has been magnificent and hopefully tomorrow we can do something special for them, get some points at least.

“I’ve probably got a couple of people in front who I might be quicker

than. “Overtaking here is difficult but we could still have an exciting race. It hasn’t been a great weekend but I’m happy at the support we have here.”

Alonso, within one-tenth of a second of pole position, was delighted.

“For us, it is a good performance and we are happy. Our new parts are working well and we are closer to the Red Bulls than anywhere else this season that is great here at Silverstone where we don’t always find the circuit is suitable to our characteristics,” he said.

“And I think all the talk about the rules and the engines is so boring not only for us but for the fans.

“We all need to think more about the fans here - they have to put up

with the rain for two days and all of this .. Let’s hope it is dry for the race.”

Button, like Hamilton, was also downcast. “My position is not too bad, but my pace is. I just don’t know where it has gone, but I can guess. We have lost 1.3 seconds to the Ferraris.”

Another Briton Paul Di Resta took sixth place on the grid for the Force India team ahead of Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado in a Williams with Japanese Kamui Kobayashi eighth for Sauber and German Nico Rosberg ninth for Mercedes. Seven-times champion German Michael Schumacher, 42, qualified down in 13th place in the second Mercedes.—AFP

US hopes slim at British Open

BRISBANE: The Queensland Reds celebrate after defeating the Crusaders in their Super Rugby final. The Reds won the match 18-13.—AP

Reds defeat Crusaders to win first Super title BRISBANE: Scrumhalf Will Genia produced a moment of opportunistic brilliance to score a 65-metre try that helped the Queensland Reds to a 18-13 victory over the Canterbury Crusaders and their first Super rugby title yesterday. The pulsating match was a fitting finale for both sides who have overcome turmoil this season. The Crusaders were forced to spend their entire season on the road, racking up more than 100,000 kilometres in travel following an earthquake on Feb. 22 that destroyed Christchurch and badly damaged Lancaster Park.

Queensland also suffered a series of devastating summer floods that killed a record amount of people, and badly affected Lang Park.

That was all forgotten on Saturday, however, as a record crowd watched a tense encounter that was really only broken open by Genia, who sparked both of the Reds tries, despite being less than his usual slick self.

For the first he found a flying Digby Ioane after a poor Crusaders kick, while for the second he seized on Crusaders’ indecisiveness around the ruck to sprint 65 metres after the visitors had turned the ball over while on attack. Flyhalf Quade Cooper slotted a conversion and

two penalties for the Reds, while Dan Carter scored all of the Crusaders points with a try following his own deft kick that pierced a swarming Reds defensive line, a conversion and two penalties.

“We knew the Crusaders would just keep coming, they’re a quality side but I’m just lost for words,” Queensland captain James Horwill said in a televised interview. “This team, all year people have doubted us and said we couldn’t do it. Well tonight I think we showed them we can. And we did it.”

The Reds were forced back into their own territory for much of the match as the Crusaders built phases, but then made several silly mistakes and turned the ball over far too often.

Such was the intensity of the defensive screens, it took until the 33rd minute before Queensland flyhalf Cooper opened the scoring with a penalty-their first opportunity of the match. The Crusaders, however, marched back down field and Carter drifted across the field, kicked ahead to pierce the line, gathered and waltzed around a bewildered Cooper, whose tackling frailties have forced the Reds to hide him on defence.

Cooper managed to reduce the gap to 7-6 with his second penalty just

before the break when he was tripped by lock Brad Thorn while chasing a speculative kick.

The Crusaders should have increased their lead immediately after the break when Sean Maitland was put through following some interplay between Sonny Bill Williams and Robbie Fruean, but the flying winger inexplicably dropped the ball with the line open.

Carter extended the lead after the Reds were penalised for a scrum collapse but they replied almost immediately after Andy Ellis’ poor kick was fielded by Genia, who found a charging Ioane with wide open space and only tight forwards in front of him to score a try that was converted by Cooper.

While Carter slotted his second penalty to draw the game level, the Crusaders spent the majority of the rest of the match on attack only for mistakes to again cost them.

They turned the ball over on attack to Genia, who made the visitors pay and ended their epic crusade. “I think I said before the game it would come down to one or two opportunities and that’s the way it turned out,” Crusaders captain Richie McCaw said. “A couple of lapses and they made us pay and that’s what finals footy is about.”—Reuters

‘Shambles’ at Silverstone as FIA performs u-turn SILVERSTONE: Qualifying for the British Grand Prix was overshadowed yesterday by a row after Formula One’s ruling body the FIA performed a u-turn on its technical rules on the eve of today’s race. As defending champion Sebastian Vettel clocked the fastest time in the morning’s final free practice all eyes were focused on the stewards’ room where Red Bull team chief Christian Horner stormed in to protest.

“I am going down to speak to Charlie (Whiting, the FIA race director) about it,” said a testy Horner as he marched through the paddock.

“I am not saying anything else..” It was the same story as he left following

an exchange of views. “No comment at this time,” he snapped.

This pantomime scene followed Friday’ act of public bickering between Horner and his McLaren counterpart Martin Whitmarsh over the FIA’s decision, taken during Friday’s practice action, to allow Red Bull a special concession in the latest tightening up of the regulations.

Team Lotus boss Tony Fernandes described the series of events as “a shambles. The row centred on the new rules that ban the deliberate use of engine exhaust gases to improve rear down-force, and therefore grip, notably when the driver is not pressing down on

his car’s throttle - a practice that, it was believed, contributed towards Red Bull’s clear performance advantage this year.

Initially, the FIA banned all use of ‘blown’ exhaust fumes in this way, but this provoked a storm of protest. The FIA relented, allowing teams running with Mercedes engines — including McLaren — to let their engines over-run under braking, thus creating some ‘blown exhaust’ even when the driver was off the throttle.

This concession to McLaren left Red Bull fuming and led to their own pleas for equality, based on a need for 50 per cent throttle usage under braking for teams with Renault engines.—AFP

SANDWICH: The last time the British Open was held at Royal St George’s in 2003, Tiger Woods started as hot favorite, but it was his little-known compatriot Ben Curtis who triumphed in stunning fashion.

That was one of 10 US wins in the year’s third major in a 12-year period from 1995 to 2006, three of those going to Woods. This year, the cupboard of US hopes looks very bare indeed. Woods will miss the Open for second time in four years as he continues his battle against career-threatening leg injuries.

Former winner Mark O’Meara, and such aging stalwarts as Freddie Couples and Davis Love are now well past their best, while the likes of Phil Mickelson and current top-ranking American Steve Stricker have never been truly comfortable playing links golf.

The latest generation of US stars meanwhile, have yet to prove they have what it takes to win big in an era of globally competitive golf. All four major titles currently are out of US hands for the first time since 1994 and it is difficult to see that run being ended in southeast England.

Mickelson though warns that it would be wrong to write him off despite the statistics showing that in 17 previous appearances in The Open he has managed just one top 10 finish - for third at Troon in 2004.

Asked if he looked at that record with a mixture of frustration and embarrassment, Mickelson replied: “I wouldn’t say either. “I look at it more now as a challenge. There’s really only one year that I played well, in 2004, where I was a shot out of the playoff. “I did not play to the level I expect and now it’s gotten me more determined to try to overcome this because I feel like this is exciting golf over here.

“I enjoy the challenge of links golf.

It’s fun and I have not performed to the level that I have played in week-in, week-out in the States and I want to change that. I’m planning on doing that.” Fighting words from the world No.6, who can at least boast of four wins in major tournaments - two Masters and two USPGAs - which is more than can be said for the under-30 brigade from the United States who will be competing at Royal St George’s next week.

Top of that list come such as 26-year-

CHARLOTTE: This May 2, 2010, file photo shows Rory McIlroy, of Ireland, reacting after making a birdie putt on the 18th hole during the final round of the Quail Hollow Championship golf tournament.—AP olds Dustin Johnson and Anthony Kim, ago. Indeed, since 2000, there have been more American wins in the British and 22-year-old Rickie Fowler.

Johnson has gone close twice before Open with seven than there have been in majors at last year’s US Open and at the Masters (6) and at the US Open PGA, but failed to nail the prize when (5). Stricker, who is the top American in leading in the last round on both occa- the world rankings at five, believes the sions. Fowler has so far made more of a Americans are more than capable of noise for his long hair and garish choice winning in Kent.

“Some of our younger guys are startof clothing than on his play in the big four tournaments, with his best being a ing to play really well,” he said as he prepared for The Open by playing in the tie for 14th at St Andrews last year.

Kim, from whom much was expect- John Deere Classic in Illinois this week.

“Great to see Nick Watney win last ed, has seen his career hit a wall over a mixture of injuries and a party-boy week. You know, Rickie Fowler was up image. Still they could do worse than there again for a while, and it just takes taking a close look at 2003 Open winner time I think.

“It’s a cycle. And you know, even Curtis, who was a 300/1 outsider with the bookies when he made his debut in some of those European players right now aren’t playing the way they were a major at Royal St George’s.

And then there was Todd Hamilton’s when they reached the top.

So it’s just a cycle, and golf is a cycle, unexpected win for the United States at Troon in 2004 and journeyman Stewart and you just gotta wait it out, and you Cink’s emotional playoff win over 59- know, we’ll make a push again, the year-old Tom Watson at Troon two years Americans will.’—AFP

Bolt wins in Paris PARIS: Usain Bolt comfortably won the 200 metres at the Paris Diamond League meeting on Friday despite Christophe Lemaitre running a season’s best of 20.21 seconds. On a newly laid Stade de France track based on the 2008 Beijing Olympic version where the Jamaican first took the world by storm, Bolt triumphed in 20.03 to deny his French rival and boost his preparations for next month’s world championships.

Showman Bolt, hiding his face behind his hands like a Paris mime artist, was welcomed into the stadium like a rock star with a string of pumping tunes warming up the crowd and putting his opponents including Lemaitre in the shade. The 100 and 200 world record holder then asked for silence as he began to focus but was forced to wait for several minutes for the high jump and technical issues before blasting off.

“It was alright. There was a bit of a delay at the start,” he told the crowd in a slightly frustrated voice. Jeremy Wariner’s preparations for the Aug. 27-Sept. 4 world championships in Daegu, South Korea took a blow when the American former Olympic champion could finish only fourth in the men’s 400 won by Chris Brown of the Bahamas in 44.94.

“I hope this is the start of good things for me,” Brown said.

“Finally I executed my race well. This win means before Daegu I need to go back home and train twice as hard as before.”

Wariner had never lost in Paris.

‘Blade runner’ Oscar Pistorius, the double amputee still searching for a qualifying time for Daegu, was fifth in 45.84 and is some way off the 45.25 he needs with two races left.

Bespectacled world record holder Dayron Robles of Cuba

PARIS: Jamaican Olympic champion Usain Bolt (center) wins the Men’s 200m race ahead of French champion Christophe Lemaitre (right), Mario Forsythe of Jamaica (second left) and Trinidad’s Rondel Sorrillo (left) at the AF Diamond League athletics meeting. — AP just edged the 100m hurdles from American rival David Oliver after a false start in the northern outskirts of Paris while Amine Laalou of Morocco prevailed in the 1,500.

Caster Semenya showed she was finding form just in time for the defence of her world title by winning the 800 ahead of Halima Hachlaf of Morocco in an albeit modest time of 2:00.18. —Reuters

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Peru dazzle, Mexico flop

ARGENTINA: Uruguay’s Egidio Arevalo Rios (left) and Chile’s Gary Medel fight for the ball during a Copa America Group C soccer match.—AP

Chile head for Copa last eight MENDOZA: A second-half goal from promising starlet Alexis Sanchez gave Chile a 1-1 draw with fancied Uruguay on Friday to take the Roja to within an ace of the Copa America quarter-finals.

Udinese’s Sanchez, who is reported to interest European champions Barcelona, struck on 64 minutes to make it four points from two games for the Chileans after Alvaro Pereira had opened the scoring for the Uruguayans eight minutes into the second half. With Uruguay having dropped points to begin with in a 1-1 draw against Peru, there was pressure on the Charruas to take their game up a notch.

But the Chileans once again showed they will be a force to be reckoned with at the event, having already seen off Mexico.

Defender Waldo Ponce said they should have won the group by now.

“A draw is OK but really we should have won it as we had more chances. We are playing well,” said the Mexico-based Ponce.

Four points on the board should be enough for the Chileans, four times bridesmaids but never winners of the South American championship, to move into the next round while Uruguay must look to see off the Mexicans in their final group encounter to assure their own progress.

After something of a phony war of a first half, Pereira put Oscar Tabarez’s 14-time

champions ahead in the 53rd minute with a left-foot finish after Liverpool’s Luis Suarez had played him in on the left.

But it took only 11 minutes for “Nino Maravilla” (boy wonder) Sanchez to put the Chileans on terms as he advanced to the edge of the area before firing past keeper Fernando Muslera to spark delirium among the almost 30,000 Chilean fans who have crossed the border hoping this can prove to be their team’s year.

After the goal, it was Chile who maintained most of the momentum but Uruguay threw their men behind the ball and their rear-guard action frustrated Claudio Borghi’s side as the contest petered out into a stalemate. A late Luis Jimenez header almost gave Chile another win bonus but Muslera was equal to the task as he leaped to parry the effort away.

He then did well to stop a goal-bound drive from Mauricio Isla. Suarez was earlier guilty of a bad miss when midway through the first half he allowed keeper Claudio Bravo to smother his shot after picking up a loose ball. Then Suarez played in Diego Forlan, who has yet to find his splendid World Cup form and whose header was cleared in extremis by Pablo Contreras.

Uruguay now must go for the win against the Mexicans in La Plata while Chile take on Peru in a “Pacific clasico” at Mendoza.—AFP

MENDOZA: A late goal from Paolo Guerrero took Peru to the brink of the Copa America quarter-finals on Friday after his effort delivered a 1-0 Group C win over Mexico.

Peru have not won the South American championship for 36 years and endured an abysmal World Cup qualifying campaign but they have made an impressive start here with first a draw against fancied Uruguay and now a win over a young Mexican side which is on its way home.

Sergio Markarian’s team made a slow start but gradually began to impose themselves at the Malvinas stadium and although they missed several clear-cut chances they finally pulled out a goal to go level with neighbouring Chile, also on four points after holding the Uruguayans and beating the Mexicans.

Guerrero looked suspiciously offside as he nipped in to score from close range and effectively end Mexico’s campaign. El Tri brought a young side to the competition to gain experience after winning the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Peru’s Fiorentina star Juan Vargas proved a continual thorn in Mexican flesh, yet the Peruvians looked as if they would fail to impose their superiority as Luis Fernando Tena’s youngsters held firm around their star man Giovani Dos Santos.

Guerrero could have added to his tally as he twice went close with headers and Vargas himself was denied only by the woodwork.

But Guerrero finally emerged as the man to break Mexican resistance as he escaped his marker to convert from point blank range after Michael Guevara’s cross from the right and claim his second goal of the tournament.

With one foot in the last eight, the Peruvians will now meet Chile in their Pacific “clasico” on Tuesday while Uruguay must go for a win against the Mexicans to ensure they also progress. In the Copa, the two best third-placed teams also are awarded berths in the quarter-finals.

Meanwhile, Peru striker Paolo Guerrero says goals in successive games at the Copa America have whetted his appetite and now he can’t wait to bag another against neighbouring Chile.

The Hamburg striker’s effort against Mexico took Peru to the brink of the quarter-finals, adding

to his earlier goal that secured a useful draw with Uruguay to spark belief that the Blanquirroja could be on the way back after some lean years.

They have not won the South American championship for 36 years and endured an abysmal World Cup qualifying campaign to miss out on the South Africa finals but Guerrero says confidence is rising fast.

“Now we are really motivated to beat Chile-and we are optimistic,” said the 27-year-old, who is nicknamed the warrior and who has spent most of his career in the Bundesliga, first with

Bayern Munich then Hamburg.

Guerrero’s only worry is that the team were highly profligate in attack, missing several good chances against the Mexicans.

“We missed too many oportunities-I had at least four-and we should have won by a greater margin. We know against Chile it will be tough, but there is a lot of quality in this team.”

With Chile also starting well in beating the Mexicans and drawing with Uruguay, both neighbors are set fair for the last eight and Tuesday ’s Pacific clasico in Mendoza will decide who tops the group.—AFP

ARGENTINA: Mexico’s Darvin Chavez, right and Peru’s Yoshimar Yotun fight for the ball during a Group C Copa America soccer match.—AP

US face Brazil in giants’ showdown DRESDEN: Two-time world champions the USA take on the silky skills of Brazil today with both sides insisting they must improve ahead of their Women’s World Cup quarter-final.

Brazil claimed three wins over Australia, Norway and Equatorial Guinea to win Group D, while the USA were shocked 2-1 by Sweden in Wolfsburg last Wednesday to finish as Group C runners-up after two earlier victories.

Having never won a women’s World Cup, Brazil can be forgiven for feeling Germany 2011 is their tournament and they have some unfinished business against the USA. In the women’s final at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Brazil star Marta had the goal at her mercy in the 72nd minute, but somehow managed to miss as the USA went on to win 1-0 in extra-time.

“I can’t let myself be irritated by the oppo-

nent, I just have to concentrate on my own game, because I really want to be a world champion,” said the 25-year-old, five-time winner of the world player of the year award.

Marta scored twice in the 2007 World Cup semi-final when the South Americans blasted the USA 4-0 in Hangzhou, China, before losing 2-0 to Germany in the final.

Having scored twice in Brazil’s 3-0 win over 1995 champions Norway in last Sunday’s Group game, the pint-sized playmaker is on form, but her team have to step up against the USA, says coach Kleiton Lima.

“We have to make a lot of improvements, especially from a technical point of view,” he said. “I know my team and I know we are not using our full capabilities and we also have to improve our skills.

“The players are improving and I think that

gradually we’ll get back on track and achieve our targets.” Brazil have yet to concede a goal at Germany 2011 and start as favourites, but the USA are already eyeing a third World Cup after their triumphs in 1991 and 1999.

“We want to become world champions and from now on we are only talking about the final,” said coach Pia Sundhage. “We need to get sharper and step up, starting against Brazil.”

USA striker Abby Wambach, who opened her World Cup account in the defeat to Sweden, pointed out that facing Brazil means France or England loom in the semi-finals and they will avoid defending champions Germany until the final itself on July 17. “If we want to reach the final, we have to beat everyone anyway - even Brazil,” said the 31-year-old. “We just have to use our chances better than last time, then we can make it.”—AFP

Wenger will ‘fight’ to keep Nasri, Fabregas GERMANY: Players from Australia joke prior to a training session in preparation for a quarterfinal match against Sweden during the Women’s Soccer World Cup.—AP

Pressure on Sweden, warns Aussie coach AUGSBURG: Australia coach Tom Sermanni insists his young side will not be under pressure when they clash with European heavyweights Sweden for a place in the semi-finals of the Women’s World Cup today.

After toppling another Scandinavian side Norway to advance to the quarter-finals for the second consecutive edition the Matildas head for the former Roman fortress town of Augsburg in southwestern Bavaria.

But despite boasting just one win in their eight previous matches with Sweden, Sermanni said that confidence is riding high in the Australia camp.

“This is probably the least pressurised game,” Sermanni told AFP. “The further you go the less pressure you’re under. We’ve achieved what we wanted and beaten a team who are high in the world and had ambitions to win the tournament.

“The pressure is far more on Sweden.”

Australia finished second in Group D behind Brazil after beating Norway 2-1 and Equatorial Guinea 3-2 and losing 1-0 to the South Americans.

“After the win the team was ecstatic and upbeat. That win will hopefully have a significant impact on the team,” said the Scot.

“It’s very new that we knock a team like Norway out of a tournament. I tried to stress to the players just how significant it is. I don’t think the young ones got it, they just want to go out and play football.

“But what it has done is given us a lot of confidence for today.” Morale is also high among the unbeaten Swedes who stunned

world number one team the United States 2-1 to finish top of Group C after also achieving 10 wins over both North Korea and Colombia.

Fifth-ranked Sweden have competed in all editions of the World Cup since the inaugural edition in 1991 when they finished third and were finalists in 2003.

The Matildas, who are ranked 11th, are not the same side however that reached the last eight in 2007 with half their team aged under 20 years. And they will need all their fighting skills against a side that have five wins to Australia’s one, with the two other games drawn. “We haven’t played them for a long time so it’s difficult to make comparisons,” said Sermanni. “They’re a bit like Norway.

They’re probably not quite a direct as Norway but have strong physical characteristics like them. “We’re going to take the same approach against Sweden. We’re going all out for a win not to sit back and defend. I hope the team gives a good account of themselves again on Sunday, win or lose.”

The pair’s only previous clash in the World Cup was in 1999 when the Scandinavians won 3-1. They last met at the 2004 Olympics with the Swedes winning 2-1 and current team member Lisa De Vanna scoring for the Matildas. The only doubt for Australia is Tameka Butt who has a hamstring injury.

Despite beating the USA, Sweden striker Lotta Schelin said they were taking nothing for granted against Australia. “They can play really well too, you can compare them to Brazil, so they are all we are worrying about now,” she said.—AFP

LONDON: Arsene Wenger told disgruntled Arsenal fans he was working tirelessly to find new players and could offer them no firm guarantees captain Cesc Fabregas and French forward Samir Nasri will be at the club for the new season.

Wenger, who has been Arsenal’s manager since 1996, has come under pressure from fans for the first time after a sixth successive season without a trophy ended so disappointingly with just three wins out of their last 15 matches.

Fabregas has again been linked with a move back to his boyhood club Barcelona, while French international forward Nasri could be on his way too.

Arsenal leave for their pre-season tour of the Far East on Sunday when they fly to Malaysia with Nasri on the plane but Fabregas will remain behind with a hamstring problem.

Wenger, returning from his summer break, had this message for Arsenal fans when he spoke to the club’s website (www.arsenal.com).

“I can promise you that we will work very hard and we have had some long nights to achieve what we want to achieve,” he said, adding that he would not buy just for the sake of it. “If there was an obvious choice, people would have already made their decisions,” he said.

“Everybody needs the same players for the same positions. We are at the top level and therefore need exceptional quality to strengthen our side.

“I can understand that people say ‘you have money, just go out and buy’, but it’s not only that, we want to find the quality we need.”

Regarding his club captain Fabregas and Nasri, Wenger said:

“Our position is always the same-we want to keep Cesc and I will fight as hard as I can to keep him. Samir Nasri is exactly the same. We will do everything we can to keep him.”

Arsenal are expected to announce shortly that Lille striker Gervinho is joining on a four-year deal after completing his medical.

Other targets include Bolton centre -back Gary Cahill, Valencia’s Spanish Under-21 midfielder Juan Mata, Blackburn Rovers defender Chris Samba and Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema.

Wenger does have money to spend. Arsenal are in a healthy financial situation and he added some 7.0 million pounds ($11.24 million) to his transfer funds this week when defender Gael Clichy left for Manchester City.

Their only definite signing so far is promising 19-year-old defender Carl Jenkinson from League One (third division) Charlton Athletic for 1.0 million pounds.

Wenger added: “I have said many times that we have been very close, despite the disappointment we had at the end of the season, we were very close again to winning things.

“I hope that provokes a response from my players to think we we were so close. We want to come back and achieve it. “My responsibility is first of all, not to lose players and then to add and make us stronger. Lets hope we can bring in one or two more additions of top quality.”

Arsenal’s first tour match is against a Malaysia XI on Wednesday, followed by a fixture against Hangzhou Greentown on July 16.

They start their Premier League campaign away at Newcastle United on Aug. 13.—Reuters

DRESDEN: Brazil’s Cristiane juggles the ball during a training session in preparation for a quarterfinal match against the United States during the Women’s Soccer World Cup.—AP

Matches on TV (Local Timings)

COPA AMERICA Colombia v Bolivia Al Jazeera Sport +2 Al Jazeera Sport +3 Al Jazeera Sport 1 HD

22:00

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Zenkawi wins hammer throw at Asian meet

LONDON: England’s Alastair Cook celebrates during their match against Sri Lanka. —AP

Dernbach seals England’s series win over Sri Lanka MANCHESTER: Jade Dernbach held his nerve as England beat Sri Lanka by 16 runs in the fifth one-day international at Old Trafford to seal a 3-2 series win over the World Cup finalists yesterday.

Sri Lanka, chasing 269 for victory, finished on 252 all out with 10 balls of their innings left. Dernbach dismissed dangerman Angelo Mathews for a near run-aball 62 with a clever slower ball that the all-rounder sliced to Tim Bresnan at backward point.

He then finished the match by yorking Lasith Malinga for a return of two for 49.

The tourists were in trouble at 131 for five, needing 138 more runs to win, when Mathews and Jeevan Mendis came together with 20 overs left.

But their sixth-wicket partnership of 102 troubled England until Mendis holed

SCOREBOARD MANCHESTER: Final scoreboard in the fifth one-day international between England and Sri Lanka at Old Trafford here on yesterday: England C. Kieswetter b Prasad 43 A. Cook st Sangakkara b Randiv 31 J. Trott b Randiv 72 K. Pietersen c Sangakkara b Prasad 5 E. Morgan st Sangakkara b Dilshan 57 I. Bell c Kulasekara b Randiv 4 S. Patel c Mathews b Randiv 8 T. Bresnan c Sangakkara b Randiv 6 G. Swann run out (Dilshan/Kulasekara) 5 J. Anderson not out 12 J. Dernbach not out 3 Extras (b1, lb6, w15) 22 Total (9 wkts, 50 overs) 268 Fall of wickets: 1-85 (Cook), 2-87 (Kieswetter), 3-95 (Pietersen), 4-213 (Morgan), 5-222 (Bell), 6-233 (Trott), 7243 (Patel), 8-243 (Bresnan), 9-253 (Swann) Bowling: Dilshan 10-0-49-1 (9w); Kulasekara 8-0-51-0 (3w); Malinga 10-060-0 (2w); Prasad 6-0-26-2 (1w); Randiv 10-0-42-5; Mendis 6-0-33-0.

Sri Lanka D. Karunaratne c Trott b Bresnan 4 T. Dilshan c Dernbach b Bresnan 4 K. Sangakkara b Bresnan 48 M. Jayawardene c Cook b Anderson 9 D. Chandimal st Kieswetter b Swann 54 A. Mathews c Bresnan b Dernbach 62 J. Mendis c Pietersen b Patel 48 N. Kulasekara c Morgan b Anderson 4 S. Randiv run out (Anderson/Kieswetter) 0 L. Malinga b Dernbach 6 D. Prasad not out 0 Extras (lb9, w4) 13 Total (all out, 48.2 overs) 252 Fall of wickets: 1-7 (Karunaratne), 2-12 (Dilshan), 3-29 (Jayawardene), 4-123 (Chandimal), 5-131 (Sangakkara), 6-233 (Mendis), 7-245 (Kulasekara), 8-246 (Randiv), 9-252 (Mathews), 10-252 (Malinga) Bowling: Anderson 10-0-55-2 (1w); Bresnan 9-0-49-3 (1w); Dernbach 9.2-049-2; Patel 10-0-49-1; Swann 10-2-41-1 (2w).

Result: England won by 16 runs Man-of-the-match: Jonathan Trott (ENG) Series: England win five-match series 3-2 Man-of-the-series: Alastair Cook (ENG)

out to the left-arm spin of Samit Patel.

Malinga struck James Anderson for six to get the tourists’ target down to 17 off 12 balls.

But Dernbach’s double strike gave England captain Alastair Cook a win in his first series in permanent charge of the one-day side and his team a measure of revenge after a 10-wicket World Cup quarter-final defeat by Sri Lanka in Colombo in March.

Man-of-the-series Cook, who also starred in the preceding 1-0 Test series win over the islanders, was delighted by the way England kept their composure in the first tight match out of the five onedayers.

“To play well under the pressure of a deciding match was very pleasing,” he told Sky Sports. “We don’t want it to be close but we handled the pressure excellently today (Saturday).”

Sri Lanka’s reply got off to a dreadful start as they slumped to 12 for two inside four overs, fast-medium bowler Bresnan removing both openers on his way to three for 49 in nine overs.

Debutant batsman Dimuth Karunaratne edged Bresnan to Jonathan Trott at first slip for four and captain Tillakaratne Dilshan fell for the same score when he pulled the Yorkshireman straight to Dernbach at long leg.

Batting ace Mahela Jayawardene managed just nine before he mistimed a drive off Anderson to Cook at mid-off to the delight of a capacity 19,000 crowd.

Dinesh Chandimal counter-attacked by driving Bresnan for six and repeating the dose against off-spinner Graeme Swann.

But Chandimal, who made a superb unbeaten hundred in Sri Lanka’s six-wicket win at Lord’s last weekend, was out for 54 when he raced down the pitch to Swann only to be beaten in flight before being stumped by Craig Kieswetter.

Chandimal’s exit ended a partnership of 94 with experienced left-hander Kumar Sangakkara that had taken Sri Lanka to 123 for four in the 27th over.

Sangakkara followed soon afterwards, chopping on to Bresnan for 48. That England made 268 for nine was largely down to a fourth-wicket stand of 118 between man-of-the-match Trott (72) and Eoin Morgan (57).

They had initially appeared set for a huge total when Cook put on 85 in quick time with Kieswetter after winning the toss to follow the pair’s unbroken stand of 171 in a crushing 10-wicket win at Trent Bridge on Wednesday.

Cook, who had made 119 and 95 not out in his previous two innings, was deceived on 31 by a sharply turning ball from Suraj Randiv and stumped by Sangakkara. That was the first of five wickets for off-spinner Randiv, who finished with a career-best five for 42, surpassing his previous best return of three for 23 against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo last year.

Trott then completed his patient fifty before an unlucky dismissal saw a pull off Randiv get caught up in his body and trickle onto the stumps before he could kick the ball away. “It was a lot easier coming in after Cook and Kieswetter had done such a good job,” said Trott. “There is a lot of belief in our changing room and we’re very pleased to have beaten Sri Lanka in conditions today that are similar to Colombo.” — AFP

KOBE: Ali Zenkawi of Kuwait won the men’s hammer throw in 73.73m at the Asian athletics championships yesterday while Wassana Winatho clinched Thailand’s first gold medal of the week when she won the women’s heptathlon.

She collected a total of 5,710 points from 100m hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200m, long jump, javelin and 800m, beating Japanese rivals Humie Takehara and Chie Kiriyama into second and third.

It was the first time that a Thai athlete has won the event since the inaugural 1981 championships. Bahrain won the men’s and women’s 5,000m with Dejenee Regasa Mootumaa clocking 13:39.71 and Tejitu Daba Chalchissa crossing the line in 15:22.48, while Taiwan claimed their first title through men’s shot putter Chang Ming-huang.

China and Japan shared two gold medals each as Xie Limei won the women’s triple jump with a mark of 14.54m and Wu Sha won the women’s pole vault, leaping 4.35m.

Satomi Kubokura emerged victorious in the women’s 400m hurdles with a time of 56.52, while Takatoshi Abe took the men’s 400m hurdles title in 49.64.

In other action, Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim won the men’s high jump with a mark of 2.35m.

On Friday, China’s Su Bingtian became the Asian sprinter to beat when he defeated Japan’s Masashi Eriguchi to win the men’s 100 metres at the Asian Athletics

Championships.

Su crossed the finishing line in 10.21 seconds to beat the Japanese by seven hudredths of a second. Another Japanese Sota Kawatsura was third in 10.30.

Eriguchi, a member of the 400m relay gold medal-winning team two years ago, was initially disqualified for a false start, but judges allowed him to run after a short discussion.

In the women’s 100m Guzel Khubbieva of Uzbekistan, who narrowly lost to Japan’s Chisato Fukushima at the Asian Games, ran a perfect race to win in an impressive 11.39.

She defeated the Chinese pair of Wei Yongli and Tao Yujia.

Fukushima is only competing in the 200m.

Hosts Japan were cheered earlier in the day when Daichi Sawano regained the men’s pole vault gold medal for a third time, following his victories in 2002 and 2005. He jumped 5.50m to beat his compatriot Hiroki Ogita and China’s Yang Yansheng, who both ended with 5.40m.

The host country narrowly missed another gold in the men’s decathlon when Akihiko Nakamura finished almost 40 seconds ahead of Hadi Sepehrzad of Iran in the last 1,500m race.

Sepehrzad held his hands up in joy when he was announced as the overall winner with 7506 points, ahead of Nakamura’s 7478 points.

Olga Tereshkova and Yevgeniy Ektov gave Kazakhstan two gold medals in the men’s triple jump

KOBE: Ali Zenkawi of Kuwait is all smiles after winning the men’s hammer throw finals in the 2011 Asian Athletics Championships yesterday. Zenkawi won the competition by throwing 73.73 m. — AFP

and women’s 400m, while China dominated the women’s discus throw with Sun Taifeng and Ma Xuejun finishing one and two.

Other titles went to middle eastern countries with Yousef Ahmed Masrahi of Saudi Arabia winning the 400m, Mohammad Alazemi of Kuwait winning the

1,500m, and Abubaker Ali Kamal of Qatar winning the 3,000m steeple chase in the men’s.

Genzeb Shumi Regasa of Bahrain won the women’s 1,500m in 4:15.91, beating Thanh Hang Truong of Vietnum and Jaisha Orchatteri Puthiyaveetil of India. —AFP

Costa wins maiden Tour stage

FRANCE: The leading men (left to right) Belgium’s Romain Zingle, US Tejay Van Garderen, Spain’s Xabier Zandio and France’s Christophe Riblon ride in a breakaway in the 189 km and eighth stage of the 2011Tour de France cycling race. — AP

Djokovic defeat leaves Serbia tie in balance LONDON: Novak Djokovic’s first outing since he won the Wimbledon crown ended in disappointment when he and Nenad Zimonjic failed to earn Davis Cup champions Serbia the winning point in their quarter-final tie against Sweden yesterday.

Six days after conquering the All England Club, world number one Djokovic would have fancied his chances of wrapping up the tie for Serbia as his team mates had won both of the opening singles.

However, Djokovic, who sat out Friday’s action with a knee niggle, and Zimonjic stumbled and stuttered to a 6-4 7-6 7-5 defeat by Simon Aspelin and Robert Lindstedt in Halmstad. “It is incredible, the kind of match you dream of winning. We met one of the world’s best doubles players and the world’s best singles player, and I would suggest it is

our best match,” Lindstedt told Swedish media. However, he added: “This is not the environment that he (Djokovic) is used to. If I played him in singles I would struggle to get games, but we are very happy to have played this well today and beat such a strong team.”

Serbia will now hope Djokovic will be back in action on Sunday as they need to win one of the two reverse singles if they are to keep alive their chances of defending their title.

“We are coming into the third day 2-1 up which is the most important thing and tomorrow we will try to end this tie,” Djokovic said. In Stuttgart, France secured their passage into the last four when Michael Llodra and Jo Wilfried Tsonga eased past Germany’s Christopher Kas and Philipp Petzschner 7-6 64 6-4 to give the nine-times champions an unbeatable 3-0 lead. —Reuters

HALMSTAD: Sweden’s players Robert Lindstedt and Simon Aspelin in the foreground, play against Serbia’s Novak Djokovic (right) and Nenad Zionjic (back left) during the double match of the Davis Cup quarter finals. — AP

SUPER-BESSE: Portuguese Alberto Rui Costa hung on during a tense finish to claim his maiden Tour de France victory on the eighth stage held over 189km from Aiguirande to Super-Besse yesterday.

Norwegian Thor Hushovd upset predictions to retain the race lead on the first day of climbing in the Massif Central as an expected skirmish between the real yellow jersey favourites failed to spark.

Hushovd, who took the lead last Sunday when Garmin-Cervelo won the team time trial in Les Essarts, was expected to lose it on the first of two consecutive hilly stages.

However the reigning world champion kept pace with the climbers and punchers who had threatened to steal Rui Costa’s thunder in a wet finish to the stage.

After waiting several minutes for confirmation, Hushovd was finally happy to have retained his 01sec overall lead on Australian Cadel Evans of BMC. “I’ve been happy with my Tour de France so far... so if I’d lost the jersey it wouldn’t have been a big problem,” said the Norwegian.

“Of course, when I heard my name I was happy.”

Having been part of a nine-man breakaway that held a lead of 5min 30sec with 106km to race, Rui Costa did well to stay up front when it split early on the climb to the category two Croix Robert climb.

Biding his time as American Tejay Van Garderen and Frenchman Christophe Riblon launched a series of attacks and counter-attacks, the Portuguese finally struck out with 5km to race to finally go it alone.

“It was a very hard stage, but I’m really happy to have taken this win,” said Rui Costa, who had feared being caught by Alexandre Vinokourov as the Kazakh continued his bid for the win and the yellow jersey.

“When I saw the gap to Vinokourov in the final kilometre I thought it would be difficult for me but I paced myself well.” The chasing peloton were not far behind, with yellow jersey favourites Alberto Contador, Andy Schleck and Evans testing each other with short bursts on the final 1.5km climb to Super-Besse.

They soon swallowed up Vinokourov, and as they kept a close eye on each other’s move stage one winner Philippe Gilbert slipped into the big chain ring to launch a telling attack.

In the end the Belgian champion came over the finish 12secs in arrears. “I needed another couple of hundred metres, but Rui Costa would have won anyway,” said Gilbert. Three seconds later Evans led a peloton containing Schleck and reigning champion Contador over the finish. Despite BMC working hard earlier in the day to close the gap to an early nine-man breakaway, Evans claimed that not having the yellow jersey was not a problem. “I didn’t get the jersey but for us it’s not a problem right now. As I keep saying, there’s a long way to go to Paris,” said Evans, a two-time runner-up, in 2007 and 2008. Contador, who is still 1:41 behind Evans and 1:30 behind Schleck, said the first skirmishes on the climbs aren’t likely until the first of three consecutive stages in the Pyrenees next week.

“I felt really good going up the climb, I managed to follow Gilbert,” said the three-time champion and recent Giro d’Italia winner. “But what counts most for me is to know I’ve got good legs. If there is any battle to come, I don’t think it will start till the Pyrenees.”

In the final kilometre to the finish Contador tried to ride away several times, prompting Andy Schleck to counter. The Leopard-Trek climber, who lost the race to Contador by only 39secs last year, isn’t giving the Spaniard an inch so far.

“We knew Contador was going to try and attack so I was on his wheel straight away,” said the Luxemburger.

“We’ll get to the Pyrenees soon. After Luz-Ardiden (on stage 12) and the Plateau de Beille (stage 14) we’ll have something to say.” — AFP

Chile head for Copa last eight

Reds defeat Crusaders to win first Super title

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

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ARGENTINA: Brazil’s Alexandre Pato kicks the ball as Paraguay’s goalkeeper Justo Villar tries to block during a Group B Copa America soccer match.—AP

Brazil salvage draw with Paraguay CORDOBA: Substitute Fred struck in the final minute as Brazil came from behind to draw 2-2 with Paraguay in Group B at the Copa America yesterday.

Brazil took the lead six minutes before halftime at the Mario Alberto Kempes stadium in a fast counter-attack with Ganso touching the ball through to Jadson who wasted no time shooting from the edge of the box low into the bottom corner.

Striker Roque Santa Cruz equalised 11 minutes after the interval when the defence failed to clear a Marcelo Estigarribia cross from the left into the middle of the box where he shot into the bottom corner past Julio Cesar.

Paraguay went ahead 12 minutes later when the ever dangerous Estigarribia robbed Daniel Alves on the left of the box and squared to the middle where substitute Nelson Haedo Valdez’s shot came off Lucio but he put it away at the second attempt. Brazil snatched their late equaliser when striker Fred took a through pass into the box from Ganso and fired low past Villar. Both teams have two points after their first two games.

Meanwhile, Argentina are playing badly at the Copa America because the whole squad are underperforming, leading players said while defending Lionel Messi from attacks by media and fans.

“Lionel’s feeling very bad...It’s the first time he’s been whistled (at a match), this is very hard,” Messi’s father Jorge told local Radio 10 referring to Wednesday’s 0-0 draw with Colombia in Santa Fe. The hosts drew their first two matches against Bolivia and Colombia and need to beat a second-string Costa Rica side in their final Group A match on Monday in Cordoba to secure a quarter-final berth in a tournament they started as favourites.

Coach Sergio Batista’s team have been a disappointment with their play and few goal chances and might have lost both matches. “The truth is that the individual level of all (of us) is not the best and that

rebounds on the team,” captain Javier Mascherano told a news conference at Argentina’s training base outside the capital. “Leo’s case is not isolated. We all feel frustration. That doesn’t mean Argentina are playing badly because of Messi’s fault, but rather the reverse,” the holding midfielder said. A fair bit of the criticism from media and fans has been aimed at Messi who was expected to be the outstanding player of the tournament but has yet to deliver. Experienced full back Javier Zanetti also tried to lift the responsibility from Messi, who during the 2010 World Cup qualifiers was criticised for not playing as well for Argentina as he does for

European champions Barcelona. “We didn’t expect a start to the Copa like this one... It’s down to us to play a great match (against Costa Rica), try to get Argentina playing well, pleasing the fans and surely the path will be different,” Zanetti said.

Colombia lead Group A with four points, Costa Rica have three, Argentina two and Bolivia one. Bolivia face Colombia in Santa Fe today.

Mascherano, Messi’s Barcelona team mate, said Argentina needed from Monday to play “another Copa America” against Costa Ricans motivated by their surprise win over Bolivia.

“There’s not much time to feel sorry,

Japan knock holders Germany out of WCup

France defeat England to reach WCup semi-finals LEVERKUSEN: France advanced to their first ever Women’s World Cup semi-finals yesterday with a dramatic 4-3 win on penalties against England. Player of the match Camille Abily missed France’s first penalty but Claire Rafferty and Faye White then failed to net England’s last two to send Les Bleus through to a final four showdown with either Brazil or the United States. Despite France dominating for most of the game Jill Scott had put England ahead after 59 minutes before Elise Bussaglia equalised two minutes from time.

“Again England get knocked out on penalties, how boring is that?” said England coach Hope Powell. “To get to penalties we did well. It was just unfortunate we missed two. It was just tired legs. At the end we were dead on our feet.

Unfortunately when it came down to penalties you have to applaud France.”

France coach Bruno Bini paid tribute to his side who dominated the 120 minutes of play with 33 shots on goal to just seven for England, who have not beaten the French in 37 years.

“Until three minutes before the final whistle we thought we could lose this match even though it could have been 3-0 for us,” he said. “Our match was going well but we weren’t getting our reward. That was unacceptable but in the end we were rewarded. Life is beautiful, we worked so hard for this.”

Apart from suspended keeper Berangere Sapowicz, France fielded the same team that crushed Canada 4-0, including five Lyon players who won last season’s Champions League final.

Technically superior the French outplayed their rivals before the break but were unable to convert any of their chances to the disappointment of the 26,395 crowd.

England’s best early shot on goal came seconds into the game when Kelly Smith beat the off-side trap, rounding goalkeeper Celine

Deville, only to have her effort an an open goal blocked. French midfielder Abily’s long range shot after four minutes went flying over the bar, while a powerful 25th-minute Gaetane Thiney effort from outside the box was pushed out by Karen Bardsley in the England goal.

The French pushed forward and three minutes later a Marie-Laure Delie effort went just wide with Louisa Necib’s attempt grazing the crossbar moments later.

Bardsley, who pulled off some superb firsthalf saves, did well five minutes before the break when she rose to hold a dangerous curling Necib corner.

Back after the break the French continued causing all sorts of problems for the English defenders with Montpellier striker Delie twice going just wide with Bardsley holding a Thiney effort. Scott missed a chance to put England ahead after 55 minutes when she picked up a cross from Rachel Unitt only for her header to go just left of goal.

But four minutes later she made no mistake with the Everton midfielder latching onto a Rachel Yankey cross to rifle in her second goal of the touranment from 20 yards out. The French piled on the pressure as they went in search of the equaliser with Delie missing a chance after 66 minutes, with another effort from substitute Elodie Thomis held by Bardsley.

But Bussaglia finally got the equaliser as the Paris Saint Germain midifielder’s shot hit the post and curled into the net ensuring that the match went into extra-time.

“I felt really bad. But because we won I’ve already forgotton about it,” said Abily of her penalty which was saved by Bardsley.

“We deserved it. We dominated 120 minutes. I think we finished better than England which helped us to have a bit more freshness in the penalties.”—AFP

we have to pick up our heads, analyze what we did wrong and improve for Monday because it’s a final and we have to win it,” he said.

Batista’s possession tactics were found wanting by well-organised opponents and both Mascherano and Zanetti said they were open to changes against Costa Rica. “Batista likes to play good football, but if he has to change to benefit the team, he’ll surely do so. We’re well aware we’re not generating football,” said Mascherano. “For us it would be no drama (to change). When you change the system, you do it believing that’s how you’ll play better.”—Reuters

GERMANY: England’s Alex Scott (right) and France’s Marie-Laure Delie challenge for the ball during the quarterfinal match at the Women’s Soccer World Cup.—AP

WOLFSBURG: Hosts and defending champions Germany were knocked out of the Women’s World Cup yesterday as they were beaten 1-0 by Japan after extra-time in the quarterfinals. The winning goal came in the 108th minute when Japan captain Homare Sawa put in a superb long-range pass and substitute Karina Maruyama drilled her shot past Germany goalkeeper Nadine Angerer.

Having won both the 2003 and 2007 editions, this is the first time Germany have lost at a women’s World Cup since they were beaten 3-2 by hosts the USA in the quarter-finals of the 1999 tournament. Japan have now got beyond the quarter-finals for the first time as their previous best performance was a last-eight appearance in 1995 in Sweden.

Japan will now face either Australia or Sweden, who meet today, in the semi-final in Frankfurt on Wednesday. Having won Group A with three victories, Germany were bidding for a third consecutive title, while Japan came in as Group B runners-up after losing their final pool game to England.

Germany suffered an early setback when key midfielder Kim Kulig headed over the bar and limped off with a knee injury after an awkward landing on three minutes.

Coach Silvia Neid was forced into bringing on defender Bianca Schmidt and left-back Linda Bresonik pushed up into midfield. It was predominantly German one-way traffic in the opening stages in front of a sold-out crowd of 26,067.

Powerful midfielder Celia Okoyino da Mbabi, who ran herself ragged over the course of the night, had a shot parried away

by Japan’s goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori on 13 minutes.

Captain Kerstin Garefrekes saw her effort fly across the face of the goal on 22 minutes. Japan finally came into the match and their clearest chance was when forward Yuki Nagasato fired wide with half an hour gone as the Germans dropped off their early pace. Mexico referee Quetzalli Alvarado finally showed the first of three second-half yellow cards in the 55th minute as the Japanese produced some loose tackles.

Japan midfielder Aya Miyama fired over twice with two long-range efforts as normal time faded and Germany forward Inka Grings had an appeal for a penalty turned down in the final five minutes after she was shouldered off the ball.

After 10 minutes of extra time, Grings found the ball at her feet in the area but fired wide to make way for attacking dynamo Alexandra Popp. The game was finally decided in the second period of extra time when Japan stunned the home crowd with the crucial goal to reach the last four.—AFP

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NEW DELHI: A homeless Indian man lays on an ad for bank financing as he begs for alms near Jama Masjid in New Delhi, India. Even as India’s booming economy overflows with opportunities for the educated and well-connected, minting new millionaires by the dozen, some 800 million people live in poverty. — AP

Taboo eases on talk of Greece’s euro zone exit Growing view that Greek default is inevitable

BRUSSELS: Dismissed as foolish fantasy a year ago, the prospect of Greece leaving the euro zone has become a topic worthy of serious discussion among experts handling the crisis in recent weeks. In public, the official line remains that no member will exit the single currency bloc, but policymakers are at least willing to exchange views on an intellectual level. Is thinking the unthinkable a first step towards carrying it out? It would not be the first time euro zone officials have put the impossible into action.

In bailing out Greece, Ireland and Portugal, the bloc has already broken its rule that member states cannot assume the liabilities of others-the supposed “no bailout” clause. One of the senior euro zone officials involved in crafting the rescue packages, who is leaving Brussels after several years, was asked to write an assessment for their government of the crisis with a view on where the situation was headed in the coming years.

Wondering whether there would still be 17 members of the single currency by the end of the decade, the official opined in the report, the contents of

which were related to Reuters: “There may well still be 17 members, but whether it will be the same 17 members is an open question.”

Among non euro-zone member states-which include Britain, Sweden and Denmark-senior Brussels-based officials express relief at not having joined the club and often privately discuss the once-unthinkable possibility of a state dropping out. The euro project is at best faltering, but it is unclear whether the sovereign debt crisis will bring it to an end or whether it will emerge from a difficult teenage phase. The 1992 Maastricht Treaty, which laid out the goal of establishing economic and monetary union, resolved to converge as well as strengthen the EU’s economies. A leveling-out of wealth and prices across the region was a long-term aim.

Critics, and the evidence, suggest that has been a failure. In 2010, prices for consumer goods and services were more than 20 percent above the EU average in Finland and some 30 percent below in fellow euro zone member Slovakia. Income inequality has also increased, although not shot up, in the

past decade, with the richest 20 percent in the euro zone now earning five times more than the poorest 20 percent. While few actually expect a country to abandon the single currency, the chances of it happening have substantially increased since the crisis began in late 2009, with a growing consensus that Greece will prove unable to pay its bills.

It could default and stay within the euro zone, but it is unlikely to achieve the necessary improvement of its competitive position without devaluing, by exiting the single currency. Emergency aid may take the form of loans not handouts, but many economists believe a Greek default is inevitable and that its bailout, set to be doubled, is only buying time. Financial markets certainly seem to think so. The prices of credit default swaps imply a 80 percent chance of Greece defaulting and a probability just short of 50 percent for Ireland and Portugal.

Jean Pisani-Ferry, director of the Brussels-based Bruegel thinktank, says that to return to markets, Greece would need to reduce its debt-to-GDP ratio considerably below a current level of

some 150 percent. That would require creating a sustained primary surplus of more than 8 percent, he said. However, no advanced economy other than oilrich Norway has consistently been able to achieve a surplus above 6 percent.

“The situation is so exceptionally severe that it’s hard to see how it can work,” Pisani-Ferry said.

There is a risk that, as Greece struggles to push through austerity and is chastised on a regular basis by the EU, IMF and European Central Bank-the troika of experts who oversee Athens’ progress-further market turmoil will be triggered. Bank of America Merrill Lynch economists believe troika reviews at the end of November 2011 and of February 2012 will be particularly important in assessing Greece’s progress.

Policymakers have consistently said a default would be catastrophic, but if it is indeed inevitable, all that can be controlled is when it should happen and how to contain it.

Senior EU officials repeatedly said there was no “Plan B” for Greece in the run-up to last month’s Greek parliamentary votes in favor of austerity measures.

IMF approves 3.2 bn euros for Greece WASHINGTON: The International Monetary Fund’s executive board has approved a disbursement of about 3.2 billion euros to help Greece pay debts due this month. In announcing the payment, part of a 110 billion euro IMF-European Union bailout package crafted for Greece last year, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde pointed to progress being made by debt-laden Greece, though noting that more work remains.

“The program is delivering important results: the fiscal deficit is being reduced, the economy is rebalancing, and competitiveness is gradually improving,” Lagarde said in a statement.

“However, with many important structural reforms still to be implemented, significant policy challenges remain. A durable fiscal adjustment is needed, lest the deficit get entrenched at an unsustainably high level, and productivityenhancing reforms should be accelerated, lest growth fail to recover,” she said. The IMF has warned that the crisis in Greece could reach countries like the United States through money market funds, especially if the contagion spreads to European banks heavily exposed to Greek debt.

The global lender scheduled its meeting to consider the fifth loan disbursement for Greece after euro zone leaders agreed yesterday to release their portion of the 12 billion euros due to be paid to Athens from the initial bailout.

Lagarde said Greek authorities had made progress in the fiscal area by identifying measures required to reduce the general government deficit to less than 3 percent of gross domestic product by 2014. She also lauded the government’s privatization strategy and noted that while the plan to sell 50 billion euros of state assets by 2015 is “very ambitious, the establishment of an independent privatization agency should help realize transparent and timely implementation.” Still, more work needs to be done, Lagarde said. “To strengthen Greece’s competitiveness, structural reform implementation needs to be accelerated. This will help achieve synergies, such as between privatization and reducing administrative barriers to investment. The reform agenda should be expanded to address Greece’s high labor tax wedge and inefficient judicial system,” Lagarde added.—Reuters

But the EU’s top economic official, Olli Rehn, said there was “no Plan B to avoid default”, implying that a contingency plan might have existed, albeit one which involved a Greek default taking place-which would break another taboo.

If you believe a Greek default is inevitable, the question is how it should proceed.

Greece could skip interest payments or reduce the principal owed and still stay within the euro zone. Creditors, banks and taxpayers within and outside Greece would take a huge hit, but Greece would still be forced to carry out savage austerity just to cut its primary deficit to zero. A devaluation via a Greek exit from the euro would be even more tumultuous, with a likely run on Greek banks as savers withdraw their eurodenominated assets.

Greece, with a modest export to GDP ratio of some 20-25 percent, would still struggle. “Devaluation works best if you have a strong export sector. For Greece it is small and on average imports deducted from growth more than exports added,” said Carsten Brzeski, an economist with ING in Brussels. However, for

an increasingly vocal number of commentators, devaluation is the only viable option. “To have an economic future Greece has to be competitive,” said Martin Jacomb, the chairman of Shire Plc and a former Bank of England director.

“This involves, especially for sectors such as the tourist industry, lower real wages and that is almost impossible to achieve harmoniously without devaluation.”

He points to Argentina, Latin America’s third-largest economy which defaulted on $100 billion of debt in 2002 and dropped the peso’s link to the US dollar, and also to the post-split successor states of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, which proved able to adopt different currencies. Argentina rapidly returned to economic growth of around 9 percent, but the reputation it earned and its failure since to return to global capital markets in the face of US litigation mean euro zone policymakers do not see it as a model to follow. “This was less messy because they still had the peso, albeit devalued, but we have seen countries split and each part develop their own currencies successfully,” Jacomb said. — Reuters

Okonjo-Iweala quits World Bank to be Nigeria minister

ATHENS: A woman withdraws money from an ATM of Hellenic Postbank, in central Athens. — AP

ABUJA: World Bank managing director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala resigned her post on Friday in order to become Nigeria’s new finance minister, spurring hopes of reform in sub-Saharan Africa’s second biggest economy. Okonjo-Iweala will take up an expanded position as Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance in Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan’s new cabinet, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said in a statement. “Her desire to serve her country is truly a big loss for the World Bank but a major gain for Nigeria as it works to craft its economic way forward,” he said.

Government sources said two weeks ago that Jonathan had asked OkonjoIweala, a respected former finance minister who helped negotiate debt rescheduling in 2005, to return to her old position with broad powers over economic management. Jonathan was sworn in for his first full term on May 29 following general elections and his ministerial choices are being closely watched by Nigerians and foreign investors keen for a team capable of driving badly needed reforms. “ We think President Goodluck Jonathan’s selection of the World Bank MD will result in a vote of confidence for his administration, and suggests he is serious about initiating fiscal reforms,” Renaissance Capital said in a research note. OkonjoIweala laid out her vision for the Nigerian economy during her screening by the Senate on Wednesday, pledging she would create jobs and ensure the country “lives

within its means” if approved as a cabinet minister. The high cost of government has been a major concern for economists and investors. Recurrent expenditure accounts for well over half of spending despite poor public services.

Jonathan swore in 17 other ministers on Friday including outgoing finance minister Olusegun Aganga, who is expected to be put in charge of a newly-expanded commerce and investment portfolio, presidency sources said. Their roles will formally be announced next week. Aganga, a former Goldman Sachs executive, is expected to oversee the sovereign wealth fund created under his administration as part of his new post, the sources said. Okonjo-Iweala would also have been sworn in on Friday but returned to the United States in order to resign and would be confirmed once back in Nigeria, the presidency sources said.

Jonathan reappointed 12 outgoing ministers to their old jobs a week ago, including oil minister Deziani Alison-Madueke, a move his critics saw as an uninspiring start.

The inclusion of Okonjo-Iweala in the cabinet could lend more weight to his reform ambitions, although skeptics question whether she will have the full political backing she needs. “As a reformist, her reputation speaks for itself,” saidRazia Khan, head of Africa research at Standard Chartered. “Whether Okonjo-Iweala is given the necessary political backing to enact key reforms ... will also be closely watched.”—Reuters

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Disappointing jobs data weighs on oil North Sea supply worry limits Brent losses

MONTREAL: Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker is pictured (third left) with dignitaries (from left) including Aeroports de Montreal President and CEO James Cherry, Quebec Transport Minister Sam Hamad, Montreal City Mayor Gerald Tremblay, Qatar’s Ambassador to Canada His Excellency Salem Al Shafi and Canadian Charge d’Affairs to Qatar, Gary Luton (extreme right).

Qatar Airways embarks on a historic move to Canada Airline of the Year launches flights to Montreal MONTREAL: : Qatar Airways, the national airline of the State of Qatar, has embarked on the latest journey of its remarkable expansion by entering the Canadian market for the first time.

Newly-crowned Airline of the Year 2011, the award-winning carrier touched down at Montreal’s Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport following its 13hour non-stop journey from the Qatari capital Doha.

Marking the historic and long-anticipated launch of the thrice-weekly scheduled services between the two cities, Qatar Airways inaugurated the occasion with a ceremony on arrival, including a traditional water salute welcoming flight QR927 to Montreal. Leading the delegation of VIPs and international media from Qatar, Dubai and India was Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker, who hailed the newest route as a key moment in the airline’s ever-expanding route map.

Montreal becomes the eighth of 15 route launches by Qatar Airways this year and the airline’s fourth North American gateway, with New York, Washington DC and Houston already featuring in its burgeoning international route map. Guests at the arrival reception in Montreal included City Mayor Gerald Tremblay; Quebec Transport Minister Sam Hamad; Qatar’s Ambassador to Canada His Excellency Salem Al Shafi; Canadian

Charge d’Affairs to Qatar, Gary Luton; and Aeroports de Montreal CEO James Cherry. Addressing guests soon after arrival, Al Baker said: “This is a proud moment for me, for Qatar Airways and for the State of Qatar as we establish a new air corridor between my country and Canada for the first time.

“I would like to offer my thanks to the Canadian government, Aeroports de Montreal and the people of Quebec for supporting Qatar Airways’ newest route and giving us such a warm welcome with an impressive water salute on arrival. “I have continuously been asked time and time again when we would spread our wings to Canada, and I am delighted we have finally reached your shores to become the only Gulf carrier serving Montreal. Qatar is a global player in a number of industries, including oil and gas, a sector which both my country and Canada share a common bond.

“I am also delighted to say we have brought our award-winning service to your city just a week after Qatar Airways was honored to be named Airline of the Year 2011 at the annual Skytrax airline awards held during the Paris Air Show.”

Added Al Baker: “Qatar Airways is a truly global airline, strategically well positioned to take business and leisure passengers between East and West seamlessly via our transit hub in Doha.

Travelling to far away destinations such

MONTREAL: Guests pictured at Qatar Airways’ airport arrival ceremony in Montreal during the carrier’s inaugural flight celebrations.

as Delhi, Mumbai, Seychelles, Bangkok, Singapore, Maldives, Dhaka or Tehran has never been easier for the Canadian public to access, now that we have begun these new flights.”

Aeroports de MontrÈal President and CEO James Cherry said: “The entire team at Aeroports de MontrÈal is delighted by the arrival of a carrier as prestigious as Qatar Airways and the addition of such a major destination as Doha, with connections to some one hundred other cities, including eleven in India alone. The arrival of Qatar reinforces our vision for MontrÈal-Trudeau, which is to accentuate the airport’s role as a hub for travel between North America and Eurasia.”

Montreal Mayor Gerald Tremblay, expressing delight at the latest airline to arrive in the city, said: “We are pleased and proud that Qatar Airways has chosen Montreal for its very first direct connection with Canada. From now on it will be easier for residents of our two cities to foster exchanges and promote all kinds of new collaborations.”

And Quebec Transport Minister Sam Hamad said: “It’s an honor for Quebec to now be part of Qatar Airways’ destinations. The arrival of this prestigious fivestar airline, combined with the dynamism of the Montreal area, will encourage profitable exchanges in all activity sectors for the citizens of both countries and the surrounding countries.”

Qatar Airways is operating its flagship Boeing 777-200 Long Range aircraft on the route, configured with 42 seats in Business Class and 217 seats in Economy.

Each seat offers a fully interactive audio and video entertainment system with more than 900 programming options to choose from.

Montreal - Canada’s second largest city - in the province of Quebec, is a bilingual metropolis and the second biggest French-speaking city in the world after Paris. A world-renowned city, Montreal is famed for its jazz festivals, universities and is home to the Cirque du Soleil acrobatic shows. Apart from Montreal, Qatar Airways has added seven destinations to its international map this year Bucharest, Budapest, Brussels, Stuttgart, Aleppo, Shiraz and Venice - and is gearing up for more route expansion with a further seven cities being inducted by the end of 2011.

NEW YORK: US crude prices fell 2.5 percent on Friday, the biggest percentage loss in two weeks, as a disappointing June jobs report dashed hopes the data would indicate a rebound for stalled economic growth. News of reduced North Sea loadings helped limit Brent losses, and pushed the premium to its US counterpart to above $22 a barrel intraday, the highest since June 15, according to Reuters data. But US crude posted a weekly gain and Brent crude was on track to do the same, even with Friday’s losses. US crude fell $2.47 to settle at $96.20 a barrel, below frontmonth crude’s 30-day moving average of $96.84, but off its $95.60 intraday low. For the week, US crude ended up 1.33 percent, posting a second straight weekly gain.

Brent futures for August fell 39 cents to $118.20 a barrel by 2:52 pm, off its $119.87 peak reached ahead of the US jobs report. Even at Friday’s $116.88 intraday low, Brent would post a weekly gain, after rising 6.33 percent last week.

After lagging early, US crude trading volumes outpaced Brent’s and both were on track to slightly surpass their 30-day aver-

ages. “Brent seems to have more speculative interest in it, along with the North Sea problems and missing African barrels, and the demand in Asia for similar barrels,” said Gene McGillian, analyst at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut.

US jobs growth ground to a near-halt in June. Nonfarm payrolls rose only 18,000, the weakest reading since September and well below economists’ expectations for a rise of at least 90,000.

US crude briefly extended losses to more than $3 after US President Barack Obama said the jobs report confirms there is a long way to go to get the nation’s economy back on track and that the impasse over the US debt limit was contributing to the economy’s weakness. “The employment data has weighed mightily on oil prices. Employment trends are key to future demand, and this is now two months of poor data,” said John Kilduff, partner at hedge fund Again Capital LLC in New York. “The only supportive feature (in the market) is further declines in North Sea loadings. These outages coupled with Libya and Nigeria issues are increasingly meaningful,” he said.

TIGHT GLOBAL SUPPLY Output from the North Sea Forties oil stream will slip to a two-year low in August, further reducing supply of the crude that helps to set the Brent benchmark. Thursday’s government inventory report showed US crude and refined product stocks fell last week.

Oil prices have rebounded from fourmonth lows following the International Energy Agency ’s (IEA) surprise announcement on June 23 that member nations would release 60 million barrels of oil reserves.

The IEA said it would consider later this month whether to release more reserves. JP Morgan said in a report the timing of the IEA release threw a spotlight on tightness in global oil supply.

“Politics aside, the main reason we can see for the precise timing of the IEA stock release was that it coincided with clear indications from tanker traffic data that OPEC output would fall short of prior pledges,” the bank said in a report on Thursday. “As such, it is difficult to conclude anything except that there is little or no spare capacity in the oil market.” — Reuters

NBK summer ‘Mercedes SLS-AMG Coupes’ campaign a huge success KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait’s (NBK) ongoing unique summer “Mercedes SLS-AMG Coupes” promotion is received with resounding zeal and enthusiasm by all customers. This promotion is valid until the end of September, 2011. NBK credit card holders will earn chances into draws to win one of three brand new Mercedes SLS AMG Coupe when using their credit cards in Kuwait or overseas, and their debit cards overseas.

NBK Assistant General Manager, Consumer Banking Group, Khaled Falah Al-Ali said: “We are very excited to announce that the summer campaign has been a great hit among customers”. “The draws to win the three Mercedes SLS AMG Coupe will be conducted in the first week of August, September and October”, Al Ali added. “Use your NBK cards during

this summer in Kuwait or abroad, and enter the draws to win one of three Mercedes SLS AMG Coupe”.

“Every KD 20 spent on your credit card gives you one entry into the draws when used in Kuwait, and two entries when used overseas. And every KD 20 spent on your debit cards overseas will give you one entry. Both purchases and cash withdrawals qualify when using NBK debit and credit cards”, Al Ali said. Al Ali added: “If you are not an NBK account holder, this is your opportunity to transfer your salary and earn ten additional chances into the draws.” This is a fantastic opportunity to enjoy your summer this year while looking forward to being one of the three lucky winners”. For further information call Hala Watani on 1801801, log on to www.nbk.com or visit your nearest branch.

Khaled Al Ali

Indonesia torture case vs Exxon Mobil revived NEW YORK: Indonesian villagers who accused Exxon Mobil Corp’s security forces of murder, torture and other atrocities have regained their right to sue the giant oil company in the United States. A federal appeals court said on Friday that companies are not immune from liability under a 1789 US law known as the Alien Tort Statute for “heinous conduct” allegedly committed by its agents in violation of human rights norms.

The 15 villagers contended in their lawsuit that family members were killed and that others were “beaten, burned,

shocked with cattle prods, kicked, and subjected to other forms of brutality and cruelty” amounting to torture in Indonesia’s Aceh province between 1999 and 2001, a period of civil unrest. A divided panel of the DC Circuit Court of Appeals said Exxon Mobil should be forced to defend against such charges.

Given that laws in civilized nations hold corporations responsible for lesser wrongs, “it would create a bizarre anomaly to immunize corporations from liability for the conduct of their agents in lawsuits brought for shockingly egregious violations of universally recognized prin-

ciples of international law,” Judge Judith Rogers wrote for a 2-1 majority. Friday’s decision reversed part of a ruling by the federal district court in Washington, DC. It is also at odds with a landmark ruling last September by the federal appeals court in New York, raising the prospect that the US Supreme Court could try to resolve the dispute. “The ruling basically says that corporations are not above the law,” said Jennifer Green, a University of Minnesota law professor and director of that school’s human rights litigation clinic, who submitted a brief on the plaintiffs’ behalf. — Reuters

EXCHANGE RATES Commercial Bank of Kuwait US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian Dollar Australian DLR Indian rupees Sri Lanka Rupee UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi riyals Omani riyals Philippine peso Egyptian pounds US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian dollars Danish Kroner Swedish Kroner Australian dlr Hong Kong dlr Singapore dlr Japanese yen Indian Rs/KD Sri Lanka rupee Pakistan rupee Bangladesh taka UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi Riyal/KD Omani riyals Philippine Peso

.2700000 .4350000 .3900000 .3230000 .2810000 .2920000 .0040000 .0020000 .0743200 .7240800 .3810000 .0700000 .7098280 .0040000 .0430000 CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES .2737500 .4373700 .3921200 .3259700 .2833560 .0525680 .0431400 .2940490 .0351690 .2232510 .0033820 .0000000 .0000000 .0000000 .0000000 .0745610 .7264160 .0000000 .0730190 .7113160 .0000000

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka

ASIAN COUNTRIES 3.414 6.181 3.194 2.504 3.881 224.080 35.302 3.678

.2765000 .4470000 .4030000 .3360000 .2920000 .3030000 .0072500 .0035000 .0750670 .7313570 .4010000 .0770000 .7169620 .0072000 .0530000 .2758500 .4407260 .3951280 .3284710 .2855290 .0529720 .0434710 .2963040 .0354390 .2249630 .0034080 .0062550 .0025260 .0032260 .0037280 .0751330 .7319890 .3901700 .0735800 .7167730 .0064750

Philippine Peso Thai Baht Irani Riyal - Transfer Irani Riyal - Cash

6.405 9.013 0.271 0.273 GCC COUNTRIES 73.269 75.495 713.650 729.770 74.816

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Egyptian Pound - Cash Egyptian Pound - Transfer Yemen Riyal Tunisian Dinar Jordanian Dinar Lebanese Lira Syrian Lier Morocco Dirham

ARAB COUNTRIES 48.350 46.074 1.258 201.950 388.010 183.100 5.932 35.669

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 274.650 Euro 395.910 Sterling Pound 441.090 Canadian dollar 286.390 Turkish lire 168.290 Swiss Franc 328.060 Australian dollar 293.880 US Dollar Buying 272.450

Indonesia Iranian tuman Iraqi dinar Japanese yen Jordanian dinar Lebanese pound Malaysian ringgit Morocco dirham Nepalese Rupees New Zealand dollar Nigeria Norwegian krone Omani Riyal Pakistani rupees Philippine peso Qatari riyal Saudi riyal Singapore dollar South Africa Sri Lankan rupees Sterling pound Swedish krona Swiss franc Syrian pound Thai bhat Tunisian dollar UAE dirham U.S. dollars Yemeni Riyal

GOLD 278.000 140.000 72.500

Sterling Pound US Dollar

Bahrain Exchange Company COUNTRY Australian dollar Bahraini dinar Bangladeshi taka Canadian dollar Cyprus pound Czek koruna Danish krone Deutsche Mark Egyptian pound Euro Cash Hongkong dollar Indian rupees

SELL CASH 300.000 731.390 3.920 290.300 540.200 36.600 54.700 167.800 48.230 397.000 36.030 6.420

SELL DRAFT 298.500 731.390 3.685 288.800

226.500 46.224 395.500 35.880 6.200

0.033

388.690 0.185 94.410 3.900 232.800 714.130 3.210 6.430 75.650 73.430 226.460 43.770 2.509 444.500 331.500 5.600 9.300 74.880 275.000

GOLD 1,577.580

10 Tola 20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

0.033 0.240 0.240 3.480 390.440 0.186 94.410 47.400 4.310 234.300 1.865 52.700 714.310 3.300 6.590 76.080 73.430 226.460 43.770 2.645 444.500 45.100 333.000 5.600 9.450 198.263 74.980 275.400 1.200

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 442.500 275.000

6.157 3.208 3.693 6.339 674.672 3.519 9.058 5.783 3.924 91.361

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co. Currency US Dollar Pak Rupees Indian Rupees Sri Lankan Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso UAE Dirhams Saudi Riyals Bahraini Dinars Egyptian Pounds Pound Sterling Indonesian Rupiah Nepali rupee Yemeni Riyal Jordanian Dinars Syrian Pounds Euro Canadian Dollars

Rate per 1000 (Tran) 274.900 3.215 6.205 2.520 3.700 6.460 74.945 73.495 730.900 46.175 445.700 0.00003280 3.910 1.550 390.600 5.750 399.300 291.400

Al Mulla Exchange

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd Rate for Transfer US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees

Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

Selling Rate 275.050 287.490 444.215 401.375 331.306 728.544 74.862 75.499 73.310 387.165 46.124 2.508

Currency US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

Transfer Rate (Per 1000) 274.550 395.000 443.800 287.800 3.390 6.205 46.160 2.507 3.669 6.430 3.200 731.300 74.800 73.300

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BUSINESS

WikiLeaks loses Icelandic financial lifeline Visa, MasterCard embargo on WikiLeaks continues NEW YORK: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has lost a financial lifeline. Since December, bans by the world’s major credit card networks, it has been difficult for supporters of the controversial whistleblower to send him donations. But this week, WikiLeaks gained a brief respite with the unwitting help of an Icelandic bank. The window was quickly closed. On Thursday, WikiLeaks payments provider DataCell said it could start processing donations to Assange’s group again, circumventing a monthslong ban by Visa and MasterCard.

An Icelandic bank called Valitor had agreed to accept payments processed by DataCell, but DataCell did not tell Valitor that those payments would include donations to WikiLeaks, the bank told Reuters on

Friday. “Valitor was not informed that DataCell would be conducting these activities when their business agreement was made,” spokeswoman Jonina Ingvadottir said in an emailed statement on Friday.

She cited Visa and MasterCard’s prohibition on the “service such as DataCell is offering WikiLeaks.” The world’s two largest credit card processing networks were among several companies to cut off services to WikiLeaks late last year after the whistleblower organization made public a massive trove of secret US diplomatic cables.

One person familiar with the matter told Reuters earlier on Friday that Valitor had blocked the Visa and MasterCard WikiLeaks donations and terminated its contract with DataCell. Fewer than 100

donations were processed before Valitor blocked the payments, the person said. Other media outlets this week reported that it was Visa Europe that discontinued the WikiLeaks donations, but DataCell told Reuters that Valitor discontinued all donations to WikiLeaks it had been accepting.

The failed Valitor partnership is the latest blow to Assange, who has struggled to gain funding since the major payments networks stopped processing payments to WikiLeaks. The Internet vigilante group Anonymous temporarily shut down the public websites of both Visa and MasterCard in December after the companies began their embargo. Visa and MasterCard send money from bank to bank around the world, on

behalf of consumers, companies, governments and other organizations. But those organizations, including WikiLeaks and its process-

ing partner, need bank partners.

DataCell founder Olaf Sigur vinsson confirmed that Valitor had terminated the con-

tract with his company this week.

He told Reuters that when he signed the contract with Valitor, “it was absolutely clear that we were going to continue our proposal to collect donations,” including to WikiLeaks. He said DataCell has filed a complaint over Valitor ’s actions to the financial supervisor in Iceland, and that it plans to file one to the European Union. Visa Europe spokeswoman Amanda Kamin said in an email on Friday that “an acquirer briefly accepted payments on a merchant site linked to WikiLeaks.” She said as soon as this came to Visa’s attention, action was taken. Kamin did not elaborate further. MasterCard said it has not changed its position on the WikiLeaks donation embargo. —Reuters

South Africa economy pays high price for wage raises Country’s competitiveness being eroded JOHANNESBURG: Increasingly violent labor protests sweeping South Africa during its mid-year “strike season” are stoking worries about inflation and dealing blows to the long-term prospects of Africa’s largest economy. Unions representing hundreds of thousands of workers in the mining, steel, chemical and petroleum sectors have walked off the job or are threatening to do so, demanding wage increases about triple the 4.6 percent inflation rate.

Jazeera Airways issues its performance report FREEDOM TOWN: Award-winning airline Jazeera Airways, the largest airline serving the Middle East out of Kuwait, yesterday issued its monthly operational performance report for May 2011, which showed that the airline continues to lead in market share on most of the routes it operates for the 23rd month in-a-row. The company secured a month-on-month lead in market share since July 2009 thanks to its expanding value offering to customers, great schedules, and operating at high on-time performance of 95% during the month, making the airline one of the most punctual airlines in the Middle East.

The monthly report showed that the airline carried 90,530 passengers in May 2011, with 24,356 passengers between Kuwait and the Levant region, 25,706 passengers between Kuwait and Egypt, 36,615 passengers between Kuwait and other Gulf countries, and 3,853 passengers between Kuwait and other destinations. The Sunday-issued report is based on data from Kuwait’s Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGCA). The report does not include the Kuwait-Jeddah and Kuwait-Riyadh routes, where the airline has lower seat-allocation restrictions compared to other Kuwaiti airlines.

The report for May 2011 also includes

the Kuwait-Cairo route launch on May 18.

Jazeera Airways grabbed an 11% market share during its two-week operation in May. The airline now operates 21 flights per week to the Egyptian capital since June 21. The report also shows that Jazeera Airways captured the largest market share on routes operated between Kuwait and other Egyptian cities, grabbing a 48% market share on the KuwaitAlexandria route, a 77% market share on the Kuwait-Assiut route, an 93% on the Kuwait-Luxor route, and a 45% market share on the Kuwait-Sohag route.

Jazeera Airways captured the largest market share on majority routes operated between Kuwait and the Levant region with a 36% market share on the KuwaitAmman route, a 38% market share on the Kuwait-Beirut route, a 49% market share on the Kuwait-Damascus route, and a 100% market share on both the KuwaitAleppo and Kuwait-Deir Ezzor routes.

Jazeera Airways is the only airline operating between Kuwait and Aleppo, and Kuwait and Deir Ezzor. The airline was also the largest Kuwaiti operator and the second largest operator to Bahrain during the month of May with a 20% market share, and to Dubai with a 19% market share.

NEW DELHI: Indian street vendors (background left) wait for customers as they sell various decorative posters near Jama Masjid in New Delhi. —AP

Ugandan traders bemoan Chinese shopkeeper influx KAMPALA: Ugandan shopkeepers, who shuttered shops for two days this week to protest over the cost of doing business, have complained about an influx of Chinese, prompting the government to promise a headcount of immigrants. Ugandan traders accused the Chinese of hoarding large amounts of dollars and then taking them out of the east African country, which has seen its currency plunge recently because of tight dollar supply, increasing costs for the merchants.

Trade Minister Amelia Kyambadde pledged to count foreign business owners in the country with a view to ensuring that they have residency permits and trading licenses.

“There is an influx of immigrants,” she told a news conference. “Some come in as tourists but end up trading and engaging in unfair competition with Ugandans.” Kyambadde mentioned the Chinese traders specifically.

The influx of Chinese has met with a mixed reception in many African countries, where people both admire and resent the hardworking newcomers’ pursuit of wealth.

The issue could be particularly sensitive in Uganda, where the late dictator Idi Amin in 1972 expelled some 40,000 Asians — descendants of migrants from the British Empire in India- saying God told him to turn Uganda

into “a black man’s country”. Traders say they had no major problems with the Indian community, many of whom trickled back after Amin was toppled, but some object to the Chinese. “The problem is that on top of dealing in predominantly shoddy items these people have continued to cause problems with the way the country develops,” Issa Ssekito, spokesman for the Kampala City Traders Association and owner of three shops said.

“They come here with little stock and, after a short period you find they have amassed a lot of money,” Ssekito said. “This is evidenced in banks, where dollars are disappearing.”

Analysts say that if such resentment grows, it could threaten China’s strategy to win hearts and minds on the continent-one of its key foreign policy aims and a push that has worried Africa’s traditional trading partners in the West.

China has overtaken the United States as Africa’s top business partner, now doing $107 billion of trade with the continent a year. The traders’ protest was held on Wednesday and Thursday, almost entirely closing the capital Kampala’s central business district. It was staged in response to a weakened currency and runaway inflation, the traders association said. —Reuters

The strikes and threats, punctuated by sporadic assaults on non-union members and management, are an annual event typically settled before September with generous wage deals that drive up costs for employers.

Average increases over the last few years have been about double inflation. This year, the central bank sees global food and fuel prices pushing inflation briefly beyond its 3-6 percent target in the first quarter of next year. Lofty wage deals are likely to cause it to cast a colder eye on its inflation outlook. “This month with their meeting and in September, they may be talking a bit tougher,” said Christie Viljoen of NKC Independent Economists.

The Reser ve Bank ’s Monetar y Polic y Committee (MPC ) has lef t its repo rate unchanged at its three meetings this year after reducing it by 650 basis points to 5.5 percent between December 2008 and December 2010.

In a Reuters poll, economists forecast inflation edging up this year, and the central bank raising interest rates by the end of the year. “If these wage settlements continue to push significantly higher than inflation, at some stage both retailers and producers are going to have to pass these on into their prices,” said Jeffrey Schultz, macro strategist at Absa Capital.

CHRONIC PAIN The longer-term risk is that South Africa prices itself out of jobs, to the gain of lowercost rivals. The average factory worker now makes 10,983 rand ($1,632) a month in wages and benefits and is typically less productive than a comparable Chinese worker getting 1,783 yuan ($276). Despite a series of wage hikes seen by economists as unsustainable, unions are again looking at increases of about 13-20 percent, tacking on non-salary benefits such as housing aid that push the bill even

higher. “I can’t see how, with inflation at 4.6 percent and wage increases in excess of 13 percent, people or businesses would want to create more employment opportunities,” said Freddie Mitchell, an economist at the Efficient Group.

The economy lost 1 million jobs in a 2009 recession, the first in nearly two decades, and has shown few signs of recovery due to rigid labor laws that make it costly to hire new workers. Wage hikes only add to the burden. The government has unveiled plans to cut unemployment, stuck at around 25 percent for years, but with no relief in sight for employers, the goals look unattainable. “It will not translate into declining growth rates but it will definitely cap at what we can grow,” said Viljoen. “We will not be able to keep up with many other economies on the continent that have easier labor systems.” —Reuters

Kenya rising lending rates hinder growth Move by banks ‘unjustified’ NAIROBI: Kenya’s commercial banks’ decision to raise their base lending rates is set to heap pain on small firms already suffering from high energy costs and wage bills, and hinder economic growth prospects for this year.

Growth more than doubled to 5.6 percent last year, pointing to recovery taking hold after political violence in 2008, but high prices and exchange rate volatility have dimmed the outlook for 2011, making it harder to keep growth on course for a target of a sustained 10 percent per year rate over the medium term.

Several commercial banks have raised the prime rate by between 100-200 basis points this month after the central bank embarked on a tightening cycle earlier this year to fight inflation and stabilize the exchange rate. “It is going to increase the cost of doing business.

It is going to fuel inflationary pressure onto the market place. There is no need for banks to be hiking their interest rates,” said Jaswinder Bedi, chairman of Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM).

Small and medium enterprises make up about 60 percent of the manufacturing sector in the east African nation of 39 million people, a sector that is considered important for growth. Betty Maina, chief executive of KAM said in May that some firms were considering moving to other countries, due to high energy costs, rising inflation, a weak shilling and political uncertainty. “I’m worried about the smaller manufacturers who are the largest component of the Kenya manufacturing industry who really have no say,” Bedi said.

“What happens with the smaller manufacturers is they get crowded out because the bigger manufacturers have got the clout.

They have got the sheer might and they negotiate on Libor (London Interbank Overnight Rate) plus.” Kenyan banks price their credit based on the prevailing Treasury bill rate, which is usually higher than the Libor. Ndiritu Muriithi, assistant minister at the country’s ministry of industrialization said the banks’ move would worsen a situation that is already bad, because lending to the productive sector constitutes a tiny part of total loans. Like other diversified economies, Kenya leans on small businesses to create employment and drive much-needed growth.

“Out of the outstanding banks’ portfolio of 1.05 trillion shillings ($11.70 billion) in May only 3.3 percent was to the manufacturing sector. Out of that portfolio, only 18-20 percent was for terms longer than 36 months,” Muriithi told a news conference. Economic analysts say inefficiencies in the credit market is a hindrance to economic growth because firms cannot access long-term funds at reasonable rates for investment. Matters could get tougher due to uncertainties over a general election due next year, prompting policymakers, who prefer to see private sector credit growth, to lash out at banks that use the tightening cycle as an excuse to raise rates.

Njuguna Ndung’u, governor of central bank said the banks’ move is unjustified because policy only has near-term effects. “When interest rates and inflation were coming down not so long ago, they did not lower the lending rates, so they cannot use the same reasons to raise the lending rates. Monetary policy is short-term and always has short term effects,” he said. Ndung’u, who previously stood by commercial banks in the face of criticism that their rates were too high in a falling of short-term rates and central bank’s easing environment, said he will change his stand now. During that time, he based his support on the argument that rates would fall slowly due to overlapping loan contracts.

MINIMAL EFFECTS Deposit rates declined drastically at that time, causing the interest rate spread between the lending and the deposit rates to remain at above 10 percent. “For the last four years, short-term interest rates and the policy rate (CBR) have declined with minimal effects on the lending rates,” he said. “If commercial banks now want to use the opposite argument to raise lending rates, then I will stand back when the public starts hitting out at them.”

Habil Olaka, chief executive of the Kenya Bankers Association defended his members, saying the cost of funds had risen, leaving them no choice but to raise lending rates.

“Wholesale depositors are aware of what is going on in the market and when they demand the higher rate, banks have no options,” Olaka said, adding he did not expect all banks to raise their rates. “It is a matter of competitive strategy. You may decide you want to transfer the whole cost to the borrower in case you are protecting your margin.

There are those who may decide I will absorb that increase in order to go for the market share.”

Bankers say the cost of credit is also driven higher by risks of fraud and a judiciary that is perceived to be weak and slow, enhancing chances of defaulters getting away with loans. Geoffrey Mwau, economic secretary at the ministry of finance agreed with that assessment. “It (weak and slow judiciary) raises the cost of funds. Right now there is a lot of liquidity everywhere in the country but some people might be unwilling to put it in the capital markets because they are not sure that the money is safe,” Mwau said.

“There should be a clear message from the judiciary and the regulator that, that cannot be tolerated. The punishment should be credible.” Still, Bedi of the manufacturers association said action should be taken sooner, to tame the high interest rates, for the sake of economic activities. “There should be some form of regulation done by the central bank.

If you want to charge me 15 percent, then maybe you should give me deposit at 9 percent and work with 6 percent. Average banks in Kenya are working with 10 percent, which is very high,” he said. —Reuters

PUTIAN: Women buy eggs at a market in Putian, southeast China’s Fujian Province yesterday.

China’s consumer prices rose 6.4 percent over a year ago, a sharp jump from May’s 5.5 percent rate, data showed yesterday. —AP

SK Telecom, STX battle for $2.3 bn Hynix stake SEOUL: South Korea’s SK Telecom and STX Corp entered the fray to buy a $2.3 billion stake in Hynix Semiconductor , raising hopes of a successful sale by creditors of the world’s No 2 computer memory chipmaker at the third attempt. SK Telecom, the nation’s biggest telecoms firm, and shipping-toshipbuilding group STX said separately they had submitted their initial interest to creditors for the 15 percent stake in the first round of bidding which closed on Friday.

A successful bid would mean a shift in focus and a first step into the highly cyclical computer chip business for either firm, something investors and analysts have been cool on.

“The acquisition plan is not in line with what SK Telecom has presented for its future strategy,” said Choi Yoon-mi, an analyst at Mirae Asset. “It is a distracting development when it has to put resources into the stated goal of growing its content and mobile platform operations.” Shares of SK Telecom tumbled as much as 6.8 percent on Friday to its lowest level in more than eight years.

“We expect the deal to pave the way for us in securing future growth from promising semiconductor industry, which will benefit from expanding smartphones, tablets and Internet TV segments,” SK said in a statement. “It will also help us shift away from intensively competitive local mobile market.” Shares of STX Corp edged up 0.7 percent after losing more than 6 percent in the past two days following its announcement of a likely bid for Hynix, which trails local rival Samsung Electronics. Prior to the auction closing, shares in Hynix finished up 0.8 percent, while SK Telecom shares pared losses to close down 3.2 percent.

CYCLICAL SECTOR STX Corp reiterated its plan on Friday to sell assets and tie up with a Middle East-based sovereign wealth fund to finance the acquisition. It said the group will reveal the name of the fund before the final bidding. “The two firms seem quite serious about the bidding as STX Corp showed its financing plan with a Middle East fund at an early stage... This bid race could drive up premiums to over 10 percent to the current Hynix share price,” said Nam Tae-hyun, an analyst at IBK Securities.

“In terms of synergy, there’s nothing much for the two bidders to gain from a Hynix deal.” Deutsche Bank cut its target price for SK Telecom by 8 percent, citing uncertain synergies from the potential deal. “We suspect the primary motivation for SK Group could be the desire to shed its image as a domestic-oriented conglomerate, by acquiring a manufacturing exporter,” it said in a research note.

Hynix declined to comment on the auction on Friday.

Creditors rescued Hynix from a debt crisis in 2001, stemming from one of the industry’s worst downturns. They have since scaled back their stake, but have failed to complete a full sale with investors reluctant to jump into the cyclical memorychip sector. —Reuters

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BUSINESS

Four of KSE’s sectors end in the red zone Trading volume average up 16.41% KSE Weekly Report KUWAIT: Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) ended last week with variance in its indices performance. The price index ended the week with an increase amounted to 0.02%, while the weighted index decreased by 0.05% compared to the closings of the week before.

Moreover, last week’s average daily turnover declined by 23.18%, compared to the preceding week, whereas trading volume average recorded a growth of 16.41%.

KSE witnessed relatively stable performance, the market started the week with notable loss, along with decrease in trading activities, as a result of strong selling operations, especially on Services and Banks sectors. The market however, managed to recover later on in the two sessions thereafter, supported with buy-

ing deals on some leading stocks, especially those which suffered losses previously.

Moreover, the market didn’t manage to keep on its position, as swift speculations and profit taking deals dominated the market on Wednesday, pushing the market indices to record weekly losses.

Nevertheless, KSE recorded green closing for both of its indices on Thursday, the price index managed to recover from its weekly losses, while the weighted index lightened it. By the end of the week, the price index closed at 6,212.9 points, up by 0.02% from the week before closing, whereas the weighted index registered a 0.05% weekly loss after closing at 433.78 points.

Sectors’ Indices Four of KSE’s sectors ended last week

in the red zone, while the other three recorded increases, whereas the Insurance sector’s index closed with no change from the week before. The Investment sector headed the losers list as its index declined by 1.07% to end the week’s activity at 3,916.0 points. The Food sector was second on the losers’ list, which index declined by 0.69%, closing at 4,313.4 points, followed by the Non-Kuwaiti Companies sector, as its index closed at 6,165.6 points at a loss of 0.31%. The Services sector was the least declining as its index closed at 14,110.9 points with a 0.11% decrease. On the other hand, last week’s highest gainer was the Banks sector, achieving 1.57% growth rate as its index closed at 12,014.8 points. Whereas, in the second place, the Real Estate sector’s index

closed at 2,144.3 points recording 0.59% increase. The Industry sector came in third as its index achieved 0.26% growth, ending the week at 4,479.9 points.

Sectors’ Activity The Real Estate sector dominated total trade volume during last week with 148.82 million shares changing hands, representing 32.60% of the total market trading volume. The Non Kuwaiti Companies sector was second in terms trading volume as the sector’s traded shares were 24.08% of last week’s total trading volume, with a total of 109.91 million shares. On the other hand, the Banks sector’s stocks where the highest traded in terms of value; with a turnover of KD 16.66 million or 24.84% of last week’s total market trading value. The Services sector took the second place as

the sector’s last week turnover of KD14.88 million represented 22.19% of the total market trading value.

Market Capitalization KSE total market capitalization declined by 0.15% during last week to reach KD 30.59 billion, as Four of KSE’s sectors recorded a decrease in their respective market capitalization, except for two sectors, whereas the Insurance sector’s market capitalization remained the same from the week before. The Services sector headed the decliners list as its total market capitalization reached KD7.61 billion, decreasing by 0.75%. The Investment sector was the second in terms of recorded decline with 0.70% decrease after the total value of its listed companies reached KD2.40 billion.

The third place was for the Food sec-

tor, which total market capitalization reached K.D. 742.66 million by the end of the week, recording a decline of 0.26%. The Real Estate sector was the least declining with 0.04% recorded decrease after its market capitalization amounted to KD1.75 billion. On the other hand, the Industry sector headed the growing sectors as its total market capitalization reached KD2.41 billion, increasing by 0.86%. The Non Kuwaiti Companies sector was the second in terms of recorded growth with 0.43% increase after the total value of its listed companies reached KD1.90 billion. The third place was for the Banks sector, which total market capitalization reached KD13.49 billion by the end of the week, recording an increase of 0.02%.

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

business

Auto industry, seeing new life, is on hiring spree DETROIT: Volkswagen opened a plant in Tennessee last month with 2,000 workers.

Honda is hiring 1,000 in Indiana to meet demand for its best-selling Civic. General Motors is looking for 2,500 in Detroit to build the Chevy Volt. Two years after the end of the Great Recession, the auto industry is hiring again and much faster than the rest of the economy. As an employer, it’s growing faster than airplane manufacturers, shipbuilders, health care providers and the federal government.

The hiring spree is even more remarkable because memories of the US auto industry’s near-death experience are fresh. In 2009, General Motors and Chrysler both got government bailouts and entered bankruptcy, and auto sales hit a 30-year low. In June of that year, about 623,000 people were employed by the auto industry in the United States, the fewest since the early 1980s. Now the figure is almost 700,000, a 12 percent increase.

Sales are back up, too, and automakers are hiring by the thousands to meet increased demand. “The buzz is incredible around here about what opportunity we’re going to get if we can build a great product,” says Ben Edwards, who went to work for Volkswagen in Chattanooga, Tenn., last year and is now a team leader on an assembly

line that installs tires and seats. Edwards was working as a general contractor until the housing market dried up. He says the pay at Volkswagen, which starts at $14.50 an hour, is fair and the benefits are generous.

Besides hiring 2,000 people itself, Volkswagen figures the plant, where it will make its new Passat, will create 9,000 spinoff jobs in the region, including 500 at autosupplier plants that are springing up nearby.

Automakers are hiring again because car sales are rising. Americans bought 10.4 million cars and trucks in 2009 and 11.6 million in 2010. This year, they’re on track to buy 13 million or more, and auto companies are adding shifts to meet the demand.

“Everybody got so lean and mean during the downturn that they’re trying to rebuild staff,” says Charles Chesbrough, a senior economist with IHS Automotive.

The auto industry’s 12 percent increase in jobs compares with a 0.2 percent gain for the economy as a whole, excluding farming and adjusted for seasonal variation, since June 2009. The Labor Department reports Friday on jobs gained or lost last month. In a normal economic recovery, improvement in the housing market leads the way by creating construction jobs. But home prices haven’t stopped falling, and the construction industry has shed 8 percent of its workers since

June 2009 - 474,000 jobs in all. The gains in the auto industry have been small by comparison. But they do create positive ripple effects for the economy. The Center for Automotive Research estimates that every new auto manufacturing job leads to nine other jobs - from parts makers to restaurants that feed autoworkers. The auto gains have been widespread, with the Midwest the biggest beneficiary. In Ohio alone, auto manufacturing jobs have risen 31 percent the past two years, while parts makers in Michigan have added nearly 20,000 jobs.

Parts jobs are also up 15 percent in Alabama, where workers make parts for Mercedes SUVs and Honda minivans, and in Kentucky, where the Chevrolet Corvette and Toyota Camry are made. Before the turnaround, new auto jobs were scarce. Detroit’s auto companies had too many factories, high wages and bloated bureaucratic management. Jobs began disappearing in 2006 and 2007 as US automakers tried desperately to restructure. Dozens of auto suppliers were pushed into bankruptcy. Then came 2008, when gas prices spiked and the financial crisis struck. The industry lost almost one in every four of its jobs. By the time GM and Chrysler got out of bankruptcy, in June 2009, the industry employed about half as many people as it did in 2000. Sales and profits

have risen ever since, and payrolls have followed. GM, Ford and Chrysler are all making money for the first time since the mid-2000s and adding workers to build popular models like the revamped Ford Explorer. Foreign companies, stung by the high cost of exporting cars to the US when the dollar is weak, are racing to build more products here.

Automakers are doing it with cheaper labor.

Four years ago, the United Auto Workers agreed to a contract that allowed Detroit’s carmakers to hire some new workers at $14 per hour, or half the starting pay of workers at that time. While the UAW doesn’t represent workers at foreign-owned plants, those companies - like Volkswagen -generally match UAW pay.

At a recent GM event in Toledo, Ohio where GM was announcing that it plans to hire or retain 4,000 workers over the next 18 months - UAW Vice President Joe Ashton was unapologetic about the wage cuts and said the union would consider allowing more $14-per-hour jobs in the future. “We’re willing to discuss anything that creates jobs,” he said. Auto companies are racing to hire white-collar workers, too. Monster.com has more than 100 postings for auto engineers, including a handful for Hyundai and Subaru.

Electric batteries, touch-screen dashboards and other technology are becoming

more common, so automakers need engineers with expertise. Randy Floreska was recruited by GM at a competition for college students to design and build hybrid cars. He says he and other young recruits view the 103-year-old automaker as a trendsetter.

“Here in the battery lab, there’s so much youth and so much opportunity for growth,” he says. US auto employment may never reach its previous heights. The industry last topped 1 million workers in 2007, and most analysts don’t expect it to reach that level again. The Center for Automotive Research predicts total industry employment of about 877,000 in 2025. The Detroit carmakers have shed nine brands - including Pontiac, Mercury and Hummer and closed 25 plants since 2005. Mexico, China and other countries with cheap labor are competing for jobs, which will limit US growth.

And automation lets every company do more work with fewer people. In a struggling US economy, though, it’s significant, since growing auto sales indicate growing consumer confidence. And considering what the auto industry has been through, it’s a bonanza. “I really do believe that we are seeing a renaissance in the American automobile industry,” says James Brock, a professor of economics at Farmer School of Business at Miami University.— AP

Petrovietnam eyes oil assets in disputed South China Sea Assets owned by ConocoPhillips, worth $1.5 bn

LOS ANGELES: An unemployed American fills in job applications from a prospective employer at the National Careers Fair in Los Angeles. The US unemployment rate rose last month after the economy generated a paltry 18,000 jobs, the Labor Department said, in a strong sign of stalling growth in the world’s largest economy.— AFP

State of play in US debt, deficit talks WASHINGTON: Budget talks between President Barack Obama and top Republicans enter a critical phase this weekend as they try to end a standoff over raising the government’s borrowing limit. The talks are aimed at striking a a deal to slash the long-term deficit, which Republicans say is needed to secure their support for increasing the $14.3 trillion debt limit. The Treasury Department has warned that if Congress does not raise the debt limit by Aug 2, the United States will run out of money to fully pay its bills, triggering “catastrophic” economic consequences and possibly another recession. The federal budget deficit-essentially the government’s annual overdraft-is expected to hit $1.4 trillion this year and stay in the trillion-dollar range for years. The federal debt is the government’s total accumulated borrowing. The US government borrows about $125 billion each month.

HOW CLOSE ARE THEY TO A DEAL? The White House, Republicans and Democrats have been negotiating since May to try to strike a deal on budget savings to clear the way for a debt limit rise but have repeatedly hit an impasse over the issue of taxes. Republicans have said any deal to cut longterm deficits should involve “trillions” of dollars but have insisted that those savings come from spending cuts alone. Democrats demand that any deal must involve a combination of both spending cuts and increased revenue, either through tax hikes or closing tax loopholes, or both. Negotiations led by Vice President Joe Biden collapsed in June when Republicans walked out over Democrats’ demands that increased revenues be part of a deal, although significant progress was made in those sessions, with more than $1 trillion in savings identified. Obama and House Speaker John Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, stepped in to lead continued negotiations. On Thursday, the president met leaders from both parties to try to decide on the size of a budgetcutting package. Both sides are aiming for more than $2 trillion in savings, and as much as $4 trillion, over a period of 10 to 12 years.

The hard part begins in a second meeting today, when they tackle the difficult question of how those savings will be achieved-and the thorny issue of taxes will once again take center stage. After the talks on Thursday, Obama said the sides were still far apart on key issues.

His spokesman, Jay Carney, said he was not prepared to predict a deal on Sunday. Boehner believes the prospects for a deal in the next few days are “50-50”, according to a Republican Party aide. Further complicating talks was a dismal jobs report on Friday that will likely harden each side’s positions. Democrats will use it to argue that too many spending cuts will endanger a fragile recovery. Republicans

will say tax hikes will further destroy job growth.

WHAT ABOUT A SHORT-TERM DEAL? Some members of both parties have suggested that with the Aug. 2 deadline so near, and the issue of taxes so troublesome, Congress should authorize a short-term debt limit rise- perhaps to allow government borrowing until the beginning of next year-to buy more time for a bigger deal. They say the two sides could agree on a budget cutting deal of about $1 trillion in spending cuts-those identified in the Biden talks-with a commensurate rise in the debt limit. That would allow the US to pay its bills for about another eight months.

But Obama insists he will not sign onto a shortterm deal. Only a debt limit rise of more than $2 trillion will meet the country’s borrowing needs through the November 2012 presidential election. Anything less will mean having to confront such a controversial debt limit vote in the midst of congressional and presidential election season-and at a time when voters are concerned about spending and debt.

WILL THE TEA PARTY BACK A DEAL? Even if Obama and Republicans reach a deal, it will likely face opposition from dozens of lawmakers aligned with the conservative Tea Party movement-especially if it includes revenue increases. To push a deal through the House, Boehner is going to need Democratic help. But Obama is already facing a backlash from House liberals over his willingness to discuss cuts to the Social Security retirement program and Medicare, the government-run health insurance program for the elderly. With opposition from both Left and Right, even if party leaders strike a deal it will still need much work to garner the necessary votes in Congress to get it passed.

WHO HAS THE MOST AT STAKE IN THE TALKS? There are considerable risks on all sides. If Boehner fails to get a “yes” vote in the House to raise the debt limit, Republicans will likely be blamed-in the short-term at least-for the economic turmoil that will follow. Many economists predict that a default by the United States will trigger panic in the bond markets, a spike in interest rates across the economy, with investors dumping the dollar en masse, and another recession. Yet Obama is widely seen as the steward of the economy and another recession will likely doom his chances of re-election.

ARE THE MARKETS WORRIED? For now bond markets are calm, but that could change very quickly if talks collapse.

Three credit ratings agencies have said that the US could lose its coveted AAA credit rating if no deal emerges and the debt limit is not raised. —Reuters

HANOI: Petrovietnam and its partners may buy $1.5 billion worth of Vietnamese oil and gas interests in the South China Sea from ConocoPhillips to help protect Hanoi’s territorial claims, the chief executive of the state oil group said. Vietnam and the Philippines have protested against aggressive action by China in the dispute over the resource-rich area, which covers the world’s busiest sea lanes and also provides rich fishing.

China has made the largest claim over the area, and Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines also claim territorial sovereignty. Petrovietnam’s chief executive Phung Dinh Thuc said ConocoPhillips may sell the oil assets because it was scaling back its presence, possibly as part of a restructuring. He also said there was an opinion that this oil field’s development was at “a complicated stage” and production was no longer increasing. He did not say when a deal might be done.

Thuc was quoted in a statement published by PV Oil, Petrovietnam’s marketing arm. The South China Sea dispute was discussed on Friday in talks in Beijing between Philippine foreign minister Albert del Rosario and his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi.

“Both ministers exchanged views on the maritime disputes and agreed not to let the maritime disputes affect the broader picture of friendship and cooperation between the two countries,” said del Rosario, who was reading from a joint press statement from both countries to reporters in Beijing.

“The two sides reaffirmed their commitments to respect and abide by the declaration on the conduct of parties in the South China Sea signed by China and the ASEAN member countries in 2002,” he said.

In a meeting with del Rosario, China’s Vice President Xi Jinping, who is likely to take over from President Hu Jintao in late 2012, said talks between Yang and del Rosario were “productive,” state news agency Xinhua reported. A political adviser to Philippine President Benigno Aquino said in Manila that the country had to carefully manage relations with both China and the United States in the territorial dispute.

“We should know how to balance our interests between the two superpowers,” Ronald Llamas said at a forum, adding Manila should negotiate through the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). “Smaller states must work together as a bloc and avoid taking

any side. ASEAN should be a fulcrum to balance the interests of the US and China.

The problem can be avoided by not being partisan.” Tensions over sovereignty of the region have escalated this year. The Philippines and Vietnam have accused China of cutting the seismic cables of ships exploring for oil and gas, threatening to ram vessels and firing shots at fishermen.

Last month the Philippine military reported an unidentified fighter jet harassed Filipino fishermen in the Spratlys, the second incident involving unidentified fighters since May. The Lowy Institute, an Australian think tank, warned late last month of growing risks that incidents at sea involving China could lead to war, potentially drawing in the United States and other powers.

China wants one-to-one negotiations with each of the claimants rather than dealing with them within ASEAN and rejects any suggestion of US involvement in the process. Beijing says it has historical sovereignty over the region, which it says supersedes claims of other countries under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Officials at ConocoPhillips in

Vietnam could not be reached for comment on Petrovietnam’s comments.

Thuc spoke with domestic media on Tuesday, but his comments were not released until Friday. ConocoPhillips owns a 23.3 percent stake in a complex of five oil fields in block 15-1 in the area. It owns 36 percent of the Rang Dong oil field in block 15-2 in the Cuu Long basin and 16.3 percent in the Nam Con Son gas pipeline project, the PV Oil statement said, valuing ConocoPhillips’ total interests at $1.5 billion.

In Block 15-1 its partners include Petrovietnam with a 50 percent interest, state-run Korea National Oil Corp with 14.2 percent, Korea’s SK Corp with 9 percent and Monaco’s Geopetrol with 3.5 percent. The firm’s partners in block 15-2 are Japan Vietnam Petroleum Co with 46.5 percent and Petrovietnam with 17.5 percent. In the Nam Con Son gas pipeline project BP has 32.7 percent and Petrovietnam owns 17.5 percent.

Late last year, Petrovietnam said it had considered buying BP’s stakes in offshore oil projects, but later waived the option, paving the way for BP to sell them to its Russian joint venture, TNK-BP, for $1.8 billion. — Reuters

Obama urges ‘balanced approach’ in deficit talks

KIRISHI: Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin (right) chairs a meeting on the situation in oil refining in Kirishi, near St Petersburg, next to Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin. — AFP

Russia to pump more oil, cut export duty KIRISHI: Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced long planned cuts in oil export duty to coax more production at stagnating Russian fields, but official disagreement on details showed the reductions may take time.

Putin gave officials two weeks to put the finishing touches on proposals that would reduce the coefficient used to calculate export duty to 60 percent from 65 percent, to boost output. Russia is pumping at peak levels after reaching an annual record of 505 million tons (just over 10 million barrels per day) last year, but older fields are getting tapped out and incentives are needed to stimulate production.

“Last year Russia became the world’s top oil producer,” Putin said. “This is exactly the level of crude which allows us to cover our own needs as well as export requirements.

This year we expect 508-509 million tons.”

Speaking in London, however, Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin who has resisted tax cuts for the oil industry, especially in times of high oil prices, in favor of reaping windfall revenues for the budget-said it would take time to implement the cut. “The issue has come back to my ministry now and we are preparing conclusions,” Kudrin said. “We will

hold another meeting,” he said, adding: “On the whole we think the approach is correct.”

DISAGREEMENT Russia’s oil companies say the new export duty regime dubbed “60/66” as it cuts the crude duty to 60 percent, with oil product duties to be set at 66 percent of crude dutyshould be implemented as soon as possible so they can plan investments. It is just one element of energy tax reform, with a more comprehensive reform of extraction taxes expected later.

But disagreement over the details of 60/66 - particularly the oil product export duty-went to the very top. With harsh words for Russia’s refiners, Putin spelled out an unexpectedly tough duty regime for fuel oil, a heavy product that requires further processing by sophisticated refinery units into gasoline and diesel.

Fuel oil has long been subject to a low rate of export duty, which has in turn encouraged refiners to produce large volumes of the straight-run product for export as a crude oil surrogate. The 60/66 regime was designed not only to encourage crude production but to prompt oil companies to build more modern gasoline and diesel units, which would consume such residues.—Reuters

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama urged Democrats and Republicans yesterday to take a “balanced approach” to deficit reduction ahead of a new round of key talks aimed at avoiding America’s default on its debt. “I believe we need a balanced approach,” Obama said in his weekly radio address. “That means taking on spending in our domestic programs and our defense programs.”

The president said the two parties must address challenges like the solvency of Medicare, a government-run health insurance program for the senior. He also insisted on closing tax loopholes and deductions for the wealthiest Americans. Obama acknowledged that “real differences in approach” continued to divide Democrats and Republicans. But he expressed confidence the two sides will be able to find a solution to this difficult problem.

“The good news is, we agree on some of the big things,” Obama pointed out. We agree that after a decade of racking up deficits and debt, we finally need to get our fiscal house in order.

We agree that to do that, both sides are going to have to step outside their comfort zones and make some political sacrifices. And we agree that we simply cannot afford to default on our national obligations for the first time in our history; that we need to uphold the full faith and credit of the United States of America.” The US government reached its debt limit of $14.29 trillion in May and since then the Treasury Department has used special measures to allow the government to keep paying its bills. But unless the limit is raised by August 2, the Treasury says, growing spending and debt service commitments will force a default, which would have disastrous ripple effects throughout the global financial system.

By August 2, the government will have to begin withholding payments-to bond holders, civil servants, retirees or government contractors-and the White House has urged a deal by July 22 to have time to pass it. However, Republicans in Congress-which sets the debt cap into law-have refused to raise it unless the move is accompanied by deep spending cuts, and their talks with Democrats have made little visible progress. The president was due to hold a fresh round of negotiations at the White House around dinnertime Sunday with top Republicans, including House Speaker John Boehner, in a bid to find a path to a debt-limit deal. — AFP

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UK housing market shows unexpected resilience No quick fix for mortgage issue LONDON: UK housebuilders see signs that the housing market is proving more resilient than many feared due partly to pent up demand from people who need to move house despite mortgages still being tough to obtain. Builders Persimmon , Taylor Wimpey , and Bovis Homes said this week sales in the traditionally buoyant spring period have held up, lifting shares across the sector and giving a boost to an industry that is suffering from a four-year hangover from the credit crisis.

“I can see relative stability (into 2012),” Bovis Homes Chief Executive David Ritchie said, noting a 16 percent rise in first-half reservations for private homes. Morgan Sindall confirmed a “slight improvement” in market conditions, while Galliford Try reported annual housing completions up 27

percent to 2,170 units. “I think there is a general thawing out there ... what I’ve been encouraged about is, is against the backdrop of pretty negative press commentary against the consumer squeeze...you’ve seen a much more resilient profile from the housing market,” said Chris Millington, an equities analyst at Numis Securities.

Shares in Persimmon, for example, have risen 8 percent in the past two weeks, outperforming the FTSE 250 midcap index.

The slight improvement in confidence is supported by house prices rising unexpectedly in June. The wider economy is struggling as British consumers grapple with rising prices, particularly in fuel and utilities, subdued wages growth, job insecurity, government austerity measures, as well as fears of interest rate rises. New data

on Friday showed that wider construction activity in the UK grew by just 0.4 percent in May, adding to evidence that the economy was stagnant in the second quarter.

The housebuilding sector is operating at all-time lows, but pent-up demand is driving the recent uptick in activity, while the biggest obstacle for the industry-mortgage availability - is easing slightly.

“You’ve seen a marginal improvement in the mortgage market and an inability of people to keep deferring decisions to actually move ... that’s the bigger driver of what’s going on,” added Millington. Other analysts point to the long-term prospects for the sector and house prices generally as positive. “A combination of a finite supply of land, strict planning regulations, insufficient housing completions and

an increasing population are all likely to place upward pressure on house prices,” said analysts at Killik & Co. But times are still tough for first time buyers, who face hefty deposit requirements from mortgage lenders that are showing little appetite to loosen their purse strings due to regulatory constraints.

Potential first time buyers also have to cope with rising rents, student debt and a weak jobs market. “It would be hard enough for young people normally to save up a deposit, but you add in all those things, and the high prices of housing...this is massive, massive social and economic issue,” said John Stewart, director of economic affairs at the Home Builders Federation (HBF).

Housebuilders and lenders have joined forces to tackle the problem, with discussions centered around

bridging the deposit gap. “If the industry can come together to offer a form of mortgage indemnity, it would be a powerful tool in securing new build sales in the current market,” said Simon Brown at Northland Capital Partners, adding that no deal was in sight for the next few months.

The HBF said the only viable longterm answer had to involve third party groups such as insurers underwriting loans to first-time buyers, as opposed to builders taking on this added risk.

But the housing industry recognizes there is unlikely to be a quick fix. “The longer term is being talked about now in earnest, there is a will to produce something on both sides... Without the mortgage market, we can’t push that (growth) forward,” said Mike Farley, the chief executive of Britain’s larger housebuilder. —Reuters

Recipe for a rally? Beat lowered estimates Wall St Week Ahead

CALABRIA: Photo shows a view of the ‘Euro-Riace’ special banknotes created by the mayor of Riace and featuring pictures of Che Guevara, Gandhi and Martin Luther King in the southern Italian region of Calabria. The village of 1800 inhabitants greeted a few years ago some 200 refugees and some 130 more will arrive in the next days with the mayor creating a special scheme for them and helping saving the village from a mass exodus. — AFP

Oman’s inflation at 25-month high DUBAI: Annual inflation in Oman hit the highest level in 25 months in May due to a rise in food prices, data showed yesterday, while living costs in Saudi Arabia in June rose slightly from the previous month on food and housing components. Inflation in the Gulf, the world’s top oil exporting region, was expected to creep higher this year on robust global commodity prices, a weak dollar and increased government spending following unrest in the Arab world.

In Oman, annual inflation hit 4.4 percent in May, the highest level since April 2009, data from the country’s finance ministry showed, after a 4.1 increase in the previous month. On the month, consumer prices grew 0.4 percent in May, up from a 0.3 percent rise in April. Consumer price growth was unchanged on both annual and monthly basis in April. Analysts expected prices in the small non-OPEC oil producer, which was hit by public unrest this year, to edge higher on robust global food and

commodity prices as well as additional government spending to defuse social tensions. “Food prices are still pretty close to all-time highs and it takes a while for these to get transferred to final consumers,” said Paul Gamble, head of research at Jadwa Investment in Saudi Arabia. Food costs, which account for the largest weight of 30.4 percent in the consumer basket, jumped by 0.9 percent month-on-month in May after a 0.3 percent dip in April. Rents, making up 21.4 percent in the basket, were unchanged in May, the data showed. “Retailers took advantage by increasing shelf prices when Sultan Qaboos ordered a pay hike to all Omani workers in March,” Salaam al-Rahbi, a financial analyst at Muscat Financial Company, said. The usually tranquil Gulf Arab sultanate was hit by months of protests in February, following uprisings that toppled rulers in Egypt and Tunisia.

Omanis, however, called mainly for higher wages, more jobs and an end to graft rather than a change of government. — Reuters

NEW YORK: Wall Street heads into earnings season next week playing a typical game: Worrying about results a lot, and then rallying on pleasant surprises. Analysts have been lowering earnings estimates of late and nervousness about the US economic picture abounds, especially after Friday’s poor June jobs report. However, profit growth could still be strong in the second quarter-and that could boost stocks. The Standard & Poor’s 500 fell 0.4 percent in the second quarter, but rallied in recent days on hopes for economic improvement.

Over the last month, analysts have revised downward their earnings estimates for S&P 500 companies, with the mean change in earnings estimates a negative 6.4 percent, according to Thomson Reuters StarMine data.

“I think there’s going to be a lot of anxiety going into it, and I think companies are going to continue what they’ve done for the last few quarters: Put out better-thanexpected numbers, and guidance should be OK,” said Scott Billeaudeau, portfolio manager at Fifth Third Asset Management, in Minneapolis. S&P 500 components’ earnings are expected to have increased an average of 7.3 percent in the second quarter from a year ago, down from first-quarter growth of 18.9 percent, Thomson Reuters data showed. But the number could jump if most companies beat analysts’ forecasts. Early estimates for first-quarter profit growth were at about 13 percent.

“The general economic data is suggesting some softness in the overall economy both globally and

in the US. ... so that drives somewhat more realistic expectations for companies,” said Natalie Trunow, chief investment officer of equities of Calvert Investment Management in Bethesda, Maryland, which manages about $14.8 billion. In the coming week, the Federal Reserve will release minutes of its June 2122 policy-making meeting. Among the US economic indicators on tap are June retail sales, June inflation readings from the US Producer Price Index and the US Consumer Price Index, industrial production and capacity utilization for June, and the preliminary July reading on consumer sentiment from the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers.

BANKS UNDER THE GUN Financial services companies have seen the biggest downward revisions in earnings estimates in the last 30 days, with banks taking some of the biggest hits, including Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. JPMorgan Chase will be the first of the big banks to report, with results due on Thursday. Results from top tech player Google also are expected Thursday, while aluminum company Alcoa unofficially starts the season with earnings after the bell on Monday. The S&P financial index dropped 6.3 percent in the second quarter as worries escalated about the impact of the eurozone debt problems on the global economy. The mean change for earnings estimates in the sector in the last 30 days is a negative 34.4 percent, StarMine data showed.

DISASTERS AND DISAPPOINTMENTS Analysts have also said the after-

NEW YORK: In this file photo, traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York. — AP math of Japan’s earthquake, months of extraordinary weather in the United States, and rising food and commodity prices took a toll on companies in the second quarter.

StarMine analysis showed companies, including Platinum Underwriters Holdings, were likely to disappoint with results because of tornado damage claims.

But companies have kept costs

in check and that should support stronger results, while also giving a boost to stock prices, he said. “I think things underneath the macro, global, political noise continue to percolate,” said Mike Jackson, founder of Denver-based investment firm T3 Equity Labs. But “you’re going to see higher-quality companies showing the surprises this quarter (versus) last.”—Reuters

Aging boomers strain US cities built for the young NEW YORK: America’s cities are beginning to grapple with a fact of life: People are getting old, fast, and they’re doing it in communities designed for the sprightly. To envision how this silver tsunami will challenge a youth-oriented society, just consider that seniors soon will outnumber schoolchildren in hip, fastpaced New York City. It will take some creative steps to make New York and other cities age-friendly enough to help the coming crush of older adults stay active and independent in their own homes. “It’s about changing the way we think about the way we’re growing old in our community,” said New York Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs.

“The phrase ‘end of life’ does not apply anymore.”

Noting initiatives such as using otherwise idle school buses to take seniors grocery shopping, the World Health Organization recognizes New York as a leader in this movement. But it is not alone. Atlanta, Georgia, is creating what it calls “lifelong communities.” Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is testing whether living in a truly walkable community really makes older adults healthier.

In Portland, Oregon, there is a push to fit senior concerns such as accessible housing into the city’s new planning and zoning policies. Such work is getting a late start considering how long demographers have warned that the population is about to get a lot grayer. “It’s shocking how far behind we are, especially when you think about this fact: that if you make something age-friendly, that means it is going to be friendly for people of all ages, not just older adults,” said Margaret Neal of Portland State University’s Institute on Aging. While

this fledgling movement is being driven by nonprofit and governmental programs, New York aims to get private businesses to ante up, too.

Last year, East Harlem became the city’s first “aging improvement district.” Sixty stores, identified with window signs, agreed to put out folding chairs to let older customers rest as they do their errands. The stores also try to keep aisles free of tripping hazards and use larger type so signs are easier to read. A community pool set aside senior-only hours so older swimmers could get in their laps without faster kids and teens in the way.

On one long block, accountant Henry Calderon welcomes older passers-by to rest in his air-conditioned lobby even if they are not customers. They might be, one day. “It’s good for business, but it’s good for society,” too, he said. The size of the aging boom is staggering. Every day for the next few decades, thousands of baby boomers will turn 65. That is in addition to the oldest-old, the 85to 90-somethings whose numbers have grown by nearly one-third in the past decade, with no signs of slowing.

By 2050, 1 in 5 Americans will be seniors. Worldwide, almost 2 billion people will be 60 or older, 400 million of them over 80.

That is almost always viewed as a health issue, preparing for the coming wave of Alzheimer’s, or as a political liability, meaning how soon will the government’s Social Security pension program go bust? “We think this is something we should be celebrating,” says Dr. John Beard, who oversees the World Health Organization’s Global Network of Age-Friendly Cities. “They need to live in an environment that allows them to participate.”

In East Harlem, a yellow school bus pulls up to a curb and 69-year-old Jenny Rodriguez climbs off. The bus already had dropped a load of kids at school. Now, before the afternoon trip home, it is shuttling older adults to a market where they flock to fresh fruits and vegetables. Rodriguez usually goes shopping on foot, pulling along a small cart. It can be a hike.

Supermarkets are not common in this lower-income part of the city, and there is less to choose at tiny, pricier corner bodegas.

York Academy of Medicine and the city’s government to address the needs of older residents.

Already, they’re showing results. A city report found the number of crashes has dropped at busy intersections in senior-heavy communities where traffic signals now allow pedestrians a few more seconds to cross the street. Benches have been placed in nearly 2,700 bus shelters to give waiting seniors a place to rest. The city’s aging taxi fleet is scheduled to be replaced by a boxier model designed

“You can only buy so much. Some streets, the cracks are so bad, you’re pushing the shopping cart and almost go flying,” Rodriguez said, examining sweet potatoes that she pronounced fresher and cheaper than at her usual store.

“This is so much easier.” More than 200 times, school buses have taken older adults from senior centers to supermarkets in different neighborhoods. It’s just one of a variety of initiatives begun in 2009 by the New

to be easier for older riders and people with disabilities to open the doors and slide in and out.

On the Upper West Side, seniors snapped up a report card of grocery stores deemed age-friendly because they offer deliveries, have public bathrooms - a rarity in the city - and sell single portions of fresh meat, poultry or fish, important for people who live alone.

Artists volunteer to teach at senior centers in return for space to work on

or display their own creations. And a “Time Bank” is letting hundreds of people of different ages and with different skills essentially barter services.

A retired English teacher may do some tutoring, for example, and use the credit she earns to get computer help from another volunteer.

Aging expert Andrew Scharlach of the University of California, Berkeley, sees a common thread in these changes and the work of other cities.

Combat the social isolation that too easily sneaks up on older adults, and it has a huge impact not just on how many years they will live, but how well they will live them. Cities and suburbs were designed for younger people, full of stairs and cars, he explained. As they become increasingly difficult to navigate, older people gradually retreat. Revamping a lot of infrastructure may not happen in a tough economy.

But some communities are building age-friendly changes into planned upgrades or maintenance, such as New York’s street crossings, or into requirements for future development.

The World Health Organization’s Beard says some changes are not that costly. He notes that seniors around the world say more benches and access to bathrooms will help them get out and about. Among other US cities’ work: The Atlanta Regional Commission’s Lifelong Communities Initiative is pushing communities that help people age in place. Efforts are under way in six metro areas, including work to adapt zoning codes to allow more of a walkable mix of housing and retail.

The Mableton community of suburban Cobb County is planning that kind of a town square and as well has

opened a farmers market on a weekday morning, when seniors prefer to shop, and an intergenerational community garden. To the east, DeKalb County is building a library near a senior center, planned senior housing and a bus stop. One town pilot-tested a shuttle for seniors to supplement bare-bones public transit. The Atlanta Housing Authority is working with the commission to retrofit high-rise apartments that house a lot of older residents, with the goal to improve access to the surrounding community. At one site under construction, changes include a ramp entrance, safer sidewalk to the bus stop and more time for pedestrians to cross the street.

The overall movement is not without controversy. Sometimes younger residents misunderstand and say they don’t want to live in a retirement community, said commission urban planner Laura Keyes. She said boomers, who are classified as being born from 1946 to 1964, and millenials, the children of baby boomers who came of age in the new millennium, ultimately want the same things: access to shopping, green space, more freedom from the car. The idea is a mix of ages but where older residents do not need to move if their health fails.

Keyes became interested in agefriendly communities when visiting friends in nursing homes built in commercial districts and saw that her friends had nowhere to take a walk.

Philadelphia has the oldest population of the United States’ 10 largest cities, with 19 percent of its residents over age 60, and many multistory rowhouses where seniors are stuck on one floor. — AP

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SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

TECHNOLOGY

Gadget accessory market rushing to keep up with new technologies MIAMI: For the companies that hang their profits on savvy cases for smartphones and tablets, staying ahead of the competition means betting millions of dollars on which mobile devices will be hot - and which will flop. Makers of accessories for mobile gadgets are in a fight for a piece of an industry that’s expected to rake in $34 billion this year. Some products, like cases, have a low barrier to entry: Come up with a design, have someone in China build it, and sell it at a street fair. The difficulty lies in standing out enough to make the investment worthwhile - and knowing which phones are worth accessorizing.

“There are so many people flooding in here,” said Michael Morgan, senior analyst of mobile devices at ABI Research.

“The case market has exploded.”

Among those angling for a share of the market is Sunrise, Florida, based AG Findings and Manufacturing, or AGF, which makes protective cases for phones and tablets. Through partnerships with carriers, its office houses dozens of smartphone models that have yet to be released - something most tech rumor bloggers would love to get their hands on. When today’s big seller is outdated tomorrow, the team is in an eternal race to get product in stores before every major smartphone launch. Being late by just a few weeks can mean losing 70 percent of sales to a competitor.

A company like AGF has to find a niche, and it has: by throwing phones off buildings - and having them land in one piece. Its Ballistic brand, a bulky, multi-layered shock-resistant case, is what put AGF at an annual revenue today of $15 million - a figure that represents doubled revenues each year for the past three years, it says. Its primary competition is OtterBox - anoth-

er maker of cases that can protect a phone from fatal drops, and which has a more recognized brand in more stores.

Since its start in 1993, AGF’s produce line has morphed with technology. Originally it made holsters and belt clips for beepers - remember those? as well as generic leather sewn cases that fit multiple phone models. But today’s flat, large-screen smartphones require far more engineering to get a perfect, snug fit. Making a case takes eight to 12 weeks, and getting it out the same day as launch is a challenge when a company like Apple keeps phone details a secret until the last moment.

When AGF was given the shape of the rumored iPhone 4 from an unknown source, executives had to make a quick decision. Did Apple really make a boxy iPhone 4? Or could it be a decoy to fool the media? If they were to launch a case in time, they would need to trust the information.

“We said, ‘We have to do it.’ It could be a complete waste of money and time, and it probably would have sunk the company,” Tages said - but it turned out the measurements were valid. “ That was a gut-wrenching three months for our company.” Not every gamble has worked. The flop of the Google Nexus line cost the firm a couple million dollars in unwanted inventory.

With the top-market smartphones priced around $200 and tablets starting at around $400, consumers see a bigger need to protect their largescreen investments from accidental drops - and they can now do it in style.

“Before the iPhone, cases were made, big deal, so what,” Morgan said. “After the iPhone, cases were pretty and everyone wants one.” — MCT

A model looks at an LG Electronics’ Optimus 3D phone during a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, July 7, 2011. LG Electronics is touting 3D smartphones as an alternative to dedicated handheld game devices.(AP Phot

S Korea’s LG touts Optimus 3D smartphone for gaming SEOUL: LG Electronics is touting 3-D smartphones as an alternative to dedicated handheld game devices. The company launched its LG Optimus 3-D phone last Thursday in South Korea after beginning a global release last month covering more than 60 markets including Spain and Britain. No special glasses are required to view 3-D content on the phone.

Park Jong-seok, CEO of LG’s mobile communications business, said that 3-D smartphones such as the Optimus can hold their own against dedicated handheld gaming platforms. “The era of dedicated handheld gaming is over,” he said in a release.

Success with the 3-D phone would be wel-

come for the South Korean company, which has been struggling to overcome weakness in mobile phones. LG’s mobile communications business has suffered four straight quarterly operating losses.

LG Electronics Co. is the world’s thirdlargest mobile phone manufacturer behind No. 1 Nokia Corp. of Finland and South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co. LG unveiled the new device, its first 3-D smartphone, earlier this year at the Mobile World Congress trade show in Spain and began rolling it out in global markets last month. LG said the phone comes pre-installed with three full versions of games from Gameloft including “Asphalt 6:

Review

Google Plus thoughtful answer to Facebook

FLORIDA: Senior design engineer Jorge Sotelo shows the various components of a typical case on his computer screen. — MCT

NASA needs new ‘breakthrough,’ says Obama WASHINGTON: NASA needs new technology breakthroughs to revitalize its mission to explore the universe, President Barack Obama said Wednesday as the shuttle Atlantis was preparing for its final mission. Asked during his first-ever Twitter town hall meeting about where America stands in terms of space exploration with the shuttle program about to end after 30 years, Obama said he was “proud” of the past but eager for a new leap forward. “We are still a leader in space exploration, but, frankly, I have been pushing NASA to revamp its vision,” Obama said. “The shuttle did some extraordinary work in loworbit experiments, the International Space Station, moving cargo. It was an extraordinary accomplishment. And we’re very proud of the work that it did,” he added.

“But now what we need is that next technological breakthrough.” Obama, who axed NASA’s Constellation program that would have returned astronauts to the moon, said that the United States should move beyond the space travel models it used in the 1960s for the Apollo program that first sent men to the moon.

“Rather than keep on doing the same thing, let’s invest in basic research around new technologies that can get us places faster, allow human space flight to last longer,” he said. While private companies hustle to build a next generation spacecraft to tote astronauts to space again, the US space agency can spend

time figuring out new ways to live longer in space and send explorers to Mars or an asteroid, he said.

“Let’s start stretching the boundaries so we’re not doing the same things over and over again. But rather, let’s start thinking about, what’s the next horizon?

What’s the next frontier out there?”In order to do that, we’ll need some technological breakthroughs that we don’t have yet,” said the US president. Commercial companies may be able to make space travel more affordable for everyday people, while government-funded scientists focus on other work. “Let’s allow the private sector to get in so that they can, for example, send these low earth orbit vehicles into space, and we may be able to achieve a point in time where those of you who are just dying to go into space, you know, you can buy a ticket,” said Obama.

“And a private carrier can potentially take you up there while the government focuses on the big breakthroughs that require much larger investments and involve much greater risk.” The space shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to make its final flight to the International Space Station later this week, though stormy weather could delay the mission by a couple of days, NASA said. Once the shuttle program ends, the world’s astronauts will have to rely on Russia to carry them to the ISS and back until private enterprise comes up with a nextgeneration US space capsule for cargo and crew. — AFP

NEW YORK: My first thought about Google Plus: “Here we go again.” After Google’s earlier attempts at social networking failed spectacularly, it was easy to scoff at this seeming Facebook wannabe.

Its “Picasa ultimatum” didn’t help much either. If you have an account with Picasa, Google’s photo-sharing service, the first thing Google asks is whether you’d want to share your Picasa photos. Say no, and you’re not allowed to sign up at all. That seemed unnecessarily harsh. But I quickly became addicted to Google Plus, a free service that the company is testing with a small group of users for now. It has smart and thoughtful solutions to some irksome limits entrenched in other social-media sites, mainly related to privacy settings and how to share links and posts with groups.

Google Plus seems aimed at people who are more interested in sharing things with people or groups with similar interests rather than simply amassing the biggest number of online “friends.” Its seamless integration with other Google ser vices you may use, from search to online documents, makes it easier to share things online. I found privacy settings much easier to manage on Google Plus than on Facebook. The Picasa ultimatum forced me to learn about the settings.

After all, the first thing you’re likely to do after joining is limit who can see your photos. Privacy - deciding whom you share different posts with - seems to be top of mind on Google Plus. That ’s a relief after Google’s earlier debacle with Google Buzz, which had arrived unsolicited and initially created circles of friends automatically based on whom they’ve corresponded with on Gmail.

That meant your boss could see lists of people you’ve been corresponding with for a new job. With Google Plus, no one gets added automatically. Once you sign up, you add people similar to how you follow people on Twitter. Then, rather than throwing everyone into the same bucket, you choose a circle to put them in. Four circles are standard: “friends,” “family,” “acquaintances” and “following.” You can follow anyone without being accepted, whereas Facebook requires the consent of both sides. You can create new circles, too, such as “co-workers” and “cousins.”

Facebook has customizable groups, as well, but I found the groups on Google Plus much easier to use and quicker to navigate.

Separating people into categories can seem awkward at first. I felt impolite putting people in “acquaintances” rather than “friends” even though no one can see which circle you put them in. But once you get used to it, you can easily share photos of your beach vacation with just your friends - your actual friends, not the broad Facebook definition. Those photos could be off-limits to your boss or your great aunt Zelda, say. Any post or link goes only to the circle or circles you designate, and you can drill down to sharing with just one

or two people, or no one. You can also make a link public to share it with everyone - including people who have added you to their circles but whom you haven’t added to yours.

However, the privacy settings aren’t perfect. Although you can choose to share a post with a limited number of people, the recipients can re-share the post further. It takes some digging to figure out that you can disable re-sharing by clicking on an icon to the right of a post. Google Plus is in very early testing, so these types of settings could still change. Unlike Facebook, Google Plus also lets you edit posts after you post them and decide for each post whether to allow comments, a feature I liked. Two other features, the ability to group video chat via webcam, called a “Hangout,” and the ability to chat with a group, called a “Huddle,” have proven to have so much appeal that Facebook quickly followed suit. The company said Wednesday that it will also roll out group chatting and video chatting by teaming with Internet phone company Skype. It will be interesting to see if Facebook ends up adding other Google Plusfeatures.

Other facts: Google Plus has a “+1” button rather than a “Like” button, but the feature is similar. The only difference is, once you sign up for Google Plus, you see this “+1” button next to every single Google search item, which feels a bit Big Brotherish. On that note, whenever you are on the main Google site or any of its progeny, you also have a black Google bar across the top of your browser, with a Google Plus link. That makes it easy to log on at odd moments. A red notification box alerts you to Google Plus activities, such as when people add you to one of their circles.

Google Plus has a few gaping holes. For example, you can’t search ... yet. And there are no addictive third-party apps such as “FarmVille,” which people have sunk countless hours playing on Facebook.

Another thing you can’t do easily, strangely, is send a message. To do that you have to create a post and only select one person to see it. It’s not rocket science, but with Facebook you can simply click on a person’s profile and send a message instantly. I realize Gmail is a button click away, and Google Plus is intended to be a sharing site rather than a full-service social media site, but I still wanted this feature.

Overall, in my early testing, I find Google Plus a compelling answer to some existing problems in social media. Because of its integration with other Google services and its general ease of use, I would probably prefer using Google Plus to Facebook or Twitter. But it all depends on how many people sign up. A sharing site isn’t much fun if no one is around to share with. For now, I can’t invite friends to join. Google Plus is free, but the company is restricting new sign-ups. Even those who already got a coveted invite are told to try joining later because Google Plus had exceeded its capacity. —AP

Adrenaline.” “You can actually now play exciting 3D games, advanced 3D games directly on your mobile phone,” said Alexandre Tan, Gameloft’s director of business development, said at a launch event Thursday in Seoul.

“Clearly this is the next big thing for both the gaming and the mobile industry.”

The LG Optimus 3-D can record and play back 3-D content. LG is not alone in launching such a phone. Taiwan’s top smartphone maker HTC Corp. is also out with its EVO 3-D smartphone LG spokesman Ken Hong said the LG Optimus 3-D phone will be available later this summer in the United States as the LG Thrill 4G. — AP

The apps that eat your wireless data NEW YORK: If you have a cellphone with a monthly limit on how much data you can use, here are some tips on what types of phone use will gobble up your precious megabytes: Streaming video and videoconferencing The biggest offender. One minute of YouTube -quality video eats up 2 megabytes. If you’re on a plan that gives you 200 megabytes per month, you can’t even watch Lady Gaga’s “ Telephone” video once per day. If you’re on a 2 gigabyte plan you can, but don’t make your iPhone a replacement for a TV. In either case, it’s fine to indulge in YouTube and Netflix if you’re on Wi-Fi. Streaming audio The second biggest offender, and potentially more serious. While video is something we need to see to enjoy, Internet radio is more of an accompaniment to other activities, such as jogging or doing dishes. That means some people like to keep it on for hours. Audio consumes about a quarter of the data that video does, but 10 minutes a day will break the bank if you’re on a 200 megabyte plan. One hour a day of Pandora consumes nearly a gigabyte, which you can afford if you’re on a 2-gigabyte plan and don’t use other data-hogging apps.

Photos If you’re a real shutterbug, photos can consume significant amounts of data.

Sending and viewing photos both count toward your monthly limit. Posting 10 photos per day eats up most of a 200 megabyte plan. If you’re on a 2-gigabyte plan, you probably don’t have to worry about photos. Maps. Navigation apps consume lots of data when they retrieve map images, up to a megabyte a minute.

You’re also likely to use them for long periods of time when you’re away from Wi-Fi, such as when you’re driving. Watch out for these. Web surfing. Web pages vary widely in size, so this will depend quite a bit on whether you like to visit graphically rich sites (lots of data) or spare, text-oriented ones (less data). But roughly speaking, ten pages a day will eat up about half of a 200 megabyte plan.

Again, those on 2-gigabyte plans don’t need to worry much about sur fing.

Facebook. Roughly equivalent to Web surfing. Status updates won’t take much data, but sending photos and viewing friends’ pictures will.

Email Most emails are tiny, in terms of data.

Basically, you can send and receive email all you want, as long as they don’t have attachments such as photos. Twitter. Like email, these short messages don’t use much data, but if you follow a lot of people and click on links, usage adds up.

Weather apps. Small, focused apps that report simple but useful things, such as the weather forecast, save data (and time) compared with looking up the same information on a Web page. — AP

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health& science

German parliament OKs genetic embryo testing BERLIN: After an emotional debate, German lawmakers voted Thursday to allow a procedure that looks for genetic disorders in embryos before they are implanted in the womb. Lawmakers voted 326-260 to permit the procedure known as preimplantation genetic diagnosis under strict conditions after a debate that crossed party lines. Eight lawmakers abstained. The procedure is used after in vitro fertilization, when parents whose families have a history of genetic disorders want to avoid having a child with a lethal or severely debilitating birth defect.

While it is permitted in other countries, its legality had been a gray area in Germany. Parliament took up the issue after a federal court last year ruled that a doctor who had performed the procedure hadn’t committed any offense.

Under the law approved Thursday, an ethics commission will have to decide on a case-by-case basis whether couples can use the procedure.

A large minority of lawmakers had favored a total ban on the practice, with some saying even limited permission for genetic selection set a bad precedent.

“This is about variety: do we want to allow it in our society?” asked Katrin Goering-Eckardt of the opposition Greens, one of those advocating a ban.

But lawmakers who backed allowing the practice said it would be an option only

in a few cases, and argued that parents who worry about possible genetic defects should be trusted with the decision to use it. “I am firmly convinced that we should not choose to close our eyes to how we can use modern medicine appropriately to support and help these long-suffering families,” said Labor Minister Ursula von der Leyen.

Opposition lawmaker Soeren Bartol said he wanted to give couples at risk of passing on genetic disorders the option of deciding to have a child.

“I would also like these parents to be spared, as far as possible, the terrible experience of a miscarriage or a still birth,” he added. Despite the lawmakers’ emotional debate, medical researchers say the procedure, a test done to pick the best embryos, has largely proved to be a disappointment. Doctors had assumed the test would improve pregnancy rates, but studies showed that women who had their embryos tested were actually less likely to become pregnant, probably because scientists still can’t accurately predict which embryos will succeed. A study in its early stages presented this week at a European fertility conference in Stockholm suggested that embryos which look problematic on day three can fix themselves by day five. Many embryos created by IVF are implanted after three days, although doctors are increasingly waiting until day five if possible. —AP

Fewer bites for Philippine fishermen MANILA: Fisherman Rafael Mendoza spends his nights casting lines from his small motorized boat in Manila Bay with little hope of a big haul. At the age of 62, the once-rich returns of the trade that paid for his seven children’s school and college education have nearly disappeared. “There used to be plenty for everyone to go around,” Mendoza told AFP in his tiny fishing village of Daang K alsada on the mouth of Manila Bay as he picked through the measly haul of 60 small mackerel he had caught overnight.

“We used to catch hundreds of kilos (pounds) of fish of varied species... there used to be huge groupers and snappers.”

Generations of fishermen have relied on the 1,994 square kilometer deep water bay for their livelihood, and it wasn’t uncommon for them in the past to come to shore with their boats near to bursting with marine bounty. But rapid and uncontrolled urban development around the baywhich is the gateway to the country’s political and economic centre -has over the years led to severe pollution and degradation of the marine habitat. Modern and destructive fishing methods, such as using cyanide and fine mesh nets, have also virtually obliterated spawning grounds.

Meanwhile, big commercial trawlers continue to violate a law meant to keep them at least 15 kilometers from the shoreline.

“There used to be huge groupers and snappers that we would sell for thousands of pesos,” Mendoza said, adding that restaurants and buyers in the lucrative expor t market once turned to them for supply. The sad state of Manila Bay is being repeated across the Philippines, which international experts and scientists regard as having one of the most biodiverse marine ecosystems in the world. Its southern waters merge with those of Indonesia and Papua New Guinea to form what is k nown as the Coral Triangle, an area so rich in corals and marine life that is nicknamed the “Amazon of the seas”. But weak enforcement of laws protecting the Philippines’ environment and marine life are allowing unsustainable fishing methods to prosper, experts said.

‘We are going hungry’ “We’ve already exceeded our maxi-

mum sustainable yield in fishing,” World Wildlife Fund-Philippines president Jose Maria Lorenzo Tan told AFP. He said that while there was nothing wrong with harvesting nature’s bounty, aquatic resources needed to be given time to replenish. Dante Dalabajan, policy and research officer at British charity Oxfam, said both small and industrial fishermen needed to follow sustainable fishing methods, with climate change also contributing to dropping yields. As sudden changes in sea temperatures affect the way fish migrate and spawn, there will be lower yields, according to Dalabajan, a view shared by many environmental experts around the world.

“What is critical is for our fishermen to manage their resources better, so they can protect their food security when that time comes,” Dalabajan said. He said one important measure would be to give small-scale fishermen more control over managing coastal areas, while another would simply be for the government to exert greater effort in protecting fishing grounds. But fisherman Mendoza and his wife of 37 years, Rosario, said they were worried any intervention may be too late for them. They said many of their neighbors in Daang Kalsada, a mostly poor rural village about 50 k ilometers south of M anila, had already hung up their lines and nets.

Some had sought work in factories that had sprouted near the town in recent years, while others had left to join the millions of Filipinos laboring abroad to seek their for tune. The M endozas and some of the other remaining fishermen have joined with non- government organizations to educate other mostly poor villagers in the area about the benefits of protecting the sea. Some of the fishermen sit in to listen, but others-because they are pressured to feed their familiesstill resor t to destruc tive ways of catching fish. “Whatever awareness campaigns we launch, if our fellow fishermen themselves do not ac t, nothing will happen,” said Mendoza, who now has to travel more than a hundred kilometers into open sea in an effort to catch decent fish.”We are going hungry. We don’t know any other livelihood, and we may be forced to get dole outs (government welfare) soon.” —AFP

Baby’s death spotlights safety risks linked to computerized hospital systems CHICAGO: The medical error that killed Genesis Burkett began with the kind of mistake people often make when filling out electronic forms: A pharmacy technician unwittingly typed the wrong information into a field on a screen. Because of the mix-up, an automated machine at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital prepared an intravenous solution containing a massive overdose of sodium chloride - more than 60 times the amount ordered by a physician.

When the nutritional fluids were administered to Genesis, a tiny baby born 16 weeks prematurely, the infant’s heart stopped and he died, leaving behind parents stunned by grief to this day. Although a series of other errors contributed to the tragedy, its origin - a piece of data entered inaccurately into a computer program - throws a spotlight on safety risks associated with medicine’s advance into the information age, a trend being pushed aggressively under health reform. The federal government is aiding the shift with $23 billion in incentives to medical providers who buy electronic medical records or computerized systems that automate drug orders and other medical processes. The hope is that these technologies will enhance access to vast amounts of information now tucked away in paper files and meaningfully improve medical care.

Doctors should be able to see test results quickly and communicate more easily with each other, for example. And electronic safeguards also can remind physicians about recommended medical practices or alert them to harmful interactions between medicines. Yet with these sizable potential benefits also come potential problems. Hospital computers may crash or software bugs jumble data, deleting information from computerized records or depositing it in the wrong place.

Sometimes, computers spew forth a slew of disorganized data, and physicians can’t find critical information about patients quickly.

Meanwhile, different electronic systems used in hospitals may not be able to communicate, and the alerts built into these systems are often ignored because they are so frequent and often are not especially useful, physicians and other experts report.

Technology vendors tend to dismiss incidents like the death that occurred at Advocate Lutheran General in Park Ridge as arising from human errors, not product deficiencies. But other experts say health information technologies can lead to mistakes when they aren’t in sync with the way medical providers work.

“We see problems much more often than we would like” because many health information systems are poorly designed and difficult for doctors and nurses to use, said Dr. Rainu Kaushal, chief of the division of quality and medical informatics at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City. Exactly how often safety concerns arise is not known. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration in December acknowledged getting 370 reports of problems involving health information technology since January 2008, including several dozen patient injuries and deaths, but those numbers are likely to be low because such reports are voluntary. Some examples: ● A patient died after a computer network problem caused delays in transmitting a critically important diagnostic image. ● Vital signs from patient monitors disappeared from electronic medical records after being viewed by hospital staff. ● A patient died after getting therapy meant for someone else after a wrong name was entered electronically on a scan performed by radiologists. ● Data about patients’ allergies were eliminated from medical records during an automatic computer update. “(These) technologies can be enormously helpful, but what is emerging is that when implemented poorly, they can be harmful,” said Dr. Ashish Jha, associate professor of health policy at Harvard University’s School of Public Health and a member of an Institute of Medicine committee appointed late last year to study safety concerns associated with health information technology. That panel’s

ILLINOIS: Fritzie and Cameron Burkett, photographed in their home, lost their infant son to a sodium overdose late last year at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Illinois. —MCT recommendations are expected to be issued in 2012.

Carla Smith, executive vice president of HIMSS, the industry’s largest trade group, based in Chicago, said that “safety concerns are on our radar screen” and “we want to make sure we have checks and balances in place (in vendor systems) to prevent unintended harm.” The story of Genesis Burkett’s death at Advocate Lutheran General last October underscores the potentially devastating consequences of a single wrong piece of data put into a software system. The infant’s parents, Fritzie and Cameron Burkett of Chicago, said they were overjoyed when their son, born four months early and weighing 1 pound 8 ounces, survived and began to improve under the hospital’s expert care. For about six weeks, the Burketts and other family members said, they were at the baby’s side, singing Christian music softly at his bassinet.

Having endured two previous miscarriages, the couple said they named the baby Genesis, signifying a new beginning. Genesis emerged from a heart operation on Oct. 15 without any clear complications, said the Burketts’ attorney, Patrick Salvi. Yet later that day, Fritzie Burkett said she got a call from the hospital telling her to come in immediately. When she arrived, Burkett said, medical staff were performing CPR on Genesis, and about 40 minutes later they pronounced him dead. “I lost all self-control; I didn’t know what to do,” Burkett recalled.

Dr. Lee Sacks, chief medical officer for Advocate Health Care, the Chicago area’s largest health care system, said the hospital’s investigation revealed that a pharmacy technician had entered information incorrectly when processing an electronic IV order for the baby, resulting in a massive sodium chloride overdose in the solution. The problem could have been identified by automated alerts on the IV compounding machine, but those were not activated when the customized bag was prepared for the baby, according to the hospital. Asked why, Sacks cited ongoing litigation and declined to elaborate.

Advocate’s investigation also found that the outermost label on the IV bag administered to the baby didn’t reflect its actual contents, Salvi said. And while a blood test on the infant had shown abnormally high sodium levels, a lab technician assumed the reading was inaccurate, Salvi added, citing the hospital’s investigation. Still another issue that played a role in baby Burkett’s death was a communication gap between the hospital’s electronic ordering system and the machine that prepared his IV fluids. Almost all medication requests at Advocate are transmitted by a doctor’s keystroke to the hospital pharmacy’s drug-dispensing system. But in this case, there was no electronic connection with the

automated compounding system that prepared the IV bag for baby Burkett, a specialized device that handles low-volume, highly individualized orders.

So, a technician transcribed the order by hand and an error was introduced. Electronic communication gaps are common at large hospitals, which typically use upward of 50 to 100 different information systems at their facilities, with different technologies used in emergency rooms, labs, pharmacies and other medical departments, said Ross Koppel, a sociologist at the University of Pennsylvania who studies health information technologies.

“To some degree these systems talk to each other, but mostly they don’t, so hospitals have to design custom-made software ‘bridges’ to make this happen,” Koppel said. With each jury-rigged software solution comes the potential for new software bugs, transcription errors and other problems.

The lack of so-called interoperability between computer systems is a “huge problem” in hospitals and a significant contributor to potential safety issues, said Marc Probst, chief information officer at Intermountain Healthcare, a 23-hospital system in Salt Lake City and a member of the Health Information Technology Policy Committee, a federally appointed group. What’s needed, he suggested, are better, more uniform national standards. Other experts have called for more oversight by the FDA, which currently doesn’t review new health information technologies or study their safety or effectiveness; mandatory reporting of adverse events to a national database; or the creation of an independent body like the Federal Aviation Administration that would oversee the safety of these technologies, bringing vendors, hospitals, doctors and others to the table.

The Burketts filed a lawsuit in April against Advocate Health and Hospitals Corp., alleging that the hospital’s actions led to their son’s death and asking for an unspecified amount of money. Hospital officials said they are pursuing a settlement. “It has been really hard to move on,” said Fritzie Burkett, wiping tears from her eyes. “This didn’t have to happen.”

For their part, Advocate officials apologized to the Burketts for the errors that killed Genesis while vowing that similar mistakes would not happen again. Since last year, staff have activated alerts for similar IV compounders used in the system’s hospitals and strengthened “double check” policies for all medications leaving pharmacies, among other measures.

Having poured $100 million into health care technology over the last decade, the system plans to use federal stimulus funds to institute a host of upgrades to electronic systems over the coming months. The Burkett’s case remains a “humbling” reminder that “we’ve got more work to do,” Sacks said. —MCT

Food companies learn hiding veggies trick from sneaky trend NEW YORK: It looks like Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, and Kraft says it tastes just like the original. But a new ingredient is lurking inside this version of the American family dinner staple - cauliflower. Don’t tell the kids! Kraft Foods Inc. is the latest large food manufacturer to try hiding additional veggies in packaged foods, an effort to ride a renewed interest in healthy eating to fatter profits. It’s a slowly growing trend, and it’s one that is dividing food industry experts.

In June, Wal-Mart and Target stores started stocking Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Dinner Veggie Pasta across the country, alongside boxes of the traditional recipe and other alternative versions, including organic and whole grain. Every neon-orange cup serving of the new recipe packs a half-serving of cauliflower. Kraft joins brands such as ConAgra Foods Inc.’s Chef Boyardee, which includes enough tomato in some of its canned pasta to claim half a cup of vegetables

per serving, and Unilever’s Ragu pasta sauces, which says it has two servings of veggies for every half cup of sauce.

In the Kraft product, the company freeze-dries cauliflower and pulverizes it into a powder, then uses that powder to replace some of the flour in the pasta. “We know moms are always looking to please their kids and wanting to not make meals a big ordeal, insofar as being able to get them to eat their food,” said Alberto Huerta, who oversees the Kraft Macaroni & Cheese brand at Kraft. “Mom is looking for ways to sneak veggies into her kids’ diet.” In Canada, the cauliflowerbased pasta has been available since last March. It immediately became one of the faster-selling versions of the dish, Huerta said.

It also drew new Kraft Dinner consumers, boosting overall revenue growth for the entire product line. Kraft’s move is a variation on a theme espoused by several recent - and highly successful - cook-

books. Missy Chase Lapine is author of the “Sneaky Chef” series of cookbooks, in which she promotes a system of color-coded, pureed fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables that can be mixed into foods such as macaroni and cheese (yams or cauliflower), spaghetti (carrots and sweet potato) and brownies (baby spinach and blueberries). “ The ideal, of course, is you steam up some local, organic, freshly picked cauliflower, and your child eats it outright with a little mist of olive oil, happily,” Lapine said. But like Kraft, Lapine takes a practical approach. “Food is only healthy if you can get someone to eat it,” she said. Harry Balzer, who tracks Americans’ eating patterns for The NPD Group, a market research firm, says parents are making genuine attempts to get healthier foods into their kids.

Fruits now make up 6 percent of kids’ diets, the largest share since he started tracking kids’ consump-

tion 30 years ago. Meantime, cookies, cake, pre-sweetened cereal, candy and carbonated soft drinks are at their lowest level, in terms of their share of kids’ diets.

But vegetables, which peaked as a percentage of kids’ diets in 1984, remain a sticking point.

They’re a hassle for parents to buy and keep fresh, they’re not generally seen as snack foods the way fruits are, and they’re rarely served alone as a main dish. That means if someone is cooking at home, vegetables are added work. And when they are available, many kids simply aren’t biting, the analyst said.

And while parents may have good intentions to buy healthier options, a higher vegetable content doesn’t top the list of criteria.

“I don’t think there’s a food company in American that doesn’t have on its radar the health and wellness of Americans, as a market,” Balzer said. “They think it’s a driving force in our behavior. I know it’s not. I know the driving force of

our behavior is taste buds.”

For Phil Lempert, another food industry analyst, half a serving of cauliflower in the new Kraft Macaroni & Cheese is better than nothing if Americans are willing to serve it. “I don’t care about the top 1 percent that can buy whatever they want, eat strictly organic, buy artisan cheese where they know the cheese maker,” Lempert said. “I want to make sure people who go in every week in the supermarket, are spending 22 minutes and 100 bucks a week for a family of four get the best health, taste and value that they can.” That approach draws skepticism from Marion Nestle, a professor at New York University’s department of nutrition, food studies and public health. Nutrients are lost when vegetables are freezedried, Nestle says, and people are also losing the benefit of greater volume of less calorie-dense food in a meal. “Oh, what will they think of next,” Nestle said. “What a silly idea.” —AP

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Do iridescent flowers have more pollinating power?

LONDON: Scientists are showing off a little-known property of some common garden flowers: They’re iridescent, meaning that light shimmers off them like the back of a CD. University of Cambridge researchers believe the shimmering is aimed at catching the eye of busy pollinators - saying that bees find the blooms easier to spot and may prefer flashy flowers over their non-iridescent counterparts. Bees’ preference for shimmery plant petals may be long-standing, but the phenomenon has been relatively little-studied until now. Cambridge said iridescence in plants was first formally identified in hibiscus flowers in 2009, something researcher Silvia Vignolini said might be due to an interesting piece of science hiding in plain sight.

“Trivial things, sometimes nobody

takes care of them,” she said at the opening Tuesday of the Royal Society’s summer science exhibit in central London.

“It’s weird that after all this time you can discover something new about flowers.”

Flowers become iridescent through minuscule striations on their surface.

Those diffract light and alter the way an object looks depending on the angle at which it is observed. The sparkly or shimmery effect is particularly noticeable on the back of a CD, whose micro-grooves work the same way, but it’s common in nature as well. Opals are iridescent, as are various species of insects such as some beetles or butterflies. It’s also common in birds, particularly hummingbirds, whose delicate throat feathers shine brilliantly. But until recently iridescence in plants was overlooked. Part of it might be

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because the shimmering in the darkly colored petals of Queen of the Night tulips isn’t as dramatic as the powerful blue of Morpho butterflies, which can be seen more than half a mile away.

In the case of Blazing Star wildflowers, the plants’ iridescence is visible in parts of the spectrum - such as the ultraviolet range - which can be seen by bees but not by humans. Cambridge’s exhibit on iridescent flowers was one of several scientific advances being shown this week at the Royal Society’s exhibit. Others included a display on invisibility and a machine built to recognize facial expressions. Visitors can inspect an airport security device, see what it’d be like to wear bionic glasses, or try their hand at using a $800,000 surgical device to thread a catheter through a glass heart. — AP

LONDON: The dark tulips, known as a Queen of the Night, iridescence is caused by striations on its surface which work in the same way as the micro-grooves on the back of a CD. — AP

Al-Seef Al-S Seef Hospital Hospita al International Inter national Visiting Doctors Program m Professor/ Profes sor/ Michel Gagner MD, MD D, FRCSC, FACS FACS Recipien Recipient nt of «Best Doctor Award» Award» in the t United States of America for f the years 2006 , 2007 , 2008 20 008 , 2009 & 2010 .

Presiden nt and member of several International Inteernational Medical Associations.

Associations.

President Departtment at Cleveland Hospital (1995 Chief of Laparoscopic Surgery Surgery Department (1995 - 1998).

Surgery Depart tment at New York York Presbyteria an Hospital (2003-2007).

Department Presbyterian Chief of Laparoscopic Surgery AI-Seef Hospital is pleased to announce unce the visit of the international international Professor/ Michel Gagner Gagn ner annou shall Who sha all perform perform the following procedures pro ocedures : g`YYjY [UghfYWhcam KY][\h `cgg gif[Yfm KY][\hh `cgg gif[Yfm g`YYjY [Ug hfYWhcam FYdU]f cZ \]UhU` \Yfb]U UbX hfYUhaYbh cZ ;6F8 cZ \]UhU` \Yfb]U UbX hfYUhaYbhh cZ ;6F8 FYdU]f @UdcfcgWcd]W hfYUhaYbh Zcf X]UVYh]W dUh]Ybhg @Udcfc cgWcd]W hfYUhaYbh Zcf X]UVYh]W dUh]Ybhg Email : visitingdrs@alseef-hospital.co vvisitingdrs@alseef-hospital.com m

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he Algeria High School for girls celebrated the graduation of its 2010/2011 twelfth grade students, in a ceremony held at its premises. The event was attended by the school’s staff led by headmistress Dima Al-Otaiqi, as well as the graduates’ families. —Photos by Fouad Al-Shaikh

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International School of Pakistan clinches top 7 positions in Kuwait

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he Federal Board of intermediate and Secondary Education, Islamabad has declared the results of SSC Annual Examination 2011. The International School of Pakistan, Khaitan clinches top seven positions in Kuwait securing 100% results.96 stu-

dents appeared in the annual examination from this school out of which 30 students were placed in A* grades.

The students attained their top positions among all Pakistani Schools in Kuwait Other students also showed a remarkable result.

The management of the school congratulated the students and their parents for such outstanding performance. The pivot role of the faculty of the School was highly admired for its devoted efforts which turned the success into brilliance.

Maha Mohammed

Family conference Home land family conference of KTMCC (Kuwait Town Malalyali Christian Congregation) will be conducted on July 23 at Kumbanadu, Kerala including its ex-members and the present members who are on vacation at that time. Meantime it decided to honor those who completed age of 70 and above.

For the registration of conference to visit www.ktmcc.com or to contact HFC (Home land family conference) Kerala Chapter Convener T. John Mathew Mob: - (+91) 94463-68878 or Secretary Roy. K.Yohannan 66570486.

Winds of change The AWARE Center cordially invites you to its diwaniya presentation entitled, “The winds of change in the Arab World,” on Tuesday July 12, 2011 by Dr Mohammed Alforgi at 7 pm.

Arabs who love them were about to lose hope in seeing any change in the Middle East and North Africa, they now see winds of change blowing. It all started with Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution. Soon Egypt followed suit.

Other countries like Libya, Yemen, Syria, etc. are on the track.

Countries where revolutions have occurred thus far, have something in common they are ruled by authoritative individual for decades, people are deprived from freedom of speech, subject to many other forms of oppression including imprisonment, torture, injustice, and rampant corruption - to mention but a few.

What is most inspiring about the winds of change though is that it all started with the youth, particularly those who used technology and the internet to collaborate, campaign and mobilize to create change.

They aimed at a one-time impossible objective: regime change. They finally did it?

However, everyone is eager to see what will follow next. Why did it happen? What will happen after those revolutions? How long can the momentum be kept? Dr Alforgi will address these issues and more. Dr Alforgi graduated from the University of Tulsa, Tulsa Oklahoma with a B.Sc. in Petroleum Engineering and an M.S. in engineering management.

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Embassy Information EMBASSY OF ARGENTINA In order to inform that 23rd of October 2011, will be Argentine national election where all Argentinean citizen residents permanently in Kuwait can vote only if they are registered at the Electoral Register of the Argentine Embassy. The procedure of inscription ended on 25 of April 2011. To register it is necessary that Argentinean citizens should come personally at the Argentinean Embassy (Block 6, street 42, villa 57, Mishref) and present the DNI and four personal photos (size 4x4, face should be front on white background). For further information, contact us on 25379211.

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EMBASSY OF AUSTRALIA The Embassy encourages all Australians to register their presence in Kuwait through Smartraveller Online (see link below).

Australians who are registered are asked to update their details. The information provided will assist us in contacting you in an emergency. www.smartraveller.gov.au Kuwait citizens can apply for and receive visit visas to Australia online at www.immi.gov.au.

This usually takes two working days. All others visa applications are handled by the Australian Visa Application Centre Tel. 22971110. Witnessing and certifying documents are by appointment only, please contact the Embassy on 2232 2422. The Australian Embassy is open from 8.00am to 4.00pm, Sunday to Thursday.

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Al-Ikhlas High School celebrated the graduation of its twelfth grade male and female outstanding graduates, in a ceremony attended by Ministry of Education officials, lawmakers, as well as the school’s staff led by owner Mohammad Al-Sayegh and the students’ families. —Photos by Fouad Al-Shaikh

Modern Sciences and Arts University, Egypt, validated by UK Universities

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he marked success of MSA has made international exposure a reality, thus leading to the validation of MSA programs by British universities. A natural extension of this success was the pursuit of superior quality higher education now made available at MSA. Today, MSA is the only university in Egypt that is validated by two renowned universities in the United Kingdom. MSA Graduates consequently receive a British degree, in addition to an Egyptian one.

The pursuit of international excellence is our aim. All well established programs offered at MSA are based on high standards, in collaboration with the Universities of Middlesex and Greenwich. These international institutions are the seal of quality to the degrees we offer. These degrees are fully recognized in the United Kingdom and consequently throughout the world.

With carefully selected candidates as our faculty members, we strive to promote the educational quality at MSA. Today, MSA stands on an equal footing with international universities.

In the never-ending pursuit to consolidate our relations internationally, and primarily with the Arab world, MSA University’s Marketing Manager Engr. George Atef has made his visit to Kuwait this year to meet and greet all the students wishing to study British Education.

An educational conference being held currently at Kuwait, with Mr. Hosny Kamel, MSA University representative in the Gulf Countries, where together they present their visiting students with all of MSA University’s faculties, scholarship programmes etc...

During Engr. George’s visit he will be granting the students who apply at the uni-

versity a 10% scholarship on their tuition fees.

Faculties Available: Engineering PharmacyBiotechnology Dentistry - Mass Communications - Computer Science Management Sciences - Arts& Design - Languages Students will be studying in the first University in Egypt validated by British universities and earn two bachelor degrees accredited worldwide; one from Egypt and the other from United Kingdom. At MSA we like to prepare our students for their future; at MSA you can take the advantage of pursuing your postgraduate studies in the United Kingdom, with the exact same requirements of Greenwich and Middlesex University graduates. Matriculate at a state-of-the-art campus equipped with the latest and most advanced educational resources; facilities are sophisticated

and play a large role in student life on campus.

Surrounded by greenery and a breathtaking landscape, students enjoy a friendly and communal environment.

MSA offers a wide range of extracurricular activities including groups and clubs which further develop students’ interests and help to build on their nonacademic skills. There are also various opportunities for students to involve themselves in external events organized

by MSA. Join the ranks of MSA Alumnus, who are distinguished for their exceptional employment rates among all Egyptian graduates, according to CAPMAS. MSA offers a strong support system to ensure students productive transition from university to the real world. Through ‘The International Employment Fair’ and ‘Career Placement Center’ (CPC), MSA allows students to get a real head-start

with their careers with internships and training enrollment with programs that are career-orientated. Pursue your preferred career with over 600 courses offering broad range of options and constantly adapting programs to suit your needs. The diversity of these courses gives students the opportunity to follow the exact path they want to whilst acquiring the necessary qualifications at the same time.

MSA has a wide student to teacher ratio which allows for real focus on student progress and achievement. MSA has highly qualified staff members who are well equipped to provide students with the academic support they require whilst obtaining their degrees. In addition to this, staff members operate as a support system for students to ensure their student’s experience is exactly what should be. MSA offers overseas Student Exchange Programs which not only prepare students for real life experiences but also develop workplace skills and exposures to different cultures whilst contributing to their academic degree. MSA is keen on offering both undergraduate and postgraduate scholarships; the university allows up to 30% discount for distinguished students with outstanding records.

MSA Offers the following scholarships: 20% For students scoring at least a GPA of 3.75 in a semester: 10% For students scoring at least a GPA of 3.6-3.74 in a semester: 5% For students whose brother/sister get enrolled in MSA University Our two British partners, Middlesex and Greenwich Universities award 13 scholarships to the top MSA graduates to pursue their masters degree.

From a sheer communist to a clear democratic With Jeevan TV Indian media man PJ Antony hopes for a new commune

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eading about the 60 hour power cut in Ahmadi, PJ Antony ponders over through his wise, grey beard. What’s the solution to problems like these he asks. As the Jeevan TV executive editor and director, he has a bouquet of ideas. Awareness campaigns. A TV program of that sort, he and the popular Indian channel MD Baby Mathew Somatheeram planned is already being shown on Jeevan TV, which celebrated its Kuwait wing’s anniversary this past weekend at the American International School, Maidan Hawally. The TV campaign program is focusing on the miserable lives of the downtrodden back home, shocking many a better off viewers across the globe.

PJ Antony has his own justifications for such a sensationalized problems of the poor. A former Communist Party of India leader who turned a spiritual preacher at South India’s most famous catholic retreat center, Divine until 5 months ago when his new vocation as the media man at Jeevan TV, is not switching roles but evolving as his humanistic enquiries grow upon him.

Marxism does not have room for aham, the self, he says, because of its materialistic features. But Indian new life movement leaders like Gandhi, Sree Narayana Guru and the like are

EMBASSY OF BRITAIN The Visa Application Centre (VAC) will be closed on the same dates above. The opening hours of the Visa Application Centre are 0930 - 1630 Application forms remain available online from the UKBAs’ website: www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk or from the Visa Application Centre’s website: www.vfs-ukkw.com. And also, from the UK Visa Application Centre located at: 4B, First Floor, Al Banwan Building (Burgan Bank Branch Office Building), Al Qibla area, opposite Central Bank of Kuwait, Kuwait City. For any further inquiries, please contact the Visa Application Centre: Website: www.vfs-uk-kw.com E-mail:info@vfs-uk-kw.com Telephone:22971170. The Consular Section will also be closed on the same dates.

For information on the British Embassy services, visit the British Embassy website: www.ukinkuwait.fco.gov.uk ■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakel St., Block 4 in Da’aiyah.

Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca.

Canada offers a registration service for all Canadians travelling or living abroad. This service is provided so that Consular Officials can contact and assist Canadians in an emergency in a foreign country, such as a natural disaster or civil unrest, or inform Canadians of a family emergency at home. The Embassy of Canada encourages all Canadian Citizens to register online through the Government of Canada Travel Website at www.voyage.gc.ca. The Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi provides visa and immigration services to residents of Kuwait. Individuals who are interested in visiting, working or immigrating to Canada are invited to visit the website of the Canadian Embassy to the UAE at www.UAE.gc.ca.

Effective January 15, 2011, the only Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) application form that will be accepted by CIC is the Application for Temporary Resident Visa Made Outside of Canada [IMM 5257] form. All previous Temporary Resident Visa application forms will no longer be accepted by CIC and instead will be returned to applicants. Should old applications be submitted prior to January 15, 2011 they will continue to be processed.

To ensure that the most recent version of the Temporary Resident Visa application form is being utilized, applicants should refer to the CIC website.

As of January 15, 2011, forms are to be filled in electronically. The Embassy of Canada is open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday.

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EMBASSY OF GERMANY The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Kuwait wishes to announce that as of 1 May 2011, the external service provider Al Qabas Assurex is operating a Visa Application Centre in support of the German Embassy. Short-term visa applications for travels to Germany (e.g. for tourism, visits, business) are to be submitted to the service provider Al Qabas who for your convenience will ensure that all relevant documents are included in your application. Your personal appearance at the Application Centre is not required. Address of the Visa Application Centre: Al Qabas Assurex Sanabel Tower (Al-Babtain) Mezzanine (M3) opposite Sharq Mall Kuwait 22924444 Fax: 22924442 Further information are available on the following websites: www.kuwait.diplo.de www.qavisa.com ■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF INDIA Embassy of India, would like to inform that application forms for passport/visa services and labour contracts that are on its website, www.indembkwt.org, have been upgraded to include the facility for online data entry. Affidavit forms on the Embassy website have had this facility since May 6, 2009.

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Indian Embassy Charge de Affaires Vidhu P Nair inaugurates Al-Mulla, Jeevan TV mega show by lighting the lamp Friday at American International School, Maidan Hawally as Al-Mulla Group Director Hormuzda Davar, Vijayakrishnan, noted Indian film critic and the program hosts look on. deeply influenced by spiritualism profoundly rooted in its soil. When India copied European secularism it had to reject its most deep-rooted spiritual traditions. The sight of the past is workers’ class minority finally dictated by a supreme leader ruling the majority. The clash here between materialism and spiritualism is one of the reasons India now needs a new vision, in Antony’s opinion.

Jeevan TV with its variety of pro-

grams aspires to instill and implement the politically democratic new vision, Antony said. With the maximum application of resources like natural, human, physical, social and democratic capitals complementing each other, there will be a better change in the society, he said. This thought formulated by Bishop Andrews Thazhath, Baby Mathew Somatheeram, Isac Thomas along with Antony will give more hopeful possibilities to the world where human beings

PJ Antony grow more democratic; something that is in our DNA but is never fully realized.

A cluster of South India’s talented popular entertainment icons enthralled Friday’s Jeevan TV mega show at American International School, Maidan Hawally where the first Jeevan awards were given out. Famous playback singers MG Sreekumar and Renjini Jose led the two shows which had comedy numbers sparked by Ayyappa Baiju and his 3-member team. The two shows also had numerous local talents. The program was coordinated by Al-Mulla team, Jeevan TV Kuwait bureau chief Vinod V Nair and his friends.

EMBASSY OF KENYA The Embassy of the Republic of Kenya wishes to request all Kenyans resident in or training through Kuwait to register with the Embassy. We are updating our database. This information is necessary in order to facilitate quick assistance and advise in times of emergency. Kindly visit in person or register through our website www.kenyaembkuwait.com. The Embassy is located in: Surra Area - Block 6 - Street 9 Villa 3 Tel: 25353362 - 25353314; Fax: 25353316.

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EMBASSY OF NIGERIA The Nigerian embassy has moved its office to Mishref. Block 3, Street 7, House 4. For enquires please call 25379541. Fax25387719. Email- nigeriakuwait@yahoo.com or nigeriankuwait@yahoo.co.uk

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00:45 Dogs 101 01:40 Untamed & Uncut 02:35 Deadly Waters 03:30 Surviving Sharks 04:25 I’m Alive 05:20 Animal Cops South Africa 06:10 Dogs 101 07:00 Lemur Street 07:25 Michaela’s Animal Road Trip 08:15 The Really Wild Show 08:40 Jeff Corwin Unleashed 09:10 Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife 10:05 My Cat from Hell 11:00 Dogs 101 11:55 Crocodile Hunter 12:50 Great Ocean Adventures 14:40 Cats 101 15:35 Austin Stevens Adventures 16:30 Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife 17:25 Escape to Chimp Eden 18:20 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 19:15 Venom Hunter with Donald Schultz 20:10 Dogs 101 21:05 Into the Pride 22:00 Planet Earth 22:55 Whale Wars 23:50 Wildest Africa

00:30 Discovery Atlas: China Revealed 02:10 GT Racer 03:00 Blue Angels: A Year In The Life 03:55 The Reinventors 04:25 Sunrise Earth 05:20 Nextworld 06:10 Ultimate Journeys 07:00 Clash Of The Dinosaurs 07:50 Clash Of The Dinosaurs 08:40 Alaska’s Great Race 09:30 Risk Takers 10:20 Ultimate Journeys 11:10 Mega Builders 12:00 Street Customs 12:50 GT Racer 13:40 Ultimate Survival 14:30 Atlas 4d 15:20 Alaska: Surviving The Last Frontier 16:10 Brew Masters 17:00 Deadliest Catch 17:50 Alaska’s Great Race 18:40 World’s Most Expensive Car 19:30 Blue Angels: A Year In The Life 20:20 Discovery Atlas: China Revealed 22:00 Deadliest Catch 22:50 Raging Planet 23:40 Alaska: Surviving The Last Frontier

00:05 Robin Hood 00:50 Strictly Come Dancing 02:05 Strictly Come Dancing 02:45 Red Cap 03:35 Elbow With The BBC Concert Orchestra 04:35 Fimbles 04:55 Balamory 05:15 Tikkabilla 05:45 Charlie And Lola 05:55 Fimbles 06:15 Balamory 06:35 Tikkabilla 07:05 Charlie And Lola 07:15 Balamory 07:35 Tikkabilla 08:05 Charlie And Lola 08:15 Fimbles 08:35 Balamory 08:55 Tikkabilla 09:30 One Foot In The Grave 10:00 Elbow With The BBC Concert Orchestra 11:00 Robin Hood 11:45 The Weakest Link 12:30 Casualty 13:20 Casualty 14:10 The Weakest Link 15:40 Doctors 18:10 Robin Hood 19:00 Elbow With The BBC Concert Orchestra 20:00 Ray Mears Goes Walkabout 20:50 Monarch Of The Glen 21:40 The Fixer 22:30 Spooks 23:20 Bleak House

00:05 Antiques Roadshow 02:35 Cash In The Attic USA 13:15 New Scandinavian Cooking With Andreas Viestad 17:00 New Scandinavian Cooking 19:30 Come Dine With Me 21:10 New Scandinavian Cooking With Andreas Viestad 21:40 New Scandinavian Cooking With Andreas Viestad 22:10 Design Star 22:55 Design Star 23:40 Rick Stein’s French Odyssey

00:40 01:35 02:30 05:15 05:40

Human Prey Behind Bars How It’s Made How Stuff Works How It’s Made

How Stuff Works How It’s Made Extreme Engineering Mighty Ships Huge Moves River Monsters River Monsters Flying Wild Alaska Sarah Palin’s Alaska LA Ink The Next Great Baker Cake Boss Mythbusters Flying Wild Alaska Danger Coast Danger Coast Swords: Life On The Line Mythbusters Aircrash Confidential Aircrash Confidential Aircrash Confidential

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The Gadget Show Things That Move Things That Move The Colony Ultimate Power Builders Engineered Da Vinci’s Machines Catch It Keep It How Stuff’s Made Superships How The Universe Works Head Rush Sci-Fi Science Weird Connections Brainiac Prototype This Scrapheap Challenge What’s That About?

Scrapheap Challenge What’s That About?

Scrapheap Challenge Head Rush Sci-Fi Science Weird Connections Bang Goes The Theory The Gadget Show The Gadget Show Science Of The Movies Sci-Fi Science Sci-Fi Science Weird Connections Weird Connections Things That Move Things That Move The Gadget Show The Gadget Show Sci-Fi Science The Tech Show Bad Universe Perfect Disaster Bang Goes The Theory

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

TV PROGRAMS

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00:05 00:30 01:45 02:35 03:25 04:15 04:40 05:05 05:30 05:50 06:35 Basics 07:00 07:50 08:15 08:40 09:05 09:30 09:55 Basics 10:20 10:45 11:10 11:35 12:25 12:50 13:15 13:40 14:30 14:55 15:20 15:45 16:35 17:00 Basics 17:25 17:50 18:15 19:05 19:30 20:20 21:10 22:00 22:50

02:00 05:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 08:30

Replacements Fairly Odd Parents A Kind Of Magic Stitch Kim Possible Kim Possible Emperors New School Stitch Jungle Junction Handy Manny Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jake & The Neverland Pirates Fish Hooks Suite Life On Deck S3 Shake It Up Wizards Of Waverly Place Pixel Perfect Good Luck Charlie Suite Life On Deck S3 Wizards Of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Fish Hooks Good Luck Charlie Wizards Of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Shake It Up Fish Hooks Shake It Up Cow Belles Wizards Of Waverly Place Fish Hooks Phineas & Ferb Suite Life On Deck Sonny With A Chance Jonas La Hannah Montana Kim Possible

Unwrapped Diners, Drive-Ins And Dives Food Network Challenge Chopped Ultimate Recipe Showdown Good Eats - Special Unwrapped Ten Dollar Dinners Paula’s Best Dishes Paula’s Party Barefoot Contessa - Back To Chopped Guy’s Big Bite Everyday Italian Good Deal With Dave Lieberman Ten Dollar Dinners Paula’s Best Dishes Barefoot Contessa - Back To Diners, Drive-Ins And Dives Lidia’s Italy Unwrapped Paula’s Party Everyday Italian Paula’s Best Dishes Good Deal With Dave Lieberman Ultimate Recipe Showdown Lidia’s Italy Unwrapped Boy Meets Grill Chopped Guy’s Big Bite Barefoot Contessa - Back To Lidia’s Italy Everyday Italian Paula’s Party Good Eats - Special Food Network Challenge Unwrapped Lidia’s Italy Barefoot Contessa Guy’s Big Bite

PGA Tour ATP Tour Golf With Style Pipe Dream Feherty Golf Now

09:00 09:30 10:00 13:00 15:30 19:30 20:30 21:00 23:00

Golf Central International Top 10 Champions Tour MLB On Fox European Tour Big Break Indian Wells Inside The PGA Tour ATP Tour PGA Tour

00:30 01:20 02:10 03:00 04:45 05:15 06:10 07:00 07:50 08:40 09:30 09:55 10:20 11:10 12:00 12:50 13:40 14:30 14:55 15:20 16:10 17:00 17:50 18:40 19:30 19:55 20:20 21:10 22:00

A Haunting Ghost Lab The Haunted A Haunting Ghosthunters Murder Shift Life Or Death: Medical Mysteries Forensic Detectives Murder Shift Life Or Death: Medical Mysteries Real Emergency Calls Street Patrol Fugitive Strike Force FBI Files On The Case With Paula Zahn Royal Inquest Life Or Death: Medical Mysteries Real Emergency Calls Street Patrol Fugitive Strike Force Forensic Detectives Murder Shift FBI Files Life Or Death: Medical Mysteries Street Patrol Real Emergency Calls On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared Most Evil

00:00 C.S.I. New York 01:00 Justified 02:00 Grey’s Anatomy 03:00 C.S.I. 04:00 The View 05:00 Century City 06:00 Good Morning America 07:00 The Cape 08:00 Emmerdale 08:30 Coronation Street 09:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 10:00 Century City 11:00 The View 12:00 C.S.I. New York 13:00 C.S.I. 14:00 Century City 15:00 Live Good Morning America 16:00 Grey’s Anatomy 17:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 18:00 Emmerdale 18:30 Coronation Street 19:00 Law And Order: Los Angeles 20:00 Law And Order 21:00 Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior

Ulee’s Gold-PG Bring Me The Head Of Alfredo

01:00 No Time To Fear-PG15 03:00 Dick Tracy-PG15 05:00 Blindness-18 07:00 The Fast And The Furious-PG15 09:00 Blue Crush-PG15 11:00 Surrogates-PG15 12:45 The Manchurian Candidate-18 15:00 Blue Crush-PG15 17:00 Phone Booth-PG15 19:00 Bugsy-18 21:15 Green Street 2: Stand Your Ground-18 23:00 Bad Guys-18

01:35 03:30 Garcia 05:20 06:50 08:20 10:10 11:45 13:15 15:15 16:55 17:10 18:50 20:15 22:00

00:00 01:00 01:55 02:50 03:45 04:40 05:35 06:30 07:25 08:20 09:15 10:10 11:05 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00

Seduced By Madness Dying To Dance-PG Hornet’s Nest-PG Back To School Mosquito Squadron-PG The Horse Soldiers-PG Salt And Pepper-PG Mgm’s Big Screen-FAM Lawman-PG Sibling Rivalry-PG Stanley And Iris-PG Taras Bulba-PG

Search For The Giant Octopus Monster Fish Crocodile King The Real Serengeti 21st Century Shark Triumph of Life Monster Fish Hyena Queen The Rise Of Black Wolf Big Cat Odyssey How Big Can It Get Zambezi World’s Weirdest Shadow Hunters Wild Amazon Fish Warrior In The Womb I, Predator How Big Can It Get Shark Nicole Fish Warrior In The Womb I, Predator

00:15 Friday The 13th-18 02:00 8 Mile-18 04:00 Dick Tracy-PG15 06:00 Lost In Space-PG15 08:15 Heaven’s Fall-PG15 10:00 Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle Of Life-PG15 12:00 12 Rounds-PG15 14:00 Heaven’s Fall-PG15 16:00 King Arthur-PG15 18:15 12 Rounds-PG15 20:15 Don’t Look Up-18 22:00 From Paris With Love-18

01:45 Emotional Arithmetic-PG15 03:30 Remember Me-PG15 05:30 Green Lantern: First Flight-PG 07:00 Winx: Secret Of The Lost Kingdom-PG 09:00 Motherhood-PG15 11:00 The Sorcerer’s Apprentice-PG15 13:00 Harold-PG15 15:00 Beneath The Blue-PG15 17:00 The Cake Eaters-PG15 19:00 All About Steve-PG15 21:00 Sherlock Holmes-PG15 23:15 The Great Debaters-PG15

FRIDAY THE 13TH ON OSN ACTION HD

00:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 01:00 The Colbert Report 01:30 Funny Or Die Presents 02:00 Saturday Night Live 03:00 10 Things I Hate About You 03:30 How I Met Your Mother 04:00 The New Adventures Of Old Christine 04:30 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 05:30 Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne 06:00 According To Jim 06:30 Coach 07:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 08:00 The New Adventures Of Old Christine 08:30 10 Things I Hate About You 09:00 Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne 09:30 Hot In Cleveland 10:00 Hot In Cleveland 10:30 According To Jim 11:00 Coach 11:30 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 12:30 The New Adventures Of Old Christine 13:00 How I Met Your Mother 13:30 Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne 14:00 According To Jim 14:30 Hot In Cleveland 15:00 Hot In Cleveland 15:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 16:00 The Colbert Report 16:30 Coach 17:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 18:00 Malcolm In The Middle

18:30 19:00 19:30 20:00 20:30 21:00 21:30 22:00 22:30 23:00 23:30

Hope And Faith Seinfeld Sons Of Tucson Two And A Half Men Curb Your Enthusiasm The Daily Show With Jon Stewart The Colbert Report Neighbors From Hell That Mitchell And Webb Look Funny Or Die Presents Two And A Half Men

8 MILE ON OSN ACTION HD 00:00 My One And Only-PG15 02:00 Nine Months-PG15 04:00 17 Again-PG15 06:00 Old Dogs-PG 08:00 Ghosts Of Girlfriends Past-PG15 10:00 Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs-PG 12:00 Checking Out-PG15 14:00 The Prince And Me 3: A Royal Honeymoon-PG15 16:00 My One And Only-PG15 18:00 The Last Supper-PG15 20:00 Funny People-18 22:30 The Hangover-18

01:00 A Prophet-18 03:45 The Three Musketeers-PG15 05:45 In America-18 07:45 When We Were Kings-PG15 09:15 Witness To Waco-PG15 11:00 Michael Jackson’s This Is It-PG 13:00 Little Nicholas-PG 15:00 In God’s Hands-PG 17:00 By The People: The Election Of Barack Obama-PG15 19:00 Five Minutes Of Heaven-PG15 21:00 The Public Eye-U 23:00 Titanic-PG15

01:00 Fools Rush In-PG15 03:00 Monsters vs. Aliens-PG 05:00 When We Were Kings-PG15 07:00 The Wedding Singer-PG15 09:00 The Blind Side-PG15 11:15 Adventures Of A Teenage Dragonslayer-PG 13:00 Good Hair-PG15 15:00 Moon-PG15 17:00 The Blind Side-PG15 19:15 Crazy On The Outside-PG15 21:00 Bond Of Silence-PG15 23:00 Van Wilder: Freshman Year-R

00:00 02:00 04:00 06:00 08:00 10:00 12:00 14:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00

Planet 51-PG Scruff In Halloween-FAM Rolie, Polie, Olie: The Movie-FAM The Princess And The Frog-FAM Groove Squad-FAM Planet 51-PG How To Train Your Dragon-PG Last Of The Mohicans-PG The Country Bears-PG15 How To Train Your Dragon-PG Time Kid-FAM Last Of The Mohicans-PG

00:00 The Dry Land-18 02:00 Toy Story 3-FAM 04:00 My Bollywood Bride-PG15 06:00 Inside Job-PG15 08:00 Freestyle-PG15 10:00 Last Chance Harvey-PG15 12:00 Toy Story 3-FAM 14:00 Flicka 2-PG15 16:00 Freestyle-PG15 17:30 Iron Man 2-PG15 20:00 The Nail: The Story Of Joey Nardone-PG15 22:00 Wrong Turn 3: Left For Dead

00:00 02:00 05:30 06:30 07:00 08:00 10:00 10:30 12:30 13:30 15:30 19:30 20:15 22:15

Super Rugby AFL Premiership WWE NXT Aquabikes WWE Vintage Collection Live NRL Premiership Powerboats F1 H2O WWE SmackDown Speedway NRL Premiership Live PGA European Tour Futbol Mundial Live Super League Super Rugby

00:00 European PGA Tour 04:30 Super League 06:30 Futbol Mundial

07:00 08:00 11:00 14:00 17:30 19:30 20:00 22:15

Live NRL Premiership Live NRL Premiership Masters Football Live Snooker Super Rugby ICC Cricket World Live Super League Snooker

00:00 02:00 04:00 07:00 08:00 10:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 15:30 19:30 20:30 21:00

NRL Premiership NRL Premiership Masters Football Trans World Sport Live NRL Premiership NRL Premiership ICC Criket World Total Rugby Super Rugby Live PGA European Tour Trans World Sport Futbol Mundial PGA European Tour

00:00 03:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 10:30 12:30 13:30 14:00 16:00 18:00 19:00 21:00

WWE Bottom Line WWE SmackDown UFC Unleashed UFC Unleashed WWE Vintage Collection Aquabikes Live V8 Supercars Championship WWE SmackDown Speedway Le Mans Series V8 Supercars Championship WWE SmackDown WWE Vintage Collection V8 Supercars Championship UFC 132

00:05 01:20 01:45 03:00 03:50 05:05 05:30 07:00 08:15 10:45 12:25 13:15 14:30 16:10 17:00 18:15 19:55 20:45 22:00 22:25 23:40

Adventures Abroad Western Extreme The Wingshooter Fall Flight Adventures Abroad Western Extreme The Wingshooter Speargun Hunter World Class Sports Fishing Randy Jones’ Strike Zone Salmon, Trout & Steelheader Savage Wild Randy Jones’ Strike Zone Salmon, Trout & Steelheader Savage Wild Randy Jones’ Strike Zone Salmon, Trout & Steelheader Savage Wild Fall Flight Ducks Unlimited Western Extreme

00:00 Pawn Stars 00:30 Pawn Stars 01:00 Decoding The Past 02:00 Decoding The Past 03:00 Desperate Crossing: The Mayflower 04:00 America: The Story Of The Us 05:00 America: The Story Of The Us 06:00 Pawn Stars 06:30 Pawn Stars 07:00 Decoding The Past 08:00 Decoding The Past 09:00 Desperate Crossing: The Mayflower 10:00 America: The Story Of The Us 11:00 America: The Story Of The Us 12:00 Pawn Stars 12:30 Pawn Stars 13:00 Decoding The Past 14:00 Decoding The Past 15:00 Desperate Crossing: The Mayflower 16:00 America: The Story Of The Us 17:00 America: The Story Of The Us 18:00 Pawn Stars 18:30 Pawn Stars 19:00 Decoding The Past 20:00 Decoding The Past 21:00 Desperate Crossing: The Mayflower

00:00 00:30 01:00 01:30 01:55 02:25 03:20 04:15 05:10 05:35 06:05 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 09:25 09:55 10:20 10:50 11:50 12:50 13:45 14:45 15:40 16:35 17:30 18:25 19:25 20:20 20:45 21:15 22:10 23:05

Homes With Style Homes With Style Fashion Avenue Fashion Avenue Big Boutique How Do I Look?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Married Away Homes With Style Area Clean House Big Boutique Big Boutique Clean House Top 10 Top 10 Homes With Style Homes With Style Bridalplasty Bridalplasty Clean House Clean House Clean House Clean House Clean House Clean House Clean House Clean House Homes With Style Clean House Comes Clean Giuliana And Bill Jerseylicious Jerseylicious

00:00 Travel Notebook 01:00 Indian Times 02:00 Trabant Trek 02:30 Word Travels 03:00 Julian And Camilla’s World Odyssey 04:00 Globe Trekker 05:00 Travel Notebook 06:00 Globe Trekker 07:00 Globe Trekker 08:00 Planet Sports 09:00 Glutton For Punishment 09:30 Angry Planet 10:00 Rivers Of The World 11:00 Travel Today 11:30 Cruise Today 12:00 Globe Trekker 13:00 Cruising The Spirit Of Adventure 14:00 Indian Times 15:00 Travel Notebook 16:00 Globe Trekker 17:00 Intrepid Journeys 18:00 World’s Greatest Motorcycle Rides 19:00 Globe Trekker 20:00 Planet Food 21:00 Distant Shores 21:30 Essential 22:00 Planet Sports 23:00 Globe Trekker

00:05 Cow And Chicken 00:30 Cramp Twins 00:55 The Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy 01:20 Courage The Cowardly Dog 01:45 Eliot Kid 02:10 Ed, Edd n Eddy 02:35 Ben 10: Alien Force 03:00 The Powerpuff Girls 03:15 Chowder 03:40 The Secret Saturdays 04:05 Samurai Jack 04:30 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 04:55 Best Ed 05:20 Skunk Fu! 05:45 Cramp Twins 06:10 Eliot Kid 06:35 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 07:00 Codename: Kids Next Door 07:25 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 07:50 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 08:15 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien

08:40 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 09:05 Best Ed 10:00 Star Wars: The Clone Wars 10:30 Star Wars: The Clone Wars 10:55 The Powerpuff Girls 11:20 The Powerpuff Girls 11:45 Adventure Time 12:35 Ben 10: Alien Force 13:00 Ben 10: Alien Force 13:25 Bakugan: Gundalian Invaders 13:50 Bakugan: Gundalian Invaders 14:15 Skunk Fu! 15:05 Batman: The Brave And The Bold 15:25 Batman: The Brave And The Bold 15:50 Ben 10 16:10 Ben 10 16:35 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 16:55 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 17:15 Ed, Edd n Eddy 17:40 Chowder 18:05 Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends 18:30 Eliot Kid 18:55 Chop Socky Chooks 19:20 My Gym Partner’s A Monkey 19:45 Camp Lazlo 20:10 Squirrel Boy 20:35 Cow And Chicken 21:00 Courage The Cowardly Dog 21:25 The Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy 21:50 Robotboy 22:00 Adventure Time 22:25 Hero 108 22:50 Ben 10 23:15 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 23:40 Chowder

00:05 00:15 00:40 01:10 01:30 02:00 02:15 02:25 02:50 03:20 03:40 04:10 04:35 05:00 05:30 05:50 06:15 06:45 07:00 07:15 07:38 07:40 07:55 08:20 08:30 09:00 09:10 09:25 09:48 09:50 10:15 10:35 10:50 11:03 11:05 11:27 11:30 11:55 12:00 12:22 12:25 12:45 13:00 13:15 13:25 13:35 13:50 14:13 14:15 14:37 14:40 15:03 15:05 15:27 15:30 15:40 15:50 16:05 16:30

Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Higglytown Heroes Jo Jo’s Circus Special Agent Oso Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Higglytown Heroes Jo Jo’s Circus Special Agent Oso Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Higglytown Heroes Jo Jo’s Circus Jungle Junction Higglytown Heroes Handy Manny Special Agent Oso Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Mickey Mousekersize Timmy Time Little Einsteins The Hive Jake & The Neverland Pirates Jungle Junction Special Agent Oso Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Mickey Mousekersize Mickey Mouse Clubhouse The Little Mermaid Handy Manny The Hive Mickey Mousekersize Imagination Movers Mickey Mousekersize Imagination Movers Mickey Mousekersize Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Mickey Mousekersize Handy Manny Jake & The Neverland Pirates Jungle Junction The Hive Timmy Time Special Agent Oso The Little Mermaid Mickey Mousekersize Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Mickey Mousekersize Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Mickey Mousekersize Imagination Movers Mickey Mousekersize The Hive Jake & The Neverland Pirates Jungle Junction Lazytown Imagination Movers

Classifieds SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

9337034. (C 3503) 7-7-2011

© 2011 011 MCT rld Book Source: World T Graphic: Paul Trap

FOR SALE

Triangles T riangles hold h old up up a house house Make a model that Make shows a basic rule rule shows of designing buildings, buildings, then go yo our town town out in your examples x and find examples rule in of that rule action.

1

Make two Make two squares square es of sticks sti cks and a clay clay

4

Take T ake the h cube b apart, apar t, cut the sticks sticks so they th hey are only three-quarters three-qua ar ters as long as before before e and put the cube ba back ck together together 3/4 3 /4

2

Use ffour our more sti cks sticks to build build a cube

3

You’ll Y ou’ll need need t At least 18 plastic or w wood ood cof fee-stirring coffee-stirring sticks sticks

Push down down gently on the cube

4 1//4

This time, time, attach an n uncut stick diagonally across acrross the stick squ uare middle of each square Did that make the make cube stronger?

Is it v very er y strong?

Wha at happens What if you you push d own w and down sid eways at sideways s the same time e? time?

t Modeling clay clay t Scissors

Toyota Corolla model 2009, white color, 1.8 engine, excellent condition, cash price KD 3,250/(Installment possible).

Contact: 66396517. (C 3502)

Sharing accommodation available for bachelor or couple in Abbassiya near Holy Sweets Restaurant.

Contact: 65129145.

(C 3499) 6-7-2011

PC Compaq Pentium4, Ram 256, HD 40GB, DVD+CD Writer, Windows XP Professional with 15” LCD screen Lenovo, in excellent condition, price KD 45.

Contact: 99322585/

Sharing accommodation available for a single person in a fully furnished CA/C building, in Farwaniya near Burger King with kitchen & parking facilities. If interested please contact: 99038601.

What W hat happened? happened?

Make a square or rectangle out of sticks, and it can collapse easily ... ... but add a diagonal brace, and it becomes two triangles, which are much stronger ’ why carpenters use That’s diagonal braces when they build a wall or a house Find a construction site where carpenters are making a building out of wood, and look for the diagonal braces

Farwaniya (live in or part time) (Indian, Sri Lankan preferred) salary KD 100/-.

Contact: 97220933.

(C 3510) 10-7-2011 Required a foreign Maths lady teacher to teach grade 4 Maths. Please Contact: 99011855. (C 3504)

Sharing accommodation available for bachelor or couple in Abbassiya near Holy Sweets Restaurant.

Contact: 65129145.

(C 3499) 6-7-2011

SITUATION VACANT Required house maid for an Indian family in

Sri Lankan lady looking for a housekeeping job (American or European only). Contact: 55680045.

(C 3505)

MATRIMONIAL A family is seeking to hire a houseboy who is fluent in English and is Christian.

Contact: 99199020.

(C 3506) 9-7-2011

ACCOMMODATION Sharing accommodation available in Abbasiya, furnished 2 bedroom flat, from September 1. Rent KD 35.

One vacancy. Contact: 99162583. (C 3507) 10-7-2011

sanju_3n3@yahoo.com (C 3496)

SITUATION WANTED Accountant - B.Com Graduate passed in First Class knowing Peachtree and Tally accounting having 2 year experience in India and currently working in Kuwait. Seeking suitable job as Accountant. Contact: 65179245. (C 3508) 10-7-2011 Instrumentation and Control Engineer, Indian, 7 months experience in calibration. Looking for a suitable position, can join immediately, on visit visa.

Contact: 96679478. Email:

We are inviting marriage proposals from Pakistani families for our MSc daughter from Mughal family.

Contact Email: wasimughal2003@yahoo.com (C 3495) 4-7-2011 Proposal invited for Marthoma male, 29 years, company foreman. Invite proposal from MOH staff in Kuwait. Email: vijige orge83@yahoo.com / vijigeorge83@gmail.com (C 3489) 2-7-2011

CHANGE OF NAME I, Luis Anthony D’cunha, aged 36, holder of Indian Passport no. F 8706443 residing in Kuwait hereby change my name to Luis D’cunha. (C 3501) 6-7-2011

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION In case you are not travelling, your proper cancellation of bookings will help other passengers to use seats Airlines RJA MLR JZR KAC BBC THY ETH KAC UAE DHX ETD ALK JZR MSR FDB JZR GFA QTR KAC FCX RJA JZR KAC BAW JZR KAC KAC IRA KAC KAC KAC FDB KAC KAC UAE QTR ABY IRA ETD GFA IRC FCX MEA JZR JZR JZR RBG KAC MSR UAL RJA KAC

Flt 642 1405 267 1674 41 772 620 108 853 370 305 558 269 614 67 189 211 138 544 201 5314 555 412 157 1541 206 382 615 284 302 332 53 678 352 855 132 125 603 301 213 6801 203 404 165 121 561 3553 672 610 982 640 774

Arrival Flights on Sunday 10/7/2011 Route AMMAN COLOMBO / DUBAI BEIRUT DUBAI DHAKA / CHITTAGONG / DUBAI ISTANBUL ADDIS ABABA GENEVA / LONDON DUBAI BAHRAIN ABU DHABI FRANKFURT BEIRUT CAIRO DUBAI DUBAI BAHRAIN DOHA CAIRO DUBAI AMMAN ALEXANDRIA MANILA / BANGKOK LONDON CAIRO ISLAMABAD DELHI SHAHRE KORD DHAKA MUMBAI TRIVANDRUM DUBAI MUSCAT / DUBAI COCHIN DUBAI DOHA SHARJAH SHIRAZ ABU DHABI BAHRAIN AHWAZ DUBAI BEIRUT DUBAI BAHRAIN SOHAG ALEXANDRIA / SOHAG DUBAI CAIRO WASHINGTON DC DULLES AMMAN RIYADH

Time 0:05 0:15 0:35 0:40 1:00 1:15 1:45 2:05 2:25 2:55 2:55 2:55 3:05 3:05 3:10 3:10 3:15 3:20 4:40 5:25 6:00 6:10 6:15 6:30 7:10 7:15 7:20 7:35 7:40 7:50 7:55 7:55 8:00 8:05 8:25 9:00 9:10 9:25 9:30 9:35 10:15 10:30 10:55 11:10 11:15 12:30 12:55 13:15 13:20 13:30 13:35 13:40

FDB QTR KAC SVA KAC KAC JZR QTR JZR ETD UAE GFA SVA JZR JZR ABY JZR FDB ALK JZR KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC JAI SYR FDB OMA VOS MEA KAC KAC DHX UAE KAC GFA QTR AFG UAL AIC JZR JZR JZR MSR DLH AXB JZR KLM BBC JZR PIA

57 140 562 500 788 746 257 134 535 303 857 215 510 777 239 127 213 63 227 177 166 542 618 786 614 674 102 572 341 61 647 81 402 551 512 372 859 172 217 136 405 981 981 135 787 185 612 636 389 539 447 45 481 205

DUBAI DOHA AMMAN JEDDAH JEDDAH ABU DHABI / DAMMAM BEIRUT DOHA CAIRO ABU DHABI DUBAI BAHRAIN RIYADH JEDDAH AMMAN SHARJAH DEIREZZOR / ALEPPO DUBAI COLOMBO / DUBAI DUBAI PARIS / ROME CAIRO DOHA JEDDAH BAHRAIN DUBAI NEW YORK / LONDON MUMBAI DAMASCUS / ALEPPO DUBAI MUSCAT BAGHDAD BEIRUT DAMASCUS TEHRAN BAHRAIN DUBAI FRANKFURT BAHRAIN DOHA KABUL / DUBAI BAHRAIN CHENNAI / AHMEDABAD BAHRAIN RIYADH DUBAI CAIRO FRANKFURT KOZHIKODE / MANGALORE CAIRO AMSTERDAM / BAHRAIN DHAKA / BAHRAIN SABIHA LAHORE

13:50 14:15 14:20 14:30 15:00 15:05 15:10 15:15 15:50 16:50 16:55 17:15 17:20 17:25 17:35 17:40 17:50 17:55 18:00 18:00 18:40 18:50 18:55 19:00 19:20 19:25 19:25 19:35 19:55 20:00 20:10 20:15 20:15 20:15 21:00 21:00 21:15 21:20 21:25 21:35 22:00 22:00 22:05 22:10 22:20 22:35 22:50 23:00 23:10 23:30 23:35 23:45 23:50 23:55

Airlines AXB JZR DLH AIC MLR THY BBC ETH ALK UAE FDB DHX ETD MSR QTR JZR JZR RJA GFA VOS RJA JZR BAW IRA FDB JZR KAC KAC KAC KAC JZR KAC KAC UAE ABY QTR ETD GFA KAC IRA JZR IRC FCX MEA KAC JZR JZR KAC KAC

Flt 394 1540 637 976 1405 773 42 620 558 854 68 371 306 615 139 560 164 643 212 94 5315 120 156 614 54 534 171 671 745 117 256 561 787 856 126 133 302 214 773 602 212 6802 204 405 541 776 238 103 785

Departure Flights on Sunday 10/7/2011 Route COCHIN / KOZHIKODE CAIRO FRANKFURT GOA / CHENNAI COLOMBO ISTANBUL DHAKA BAHRAIN / ADDIS ABABA COLOMBO DUBAI DUBAI BAHRAIN ABU DHABI CAIRO DOHA SOHAG DUBAI AMMAN BAHRAIN DUBAI / KANDAHAR AMMAN BAHRAIN LONDON SHAHRE KORD DUBAI CAIRO FRANKFURT DUBAI DAMMAM / ABU DHABI NEW YORK BEIRUT AMMAN JEDDAH DUBAI SHARJAH DOHA ABU DHABI BAHRAIN RIYADH SHIRAZ DEIREZZOR / ALEPPO AHWAZ DUBAI BEIRUT CAIRO JEDDAH AMMAN LONDON JEDDAH

Time 0:15 0:20 0:40 0:50 1:15 2:15 2:15 2:30 3:40 3:45 3:50 3:55 4:05 4:05 5:00 5:55 6:55 7:00 7:10 8:00 8:10 8:20 8:25 8:35 8:40 8:50 8:55 9:00 9:05 9:05 9:10 9:15 9:25 9:40 9:50 10:00 10:15 10:20 10:20 10:25 10:50 11:15 11:45 11:55 12:00 12:00 12:10 12:30 13:30

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

RBG JZR MSR RJA FDB UAL KAC KAC KAC SVA JZR QTR KAC KAC JZR ETD QTR UAE GFA ABY JZR SVA FDB JZR JZR JZR ALK KAC KAC KAC JAI FDB SYR KAC KAC OMA MEA KAC DHX UAE GFA FCX QTR KAC KAC JZR JZR JZR UAL KAC KAC MSR

3554 176 611 641 58 982 551 673 617 503 480 141 613 511 538 304 135 858 216 128 184 511 64 786 204 134 228 1501 283 361 571 62 342 343 351 648 403 543 373 860 218 102 137 301 205 502 554 530 981 411 415 613

ALEXANDRIA DUBAI CAIRO AMMAN DUBAI BAHRAIN DAMASCUS DUBAI DOHA MEDINAH / JEDDAH SABIHA DOHA BAHRAIN TEHRAN CAIRO ABU DHABI DOHA DUBAI BAHRAIN SHARJAH DUBAI RIYADH DUBAI RIYADH DAMASCUS BAHRAIN DUBAI / COLOMBO BEIRUT DHAKA COLOMBO MUMBAI DUBAI ALEPPO / DAMASCUS CHENNAI COCHIN MUSCAT BEIRUT CAIRO BAHRAIN DUBAI BAHRAIN BAHRAIN DOHA MUMBAI ISLAMABAD LUXOR ALEXANDRIA ASSIUT WASHINGTON DC DULLES BANGKOK / MANILA KUALA LUMPUR / JAKARTA CAIRO

13:35 13:40 14:20 14:30 14:35 14:45 14:55 15:10 15:35 15:45 16:00 16:15 16:20 16:30 16:40 17:35 17:45 18:05 18:15 18:20 18:25 18:35 18:40 18:40 18:55 19:10 19:10 19:30 20:00 20:20 20:35 20:40 20:55 21:00 21:05 21:10 21:15 21:55 22:00 22:25 22:30 22:30 22:35 22:45 22:55 23:05 23:10 23:35 23:40 23:40 23:50 23:50

34

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

s ta rs CROSSWORD 374

STAR TRACK

CALVIN & HOBBES

Aries (March 21-April 19) With chores out of the way this morning, you could become restless. Someone could challenge you on a very sensitive issue.

You may touch upon a very emotional part of yourself and find yourself analyzing circumstances. Wise challenges help you grow; other challenges leave us empty.

Now is a good time to choose your response to a challenge; first decide about the wisdom of it all. You could enjoy visiting a bookstore or library this afternoon. You enjoy learning about new psychological insights and self-help techniques. You are a walking encyclopedia with a yen to know a little bit about everything and everyone. The urge to talk, write and listen to opinions all culminate in a book, or in an education. The evening is romantic.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) A clear-minded insight into your own plans and methods is available to you now. This is a very good time to communicate your goals and put them into words. You are in top form when it comes to mental activity.

Your contribution is positive. You draw emotional sustenance and a sense of security from ideals, friends and social involvement. Change and inner growth tend to come through your relationships with both friends and lovers. Alliances will be very important at this time—not at all superficial. You make the effort to get to the heart of important matters and relationships are very important. There is a strong drive to be seen and known—to communicate yourself to others. This evening you are full of wit and sharp insights while visiting with friends.

POOCH CAFE ACROSS 1. A condition (mostly in boys) characterized by behavioral and learning disorders.

4. Summer cypress.

10. (informal) Of very poor quality.

13. The syllable naming the sixth (submediant) note of a major or minor scale in solmization.

14. (of words) Formed in imitation of a natural sound.

15. The part of the nervous system of vertebrates that controls involuntary actions of the smooth muscles and heart and glands.

16. (Babylonian) A demigod or first man.

18. Having made preparations.

19. A flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism.

20. Either of two Soviet space stations launched in the 1970s.

22. The principal evil jinni in Islamic mythology.

24. (informal) Of the highest quality.

26. An official prosecutor for a judicial district.

27. A hard gray lustrous metallic element that is highly corrosionresistant.

28. A strategically located monarchy on the southern and eastern coasts of the Arabian Peninsula.

31. Having undesirable or negative qualities.

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

34. Large burrowing rodent of South and Central America.

39. Any of various trees of the genus Ulmus.

42. Resinlike substance secreted by certain lac insects.

43. A small pellet fired from an air rifle or BB gun.

44. Conqueror of Gaul and master of Italy (100-44 BC).

46. Any of various aromatic resinous substances used for healing and soothing.

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

53. According to the Old Testament he was a pagan king of Israel and husband of Jezebel (9th century BC).

56. Aircraft landing in bad weather in which the pilot is talked down by ground control using precision approach radar.

58. Having an eye or eyes or eyelike feature especially as specified.

59. The capital and largest city of Yemen.

61. A benevolent aspect of Devi.

63. A small cake leavened with yeast.

64. A user interface in which you type commands instead of choosing them from a menu or selecting an icon.

65. A midnight meeting of witches to practice witchcraft and sorcery.

68. Airtight sealed metal container for food or drink or paint etc..

69. Goddess of the dead and queen of the underworld.

70. Give pleasure to.

71. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

DOWN 1. By bad luck.

2. An informal term for a father.

3. Tropical woody herb with showy yellow flowers and flat pods.

4. A man who is the lover of a girl or young woman.

5. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

6. 3 to 30 gigahertz.

7. Wet through and through.

8. Being one more than two.

9. (of complexion) Blemished by imperfections of the skin.

10. Any of numerous local fertility and nature deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples.

11. Not set afire or burning.

12. Small shrubby African tree having compound leaves and racemes of small fragrant green flowers.

17. A major victory by the Romans over the Macedonians in 168 BC. 21. The bill in a restaurant.

23. A very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk.

25. A compartment in front of a motor vehicle where driver sits.

29. The arch of bone beneath the eye that forms the prominence of the cheek.

30. The highest level or degree attainable.

33. A highly unstable radioactive element (the heaviest of the halogen series).

35. A metabolic acid found in yeast and liver cells.

36. Singing jazz.

37. A metallic element of the rare earth group.

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

40. 10 grams.

41. (informal) Exceptionally good.

45. A island in the Netherlands Antilles that is the top of an extinct volcano.

47. United States physiologist (born in Germany) who did research on parthenogenesis (1859-1924).

48. Small genus of delicate mossy bog plants having white or violet flowers.

50. Arboreal snake of central and southern Africa whose bite is often fatal.

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

52. A city in southern Turkey on the Seyhan River.

54. Exhibiting or restored to vigorous good health.

55. A blue dye obtained from plants or made synthetically.

57. A three-dimensional shape with six square or rectangular sides.

60. Of southern Europe.

62. An associate degree in applied science.

66. A silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite.

67. A brittle silver-white metalloid element that is related to selenium and sulfur.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) This is a nice day that should just move along very well. In particular, you will do well in activities that include children, young people and your home surroundings. A new goal will surface in your mind today and you will find ways to focus on developing some ideas that will help you accomplish a goal. You could feel real support and harmony at this time for circumstances and for those around you today. Something you may want to do will have others volunteering to join with you. There is an opportunity to show off your skills in the department of decorating or repairing and updating some out-of-date room or forgotten talent. Today, you will find it easy to work with animals, music, color, fabric and the arts.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

NON SEQUITUR

Good for you—you have found new ways to help others and are also learning many new things about better dieting, health tactics, ecology and conservation. New or alternate life styles and ways to make a living may interest you now. Some of your vacation time could be spent in research toward some long-desired goal. This may mean a stop-smoking program. You like to care for people and things—particularly the good Earth. If there is time and room, you could set aside time to create a vegetable or herb garden. To relax by gardening may prove to be great therapy. You may bounce between the independent person you feel yourself to be, to a more conservative inclination. This could be an ongoing battle. Music is soothing this evening.

Leo (July 23-August 22) This is a rewarding day. Whatever may need your attention will be successfully completed. It may be a trip to the library or a drive to complete the weekend chores. You are learning to trust those intuitive feelings of yours. There will be opportunities to lend a helping hand to others, as often as you like. This afternoon, a friend in need will not suffer from a lack of your support. There are celebrations this afternoon. Finding new ways to make dreams come true for yourself and others is a common topic of discussion. There may be a young person you have in mind to receive a gift. People love to listen to what you have to say and may even come to you for guidance. You appreciate your particular situation and enjoy helping and sharing with friends.

ZITS

Virgo (August 23-September 22) There could be a sense of challenge or blockage just now. You may not find others much interested in your favorite pastime.

Occasionally, we must learn to enjoy a little time to ourselves and allow others to enjoy a bit of alone time. Perhaps a new focus is needed to re-plan the weekend.

Some sort of temporary obstacle may appear that could cause frustration. This is a good day, however. Consider getting your chores tended to before you run off to be with friends or to enjoy your hobby—this will also help you to focus. The afternoon moves along very well. Conversations of an inspiring kind may be in order. There are some young people in your life that you enjoy teaching; today is no exception. Young people enjoy being around you.

Libra (September 23-October 22)

MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) There are temptations to purchase items that could end up not making you as happy as you think. What you think you want today may not have any appeal to you a few days from now. Compare prices first. You may want to wait for a better quality item. The process of shopping around could save you a great deal of money. Saying or writing with style comes natural now and you may decide to create poetry, greeting cards or some other artistic expression. You have a desire to learn and be expressive and may decide to take a class in order to fine-tune your talent. A sociable, congenial, slightly frivolous orientation begins this evening when you may discover an upcoming event to attend. Perhaps a school reunion with old friends is coming up soon.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) You appear more charming than usual today and may have plans to visit friends. Now is a good time to approach that special person you want to date, or otherwise make yourself known. You have an instinctive urge to get serious about taking care of yourself at many levels. Diet, exercise and work somehow mean more at this time: you want to feel good about yourself and the way you do things. A gift or a new purchase brings a boost to your selfconfidence this evening. Tonight you may decide to spend a little time developing some ideas you have for some personal projects. Writing is a talent in which you enjoy becoming absorbed. You may find writing a form of relaxation as well as a means for creating a little extra income.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

To

Yesterday’s Solution

Broadening your intellectual and spiritual horizons takes on a high priority now. Being in touch with ideas and people on a grander scale keeps your mind busy. This may mean a science project, or competition or convention type of surroundings is stimulating and will spur the thinking process and help you stretch beyond the normal thinking. Circumstances should work together to help bring out your ideals and make it easier to make your dreams real. You may find yourself examining and testing your ideals. This is a good time to project your image. Do not go overboard in your activities—find some rest and relaxation times to re-focus your thoughts. Tonight is for relaxation and you will find some special time with a loved one is possible.

Be wise and create in yourself a backseat type of attitude today.

Observe how other people solve problems in particular situations so as to learn and compliment your own techniques. You may be chosen to take over some sort of group today. Before you take over controls, a question-and-answer time will be important. Take some time to think through negotiations. Put into effect all those plans that you have been nurturing lately. Guiding and encouraging others is a fun hobby of yours. You may find yourself volunteering or working at a church or young people’s organization. You encourage the young people in your area to find things that will busy the mind and lift the spirit, such as, music, railroad, aero modelers, model boats, amateur radio, etc.

Yesterday’s Solution Yester

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) Taking care of business at home is a major theme today. You crave organization and practicality and you want to get things accomplished. You may find yourself hanging pictures or moving plants. Your aim for today is to have a place for everything. Health and work goals take on a great deal of importance for you as well and you may find yourself rearranging furniture in order to fit in that purchase of a new exercise machine. Your keyword now is responsibility— the ability to respond wisely. You are able to find yourself enjoying all sorts of good relationships, rather than alone—a mirror or clear pool. You are a genius at bringing out others and getting them to do things, a born strategist. Contact some of those wonderful friends of yours with a card today.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Word Sleuth Solution

You will influence others with your kind contribution of time and your good attitude today. People you hardly know use your actions to help set their own standard of conduct—a mentor. You may be working on a volunteer level today. You may not realize how loved and admired you are, particularly in the surroundings that are set up for you.

Tonight a camping trip or some other similar enjoyable outing is in order.

Allocate the little errands that will help you and others get off to a timely start on this trip. You are spontaneous, independent and on the move. This evening, you enjoy the opportunities to relax and visit with loved ones. This is a perfect time to get to understand and move closer to the family or to your friends.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

i n f o r m at i o n

FIRE BRIGADE

STATE ST TAT TE OF KUW KUWAIT K WA AIT

Tel.: T e el.: 161

DIRECTORA DIRECTORATE AT TE GENE GENERAL ERAL OF CIVIL AVIATION AV VIA AT TION METEOROLOGICAL DEP D DEPARTMENT PA ARTMENT

112 Ministry of Interior

Ext.: 2627 262 27 - 2630

Fax: 24348714 WWW.MET.GOV.KW WWW .MET.GOV V..KW W

Expected Weather Weather for the Next 24 4 Hours Very V ery e h hot with moderate to fresh north no orth westerly wind, with speed speeed of 20 - 45 km/h causing raising raising dust

BY Y DAY: DA AY:

website: www.moi.gov.kw wind, with speed off 25 - 45 km/h causing raising Hot with wiith moderate to fresh north westerly w g dust

BY Y NIGHT: NIGHT:

For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128

No Current Warnings Warnin a gs

WARNING W ARNING A STATION ST TATION T

Hospitals Sabah Hospital

24812000

MAX. EXP EXP. P.

MIN.. REC.

KUWAIT KUW WAIT A CITY

49 °C

35 °C

KUWAIT AIRPORT KUW WAIT A AIRPOR RT

50 °C

35 °C

46 °C C

34 °C C

Amiri Hospital

22450005

NUWAISEEB NUW WAISEEB A

Maternity Hospital

24843100

WAFRA A WAFRA

50 °C

36 °C

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

SALMI

47 °C

32 °C

Chest Hospital

24849400

ABDAL LY ABDALY

51 °C

33 °C

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

JAL ALIY ALIYAH YAH A

49 °C

33 °C

Adan Hospital

23940620

FAILAKA FAILAKA A

47 °C

32 °C

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

AHMADI PORT POR RT

44 °C

37 °C

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

UMM AL-MARADEM M

39 °C

33 °C

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

WARBA WARBA A A - BUBYAN BUBY YAN A

47 °C

32 °C

Clinics

SFC. CHART CHART

09/07/2011 09/07/201 1 0000 UTC

4732263

Roudha

22517733

Adhaliya

22517144

Sunday

10/07

Khaldiya

24848075

Monday

11/07 11/07

Keifan

24849807

Tuesday T uesday

12/07

Shamiya

24848913

W eednesday Wednesday

13/07

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Al-Nuzha

T Temperatures emperratures DAY DA AY

DA DATE AT TE

WEA WEATHER AT THER

MAX.

MIN.

Wind Direction W ind Dir ection

W Wind ind Speed

very hot + raising dust

48 °C

36 °C

NW

20 - 45 km/h

very hot + raising dust

48 °C

35 °C

NW

15 - 40 km/h

very hot + blowing g dust

48 °C

34 °C

NW

20 - 45 km/h

very hot

48 °C

34 °C

NW

15 - 38 km/h

PRAYER PR RA AY YER TIMES

RECORDED D YESTERDA YESTERDAY AY A AT T KUW KUWAIT WA AIT T AIRPOR AIRPORT T

Fajr

03:21

MA AX. Temp.

Temp.

MAX.

49 °C

22526804

Sunrise S i

04:55 04 55

MI IN T IN. emp.

MIN. Temp.

33 °C

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Zuhr

1 1:53 11:53

MAX. RH M

15 %

Al-Khadissiya

22515088

Asr

15:27

MIN. RH M

04 %

Dasmah

22532265

Sunset

18:51

MA AX. W iind MAX. Wind

N 39 km/h

Isha

20:22

T OT TA AL L RAI INF FA ALL L IN 24 HR. TOTAL RAINFALL

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

22451082

Al-Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

Mishref

25381200

W.Hawally

22630786

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Al-Ardhiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Al-Omariya

24719048

N.Kheitan

24710044

Fintas

3900322

22418714

Al-Shohada’a

22545171

Al-Shuwaikh

24810598

Al-Nuzha

22545171

Sabhan

24742838

Al-Helaly

22434853

Al-Fayhaa

22545051

Al-Farwaniya

24711433

Al-Sulaibikhat

24316983

Al-Fahaheel

23927002

Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh

24316983

Ahmadi

23980088

Al-Mangaf

23711183

Al-Shuaiba

23262845

Al-Jahra

25610011

Al-Salmiya

25616368

POLICE STATION

4 DAYS DA AYS Y FORECAST

Rabiya

Al-Madena

Al-Madena Police Station Al-Murqab Police Station Al-Daiya Police Station Al-Fayha’a Police Station Al-Qadissiya Police Station Al-Nugra Police Station Al-Salmiya Police Station Al-Dasma Police Station

22434064 22435865 22544200 22547133 22515277 22616662 25714406 22530801

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FOR CIVIL INFORMATION Automated enquiry about the Civil ID card is 1889988

00 mm

All times are local time un unless nless otherwise stated.

PHARMACIES

AIRLINES

ON 24 HRS DUTY GOVERNORATE

PHARMACY

ADDRESS

PHONE

Ahmadi

Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

23915883 23715414 23726558

Jahra

Modern Jahra Madina Munawara

Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 Jahra-Block 92

24575518 24566622

Capital

Ahlam Khaldiya Coop

Fahad Al-Salem St Khaldiya Coop

22436184 24833967

Farwaniya

New Shifa Ferdous Coop Modern Safwan

Farwaniya Block 40 Ferdous Coop Old Kheitan Block 11

24734000 24881201 24726638

Hawally

Tariq Hana Ikhlas Hawally & Rawdha Ghadeer Kindy Ibn Al-Nafis Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554 25721264 25380581 25628241

Kuwait Airways Jazeera Airways Jet Airways FlyDubai Qatar Airways KLM Air Slovakia Olympic Airways Royal Jordanian Reservation British Airways Air France Emirates Air India Sri Lanka Airlines Egypt Air Swiss Air Saudia Middle East Airlines Lufthansa PIA Alitalia Balkan Airlines Bangladesh Airlines Czech Airlines Indian Airlines Oman Air Turkish Airlines Aeroflot

22433377 177 22924455 22414400 22423888 22425747 22434940 22420002/9 22418064/5/6 22433388 22425635 22430224 22425566 22438184 22424444 22421578 22421516 22426306 22423073 22422493 22421044 22414427 22416474 22452977/8 22417901/ 2433141 22456700 22958787 22453820/1 22404838/9

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 General Practitioners Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Urologists Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 Psychologists /Psychotherapists

Paediatricians

Plastic Surgeons Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf

22547272

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari

22617700

Dr. Zahra Qabazard

Dr. Abdel Quttainah

25625030/60

Family Doctor Dr Divya Damodar

23729596/23729581

Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari

22635047

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians DrAdrian arbe

23729596/23729581

Dr. Verginia s.Marin

2572-6666 ext 8321

Endocrinologist 25340300

25710444

Dr. Sohail Qamar

22621099

Dr. Snaa Maaroof

25713514

Dr. Pradip Gujare

23713100

Dr. Zacharias Mathew

24334282

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada)

Dr Anil Thomas

3729596/3729581 22641071/2

22655539

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami

25343406

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed

22562226

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly

25739272

Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer

22561444

Dr. Salem soso

22618787

Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan

22619557

Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash

22525888

Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer

22610044

Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan

25653755

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher

25327148

Dr. Bader Al-Ansari

25620111

Neurologists

Dr. Adnan Ebil

22639939

Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri

25633324

Dr. Mousa Khadada

22666300

Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan

25345875

Gastrologists

25728004

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra

25355515

Dr. Sami Aman

22636464

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub

24726446

Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly

25322030

Dr Nasser Behbehani

25654300/3

Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali

22633135

Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688

info@soorcenter.com www.soorcenter.com

Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 Physiotherapists & VD Dr. Deyaa Shehab

25722291 22666288

Rheumatologists:

Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan

Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan

Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888

Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees

Dentists

Internists, Chest & Heart

25339330

25655535

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar

General Surgeons

Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman

Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, Ph.D. 2290-1677 Susannah-Joy Schuilenberg, M.A. 2290-1677

Dr. Adel Al-Awadi

25330060

Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah

25722290

Internist, Chest & Heart DR.Mohammes Akkad

24555050 Ext 210

Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

2611555-2622555

William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677

Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Anguilla Antiga Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Cayman Islands

0093 00355 00213 00376 00244 001264 001268 0054 00374 0061 0043 001242 00973 00880 001246 00375 0032 00501 00229 001441 00975 00591 00387 00267 0055 00673 00359 00226 00257 00855 00237 001 00238 001345

Central African Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Congo Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Cyprus (Northern) Czech Republic Denmark Diego Garcia Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador England (UK) Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia

00236 00235 0056 0086 0057 00269 00242 00682 00506 00385 0053 00357 0090392 00420 0045 00246 00253 001767 001809 00593 0020 00503 0044 00240 00291 00372 00251 00500 00298 00679 00358 0033 00594 00689

y

A

36

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Years

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

li fe s ty le

Grint has a crush on Queen Elizabeth G O S S I P

Professor Green storms Somerset House

rofessor Green played a storming set at Somerset House on Friday. The rapper played his biggest London show yet to an adoring crowd that included his own off girlfriend, ‘Hollyoaks’ actress Candy McCulloch, and admitted he was overwhelmed to be on stage at the prestigious venue. He said: “I can’t believe that a boy like me is playing Somerset House - this has been the most crazy 18 months of my life.” Among the highlights of the show - part of the venue’s Summer Series of concerts - were cover versions of Beyonce Knowles’ ‘Crazy in Love’, Jay-Z’s ‘Big Pimpin” and fellow British rapper Dizzee Rascal’s ‘Fix Up Look Sharp’. The covers were mixed with material from his forthcoming second album and hits including ‘I Need You Tonight’, ‘Just Be Good To Green’ and ‘Jungle’. Following a dubstep remix of ‘Monster’ for the encore, the rapper was thrilled by the crowd’s response and took a swipe at his critics. He said: ‘The Evening Standard said in the paper tonight that I’m cartoon rap does this look like cartoon rap to you? He signed off the evening with his new single ‘Read All About It’ and the last track on his debut album ‘Goodnight’. For more information on the Somerset House Summer Series, go to www.somersethouse.org.uk/music. For the latest news, information and exclusive offers from American Express who are the headline sponsors for the Summer Series - or to sign up to the events newsletter that will put you in the know, please visit amex.co.uk/music.

P

he ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’ actor - who shot to fame aged 11 playing Ron Weasley in the movie series - admits the monarch would be one of his two ideal women, along with singer-and-actress Juliette Lewis. Asked which two famous women he would like to date, he said: “I think it would have to be the queen. She is [pretty foxy]. I sat in front of her at her 80th birthday, where we were asked to perform in a play, so that was pretty cool. “My second choice would be Juliette Lewis, because she’s really cool and in a band.” One celebrity the 22-year-old star does not find attractive is former ‘Hannah Montana’ actress Miley Cyrus. He explained: “I’ve nev-

T

er really gone for those Disney girls.” Rupert has never been in a relationship for longer than a few weeks, but is currently happy to be single. He told Britain’s Glamour magazine: “I haven’t had any very serious relationships. The longest was probably less than a month. I’ve never had a one-night stand. “I’m not really looking for anything at the moment. I’m so busy that it’s quite hard to commit.” While Rupert insists he isn’t looking for love, the flame-haired star admits he has received a lot of attention from girls since starring in the ‘Harry Potter’ films. He said: “The ginger community embraced me - put it that way.

“Walking down the street, I would get a lot of ‘ginger love’. I still do.”

Patridge’s psychologist dream udrina Patridge wanted to be a psychologist when she was at school. The ‘Sorority Row’ star was keen to pursue the career and was set to go to college to study for a degree but she was offered the chance to move to Hollywood to become an actress and chose that instead. She said: “When I was younger I wanted to be a psychologist. But acting happened. I had to choose between going to college and trying to be a psychologist or moving to LA and trying to be an actress. Acting won out.” Audrina - who starred in ‘The Hills’, was a competitor on the last series of ‘Dancing with

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Fox has raw food diet egan Fox “mostly” eats raw foods. The brunette beauty - who is married to Brian Austin Green has a strict healthy eating regime, and makes sure she sits down for a meal five times a day alongside vitamin and mineral supplements. She said: “I eat five times a day and don’t diet, but I do eat healthily - mostly raw and vegan food with no dairy. “It’s not always possible with travel and filming, but I try. “I also take supplements like silica and fish oil religiously.” Megan believes femininity is an “attitude” and thinks beauty comes from “simplicity and elegance”. She told Marie Claire magazine: “My definition of beauty is simplicity, elegance and sensuality. “I think that when a woman is in harmony with herself and remains true to her values, she will glow naturally. Femininity doesn’t depend on what you wear or how you look. It’s an attitude.”

the Stars’ and has her own reality T V show ‘Audrina’ - accepts it isn’t easy to make it in Hollywood and her only tip is to work hard and never give up. She added to FHM magazine: “You can’t give up, because it is very competitive and you will have more disappointments than you can imagine. But you have to keep going and grow thick skin, because once you are famous there is a lot of rubbish that comes with it. You are constantly going to be judged and be the subject of gossip and rumors. You just have to be prepared for it and not let it get to you or change who you are.”

Stone has a crush on Hendricks

Patrick Dempsey used to be a champion juggler

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he ‘Transformers: Dark of the Moon’ actor won prizes for his ball control when he was a teenager and insists his skills are a “big thing” because he can handle complex moves. He said: “I started out as a juggler. I came second in the international juggler’s competition and the junior division in 1982 or 1983. “I can juggle five balls at once. It’s a pretty big thing most people can do three, but when you get into five then you’re in a different league.” While he was previously a juggler, the 45-year-old star insists he wouldn’t give up acting now because he has learned to deal with the tough parts of his profession - and doesn’t know what else he could do. Asked if he ever considered giving up acting, he told Britain’s ELLE magazine: “It’s a very difficult profession - you have to deal with rejection constantly. “You have to learn not to take things personally and to keep improving yourself, but you need constructive criticism to grow. “Also, I never qualified in anything else. At this point, I just don’t know what I would do.”

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Pinto surprised by Franco Freida Pinto was initially “surprised”

by James Franco’s style of acting. The actress stars alongside the actor in ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ and while, at first, she was taken aback by his methods, she started to learn from him. She said: “He’s got his own unique and distinctive style of acting.

It’s not conventional at all. It does take you by surprise initially, but it’s all about being flexible and trying to understand how another actor works.

I found a lot of things in his acting style that I could pick up and learn from.” The ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ beauty says she was drawn to star in the film because it humanized chimpanzees. She explained to Total Film magazine: “I play a primatologist and I have dedicated my entire life to chimpanzees. Caroline is the voice of reason but it’s a nice voice of reason without being preachy. “It appealed to me because I never felt like I was reading a script about chimpanzees. I just felt like there was some humanizing there.”

mma Stone has a girl crush on Christina Hendricks. The ‘Friends With Benefits’ actress who is believed to be dating her ‘Spider-Man’ costar Andrew Garfield - explained she finds “everything” about the ‘Mad Men’ star attractive. Asked who is her celebrity crush, she said: “Christina Hendricks. It’s a nobrainer. Everything about her does it for me. That’s my kind of woman.” Meanwhile, Emma admitted she is “flattered” to have been cast in so many strong roles as women who are secure within themselves. She added to The Advocate: “I’m so flattered. The tomboy quality is probably coincidental just due to the fact that my voice hits male octaves most of the time. I must be subconsciously drawn to women who, even if they don’t necessarily have their stuff together, are secure within themselves and don’t need a man to fix them.

“My ultimate goal is to continue doing movies with some sort of message that can make a change, like ‘Easy A’ or ‘The Help.’ Because that’s what good movies do for me, they teach me and bring injustices to my attention.” —Bang Showbiz

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Producer talks Adele, new Chili Peppers project

Rick Rubin arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party at the Sunset Tower in Los Angeles, Calif. —AP

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o far, Adele’s “21” is the best-selling album of the year, with a little over 2.5 million copies sold. Rick Rubin, who produced several tracks on the album, says while he had no idea the album would connect with so many people, he understands why it has.

“She doesn’t carry any of the baggage of many of today’s pop stars, and it truly is about the music first, and her voice and her lyrics, and baring her soul with what she’s saying. I would say what she makes is her art, and at no time does it feel like product,” he said in a phone interview recently. “So much of pop music feels like product.”

The British singer won Grammys for her debut album “19,” but has catapulted to superstar status with the success of “21” and hits like the No 1 “Rolling in the Deep.” Figures released by Nielsen SoundScan earlier this week showed it was the year’s most popular album at the mid-way point.

Rubin says the raw emotions in songs on the album, inspired mostly by the 23-year-old’s breakup with a boyfriend, are what people are responding to. “She really bared her soul lyrically, and I think that’s what resonating with people - the truth in her lyrics, and the passion in which she tells that truth,” he said.

Rubin, a Grammy-winning producer who’s worked with artists ranging from Jay-Z to Johnny Cash to Neil Diamond, has several other high-profile projects he’s working on, including albums from Metallica, Linkin Park, the Avett Brothers and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Rubin describes the Chili Peppers’ album “I’m With You,” due out Aug 30, as unlike anything the band has ever done - but unmistakably Peppers music. He credits that in part to guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, who replaced John Frusciante, and personal changes group members have gone through since putting out their last album five years ago.

“Anthony (Kiedis) and Flea had children during that time, so their lives have changed a lot since the last album we made, and because they had taken this time off, they came back with a real hunger and excitement about the music-making process again,” Rubin said.

“I think it’s the first time in their career that they’d ever taken off that big of a chunk of time, and they’ve been a band for 28 years now,” he said.

“It really feels like starting all over again, because they have the dynamics of a new band.” — AP

File photo shows singer Katy Perry performing during the Grammy Nominations Concert in Los Angeles. — AP

Perry cancels concerts after food-poisoning

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hen Katy Perry opens her mouth to sing, something beautiful tends to come out. When she opens her mouth to eat? Maybe not so much. The “Teenage Dream” singer was forced to cancel a pair of concerts for Friday and yesterday after suffering a bout of food poisoning

and severe dehydration, according to her official website.

The concerts, which were to occur in Chicago and St Paul, have been rescheduled for next month. Perry fought through the illness to fire up her Twitter account and announce the new dates on Friday, writing, “Chicago and St Paul-I’m so sor-

ry to have to postpone today and tomorrow’s shows. But I’ll be back 8/21 (CHI) and 8/23 (S Paul)!” Perry noted in a statement, “I am going to return in a few weeks to give them the very best show ever!” Perry’s next concert is scheduled for Regina, Saskatchewan, on Wednesday. —Reuters

ʻHorrible Bossesʼ director vents on unemployment U

nemployment has loomed in the life of “Horrible Bosses” director Seth Gordon, but it’s been nothing compared to his friends from Yale architecture school. “[Yale]’s a great school,” Gordon told TheWrap ahead of the opening of the comedy in which Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day try to kill their bosses. “But it doesn’t matter because most of my friends that went there struggled for over a decade, and only a small percentage of them can make a living.”

Gordon, 34, is a Yale alumnus who couldn’t make a living in his chosen field of architecture. He said that his experience and that of his friends-who feel betrayed by the false promise of the American Dream-had a lot to do with the tone of the movie. “It’s a tough world, man, and everyone who came out of college when I did ... hit that ceiling exactly when everything crumbled,” Gordon said in a discussion at last week’s premiere.

“All of the sudden if you had a job that’s anything better than bad, you feel lucky,” he said. “And you have to hold onto it. Like you can’t move! That’s essentially where all

In this film publicity image released by Warner Bros Pictures, from left, Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis are shown in a scene from ‘Horrible Bosses.’ —AP

of my generation, I think, finds itself right now.” In the film, Nick (Bateman), Dale (Day), and Kurt (Sudeikis) are a close trio of thirty-something working stiffs who find themselves stuck in monotonous jobs with tyrannical supervisors. When the group runs into an old high school friend whose recent unemployment drives him to desperate sex work, they decide that if they can’t quit, killing their bosses might be the next best thing.

The movie comes on the heels of others that tackle today’s bleak recessionary times. “Larry Crowne” stars Tom Hanks as a manager at a big-box company who finds himself suddenly jobless after a wave of downsizing and decides to go back to college. And “Bad Teacher” makes light of the daily grind for those in the education system. But there is a silver lining. Gordon, who fell in love with filmmaking while capturing footage in Kenya on a school-sponsored trip, proves that sometimes when it’s tough, there’s big money in writing what you know. “Horrible Bosses” is poised to bring in more than $25 million over its first three days of release. —Reuters

Studio pulling out all the stops for Woody Allen S

US pop star Lady Gaga steps off her private jet at Sydney Airport yesterday. The diva, ranked this year’s most powerful celebrity by Forbes magazine, is in here for a one-off show at Sydney’s Town Hall. —AFP

US rapper Calvin Cordozar Broadus alias Snoop Dogg performs during the Openair music festival in Frauenfeld, Switzerland, Friday. The 17th OpenAir Frauenfeld takes place from 8 to 11 July 2011. — AP

ony Pictures Classics is nearing a real milestone with Woody Allen’s “Midnight in Paris,” and the company is pulling out all the stops to get there. According to exhibitors, Sony Pictures Classics (SPC) co-presidents Michael Barker and Tom Bernard have been unusually assertive and aggressive in calling theatersthreatening to take exhibitors off service if they don’t keep “Midnight” on as many screens as possible.

“I never hear from them,” one exhibitor told TheWrap on condition of anonymity. “But I got a call from Michael, and his whole pitch was that this could become Woody’s biggest movie ever.”

“Midnight in Paris” passed the $35 million mark on Wednesday, and heads into the weekend less than $5 million behind the $40.1 million gross that made 1986’s “Hannah and Her Sisters” the biggest grosser in Allen’s career of more than 40 years.

“Absolutely,” said Barker when TheWrap asked if SPC has been unusually aggressive with exhibitors on the film. “We’re always aggressive, but especially with this one, because the word-ofmouth is so good that it’s very easy to make a compelling argument to exhibitors that the movie has staying power.” Another decent weekend will more than cut the gap between “Midnight” and “Hannah” in half, quite possibly pushing it past Allen’s third-highestgrossing film, “Annie Hall” ($38.3 million), and putting it within striking distance of his number two, “Manhattan” ($39.9 million). If it continues playing for a few more weeks, even if it drops substantially every week, it’s hard to imagine that it won’t soon become Allen’s top earner, giving Sony Classics significant bragging rights.

“It feels very likely,” Barker told TheWrap this week. “The picture has obvious staying power, and is playing equally well in arthouses and in multiplexes that have never played Woody Allen before.” The key to turning the trick is to hang on to as many “Midnight” screens as possible-and with “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2” already selling out thousands of showings, that film is primed to gobble up enormous amounts of multiplex real estate when it opens on July 15. The fact that “Midnight” is playing in those multiplexes in addition to Allen’s usual arthouses means that it will be fighting for screens with the likes of “Potter,” “Transformers” (currently occupying more than 4,000 theaters) and “Zookeeper” and “Horrible Bosses” (which together are debuting in more than 6,000 houses on Friday). “We seem to have survived ‘Transformers’ and ‘Cars 2,’ so we feel confident that we can survive ‘Harry Potter’ too,” said Barker.

“Midnight” hit a high of 1,038 theaters on the weekend of June 17, then lost 87 of those theaters the following weekend and another 93 the week after that. But this past weekend, according to Barker, the film will only lose about 40 screens, keeping it above 800 as it enters a crucial stretch that could eliminate the gap between “Midnight” and “Hannah.”

This doesn’t mean the film will be his biggest moneymaker, of

US director Woody Allen gestures to photographers during his visit to Rome’s Campidoglio, Capitol Hill, Wednesday. —AP

course. The reported production budget for “Midnight in Paris” is $30 million which, given the film’s substantial marketing campaign, means it’s still a long way from turning a profit.

Barker said the $30 million figure seems high but he doesn’t know the actual budget (“Woody and his producer are very proprietary with that information”), but that all involved are delighted with the grosses, which have been boosted by an additional $30 million-and-counting in foreign territories. “To me, it seems like everybody is very happy, and it’s going to be profitable,” he said.

Assuming Barker and Bernard can persuade exhibitors not to desert the film en masse next week, the numbers are clearly moving in their favor. After two consecutive weeks in which the grosses dropped less than 20 percent, the film must make about 13.6 percent of its total after the seventh week.

Allen’s two top-grossing movies of the last decade, “Vicky Christina Barcelona” and “Match Point,” both had comparable figures in their post-week-seven runs: “VCB” did 11 percent of its business during that period on its way to a $23.2 million gross, while “Match Point” made 18.7 percent of its total gross of $23.1 million. So if the screen count for “Midnight” isn’t totally wiped out by the “Harry Potter” avalanche, and the film’s box-office figures decline at an increasing but not precipitous rate, Allen will get his personal bestcertainly by the end of the month, quite possibly by the 20th, and perhaps even as early as the end of next week. “We’re going to get there,” Barker predicted.—Reuters

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Green glamour

puts Berlin back on global fashion map Wedel of Berlin’s ESMOD international fashion institute. “Berlin is becoming an ever more important location for green fashion with international labels coming to enter the European market,” said von Wedel, who directs the world’s first master program on sustainable fashion.

German voters have recently sent strong signals in favor of green policy. The Green party has risen from its beginnings as a political outsider to a mainstream party that earlier this year gained control of the affluent state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, a conservative stronghold for more than five decades.

The Greens have also benefited from Berlin’s zigzag policy on nuclear energy and have seen their popularity rise after Japan’s Fukushima nuclear disaster in March.

Japan has become a growing market for ecofriendly fashion since Fukushima, said Jana Keller, cofounder of GREENShowroom, one of the eco fairs currently showing in Berlin.

Berlin’s fashion week became increasingly sidelined internationally, but it has been able to win back some labels and a celebrity following recently.

And the eco-niche has helped this trend, especially given the city’s efforts to make itself a creative hotspot. “Berlin is currently the most important location for green fashion”, Kati Drescher, who runs an eco fashion showroom parallel to Fashion Week, told Reuters, adding that the city was a global trendsetter.

Green fashion positioned Berlin vis-a-vis other fashion capitals, said Christoph Lang of Berlin Fashion Week’s production partner Berlin GmbH, adding that it was a growth sector with great future potential. GREENShowroom, together with Ethical Show of Paris one of the shows Frankfurt Fair has also bought, has seen a trend for sustainable fashion develop in the course of a short time.

“Since our first event in 2009 with 16 exhibitors, we have grown to over 30,” Keller of

Models display dresses by Belarusian designer Alissa Ilyushina in Minsk during a Festival of Modern Arts and Avant-garde Fashion. —AFP

GREENShowroom told Reuters, adding there were around 500 companies worldwide today, which reflected their vision and concept. Sustainability and green consciousness has also found its way into the mainstream with plenty of global retailers offering lines using organic cotton.

While only the most rigorous schemes live up to the standards Keller demands of the labels invited to exhibit at her fair, broader schemes by global firms still encourage production of sustainable cotton, she said. Denim maker Levi’s drive to reduce water usage illustrates the rising green consciousness in mainstream fashion, having reduced the amount of water used for its jeans, a process usually involving 42 liters, by an average of 28 percent.

At Berlin’s current Bread & Butter trade fair, the Levi’s stand uses empty bottles to illustrate the water consumption of jeans production, and encourages wearers to act green at home by washing their jeans less to save water.—Reuters

France Fashion Show

“G

reen glamour” is returning Berlin’s fashion week to the map of trend-setting capitals, just at a time when consumers are turning to all things eco-friendly. Two major “green” shows are exhibiting at this week’s Berlin fashion week that ends on Friday. They have recently been bought by Frankfurt Fair, the world’s leader in textile and textile-technology, sending strong signals for sustainable products in the fashion sector .

“Sustainability is not a short-term trend, but a great new paradigm”, Frankfurt Fair Chief Executive Detlef Braun told Reuters, adding that it was a lifestyle, affecting everything from production to retail.

In the last couple of years, eco textiles and fashion “have experienced a great leap forward, entering the fashion capitals of the world”, Braun added. It’s also good for business. “Labels realize that they won’t get around the issue anymore, especially as consumers are increasingly conscious of the sustainability of the products they buy,” said Friederike von

Modela wear creations for the Yiqing Yin Fall-Winter 2011-2012 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris. —AP

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

lifestyle F A S H I O N

Model present creations of the spring/summer collection of the label Blacky Dress during the Berlin Fashion Week. —AP/AFP photos

Fashion Week

Models present creations of the spring/summer collection by fashion designer Patrick Mohr.

Models present creations of the spring/summer collection of fashion designer Anja Gockel.

Models present creations of the spring/summer collection of fashion designer Marcel Ostertag during the Berlin Fashion Week. — AP/AFP photos

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‘Potter’ class graduates with no child-actor woes

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f the young cast of the “Harry Potter” films received report cards for their school days at Hogwarts, probably all of them would earn the notation, “plays well with others.” Cast as impressionable children in Hollywood’s biggest fantasy franchise, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint and their many young co-stars have maneuvered through 11 years of fame, and the temptations it brings, without any whispers of Lindsay Lohan-style meltdowns that can derail child actors.

They have grown up smart, humble, polite and professional, eager to balance modest private lives with productive acting careers rather than leap into the party-until-dawn celebrity lifestyle. The actors and the headmasters of the Warner Bros. franchise say it was not magic that kept the kids on their best behavior. It was the luck of the draw when the youngsters were first cast, good parenting, mindful shepherding that resembled the rigors and care of the finest boarding schools, and a sheltered workplace outside of London, far from Hollywood’s madding crowds.

“It’s very different doing it in England,” said Radcliffe, who was 11 when cast in the title role as the boy wizard for 2001’s “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” and turns 22 the week after the mid-July debut of the final film, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.” “In America, you’re treated as an actor first and a kid second. Here, you’re very much treated as a kid first and an actor second. In fact, you’re not really treated as an actor. You’re treated as a kid on a film set, which is how it should be, because that’s all you are that point. No one’s an actor at 12.”

And with the performers so young, their parents were instrumental in steering the children through

British actress Emma Watson arrives in Trafalgar Square.

busy working lives and the madness of instant celebrity. “We couldn’t have done it without the family support that’s kept all three of them and the supporting cast all lovely, lovely people,” said David Barron, a producer on most of the “Harry Potter” films. “They’ve got very strong families who kept them really strongly grounded.”

With tens of millions of “Harry Potter” fans to please and billions of dollars at stake, Warner Bros. went to great lengths to protect and nurture the stars through eight films and a decade of hard work. Sets to create author JK Rowling’s Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and other Potter locations were built at Leavesden Studios northwest of London, giving the filmmakers a controlled environment where they could work and essentially help raise their young charges.

“It’s been a bit of a bubble, and it’s been very selfcontained, and I think we just have good people around us,” said Watson, who was 10 when cast as Hermione Granger and now is 21. “We’ve just been lucky that we haven’t been exploited in any way.”

Radcliffe, Watson, Grint and such co-stars as Tom Felton, Bonnie Wright, Evanna Lynch and Matthew Lewis had tutors on set, along with armies of studio publicists to help coach them through the media circus of almost-annual premieres and press junkets to promote each film.

The filmmakers say Leavesden became a kind of Hogwarts boarding school for the cast. “It was a place that was just us, nobody else,” said David Heyman, a producer on all of the “Harry Potter” films. “That has enabled us to sort of cocoon ourselves in an environment, in a way, that I think is a supportive and a safe

British actress Helena Bonham Carter arrives in Trafalgar Square.

makeover with new team

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In this comic book image released by Marvel Comics, the character Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, is shown. — AP

dor on set. Like Hermione, Watson was studious, hurling herself into her education. Like Ron Weasley, Grint had a playful humor and the support of a large family.

“You felt people are just kind of waiting for us to fall into that stereotype of, I suppose, child actors,” said Grint, who started on “Potter” at age 11 and turns 23 a month after the final film opens. “But I’ve always been quite busy. Never really had much time to go too crazy. I come from a big family, as well, and that always helps you to know who you are.”

Director David Yates, who made the final four “Harry Potter” films, said he wondered a few years back whether some of his stars might turn into a handful as they reached the rebellious late-teen years.

“Because, they have every right to kind of get angry or frustrated,” Yates said. “They carry a lot of responsibility. They’re under tremendous pressure. They have enormous temptations. The world is at their feet. They get paid enormous amounts of money. But they haven’t gone over the edge, and I think it’s the people around them. I think there’s something ingrained with them. It’s their family.”

Many child actors have trouble landing more adult roles once they outgrow their cute and cuddly phase and can get sidetracked into drugs or alcohol, such as Lohan and others before her, including Danny Bonaduce, Corey Feldman and Macauley Culkin. So far, the main “Potter” stars have remained focused.

Radcliffe has done Broadway with “Equus” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,” and stars in the coming big-screen thriller “The Woman in Black.” Watson is studying at Brown University and has a role in the coming Marilyn Monroe drama “My Week With Marilyn.” Grint did a couple of independent movies in between “Potter” films and stars in the coming war saga “Comrade.”

Radcliffe recalls endless questions during the past decade as people asked him, “Aren’t you scared about what’s happened to these other child stars?” “Having to answer that so many times made me go, ‘Jesus, if you’re asking this so many times, now if I do go off the deep end, I’m just never, ever going to hear the end of that,’” he said. “By now, I do view it as sort of a personal mission that I have. If all of us in this big franchise can then go off and have successful, balanced lives, careers, whatever, I’m hoping that I paved the way for the next generation of child stars in not having to answer those questions.” — AP

British author JK Rowling, second left, joins actors, left to right, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint in Trafalgar Square, central London, for the World Premiere of ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2’ the last film in the series, Thursday. — AP

In this four-photo combo, highlighting some of the signs brandished by fans before the World Premiere of movie Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows: Part 2. — AP

Marvel’s Punisher gets rank Castle, aka The Punisher, is not one for the soft touch, preferring to dispatch criminals with the flick of a trigger finger or a well-placed rocket launcher. Now the Marvel Comics vigilante is expanding his game as a new creative team, led by writer Greg Rucka and artist Marco Checchetto, prepares to launch a new series next month starring the broken but brutal Castle, whose style is more outright execution than bringing the bad guys in for the law to handle.

Rucka said Friday the traditional mob wise guys Castle has battled with will be more contemporary but just as ruthless. The Punisher will be, too. “We have two established groups - one is called The Exchange, the other is sort of unnamed and is apparently headed by the Owl,” he said. “The deal with The Exchange is interesting - they are a 2011 crime organization” that is “Wi-Fi enabled and have access to the cloud.”

The series debuts with the release in August of the first and second issues, and then goes monthly and begins with what’s left of the crime gangs of New York - already having been hunted to near extinction by Castle - regrouping and reorganizing. But Castle won’t be standing idly by as that hap-

one.” “To have children grow up in that kind of maelstrom of affection and general applause for everything they do, it’s not normal, and you can imagine it very easily could have ended in somebody going off the rails somewhere,” producer Barron said. “But they were never put under the microscope of the outside world whilst they were working. ... If ever they got a bit bumptious when they were younger, the bubble was very quickly burst by someone or other on the crew, who just said, ‘Oh, yeah? Come on.’”

The actors developed strong work ethics, and the filmmakers saw traits in their stars that mirrored those of the characters. Like Harry, Radcliffe assumed a solicitous leadership role, sort of a goodwill ambassa-

pens. The Punisher has long been Marvel’s most lethal and driven character, carrying the memory of his family cut down in front of him, victims of internecine mob warfare. That baggage remains, always. “Frank is incredibly damaged. He’s a broken, broken human being. A price has been extracted from him unwillingly to be what he is,” Rucka said, adding that the new series will keep that in focus as it goes forward. —AP

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e’s the star of hundreds of films in militarydominated Myanmar, but these days Kyaw Thu is more likely to be found carrying coffins or driving a hearse at funerals for the poor. In the decade since he founded the Free Funeral Services Society, the organization has helped more than 100,000 families pay their last respects to late relatives, without charging a single kyat. “I want someone’s final journey to be good enough,” said the 51-year-old, who with his long silver hair and moustache still retains some of the movie star looks that helped to propel him onto the silver screen.

With 80 paid employees and 115 volunteers, his group provides free services at about 50 funerals a day using 18 hearses and two boats to transport the deceased and relatives, relying on local and overseas donations. It is one of a growing number of local civil society groups that have sprung up during almost half a century of military rule to fill the void left by an underfunded public sector and a relatively low inflow of foreign aid. Despite abundant natural resources, Myanmar remains one of the world’s least developed countries, with nearly a third of the population living below the poverty line, according to World Bank figures.

Rampant inflation has made it even harder for people to scrape by. When 12-year-old Pyae Phyo Tun drowned in a lake his parents could not afford the funeral costs, so they turned to Kyaw Thu for help. “You are our savior. Without your help, my son’s last journey could not be smooth,” his 33-year-old mother Aye Maw told the one-time movie star at her son’s funeral in Myanmar’s main city of Yangon.

Funeral ceremonies are steeped in tradition in the country, also known as Burma, where the majority Buddhists believe that the journey to the next life should be smooth and without delay.

It is typical for relatives to build a temporary pavilion that stands for a week in front of the family

home for people to gather in. Usually on the third day mourners go to the cemetery where monks chant sutras before the body is cremated. Those who can afford to do so buy land at the cemetery for a grave.

‘It might worry authorities’A few days later a memorial service is held at which mourners and monks are invited to pray for the deceased to help guide them to the next life.

But for many families it is a struggle to organize such an elaborate final send-off, and these are busy days for Kyaw Thu. “I feel both happy and sorry. My son

didn’t cause us trouble even though he’s dead because the Free Funeral Service Society helped us to cremate him without any cost. We have many difficulties for his funeral,” said Aye Maw, her voice trembling and tears running down her cheeks. Her husband Zaw Tun, a 34-year-old construction worker, said it would be impossible for them to pay for their son’s funeral themselves. The cremation alone can cost more than 35,000 kyats (about $43), about 10 times time his daily wage-when he can find work. —AFP

Founder of the Free Funeral Services Society (FFSS) Kyaw Thu, seen here consoling a relative of a boy during a funeral ceremony in Yangon. — AFP