12 Jul

ON IP TI SC R SU B

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

US Sikhs say they are mistaken targets

US to act unilaterally vs Iran-armed Iraq militias

150 FILS

Beckhams welcome baby girl Harper Seven

13

7

www.kuwaittimes.net

SHAABAN 11, 1432 AH

India’s 400m star Akkunji faces doping ban

20

37

40 PAGES

NO: 15147

Assad loyalists storm US, French embassies US ambassador’s residence also attacked by mob

128 ‘killed’ in Volga sinking SYUKEYEVO, Russia: Russia said there was little hope of finding any more people alive yesterday after an overloaded tourist boat sank in the Volga River, killing as many as 128 people in Russia’s worst river accident in three decades. Eighty people were rescued on Sunday after the Bulgaria, a double-decked river cruiser built in 1955, sank 3 km from shore in a broad stretch of the river in Tatarstan. Emergency Situations Minister Sergei Shoigu told President Dmitry Medvedev that little hope remained of finding survivors.

As many as 60 of the passengers may have been children, Russian media reported, and survivors said some 30 children had gathered in a room near the stern of the ship to play just minutes before it sank.

“Practically no children made it out,” survivor Natalya Makarova said on state television. She said she had lost her grip on her 10-year-old daughter as they struggled to escape. “We were all buried alive in the boat like in a metal coffin,” Makarova said, who escaped through a window.

Sania Zakirova waited on the shore at Syukeyevo for news of her missing grandson and pregnant daughterin-law. “No one is telling us anything. Are they alive or dead?” she screamed, wiping back tears. Her son, who survived, “was struck by a big wave that carried his son straight out of his hands”, the Kazan resident told reporters. Russia has a history of disasters and deadly accidents stemming from lax implementation of safety rules, from fires to plane crashes and mining disasters.

Another relative told regional official Grigory Rapota: “You cannot bring the children back! But find their bodies. I don’t want money from you, I want to take them into my hands and bury them in peace.”

Cruises on the Volga, which cuts through the heart of Russia hundreds of kilometres east of Moscow and drains into the Caspian Sea, are popular among Russians and foreigners. Mikhail Korbanov, the editor of Russia’s River Transport magazine, said the sinking was the most deadly river accident since the Alexander Suvorov crashed into a railroad bridge on the Volga in 1983, killing at least 176 people. Medvedev said the sinking would not have happened if safety rules had been observed. “According to the information we have today, the vessel was in poor condition,” Medvedev told a hastily convened meeting of senior ministers at his Gorki residence outside Moscow. “The number of old rust tubs which we have sailing is exorbitant.”

Weeping survivors draped in thick blankets said lives were lost because some passing boats never stopped to help. “Two boats went by without stopping, even though we waved and waved,” said survivor Nikolai Chernov on state television, as another man who survived the accident burst into tears at his side. Another man confirmed his story, saying that a river oil tanker and a barge passed by without stopping as the people struggled in the water. The boat, which was built in Communist Czechoslovakia, had 208 people on board including 25 unregistered passengers, Shoigu said. — Agencies

SYUKEYEVO, Russia: A diver rescues late on Sunday a survivor of the Bulgaria river cruise ship that sank earlier in the day in the Volga river near this village. — AFP

DAMASCUS: Syrians take pictures of the damaged American embassy after loyalists attacked the embassy compound yesterday. (Inset) Pro-government protesters plant the image of President Bashar Al-Assad and the national flag through the windscreen of a damaged vehicle as they gather outside the French Embassy yesterday. — AP/AFP

Max 43º Min 34º Low Tide 02:08 & 16:08 High Tide 08:03: 22:48

AMMAN: Several loyalists of President Bashar Al-Assad broke into the US embassy in Damascus yesterday and scrawled graffiti calling the American ambassador a “dog”, while security guards used live ammunition as hundreds stormed the French embassy, diplomats said.

They said the attackers tore down US embassy plaques and tried to break security glass in protests fuelled by the government against a visit by US and French ambassadors to the city of Hama, focus of demonstrations against Assad’s rule. “Four buses full of shabbiha (Alawite militia loyal to Assad) came from Tartous. They used a battering ram to try to break into the main door,” a resident of Afif, the old district where the US embassy is located told Reuters by telephone.

A Western diplomat in the Syrian capital said: “This is a violent escalation by the regime. You do not bring busloads of thugs into central Damascus from the coast without its consent.” A French foreign ministry official said the Syrian authorities had done nothing to stop the assault on its embassy. “(France) reminds (Syria) that it is not with such illegal methods that the authorities in Damascus will turn the attention away from the fundamental problem, which is to stop the repression of the Syrian population and to launch democratic reform,” said foreign ministry spokesman Bernard Valero.

As Syrian security forces looked on, Assad supporters smashed their way into the compound with a battering ram, broke windows and destroyed the ambassador’s car, according to the spokesman in Paris. An AFP photographer at the scene said several windows in the French embassy were broken and Syrian flags were raised. “A car belonging to an embassy staffer was damaged and a picture of the Syrian president was stuck on it,” he said. “The people want to kick out the dog,” read graffiti written on the wall of the US embassy, along Continued on Page 13

12 dead in Iran arms blast in Cyprus Navy chief among the dead MARI, Cyprus: Huge blasts in a seized Iranian arms cache at a Greek Cypriot naval base in southern Cyprus killed at least 12 people yesterday, triggering power and water outages at the height of summer. The commander of Cyprus’s navy, Andreas Ioannides, was among the dead, as was the commander of the Evangelos Florakis naval base, Lambros Lambrou, police and the National Guard said in a joint statement. Four other members of the armed forces and six firefighters also died. The early morning explosions devastated the adjacent Vassiliko power station in what Commerce Minister Antonis Paschalides called a “tragedy of Biblical dimensions” for the small Mediterranean island. The plant produces almost 60 percent of the country’s electricity supply.

Massive damage was caused to homes in the nearby village of Mari, forcing the evacuation of its 150 residents, the village headman told AFP. Government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou said 62 people were injured, two of them seriously, and announced three days of official mourning. Defence Minister Costas Papacostas and Greek Cypriot National Guard commander Petros Tsaliklides resigned at an emergency cabinet meeting, Stefanou said. The defence ministry had held talks last week about storage conditions after National Guard chiefs

reportedly expressed concerns about the arms cache being kept in the open as temperatures touched 40 degrees Celsius. “Decisions were taken on protecting the material but unfortunately this was not possible as time ran out,” Stefanou said, promising a “thorough investigation”.

The official CNA news agency said the death toll could rise as a number of people were missing. It said the bodies of four of the 12 dead were taken to Nicosia General Hospital for identification, and that 20-year-old twin brothers were among the dead. Firefighters were called to tackle a small fire in the storage area at the base at 4:24 am (0124 GMT) and the explosions followed at 5:50 am (0250 GMT), public radio reported.

An AFP correspondent saw magazine casings, shrapnel and other debris from the explosion littered throughout Mari.

Windows and doors were blown in, some roofs had collapsed and structural damage was widespread. Debris was hurled as far as three kilometres from the seat of the blast in the naval base between Mari and the fishing village of Zygi to the west, the correspondent reported. Hundreds of trees on nearby hillsides were flattened by the shock wave and several generator buildings and fuel tanks at the Vassiliko plant were reduced to shells.

Continued on Page 13

MARI, Cyprus: A man takes pictures of the destroyed Mari power station - the island’s primary electricity generator - damaged by the explosionís concussion wave near the Evangelos Florakis naval base yesterday — AP

Bangladesh crash kills 44 children Toll hits 80 in India rail accident CHITTAGONG/LUCKNOW: At least 44 children died in Bangladesh yesterday when a truck carrying schoolboys back from watching a football match crashed and flipped over into a waterfilled ditch. The driver lost control of the vehicle, which was overladen with

about 50 boys aged between 10 and 15, at Mirershorai, 200 km from the southeastern port city of Chittagong.

“We have held funeral for 44 children including 38 Muslims and six Hindus,” district police chief S A Morshed told Continued on Page 13

in the

news

Surgeons claim first double leg transplant

Stun gun found in US jet after arrival

MADRID: Spanish surgeons yesterday performed the world’s first double-leg transplant on a man whose legs were amputated above the knee after an accident, officials said.

Surgeons operated through the night on the man, who had faced life in a wheelchair because prosthetic limbs were unsuitable, said the health authority for the eastern region of Valencia. “It is the first time in the world that such a transplant has been carried out,” it said in a statement after the surgery, carried out in the La Fe hospital in the city of Valencia. The doctor in charge of the operation, Pedro Cavadas, is known in Spain for having made several groundbreaking organ transplants. The director of the National Transplant Organisation, Rafael Matesanz, confirmed the operation was a world first.

He said the search for a donor was “very complicated” because the person had to fulfill a series of requirements including being of the right age and blood type, and not being too far from the operating hospital.

NEWARK: It does not appear a stun gun found aboard a JetBlue plane that landed late Friday in Newark was intended to be used in an attack, an FBI spokesman said yesterday.

Bryan Travers, a spokesman for the FBI’s Newark office, said information from the investigation so far suggests that no attack was imminent. The stun gun was found by a crew that was cleaning Flight 1179 from Boston around 10:20 pm Friday, after the flight had landed and all 96 passengers were off the plane. Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police removed the stun gun from the plane and handed it over to the federal Transportation Security Administration, which is responsible for screening passengers. The investigation, being led by the FBI’s office in Boston, is focusing on how the stun gun got onto the plane, Travers said. Travers said that

by Monday morning it was not clear who may have brought the gun aboard. Port Authority spokesman Steve Coleman said there were no indications the stun gun was fired.

Whoa, baby! Texas mom delivers 16-pound newborn

LONGVIEW, TEXAS: JaMichael Brown is seen yesterday at the Good Shepherd Medical Center’s neonatal care unit. — AP

LONGVIEW, Texas: A Texas mom expected a big baby, but nothing like this: 16 pounds, 1 ounces. (7.3 kg) Janet Johnson yesterday remained in an East Texas hospital after giving birth to what her doctors called one of the biggest newborns they’ve ever seen. She was awaiting word on whether her son, JaMichael Brown, ranked among the biggest births in state history. “Everybody was amazed that he was so big,” Johnson, 39, said. “I don’t think too many people have heard of having a 16-pound baby.” JaMichael was born Friday at Good Shepherd Medical Center in Longview. Johnson has gestational diabetes, which results in bigger newborns for many mothers. Doctors had estimated JaMichael would be around 12 pounds prior to the cesarean birth. The hospital has asked the state’s vital records department whether JaMichael is big enough to approach any Texas newborn records, said Victoria Ashworth, a hospital spokeswoman.

Guinness World Records says the heaviest newborn ever recorded weighed 23 pounds, 12 ounces, born to an Ohio woman in 1879.

2

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

LOCAL

Al-Awadhi admits to failure, plans new initiative soon ‘No improvement in quality of life’

By Hussain Al-Qatari KUWAIT: MP Aseel Al-Awadhi yesterday conceded that the parliament and cabinet had failed to promote the values of citizenship and mutual tolerance during the last parliamentary term. “Today, all parliament members, including myself, face a serious challenge to give citizens faith in this country’s constitution.”

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah received yesterday at Seif Palace, Musaad Mohammad Al-Saeed, Daliya Hamad Al-Khalid and their daughter Besma Musaad Al-Saeed. HH the Amir encouraged Besma Al-Saeed to work hard and overcome all obstacles, wishing her continuous success throughout her life. Besma Al-Saeed presented HH the Amir with a piece of her art work.

Kuwait no longer interested in pursuing nuclear energy KUWAIT: Kuwait is no longer eager to possess nuclear technology or to seek nuclear power for energy purposes, according to Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Dr. Mohammad AlSabah.

The minister’s statement, made in response to questions on the subject from MP Ali Al-Omair, came in the wake of a decision made during the Cabinet’s latest weekly meeting, to assign the duties previously undertaken by the Kuwait National Nuclear Energy Committee (KNNEC) to the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) in a bid by the government to adopt a more cautious approach to utilizing nuclear power for research and medical purposes.

In the meantime, Cabinet insiders stated that during Sunday’s Cabinet meeting Minister of Commerce and Industry Amani Buresli briefed other ministers on a study which resulted in a number of proposed amendments to the current Capital Market Authority legislation.

Speaking on condition of anonymity since the subject was omitted from the official report on the meeting, the insider noted that the topic was referred to the Cabinet’s legal committee following a brief discussion, adding that it is to be discussed in more detail next week.

Meanwhile, another anonymous

insider indicated that other topics referred to the Cabinet’s legal committee for deliberation also include a bill to curb rising Internet prices by boosting competition between Internet Services Providers (ISPs), another bill proposing the establishment of a penal code for online crimes, and a third bill to allow the appointment of female judges, as well as proposed amendments to the audiovisual law.

On a separate issue, many lawmakers have reacted angrily to a recent news reports which revealed a shortage in livestock supplies from the country’s sole supplier, as they demanded the introduction of measures to boost food security ahead of the holy month of Ramadan, which always sees a surge in demand for foodstuffs and other consumer items. MP Khalid Al-Sultan suggested that the recurring nature of these problems in recent years has been caused by the lack of focus on food security measures in the government’s development plans.

In other news, lawmaker Dr. Aseel AlAwadhi announced that she has been working with other MPs including Dr. Hassan Jowhar and Marzouq Al-Ghanim on an ‘initiative of reform,’ which aims to restore the relationship between the parliament and the cabinet and shift the main focus of attention to working for the public good. —Agencies

The lawmaker said that, despite their legislative achievements, the parliament and Cabinet have over the last two years failed citizens repeatedly, and sparked sectarian and racist tension.

Al-Awadhi announced that she and MPs Hassan Jawhar, Marzouq Al-Ghanim and several others are currently establishing an agenda for a national unity initiative that promotes patriotism and citizenship in an optimistic and positive way. “Reacting to corruption may be a temporary solution, but it does not correct situations as efficiently as a progressive national initiative would,” she stated.

Al-Awadhi said that it is necessary to rectify all the damage that has been done, noting that both the parliament and Cabinet are complicit in this failure. “The Cabinet did not succeed in proving how serious it is concerning reforms,” she asserted. “Nothing has improved for the average citizen. In fact things keep getting worse, and there is more blatant corruption in most ministries and government establishments.”

The MP criticized Cabinet officials for making false statements to the press without taking any action towards progress and reform, leaving development plan projects aside and focusing instead on personal gains.

Al-Awadhi also criticized MPs for their sectarian and intolerant agendas, noting that the constant derision and name -calling inside parliament had its effect on the masses. “MPs were polarized: pro-and anti-government; and each party was very extreme,” she said. “Lawmakers who are pro-govern-

KUWAIT: Maasouma Al-Mubarak, Rola Dashti, Aseel Al-Awadhi and Salwa Al-Jassar are seen in this file photo. —Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat ment stood by the government even when they knew that it was taking unfair decisions and making big mistakes, and anti-government [MPs] did everything in their power to slam government officials, even if that meant exhausting the public with interpellations and demonstrations.”

Amid all of the battles waged between the different parties, the citizen pays the price, she noted, saying, “ This negative atmosphere pushes the citizen to give up on the idea of democracy and a constitutional state.”

Last week, Abdulrahman Al-Mudahka, the president of the Ittejahat Research Center, asserted in a press statement that the latest parliamentary term was one of Kuwait’s worst ever. The term witnessed the submission of nine interpellation motions against ministers, the resignation of the Cabinet and then of two ministers, and the approval of the biggest annual budget to date which is approximately KD 20 billion. “Despite this big amount of money being approved, there is no improvement to the quality of life for the average citizen,” Al-Mudahka noted.

Kids’ cultural festival praised KUWAIT: The participants in the Thirteenth Children’s Cultural Festival and their parents yesterday praised the great organization of the events included in the annual festival and the wide range of cultural and artistic activities available.

This year’s festival had added several important events which contribute to raising children’s artistic and cultural awareness, according to many of the parents.

One enthusiastic parent, Muhammad Ali, said that this kind of event and all the training workshops for young children, can help get kids interested in artistic activities.

Another parent, Fatima Al-Jamal, was also full of praise for the festival, saying that this year’s training courses had been a great success and were presented in the best educational style. —KUNA

KUWAIT: A butcher selling meat at one of the shops in Shuwaikh.

— Photo by Joseph Shagra

Meat prices rise as Ramadan approaches KUWAIT: As Ramadan approaches, rising local meat prices are providing contentious for both buyers and sellers, with some retailers suggesting that the increasing prices are leading to fewer sales as financially stretched consumers cut back on meat.

Many consumers are demanding more official intervention to control meat prices, with some knowledgeable sources suggesting that Kuwait’s rapidly declining meat sales may see the country joining those nations with the lowest meat consumption levels as customers simply refuse to pay KD120 for an Arab sheep. Many consumers have complained at the unjustified price rises, protesting that there is no difficulty in importing livestock from other, cheaper nations, although some local butchers argue that prices are not actually that high and that the customers in question would not be satisfied with any price.

Abu Abdullah, a butcher in the Shuwaikh meat market, said that transferring the vegetable market to its new location in another area has had a major negative effect on meat sales, with many of the customers who had previously bought meat and vegetables at the same time now not bothering.

Another butcher at the Shuwaikh meat market, who preferred to remain anonymous, agreed that conditions there had become tougher for retailers,

saying that he’s incurring major losses, buying a kilo of meat for an average of KD2 while selling each kilo for 750 fils.

The pricing system is grotesquely unfair, he protested, adding that if he were dependent solely on his trade at the market he would have gone bust by now.

A customer at the market, Abu Ahmed, said that the rising cost of an Australian sheep carcass, which has gone up from KD32 from KD40, was caused by the decreasing number of sheep available after the Australian government introduced stringent new conditions on shipping and treatment. He added that prices are expected to rise around the Ramadan period, suggesting that the prices would fall again if the quantity of livestock available were increased.

One butcher, who gave his name only as Ahmed, said that the local livestock market is currently suffering a large slump in sales, larger than that seen during the same period last year. He suggested that the closure of the Shuwaikh vegetable market, as well as the number of residents currently on holiday overseas are the principal reasons for the fall in business. He was gloomy on the future forecast for the market, saying that the soaring prices would influence many consumers’ buying choices since they are no longer able to afford to buy the same quantities of meat they did previously.

Commercial violators to face harsh punishment KUWAIT: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry would not turn a blind eye to any unwarranted and unauthorized increase in prices of basic commodities; and that the ministry’s inspection and supervision staff are doing their best to protect consumers, stated Minister Amani Buresli yesterday.

The inspectors of the ministry are visiting establishments across the country towards this end, and would greatly appreciate the cooperation of the consumers themselves to report any unethical or illegal commercial practice, particularly in pricing.

The supervision centers are ready to receive and process all complaints day and night, the minister added.

Buresli said she had instructed all the inspection and supervision department staff to uphold the law fully, without bias nor exceptions, which would guarantee the rights of both merchants and consumers.

The ministry conducts regular surveys of commodity prices then circulates a weekly update of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) index of prices of basic foodstuff and produce. The ministry is sanctioned to impose on violators a sentence of up to a year in prison and a fine of up to KD 3,000. The ministry also has the authority to temporarily and/or permanently close the establishment found in violation, depending on the nature and severity of the violation. The minister stressed all commercial violators would face harsh punishment.

The inspectors had in the past few days referred 186 violations so far to the public prosecution, mostly related to illegal increase of prices and cheating customers.

“Despite the efforts of the ministry, the prices of basic goods do increase on a global scale due to the increase in cost, coupled with increase in demand, as well as due to factors including customs duties and geo-environmental conditions.

This most particularly affects non-subsidized goods,” Buresli concluded.—KUNA

3 dead, 6 hurt in tragic family crash

KUWAIT: At his office yesterday, Ministry of Interior Undersecretary Lt Gen Ghazi Al-Omar welcomed the outgoing Egyptian Ambassador Tahir Farahat.

During the meeting, Lt Gen Al-Omar expressed his gratitude for the ambassador’s efforts during his tenure, especially concerning security coordination between the two countries.

KUWAIT: Three members of one Saudi family died in a horrific car crash yesterday whilst six other family members, all children, were injured in the same accident.

The accident is believed to have been caused by a puncture to one tire of the family’s vehicle, which resulted in the driver losing control of the car that subsequently rolled over repeatedly on the road before coming to rest.

Although emergency services personnel were quickly at the scene, paramedics found that three family members were already dead. The injured children were rushed to hospital, whilst the bodies were removed for autopsy.

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

local

Divorce rates continue to increase in Kuwait Incompatibility between couples

By Hussain Al-Qatari

AMMAN: Speaker of the Jordan Parliament Faisal Al-Fayez pictured with members of the KJA delegation yesterday.

Jordan praises relations with Kuwait AMMAN: Jordan’s top lawmaker Faisal Al-Fayez expressed yesterday gratitude for the ongoing support rendered to Jordan by His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlSabah, government and people.

Speaking after meeting a delegation of the Kuwait Journalists Association (KJA) here yesterday, the speaker of the Jordanian parliament praised the brotherly and solid relations between the Kuwaiti and Jordanian people “under the wise leadership of the two countries”.

The Jordanian people shared common social grounds with the people of Kuwait and member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council GCC, Al-Fayez said after the meeting during which Kuwaiti Ambassador in Amman Dr Hamad Al-Duaij was present.

Al-Fayez underlined significance of

the Kuwaiti investments in Jordan, which he described as a tool for enhancement of aspects of cooperation and a wide field for Jordanian job seekers. Kuwait is the largest investor in Jordan, he noted.

He said that there were 60,000 job hopefuls in the Jordanian market every year, 10,000 of whom are absorbed while the rest pursue work opportunities outside the kingdom of Jordan.

On other noted, Fayez underlined his country’s support to the Palestinian national authority and the right of the Palestinian people for an independent state. On the ongoing political and social change on the Arab arena, Fayez welcomed King Abdullah II of Jordan for his political reform steps that aim at involving the Jordanian citizen in the political process.

He underlined the significant role played by the media in the peoples’ communication and the footprint of the Jordanian newsmen abroad.

He favored regulation of the Jordanian private media sector, stressing necessity that such organization contradicted not with the freedom of the press.

On his part, KJA Chairman, and head of the delegation, Ahmad Behbahani, thanked Fayez for the significant meeting and commended the good relations linking Kuwait and Jordan. He said Jordan enjoyed a wide base of educated and professional workforce, including teachers, physicians and administrators.

The delegation, which groups Kuwaiti Goodwill Ambassador Kuwaiti singer Abdullah Ruwaished, is due to travel to the Palestinian territories upon an invitation by the authorities there. — KUNA

Pearl diving preparations in full swing

Ali Al-Qabandi

KUWAIT: The Kuwait Sea Sports Club holds a press conference this morning (Tuesday) to announce preparations for the this year’s traditional pearl diving trip, which takes place later this month under the patronage of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Sabah.

The press conference, which takes place at the KSSC headquarters building in Salmiya at 10:30 am, will be attended by senior members of the Sea Heritage Committee which organizes the annual voyage, including chairman Ali Al-Qabandi, his deputy Mohammad Al-Farsi, and special consultant Kalifa Al-Rashid, as well as the captains among the trip’s young volunteers. The 23rd Pearl Diving Trip

Humidity, sandstorms predicted KUWAIT: Humidity levels are set to rise, especially in coastal areas, with the possibility of sandstorms on Thursday, according to a senior local meteorologist.

Mohammad Karam, the head of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation’s meteorology department, said on Sunday that the humidity, caused by the arrival of a low-pressure front from India, could be accompanied by a slight fall in temperatures.

The humidity levels should fall again from Wednesday, with the temperatures rising back up to 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit), whilst there’s a possibility of sandstorms on Thursday. — Al-Anba

Crime up by 10% in 2010 KUWAIT: Crime levels have risen in Kuwait, according to newlyreleased figures from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), which showed a 10 percent increase in the incidence of reported crimes in 2010 on the previous year. 2010 saw 12,399 more criminal cases filed in Kuwait’s courts, according to the newly released figures, which also indicate that levels of divorce and associated court cases, such as those related to alimony and child support, formed the largest number of non-criminal cases seen by Kuwaiti courts last year, accounting for a total of 27,571 cases.

Commenting on the new figures, Faisal Al-Murshed, the Vice President of the Supreme Judicial Council, said that while draft laws submitted to parliament some years ago could cut the number of disputes settled in Kuwait’s courts by 90 percent, they have been under examination by parliamentary committees for years with no action taken to enact them. “The Supreme Judicial Council provided the parliament with almost 30 draft laws, including anti-money laundering and family court legislation,, but they’ve yet to be passed,” he complained. — Al-Qabas

takes place between July 14 and July 23, featuring participation of 16 traditional ships gifted by the late Amir His Highness Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad AlSabah, as well as HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.

Meanwhile, the KSSC made an open invitation to the public and media to attend the trip’s inaugural day, known traditionally as ‘Al-Dasha’, which starts at 8:30 am on Thursday morning (July 14) at the beachfront of the KSSC building where the ships will sail towards their destination in AlKhairan.

Media representatives are also invited to attend a special event to cover the proceedings of the trip the following Monday (July 18).

KUWAIT: According to statistics published recently by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the number of divorce lawsuits filed in Kuwait far outnumbers other legal cases, with Kuwait’s courts handling 27,500 divorces in 2010 alone. The data, compiled from the ministry’s caseload for 2010, also indicated a 10% increase in the previous year in the number of all lawsuits filed in Kuwait’s courts. Legal experts have expressed shock at the increase, warning that the issue requires immediate attention.

Lawyer Mariam Al-Bahar suggested that the principal reasons behind the high number of divorces in the country are incompatibility between couples and a lack of understanding of the reciprocal duties of marriage.

“Without an education program that instills values of cooperation and better communication between couples,

things will only keep getting worse,” she warned. Al-Bahar said that other reasons behind the high divorce rates include the interference of family members in couples’ problems, hastiness and making poor decisions, and a lack of financial security, with irresponsible young couples overspending on luxuries while neglecting necessities. “A lot of clients complain that the husband is willing to take out a loan for an expensive car but can’t afford to pay the rent at the end of the month,” she revealed.

The lawyer explained that the majority of alimony cases are brought by women against former husbands who refuse to pay financial support towards raising their children.

“Current law grants a husband a monthly allowance as soon as he’s married, as well as a housing allowance,” said Al-Bahar. “Even in the event of divorce, the man still receives these allowances, despite

the fact that they should clearly be given to the woman who in most cases has to find a place to live on her own and is taking care of the children. However, all proposals to amend that law are usually stalled until they’re forgotten.”

The lawyer revealed that Ministry of Justice [MoJ] legal experts have proposed the launch of several programs to help curb divorce rates in Kuwait, adding that the problem lies in delays in implementing these proposals.

One of the proposed programs would require couples seeking a divorce to first meet with specialists from the MoJ’s counseling department, with divorce only to be granted once the couple have attended a number of counseling sessions.

The latest figures also show that the number of lawsuits filed against family members has increased, indicating an increase in reports of domestic violence.

New Syrian teachers to arrive on schedule KUWAIT: The current troubles in Syria is not expected to prevent Syrian teachers who signed employment contracts with Kuwait’s Ministry of Education (MoE) earlier this year from arriving in Kuwait on schedule for the start of the 2011-12 academic year, said a ministry official on Sunday. Special teams of MoE recruiters visited Syria in January before the current uprising began, signing contracts with teachers of English, French and Arabic, as well as other subjects such as Mathematics, Science and Physical Education, also visiting Jordan, Egypt and Tunisia.

“We haven’t received any notification from any of the teachers recruited saying that they aren’t going to be able to come to Kuwait due to the current circumstances in Syria said Muna Al-Lughani, the MoE’s Assistant Undersecretary for State Education. Al-Lughani was responding to recent reports expressing concern that the revolution taking place in Syria could adversely affect Kuwaiti schools. “An ongoing coordination between embassies is already in place to follow up on the subject and ensure the smooth transportation of teachers next month,” the MoE official added.

She added that the procedures to transport other teachers hired by the MoE in Egypt and Tunisia, two other countries rocked by revolutions in recent months, are also going smoothly.

Meanwhile, an education ministry insider revealed that a number of teachers from other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations have also been submitting their applications to the local education authorities which deal with domestic applications. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the insider explained that the MoE stopped receiving applications from GCC candidates based abroad since it has already recruited the maximum number of GCC nationals allowed to take up teaching posts, according to the regulatory criteria. — Al-Qabas

KUWAIT: The Public Administration for Nationality and Passports yesterday started receiving 73 naturalized people’s sons as per Amiri Decree No 188/2011. Those included in the Amiri Decree were granted citizenship immediately, particularly after providing all necessary documents. — Photos by Joseph Shagra

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

LOCAL

GE brings smiles, joy to kids in hospital Committed to Kuwait’s long-term development plan

MP lauds premier’s Gulf tour

By A Saleh KUWAIT: Chairman of the Parliamentary Foreign Relations Committee MP Mubarak AlKhurainej yesterday lauded His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah’s successful tour of the GCC countries. Al-Khurainej said the trip came at the right time, bearing in mind the current turbulent situation in the Arab region. “ We hope His Highness the Premier will make this kind of tour every six months or annually as we are in need of such meetings,’”said the MP. On the official Iraqi opposition to the construction of Mubarak AlKabeer Port, Al-Khurainej said “As most members of the foreign affairs committee are out of the country, I appeal to the Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammad Al-Sabah to adopt a clear stance on this issue and make

an official statement to answer those officials.”

On the controversy over the Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port, another parliamentarian, Khalid Al-Adwa, said, “Our government must go ahead with the Mubarak Al-Kabeer project, as it is one of the strategic projects in Boubyan Island, in our territorial waters.” He added, “Kuwait must not pay attention to the hatred and the inferiority complex from Iraq in objecting to this project.” Meanwhile, fellow MP Ahmad Al-Saadoun asked Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Dr Mohammad Al-Sabah about statements attributed to a leader of the Yemeni opposition, who suggested that GCC officials threatened their own countries with a Bahrainstyle scenario if they did not sign the Gulf initiative. “This statement, if true, makes many indications and raise many questions about what it means,” said Al-Saadoun. “I ask you to declare how true the Yemeni

opposition member’s statement is, and if it is true then what does the Bahraini scenario mean?”

Meanwhile, the leader of Iraq’s parliamentary White bloc Hassan AlAlawi criticized statements by the bloc’s spokesperson Alia Nasif in which she demanded that the Kuwait Ambassador in Iraq be changed. He questioned the motives behind such a statement and asked who would benefit from them. “Such statements are personal and aim at involving the bloc in very dangerous issues,” he said.

Al-Alawi said that Nasif did not consult with other bloc members prior to making her statement and was not authorized to make any statement on Iraq-Kuwait relations.

The bloc head said that he found it strange that Nasif would concentrate on one particular topic in a way that makes one wonder about this insistence on focusing on issues of Iraq-Kuwait relations and the motives behind this focus.

Kuwait signs health insurance deal for students LONDON: Kuwait signed an agreement worth GBP 1.8 million (KD 800,000) yesterday to provide health insurance for Kuwaiti higher education students in the United Kingdom.

Kuwait Health Minister Hilal AlSayer signed the agreement with British private healthcare providers, Bupa, who offer health services to around 2,000 students across Britain.

The minister said that Kuwait intended to provide the best services for its students, to put them on equal ground with their counterparts from other countries, and that Bupa was the ideal candidate for the purpose.

Kuwaiti students who have been sent on a government grant or on their personal expense would have to be registered with the Kuwait Embassy ’s Cultural Attache to be provided the service.

Those studying in the Republic of Ireland will have to be registered at the embassy ’s cultural

LONDON: Kuwait Health Minister Hilal Al-Sayer pictured with officials after signing the agreement with British private healthcare providers, Bupa.

attache in Dublin, after the ministr y signed a similar deal with another company in the country.

The insurance includes treatment for most medical illnesses and dental services in private and public hospitals and clinics. The insurance excludes however, med-

ical care for cosmetic purposes, he noted. The minister also revealed that his ministry would raise allocations for foreign medical treatment in Europe and the US. The move is due to high standards of living in European countries, the minister said. —KUNA

KUWAIT: Fun-filled activities at the Al-Sabah’s NBK hospital.—Photos by Joseph Shagra

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: GE Volunteers, the inhouse voluntary body of GE (General Electric), brought smiles and good cheer to children suffering from long-term illnesses at AlSabah’s NBK hospital yesterday.

Around 150 children suffering from leukemia and other forms of cancer took part in the event, which was held in cooperation with the Kuwait Association for the Care of Children in Hospital (KACCH) and the Bayt Abdullah children’s hospice. The young participants enjoyed a range of fun-filled activities, including parlor games, a magic show, henna and face painting, story-telling and the appearance of well-known cartoon characters.

Speaking with the Kuwait Times, George Boumitri, President & CEO of GE for Iraq, Kuwait and the Levant, said: “The activity we are doing right now was part of our Corporate Social Responsibility [CSR] program.

This is not the first time we’ve done it and it’s part of our CSR tradition.

In fact the last time we organized such an event was in April this year, where we conducted a clean-up operation on Mesillah beach. So either we organize a pro-environmental campaign, or educational or organized activities dedicated to the care of children and the wellbeing of people in general,” he said.

Boumitri said that such activities are not just important but also dear to GE. “ We have been part of Kuwait’s families for more than eight decades and we are blessed with the support of basically Kuwait’s entire population. It is therefore imperative to give back to the people where we belong who are openly supporting us,” he added. Around 15 of GE’s 150 employees in Kuwait volunteered to share their precious time and efforts to bring some joy into the sick kids’ lives yesterday. As well as bringing smiles to the children’s faces, GE also donated some flatscreen TV sets to the hospital for the

George Boumitri talking with the Kuwait Times

kids’ long-term entertainment. “Now we’re here ourselves and have taken part in some fun-activities but when we leave this hospital in the afternoon, [the children’s] happiness will continue through television entertainment,” said Boumitri.

“The whole objective of the event was to reduce the adverse effects of long-term hospitalization in the children, and promote their overall wellbeing.”

The senior GE official said that the fun day underlines the company’s commitment to be a partner in social initiatives that make a meaningful difference to the local community, and more particularly to those who rarely come to the attention of mainstream society.

“GE Volunteers have a rich history of partnering in community initiatives in Kuwait, and giving back to society,” he added.

Some 175 GE Volunteer Councils in 46 countries comprising over 100,000 volunteers undertake over one million hours of community service every year. GE Volunteers place the emphasis on education, the environment, healthcare and overall community development.

Hanadi Al-Moubayed, KACCH’s Senior Child Life Specialist, said: “The volunteering initiative by GE truly made a difference to the children, providing them with a very memorable day. Since our inception, we have been associated with projects that help children and their families undergoing hospitalization or long-term treatment cope with the resulting stress. ‘Smiles of Hope’ will be cherished by all involved for a long time to come.”

KACCH is a non-governmental charitable organization registered with the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor of Kuwait. It was founded informally in 1989 to help ill children and their families cope with the stress of hospitalization. The organization is managed by volunteers and funded by donations from organizations, businesses, banks, schools and individuals within

Kuwait.

GE has a strong presence in Kuwait partnering with key sectors including energy, water, power, aviation and healthcare. “We’ve been active in the Middle East for several decades now and we are committed to this area for the long term,” Boumitri explained. “We have several projects almost everywhere.”

In Kuwait, Boumitri revealed, GE is currently engaged in the Subiya Power plant, oil and gas sectors KOC, KNPC etc, the Sulaibiya Waste Water Treatment Plant [known as the biggest in the world], as well as in smaller sectors like the manufacture of health equipment, light and electronic appliances. “We are in the hospitals and clinics; MRIs, X-Rays, incubators; GE can be found technically almost anywhere. We have home appliances, although very selective but dependable. We are the company that focuses on bringing in more advanced but also state-of-the-art technology, from the engine turbines of the airplane to the fridge inside your home, and a life support system in the rural areas.” On the subject of professional competition, Boumitri was positive, asserting that competition brings out the best in one’s product.

“It’s basically healthy and the more there is the more we concentrate on the quality and dependability of our products and the training of our people to cope with the growing competition.”

On the Kuwaiti market and the company ’s expansion program, Boumitri noted that Kuwait remains one of GE’s strongest partners in the Middle East. “That is why we are here, that is why we are committed to this market,” he stated. “There are lots of development projects in the offing and we are part of that desire to help them in this endeavor. We are cooperating and monitoring the development plan [Kuwait’s fiveyear development plan]; we are assessing where we could align ourselves to be able to engage GE in the upcoming projects.”

500 illegal residents to be deported

KUWAIT: Canadian Minister of Defense Peter Gordon Mackay arrived here yesterday on an official two-day visit to Kuwait. He was welcomed by Deputy Chief of the Kuwaiti Army Lt Gen Khalid Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah and several other Kuwaiti officials and the Canadian ambassador in Kuwait Reid Henry. During his stay here, the Canadian minister is expected to sign a bilateral memo of understanding.

KUWAIT: Kuwaiti authorities are preparing to deport 500 expatriates who were arrested for violating residency regulations during operations launched against the estimated 80,000 residency violators who failed to utilize the four-month Amiri amnesty which expired at the end of last month.

The amnesty, which extended from March 1 to June 30, gave residency violators the opportunity to leave Kuwait without paying any penalties or facing other legal problems. Those wishing to remain in the country could take advantage of the amnesty period to legalize their status, so long as they paid the cumulative fines against them in order to avoid prosecution.

The Ministry of Interior has warned that it plans to hunt down violators who deliberately avoided either leaving the country or legalizing their status during the amnesty period. According to an MoI insider, the 500 aforementioned expats who were arrested in operations around the country are being deported as part of tough measures introduced against violators, which also include blacklisting.

On a related note, Maj Gen Abdullah Al-Rashid, the MoI’s Acting Undersecretar y for Citizenship and Migration Affairs, has reportedly issued instructions ordering that he be provided with the files on any expatriate residents who applied to legalize their status during the amnesty but whose applications were delayed by reasons outside their control, such as lengthy bureaucratic procedures. According to one departmental insider, Maj Gen Al-Rashid wants to personally ensure that all cases meet the legal conditions for obtaining residency in Kuwait, before the residency is granted. Earlier reports had suggested that the ministry had established a new July 27 deadline to allow these special cases to finalize their procedures and avoid being subjected to strict penalties. —Al-Qabas

Ice Skating Rink hosts KBC open day KUWAIT: The Kuwait Banks Club is inviting staff members of local banks to enjoy an open day with their families at the Ice Skating Rink, which will be held on July 23 in cooperation with the Touristic Enterprises Company.

Reem Al-Wuqaiyan, head of the KBC’s social committee, said in a press statement that a Reem Al-Wuqaiyan special entertaining program is allocated for the special day which will last between 4:30 pm and 10 pm, including a raffle draw for many valuable prizes.

Kuwaiti ambassador to attend AIIS anniversary meeting BERLIN: The Kuwaiti Ambassador to Germany Dr. Musaad Al-Haroun is set to participate on Thursday in the annual meeting of Frankfurt University’s Arab-Islamic Institute of Science (AIIS) on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of its foundation in 1982.

His Highness the late Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Jaber AlAhmad Al-Sabah was one of the first contributors to the institute, bestowing a 5.7 million Deutschmark (€5.3 million) donation which helped with the purchase of the Institute’s headquarters building.

During his visit, Ambassador Al-Haroun is scheduled to tour the institute’s different faculties and participate in the annual meeting of Board of Trustees.

Founded on May 18, 1982, AIIS at Frankfurt’s Johann Wolfgang Goethe University aims to research and raise awareness of the history and culture of Arab-Islamic heritage.

The institute, headed by globally renowned orientalist Fuat Sezgin, features a scientific library with 25,000 books, among them 300 Arabic manuscripts, as well as a museum with 800 antiques. — KUNA

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

local Premier briefs Cabinet on highly successful Gulf tour KUWAIT: The Kuwaiti Cabinet on Sunday held its weekly meeting at Seif Palace under the chairmanship of His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah. Following the meeting, State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Ali Fahad Al-Rashed made a statement on the meeting’s deliberations and outcome.

The Cabinet was first briefed on HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah’s decree appointing Abdulwahab Al-Haroun as State Minister for Planning and Development Affairs, welcoming Al-Haroun’s appointment and wishing the best performance for his ministry.

The Cabinet was also apprised of Minister of Information and Communications Sami Al-Nisf’s resignation due to health reasons and the Amiri decree appointing Minister of Electricity and Water Salim Al-Uthayna as acting Minister of both Information and Communications.

The Cabinet members expressed gratitude for Al-Nisf ’s contributions and wished him good health and a quick recovery, added the Cabinet Affairs Minister. It also welcomed the appointment of Uthayna, wishing him all the best in his ministerial tenure. The premier also briefed the Cabinet on his recent highly successful Gulf tour, which included visits to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and the Sultanate of Oman.

The tour, which began on July 4 and concluded on July 9, reflected Kuwait’s eagerness to consolidate its existing historic bonds with other GCC Arab states, as well as to cement the common interests of GCC peoples, forming a part of the constant meetings held among the GCC Arab states. HH the Prime Minister expressed his gratitude to all the GCC nations’ leaders for the warm welcome and reception he and his accompanying delegation received during the tour.

The Premier hailed GCC leaders for their devotion to maintaining unity among the regional bloc’s members and to confronting any of the challenges facing them.

The Cabinet members lauded HH Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed’s GCC tour as an important addition to the historic ties among GCC member states. Taking into consideration the Fukushima Daiichi atomic incident in March, the Cabinet announced that the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research will now take responsibility for the program on the peaceful use of nuclear energy in Kuwait rather than the National Committee for the Uses of Nuclear Energy for Peaceful Purposes (NCUNEPP). The Cabinet reviewed and approved several bills and Memoranda of Understanding, including an agreement between the Kuwaiti and Nigerian governments on encouraging and protecting mutual investments, a memorandum of understanding between Kuwait and the United States on exempting aircraft operation from income tax, and another MoU between Kuwait and the United Kingdom on cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

The Cabinet approved the recent decision of the Council of Ministers of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) No. 3/85, on the adoption of amendments to some articles of the Arab Shipbuilding and Repair Yard Company (ASRY). The ministers also reviewed the recommendations of the Cabinet’s legal committee on approving the MoU on strategic dialogue between the GCC countries and Australia, the agreement between Kuwait and Republic of Serbia on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic and official passports, an agreement on cultural and technical cooperation between Kuwait and Switzerland, an MoU on technical cooperation to protect and preserve the environment between Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, and an agreement on mutual administrative assistance for the correct application of customs legislation and dealing with customs violations between Kuwait and Syria. The approved bills and MoUs were referred to HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah for studying and referral to the National Assembly for deliberation.

Finally, the Cabinet discussed current events in light of the reports related to the overall political developments at the Arab and international levels. It also hailed the birth of the world’s newest nation, South Sudan, and announced Kuwait’s official recognition of the new country. —KUNA

French ambassador lauds cooperation with Kuwait Stage set for Bastille Day celebrations

By Sawsan Kazak KUWAIT: On the occasion of the upcoming French National Day (Bastille Day) celebrations on July 14, the French Ambassador to Kuwait Nada Yafi yesterday held a press conference at her residence in Jabriya. At the first press conference held by the ambassador since she began her mission to Kuwait eight months ago, she began by pointing to the longstanding cooperation between the two countries, saying, “This is the perfect occasion to hail half a century of bilateral relations between France and Kuwait.”

The ambassador reminded the reporters present of France’s long loyalty to Kuwait. “ When this country gained its independence, in 1961, France immediately recognized the state of Kuwait, and in 1991 our country also participated in the liberation of Kuwait.

This year has been a year of celebration starting with the ‘50/20/5’anniversaries, which France officially shared with the presence of our foreign affairs minister for this special event,” she said, referring to the fact that this year marks the 50th anniversary of Kuwait’s independence and the 20th of its liberation from Iraqi occupation, as well as the 5th since His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah assumed power.

Ambassador Yafi also referred to the fact that the ties between the two countries extend beyond the political to cooperation in the defense and military, educational and economic fields, amongst others. “During the few months I have been here, the Kuwait Investment Authority took a €600 million stake in France’s leading international company, Areva. I hope that other major investments will follow.”

Ambassador Yafi also touched upon the many planned cooperative ventures between the two countries. “Our ministries of foreign affairs are in close contact, since Kuwait is co-chairing with France the Forum for the Future, an initiative of the G8 and BMENA [Broader Middle East and North Africa],” she revealed. “Later this

equally,” she stated. “However,” she added, “all countries have the right to create and implement their own laws. The law forbidding the niqab in public was not against the niqab per se, it was against the covering or hiding of one’s identity.”

When asked about the recent Arab revolutions and uprisings, the ambassador was optimistic.

from the North, the ambassador was unequivocally supportive of the new nation. “We recognize South Sudan as a sovereign state,” she said. “We hope for all the best for this new country. There are a few areas still in question such as Abyei and we believe these details will be resolved soon enough between the two nations.”

About Bastille Day

KUWAIT: The French Ambassador to Kuwait, Nada Yafi, addresses reporters during a press conference held at her residence in Jabriya yesterday to mark France’s Bastille Day, which falls on Thursday. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat month a special envoy of the President of the Republic, a former Prime Minister, will be in Kuwait for consultations with top officials in the country on the evolution of the region and on the ‘Deauville Partnership.’ And our minister for foreign affairs will come later to Kuwait this year for the ministerial conference he will be chairing with His Excellency Dr Sheikh Mohammed.”

Levels of Kuwaiti tourism in France have also increased and

The French ambassador then opened the session to questions.

When asked about the French government’s recent introduction of controversial legislation forbidding the wearing of niqabs in public, Ambassador Yafi was quick to stress that the niqab law was not an attack on Muslims. “I don’t want to get into a religious debate today, but I would like to remind you that in France we try to separate religion and the state. We respect all religions and cultures

“France doesn’t change its view when it comes to the support of democracy,” she stated. “We believe in listening to the people and giving them what they want, a free and democratic state.”

On the subject of Libya, the ambassador clarified France’s position saying, “We only took action in Libya when the situation became a bloodbath, and any actions we took were within NATO guidelines.”

Asked about France’s stance on the recent separation of South Sudan

Bastille Day, the French national holiday, commemorates the storming of the Bastille, which took place on 14 July 1789 and marked the beginning of the French Revolution. The Bastille was a prison and a much-hated symbol of the absolute and arbitrary power of Louis the 16th’s Ancient Regime. By capturing this symbol, the people signaled that the king’s power was no longer absolute: power should be based on the Nation and be limited by a separation of powers.

Although the Bastille only held seven prisoners at the time of its capture, the storming of the prison was a symbol of liberty and the fight against oppression for all French citizens; like the Tricolor flag, it symbolized the Republic’s three ideals: Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity for all French citizens. This event signified the end of absolute monarchy, the birth of the sovereign Nation, and, eventually, the creation of the (First) Republic, in 1792.

KFSD launches touring maritime safety exhibition KUWAIT: The Kuwait Fire Services Directorate (KFSD) on Sunday evening launched an exhibition on maritime safety, which will be on tour across the country to help raise awareness of the need to stay safe at sea. Speaking to the media during the launch, held at the Hilton Hotel in Mangaf, Col Khalid Al-Mekrad, the KFSD’s Deputy Director General for Firefighting and Human Resources Development, explained that the exhibition focuses on informing the public about basic safety measures, such as the need to wear lifejackets whilst sailing and not to swim in areas where strong currents can be fatal for the unwary, especially during periods of unstable weather conditions.

Another important point which the touring exhibition will be focusing on is the need for all those setting out in boats to remember to keep a fire extinguisher on board just in case, he added.

The touring exhibition will be visiting various areas, Col Al-Mekrad explained, staying in each for three days in order to give the public there a chance to find out more about maritime safety.

The senior KFSD official also revealed that firefighters from the Salmi, Sabiyah, Khour Al-Sabiya and Nuwaiseeb fire brigades are also stepping up their road safety awareness campaigns, as well as urging local institutions, offices and factories to ensure that the owners or managers have installed the necessary smoke detectors. — KUNA

Safar inks KD 4.7million contract KUWAIT: Minister of Public Works and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Dr Fadhel Safar inked here yesterday a contract for the maintenance of roads in the Central Region

are noticeable through the rising number of annual visa requests, she added. “We are happy to see many Kuwaitis regularly visiting France, where they often have residences, and we were particularly happy at the growing numbers of Kuwaiti tourists heading for our country this summer,” said the ambassador.

in North Subhan at a total value of KD 4.7 million.

The contract includes the creation and completion of the 8km road network around the ministries

of defense and interior in Subhan area. The contract also includes the development of the existing 3.75km road, which currently consists of two lanes. — KUNA

KUWAIT: A group of youngsters, the children of current and previous Ministry of Interior staff, as well as of martyrs, enjoyed a special day out yesterday at the Future Kids’ Company. The visit was part of a special summer program of activities organized for the children by the ministry’s social care division.

KUWAIT: The Kuwait Fire Services Directorate exhibition on maritime safety yesterday.

—Photos by Hanan Al-Saadoun

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

LOCAL

Russian mobsters held for jewelry heists Multimillion-dinar series of thefts KUWAIT: Kuwaiti authorities have arrested members of a Russian gang with Mafia connections who were responsible for a multimillion-dinar series of thefts from jewelry shops and luxury homes in Kuwait and other Gulf nations. One security insider revealed that the arrests followed a lengthy investigation launched after a number of similar thefts from locations known to contain valuable items, in which a number of domestic workers who confronted the thieves were violently assaulted. Detectives eventually discovered that a professional gang was behind the thefts, arresting a member of the group 45 days after the investigation began.

The man, a Russian expatriate, admitted that he and five compatriots were members of a gang with mafia connections in their home country, and had been specifically targeting wealthy individuals’ homes, as well as jewelry stores, in the Gulf states.

Based on information received from the detained man, police were able to arrest his fellow gang members - three men and one woman. The three men were arrested at luxury apartments in Salmiya, whilst the female suspect was caught in the nick of time at Kuwait International Airport as she prepared to leave the country.

Under questioning, the gang members admitted that they had been active in Kuwait for five years, working professionally and discreetly in order to ensure they remained undetected by surveillance devices. They further revealed that associates had provided them with the information on the best locations to target and the best times to carry out their operations, as well as disclosing that they used women and children to smuggle the stolen jewelry out of Kuwait and back to their Mafiosi connections in Russia.

Speaking on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the investigation, the security insider revealed that the gang members used counterfeit passports to travel between the Gulf countries, making it difficult for security services to track them. At the time of their arrest, detectives recovered a total of KD30,000 in cash from the gang members, as well as a quantity of stolen valuables.

All the members of the gang are currently being held in custody pending trial, with detectives continuing to hunt for two other suspects accused by the detainees of being fellow members of the gang.

Attempted murder Police are hunting for two thugs who attacked and stabbed an Asian man near a gas station in Ashbiliya on Sunday. The victim was apparently walking down the street when he was set upon by the two men, both clad in traditional Kuwaiti dress, with one of the thugs pulling out a knife when he resisted their assault and repeatedly stabbing him.

After their brutal attack, the two cowardly assailants fled the scene. The victim was rushed to Farwaniya Hospital’s ICU and the hunt is on for his attackers who face charges of attempted murder.

Brotherly hate A young Kuwaiti man is recovering in Farwaniya Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after sustaining several severe stab wounds at the hands of his own brother. The fraternal fight apparently began when the victim attempted to inter vene in an argument between his brother and their mother at the family’s home in Firdous. His brother then turned his ire on his sibling, with a row between them quickly turning violent when the belligerent brother pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim several times in the chest, as well as stabbing his mother in the hand when she attempted to stop him, before fleeing. The distraught mother immediately called the emergency services hotline and police and paramedics were quickly at the scene, with the gravely injured man and his mother being rushed to hospital. The assailant, who turned out to be a Ministr y of Defense employee, was apprehended shortly afterwards and has been referred to the relevant authorities.

Suspicious voyage Four Iranian nationals are currently being questioned by detectives after being caught sailing a boat into Kuwaiti waters without permission. Coastguards apprehended the suspects, who are believed to have been heading for Doha Port, shortly after being notified of their presence. The four individuals were found to be carrying $10,000 in cash, as well as two cell phones. Detectives are attempting to discover the motive behind their voyage.

Domestic violence Police arrested a Pakistani man after he physically assaulted his Filipina girlfriend whilst drunk. After the woman called police to

report that her drunken boyfriend had stormed into her apartment and assaulted her, officers were quickly at the scene, arresting the thuggish man and taking him into custody to sober up. He faces assault charges.

Thieves busted Two juveniles were arrested at a building site in Naeem where they had been in the act of stealing construction materials worth KD20,000. Police went to the scene after receiving reports from passersby of seeing two people apparently cutting up steel piping in order to steal it. They caught the boys, both Syrian, red-handed, with both being referred to the relevant authorities for further action.

Two falls An Asian domestic worker who sustained multiple injuries when she fell from a third floor window of her employers’ home in Ahmadi whilst attempting to escape may face criminal charges after accusing her employer’s son of being responsible for her fall. After the woman, who was rushed to hospital, had sufficiently recovered to be interviewed, she informed police that she had been pushed out of the window by her employer’s son whilst cleaning it. Investigators could find no evidence to support this claim, however, although they did recover a number of sheets tied together to make a makeshift rope which led them to conclude that she fell whilst attempting to escape. Meanwhile, another Asian maid sustained several injuries when she fell into a manhole whose lid had been removed in front of her employer’s home in Riqqa. The woman was rescued and rushed to Adan Hospital, whilst police have launched an investigation to discover whether the manhole cover was accidentally left off or intentionally removed as a malicious prank.

Suicide attempt A young Egyptian woman was hospitalized with breathing problems and severe abdominal pain following a failed suicide attempt. On being notified of the case, paramedics rushed to the apartment in Jabriya where the 20year-old woman was writhing in pain. Medical staff at the Mubarak Hospital later found out that the woman had consumed an amount of prescription medications most probably in a bid to end her life. An investigation into a suicide case was opened at the area’s police station. — Al-Rai, Al-Anba, Al-Watan

KUWAIT: NBK staff and summer interns of NBK Summer Training Program distribute long life energy-saving light bulbs to public at the Avenues.

NBK successfully concludes energy saving awareness campaign KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) successfully concluded its energy saving awareness campaign “Put your energy into saving energy”, distributing more than 10,000 long life energy-saving light bulbs free to the public at the Avenues recently.

The awareness drive, which is part of NBK’s ongoing ‘Think Twice’ environmental campaign, aimed to promote sustainable practices and motivate people to take advantage of the energy-saving compact fluorescent light bulbs freely distributed during the event by volunteers mainly comprised from NBK staff and summer interns of NBK Summer

Training Program. Educational brochures were also distributed to the public while the mall aisles were packed with large banners on saving energy.

Commenting on the occasion, NBK Public Relations Officer Yaqoub Al-Baqer said that NBK is very committed to the cause of energy conser vation. “ We decided to make the Avenues our launching pad as all age groups visit the mall regularly.”

“We wanted to promote sustainable practices in society by motivating people to take advantage of the freely distributed long-life light bulbs that can have an incredibly posi-

tive impact on electricity conservation. The distributed bulbs last 10 times longer and use one-third of the energy of regular incandescent bulbs, in addition to the added savings of less frequent bulb replacement,” Al-Baqer added.

“This is the fourth successful year of our ‘Think Twice’ campaign. We believe that leading financial institutions and the public are destined to work together to make a better future for Kuwait. Conservation and awareness is not a one-way street. We all need to combine our efforts to conserve and rationalize,” Al-Baqer concluded.

KUWAIT: Dr Rahseed Al-Amiri at the EQUATE booth.

EQUATE sponsors World Anti-Drug Day KUWAIT: EQUATE Petrochemical Company sponsored the World AntiDrug Day celebration held under the patronage of Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and Head of the National Anti-Drug Committee Sheikh Ahmad Al-Humoud Al-Sabah.

During the celebration, attended by the committee’s Deputy Head Dr Rahseed Al-Amiri, EQUATE was recognized for its support of the committee’s various efforts and its exemplary role in ensuring overall sustainability throughout Kuwait.

On this occasion, EQUATE President and CEO Hamad Al-Terkait said, “EQUATE’s sponsorship of this celebration stems from its sharing success philosophy with the community as part of its continuous efforts to create commu-

nity awareness in various fields through the company ’s Corporate Social Responsibility strategy addressing various educational, health, awareness and environmental issues.”

Established in 1995, EQUATE is an international joint venture between Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC), The Dow Chemical Company (Dow), Boubyan Petrochemical Company (BPC) and Qurain Petrochemical Industries Company (QPIC).

Commencing production in 1997, EQUATE is the single operator of a fully integrated world-scale manufacturing facility producing over 5 million tons annually of high-quality petrochemical products which are marketed throughout the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Europe.

Kuwait embassy donates $6,200 to Japan Foundation TOKYO: Kuwaiti Ambassador to Japan Abdulrahman Al-Otaibi yesterday donated JPY 500,000 ($6,200) to the Japan Foundation for the sake of helping Japanese people who have suffered from the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

Al-Otaibi received the proposal letter from Yohei Sasakawa, the Chairman of the Japan Foundation, that the foundation requires Embassy’s cooperation and assistance to undertake necessary measures to ensure the expeditious implementation of the projects for the recovery and reconstruction from the outcomes of March 11, the embassy said in a statement.

The ambassador welcomed the proposal and decided to support the foundation with a cheque of JPY 500,000, a part of the proceeds from the embassy-hosted successful charity bazaar on May 14.

During his meeting with Al-Otaibi, Sasakawa expressed his gratitude to Al-Otaibi for his acceptance of the proposal and his generosity to the Japanese people and its community.

He also highlighted the Kuwaiti government’s decision to donate 5 million barrels of crude oil to Japan upon directives of HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, saying, “The Japanese government must make the Kuwaiti donation as visible not only to remember but also to show the Kuwaiti people how the Japanese people appreciated and benefited tremendously from them.”

The crude donation is equivalent to some $550 million.

“We were touched by the solidarity extended by the government and the people of Kuwait,” Sasakawa addeed.

For his part, the ambassador AlOtaibi expressed his sympathy and pledged the chairman Kuwait’s fullest support. “I appreciate the activities of the foundation and I sincerely hope that this small amount donation from us will help the projects of the Japan

Foundation as well as the needs for suffering people. The people still have suffered from the scale of the March 11,” he said.

The ambassador also told Sasakawa, “On behalf of the people and the government of Kuwait, I extend my heartfelt condolences to those bereaved as well as my sincere sympathy to all affected by this catastrophe and to their families and friends. Please remember that our hearts are with you, and your friends in Kuwait and all over the world stand by you, as our Japanese friends helped the Kuwaiti people during the Gulf crisis.” The magnitude-9.0 earthquake and tsunami killed about 21,000 people in northeastern and eastern Japan. The Japan Foundation, a non-profit philanthropic organization, has a sister organization called the Sasakawa Middle East Islam Fund (SMEIF), as part of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, aims to contribute actively as a private foundation to establishing peace in the Middle East and to present the face of Japan in this region. — KUNA

Privatization committee initiates restructuring of KAC KUWAIT: The Privatization Committee of Kuwait Airways (PrivComm) has completed a survey reviewing the senior, technical, and administrative human resources requirements to ensure the operational effectiveness of Kuwait Airways Corporation (KAC) is maintained once the privatization process has commenced, a press statement said yesterday.

The sur vey was under taken by Seabury, PrivComm’s dedicated specialist aviation consultancy, whose responsibility includes the analysis of KAC’s existing and short term human capital requirements.

In line with the requirements and obligations set under Law No. 6 for the year 2008, KAC has approached all Kuwaiti nationals employed by the carrier and its subsidiaries (a total of approximately 2,600 individuals) to ascertain their preference for their future role with the Company.

Each employee was offered one of

three choices as provided by the law.

They could move to the new operating company of Kuwait Airways, retire if qualified, or transfer to another government entity.

Employees who have elected to either retire or transfer to another government entity will be released at the conclusion of the privatization process.

In collaboration with Seabur y, PrivComm has also under taken a review of the privatized Company’s human resources requirements and resolved that at a date that falls in line with the privatization process, transitional interim management positions will be offered as the company proceeds with the privatization process.

This forms part of a series of initiatives that are designed to provide the appropriate interim management structure for the privatization process and the new company’s initial period of operations. — KUNA

The show in progress.

The crowd react to the show.

Kuwaiti folk music showcased at Asilah Forum KUWAIT: Guests at the 33rd Asilah International Cultural Forum currently taking place in Asilah, Morocco enjoyed a special celebration on Sunday evening hosted by members of the Kuwaiti delegation participating in the event, to honor the success

of recent amendments to the North African kingdom’s constitution.

The festive night featured a concert hosted by the Kuwaiti National Music Band which performed several traditional Kuwaiti and Moroccan folk songs. In a

speech before the musical performances began, ceremony organizer Amal Abdullah lauded the success that Kuwait has so far achieved in its participation as a guest of honor at the forum.

Meanwhile, Dr. Saleh AlHamdan, head of the 60-member

Kuwaiti National Music Band expressed his excitement at the “great success” of their performance in Morocco, revealing that this was their first show in the North African nation following concerts in Algeria, Bahrain, and Egypt.

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

China’s top general criticizes US exercises

Suicide bomb kills 6 before Pakistan minister arrives

Page 12

Page 11

US forces pursue Iraq Shiite insurgents US deaths spike a year after formally ending combat operation

BAGHDAD: US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta reaches for a packet of mustard and relish as he takes a hot dog for lunch during his visit to Camp Victory in Baghdad yesterday.—AP

BAGHDAD: American forces are pursuing Iran-backed insurgents in Iraq, Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said in Baghdad yesterday as US deaths spike nearly a year after US troops formally ended combat operations. “We have to unilaterally be able to go after those threats. We’re doing that,” Panetta said in the Iraqi capital. “We are very concerned about Iran and weapons they’re providing to extremists here in Iraq. We lost a heck of a lot of Americans as a result. We can’t allow this to continue,” he told troops at US Camp Victory near Baghdad airport.

General Lloyd Austin, commander of US military forces in Iraq, told reporters that unilateral action “could include a lot of things.” “If there’s no way to do that with the Iraqi security forces, then

I’ll patrol around my perimeter and do what needs to be done to ensure that my troops are protected,” he said.

Panetta, who took over on July 1 from Robert Gates, said he would take all steps needed for the safety of the 46,000 US troops still in Iraq, down from a high of 170,000 since the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.

Three US soldiers have been killed in Iraq so far this month, the last on Sunday when Panetta arrived in Baghdad from a visit to Afghanistan.

June was the deadliest month for US forces in Iraq since 2008, with 14 soldiers killed.

The resumption of attacks against US troops comes as Iraqi leaders approach decision time on whether they want to maintain a contingent of

soldiers after 2011 when all US troops are scheduled to pull out.

Panetta said Iraqi security forces must be pushed to take action against the Shiite groups. US forces had carried out both joint operations with the Iraqis as well as unilateral missions against militants.

“The effort here obviously has to be to push the Iraqis to take on responsibility of going after some of these Shiite groups, going after those who use those kind of weapons,” Panetta said.

He called for “pressure on Iran not to engage in this kind of behavior.”

Tehran itself has denied US accusations of smuggling weapons to insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan. Austin said that insurgents were not only using more lethal weapons, but were

also using them more effectively. “Their targeting process is maturing,” he said.

“They’re working harder and harder to try to perfect their ability to target,” Austin added, saying they were getting better training, presumably from Iran.

Major General Jeffrey Buchanan, spokesman for US forces in Iraq, last month identified the Iran-backed groups as Ketaeb Hezbollah, Asaib Ahel al-Haq and the Promised Day Brigade.

The latter is directly linked to Moqtada al-Sadr, a radical, anti-American Shiite cleric who divides his time between Iran and the city of Najaf in southern Iraq. The other two groups are offshoots of his now-disbanded Mahdi Army, which fought against Iraqi and US-led coalition forces between 2004 and 2007, and which has been identi-

fied by the Pentagon as the main threat to stability. Colin Kahl, a Panetta adviser, told reporters that US forces retained the right to carry out combat operations in Iraq.

“We have self-defence authorities under the security agreement (with Iraq) to take on our own measures,” he said. US forces formally declared an end to combat missions last August. Also yesterday, three rockets slammed into Baghdad’s heavily fortified and sprawling Green Zone, which houses the US embassy, other foreign missions and government offices.

A woman and her three children were wounded in the attack, Iraqi security officials said, adding the rockets were launched from the Shiite neighborhood of Zafraniyah in southern

Israel deports 23 activists, 58 still held

Libyan rebels dig in as France grows impatient MISRATA/PARIS: Libyan rebels dug into defensive positions and hoarded ammunition yesterday, stalled in their advance towards Tripoli in a slowing campaign that is starting to irk NATO allies. France expressed impatience over the weekend at the inability to reach a political solution to the crisis after months of static fighting, and stepped up pressure on rebels to negotiate an end to the conflict.

But French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said yesterday the NATO-led alliance still needed to keep up its military pressure on Gaddafi’s army and reiterated that his stepping down was a necessary condition for an end to the conflict. France also denied comments by one of Gadaffi’s sons that it was in direct talks with the Libyan leader’s government. At one of Libya’s two major front lines, Misrata, rebels were dug into defensive positions and conserving ammunition, getting ready to push against proGaddafi forces in the neighbouring town of Zlitan.

Zlitan is the first in a chain of coastal towns blocking the rebels on a westward march to the capital, Tripoli. “Right now we are just waiting for ammunition and getting ready to go, but in my opinion if we had more ammunition we could already be

in Zlitan,” said rebel fighter Ali Bashir Swayeba, a 29-year-old dentist. While a Reuters reporter near the front said fighting was more quiet than on Friday, there were still periodic bursts of fire and an occasional explosion of a Grad rocket.

It was quiet enough that at one point a group of local children played a pickup game of soccer, although that was interrupted by nearby Grad explosion. At the nearby field hospital, medical workers said there were nine injuries, a quiet day for a front that regularly sees several deaths and a score of injuries. The rebels have refused to hold talks as long as Gaddafi remains in power, a stance that before now none of NATO’s major powers had publicly challenged. Gaddafi has been holding on to power in the face of rebel attacks trying to break his 41-year rule, NATO air strikes, economic sanctions and the defections of prominent members of his government.

A son of the Libyan leader, Saif al-Islam, told Algerian newspaper El Khabar in an interview yesterday that Gaddafi’s government was in talks with the French government. Speaking from Tripoli, he was quoted by the newspaper as saying, “The truth is that we are negotiating with France and not with the rebels.” — Reuters

Baghdad. Panetta was due to meet President Jalal Talabani and Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki inside the Green Zone later yesterday .

He is the latest top US official to arrive in Iraq asking officials to accept a contingent of American troops beyond 2011. US diplomatic sources in Baghdad say there has been no talk on the possible number who could remain. “I’d like them to make a decision, you know: do they want us to stay? Don’t they want us to stay?” said the defence chief. Panetta said he would also press for speedy appointments of defence and interior ministers, posts which have stayed vacant because of political bickering since the formation of a unity government last December.—AFP

CAIRO: An Egyptian man waves two national flags during a protest in Cairo’s Tahrir Sguare yesterday, vowing to keep up their sit-in which began on July 8, despite a series of concessions by the Egyptian prime minister. —AFP

JERUSALEM: Israel yesterday deported 23 foreign proPalestinian activists who were taken into custody after flying into Israel for protests at the weekend, an official told AFP. “There are 58 remaining (in Israeli custody),” immigration service spokeswoman Sabine Hadad told AFP, adding they would be flown out as soon as there was space available on departing aircraft. She said one Belgian had been admitted to Israel early yesterday, after he signed an undertaking to keep the peace and stay away from protests. Those expelled during the day were 15 Belgians, six French nationals and two Germans, Hadad said. Those still in custody were part of the “Welcome to Palestine” campaign in which up to 800 people from Europe and the United States planned to fly to Israel and head to the Palestinian territories to visit Palestinian families.

Israeli authorities mobilized diplomatic and security forces to try to head off the incoming activists. Officials said that by notifying foreign airlines of ticket-holders who would not be admitted to Israel, they had prevented hundreds of people from boarding at their ports of departure. Of those who managed to arrive, 120 were denied entry to Israel and taken into custody, although a handful were later admitted after signing pledges not to take part in public disorder. The “Welcome to Palestine” campaign took place as a flotilla of ships trying to break a blockade on the Gaza Strip was prevented from leaving Greece. The timing of the fly-in campaign led some to dub it a “flytilla,” although organizers denied their mission was linked to the attempt to run the blockade.—AFP

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

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

Syria’s secret war against the cyber dissidents Regime uses Internet to strike back

BAGHDAD: Iraqi refugees, who had fled to Syria following the 2003 USled invasion of Iraq, carry their belongings upon their arrival in Baghdad on July 3, 2011. —AFP

Iraqis who fled to Syria for safety now returning BAGHDAD: When his six-year-old son was killed in a 2006 Baghdad gun battle, Seif Rashid decided to flee with his family to Syria, but the deadly unrest there forced him to return to Iraq last month. “When I saw the lifeless body of my little Abdel Rahman I decided to leave with my wife and two girls. I could not stand my country, which was overwhelmed by hatred,” Rashid said. The boy had been killed by a stray bullet in Baghdad’s Adhamiyah neighborhood.

Rashid moved to Kafar Batna, on the outskirts of Damascus, because he had no work and the rent and life was cheaper.

But the wave of protests against Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad that began in March once again upset their lives. “There were protests, they burned public buildings, posters of Bashar Al-Assad-and there have been arrests-the situation was untenable,” Rashid said. “So, we took our bags and left again. Rashid, a 30-year-old shoe designer, mingled in Baghdad with a crowd of other returnees like him, all waiting to sign up at the National Registry office for refugees.

Registration entitles displaced Iraqis like him to a government installation allowance of four million dinars ($3,400/2,380 euros) per family, to help with the costs of resettling. Many lost everything they had when they fled the violence that followed the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein and triggered an insurgency and Shiite-Sunni bloodletting.

Rashid, unemployed since he fled Iraq, has been living on his savings. In Iraq, after the turmoil of the invasion and the extreme violence that began in 2004 and peaked in 2006 and 2007, neighboring Syria quickly became the preferred escape for many Iraqis. It was next door, not very expensive, and it had open borders. Between 300,000 and one million Iraqis are estimated to have fled to Syria during the violence.

Security is better than in Syria- In 2004, 45-year-old Yaqub Khalaf Nussayef was shot in the abdomen and leg during a settling of scores between Sunni and Shiite groups. Nussayef is a Sunni and former soldier who was living in the Shiite neighbour-

hood of Abu Ghraib, which gained worldwide notoriety after publication of photographs showing American soldiers humiliating and torturing prisoners.

A father of five, he first fled to Jordan and then to Damascus, where he collected and sold empty soft drink cans for recycling in order to feed his family. “The Syrian capital was quiet, but elsewhere there was chaos. I have tasted the bitter taste of sectarian war and bloodshed, and I did not wish to be part of a new wave of violence,” he said.

“I am convinced that what is going on over there is a sectarian war,” said Nussayef, who arrived only days ago in Baghdad, searching for a home before he brings his family. Syria is majority Sunni, but the Alawites, who comprise only 12 percent of the population, have been in power since 1963. Hayat Saad, legal officer at the Baghdad refugees centre, said “every day we deal with between 60 to 70 cases of families who have returned to the country.”

“Daily, about 20 come from Syria-the largest contingent-followed by Egypt, Jordan, Yemen and Libya,” she added. Since the beginning of May, 1,171 families-about 7,000 people-have returned from Syria, and three-quarters have taken up residence in Baghdad province, the International Organisation for Migration told AFP. “We still do not have any evidence of a large ‘wave’ of return in the past few months due to unrest,” said the IOM’s Nuray Inal.

In addition to assisting in housing, the ministry of refugees also helps in settling utility bills such as for water, electricity and telephones that may have accumulated over the years that owners were absent from their homes. It also helps in recovering homes that may have been taken over by squatters. Qahtan Sabri, a 61-year-old carpenter, went to Damascus in 2005. “The situation was getting worse day-by-day.

The confessional killings were increasing, and I had to stop working. “I decided to return to Iraq when I realized that security is better in my own country than in Syria. I have resumed my business and will never leave my country,” he said.—AFP

BAGHDAD: An Iraqi youth dives into a public swimming pool in central Baghdad as temperatures sore to 50 degrees Celsius yesterday.—AP

Bashir warns about disputed Abyei region LONDON: Sudan’s President Omar Hassan al-Bashir said yesterday that the disputed Abyei border region could be a source of conflict with newly independent South Sudan if agreements are not respected.

Bashir told the BBC’s Hardtalk program he wanted UN peacekeepers to leave but welcomed a US -drafted resolution, unanimously approved by the UN Security Council last month, to deploy 4,200 Ethiopian troops to Abyei for six months. “ The Ethiopians have a mandate to keep peace in the zone, so we welcome the Ethiopian troops,” he said, speaking through an interpreter. “Both of us welcome them, because they are capable of doing their job, unlike the current troops who have failed to keep peace in this zone.” Khartoum’s forces seized Abyei with tanks and troops on May 21, causing tens of thousands of people to flee and drawing an international outcry. South Sudan seceded from the nor th on Saturday but the countries have yet to agree on who owns Abyei, stirring fears

of renewed conflict.

“We will redeploy our troops outside Abyei as soon as the Ethiopians arrive,” Bashir said. North and south are yet to agree on important issues, including the line of the border, the ownership of Abyei and how they will handle oil revenues, the lifeblood of both economies. Asked if the Abyei dispute could lead to war between the two countries, he said: “We divided Sudan for peace and we are keen on preserving peace. “There’s a protocol on Abyeia protocol that governs Abyei if there’s a peaceful solution. But in the past, we were forced to fight when they (the south) tried to impose a new reality.”

When asked if he bore responsibility for the loss of south Sudan, Bashir replied “definitely”, but said it was a price worth paying for peace. Mostly Muslim Sudan fought rebels in the south, where most follow Christianity and traditional beliefs, for all but a few years from the 1950s in civil wars fuelled by ethnicity, religion, oil and ideology.—Reuters

DUBAI: Syrian security forces use tanks, bullets and tear gas against antiregime protesters by day, but by night they are more stealthy, targeting dissent using the opposition’s own weapon, the Internet. Demonstrators use social networking sites, notably Facebook and YouTube, to whip up support for protests against President Bashar Al-Assad’s rule, and also to broadcast footage they say is of the authorities’ ensuing crackdown.

But the regime is also using the Internet to strike back, and the government has deployed a special unit-the Syrian Electronic Army-to post proAssad comments on anti-regime websites. “Many websites and Facebook pages have been targeted by al-Assad supporters,” said US-based Ahed Al Hendi, Arabic programme coordinator for Cyberdissidents.org. “Many of these comments were death threats and curses and accusations of treason.” In his most recent speech on June 20, Assad spoke of the key role of young people, singling out “the electronic army which has created a real army in a virtual reality.” The Syrian Electronic Army has its own media arm and a Facebook page listing its “latest attacks” by pro-regime hackers.

“They send thousands of reports against the page or profile until Facebook administration shuts it down,” said political activist Rami Nakhleh. The Beirut-based 28-yearold, who goes by the pseudonym Malath Aumran, is part of a growing army of cyber dissidents tapping into social networks to cover events in Syria. Rights groups say that security forces have killed more than 1,300 civilians and arrested at least 12,000 since anti-government protests began in mid-March.

The Syrian Revolution 2011 — a Facebook group that has amassed nearly 225,000 “likes”-has played a vital role in spreading uprising news and videos. Similar pages have mushroomed to monitor events inside Syria, spread the news and link opposition groups both at home and abroad.

Some “carry out counter attacks against any attempts to hack revolt pages,” said Azher, a Syrian online activist who fled to an Arab country in March. “The electronic army was hacked 26 times” by

online dissidents, Azher said. Assad opponents created the “coalition of Free Syrian Hackers in support of the Syrian revolt,” that said it also hacked more than 140 government websites on June 3 alone. Azher said regime “thugs” post messages on revolt pages “calling for violence and sectarianism” which they then snapshoot and post on their Facebook page as “evidence” of

dial-up connection. “They feel that this is our only weapon against the regime’s propaganda machine that fabricates lies against us,” he said.

“A young man who goes down to protest while recording footage with his phone is well aware that he will be the first target for any rooftop sniper.

When this person goes home, he will certainly not fear uploading this video.”

DAMASCUS: A computer screen shot shows the hacked page of the Syrian parliament website yesterday. – AFP opposition incitement to hatred and violence. They also post links to articles considered anti-Assad and ask their Facebook fans to comment, resulting in pro-regime mantras. When asked who is waging the regime’s online guerrilla warfare, all three activists who spoke to AFP responded: regime “thugs.”

‘Thugs by day, thugs by night’“The thugs who beat up protesters during the day are the same people recruited to disrupt their online activities at night,” Nakhleh said. Most pages “taking the lead are by people who are close to the Assad regime,” said Hendi.

He cited Haidara Suleiman, the son of powerful intelligence officer and cur-

Fighting Gaddafi a family affair in Misrata EAST OF ZLITAN: For Abu Youssef, the uprising against the 41-year rule of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has become a family affair.

The 52-year-old former businessman has been on the front line with his 23-year old son, Khalid, since April and last Friday was the first day of combat for his younger son, Ali, 18. “I am very proud of my sons,” says Youssef. “They know the price they could pay for fighting and they are willing to pay that price.”

Youssef and his sons are part of the 1st battalion of the Al Marsa regiment, a unit that is among the rebel forces that pushed Gaddafi loyalists out of Misrata and back to within about 10 km (6 miles) of the centre of Zlitan, a town that now stands between the rebels and the Libyan capital, Tripoli, 160 km (96 miles) away. The story of a family fighting on the front line together is not uncommon among the rebel forces in Misrata, or even in the same unit as Youssef. Another older fighter in the unit called Bashir, a former administrative manager at a steel factory in Misrata that closed when the city rose up against Gaddafi’s rule, has one son in the same unit and another farther down the line with another unit. Youssef gave Reuters assumed names for himself and his sons because he still has family in Tripoli and fears his activities could put them at risk of reprisals.

Youssef and his family came a long way to get here. They slipped out of their home in Tripoli in the early days of the uprising and went to Tunisia. From there, Youssef and his son Khalid sailed to Malta, where they were tried unsuccessfully to board a boat with medical supplies bound for Misrata. So they returned to Tunisia, flew to Istanbul and then Cairo and made the allday drive to Benghazi, the rebel stronghold in eastern Libya, before sailing to Misrata in mid-April.

They then went straight into the fight to drive Gaddafi’s forces from the city. “Neither of us had ever held a gun before that time,” Youssef said. “And we knew we could die, but dying fighting is better than waiting for them to kill you in your home.”

“For over 40 years, the Libyans were not alive under Gaddafi,” he added. “Now we are alive and we say that the history of this country began on February 17,” the day the uprising began. “I too feel that in my heart.” Youssef talks easily about what he has learned in combat and

rent Syrian ambassador in Amman, Bahjat Suleiman. Suleiman runs the main Bashar al-Assad page on Facebook and is also in the Syrian Electronic Army.

He told AFP that “the official media is unfortunately weak... This is why we use electronic media to show people what’s going on.” Asked why Syria bans the international media, Suleiman said:

his near-death experiences, such as asking to be taught how to use a rocket-propelled grenade, or when he and his comrades were pinned down by pro-Gaddafi troops. “We lay flat on the ground and the bullets were flying so low we could feel them pass over our backs,” he said.

“But that day we knew it was not our time to die. When it is your time, it will happen. Until then, we fight.” While their father is gregarious and talkative, his sons Khalid and Ali are both quiet young men.

Khalid in particular, his father says, does not joke around much at the front. Khalid walks up and down the line checking on the other young men in his section, apparently unconcerned by the sustained bombardment from Gaddafi forces beyond the trees opposite them.

His calm, quiet presence appears to soothe others. Ali, who decided to fight instead of finishing high school, is tense on his first day. On the way to the front line at a deserted farmhouse that serves as the unit’s forward base, he starts trying to pack his allotted number of bullets in an ammunition pouch to go around his waist.

Youssef fusses around him, taking over like a doting father and explaining to him in a soft voice the right way to do it. Amid the bombardment, Ali shelters with his comrades against the sand bank that forms the front line. His hands are steady, but his jaw is clenched.

When asked how he is faring, he manages a shy smile and says, “So far, so good.” “It is hard for everyone on their first day,” said Youssef, patting his son’s knee paternally. “It was hard for me, but you get used to it.” Like the others around him, Ali’s face becomes even tauter as a mortar lands not far away, wounding eight men. But he remains in his place with the others. After he leaves the line, Ali is asked how he enjoyed his first day. “Not so much,” he says, flashing his shy smile again.Youssef has lived in the West and says people there may find it hard to understand why he would allow his sons to go into battle with him. “I love my sons, they are very precious to me,” he says.

“Whenever my eldest son has been up at the line over the past three months, there has not been one minute when I do not think about the risk he will die.” “But if my sons die, I will not cry,” he added. “For I know they have chosen to fight and to die for their country and to make the Libyan people free.”—Reuters

“Journalists refused to enter” the country. The authorities accuse international satellite channels of exaggerating protests and broadcasting unauthenticated footage. Damascus’s tight grip on information has compelled international media to rely on video clips filmed by the protesters themselves and broadcast on Internet sites such as YouTube. In an attempt at self-authentication, protesters now carry banners stating the date and neighbourhood where the demonstration is taking place, in addition to taking shots of recognisable local landmarks. Nakhleh said it can take activists a whole night to upload a two-minute video using a

Suleiman dismissed “most of these stories about people getting killed while filming” as “just fairy tales.” “They are going out and protesting daily and no one is doing anything to them,” he said.

Nakhleh said Syria’s intelligence services “do not have the expertise needed to wage an electronic war” and are helped by their ally Iran. “I know this from the many emails I receive from people who claim they are Iranian activists. They contact us and send us viruses,” Nakhleh said. He said the Assad regime recruits online agents both to track activists and to hack opposition websites and shut down their Facebook pages. —AFP

Libya rebels boost firepower with homemade weapons MISRATA: Sadiq Mubakar Krain’s blue overalls are soaked with sweat as he works on an improvised rocket launcher for the rebels fighting Muammar Gaddafi. “This is the first time I make one of these,” said Krain, 52, pointing to a launcher that consists of 16 rocket tubes scavenged from a military helicopter. A bespectacled former foreman at an oil company, Krain has fixed the tubes in a welded frame and is working on the electronics that will allow rebel fighters to fire individual rockets at will. “I have learned to make other things and to weld, so God willing, I have got this one right,” Krain said at workshop where he and his colleagues build weapons out of whatever they can lay their hands on. The ingenuity on display is a product of necessity. The Misrata rebels have captured some weapons and others are shipped to them via the city’s port. But heavy arms are in short supply and those the rebels have obtained need to be adapted to match the firepower and mobility of the government forces they are fighting.

The rebels in Misrata, Libya’s third largest city about 200 km (130 miles) east of Tripoli, have been fighting for the past four months to end Gaddafi’s 41-year rule. They have moved the front line from inside this city to the outskirts of Zlitan, a neighboring town now blocking the rebels’ advance towards Tripoli. The intense pace of the workers in this shop near the centre of Misrata-who include former teachers, engineers and a truck driver-suggests the rebels are preparing the munitions for the next push towards Zlitan.

Until now, the workshop has been focused on repairing equipment.

When the front line moved forward last week, most of the workers here were transferred to a new repair shop closer to Zlitan so that gun crews did not have to drive 36 km (20 miles) each way to have their weapons fixed. The shop in Misrata still handles major repairs, but is now concentrating on preparing new weapons and the trucks on which to mount them. The pace is intense-work goes on from early in the morning to late at night seven days a week.

The main job is to build new housings for heavy machine guns and anti-aircraft guns that will be mounted on the back of pickup trucks.

The weapons are placed facing backwards so the vehicles reverse into position to open fire. There are about 10 new welded steel mounts nearly ready for 14.5 mm machine guns taken from tanks or helicopters to be attached, while one is ready to go. Instead of an electronic system to move it, the gun can be adjusted manually up and down or side to side. The trigger works using the brake line from a small car and there is a rudimentary safety catch.

Salah Mohammed, 45, proudly shows off the new gun, plus a homemade round for it made using used scavenged casings. The workshop has also devised a basic welded tool with a handle to push the rounds into the links that will feed the ammunition into the machine gun, something that cannot be done by hand. “One press of the trigger,” Mohammed says, pressing the trigger for a second to demonstrate, “is nine bullets.” “So we need many bullets.” In the corner, workers attach steel plates to an ancient pickup truck. Mohammed, a former engineer at an oil company, says the truck was an old wreck but its engine has been rebuilt. By far the most feverish activity among the 35 workers in the workshop is centred on a small group working to finish rebuilding an anti-aircraft gun. The workers have stripped the gun, which has a seat for the gunner, of its four 14.5 mm machine guns and replaced them with two 23 mm anti-aircraft guns.

Krain says the change of calibre is partly because the bigger guns have a range of 6 km compared with the 4 km of the 14.5 mm guns. But he says it also because the gun has a psychological impact on the proGaddafi troops. “When they hear the sound the gun makes,” he pauses to make a long, deep ‘doof, doof, doof’ sound to mimic the gun, “they run away.” Krain, his hands coated in oil, returns to work on his rocket launcher. “I want to help finish the war by Ramadan,” he says. Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting and prayer, starts in early August.

“Our work will not be over then, we have much to do. But I want the fighting to stop by then.”— Reuters

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

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

Woman describes how she survived captivity SAN FRANCISCO: Talking through tears, a California woman held captive for nearly two decades told of the pain and determination as she gave birth to her captor’s child in his backyard prison, while she was still just a young teenager. “It was very painful,” Jaycee Dugard told ABC News’ Diane Sawyer in an interview on “Primetime” that aired Sunday night. “She came out and then I saw her. She was beautiful. I felt like I wasn’t alone anymore.

I had somebody who was mine.”

The 31-year-old woman, usually clear and composed, grew emotional when she talked about seeing the first of two girls fathered by her kidnapper, Phillip Garrido. When Sawyer asked how old she was at the time of the birth in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Antioch she said “14” with a small, incredulous laugh and a shake of her head.

She said she didn’t know how she could protect the child, but said “I knew I could never let anything hap-

grade field trip and being zapped with a stun gun on a South Lake Tahoe street at age 11. She said she heard Garrido laughing and telling his wife Nancy Garrido “I can’t believe we got away with it,” calling the moment “the most horrible moment in your life, times 10.”

Dugard said she tried to hold in her tears because of her cuffed hands. “I tried not to cry because I couldn’t wipe them away,” she said, “and then they get itchy.” She recalled the soundproof door of the backyard studio that Garrido shut and locked each time he left her. “I can still hear it, consciously, when I’m awake,” Dugard said. “Some sounds and smells just don’t leave you.”

Dugard told Sawyer that in later years despite going out into public with her captors, she was just too scared to try to leave, especially for her daughters. The fear was fueled by what the Garridos told her about the world.

“What I knew was safe,” she said. “The

pen to her. I didn’t know how I was going to do that, but I did.” Dugard talked to Sawyer on a couch and on a porch at her California home. The blond hair she had in now-familiar photographs from her childhood is now reddish-brown, and she wore a red sweater and a necklace with a pinecone charm on it, representing the last thing she touched before her 18-year captivity.

The interview came on the eve of Dugard’s memoir about her time in captivity, “A Stolen Life,” which will be released Tuesday. Dugard told Sawyer there was “a switch” she had to shut off to emotionally survive her rape and imprisonment. Asked by Sawyer how she stayed sane, Dugard said: “I don’t know. I can’t imagine being beaten to death, and you can’t imagine being kidnapped and raped.

You just do what you have to do to survive.”

She described walk ing to the school bus stop on the day of a fifth-

unknown out there was terrifying, especially when thinking about the girls.” Parole officers paid visits throughout the years to the home to check on Garrido and give him drug tests, but none reported any irregularities. “I actually talked to one of the agents, and the agent proceeded to give Phillip his urine test and left,” Dugard said. “He made me feel like he didn’t really care.”

Phillip Garrido, 60, a serial sex offender, was given the maximum possible sentence of 431 years to life in prison last month after pleading guilty to kidnapping and 13 sexual assault charges, including rape and committing lewd acts captured on video. His plea was part of a deal with prosecutors that saw Nancy Garrido, 55, sentenced to 36 years to life after pleading guilty to kidnapping and rape.

Without going into many details, Dugard talked about the long, drugfueled sex sessions Garrido would put her through, and said that to her great

confusion he would cry afterward. “He would tell me what an awful man he was,” Dugard said. She said she would think that despite her own terrible pain, “I have to comfort him?” Dugard told of her strange relationship with Nancy Garrido, who she said was “very jealous of me for some reason, like I wanted her husband to rape me, very jealous, and sick.”

Dugard said she is not full of rage, that to be angry all the time would be to let Phillip Garrido win. But her mother, Terry Probyn, who was interviewed

by Sawyer alongside her daughter, said she was. “I think I have enough hate in my heart for the both of us,” Probyn said. “I hate that he took her life away, I hate that he stole her from me, he ripped out a piece of my heart, and he stole my baby.” She then looked to her daughter. “He stole your childhood, he stole your adolescence, he stole your high school proms, and pictures and memories.” Dugard’s reply: “But he didn’t get all of me.” —AP

Chavez doesn’t have colon cancer or need chemo: Ally Chavez’s exact condition still not clear CARACAS: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez does not have colon cancer and does not currently need chemotherapy, his former vice president told Colombian media, without detailing Chavez’s exact condition. Chavez staged a triumphant return to Venezuela yesterday after cancer surger y in Cuba but doubts remain as to whether he is strong enough to run the OPEC nation and whether he will be able to have a full-scale campaign for the 2012 presidential election.

“He is sick but he is not gravely ill,” Jose Vicente Rangel said in an interview with Colombia’s Semana magazine published on

Saturday. “I know that the cancer he has is not colon (cancer) and that for the moment he will not need chemotherapy.” One source close to Chavez’s doctors has told Reuters the president does have colon cancer and will undergo chemotherapy treatment that could last several months.

Officials at the presidential palace did not immediately respond to requests for clarification on the issue. Senior government officials say the president is recovering well but have not said what sort of cancer he was treated for. Rangel, who was Chavez’s vice president for five years, now works as a journalist and is

not a member of the government. Chavez had a June 10 operation in Cuba to remove a pelvic abscess and later had a second operation for an unspecified type of cancer. A considerable deterioration of Chavez’ condition could upend politics in Venezuela, which has been dominated for 12 years by his selfstyled socialist revolution. Since returning home, the convalescing Chavez has considerably scaled back his long-winded oratories, such as his Sunday talk show, which sometimes stretched for more than eight hours, opting instead for brief half-hour television appearances. —Reuters

Mexican military rescues 20 hostages

SHANGHAI: Michael Flowers, American Bridge Co and Fluor Enterprises Inc joint venture project director and Kang Xuezeng, president of Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry Co, Ltd (ZPMC) exchange a gift during the completion ceremony of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge at Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co, China’s biggest heavy machinery maker yesterday. — AP

MONTERREY: The Mexican military rescued 20 kidnapped men from a house in the northern city of Monterrey, a military spokesman said Sunday. “The release of these twenty people was the work of intelligence services from the Secretary of Defense and a response to the high rate of kidnappings that exists in the city of Monterrey,” the militar y spokesman,

Antonio Vargas, told AFP. The rescue came after the military raided the house where the hostages were being held early Sunday morning. The victims were in a 9-square meter (yard) area and their hands and feet were bound.

They said they were recently kidnapped in different parts of Monterrey, the third largest city in Mexico. The k idnappers

demanded a ransom for each hostage between 20,000 and 50,000 pesos (between $1,789 and $4,300).

Kidnapping in the industrialhub city has become “an illicit organized crime that gangs commit in order to cover their expenses, and we are fighting it head-on,” said Vargas.

Th e o p e r a t i o n i nvo l ve d house -to-house checks car-

r i e d o u t by m i l i t a r y i n t h e area. According to the governm e n t , t h e s t a te s o f N u e vo Le o n , w h o s e c a p i t a l i s Monterrey, and Tamaulipas, are the scenes of a deadly war between the Gulf Cartel and its former allies the Los Zetas, who control the drug trafficki n g ro u te s i n to t h e U n i te d States and criminal activities in local markets. —AFP

China machinery maker wraps up work on Bay Bridge SHANGHAI: China’s biggest heavy machinery maker wrapped up work on the new, tougher east span of the San Francisco Bay Bridge yesterday, hoping success with the $6.3 billion project will help it clinch more overseas contrac ts.

California’s Depar tment of Transpor tation chose Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co. to fabricate the steel girders and tower meant to improve the earthquake resistance of the bridge linking San Francisco and Oakland after the 1989 Loma Prieta quake collapsed part of the bridge.

Zhenhua, which until recently focused mainly on manufacturing cranes, is hoping the project will seal its reputation as a topnotch builder able to meet the most stringent safety and quality specifications. Its parent company, China Communications Construction Co, has built some of China’s biggest bridges but made little progress in breaking into big-league projects in the US and Europe. So far, most big overseas building projects undertaken by Chinese companies have been in developing regions, where political and economic risk are highest. The Bay Bridge project reflects their eagerness to take on landmark projects in the West.

“The US is the world’s most advanced country, and the San Francisco Bay Bridge will be a bridge of the highest quality,” Zhou Jichang, chairman of Zhenhua and its parent company, China Communications Construction Co., told The Associated Press in an interview. “We believe this bridge is very important. When people see it, they

will ask, ‘Who built it?’” he said. “This will really raise our brand image.” Five years after work started, the last four pieces which will anchor the bridge’s lifeline suspension cables and took 3 million hours of labor to build - are awaiting shipment to San Francisco.

“The new bridge will reflect the character of those who built it,” said Tony Anziano, manager of the toll bridge program at the California Department of Transportation.

“The work is done. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you.” Still, two more years of work lie ahead before the new self-anchored suspension bridge’s expected Sept. 2, 2013 opening.

“First and foremost, the new span is a safety project,” said Steve Heminger, executive director of San Francisco’s Metropolitan Transportation Commission. “Success will only be achieved when we remove travelers from the seismic risk of traveling on the existing bridge,” he said.

The decision to save some $400 million by outsourcing the fabrication of the main sections of the bridge to Zhenhua reflected global realities, especially of the aging American steel industr y, he said. The Chinese company has gargantuan facilities, some 35,000 workers and the ability to make and deliver the huge crane needed to lift the new sections of the bridge into place. In a shipside ceremony yesterday, the American contractors building the new span of the bridge, American Bridge Co. and joint venture partner Fluor Enterprises Inc. repeatedly praised the 2,000 Chinese

who worked on the project for their diligence and professionalism.

“For the stakeholders, failure was never an option,” said Michael Flowers, CEO of American Bridge. The first shipment of segments of the bridge’s deck was delayed by a few weeks two years ago due to welding problems that were soon resolved.

Zhenhua had strong incentive to meet its deadlines, Zhou noted: delays would cost it $350,000 a day.

The US side dispatched dozens of experts to Shanghai to help ensure the work would meet the exacting specifications required to make the bridge “the world’s toughest,” as the magazine Popular Mechanics quipped. The help brought welcome improvements in Zhenhua’s expertise and technology, says Zhou. “This project was of enormous benefit to us from a technical point of view,” he said. Zhenhua’s parent company, China Communications Construction Co., or CCCC, has built many of China’s biggest bridges and other major structures. But Zhou conceded that meeting San Francisco’s stringent specifications was a challenge.

The bridge must handle an average of 300,000 vehicles a day and be strong enough to withstand any quake. “In general, if a bridge is able to withstand an earthquake without collapsing or breaking, that is good enough,” Zhou said. “But this requirement was that it be usable right after a quake.” “CCCC has made such bridges but there is a big gap in terms of the standards required,” he said. — AP CALGARY: A cowgirl walks past a ferris wheel at the Calgary Stampede on Sunday in Calgary, Canada. The ten-day event featuring over one million visitors is Canada’s largest annual rodeo and is billed as the “Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth.” —AFP

Peru leader may sanction brother for Russia talks LIMA: Peru’s president-elect Ollanta Humala said Sunday that if necessar y he would slap penalties on his own brother, who conducted rogue gas deal talks in Russia without his consent. “Do not doubt that there would be penalties, if needed,” Humala said in brief remarks to the press, adding that he was waiting to talk with his brother, Alexis, upon his return from Russia. It emerged late last week that Alexis Humala was received in Moscow as his brother’s “special envoy” by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and top officials with Russian gas giant Gazprom.

The incoming leader had at the time been in Washington for talks with President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. On Friday Alexis Humala was suspended from the left nationalist party Gana Peru after details of the rogue meetings emerged. Peru’s Foreign Minister Jose Antonio Garcia Belaunde said he only learned of the meetings from his counterpart in Moscow and Gazprom directors. Leftist Ollanta Humala is set to take office after his July 28 inauguration, after beating conservative legislator Keiko Fujimori in last month’s election. —AFP

Cuba academic: Party expulsion order overturned

PORT-AU-PRINCE: People watch a cockfight at the Petion Ville neighborhood in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Sunday. Since the Mapeus, the biggest cockfighting arena in Port-au-Prince, was destroyed during the Jan. 2010 earthquake, people gather three to four times a week in small places around the capital to bet for their favorite animals. Cockfighting is legal in Haiti. —AP

HAVANA : A prominent Cuban intellectual who came under fire for an unusually frank article denouncing high-level corruption says an order expelling him from the Communist Party has been overturned. Esteban Morales wrote on his personal website that a party appeals commission called him in last week to tell him of its ruling.

“I was informed of the decision to nullify the separation order from the municipal party community ... to return my membership,” Morales said. An economist and columnist known for his work on topics including racism and US relations, Morales published the article that

got him into trouble in April 2010 on the website of the National Union of Writers and Artists. He wrote that some top officials were preparing to divide the spoils if Cuba’s communist political system disintegrates, and that graft posed a greater threat to the state than the island’s small, fractured community of dissidents.

“Corruption is the true counterrevolution,” Morales wrote. The essay broke a taboo by openly discussing corruption rumors surrounding the dismissal of a top government aviation official who had fought alongside Fidel and Raul Castro and Ernesto “Che” Guevara in the 1950s. — AP

10

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

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

Spy agency embarrassed by document theft BERLIN: Germany is worried the security of its new 1.6-billion euro intelligence agency headquarters has been compromised, after blueprints of the high-tech building mysteriously disappeared. “It’s a serious issue and the government is interested in clearing up this case as quickly as possible,” Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert said yesterday after Focus magazine reported the blueprints had been stolen.

The government has set up a committee to investigate the incident and how the blueprints to the nearly finished building in the government quarter, near where the Berlin Wall once stood, may have gone missing despite tight security, he said. Seiber t would not say whether the complex would have to be redesigned or rebuilt but added there would be “ramifications” if security had been compromised. The BND would not comment on the

report. The disappearance of the sensitive blueprints is a huge embarrassment for the Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND), Germany ’s foreign intelligence agency.

During the Cold War, West Germany ’s domestic and foreign intelligence services were penetrated by it ’s East German rival, the Stasi. In the most high profile case, a Stasi agent worked as a personal aide to West German Chancellor Willy Brandt, forcing him to resign in

1974. The missing plans show highly sensitive areas of the BND’s headquar ters, including its logistical nerve centre as well as anti-terror installations, sewers, cables and emergency exits.

The building, the most expensive and most high-tech government structure in Germany, is scheduled to be completed by 2014 and house about 4,000 workers. It has been built on a lot in a trendy area known for modern art galleries. Moreover, a

leader of a department within the agenc y had downloaded pornographic material to the hard drive of his work computer, possibly exposing the BND’s computer network to a cyber attack, the magazine said.

The BND’s headquarters has for decades been in the Bavarian village of Pullach near Munich. The government decided to move the BND from Bavaria to Berlin in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2011 terror attacks on the United States. —Reuters

Murdoch scrambles into damage control Cameron conspicuously silent LONDON: Leading politicians including the deputy prime minister lined up yesterday to attack media mogul Rupert Murdoch’s damage control efforts over the News of the World phone hacking scandal, cascading their condemnation as they pressured him to drop his bid to take over satellite broadcaster BSkyB. As the political world seethed with hostility to Murdoch’s bid, one key figure was conspicuously silent: Prime Minister David Cameron. He’s seen as close to central figures in the scandal, and his awkward position is raising questions not only about the business fallout but the political cost as well.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg emerged from a meeting with the family of the murdered schoolgirl girl whose phone was hacked by the tabloid’s reporters to deliver a harsh message to Murdoch, urging him to do the “decent and sensible thing” and backtrack on his power play. “I would simply say to him, ‘look how people feel about this, look how the country has reacted with revulsion to the revelations,” said Clegg, the leader of the Liberal Democrats.

As Britain’s outrage showed no sign of abating, the family of 13year-old Milly Dowler was preparing to meet Britain’s opposition leader Ed Miliband today and Cameron tomorrow The scandal has proven particularly embarrassing for Cameron because the former editor of the paper, Andy Coulson, later worked for the Conservative leader as his communications director. Cameron is also reportedly close to Rebekah Brooks, chief executive of the tabloid’s publisher, News International.

Britain had become accustomed to accounts of the News of the World eavesdropping on royals and celebrities, but revelations that it broke into the cell phone of a teenage murder victim - even as her family and police were frantically searching for her - set of a torrent of horror and disbelief. The tabloid’s operatives reportedly deleted some messages from the phone’s voicemail, giving the girl’s parents false hope that she was still alive.

The scandal forced Murdoch’s News Corp. to shutter the 168year-old tabloid, and the media tycoon flew to London on Sunday - the day of its last edition - to take charge of damage control.

But the fallout could just be beginning. For now, the News Corp. chief appears focused on scrambling to prevent his controversial $19 billion bid for BSkyB from becoming a casualty of the scandal. But questions are mounting about his future and that of his sprawling business empire

LONDON: Chief executive of News Corporation Europe and Asia, James Murdoch gestures as he leaves his father’s residence, Chairman of News Corporation Rupert Murdoch, in central London, Sunday.—AP amid a wave of global revulsion.

Clegg’s lack of hesitation in condemning Murdoch amid Cameron’s perceived dithering also is also generating speculation about the health of the Conservatives’ coalition with the Liberal Democrats, which was already on shaky footing. The criminal activities at Murdoch’s now shuttered tabloid have given his many adversaries an opening amid signs that the government is leery of its once close ties to Murdoch, who has substantial newspaper, television, film and book publishing interests in Britain, the United States, Australia and other countries.

Murdoch got more bad news yesterday when Culture Secretary

Jeremy Hunt, who had given preliminary approval to the BSkyB bid, announced plans to ask the communications regulator, OFCOM, whether News Corp. is “fit and proper” to hold a broadcasting license. He raised questions about whether the phone hacking charges undermine Murdoch’s bid for the satellite broadcaster.

“These allegations are stomachchurning and everyone is shaken.”

Hunt said. “New information has come out in the last week. Things have changed in the last week, and these things have shocked everyone.” He said Britain’s long tradition of quality journalism is under threat.

If OFCOM decides Murdoch is not fit, a license would be denied.

Blood feud cripples lives in Kosovo GRACKE: Outside the Neziri family compound in this Kosovo hamlet there is no sign of life, not even a sound indicating that 45 relatives with seven children are holed up inside afraid of a vendetta attack.

His eyes darting from side to side, the head of the clan, Haki Neziri, 77, emerged cautiously from the house to receive AFP journalists.”My family has not been able to go out for 17 months. Men and women cannot go to work on the field. Children cannot go to school,” he complained bitterly.

The Neziris fear any one of them could be shot by members of the rival Veseli family in an “honour killing” to avenge a murder, in this ethnic Albanian area that broke away from Serbia in 2008. The ancient Albanian tradition of the blood feud has forced the Neziri family-even the childrento barricade themselves inside their homes, the only place they are safe. Under the old customs, a vendetta killing of someone inside their own home would bring shame on the perpetrator.

The drama in Gracke, set on the slopes of the Nerodime mountains some 50 kilometres (31 miles) south of the capital Pristina, started in February 2010 when an old dispute between the two families culminated in the killing of Brahim Veseli, 40.

Four Neziri brothers were arrested and are

currently on trial for murder. So-called “honor killings”-known as gjakmarrja, the Albanian law of vendetta-have been deeply rooted in local lore for centuries as part of mediaeval tribal laws known as the “Code of Leke Dukagjini”.

The code, or “Kanun”, says “if one man kills another, a male member of the victim’s family must respond in kind.” Prominent human rights activist Behxhet Shala described “gjakmarrja” as “a relic of the past that was used to settle disputes by meting out justice by yourself” in stateless societies. “It is an anomaly nowadays,” he said.

“But it has resurfaced as there is no strong and functional rule of law” in Kosovo, where the EU rule of law mission (EULEX) is still monitoring and mentoring authorities.

Other observers also said such “honor killings” had risen in recent years though there are no official figures available. Under the code, drawn up by an Albanian aristocrat during the 14th-century struggle against Ottoman rule, a murderer’s family can request assurances from the victim’s family-in the form of their word of honor known as “besa”-that they will not be shot if they step outside. In the Neziris’ case, the family of the dead man has refused to make any such pledge, even for children aged seven to 14. —AFP

The uncertainty sent BSkyB shares sharply lower yesterday. Miliband, the Labour Party leader, also said Murdoch must end his bid for BSkyB and called for a udge-led inquiry to avoid the risk of evidence being destroyed. One of Murdoch’s short-term goals is to keep Brooks, widely described as being as close to him as a daughter. Top lawmakers, including opposition leader Miliband are demanding she step down.

Brooks maintains she didn’t know about the widespread hacking at the paper, which listened to the voicemails left on cell phones belonging to a number of celebrities, including film stars, politicians and sports figures, as well as murder victims and their bereaved families. She has volunteered to be interviewed by police investigators as a witness. The British press has reported that emails given to police indicate that News International chiefs knew that phone hacking was more widespread than acknowledged and that police were being paid for information.

The police position is difficult because of allegations that some of its officers received payoffs from News of the World journalists. This possible conflict of interest has led the Independent Police Complaints Commission to announce that it will review all police actions on the case. Some British papers have suggested Murdoch could face legal problems in the United States because of payoffs to police under US laws governing corruption overseas.

Police Chief Paul Stephenson has vowed that police who took illegal payments will face criminal charges.

The News of the World used its farewell editorial to admit wrongdoing. “We praised high standards, we demanded high standards but, as we are now only too painfully aware, for a period of a few years up to 2006 some who worked for us, or in our name, fell shamefully short of those standards,” the editorial read. “Quite simply, we lost our way.” —AP

Senegal backtracks on Habre expulsion to Chad DAKAR: Senegal reversed a decision to send former dictator Hissene Habre to Chad, where he faces the death penalty for alleged rights abuses, after the UN rights chief said he could be tortured there. Hours before he had been due to board a plane back to the Chadian capital N’Djamena in what Habre, through his lawyer, had described as a “kidnapping”, his west African hosts eventually caved in to mounting international pressure.

“Senegal has decided to suspend the expulsion measure against Hissene Habre,” Senegal’s Foreign Minister Madicke Niang said on Sunday. Niang said Dakar would launch urgent talks with the United Nations, the African Union and the European Union to seek a solution. UN human rights chief Navi Pillay had urged Senegal to reconsider its decision to send the 69-year-old home to face justice for alleged atrocities, arguing there were insufficient guarantees of a fair trial.

“I urge the government of Senegal to review its decision,” Pillay said. “Extraditing Habre in the present circumstances, in which those guarantees are not yet in place, may amount to a violation of international law. “As a party to the Convention Against Torture, Senegal may not extradite a person to a state where there are substantial grounds for believing he would be in danger of being subjected to torture.” Habre ruled Chad from 1982 until 1990, when he was ousted by incumbent President General Idriss Deby Itno and fled into exile in Senegal, where he has been living since. —AFP

SREBRENICA: Bosnian Muslims carry caskets with remains of their relatives prior to a mass burial ceremony for 613 Srebrenica massacre victims, at Potocari Memorial Center yesterday. —AFP

Srebrenica remembers massacre after Mladic arrest SREBRENICA: Some 20,000 people yesterday commemorated the 16th anniversary of the Srebrenica massacre of 8,000 Muslims just weeks after the arrest of its alleged mastermind Ratko Mladic. A special commemoration service was held at the vast cemetery and memorial centre where over 4,000 of victims of the massacre are buried.

Families prayed over the graves of their loved ones, and some came to bury 613 people whose remains were finally identified just last year. Standing next to an open grave and a mound of reddish earth, 26-year-old Ahmed Sehic was there to bury his father who was killed along with two of his uncles while trying to flee through the woods to Muslim-held territory.

“Thank God, today his bones will find peace ... I will know where he is, where I can come to visit his grave,” he told AFP. This year’s anniversary of the July 11, 1995, massacre in Srebrenica, the worst mass killing in Europe since the end of the World War II, comes only weeks after the arrest of Bosnian Serb ex-army chief Mladic in Serbia.

Mladic and his political chief Radovan Karadzic, arrested in 2008, are charged by a UN war crimes tribunal with genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

The Srebrenica massacre, the only episode in the bloody Balkans wars to have been ruled genocide by international courts, is a key part of the indictments against them. “There are no words to explain this inexplicable and

irrational evil, a boundless hate against people whose only crime was to be Muslims,” the Muslim member of Bosnia’s tripartite presidency, Bakir Izetbegovic, said at the ceremony. “With time other wounds will heal but never Srebrenica”. He stressed the importance of reconciliation in the war-torn Balkans region and recalled Serbian President Boris Tadic’s role in finally arresting Mladic. Tadic twice attended the yearly commemoration in Srebrenica, in 2005 and 2010, but this year no high-ranking official of the Serbian government was due to attend.

“Relations in the region are normalising and we finally have leaders that are ready to face the past and create a better future,” Izetbegovic said.

“Last year on the same day Boris Tadic was with us in Potocari and promised to do everything in his power to arrest Ratko Mladic. He kept his word.” Mladic famously visited Srebrenica right after the UN-protected enclave fell and promised refugees gathered in front of the UN barracks, “No one will harm you.” His troops had already started separating the men from the women, children and elderly and in the coming days would summarily execute nearly 8,000 men and boys.

The victims were buried in mass graves which were later dug up and the remains scattered over different smaller secondary graves to cover up the scale of the slaughter. —AFP

REGENBURG: Edgar Weiler, left, lawyer of British bishop Richard Williamson answers questions of journalists in a court in Regensburg,, southern Germany yesterday. —AP

German court fines bishop for denying Holocaust BERLIN: Ultra-traditionalist bishop Richard Williamson was fined 6,500 euros yesterday by a German court for publicly denying the Holocaust in 2009, a court spokesman said.

British-born Williamson, 71, who belongs to a controversial Catholic splinter group, Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX), was appealing a 2010 fine of 10,000 euros for telling Swedish TV that no more than 300,000 Jews perished in the Holocaust.

He also denied in the interview the existence of gas chambers at Nazi concentration camps. Holocaust denial is a hate crime in Germany. Consensus among historians is that the Nazis killed six million Jews in the Holocaust. Williamson’s statements became an embarrassment for the Vatican which readmitted him after a 22year excommunication only days following the interview. In his 2010 book, Light of the World, Pope Benedict XVI said he would not have lifted the ban on Williamson if he had known of his far-right views, adding that the Vatican’s poor communications in the matter was a “total meltdown”.

German prosecutors demanded increas-

ing the fine to 12,000 euros during the appeals process. Williamson’s lawyers said he never explicitly agreed to the interview’s distribution outside Sweden and had been surprised regarding the interview’s thematic focus. Williamson did not intend to deny the Holocaust, his lawyers said.+ The decision is not yet legally binding as the court’s judgement can be appealed again within the next week. It comes days after the Catholic Church condemned a series of ordinations by the SSPX, which are deemed illegal by the Church as the group’s priests are not recognized as Catholic clergy or allowed to exercise an official ministry.

Williamson and three other bishops were excommunicated from the Catholic Church in 1988 when they accepted ordination from the SSPX’s rebel founder, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, despite the Vatican’s clear opposition. They were readmitted in January 2009 after the SSPX’s leader Bishop Bernard Fellany, one of the excommunicated, wrote to the Vatican pledging they accepted the pope as head of the Church. —Reuters

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

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

US suspends $800 million in Pakistan military aid Relations drastically deteriorate

JALALABAD: Afghan women protesters march during a demonstration in Jalalabad, Afghanistan yesterday.—AP

Hundreds of Afghans protest against Pakistan shelling LASHKAR GAH: Hundreds of protesters marched in Afghanistan’s east and south yesterday, demanding a military response to weeks of shelling from Pakistan, as a senior US commander said NATO-led forces were talking with Pakistan to try to end the bombardment. Relations between the two neighbors have been strained by weeks of mortar shelling that Kabul says has killed at least 42 civilians and wounded scores more.

Over 800 rockets have crossed the border since early June, but Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said Afghanistan will not respond with military force, over-ruling his defence and interior ministers who had sought permission to return fire. Protesters called on the government to retaliate if the cross-border shelling does not stop. The issue has infuriated Afghans from ordinary villagers to the top echelons of power. “The government must respond with heavy artillery onto Pakistan’s soil,” protestor Ahmad Janan told Reuters in Lashkar Gah. He was carrying a banner that read “The blood of our innocent people will not be spilt in vain”.

US Lieutenant General David Rodriguez said yesterday that foreign forces were concerned about the persistent shelling and were meeting with Pakistani counterparts to “prevent senseless shooting from occurring in the future.” “That border over there is a disputed region and for whatever reason it’s going on and I’m not sure what’s behind it but I know it’s not the right thing

to do for anybody,” he said at a change of command ceremony, before leaving his post in Afghanistan. Rodriguez had been the second most senior US commander in Afghanistan and commander of day-to-day operations for the 150,000-strong NATOled force. Pakistan has repeatedly rejected Afghan allegations of large scale cross-border shelling, saying that only “a few accidental rounds” may have crossed the border when it pursued militants who had attacked its security forces.

Some 700 people gathered in Lashkar Gah, provincial capital of southern Helmand, said Dawood Ahmadi, spokesman for the provincial governor.

Another 400 marched in eastern Jalalabad city, senior police detective Masoom Khan told Reuters. Demonstrations in Afghanistan often turn violent but both protests yesterday ended peacefully after about three hours. Afghan officials say several districts of Afghanistan’s volatile Kunar and Nangarhar provinces have been under attack from Pakistan. Both Kunar and Nangarhar share a border with lawless areas of Pakistan.

“We are brothers with the people of Pakistan but its government and army are behind the killings of many Afghans,” said Gul Nawaz in Jalalabad, which is just an hour’s drive from the Pakistan border, and has a thriving cross-border trade. “The government must allow the army to fire back and revenge the deaths of innocent people,” he said.—Reuters

HYDERABAD: Indian police detain students during a protest demanding the creation of a new state of Telangana, at Osmania University in Hyderabad, India yesterday. The protesters demanded that the new state of Telangana be carved from the existing Andhra Pradesh state. —AP

India PM set for minor cabinet reshuffle NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to make only minor changes to his cabinet today, counting on veteran finance and interior ministers to help battle policy paralysis and rampant corruption in Asia’s third-largest economy. Avoiding a major reshuffle of the Congress party-led coalition government is likely to disappoint investors and those in civil society who had hoped for an injection of fresh blood to tackle poor governance, high inflation and economic reforms.

Congress party sources said that the finance, interior, foreign and defense ministers were expected to stay put. “This is really an indication of a government that has become indecisive and that doesn’t know what is in its best interest,” said M J Akbar, editor of news magazine India Today. “If there is a deadlock at the top then the deadlock can only be loosened by changes at the top...more of the same isn’t going to solve the problem.”

Halfway through his second term, Singh’s reformist image has been hit by multi-billion dollar corruption scandals, weak leadership, infighting and a sense of complacency by many politicians focused more on enjoying the fruits of power. Many had hoped Singh would use a cabinet revamp he announced earlier this year to try to regain the initiative. It is his second attempt this year after a reshuffle in January was criticized for only moving tainted ministers to new portfolios. Singh is expected to tweak the line-up to accommodate coalition partners’ wishes and fill posts made vacant when the former telecoms minister was arrested and his party colleague, the textile minister resigned-both over graft

allegations.

Government survival is so far not under threat. The opposition is weak and does not want a snap general election halfway through Singh’s second term, this is one reason many say Singh is reluctant to push for a major cabinet reshuffle now. “From a reforms point of view, I don’t think it’s going to make much of an impact,” said a senior government source. Congress is instead more concerned with politics aimed at staying in power-like a popular but expensive scheme to provide jobs for the rural poorwhile Singh and some of his ministers and officials are seen as more reform oriented.

Congress is preparing its election campaign in the state of Uttar Pradesh next year-a vote that will set the stage for a 2014 general election that could usher family scion Rahul Gandhi into the national race.

“Singh has an image problem but he has to take the call if he wants to change this now, in six months or a year down the road,” said Sanjay Baru, Singh’s media adviser in 2004 to 2008. Bills to overhaul land acquisition policy, an archaic taxation system and to liberalise foreign direct investment rules have suffered as the government drifts, dampening market performance and spooking investors.

There are ominous signs, from weaker car sales to a dip in steel imports and FDI, that have coincided with global worries that emerging markets could soon hit a financial bump. Given its 1.2 billion population and vast chunks of the economy being undeveloped, foreign and local investors view India as a hot investment destination in the long term, despite facing some short-term challenges.—Reuters

WASHINGTON: The United States is withholding some $800 million in aid to Pakistan, almost a third of the $2.7 billion in security assistance it provides each year to Islamabad, President Barack Obama’s chief of staff confirmed Sunday. Relations between the key allies, always tricky, have drastically deteriorated since US commandos shot and killed Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden on May 2 in a Pakistani garrison town, sowing distrust on both sides.

Last month, Secretary of State Hillar y Clinton warned that Washington would slow down US military aid to Pakistan unless it took unspecified steps to help the United States. Now, it appears, it has, as William Daley, Obama’s chief of staff, confirmed a New York Times report that the administration was suspending and, in certain cases, canceling some $800 million of military aid.

“They’ve taken some steps that have given us reason to pause on some of the aid which we’re giving to the military, and we’re trying to work through that,” Daley told ABC’s “This Week With Christiane Amanpour” program. “The truth of the matter is, our relationship with Pakistan is very complicated,” Daley

said. “Obviously, there’s still a lot of pain that the political system in Pakistan is feeling by virtue of the raid that we did to get Osama bin Laden. Something that the president felt strongly about. We have no regrets over.

“The Pakistani relationship is difficult, but it must be made to work over time. But until we get through these difficulties, we’ll hold back some of the money that the American taxpayers have committed to give.” The suspended aid includes about $300 million to reimburse Pakistan for some of the costs of deploying more than 100,000 soldiers along the Afghan border, according to the New York Times, which broke the story late Saturday.

In addition, said the Times, hundreds of millions of dollars in training assistance and military hardware are also being withheld. The moves come amid intensifying debate within the Obama administration about how best to change the behavior of one of America’s most important counterterrorism allies. While Pakistan is a crucial ally in the hunt for Al-Qaeda and a major supply route to provision US troops in Afghanistan, its powerful military intelligence services have

long been suspected of ties with radical Muslim groups.

Some US lawmakers remain skeptical of Pakistan’s commitment to antiterrorism efforts and have been pleading Obama to cut off aid. On June 23, Clinton told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that unless certain unspecified steps were taken by Pakistan, the United States was not “prepared to continue providing (aid) at the pace we were providing it.” “ We’re tr ying to... play this orchestra the best we can, where we... look in one direction and say to those who we think are largely responsible for the difficulties we know that exist within Pakistan... you can’t continue doing that,” she said. But Clinton reiterated that the United States did not believe top Pakistani officials knew that bin Laden was living in Abbottabad, just north of Islamabad, under the noses of the military. “In looking at every scrap of information we have, we think that the highest levels of the government were genuinely surprised,” she said. Washington clearly hopes to gain some leverage over Pakistan by withholding military aid but will be fearful of doing further damage to its increasingly fraught ties with the

nuclear-armed South Asian power.

Pakistan’s military is a revered institution that has long played a key role in the country’s politics and is acutely sensitive to charges that it is kowtowing to the United States.

Recently, Pakistan ejected more than 100 US Army special forces trainers. Equipment used by those trainers, like rifles, body armor, and ammunition and bomb disposal gear is among the military gear now being withheld, according to The New York Times. Other equipment, like night-vision goggles, radios and helicopter spare parts, is being withheld because Pakistan denied visas to the American trainers needed to operate the equipment, the report said. Military sales to Pakistan, such as F-16 fighters, and non-military aid, have not been affected, according to officials interviewed by the Times.

Relations were stunted earlier this month as Pakistan warned cooperation in the US-led war on Al-Qaeda was at risk, as it strongly criticized the top US military officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, for suggesting it could have approved a Pakistani journalist’s murder, over the reporter’s investigation into the country’s Inter-Services intelligence (ISI).— AFP

Suicide bomb kills 6 before Pakistan minister arrives PESHAWAR: A suicide bomber struck a public meeting in Pakistan’s northwest yesterday where a cabinet minister had been due to speak, killing six people including a child.

Amir Muqam, minister without portfolio from the Pakistan Muslim League-Q party, had not yet arrived at the venue when the bomb exploded in a town near the Swat valley, where the Taleban once led a two-year insurgency.

“We had informed the local administration some time ago and there should have been proper security arrangements in place,” Muqam told Geo television after the attack in Batgram, about 65 kilometres (40 miles) northeast of Swat. “The death toll has now risen to six after one of the injured people died of his wounds in the hospital,” police official Ghuman Hussain told AFP. A child, two women and two policemen were among the dead, he said. Top local administration official Khalid Khan Omarzai told AFP that more than 20 people had been injured. “I can confirm now that it was a suicide attack. The bomber came on foot. He blew himself up when police stopped him for a body search at the entrance of the venue of the public meeting,” he said.

The attack again highlighted poor security in Pakistan’s troubled northwest. “I’ll certainly go there and see what happened. I’ll also go to the hospital to meet the injured people.

I’m not satisfied with the arrangements made for the public meeting,” Muqam told Geo. Almost simultaneously, an accidental explosion ripped through an arms depot just outside the capital Islamabad, killing one soldier, injuring three others and bringing down the roof of a small barracks, officials said.

Pakistani Taleban , other militant affiliates and Al-Qaeda-linked networks all have

strongholds in the country’s northwest, particularly in the semi-autonomous areas on the Afghan border. The Pakistani military declared Swat back under control two years ago after a major air and ground offensive against local Taleban militants who had paralyzed much of the former tourism destination after rising up in 2007.

Nevertheless, the district has yet to be handed back to civilian control and there are fears that insurgents are regrouping elsewhere in the northwest despite ongoing military offensives in much of the lawless tribal badlands. Bomb and suicide attacks across the country have killed around 4,500 people since 2007 and Pakistan says it has lost thousands of troops in fighting.

In the fallout after Osama bin Laden was found and killed by US forces in Pakistan on May 2, Washington is now withholding $800 million in military aid to Islamabad, almost a third of its annual $2.7 billion in security assistance. Relations between the key allies, always tricky, deteriorated drastically after the AlQaeda leader was killed in a garrison town, humiliating Pakistan over the covert US raid and the fact that bin Laden was living there.

“The truth of the matter is, our relationship with Pakistan is very complicated,” William Daley, US President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, told ABC television.

“The Pakistani relationship is difficult, but it must be made to work over time. But until we get through these difficulties, we’ll hold back some of the money that the American taxpayers have committed to give.” The suspended aid includes about $300 million to reimburse Pakistan for some of the costs of deploying more than 100,000 soldiers along the Afghan border, according to The New York Times.—AFP

US general: Afghan fight continues outside cities KABUL: Insurgent attacks are down in some heavily populated areas of Afghanistan where US -led coalition troops have been concentrated, but violence continues in rural areas, an outgoing American commander said yesterday. US Army Lt Gen David Rodriguez, who directed day-to-day operations in the war, spoke briefly to reporters just before he officially ended his job as commander of the USled coalition’s Joint Command and deputy commander of US forces in Afghanistan. “The violence has gone down where we’ve focused our efforts,” he said standing on the tarmac at a Kabul military airport just before he boarded a plane bound for Europe. “You have to watch it very carefully because the violence is now outside instead of inside the populated areas.

It takes a lot work to really understand the nuances of what’s happening.”

Over the weekend, Gen. David Petraeus, the outgoing commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan, said insurgent attacks in May and June were down slightly from the same months last year. Petraeus, who is retiring from the military to become the next CIA director, said it appeared the downward trend would continue through July. The Taleban issued a statement yesterday rejecting this claim. “This is a baseless statement and there is no reality in it,” the insurgent group said in an e-mail responding to Petraeus’ comments. The group said they have not decreased attacks and called Petraeus’ comments “propaganda.” Rodriguez maintained that fighting was down.

“The violence has been down for a little while and it’s not in the densely packed areas, but outside more often than not,” Rodriguez said. “But, look, these things go up and down and we’re going to have to sustain that with our partners.” Rodriguez, a native of West Chester, Pennsylvania, previously served as the military assistant to US Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Before that, he was commander of the 82nd Airborne Division and the regional commander for operations in eastern Afghanistan.

Rodriguez handed over his responsibilities to US Army Lt Gen Curtis Scaparrotti at a ceremony attended by top military and Afghan officials, then left for Europe to visit with NATO partners in Poland, Germany, Italy and France. Rodriguez also said that there has been progress in building up the Afghan national security forces.

“Afghan forces are stepping up more and more,” he said. “I know they’re going to do that.

It will be uneven, but we want that to keep moving forward as fast as we can.” Rodriguez, who has spent more than 40 months in Afghanistan over the past 4 1/2 years, said he believes that President Barack Obama’s pullout plan for this year and 2012 can be carried out without undue risk to the military’s mission of gradually handing over security responsibility to the Afghans. The troop withdrawal plan has been criticized by some Republicans as too fast and risky, while some Democrats have complained that it is too slow and cautious.

Obama ordered that 10,000 US forces be gone by the end of the year and that another 23,000 be home by September 2012. “I’m confident the withdrawal will be all right now,” he said about the initial decisions on drawing down forces between now and the end of the year. But other decisions how the drawdown will be further implemented have not yet been finalized, he said. “How they determine to do that is going to be real critical because it’s about capacity growing and downsizing and we’ve got to match those things up,” he said.

Separately in Afghanistan, the last 24 de-miners kidnapped last week in the southwest have been released. Thirty-two Afghan de-miners were ambushed and captured July 6 while driving to a work site in Farah province. Six were reported killed on Sunday and two were released. Farah province Police Chief Mohammad Ghaws Malyar said the rest of the group was released early yesterday. He said tribal elders in the area negotiated the release with their captors but that no money changed hands.— AP

DARAKSHAN: A Pakistani rescue official looks at the dead body of a NATO supply truck driver following an attack in Darakshan, about 30 kilometres (18 miles) east of Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan yesterday.—AFP

Pakistan casualties have risen since bin Laden death GENEVA: Casualties from violence across Pakistan since the US killing of Osama bin Laden in May have soared, with many more maimed and injured people going to humanitarian clinics, the ICRC said yesterday. Pascal Cuttat, outgoing head of operations in the countr y for the Swiss-based International Committee of the Red Cross, told reporters another effect of bin Laden’s death was an increased suspicion of foreigners, including aid workers.

“Violence has increased considerably since bin Laden was killed, and has spread into urban areas,” said Cuttat. “We are seeing increasing numbers coming into our medical and orthopedic centers, more than we have seen for many years. The Al-Qaeda leader was shot in May by US Navy Seals who landed by helicopter at his secret compound in Abbotabad, north of Karachi. Pakistan has complained that the operation was a violation of its sovereignty and relations between the two long-time allies have nosedived. The United States has suspended a third of its military aid to Islamabad .

In the latest reported incidence of violence, local authorities said a weekend a suicide bombing in the northwestern town of Battagram killed three policemen and two civilians. Cuttat, who spent three years overseeing ICRC operations in Pakistan, where the humanitarian body has been present for more than half a century, said he did not see much change in the current climate in the foreseeable future.

“We are planning for much of the same,” he said.

Although the ICRC would like to extend its operations, bureaucratic obstacles form the Pakistan authorities were making it more and more difficult to move around for all foreigners. “We are consistently facing suspicion of any foreigner working in the country ... To live and work and get permission to do anything has become more difficult. Everyone is struggling with the bureaucracy,” Cuttat added. He said one of his regrets on leaving the country was that he had not been able to obtain better access to prisoners and detainees-one of the key functions of the ICRC in many countries around the world.— Reuters

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

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

Ambush, bombs raise tension in Thailand’s restive south Two killed, 12 wounded in incidents

BEIJING: Chen Bingde, center, chief of the General Staff of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, speaks during a meeting with US counterpart Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, at the Bayi Building in Beijing, China yesterday. —AP

China’s top general criticizes US exercises BEIJING: China’s top military officer said yesterday the timing of US naval exercises in the South China Sea was “inappropriate,” after talks with his US counterpart aimed at cooling the territorial dispute. General Chen Bingde urged the US to be “more modest and prudent in words and deeds”, amid growing tensions over China’s claims in the strategic and potentially resourcerich region, and also criticized Washington over its military spending.

He accused the US of “placing too much pressure on taxpayers” in the wake of the economic crisis, in unusually provocative remarks before a foreign visitor. “On various occasions, the US side has expressed that it does not have the intention to intervene in the disputes in the South China Sea,” Chen told reporters after meeting Admiral Mike Mullen in Beijing.

“However, we are observing the latest joint exercises between the US and other countries, for example the Philippines and Vietnam. “We acknowledge that those exercises were there in the past, however the timing of these joint exercises is inappropriate as we see it.” The Philippines recently finished 11 days of naval exercises with the United States close to the South China Sea, although both sides emphasised the event was held annually and aimed at deepening defence ties.

Vietnam and the United States are to hold joint naval activities this month, with the US Navy again saying they are long-planned and unconnected to recent tensions. Mullen is the first chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff to visit China since 2007 and his trip comes as military ties between the two powers are tested by Beijing’s growing assertiveness in the South China Sea. In a joint press conference, Chen said the pair had “found a lot of common ground”, but that there were still “different opinions on certain issues,” and accused the United States of spending too much on its military. “It would be a better thing if the US didn’t spend so much money on the military, while a little bit more in other areas, so as to play a constructive role in peace and stability,” he said. “I know the US is still

recovering from the financial crisis, it still has some difficulties in its economy... Isn’t it placing too much pressure on taxpayers?” China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan have overlapping claims to parts of the South China Sea, which is believed to have vast oil and gas deposits, while its shipping lanes are vital for global trade. Vietnam and the Philippines have in recent months accused China of taking increasingly aggressive actions in staking its claims.

In May, Vietnam said Chinese marine surveillance vessels cut the exploration cables of an oil survey ship inside Hanoi’s exclusive economic zone. And Philippine President Benigno Aquino has accused China of inciting at least seven recent incidents, including one in which a Chinese vessel allegedly opened fire on Filipino fishermen. In response, China has insisted it wants to resolve disputes peacefully but remains firm in its claims to most of the South China Sea, even waters within the Philippines’ economic exclusion zone.

Speaking to reporters after arriving in Beijing on Sunday, Mullen said Washington was concerned about freedom of navigation, but expressed hope that the myriad disputes would be “resolved peacefully ”. With ties sometimes fraught between the two militaries, he stressed that the US was in no way seeking to contain China’s dramatic rise, but said it would remain active in the Asia Pacific region for a long time.

Mullen is also expected to address rising tensions with North Korea and measures to boost security cooperation between China and the United States during his four-day trip. On Sunday, he urged the Chinese government to use its relationship with Pyongyang to ensure regional stability, while warning North Korea against further dangerous provocations. He also held talks yesterday with China’s vice president Xi Jinping, who is widely expected to take over as president next year, and will visit military bases in the eastern provinces of Shandong and Jiangsu today. —AFP

Malaysia to probe protest police brutality claims KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will investigate claims of police brutality following the death of a demonstrator in a mass street protest for electoral reform, a senior minister said yesterday. Riot police fired tear gas and water cannon and arrested more than 1,600 people to end a rally to demand electoral changes on Saturday, drawing intense criticism from human rights groups.

A 59-year-old taxi driver died during the protest-the biggest in four yearsthough police say he was a bystander who died of a heart attack.

Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said authorities would review their video footage of the protest to investigate the man’s death as well as allegations that police fired tear gas into a hospital compound. “We will answer (the allegations) without fear or favour,” Hishammuddin said.

He said police action had prevented worse chaos during the rally, which saw at least 10,000 people take to the streets but was deemed illegal as it had not been given official permission. “My concern is the security of the nation and the safety of the people,” he said. “ The police have done ver y well because the situation could have been much, much worse... We are very clear that the police in every sense of the word were provoked.”

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has also defended the police, saying the opposition-backed rally was a ploy to tarnish the country’s image.

But rally organizer Bersih 2.0, a coalition of non-governmental groups demanding electoral reform, slammed the government yesterday over the crackdown. Bersih said police had failed to provide “proper and timely medical aid” to Baharuddin Ahmad, who was fleeing from tear gas when he collapsed, according to his family.

He was dead by the time he arrived at hospital.

Bersih also claimed police fired tear gas canisters into the crowd, hurting people, and beat others. “These unwarranted attacks against a peaceful gathering of unarmed citizens are nothing short of shocking,” it said in a statement. “It is clear from the massive turnout on the 9th of July that a huge number of Malaysians agree that things are not right with our nation’s electoral system,” it said.

Bersih is calling for a number of reforms including the introduction of indelible ink to prevent people casting multiple votes and equal access for all political parties to mainstream media.

Analysts have said that the crackdown against the rally could backfire on Najib’s administration, which must call elections by 2013 but is widely expected to seek a new mandate by next year.

The opposition scored major gains in the last general elections in 2008, but believes fraud and other voting irregularities cost it better results. The Barisan Nasional coalition has ruled the countr y since independence from Britain in 1957. — AFP

YALA: A married couple died in an ambush by suspected Muslim militants in Thailand’s deep south yesterday and four bombs wounded 12 people in what one analyst said might be a signal by separatists to incoming Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Police said a rubber tapper and his wife died of multiple gunshot wounds when they were ambushed while travelling on a motorcycle in Narathiwat province.

In nearby Yala province, three booby traps went off in quick succession at a rubber plantation, the first blowing off the leg of a rubber tapper and the other two wounding security and bomb disposal officers sent to the scene.

Police said the fourth bomb in a parked rubber plantation truck in another district of the same province destroyed the vehicle without causing any injury.

“This could be an attempt to draw the attention of the new government to problems in the south, especially to the long-standing Muslim demand for autonomy,” said political science lecturer Srisompob Jitpiromsri of Srinakharin University in nearby Pattani province. “Violent incidents tend to rise when there is a change of government. I would not be surprised if these incidents rise in the next month above the monthly average of 70-80 seen in the first half of this year,” he said.

Even before the election, there was a spike in the number and scale of attacks in Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat provinces, with Muslim villagers, soldiers and police among the victims of roadside blasts and ambushes.

Ethnic Malay Muslims represent the majority of the population in the southernmost

NARATHIWAT: Thai hospital workers examine the bodies of a Muslim religious leader (R) and his wife after they were shot dead by suspected separatist militants in Thailand’s restive southern province of Narathiwat yesterday. —AFP provinces of predominantly Buddhist Thailand. About 4,600 people have been killed and nearly 9,000 wounded in violence since 2004.

Srisompob said Muslims wanted to see if Yingluck would fulfil her campaign pledge to create a special administrative zone in the region, annexed by Thailand about a century ago. “The Muslims should respond well to any peace talk initiative or a move to create a spe-

cial administrative zone, although I don’t expect that to take place for at least five to six months while Yingluck’s government deals with more immediate political problems in Bangkok,” he said.

Yingluck’s Puea Thai Party scored a landslide victory in the July 3 general election, winning 265 of 500 lower house seats, but it failed to secure any of the 11 seats available in the three restive provinces.— Reuters

Japan idled reactors could restart after stress test

Two Koreas agree more talks on seized resort

No specific timetable for stress tests

SEOUL: Reclusive North Korea has agreed to hold a second round of talks with South Korea this week to try to resolve a row over Pyongyang’s decision to seize a South Korean company’s assets at a jointly run resort, an official said yesterday. A Unification Ministry official said the South would send 14 delegates, including government officials and business people, to the talks at the Mount Kumgang resort on the North’s east coast tomorrow.

A similar visit two weeks ago failed to resolve the issue. Last month the North said it had revised a law overseeing the joint tourism project, effectively ending Hyundai Asan’s contract to exclusively run all cross-border tours to the resort. The North wants to redevelop the resort, which has been shuttered since 2008 after Seoul suspended tours following the fatal shooting of a South Korean tourist there.

Mount Kumgang had been a lucrative source of hard currency for the destitute North under two liberal governments in the Seoul. At its peak, the Mount Kumgang tour programmes attracted 300,000 tourists a year.

Earlier this month, the North gave investors from the South until July 13 to come to the resort to sort out their assets or risk Pyongyang taking unspecified steps to dispose of them. — Reuters

TTOKYO: Japan’s idled nuclear reactors could restart work if they pass the first stage of twostep post-Fukushima safety checks, the government said yesterday. Still, without a timeframe for the tests, concerns remain about summer power shortages that could hurt the economy. Last week’s surprise announcement that the government would conduct stress tests alarmed corporate Japan and outraged some local authorities, who had been prepared to approve reactor restarts after receiving safety assurances from the government.

The first stage of the stress tests will target reactors which have already completed routine checks and are ready for restart.

The checks will assess resistance to severe earthquakes and other events more extreme than those for which they were designed. A second stage of tests will make a comprehensive safety assessment of all 54 of Japan’s reactors, the government added in its statement.

Four months after the Fukushima Daiichi plant was smashed by a tsunami and began leaking radiation, only 19 of the country’s reactors are running and if some do not resume operation, Japan could be without nuclear power by next April. The disaster has also sparked a broader public debate about the role of nuclear energy in earthquakeprone, resource-poor Japan, which relied on atomic power for almost 30 percent of its electricity before the crisis.

“Safety and a sense of security are the top priority,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano told a news conference. “On the other hand, the government must fulfil its responsibility for a stable supply of electricity and is coordinating on this with relevant ministries ... and will make every effort to secure (supply) in the medium and long term,” he added. Edano gave no precise timeframe for completing either of the two stages, but said they should be carried out speedily.

The new assessment scheme, which also lacks detailed procedures, did little to elucidate atomic safety policy for reactor-hosting municipalities, whose approval is by custom required to restart reactors.

“I’m afraid we are still in the dark as to what the government wants to do,” said Shigenobu Oniki, vice mayor of the southern Japanese town of Genkai, home of Kyushu Electric Power Co’s Genkai nuclear power plant. The government had seen two idled reactors at Genkai as prime candidates for the first restarts since the Fukushima crisis.

“We don’t know what each stage will be like and what kind of checks will be involved. I think the government owes us an explanation,” Oniki said.

Amid the drawn-out radiation crisis at Tokyo Electric Power Co’s Fukushima plant, credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s said, Japan’s energy policy will likely remain unpredictable for some time, posing risks for the utility sector.

“Because the nation’s energy policy forms the backbone of the Japanese electric utility sector’s creditworthiness, we believe prolonged uncertainty could hurt the sector’s credit quality,” it said.

Shares in Tokyo Electric have tumbled 80 percent since the March 11 disasters, while Kansai Electric Power Co and Chubu Electric Power Co , the next two largest power companies, have both lost 31 percent.

In a sudden policy shift last week, Prime Minister Naoto Kan under fire for his handling of the nuclear crisis-said Japan would administer stress tests modelled on those conducted by the European Union after the meltdowns at Fukushima.

The move was welcomed by critics who say Japan’s safety regulations have been too lax, but it also raised the risk of power shortages that could stretch into 2012, and hurt industrial production. To avoid a power crunch, the government had been pushing for early restarts of facilities that have completed regular checks, but some local authorities said they could not give their OK until the government clarified its position.

Anti-nuclear activists maintained their opposition to reactor restarts. About 100 demonstrators marched yesterday into the government building of Saga Prefecture, where Genkai is located, and made their way near the governor’s office, Jiji news agency said.

Kan has ordered a full review of Japan’s energy policy, which before the March 11 disasters had aimed to boost nuclear energy’s share of electricity supply to more than half by 2030.

He also wants to raise the contribution of renewable energy sources to more than 20 percent by the 2020s, and has made passage of a bill to promote such energy sources a condition for keeping a promise to resign.

The unpopular leader, already Japan’s fifth premier in five years, survived a no-confidence vote last month by pledging to hand over the reins to his Democratic Party ’s younger generation, but has refused to specify when he will step down. —Reuters

Philippine bishops apologize amid scandal MANILA: Roman Catholic church leaders in the Philippines apologized yesterday after some bishops accepted donations from a state-run lottery and became entangled in a corruption scandal.

The president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, Bishop Nereo Odchimar, also said that the seven bishops involved were ready to “face the consequences” if they were found to have broken the law.

“We express... our deep sorrow for the pain that the recent events have brought to you our beloved people,” Odchimar said in a statement. The scandal stems from accusations that then president Gloria Arroyo used state lottery funds to give the seven bishops 4WD vehicles and 8.38 million pesos ($196,000) in cash between 2007 and 2010 to buy their support.

The cars and donations came as Arroyo faced an impeachment crisis stemming from accusations of corruption and that she rigged the 2004 presidential elections. The Philippine senate is investigating the allegations against the bishops, specifically probing whether the donations were illegal and violated the constitutional separation of church and state. The bishops have acknowledged accepting cars and cash but said they did so only to help the poor people in their communities.

And while Odchimar emphasized again yesterday that the bishops had not admitted to any wrongdoing, they were prepared for sanctions. “We assure you that the bishops concerned are ready to accept responsibility for their action and to face the consequences if it would be proven unlawful, anomalous, and unconstitutional,” he said. He also conceded that the scandal had hurt the image of the church, one of the most influential institutions in the mainly Catholic Philippines. “We are saddened that many of you, especially the youth, the poor... have been confused because of the apparent inconsistency of our actions with our pastoral preaching,” Odchimar said. A spokeswoman for President Benigno Aquino, a major critic of his predecessor who has also been facing political pressure recently from the church on social reforms, said the bishops’ apology was “very welcome”. —AFP

MANILA: Roman Catholic Bishop Nereo Odchimar, left, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, and Monsignor Pedro Quitorio, emerge from the conference hall after reading a pastoral statement at the conclusion of their three-day assembly to discuss various issues involving the Church yesterday.—AP

ne ws

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

LA LIBERTAD, El Salvador: A pelican overflies a surfer in Punta Roca Beach on July 9, 2011. The beaches of La Libertad constitute a worldwide renowned surfing spot and one of the most important touristic places of El Salvador. —AFP

Sikhs say they are mistaken targets ELK GROVE, California: Kamaljit Atwal’s neighborhood seems like an unlikely place for a hate crime. His street in this Sacramento suburb seems a model of diversity. Atwal and his family are one of two Sikh families on the block from India. On Atwal’s street alone, there’s a Vietnamese family, a Mexican family, a black woman and a white man. But in March, Atwal’s 78year-old father Gurmej Atwal and his 67-year-old friend Surinder Singh were shot and killed while taking an afternoon stroll in the neighborhood.

Atwal and his fellow Sikhs in the area wonder if the same ugliness that has brought violence to other Sikhs is the reason why. The men had long beards and were wearing turbans, both traditional symbols of their religion. Police are investigating whether their killing was a hate crime. “It’s a complete case of mistaken identity,” said Rajdeep Singh of the Washington, DCbased Sikh Coalition, which is the largest Sikh civil rights group in the US. “When people look at me with a turban and beard, the first thing that comes to mind is, ‘That guy looks like Osama bin Laden.’“ Since the Sept 11, 2001, attacks, Sikhs have reported a rise in bias attacks, both verbal and physical, against them. The backlash that hit Muslims across the country has expanded to include them and their faith as well, with some assuming the sight of a long beard and turbaned head can only mean one thing. Kamajit Atwal said life used to be peaceful for him, his wife and their three children since moving to his quiet suburban block in 2003. Crime has gone down for four years in a row, in Elk Grove, where about 54 percent of its 153,000 residents are nonwhite.

Atwal keeps a framed photo of his father on the fireplace mantel, not far from where the retired Indian civil servant once enjoyed his tea. Almost every day, Gurmej Atwal and his friend drank tea together, took a walk and met with other Sikh retirees in a nearby park. “My gut is that it was a hate crime,” said Atwal.

He said that other elderly Sikhs are so afraid of being out in public since the shootings that they no longer socialize in the park. Mayor Steve Detrick said he’s not convinced the double shooting is a hate crime because the area has a history of accepting others. “Elk Grove is probably one of the most accepting about racial and religious diversity in the country,” he said. “I think somebody looked at these guys as an easy target.

They were gunned down by cowards.”

Amar Shergill, a Sikh and Sacramento attorney who lives in Elk Grove, said the problem is not Elk Grove’s. When people including some politicians - try to stigmatize all Muslims as antiAmerican, Shergill said, all people who look different are targeted unfairly. “When the process becomes radicalized, that’s when the disturbed actors take out on Sikhs and Muslims and people who are perceived to be Muslims,” he said. Singh said there’s just not enough awareness of Sikhism, which is 500 years old and is the world’s fifth largest religion with 18 million adherents. The faith, which originated in the Indian region of Punjab, draws from Hinduism and Islamic Sufism and the faithful believe in karmic cycles of rebirth, similar to Buddhists - and adherents stress that Sikhism is a distinct and separate religion.

Prior to 2001, Sikhs say, people were merely curious about the turbans and why adherents don’t cut their hair. After Sept.

11, some people felt that Sikhs were the enemy. The Sikh Coalition said there have been at least 700 attacks or bias-related incidents against Sikhs since Sept 11 in the US. Federal offi-

ELK GROVE, California: In this photo taken May 19, 2011, Kamaljit Atwal clutches a photo of his slain father, Gurmej Atwal, in his home. — AP cials, however, have tracked hate crimes against Sikhs in one category, along with crimes against Muslims, Arab-Americans and South Asians - groups that have experienced discrimination since 2001.

In 2000, there were 28 anti-Islamic hate crime cases reported to the FBI, Department of Justice statistics show. A year later, there were 481. Since then, the numbers of reported cases have declined to 107 in 2009, the most recent year the statistics are available. Sikh leaders sent a letter to US Attorney General Eric Holder in January asking him to track crimes against Sikhs separately. Federal officials said yesterday they are continuing to count Sikhs in the “anti-Islamic” hate crime category if the perpetrator indicated a bias toward Muslims.

The coalition will hold meetings in New York on July 30 and in San Francisco on Aug 27 so Sikhs can talk about bias and discrimination in the last decade. Videos of the meetings will be sent to lawmakers and police agencies. The coalition is also spearheading an effort this summer to stop bullying of Sikh children in schools after kids reported that other students tried to forcibly cut their hair, set their turbans on fire or attack them.

“Suddenly, our life has changed,” said Rana Singh Sodhi, the brother of a man who was murdered outside of his Arizona gas station five days after Sept 11. “We didn’t have any issue before 9/11.” Sodhi said that he and his family have stopped going camping in isolated areas because they fear what will happen.

The man who was convicted of killing Sodhi’s brother expressed anger over Sept 11 and before the murder, had told his wife that “all Arabs should be shot”. — AP

Assad loyalists storm US, French embassies Continued from Page 1 with another line cursing America. The protesters smashed the embassy sign hanging over one gate.

France has led Western attempts to pass a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning Syria’s hierarchy for cracking down on protesters. It says the president has lost legitimacy because of the number of killings to try to quell the protests demanding political freedoms after 41 years of Assad family rule. The United States condemned Syria for “refusing” to protect the embassy from an assault it said had been encouraged by a pro-government television station.

“A television station that is heavily influenced by Syrian authorities encouraged this violent demonstration,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement. “We strongly condemn the Syrian government’s refusal to protect our embassy, and demand compensation for damages. We call on the Syrian government to fulfill its obligations to its own citizens as well,” the statement said. The foreign ministry in Paris said three French staff were wounded in the embassy attack, while a US official said “no staff were injured”.

Human rights groups say at least 1,400 civilians have been killed since an uprising began in March against Assad’s autocratic rule, posing the biggest threat to his leadership since he succeeded his father 11 years ago. Assad loyalists also attempted to attack the US ambassador’s residence in Damascus yesterday after assaulting the embassy compound but failed to gain entry.

“It was the same thing, a mob. But everybody is alright,” a US official said, adding that US Ambassador Robert Ford was at the embassy compound when the assaults occurred and not the residence, located several blocks away.

In other violence yesterday, Syrian forces killed one civilian and wounded 20 in heavy-machinegun fire on Homs, Syria’s third city, and went house-to-house arresting suspected opponents in Hama, human rights activists said. Mostafa Abdelrahman, a preacher at a mosque in Hama, met Assad on Sunday to demand the release of 1,000 political prisoners and offer to remove makeshift roadblocks if given guarantees that there would be no more assaults, activists said.

Despite using military assaults in towns and cities to try to crush the protests, Assad has called for talks

on reforms. But the opposition refused to attend a two-day conference this week in the capital, saying it was futile as long as violence continued. Mostly Assad supporters were taking part. “Dialogue can only work when both parties respect each other and look at each other as equals,” said Ayman Abdel-nour, the Gulf-based editor of all4syria.com website.

Vice President Farouq Al-Sharaa, whose role is ceremonial, told the conference’s opening ceremony on Sunday the authorities would turn over a new page, hinting that political parties other than the Baath party would be allowed to operate. The meeting was expected to discuss legislation which would allow a multi-party system and constitutional amendments. But political analysts said reform was unlikely to be implemented as long as the security apparatus and Assad loyalists operated with impunity against demonstrators. Hilal Khashan, a Lebanon-based political commentator, said Assad’s call for dialogue was aimed at buying time. “If the regime was serious about reforms, they would change their security measures. Nobody in their sound mind would expect anything from Damascus as genuine political reform.” — Agencies

Bangladesh crash kills 44 children Continued from Page 1 AFP by telephone. He added 10 children were taken to hospital at a government clinic in a critical condition.

District official Sayeed Kutub told AFP that many victims - mostly from local Abu Torab Primary School - had drowned after being stuck under the truck when it turned over into the ditch by the side of the road. “They were trapped under the sunken truck. It took us some time to turn it over. As a result, most died because of drowning in water. Six children seriously injured have been admitted in clinics,” he said. Earlier, angry residents had vandalized some vehicles in the area as they complained the rescuers were late to reach the scene. Video footage showed some relatives of the dead wailing at their homes and in the hospitals.

The boys were returning from a trip to support a team playing in a local football tournament in Mirershorai. “They hired the truck to travel home quickly. They were enjoying the ride and were celebrating because their team has won the tournament,” said Foyez Ahmed, Chittagong district administrator. Local police initially put the death toll at about 40, but later said they were still counting the toll. “It was a tragic scene. As we are pulling one body after another, parents and relatives could not control their emotions,” Rezaul Karim, a local police officer, told AFP. “Some intervened, making the rescue operation difficult.” Army and Navy rescue teams were brought to dive into the deep roadside ditch.

The country’s president Zillur Rahman and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed their sorrow at the “tragic” deaths. Hasina ordered a quick rescue operation and proper treatment of the injured children. The government also opened an investigation into one of the

worst road accidents in the country’s history, officials said.

Separately, the death toll in a train accident in northern India climbed to 80 yesterday with more than 350 injured in one of the worst rail disasters to hit the country’s troubled rail network in years. The accident occurred on Sunday in northern Uttar Pradesh state after the New Delhi-bound Kalka Mail suddenly stopped, derailing over a dozen carriages that smashed and piled into one another. Rescue teams and army officers struggled for over 24 hours to locate and remove bodies from the wreckage. “It was one of the most serious cases of rail accidents in India,” said Sandeep Mathur, chief public relation officer of North Central Railways, who added an inquiry would be launched.

Two Swedish nationals were among those killed, said Mathur. Another Swedish passenger was injured.

The rail disaster comes with the beleaguered administration of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh poised to make minor changes to his cabinet this week, counting on veteran finance and interior ministers to help battle policy paralysis and public graft. Adding to the political heat faced by Singh - already reeling from a massive telecoms licence corruption scandal - was criticism that coalition ally Mamata Banerjee, who recently quit as railways minister, had neglected her core rail portfolio to concentrate on a local election campaign in West Bengal.

In a separate accident, around 50 passengers were injured, many critically, after a suspected bomb blast derailed a train late on Sunday in the north-eastern state of Assam. Some 336 people were killed and 437 injured in rail accidents in India between April 2010 and mid-January 2011, according to the latest government figures. — Agencies

CHITTAGONG: A view of the vehicle after it was recovered from a canal it crashed into with schoolchildren returning home from a football tournament yesterday. — AP

12 dead in Iran arms blast in Cyprus Continued from Page 1 Virtually every window was blown out in Zygi, a village whose seafront fish restaurants are popular with locals and tourists alike. “It was about 5:40 am, it was one massive explosion. We thought it was a plane crash.

Luckily our windows were open and they weren’t blasted in,” lawyer George Michaelides, a Zygi resident, told AFP. The main motorway connecting Nicosia with the island’s second-largest city Limassol runs less than a kilometre from Vassiliko, and motorists reported debris flying through the air.

“My tractor jumped about half a metre in the air,” said farmer Nicos Aspros, who was tilling his field at the time of the blast. “There isn’t a house in the community which hasn’t been damaged.” In Mari, partly protected from the blast by a small hill, windows and doors of Eleni Toubi’s small home were blown out and the roof was damaged.

“It was huge. I fell out of bed and ran to check on the kids,” she said. In the capital Nicosia, 65 km to the northeast, residents woke to power cuts and communications were patchy because mobile networks were jammed.

Before handing in his resignation, Tsaliklides told public radio the blasts struck among containers of Iranian munitions seized from Cypriot-flagged vessel the M/V Monchegorsk in Jan 2009. It was intercepted in the eastern Mediterranean en route to Syria, and after repeated searches its cargo was eventually seized. A UN Security Council panel concluded in March 2009 that the shipment was in clear violation of an arms embargo against Iran under UN sanctions imposed over Tehran’s

controversial nuclear program and the weapons were put into storage.

President Demetris Christofias visited the blast scene yesterday. “I want to express my sympathy and condolences to the families of the people who died while selflessly performing their duty,” he said. “The material damage can be repaired, but lives do not come back.”

Electricity Authority of Cyprus Chairman Charis Thrassou warned that it would take a long time to repair the Vassiliko plant and that an emergency rationing plan would be put to ministers. CNA reported him as saying billions of euros may be needed to restore the plant to normal.

Power outages have already hit large swathes of the island. The loss of supply also prompted the closure of desalination plants which had allowed the gradual abandonment of summer water rationing over the past two years. The Nicosia Water Board announced that consumers in the capital would now be supplied with water for just 12 hours in every 48. “The government calls on all the people to cooperate to tackle all these difficulties,” government spokesman Stefanou said. At the island’s main international airport in Larnaca, morning flights were severely disrupted after the blasts. Flights later returned to normal, but passengers had to cope with severely reduced air conditioning. There was no immediate word on damage to naval vessels, but officials spoke of “devastation” at the base. The Greek defence ministry flew a team of explosives experts to Cyprus to aid investigations, following a request from the government in Nicosia. — Agencies

14

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

op i ni on

THE LEADING INDEPENDENT DAILY IN THE ARABIAN GULF ESTABLISHED 1961

Founder and Publisher

YOUSUF S. AL-ALYAN Editor-in-Chief

ABD AL-RAHMAN AL-ALYAN EDITORIAL : 24833199-24833358-24833432 ADVERTISING : 24835616/7 FAX : 24835620/1 CIRCULATION : 24833199 Extn. 163 ACCOUNTS : 24835619 COMMERCIAL : 24835618 P.O.Box 1301 Safat,13014 Kuwait.

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

Issues

Flash in the tub?

By David Rosenberg s Israel’s cottage cheese revolution over? Since the country’s consumers rose in rebellion over the price of their favorite dairy product nearly a month ago, supermarket chains and ultimately the manufacturers backed down and cut retail prices by about 25 percent as sales plummeted. By most accounts, it was the first ever successful consumer boycott in Israel. But experts on economics, consumer culture and media speaking at a Hebrew University conference were divided on whether this opens a new chapter in Israeli economic history.

“This is a watershed in the economic life of Israel,” said Avi Simhon, a senior lecturer in agricultural economics and management. “The other cartels have learned that they can’t just squeeze the Israeli consumer, which is an important lesson that has a very, very large effect on the Israeli economy.”

But Paul Frosh, who as a senior lecturer in communications examined the white revolution as a media phenomenon, said he was doubtful it presaged a new area of consumer activism in Israel. Cottage cheese was the right product at the right moment, but activists, who are now targeting disposable diapers and other goods, will have trouble imitating the success. “It’s perceived as a national symbol - something that all Israelis share,” Frosh said.

“That meant it was easier to mobilize people around it.

It’s also a staple - of all dairy products it is one of the most popular - but it’s also a product you can live without.”

Manufactures exacerbated the problem by gradually turning cottage cheese from a perceived food of the masses into a delicacy for the rich with premium priced products in tiny containers with added ingredients like olives, honey and strawberries. “The rebranding of cottage cheese had something to do with it,” Frosh said.

The boycott of cottage cheese was launched on Facebook June 14 and was immediately picked up by the local media and turned into a national cause. Retailers trembled and within hours were offering discounts.

Israel’s three big dairies - Tnuva, Strauss and Tara - held out but ultimately surrendered in the face of withering media criticism and threat by the government to introduce imports and other measures.

Frosh said that social media alone cannot generate sufficient attention, unless it is picked up by the mass media, as the cottage cheese campaign quickly did. Ynet, Israel’s most widely viewed news portal, invited Itzik Elrov, the initiator, to write a guest column - and more importantly gave him the rare privilege of linking it to his Facebook page. The rest was consumer history.

But, Frosh said, a Facebook-only campaign, whether it is about cottage cheese or bringing down Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, is a “low energy” affair. It can enlist a lot of people and prove it by numbers but it requires little effort on the part of supporters. “They don’t require a lot of commitment,” he said. “You don’t have to go into the street, launch manifestos and to go to a demonstration ... Nevertheless when you aggregate it, you can create large political waves.”

Yakir Plessner, a professor emeritus of agricultural economics and management, said he had been surprised by the speed and force of the cottage cheese uprising. As much as its price had risen over the years since prices were decontrolled in 2006, all dairy products combined make up only 2.5 percent of the average Israeli family’s food basket. The price of cottage cheese would be “barely felt” by most consumers.

Israeli home prices have been rising rapidly as well, and they make up almost a quarter of the typical family’s expenses. But no rebellion has emerged over home prices. Plessner said he could only conclude that the ado over cottage cheese was “psychological.” Nonetheless, he said, it shows a change in the Israeli mentality. “I used to view the Israeli consumer as a dumb consumer,” said Plessner. “But I think that in recent years the Israeli consumer is beginning to get more sophisticated. The indication of that, unrelated to consumerism, is the ubiquity of new wineries. Israel has the highest number of wineries per capita in the world.”

Some commentators have suggested that the cottage cheese boycott may be heralding a pushback against economic policy of the last decade that has favored free markets and deregulation. Simhon said he doubted there was any change under way, citing a recent poll that showed Binyamin Netanyahu - who oversaw an intensive drive for privatization and deregulation as finance minster between 2003 and 2005 - was given the highest marks among Israel’s finance ministers.—Media Line

I

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.

Palestinians start to feel pain from strategy Tom Perry and Ali Sawafta he Palestinians’ drive to forge a new Middle East strategy, opposed by Israel and the United States, is starting to exact a financial price that will test their resolve. Palestinian Authority employees, who received only half wages in July, are getting a taste of what could be in store if their leaders defy Washington and follow through on plans to take their statehood quest to the United Nations in September. Dependent on aid from Europe, the United States and its Arab allies, some of which has not been forthcoming this year, the Palestinians are facing a financial crisis which a senior official linked directly to their decision to go on the diplomatic offensive at the United Nations General Assembly.

“It’s part of the pressure on us to take the wrong decisions,” Nabil Abu Rdainah, a senior aide to President Mahmoud Abbas, told Reuters. “We saw this film with Yasser Arafat several times. You either say ‘yes’ or you face hunger,” he said, referring to the late Palestinian leader.

“They will not pay you and will not let the others pay you.” The impact of the wage cuts affecting the Palestinian Authority’s 150,000 employees is already being felt on the Palestinian economy. “Cutting the aid is a dangerous game,” said George Giacaman, a political scientist at Birzeit University near the West Bank city of Ramallah. “I think the idea is not to close the tap completely, because this might be counterproductive: it could lead to widespread discontent and agitation. The idea is to keep it trickling,” he said.

The Palestinians have yet to decide exactly which diplomatic course they will chart at the UN meeting if, as

T

expected, there is no resumption of the moribund peace process which has been overseen by the United States for the past two decades. In general terms, they want to build as much international support as they can at the UN for a state of Palestine on land occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war. The Security Council has scheduled a July 26 open debate on the possibility of Palestine becoming a UN member state.

The United States opposes the idea, describing it as a unilateral step contrary to its approach of seeking a deal through bilateral agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. Israeli officials worry it is part of a new Palestinian strategy aimed at isolating and “delegitimising” Israel. Palestinian officials acknowledge the diplomatic manoeuvre would have little or no immediate impact on the ground, but portray it as part of an inevitable departure from a failed strategy.

They hope it will mark a shift away from a dependence on US mediation to a more international approach that could level the playing field in future negotiations with their much stronger adversary. “We are left with no option,” said Mohammad Shtayyeh, a leading figure in the Fatah movement headed by Abbas. The Palestinians’ boldest UN option would be to ask the Security Council to admit Palestine as a full member state - a move which the United States has already said it would oppose.

In Ramallah, officials are studying alternatives that would not depend on Security Council approval, including the idea of seeking an upgrade of the Palestinians’ UN status to a level below that of full member state. It would be the second time in a few months that Abbas has taken steps at odds with US wishes, challenging the view of

domestic critics who have long dismissed him as an instrument of Washington’s policy. Abbas signed an agreement with Hamas in May aimed at reuniting the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, controlled for four years by his rivals in the Islamist movement listed as a terrorist group by the United States.

That too carried a financial cost that underlined the fragility of the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited self-rule over areas of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Citing concerns the funds would reach Hamas, Israel temporarily withheld tax revenues it collects on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, whose employees did not have their salaries paid on time for the first time since 2007.

The reconciliation agreement, brokered by Egypt, has since stumbled. But it is still very much on the minds of policymakers in Washington, where an overwhelming majority of the US Congress last week passed a resolution urging a suspension of aid to the Palestinians if they seek UN recognition. “We will be steadfast to confront these pressures,” Abbas said in remarks reported by Palestinian media. Palestinian officials have said Arab governments are to blame for the shortfall in the funding they need to fill a $970 million hole in their 2011 budget. They are reluctant to name states but a review of sums paid by donors this year shows Saudi Arabia, a big contributor in recent years, has yet to offer any budgetary support.

Riyadh, a close US ally, has donated some $620 million in budget support to the Palestinian Authority since 2008.

“We may not be able to pay salaries next month, or perhaps we will pay half salaries ... we are working day and night to secure salaries,” Abbas said. “This is something I am losing sleep over.” — Reuters

Sudan’s smooth separation masks messy divorce

By Jeremy Clarke and Andrew Heavens orth and South Sudanese awoke in separate nations on Sunday, relieved at the ease of the split but no closer to solving rows over borders, oil sharing and other issues that may yet spark conflict. Even within the new boundaries, challenges abound. The north, with its restive rebels, must rapidly plug a gap left by losing most oil resources to the south. The south has to build almost from scratch a nation that is riven by tribal violence. The creation of the Republic of South Sudan on Saturday, the climax of a 2005 peace deal that ended decades of war between north and south, went remarkably smoothly.

Under the surface, though, the crowds were actually watching a messy divorce - one where the two parties had not reached a proper legal settlement before going their separate ways. John Prendergast, of the Enough Project, said the ceremony itself was secondary. “I think the relevant question is when are they going to make the comprehensive deal on oil revenues and where the border is. Everything else is window-dressing.” On the day itself, the countries put on a good show. South Sudan President Salva Kiir stood side by side in the southern capital Juba with his old foe, the President of Sudan Omar Hassan AlBashir, and both made friendly speeches. The cracks showed seconds after the northern president’s address, when a lone voice in the crowd shouted “Bye, bye”. Another’s T-shirt read: “I’ve got 99 problems but Bashir ain’t one.”

As the celebrations mounted in South Sudan, mediators from the African Union High Level Implementation Panel for Sudan quietly issued a six-page document, publishing a list of the agreements so far, and what they still needed to

N

settle. It was remarkably short of dates and deadlines. The two sides need to agree who owns the disputed Abyei area, mark out their border, move their forces outside a demilitarized border zone, work out how the south will pay the north to transport oil through northern pipelines, share out the waters of the Nile and prepare for a new currency in the south.

“Trying to work through outstanding disagreements, many of them already violent, will require difficult negotiations, political savvy, and carefully considered international engagement,” wrote the International Crisis Group’s Louise Arbour in the International Herald Tribune. “At this point, the signs do not look particularly good.”

Both sides also awoke to face their own problems. In Khartoum, those include a loss of oil revenues, surging inflation, international iso-

lation, insurgencies, infighting in the ruling National Congress Party and International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants for Bashir and other officials. Sudan’s goodwill towards South Sudan may be shortlived if Washington fails to keep its promise to take Khartoum off its list of state sponsors of terrorism as a reward for recognising the south and other progress.

In his speech in Juba, Bashir urged the United States to lift sanctions. Instead, he was met with calls for more work. “By continuing on the path of peace, the government of Sudan can redefine its relationship with the international community and secure a more prosperous future for its people,” US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a statement. If it feels betrayed by the United States, Bashir’s administration, which once hosted Osama bin Laden, may turn its back on the

West, strengthening ties with Palestinian group Hamas and with Iran. In South Sudan, Juba will face its own internal battles against corruption, a mushrooming public sector it can ill afford, poverty, warring tribes, renegade militia leaders, raids by the vicious Ugandan rebel Lord’s Resistance Army and an economy that produces next to nothing except oil. Kiir acknowledged the challenges in his first speech as the new president, saying South Sudan was at the “tail end” of development scales. “From today onwards we shall have no excuse or scapegoats to blame,” he told southerners.

Up to now, the actions of the leaders from the north and south have been governed by two main tactics. Neither encourages confidence for the coming talks or the stability of their nations which straddle the Arab world and Sub-

South Sudanese raise the flag of their new country during a ceremony in the capital Juba on July 09, 2011 to celebrate South Sudan’s independence from Sudan. – AFP

Saharan Africa. First there is the tactic of postponement. Difficult settlements are put off, letting the cost of the disputes in terms of human lives and development mount while leaders get on with the dayby-day business of staying in power. This has sometimes drawn in external players, African or the Western, but that has not guaranteed a solution in the past.

Sudan’s eight-year Darfur conflict festers despite the presence of one of the world’s biggest peacekeeping missions. Second, there is the ploy of escalation, by politicians or the military, in a bid to draw concessions and then win credit by promising to calm a situation they ignited. Analysts point to the north’s seizure of Abyei weeks before the separation that was provoked by a southern attack. The south won kudos for not being drawn further into conflict. The north got credit when it agreed to pull back, to make way for Ethiopian peacekeepers, days later.

Both tactics go a long way to explaining the overriding theme of internal Sudanese politics, at least in recent years. Plenty of drama with little political change. The 2005 deal was a rare exception but the main actors have stayed the same.

Bashir has been in power since 1989. Kiir became president of the autonomous south when his predecessor, John Garang, was killed in a helicopter crash in 2005. Before that he was a top officer in the southern rebel army. For years, both sides traded accusations.

That will likely continue in the months or years ahead, this time from across the border. Each may choose to continue scapegoating the other, swapping charges to explain the failures at home. The people of the Republic of Sudan in the north and the new Republic of South Sudan may be hoping their leaders can come up with some new strategies. — Reuters

15

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

a na ly s i s

Street by street, Egypt activists face Old Guard

By Sarah El Deeb fter the fall of President Hosni Mubarak, a group of young activists quickly moved to bring the can-do spirit of Egypt’s revolution to the level of their neighborhoods. They began installing electricity poles in Mit Oqba’s dim streets. They got gas pipes extended to the area.

They did what local officials had long promised but never done, with the aim of showing 300,000 low-income residents the benefits of an uprising meant to end the corruption and stagnation under Mubarak. Then the activists’ parents started getting intimidating warnings: Your children are going to get beaten up by thugs. An official who helped them get papers signed for extending the gas pipes was suddenly transferred to another post.

The activists had run into a collision course with powerful local members of the former ruling party. It was a lesson about the new Egypt: The old regime is still in place and fighting change. “The regime is not just Mubarak and his ministers. There are thousands still benefiting,” said Mohammed Magdy, one of the activists in Mit Oqba.

Mubarak was removed five months ago, along with top figures from his nearly 30-year regime, spawning euphoria among those who brought him down. Now, however, the military generals in control have been slow in, or have outright resisted, dismantling the grip that members of his former ruling party hold on every level of the state, from senior government positions down to local administrations. In the meantime, public anger that real change has not come is growing explosive.

The experience in Mit Oqba illustrates the conflict between old and new being waged street by street and neighborhood by neighborhood. Under Mubarak’s rule, more than 1,700 Local Councils nationwide, with over 50,000 members, were elected in theory to represent their neighborhoods. In practice, they were a cog in the patronage and corruption machine of Mubarak’s National Democratic Party.

Election rigging ensured nearly all council members belonged to the party. Often they would push projects that lined their own pockets or those of friends. For example, a street would get a new sidewalk if a firm close to the council or ruling party profited. Council members steered services to residents willing to promise them a favor later. The system helped ensure the system’s hold. Come election time, officials used their patronage to drum out voters for party candidates or to hire thugs to beat up opponents.

Late last month, a court ordered all Local Councils dissolved, potentially a significant step toward reform. Former members retain their connections, however, backed with cash, which gives them a strong tool for regaining seats when new municipal elections are held. “They have lots of money going around to people. They have ties with big families in the area,” said Heba Ghanem, an activist working with Mit Oqba’s Popular Committee. “Some who want to run for parliament are already slaughtering cows and distributing (the meat) in the neighborhood,” a common way to curry votes. The same fear holds for national politics, where many one-time officials in Mubarak’s party are gearing up to run for election in September. The activist neighborhood groups, known as Popular Committees, aim to break not just corruption but also the apathy of Egyptians who have given up trying to make things better. They were born from impromptu neighborhood watch groups that defended homes in a wave of looting during the anti-Mubarak uprising.

The watch groups were widely popular as an example of Egyptians working together on their own initiative, and they won support from the young people who had fueled the anti-Mubarak revolt. There are now nearly 50 Popular

A

Committees nationwide, each with volunteers working in their home neighborhoods.

Their self-imposed mandate: Make things better and get things done. Many of them have taken the additional title of “in defense of the Revolution”. That can mean anything: fixing infrastructure and providing literacy classes, working with residents on rooftop gardens or on better water usage, monitoring officials to keep them accountable. Some conduct “name and shame” campaigns to expose those who take bribes or embezzle, whether policemen or bakers who sell government-subsidized wheat on the black market. They catch perpetrators on mobile phone cameras and publicize

In this July 6, 2011 photo, pedestrians walk in an alley in the crowded neighborhood of Mit Oqba in Cairo. – AP the footage. In Alexandria, Egypt’s second largest city, a gas company needed to repair a damaged valve. But it wanted protection, because its team had to work at night. With a general police pullback from the streets, the Popular Committee volunteered to provide security instead. The gas company feared offending police by cooperating with the activists, so the committee had its patrol just pass by the work site to make it look coincidental. The company made the repair.

Mit Oqba, Mohammed Magdy’s home district in Cairo, provided a unique challenge and opportunity. Ruling party networks were strong in the crowded district, which was used to provide manpower for pro-Mubarak rallies during the uprising. Soon after Mubarak’s fall, the 24-year-old Magdy and his committee drew up a plan to tackle 12 promi-

nent problems in the long neglected neighborhood. They organized the installation of light poles for a dozen streets.

Drug dealing was rampant, so they are pressing officials for more police.

The district badly needed a low-fee government medical clinic. Construction was under way on one, but workers, paid by the day, were delaying finishing it. So a committee member is camping out at the construction site, doing everything from badgering them to bringing them daily tea to get it done. Local officials promised two decades ago to extend natural gas pipelines to Mit Oqba homes. It never happened.

So the committee followed the paper trail and got a few approvals signed. Now the main pipeline has been laid, and the committee is helping residents register for connections to their homes.

With the successes, the harassment began, according to the activists. Local Council supporters hacked into the committee’s Facebook group and sent emails to its members that caused fights among them, Magdy said. They transferred the official who cooperated with Magdy by signing papers. They pressured a principal into barring the committee’s literacy class from his school. To scare the volunteers’ families, they spread word that armed thugs were waiting to attack them, Magdy said. When that didn’t work, the Local Council tried to take credit. In its newsletter, it proclaimed that it “promised and delivered” on the gas lines. Former ruling party members posed in photos by the new streetlights.

Magdy’s group countered with its own newsletter, “The People Want”, reporting on their activities and on former regime members trying to buy off loyalties. They also praised officials who helped them bring services. In a last-ditch attempt, a local bigwig who once sat in parliament for the ruling party met with volunteers. He told them bluntly they would fail. “Who lied to you and told you this party is dead and buried?” he shouted, according to Magdy. “We are still here and we will win again, with your help.”

Zaghloul Rashad, a member of Mit Oqba’s local district council, denied that the council had harassed the young activists, and called them “arrogant” young meddlers. He said the influence of the activists was limited to a few streets. He also denied the activists were responsible for the new gas pipeline, saying it had been approved earlier. “Does the Popular Committee have a magic wand to say ‘extend gas pipelines’ and it happens?” asked Rashad, who plans to run for election again and expressed confidence he would win.

At the same time, Rashad complained that the activists can in fact march into a local administrator’s office and press him into action, and he will comply for fear of seeming anti-revolutionary. “They couldn’t even enter his office before,” he said. “It is chaos!”

The activists are unfazed. In a snub to Mit Oqba’s Local Council, Magdy’s group hung a banner on Al-Gharib Street, where several council members own homes. One side proclaims “Goals We Achieved” and the other “Goals We Want to Achieve”. So far, they’ve checked off nearly half the original list of 12. “These kids are good. They’re cleaning up the streets,” said Howeida Mohammed, a 40-year-old woman attending one of the committee’s literacy classes this week. “I don’t want anything to do with the local council.”

The Popular Committees may not survive because of the sheer strength of the old system Mubarak set up, said Alia Mossallam, a doctorate student documenting the Popular Committees and helping them network. But they will be a breeding ground for a new generation of politicians, experienced in actually serving a community. “We have never had governance from below,” she said. “(The experience) may die down ... but everything they have learned will stick with them.” —AP

Tug-of-war over Iraqi Jewish trove in US hands

By Rebecca Santana trove of Jewish books and other materials, rescued from a sewagefilled Baghdad basement during the 2003 invasion, is now caught up in a tugof-war between the United States and Iraq.

Ranging from a medieval religious book to children’s Hebrew primers, from photos to Torah cases, the collection is testimony to a once vibrant Jewish community in Baghdad. Their present-day context is the relationship, fraught with distrust, between postwar Iraq and its Jewish diaspora.

Discovered in a basement used by Saddam Hussein’s secret police, the collection was sent to the US for safekeeping and restoration, and sat at NARA, the National Archives and Records Administration in Maryland, just outside Washington, until last year, when Iraqi officials started a campaign to get it back. Initially contacts went well, but now the deputy culture minister, Taher Naser Al-Hmood, says “ The Americans are not serious” about setting a deadline for getting back the archive.

US officials deny that they are delaying its return. They say they only recently got the roughly $3 million needed to clean up the materials, the reason they were carried to the US, and they question the rush to return the collection now, when the goal is so close. “It is not US government material, and we have every intention of returning it,” said Phil Frayne, a spokesman for the State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. “We understand the frustration over the delay, but we’re happy that this is going to finally move forward,” he said. AlHmood was skeptical, saying he had not been told about the money. “Let the American side prove its good will,” he said.

“We cannot trust the Americans. They have not fulfilled their previous promises.”

The case is complicated by the kneejerk suspicions that cloud everything related to Jewish history among the Arabs, Iraq’s attempts to assert its sovereignty after years of US domination and a diaspora trying to recover its history. There are claims of Jewish pressure to prevent the return of the collection and questions about why the US did not prevent the looting of Arab and Islamic treasures during the invasion but was able to bring the Jewish collection to safety in America. Among those voicing indignation about the transfer of the archive to America is Liwa Smaysim, the minister of archaeology, who belongs to a fiercely anti-American party in the government coalition.

On the other hand, once returned to Baghdad, the archive probably would be beyond the reach of Jewish scholars, espe-

A

cially Israeli ones, given the absence of diplomatic ties with Israel, and the antiSemitism that exists here. Iraqi officials have vowed to restore the materials and digitize them so they would be available outside of Iraq as well. Besides parchments and photos accumulated over the years, the collection includes books printed in Baghdad, Warsaw and Venice, one of them a Jewish religious book published in 1568, and 50 copies of a children’s primer in Hebrew and Arabic.

They are the lost heritage of what was once one of the largest Jewish communities in the Middle East, which dated to the 6th century BC and ended with an exodus after the creation of Israel in 1948. Today fewer than 10 Jews are believed to be left here. After the collection was found by a US military team searching for weapons of mass destruction, the US-headed agency temporarily governing Iraq signed an agreement with the US Archives in Maryland to take its contents to the United States. It stipulated that the US would

Iraq. A NARA report, obtained through the Freedom of Information Act by AP, says Saad Eskander, the head of the Iraqi National Library and Archives, met with US representatives on June 23, 2010, and they decided upon a plan, including the immediate return of half the archive. For reasons no one can entirely agree upon, however, things began to fall apart. Al-Hmood said that when the December deadline passed, the Iraqis decided to officially ask for the archive back, and repeated the request six months later. In response, he said, the US sent messages discussing what he says are “technical issues” and which he considers procrastination.

However, the Iraqi government seems in two minds about the matter. Deputy Foreign Minister Labid Abawi, whose ministry is Kurdish-run and has close ties to the US government, said it prefers the US do the restoration, on the ground that Iraq lacks the capability. Eskander and AlHmood say the Iraqi Cabinet tasked their offices, not the Foreign Ministry, with

This 2003 file photo shows Jewish books and documents found by US troops in a secret police building in Baghdad. – AP restore and display the materials before returning them to Iraq, but the Iraqi government could have them back any time it asked, regardless whether the work had been completed. Iraqi Culture Ministry officials say they appreciate the US efforts to save the materials but are frustrated about getting them back. They say that in meetings and conversations last year with the State Department and NARA, a decision was reached to return half the materials by the end of 2010, and the rest to be restored and displayed before also coming back to

recovering missing documents, and they are trying to do their job. A letter from the Coalition Provisional Authority, the US agency that ran Iraq after the invasion, and obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, confirms the Ministry of Culture is charged with making decisions about the Jewish archive.

Eskander shepherded his library through the violence that followed the invasion and is getting a new five-storey expansion project now being built. The rattle of gunfire has been replaced by the

boom of construction, while staff repair other, similarly mold-infested documents.

Eskander says that is proof that Iraq can and will do the needed restoration on the Jewish materials. He himself is a Faihly, a member of a small Shiite-Kurdish minority persecuted under Saddam. He says it is vital that Iraqis know their history and that they be made aware that Jews were once part of this country.

He and Al-Hmood also are pushing for the return of millions of sensitive securityrelated documents believed to be in CIA and Pentagon hands. These would be much more significant for the Iraqi people, but for now the Jewish archive has been the focus of activity. Al-Hmood said, “There are Jewish organizations that exert great pressure to prevent the return of the archive, claiming that there are no Jewish people in Iraq any longer.”

The State Department says it has not succumbed to any pressure and is simply fulfilling its part of the agreement to restore the materials before returning them to Iraq. Frayne said he understands the frustration over the delay but adds that with nearly $3 million in US taxpayer money allocated, restoration can move ahead.

NARA will hire about 10 people to do the work, and part of the money will go toward bringing Iraqi archivists to the US and training them in restoration, said Doris Hamburg, NARA’s director of preservation programs.

Frayne said the US has requested repeatedly that the Iraqi side appoint an archival team to help draft an addendum to the 2003 agreement but has received no response. Although Al-Hmood and Eskander said they had not been told about the $3 million, Al-Hmood said talks could resume if a firm time line were set for the archive’s return. The role, if any, of outside Jewish groups in the dispute is unknown, but Andrew Baker of the American Jewish Committee questioned why Iraqi officials were in such a rush and wondered who in the Jewish community would be able to make use of the collection once it is taken to Iraq.

A member of the Iraqi Jewish diaspora who follows the talks closely said it initially was hoped the archive would serve as a line of communication with the Iraqi government on other issues such as protecting Jewish cemeteries and shrines in Iraq. The perceived involvement of American Jewish organizations, however, has led to suspicions they were trying to block the archive’s return, and the archive became an impediment to further talks, he said. He requested anonymity, citing the sensitivity of the archive issue. — AP

Focus

Succession politics simmer as Jiang ails

By Ben Blanchard, Sui-Lee Wee ne of Mao Zedong’s anointed successors was ousted and hounded by Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution. Another died in a mysterious plane crash. Deng Xiaoping wrested control of China from a third Mao successor, then proceeded to depose his own chosen protege, Zhao Ziyang, after he expressed sympathy with the students demanding democracy in Tiananmen Square in 1989. Succession politics in China has long been a dangerous business and with former president Jiang Zemin in deteriorating health, China watchers are asking how his death could alter the next handover of power in 2012.

The likely answer is very little. President Hu Jintao is preparing to retire and hand over the top job in the Communist Party to Vice President Xi Jinping next autumn, and the presidency in 2013.

But compared with the chaotic days of Mao, China’s leadership transitions are now much more orderly.

Jiang himself set the precedent of adhering to the retirement age when he stepped down first as Party chief and then as president, in 2002 and 2003 respectively, taking several ageing leaders with him.

Barring a spectacular misstep, or mishap, Xi will become party chief as expected in 2012, whether or not Jiang survives. “Xi’s succession has already become an institutional decision,” said Wang Zhengxu, senior research fellow at Nottingham University’s China Policy Institute in Britain. “Hu Jintao is happy and willing to install Xi as the next top leader and Xi has not been close to Jiang’s people. The challenge will be whether Xi has built a strong enough network in the past three years,” he said.

Arcane and murky, China’s process to determine who will get to run the world’s second largest economy, presiding over everything from currency reform to military modernisation, will be closely watched by foreign investors, diplomats, bankers, lawyers and politicians alike. But gone are the days when China was ruled by octogenarians, or when a powerful leader was able to rule, as Deng did, from “behind the curtain” despite holding no formal political title. The game for a retired leader like Jiang - and soon Hu - is one of exercising subtle, if fading, influence. “The structure is already in place, but some details will be a bit different,” said Zheng Yongnian, a Chinese politics expert at the National University of Singapore.

But because China decides the fate of its new leaders behind closed doors in secret Communist Party meetings, any hint of uncertainty can spark an explosion in speculation, ensuring any leadership transition will not unfold without some drama.

Jiang’s health provided the necessary fodder last week. China on Thursday was forced to deny pervasive rumours and even two reports in the overseas media that Jiang had died. Sources told Reuters that Jiang had been hospitalised after suffering a heart attack. His ill-health had been widely speculated on in diplomatic circles in Beijing, and his nonappearance at the 90th anniversary of the ruling Communist Party’s on July 1 while other former leaders showed up in force fed the rumour-mill.

When Jiang retired, it was said that everywhere Hu looked he would see the supporters of his predecessor. Jiang had stacked China’s most powerful leadership body, the nine-member Politburo Standing Committee, with his own protÈgÈes, many of them from the so-called “Shanghai Gang”. But in the years since Jiang retired his final post, the military commission chairmanship in 2004, Hu consolidated his grip, neutralised the Shanghai Gang and successfully anointed Xi as a successor. With the dramatic dismissal for corruption in 2006 of Shanghai’s Communist Party boss, Chen Liangyu, Hu was not only serving notice that he was in charge, he was writing the obituary for the Shanghai Gang, loved for its track record on economic growth yet loathed for its monopoly on political power.

Still, Jiang’s influence was apparent at the last Communist Party Congress in 2007. Xi was not necessarily Hu’s first choice as China’s next party chief and president, but he did get anointed with Jiang’s blessing. “Hu Jintao was inclined to promote Li Keqiang as head of the party,” said Jean Pierre Cabestan, a professor who specializes on Chinese politics at Hong Kong’s Baptist University. Vice Premier Li is tipped to take over as premier from Wen Jiabao in the leadership succession.

Hu also was unable to force out Jiang ally Jia Qinglin, the Party’s nominal number four. Other Jiang supporters retain their seats on the Standing Committee, including the head of the largely rubber stamp parliament Wu Bangguo, and propaganda chief Li Changchun. Where Hu failed in removing Jiang’s allies, time will succeed: Jia, Wu and Li Changchun are or will soon be past the cutoff age of 68 for retirement and will have to step down. “Today the line up of the next leadership is more or less decided,” Cabestan added. “What has not been decided - in any event I don’t think Jiang Zemin would have any real impact - is who’s going to take over from Wu Bangguo, Jia Qinglin and Li Changchun.”

Out of Jiang’s shadow, Hu will have greater power in these appointment discussions, and also have a greater opportunity to influence the lineup of the next generation of leaders, the ones due to assume power after Xi leaves the scene around 2022.

Chinese leaders also can leave their mark through having their theories enshrined in the Communist Party history books. Mao and Deng had many, and Jiang’s theory, the curiously named Three Represents, which allowed capitalists to join the party, was written into the Constitution. Hu could seek similar status with his own policy, the Harmonious Society, which seeks to rectify the imbalances between rich and poor that came with the country’s rapid economic development. — Reuters

O

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

sp orts

despite Wenger saying he will fight to keep them. British media reported that Gervinho, who generally operated on the right of a front three for last season’s surprise French double winners, had cost 12.0 million pounds ($19.3 million).Gervinho, whose full name is Gervais Yao Kouassi, moved to Belgium League side Beveren when he was 17 before heading to France where he played for Le Mans before joining Lille two years ago. He has represented his country at both the Olympics and last year’s World Cup. Forward Niklas Bendtner and goalkeeper Manuel Almunia have both been linked with moves away from Arsenal in the media. —Reuters

Isner bags Newport title

Tamgho wins new fans

Arsenal seal Gervinho deal LONDON: Arsenal recruited Lille’s 24year-old Ivory Coast forward Gervinho yesterday as they bid to boost their firepower this season and end a trophy drought stretching back to 2005. “He is an official Arsenal player. Gervinho has joined training today at London Colney (in England),” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger told a news conference during the club’s preseason trip to Malaysia.

The arrival of Gervinho, who scored 28 goals in 67 games for Ligue 1 champions Lille over the last two seasons, comes amid speculation that top midfielders Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas could leave

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

BIRMINGHAM: Home favorite Phillips Idowu delivered victory in the triple jump at the Birmingham Diamond League meeting but arch rival Teddy Tamgho increased his support for the 2012 London Olympics with his post-competition display of autograph signing.

France’s Tamgho, the world indoor record holder, could only manage a best of 16.74 metres on a cool, damp afternoon at the Alexander Stadium for fifth, well behind Idowu’s winning leap of 17.54.

However, instead of slinking away quietly to mull his seventh career defeat by the Briton, the 22-year-old delighted spectators by happily signing caps, flags and programmes before being reluctantly moved on by

stewards. “I’m very happy because people love me and I really appreciate the people who come to me to have a signature,” Tamgho told Reuters.

“I think it’s impossible for the public to cheer for me and Idowu but they like me too,” added the tall triple jumper, who gave his vest to a boy in the crowd after the competition.

“I saw a person who was saying ‘Teddy, Teddy, go, go’ so I wanted to give him a present,” he explained.

Tamgho, who comfortably beat Idowu in Lausanne last month with a world leading distance of 17.91, put his poor performance down to tired legs but was in buoyant mood for next month’s world championships in Daegu, South Korea. — Reuters

NEW YORK: Big-serving American John Isner captured his second career ATP title after skipping his brother’s wedding to beat Belgium’s Olivier Rochus 6-3 7-6 in the Hall of Fame Tennis Championship final on Sunday.

The towering American blasted 22 aces past Rochus, 38 centimetres (1 foot 3 inches) shorter than his opponent, to become the first top seed to win the grasscourt tournament in Newport in 35 years. Isner took a late wildcard into the event and missed his brother’s wedding on Saturday but he said it was worth it. “It definitely turned out to be a great decision,” Isner said on the ATP

website.“ It’s the perfect start to the summer and I really feel like my best surface is the hard courts in the US so I’m going to have a lot of confidence from this.”

Isner made four finals in 2010, winning his first title at Auckland, but was best known for winning the longest match ever played, a marathon fivesetter against Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon, which he clinched 70-68 in the fifth set.

He had not made a final this year, slipping down the rankings from a career-high 18 to 46, and was overlooked for the US team chosen to play Spain in the Davis Cup quarter-finals.—Reuters

Phillies rout Braves PHILADELPHIA: The Philadelphia Phillies piled on a season-best 20 hits to rout the Atlanta Braves 14-1 on Sunday, taking two out of three in the series between the National League’s top two teams. Raul Ibanez homered and drove in six runs while John Mayberry Jr. had three doubles and a career-best four RBIs for the Phillies.

Philadelphia starter Cole Hamels (11-4) allowed one run over eight innings. He allowed just one hit after the second inning and retired his final 13 batters.

The Phillies increased their lead to 31/2 games over Atlanta in the NL East. They also matched the club record for wins in the first half of a season, tying the 1993 team with 57 victories. Braves starter Derek Lowe (5-7) allowed four runs in four innings.

Giants 4, Mets 2 In San Francisco, the hosts beat New York to increase their lead in the NL West to three games, heading into the All-Star break as divisional leaders for the first time in eight years.

Pablo Sandoval celebrated his first All-Star

game selection by hitting an RBI double to extend his hitting streak to 21 games, while Nate Schierholtz added four hits and an RBI. San Francisco starter Matt Cain (8-5) lowered his ERA to 2.06 over his past eight starts.

New York starter Mike Pelfrey (5-8) allowed eight hits as the Mets lost their first road series since May but went into the break with a positive 46-45 record; something that appeared unlikely when they lost 13 of their first 18 games.

Cardinals 4, D’backs 2 In St. Louis, the hosts downed Arizona to split the four game series. Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia (9-3) gave up two runs in six innings. He has a 6-1 record with a 1.14 ERA in nine home starts. David Freese homered for the first time since April 12, while Albert Pujols had two hits and Matt Holliday had an RBI single and a walk for the Cardinals, who are tied for the NL Central lead.

The Diamondbacks completed a 5-5 road trip and are in second place in the NL West.

Zach Duke (2-4) got the loss.

Brewers 4, Reds 3 In Milwaukee, the home team pounced on Cincinnati closer Francisco Cordero, rallying in the ninth. Mark Kotsay tied it 3-3 with an RBI single, scoring Nyjer Morgan. With the bases loaded and one out, Craig Counsell delivered a game-ending sacrifice fly.

Kameron Loe (3-7) got the win for the Brewers, who won three of four in the series and are tied with St. Louis for the NL Central lead at the All-Star break. Cordero (3-3) blew two save opportunities in the series and has failed to convert his last three chances overall.

Nationals 2, Rockies 0 In Washington, Jordan Zimmermann took a shutout into the seventh inning to guide Washington past Colorado.

Zimmermann (6-7) went 6 1-3 innings, and was nearly matched by Colorado’s Jhoulys Chacin (8-7), who gave up one run in seven innings. Roger Bernadina hit a broken-bat RBI singles in the sixth and Rick Ankiel homered in the eighth. The two-run margin was a relative rout for the Nationals, whose previous 10 victories had come by either one run or in extra innings. They ended a three-game losing streak, too - and each of those defeats were by a single run.

It was the first time in six years that Washington had gone into the All-Star break without a negative record.

Pirates 9, Cubs 1 In Pittsburgh, the hosts comfortably beat Chicago and will go the mid-season break with their best record for 19 years. Andrew McCutchen hit a three-run homer and two sacrifice flies. Neil Walker went 3 for 4, and Alex Presley had two hits and scored two runs for Pittsburgh. The Pirates are closer to first place this late in the season than at any time since their most recent winning season in 1992. They are one game behind Milwaukee and St. Louis in the NL Central standings.

Pittsburgh starter Paul Maholm (6-9) allowed one run in 7 2-3 innings to take the win while Ramon Ortiz (0-2) suffered the loss.

PHILADELPHIA: Phillies’ Domonic Brown (left) scores past Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann on a two-run double by John Mayberry Jr. in the seventh inning. — AP

MLB results/standings Major League Baseball results and standings on Sunday: NY Yankees 1, Tampa Bay 0; Toronto 7, Cleveland 1; Florida 5, Houston 4; Boston 8, Baltimore 6; Washington 2, Colorado 0; Philadelphia 14, Atlanta 1; Pittsburgh 9, Chicago Cubs 1; Milwaukee 4, Cincinnati 3; Minnesota 6, Chicago White Sox 3;Detroit 2, Kansas City 1; St. Louis 4, Arizona 2; Texas 2, Oakland 0; LA Angels 4, Seattle 2; LA Dodgers 4, San Diego 1; San Francisco 4, NY Mets 2.

American League Eastern Division W L PCT Boston 55 35 .611 NY Yankees 53 35 .602 Tampa Bay 49 41 .544 Toronto 45 47 .489 Baltimore 36 52 .409 Central Division Detroit 49 43 .533 Cleveland 47 42 .528 Chicago White Sox 44 48 .478 Minnesota 41 48 .461 Kansas City 37 54 .407 Western Division Texas 51 41 .554 LA Angels 50 42 .543 Seattle 43 48 .473 Oakland 39 53 .424

GB 1 6 11 18 .5 5 6.5 11.5 1 7.5 12

National League Eastern Division Philadelphia 57 34 .626 Atlanta 54 38 .587 NY Mets 46 45 .505 Washington 46 46 .500 Florida 43 48 .473 Central Division St. Louis 49 43 .533 Milwaukee 49 43 .533 Pittsburgh 47 43 .522 Cincinnati 45 47 .489 Chicago Cubs 37 55 .402 Houston 30 62 .326 Western Division San Francisco 52 40 .565 Arizona 49 43 .533 Colorado 43 48 .473 LA Dodgers 41 51 .446 San Diego 40 52 .435

3.5 11 11.5 14 1 4 12 19 3 8.5 11 12

Dodgers 4, Padres 1 In Los Angeles, Andre Ethier homered twice as Los Angeles took a season-high fourth straight victory, defeating San Diego.

Dodgers starter Ted Lilly (6-9) allowed one run over five innings, striking out seven to take his first win in a month. San Diego starter Tim Stauffer (5-6) was charged with three runs in six innings as the Padres fell to their fifth straight loss.

Marlins 5, Astros 4 In Miami, Mike Cameron belted a tying two-run homer for his first hit since joining the Marlins as Florida completed a four-game sweep of Houston. Florida’s Emilio Bonifacio had three hits, extending his career-best hitting streak to 12 games. He stole three bases and scored twice.

Gaby Sanchez drove in two runs for the rejuvenated Marlins, who head into the break with a season-best five-game winning streak.

They’re only five games below .500 despite losing 19 of 20 games at one point.

Houston starter Wandy Rodriguez (6-6) gave up five runs in 5 1-3 innings to take the loss. Florida’s Chris Volstad (5-8) allowed three runs in six innings to get the win, and Leo Nunez pitched a perfect ninth for his 25th save. — AP

ANAHEIM: Los Angeles Angels’ Alberto Callaspo hits a two-run double during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners. — AP

Yankees edge Rays NEW YORK: Bad throwing errors gifted New York the only run of the game as the Yankees edged the Tampa Bay Rays 1-0 in the American League on Sunday. Tampa Bay’s James Shields (8-7) and New York’s CC Sabathia (13-4) staged a classic pitchers’ duel, matching zeros until the bottom of the seventh inning.

Robinson Cano led off the seventh with a single, and Jorge Posada followed with a popup to shallow center that was gloved on the run by B.J. Upton, who rocketed a throw well over first baseman’s head. Cano scampered to third, and took a big lead off the bag. James Shields (8-7), one of the toughest pitchers to run against in the game, tried to pick him off but the ball went wide and Cano trotted home. Sabathia got his 12th career shutout as New York won two of three in their final series before the All-Star break.

Angels 4, Mariners 2 In Anaheim, Alberto Callaspo hit a tiebreaking two-run double in the eighth inning to lift Los Angeles over Seattle.

Angels starter Dan Haren (10-5) and Felix Hernandez dueled through the first seven innings, before Callaspo drove a two-out pitch from David Pauley (5-3) into the gap, scoring two runners.

Mark Trumbo homered in his third straight game for the Angels, who swept the fourgame series and remained one game behind similarly streaking Texas atop the AL West standings. The Mariners have lost five straight.

Blue Jays 7, Indians 1 In Cleveland, Jose Bautista hit a two-run double to help Toronto defeat Cleveland and head to the All-Star break with a three-game winning streak. Toronto moved within two games of .500 and sent Bautista to the AllStar game as baseball’s home run leader with 31, along with 65 RBIs and a .334 average.

Blue Jays starter Brett Cecil (2-4) gave up one unearned run over six innings for his first win since being recalled from the minors. Eric Thames’ two-run homer in a five-run third against Carlos Carrasco (8-6) put the visitors ahead. Carrasco lasted just three innings and was charged with five runs.

Red Sox 8, Orioles 6 In Boston, Marco Scutaro, Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis all homered in the second inning, setting up Boston’s victory over Baltimore and its sixth consecutive win.

The Red Sox completed a four-game

sweep and stayed one game ahead of the Yankees in the AL East; the sixth time in seven seasons that Boston has led the division at the All-Star break. Managers Terry Francona of the Red Sox and Buck Showalter of the Orioles both were ejected after pitches hit or came close to their batters. Boston starter Kyle Weiland also was ejected in his major league debut.

Red Sox reliever Alfredo Aceves (4-1) pitched three perfect innings for the win and Jonathan Papelbon got his 20th save.

Baltimore starter Jeremy Guthrie (3-12) allowed only one run in 3 1-3 innings of relief, but was saddled with yet another loss as the Orioles slumped to their seventh straight defeat.

Rangers 2, Athletics 0 In Arlington, Texas, Matt Harrison pitched scorelessly into the eighth inning to guide Texas past Oakland and to a season-best seventh consecutive win.

Harrison (7-7) struck out seven and walked one in 7 2-3 innings. After Josh Hamilton drew a two-out walk in the sixth, Adrian Beltre sent a pitch from Trevor Cahill (8-7) into the seats in left-center for his 19th homer of the season and his third straight game with a long shot. Cahill gave up five hits in 7 2-3 innings.

Tigers 2, Royals 1 In Kansas City, Justin Verlander became the first Tigers pitcher to earn his 12th win before the All-Star break in 24 years as Detroit edged Kansas City and took over the lead in the AL Central. Verlander (12-4) pitched 7 2-3 strong innings in sweltering heat to match Jack Morris’ win total in 1987. Striking out the side in the second and sixth, he fanned nine altogether while raising his league-leading strikeout total to 147. He gave up only one unearned run. Jeff Francis (3-10) pitched sixplus innings for Kansas City, yielding two runs.

Twins 6, White Sox 3 In Chicago, Anthony Swarzak dominated over six innings guiding Minnesota past Chicago, claiming three out of four games in the series. An RBI single by Drew Butera and run-scoring double by Jason Repko in the fourth put the Twins ahead before they tacked on three more while knocking out Jake Peavy (4-3) in the fifth.

That was more than enough for Swarzak (2-2), who was filling in for the injured Scott Baker and allowed just one run. — AP

What next for Yao Ming?

SHANGHAI: Chinese media was rife with speculation yesterday about what basketball icon Yao Ming might do next, after reports the country’s most famous sporting export is set to retire. The giant 30-year-old Houston Rockets centre is expected to announce his retirement on July 20 at a news conference in his home city of Shanghai, after eight seasons playing in the NBA. The 2.29-metre (seven-foot-six) phenomenon, whose groundbreaking career is widely credited with helping the global growth of the game, is set to quit after a series of injuries, most recently a stress fracture in his left leg. Returning to the Shanghai Sharks-the team he owns and used to play for designing his own sports-

wear line or taking over China’s answer to the NBA have all been mooted as options for the wildly popular Yao. “What is next for Yao Ming? China has never had anyone like Yao before,” the Guangzhou Daily wrote. Fans have already begun mourning his departure after the Houston Chronicle reported on Friday that Yao had told the Rockets a month ago he would not return, after two seasons dogged by injuries. An official with the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) told AFP that the league was not able to confirm the reports.

Already the most powerful figure in Chinese basketball, Yao could be invited to head up the national association, the Guangzhou Daily predicted, but acknowl-

edged he might not be interested in the post. The report also suggested Yao could take to the court as a player for the Shanghai Sharks, but a spokeswoman told AFP she had not heard anything about Yao returning to the club.

Yao routinely tops Forbes’ list of China’s most valuable celebrities and his global appeal has led to endorsement deals with Nike, Pepsi, McDonald’s and China Telecom.

His personal brand is valued at more than $1 billion, his lawyers once told a court in the central city of Wuhan, where he sued a sportswear firm for selling a brand called “Yao Ming Generation” without his permission.

“Yao’s commercial value is unlikely to shrink in the near term. Yao’s value surpass-

es the sport itself,” the Nanfang Daily wrote yesterday. In an interview with the newspaper, Yao’s manager, Zhang Mingji, declined to answer questions about the star’s possible retirement, but said his man was not influenced by money.

“I never got the feeling from Yao he wanted to be really, really rich. We just run the business based on Yao’s interests. If Yao Ming wanted to be a rich man, he could earn three or four times more than now,” Zhang was quoted as saying.

While Yao was not the first Chinese player in the NBA, his engaging personality made him a favorite for sponsors seeking a way to attract interest in the potentially hugely profitable China market and for NBA fans across Asia. — AFP

Houston Rockets’ Yao Ming

y

A

17

e niv rsar n

Years

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

SPORTS

India settle for draw after Chanderpaul stands firm ROSEAU: India settled for a draw in the third and final Test against the West Indies after rock-solid century-maker Shivnarine Chanderpaul and the home bowlers gave them a fight on Sunday.

Chasing 180 for victory, India finished on 94 for three, deciding to bring the match to a close with the statutor y final 15 overs remaining on the last day of the inaugural Test at Windsor Park.

The result meant that the visitors won the three-Test series 1-0, following a 63-run victory inside four days in Jamaica and a draw in the second Test at Barbados.

The visitors also wrapped up their second straight Test series victory over West Indies in the Caribbean and they also became the first Indian side to win a Test and one-day series here.

“I am not too disappointed about the final result,” said India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

“Our team did really well throughout the series, particularly in this game. “ We decided to call it off because the gamble was quite high for us, we were risking a series win. I think we did our best, and had a go, but we then realised it was not worth it, and called it day.”

The decision to abort the run chase ended a frustrating day for India which started with the promise of a second victory in the series, but was blighted by Chanderpaul’s undefeated 116,

ROSEAU: India’s bowler Ishant Sharma poses with his Man of the Series trophy after India won their three match series against the West Indies 1-0 on the fifth day of the third cricket Test match. —AP his 23rd Test hundred.

That earned him the man-ofthe-match award after he also stood firm in a valuable ninth-

wicket stand of 65 with Fidel Edwards.

India were kept in the field far longer than they expected, with

Scoreboard ROSEAU: Scoreboard at stumps on the fifth and final day of the third Test between the West Indies and India at Windsor Park on yesterday:

West Indies 1st innings 204 (C. Baugh 60; I. Sharma 5-77) India 1st innings 347 (M.S. Dhoni 74, A. Mukund 62, V. Laxman 56, S. Raina 50; F. Edwards 5-103) West Indies 2nd Innings (overnight 224 for six) A. Barath c Kohli b Kumar 6 K. Powell c Raina b Sharma 4 K. Edwards c Dhoni b Harbhajan Singh 110 D.M. Bravo c Kumar b Harbhajan Singh 14 S. Chanderpaul not out 116 M. Samuels lbw b Harbhajan Singh 0 C. Baugh c Mukund b Kumar 10 D. Sammy c Mukund b Harbhajan Singh 17 R. Rampaul run out (Sharma) 1 F. Edwards c Kumar b Raina 30 D. Bishoo c Dravid b Raina 1 Extras (b8, lb2, w1, nb2) 13 Total (all out) 322 Fall of wickets: 1-8 (Barath), 2-10 (Powell), 3-40 (Bravo), 4201 (K. Edwards), 5-201 (Samuels), 6-223 (Baugh), 7-255 (Sammy), 8-256 (Rampaul), 9- 321

(Edwards) Bowling: Kumar 21-6-44-2; Sharma 27-5-76-1 (nb1, w1); Patel 24-5-71-0 (nb1); Harbhajan Singh 42-14-75-4; Raina 15.3-2-32-2; Mukund 2-0-14-0.

Overs: 131.3 India 2nd Innings (target: 180) A. Mukund lbw b Edwards 0 M. Vijay c Bishoo b Rampaul 45 R. Dravid not out 34 S. Raina c and b Rampaul 8 V. Laxman not out 3 Extras (lb1, nb3) 4 Total (3 wkts) 94 Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Mukund), 2-73 (Vijay), 3-86 (Raina) Bowling: Edwards 8-1-19-1 (nb2); Rampaul 11-2-31-2 (nb1); Sammy 5-0-26-0; Bishoo 8-1-17-0.

Overs: 32 Result: Match drawn Series: India win three-Test series 1-0 Man-of-the-Match: S. Chanderpaul (WIS) Man-of-the-Series: Ishant Sharma (IND)

Chanderpaul farming the bowling, and Edwards prepared to mix sound defence with tail-ender’s bravado, as West Indies were dismissed for 322 in their second innings about 45 minutes before tea.

“We are very pleased with this result, and the way the crowd responded to us made it feel like a Twenty20 game and that we had won,” said West Indies captain Darren Sammy to tumultuous roars from a crowd estimated at close to 9,000.

“It shows that when we, as a team, go out there and fight, the Caribbean people, our fans, still love us, and it was pleasing to see them turn out in their numbers over the last few days and support us.”

The visitors suffered an early setback in their hunt for victory, reaching 19 for one at tea, after Abhinav Mukund was lbw for a duck, playing back and across to the first delivery of the innings from Fidel Edwards.

After tea, a stand of 73 between Murali Vijay, whose 45 was his best innings of the series, and Rahul Dravid, not out on 34, put India on track to a stab at the target.

But Vijay was caught at midon, miscuing a pull at a short delivery from Ravi Rampaul who held a return catch four overs later to dismiss Suresh Raina for eight, effectively ending India’s interest.

Earlier, India required Suresh Raina, bowling his part-time offspin, to claim the last two West Indies wickets. Raina finished with 2-32 from 15.3 overs, but Harbhajan Singh was the most successful bowler for the visitors with 4-75 from 42 overs.

Chanderpaul made the occasion of his record 133rd appearance extra special, becoming the second century-maker in the West Indies second innings, following Kirk Edwards’ maiden hundred of 110 on debut the previous day.

The veteran left-hander tucked a short, rising delivery from Ishant Sharma, later named manof-the-series for his 23 wickets, through backward square leg for two to reach the milestone from 265 balls.

He and Edwards, whose 30 was a career-best, frustrated India for over three hours either side of lunch after West Indies slid to 256 for eight. —AFP

Williams to retain both F1 drivers LONDON: Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado and Brazilian Rubens Barrichello can expect to stay at Williams next season, according to the Formula One team’s chairman Adam Parr.

“Yes. I think that’s vastly the most likely outcome,” he told reporters at the British Grand Prix when asked whether the two South Americans would be retained.

Barrichello will be 40 and in his 20th season next year while Maldonado is in his first year in the sport after winning the GP2 title.

The Venezuelan brings with him important sponsorship from his country’s state oil company PDVSA but Parr said he had shown his talent.

“I always believed, and people derided us or me for saying it, but I think he’s a very, very talented driver,” the Briton said.

“His record in GP2 certainly earned him a place in Formula One and you could see the speed. What I think he’s begun to show is a degree of consistency and maturity that perhaps people didn’t expect as well.”

Maldonado has yet to score a point in 10 races, while Barrichello has bagged only four in the team’s worst ever start to a season, but there have been promising glimpses.

The Venezuelan was heading for a solid points finish in Monaco when he was shunted out by McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and he qualified in seventh place for Sunday’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

In the past six months, former champions Williams have made major personnel changes, floated the company and agreed partnerships with Renault for F1 engines and Jaguar on a sportscar project.

Parr, whose team have lost some major backers including troubled British bank RBS, hoped that would now help the team attract new sponsors and keep existing ones.

“Our on-track performance was just so obviously inadequate that to be talking with sponsors just wouldn’t have worked (earlier in the year),” he said.

“So I said to the marketing guys ‘Just back off. Keep things ticking over for the moment because we need to put in place a vision for the future which is very different to the vision of the present’.”

Parr said that had now been done: “We have some fantastic conversations going on and I’m very optimistic we will bring in some stunning new partnerships for next year,” he said.

The Williams chairman is a novice compared to some in the paddock, and particularly 80-year-old Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone with whom he has not always seen eye to eye.

“Whenever we have a chat it’s very friendly and he gently puts me back in my box, reminds me how little I understand and I accept that,” he said. “But it’s not going to stop me asking the question.” —Reuters

TORONTO: Dario Franchitti (left) of Scotland, makes contact with Will Power, of New Zealand, during the IndyCar Series’ Honda Toronto Indy auto race. —AP

Franchitti wins Toronto IndyCar crown TORONTO: Scotland’s Dario Franchitti navigated through a labyrinth of car crashes to earn his third title at the Honda Indy Toronto race on Sunday.

Franchitti held off Kiwi teammate Scott Dixon on the 2.8 kilometre temporary street course at Exhibition Place to add to his lead in the IndyCar points standings.

“That was a wild one, wasn’t it?” he said. “That was an absolute wild one.”

American Ryan Hunter-Reay finished third. His American compatriot Marco Andretti was fourth and Vitor Meira of Brazil finished a season-high fifth.

Franchitti appealed and won after he was initially given a penalty for nudging defending champ Will Power and causing the Aussie to go into a spin on the 57th lap.

After the race Power blasted Franchitti calling him a “dirty” racer. “I’m always racing clean, he’s always racing dirty. ...,”

Power said. “He never gets a penalty from IndyCar. Just not right.”

Franchitti said Power cut him off and there was no avoiding a collision. “I think it was a racing incident at best,” Franchitti said. “I don’t think I’m known throughout the paddock as a driver who races people dirty.

Power’s race ended on the 66th lap when he was slammed into the wall from behind by Alex Tagliani. He finished 24th.

He now trails Franchitti by 55 points in the overall standings going into the race in Edmonton, Alberta in two weeks.

Canadian hero Paul Tracy saw his hopes of a win quashed on the 45th lap after colliding with Meira.

There was a five-car pileup with nine laps to go when Andretti bumped into Oriol Servia. Andretti escaped the crash that also involved James Hinchcliffe, Charlie Kimball and ended the race for Mike Conway. —AFP

ROSEAU: India’s Rahul Dravid bats during the fifth day of the third cricket Test match against West Indies. —AP

Formula One teams reach agreement on engines SILVERSTONE: Formula One moved to end turmoil over engine regulations on Sunday after a weekend of often heated discussions at the British Grand Prix.

Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali, one of the last to sign, confirmed that a deal had finally been concluded to return to pre-Silverstone set-ups and strategies.

“Let’s put it simply,” added Renault team principal Eric Boullier : “ The debate is closed, please don’t reopen it.

It took us a lot of energy to close it down.”

The governing I nternational Automobile Federation (FIA) had said on Saturday it was prepared to abandon the second phase of a clampdown concerning exhaust gases blown through the rear of the cars if the teams were in unanimous agreement.

The FIA had moved last month to limit the use of engine electronics to ensure teams did not gain an aerodynamic advantage by using systems that allow exhaust gases to flow constantly through the rear diffuser even when a driver is off the throttle.

In Valencia two weeks ago, teams were told they could no longer change engine maps between qualifying and the race- which would have allowed them to go for extreme settings for the Saturday session before tuning down the engine for race reliability.

At Silverstone, several directives were issued with controversial results, causing teams such as McLaren to complain that the rules were changing by the hour.

One statement on Friday that made allowances on grounds of reliability was seen by M ercedes-powered McLaren to excessively favour Red Bull and their Renault units.

That directive was then withdrawn on Saturday, to the visible fury of Red Bull’s Christian Horner who spent an hour in discussions with race director Charlie Whiting.

M cLaren principal M ar tin Whitmarsh, whose Mercedes-powered team appeared to have been badly hit by the changes in qualifying, had called for a compromise agreement.

“Whether people like exhaust blowing or not, it’s probably the most equitable situation,” he said.

“I think it would be the fairest way.

Inevitably in Formula One self-interest sometimes prevails but I think unless we go back to that then this season is going to be fraught with paranoia, feeling of being done to, of being disadvantaged.”

Red Bull have started all nine races this season on pole position and had won six of them before Sunday.

McLaren had won the other two.

“It (the clampdown) may be worse for other teams but all I can say is that it certainly hit this team, it has hit the performance of our car. I think that is e v i d e nt f rom t he s topw a tc h,” s a i d Whitmarsh. “It isn’t good to change the rules midway through the year. If you do that, the team that has worked the hardest perhaps to refine that particular rule may well be disadvantaged.” —Reuters

Mallya hits back over lack of Indian driver LONDON: Indian Formula One fans should be proud of their own team rather than bemoaning the lack of homegrown talent on the starting grid, Force India’s flamboyant owner Vijay Mallya has told Reuters.

“To be criticised, largely by the Indian folks, that I don’t have an Indian driver is I think just blatantly unfair,” he said. “My only response to them would be that I know more about Formula One than they do.

“As far as the existing Indian drivers in Formula One are concerned, I can only feel very sorry for them.

They are getting drives by the teams who clearly can’t compete...,” added Mallya, whose current drivers are German Adrian Sutil and Britain’s Paul Di Resta.

In Turkey last May there were, for the first time, two Indian drivers out on track together in Friday practice but Sunday’s British Grand Prix starting grid at Silverstone had none.

Narain Karthikeyan was dropped

by Hispania to make way for Red Bull-backed Australian debutant Daniel R icciardo, although the Indian should be back for his country’s inaugural grand prix in Delhi at the end of October.

K arun Chandhok , racing with Hispania last season, is now reduced to occasional Friday drives as a reserve for Team Lotus.

“If that’s what they want to do, drive a Formula One car for the sake of driving a Formula One car and winding up at the back, I can’t do anything about it,” said Mallya.

“There has got to be good, raw talent in India and I am determined to go find it.” Mallya pointed out that British Grand Prix winners Ferrari, the most successful team in Formula One and the pride of Italy, had not had a regular Italian driver for years.

The last Italian to win the Formula One title was Alberto Ascari in 1953.

“If Ferrari is on the podium, the whole of Italy applauds. If Ferrari wins a race, the whole of Italy celebrates. Nobody ever asks the ques-

tion of where is the Italian driver?” said Mallya.

“Why suddenly in India? Be thankful for the fact you have an Indian team, sporting the Indian colors on the grid to begin with. The Indian driver will follow but let’s not put the cart before the horse.”

The liquor and airline billionaire has launched a ‘one in a billion’ hunt to find an untapped talent that could be India’s answer to McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton.

Using karting circuits across India, the search was initially restricted to children between the ages of 14 and 17 but has since been widened.

The prize at stake for the best three or four is a move to Silverstone, where the Force India factory is based, to continue their education on and off the track. “ We want to ac tually create a proper Indian Formula One driver,” Mallya told Reuters earlier in the year. “What we are talking about is to have a structured programme much like McLaren did with Lewis and hopefully create a young, talented Indian driver capable of performing and getting into Formula One.” That will take considerable time, and until then Mallya defended his achievements in turning a failing team - first Jordan then Midland and then Spyker before he became the owner and changed the name againinto one capable of finishing on the podium and starting on pole position. “I have been involved in Indian motorsport for over 30 years. I have done whatever I could reasonably to promote the sport in India,” he said.

“And I take some credit for the fact that I put an Indian Formula One team on the grid, which nobody believed could ever have happened.

“I think there will be explosive growth in the popularity of Formula One after the Indian Grand Prix. So I have done my job for my country, for the hundreds of millions of young, aspirational Indians in terms of Formula One.” —Reuters

y

A

18

e niv rsar n

Years

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

SPORTS

Several eye-catching groupings at Sandwich SANDWICH: Holder Louis Oosthuizen has been drawn to play alongside world number six Phil Mickelson and US PGA champion Martin Kaymer in the first round of the British Open, organisers announced yesterday.

Oosthuizen, Mickelson and Kaymer will tee-off at 1421 local time on Thursday. Their three-ball is one of several eye-catching groupings set for the Royal St George’s course in the south east corner of England.

Rory McIlroy, the runaway winner of last month’s US Open, teams up with 2002 British Open champion Ernie Els and young American prospect Rickie Fowler.

World number one Luke Donald, winner of the Scottish Open on Sunday, was drawn with his former Ryder Cup partner Sergio Garcia and Japan’s Ryo Ishikawa.

Lee Westwood, ranked two in the world, will play alongside Sunday’s John Deere Classic winner Steve

Stricker and US Masters champion Charl Schwartzel.

Oosthuizen, a rank outsider at last year’s championship, romped to a shock seven-shot victory at St Andrews to claim his first major title.

The 28-year-old South African missed the cut at last week’s John Deere Classic and at the US Masters in April but will take heart from a strong showing at the US Open, having finished tied ninth at Congressional.

Oosthuizen said he would be searching for his ‘A game’ in practice over the next two days.

“In every major you tee off you just want to try and find your game,” he told reporters. “You just want to make good swings that steer you around.

“I didn’t go in with great form at the British Open last year but found a few things on the Monday and the Tuesday while practising and just played really nicely the whole week, found my rhythm very well with my

swing and putted beautifully.”

The 140th British Open carries a record prize fund of five million pounds ($8.03 million), with 900,000 pounds going to the winner.

“I probably didn’t feel that confident last year going into the tournament but after the first round I knew the game was there and it was just a matter of keeping everything together,” added Oosthuizen.

Meanwhile, Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee believes that he can win the British Open if his performance from 2009 is anything to go by.

Long regarded as one of the most successful golfers from Asia, Thongchai stamped his mark against the world’s best by finishing tied for 13th at Turnberry two years ago.

He headed into the final round four shots off the lead and was on the verge of making history until the blustery conditions blew away his chances.

“Unfortunately, it just was not my

day during the final round of 2009, my putting really let me down and it put me out of contention,” said 41-yearold Thongchai.

“This year it’ll all be about remaining confident and letting the positive things happen. I drew a lot from that experience and showed myself that I am good enough to compete against the world’s best in the toughest of conditions.”

Thongchai, who holds the most number of wins on the Asian Tour with 13 titles, is now hoping to seek redemption at Royal St George’s from Thursday.

“After 2009, I feel like my game is good enough to win and my main goal is to stay focused and patient all week,” said Thongchai.

“The weather always plays a significant part in this championship and it easy to let it interfere with your focus,” he said. “In every major championship, I feel it is important to set progressive

goals. Making the cut is always the first objective, from there it’s important that I remain focused and be aggressive.” The Thai strongman has been Asia’s flag bearer at international events and hopes that his playing experience in Europe will provide him with further confidence in achieving success at the world’s oldest Major.

“After playing in Europe for eight years now, I am well prepared for the tough, windy conditions. While hitting onto the green is always important, you need a variety of shots to cope with the conditions and that’s one thing that I’ve been focusing on in my preparations,” he commented.

Thongchai will be part of the Asian contingent at the year’s third Major next week. Other Asian Tour members in the field include South Korea’s Noh Seung-yul, Thailand’s Prom Meesawat and Prayad Marksaeng, Singapore’s Lam Chih Bing, and Japanese veteran Tetsuji Hiratsuka.—Agencies

Ryu captures US Open

FRANCE: Three-time Tour de France winner Alberto Contador of Spain eats while he rides in this file photo. —AP

Ailing Contador still a danger, says Evans VIC-SUR-CERE: Australian Cadel Evans has refused to discount Alberto Contador’s bid for a fourth yellow jersey despite the Spaniard suffering from knee trouble going into key mountain stages.

Contador hampered an existing pain in his right knee during his fourth crash in eight days on Sunday’s ninth stage, the second in the Massif Central.

The Spaniard, who has won all six Grand Tours in which he has competed in, finished the stage with all the yellow jersey favorites but still has a deficit of 1min 30sec to Andy Schleck and 1:41 to Evans.

Evans has had his team to thank for keeping him safe in an injuryplagued week of racing which has ruled two other potential challengers, Jurgen van den Broeck and Bradley Wiggins, out of the equation.

After a first week that seemed more about survival, the yellow jersey race will move up a considerable notch during three consecutive stages in the Pyrenees starting

Thursday. Evans has finished runner-up twice on the race, in 2007 and 2008. The first time he lost to Contador by 23secs after his team made the tactical error of not chasing the Spaniard down on a mountain, conceding 40secs.

Asked whether he still considered ailing Contador a threat, Evans replied: “Absolutely. He’s won all of the last Grand Tours he’s competed in since 2007 so you cannot rule him out.

“Contador has tested us a bit, on the stage (four) to Mur de Bretagne, and I’m sure he will try to again on Luz Ardiden.”

Thursday’s 12th stage is the race’s first mountaintop finish at Luz Ardiden, the Pyreneean climb where Lance Armstrong soared to victory in 2003 despite having crashed on the way to the summit with Iban Mayo and Jan Ullrich.

However the third week of the race is even tougher, meaning teams may try and keep their powder dry for strategic stages where they can take time from their rivals.

Evans believes the Alps, and particularly stage 19 to Alpe d’Huez, could be crucial.

“All the mountains (stage) on the Tour are hard. (In the Alps) there are some really hard days, especially that short intense day to Alpe d’Huez before the time trial.

“Everyone’s going to be really tired by that point, it’s going to be horrible.” Evans has suffered many injuries in his career, and admitted that if Contador’s injury does not heal the Spaniard could be out. “If he has a real knee problem, it could put him out of the race. I’ve seen he has a little bit of a limp when he’s sitting on the bike, but that’s hard to read into,” he added.

Even if the injury does compromise Contador’s bid, there are always the Schleck brothers Andy and Frank to contend with.

“To me in the mountains the Frank and Andy combination, other than Alberto at his best, is one of the hardest things to come up against in the Pyrenees and the Alps.”—AFP

Former Open champion aims to emulate McIlroy SANDWICH: Former world number one David Duval will try to take a leaf out of Rory McIlroy’s book when he bids to end a 10-year victory drought at this week’s British Open-the championship he won in 2001.

The 39-year-old American may have snatched only “a little bit of sleep” on his flight over on Monday morning but his grin was as wide as the Atlantic Ocean as he relished the prospect of testing his game on the links course of Royal St George’s.

“If there’s some way I can find the attitude that Rory had when he won the US Open (by eight shots) last month, I’ll have a wonderful week,” Duval told Reuters in an interview.

“For me that was fun watching how much fun he was having and the way he played so beautifully.

You could see he was enjoying it and if you’re not enjoying it you’re probably not going to do that well.”

Duval has been in the doldrums for several years and is without a

victory since the 2001 Dunlop Phoenix event in Japan. But he said he always looked forward to teeing his ball up in the third major of the season. “I love it-this is my favourite week of the year,” he said. “It always has been.

“The way I grew up playing, and the way most Americans have grown up, is that you hit the ball up in the air and then it stops where it lands. It’s nice to let your mind open up and get free here (in Britain). You don’t have to hit perfect shots all the time here. The variety of shots you get to play, the shots you sometimes have to hit along the ground, it’s just a lot of fun to me.” Last year Duval (106th) finished in the top 125 on the US money list for the first time since 2002 and he feels his game is in good enough shape to allow him to contend when the British Open starts on Thursday.

“I’ve seen the bottom and I know the difference between good golf and bad golf,” he said. “I know I’m playing good golf right now and

there’s no reason for me to go out with any other attitude than to try to figure out how to win this tournament.”

Duval’s best performance this season was a tie for ninth place at the Northern Trust Open in California in February but he believes he has a chance this week if he can hole those important midrange putts.

“I didn’t do anything spectacular when I won the Open in 2001,” he explained. “I hit the ball good, not great. I putted good, not great, but I think I missed maybe two putts inside eight feet all week.

“That’s the kind of thing you have to do to win golf tournaments.” Duval will tee-off at 9.42 local time on Thursday alongside Colombia’s Camilo Villegas and Brian Davis of Britain.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better draw, he said. “They are two nice people and are fun to be around. “I like the start time too. It means I don’t have to get up at four in the morning.”—Reuters

COLORADO SPRINGS: Ryu Soyeon captured the US Women’s Open on yesterday by rolling in two birdies in a three-hole aggregate playoff to edge South Korean compatriot Seo Hee-kyung.

It was the first major title for Ryu who forced the playoff with a birdie on the final hole of regulation in the weather-plagued tournament at the Broadmoor course.

“Unbelievable,” said Ryu, who is the fifth South Korean to capture the US Women’s Open. I can’t believe it.” After darkness halted the fourth round play on Sunday, Ryu returned Monday morning needing a birdie over the last three holes to force a playoff with Seo. Seo finished a day earlier at threeunder 281.

Ryu made the birdie on No. 18, then began the playoff 30 minutes later. Both players parred the first playoff hole and then on No. 17 Seo hit into a sand trap on the right side of the fairway. She finished the hole with a bogey.

Ryu put her drive on 17 down the middle of fairway and went on to birdie the hole for a two-stroke advantage. Ryu hit her approach to four feet on No. 18 for an easy putt and her second birdie.

“I did my best. I did everything I could,” said tour rookie Seo. “She (Ryu) did a great job.” Ryu is also the fourth South Korean to win the event in the last seven years as 10 of the top 14 players this year were

COLORADO SPRING: So Yeon Ryu, of South Korea, looks at the championship trophy after a playoff win over compatriot Hee Kyung Seo at the Women’s US Open golf tournament.—AP from Asia. South Korea icon Se Ri Pak followed the two rising Korean stars on the course during yesterday’s playoff. “I’m proud of it,” Ryu said. “To see my hero, Se Ri Pak, out there fighting for me. It’s pretty powerful, yeah.”

Seo said this would give her confidence going forward. “Finally I can trust myself now,” Seo said. “I

am looking forward to next season.

We have lots of tournaments in Europe and Asia.” Defending champ Paula Creamer closed with a 75 to finish in a tie for 15th. World No. 1 Tseng Yani of Taiwan, who was seeking to become the youngest golfer in history to complete a career grand slam, finished in a tie for 17th.—AFP

Stricker wins Classic CHICAGO: American Steve Stricker drained a 30-foot birdie putt on the last hole Sunday to win the John Deere Classic with a final round 69 and a total of 22-under-par.

Stricker also rolled in a 20-foot birdie putt at the 17th to win the tournament for the third year in a row, finishing one shot clear of his compatriot Kyle Stanley, who made a bogey at the final hole to miss out on a playoff.

It was the 21st time on the PGA Tour that a player won a tournament three years in succession.

Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer were among those who have achieved the feat.

“It was an unbelievable week and an unbelievable finish. I can’t really believe that it happened yet, to tell you the truth,” Stricker said.

“It was just kind of a roller coaster day today...I feel very fortunate and very lucky to have won.”

Stanley, a PGA Tour rookie, moved into contention thanks to a superb run after the turn that featured five birdies from six holes.

Stanley, playing in the group ahead of overnight leader Stricker, led by two strokes with two holes to play but could only manage a par at the par-5 17th, then bogeyed the last with a 10-foot putt that lipped out after he had driven into the trees. Stricker, the world number five, had lost his lead with bogeys at the 15th and 16th, but recovered in spectacular fashion to win the title for the third year running.

On the 18th, he hit his drive into a fairway bunker but, after some hesitation over his club choice, still found the back fringe of the green with a superb approach before sinking the long birdie putt.

“Believe or not, I was thinking three and that is why I went back to the six iron,” Stricker said. “I finally got a good stance in there. I thought I could pull that shot off but to make that putt is a bonus obviously. What a day.”

The victory gave the 44-year-old Stricker his 11th PGA Tour win and

SILVIS: Steve Stricker holds the trophy after winning the John Deere Classic golf tournament at TPC Deere Run.—AP his second of this year following his triumph in The Memorial last month.

It was an agonizing end for Stanley, who closed with a 66 and would have become the fifth rookie to win on the Tour this year, but he had little time to reflect on the loss after booking the final spot in next week’s British Open at Royal St George’s, and was due to catch the same overnight flight as Stricker.

“It’s great. I’m very excited to go over there and play,” he said. “But I’m still trying to calm down from that round. I probably made about 24, 25 birdies, which is good. So I just gotta continue to work hard on that. And we’ll be back.”

Canada’s Matt McQuillan and American Zach Johnson tied for third at 17-under, one stroke clear of Charles Howell III and Chez Reavie.—Reuters

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

sp orts

Falcao burns bright for fired up Colombians BUENOS AIRES: While favorites Brazil and Argentina limp along searching for inspiration, Radamel Falcao Garcia Zarate is setting the Copa America on fire for Colombia.

With his full name a bit of a mouthful for quickfire Colombian commentators, they have simply dubbed the 25-year-old El Tigre, the tiger, in his homeland.

And after his two goals against Bolivia wrapped up top spot in Argentina’s Group A his star is burning brightly - though he says Copa fans have seen nothing yet.

“We have to keep calm and continue on in this vein. we must keep our feet on the ground,” the man from Santa Marta insist-

ed after his sparkling show at Santa Fe. “The biggest mistake we Colombians could make would be to think we’ve got it made - we must understand we are not yet in the final.”

Falcao says he was not unduly concerned at not hitting the target in the first two games here. “I was calm as we were making chances and I knew the goals would come eventually. It doesn’t matter who gets them as long as Colombia win.

“But of course it’s important to score as a goalscorer will always be judged on his tally, so I hope I bag a lot more.” Falcao came into his first major international tournament with huge expectations weighing

on his shoulders after a superlative campaign with his club FC Porto, where he brillantly fed off compatriot Freddy Guarin as the team soared unbeaten to the domestic title. The “Dragons” also won the Europa League, where Falcao hit an all-time European club record of 17 goals across the tournament in just 14 games - two more than former German star Jurgen Klinsmann’s 1996 mark of 15.

But Falcao came to prominence long before that. He made his debut in his homeland aged just 13 for second tier outfit Lanceros Boyaca, then at 15 left for Argentina’s River Plate, who soon had to fend off multi-million bids for his services.

After insisting they wanted to hold onto him River made a poor start to the season in 2009 - the start of a decline which would end culminate in a first ever relegation last month.

Porto then stepped in and snapped him up and in two seasons in Portugal he can boast a goal ratio of an average 0.86 goals per game.

With Colombia that ratio falls to nearer 0.25 but his brace Sunday to flatten the Bolivians saw him thrive in a move away from a 4-1-4-1 formation towards more of a 4-4-2 with Wigan’s Hugo Rodallega taking some of the strain.

Previously, his only competitive interna-

tional goal had been in a World Cup qualifier against Peru. Now he is starting to live up in Colombian yellow to his nickname in Portugal of Radamel Furacao (Radamel the hurricane).

One thing that Falcao, whom coach Hernan Dario Gomez describes as an “extraordinary talent,” has in common with Argentine superstar Lionel Messi is he has never played a league match in his homeland, leaving for River aged just 15 while Messi joined Barcelona even earlier.

And one key difference at the Copa to date is that, whereas Messi has mislaid his club form, Falcao has brought his with him with a vengeance.— AFP

Fenerbahce chairman jailed for match-fixing

SALTA: Venezuela’s players wave to fans at the end of a Group B Copa America soccer match against Ecuador in this file photo. —AP

Pressure off Venezuela at Copa BEUNOS AIRES: Few observers would have expected two of the top three finishers in South America’s World Cup qualifiers to be struggling to reach the Copa America quarter-finals, still less stand in Venezuela’s shadow.

Yet that is the situation facing both eight-times champions Brazil and Paraguay as both bid to land a place in the last eight while the Venezuelans can largely afford to relax ahead of their final group game.

Although now the baseball-loving nation will hope to go the whole hog and win the group they can afford to lose tomorrow’s encounter in the northern Argentinian city of Salta and still sail on having drawn with the auriverde and beaten Ecuador.

Final group rivals Paraguay must, like Brazil, scrap to ensure further progress after two draws and the Paraguayans will not take the Venezuelans lightly after the Vinotinto’s impressive showing to date.

The Paraguayans did the double over Cesar Farias’ men in World Cup qualifying on the way to coming third in the regional grouping to book a place for South Africa, where they pushed Spain hard before succumbing in the quarterfinals. Venezuela, meanwhile, were happy with the highpoint of a draw away to Brazil as the traditional continental whipping boys finished above Peru and Bolivia. Indeed, two points more and they would have had the same points tally of Uruguay, who finally crept into a playoff with Costa Rica before going on

to reach the semi-finals.

With the two best third-placed teams in the three-group Copa advancing to the quarters there is a chance that a draw might be enough for the Paraguayans.

But, just like Brazil against Ecuador, they cannot be sure that three points in total will suffice, hence the need to ratchet up their form.

“Now for the moment of truth,” says Paraguay coach Gerardo Martino, who will be banned from the dugout after arguing with Colombian match official Wilmar Roldan during the Brazil match.

“We have to correct the mistakes we made in the previous games - we can’t depend on luck, otherwise we’ll be on our way home,” Martino said Monday, adding he believed his side is overall playing better than at the World Cup. Venezuela counterpart Farias meanwhile is basking in the glory of a first passage to the last eight on foreign soil.

“When you look at the table and see we are first in a Copa America which has coaches of the calibre of (Uruguay’s Oscar) Tabarez, (Costa Rica’s Ricardo) La Volpe, (Peru’s Sergio) Markarian and (Colombia’s Hernan Dario) Gomez, then I’d say we must be doing something right!”

Venezuela, almost hourly recipients of praise from President Hugo Chavez via his Twitter account, have in the past been dubbed the “Cinderella” of the Latin American game - but they will go to the quarter-final ball. Others - including Brazil and Paraguay, may not.—AFP

ISTANBUL: An Istanbul court jailed the chairman of league champions Fenerbahce on Sunday pending trial on charges of match-fixing, in an investigation which could result in the club being stripped of their title.

Chairman Aziz Yildirim joined 25 people, including three fellow members of the Fenerbahce board, already remanded in custody after police raids a week ago that were prompted by evidence of manipulation in 19 matches.

On hearing the court’s ruling, Fenerbahce supporters turned violent, venting their anger on journalists and television crews covering their protest on the road outside the courthouse.

Enraged fans threw bottles as police ushered the journalists into the compound of the courthouse in the Besiktas neighbourhood of Istanbul. Across the Bosphorus strait, on the Asian side of the city angry protests also erupted among hundreds more supporters in streets near the Fenerbahce stadium. The club won the league for a record 18th time last season.

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, a member of Fenerbahce’s congress, called on supporters to welcome the court ruling. “I am a Fenerbahce supporter, too. We should all welcome the outcome of an issue that has been taken to court,” Erdogan was quoted as saying by NTV news channel.

Yildirim had been taken for medical treatment after prosecutors called for him to be jailed on Friday, but his questioning was completed on Sunday, when the court ordered him to be jailed and he was taken to the city’s

KUALA LUMPUR: Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger (second from left) poses with his team players Robin van Persie (second from right), Bacary Sagna (right) and Malaysian national team coach K. Rajagopal after a press conference. Arsenal Football Club will play with the Malaysia XI coached by Rajagopal in their friendly soccer match tomorrow.—AP Metris prison. He faces charges of match fixing and forming a criminal organisation.

Police detained 61 people last weekend in raids prompted by evidence of match-fixing, with 35 of them subsequently released. It is unclear if any of them could still face charges.

Preparations for the start of the new season, just one month away, have been left in chaos.

European soccer ’s governing body UEFA has set a deadline of July 15 for confirmation of the

greater transparency and a democratic code. I believe it is time to change the monopoly of FIFA-and a certain part of UEFA too. It has to be changed into a democratic football world,” Rummenigge insisted.

“We need good governance in football, as we need good governance in the whole world,” he added.

Poland’s Sport Minister Adam Giersz said Warsaw planned to push the issue over the course of its six-month EU presidency, which started on July 1.

“The clubs are the bedrock of football and they expect leadership that’s based on transparency, openness and democracy in the running of the game,” he said.

Besides seeking reforms, clubs have been at loggerheads with FIFA over their exclusion from planning the international calendar, which they complain can place too heavy a burden on alreadystretched players.

“Clubs are aware of the fact that the national team is the most important team in the country. But I believe it is now a good time to ask for the involvement of clubs in the decision-making process,” Rummenigge said.

“The football calendar is the key for everything. I believe the clubs have to be involved in the international football calendar,” he added.—AFP

striker being offered money to not score in a game, a goalkeeper deliberately failing to prevent a goal and a club requesting a particular referee for a key derby.

Shares in Fenerbahce have lost a third of their value since news of the police raids emerged.

Fenerbahce have denied any wrongdoing.

Trabzonspor have seen their shares surge some 40 percent since midweek on speculation the league title could be awarded to them.—Reuters

Brazil target Ecuador

FIFA needs shake up: Rummenigge WARSAW: World football’s governing body FIFA needs a radical shake-up to repair its corruption-tarnished image, European Club Association chief KarlHeinz Rummenigge said yesterday.

“Clubs in Europe are not happy with the governance of football,” Rummenigge, who is also CEO of German giants Bayern Munich, told reporters after talks in Poland, which is currently at the helm of the 27-nation European Union.

“You all know the image of FIFA much better than I do,” he added.

Rummenigge repeatedly locked horns with FIFA before the June 1 re-election of Sepp Blatter as its leader, and has not eased the pressure despite the Swiss supremo’s vow to launch a clean up following months of explosive corruption allegations.

Blatter, in charge since 1998, has faced widespread calls for reform following sleaze claims surrounding the bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, awarded to Russia and Qatar.

The European Club Association-spun from the top clubs’ G14 Group and European Club Forum in 2008, and now with 197 members-has pressed for more say in the running of the game.

“The poor image of FIFA has to be changed, and can be changed, to give it

team taking part in the third Champions League qualifying round. If Fenerbahce forfeit their place, the Champions League spot would normally go to Trabzonspor as runners-up. Those already jailed pending trial now include four Fenerbahce executives, the chairman of Sivasspor, the coach of Eskisehirspor, Sivasspor’s goalkeeper and the former chairmen of Diyarbakirspor and Giresunspor.

Turkish media have cited allegations in police reports such as a

LONDON: Chelsea’s Michael Essien plays against Newcastle United during their English Premier League soccer match.

Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien is set to be out for six months after injuring his knee in preseason training last week. —AP

CAMPANA: After two false starts Brazil are out to ensure it is a case of third time lucky at the Copa America as they target the win they need over Ecuador to reach the quarter-finals.

Draws with Venezuela and then Paraguay, where substitute Fred rescued a last-ditch point, have left the five-times world and eight-times continental champions chasing the Venezuelans in their group.

Whereas the minnows have qualified after seeing off the Ecuadorians in their second game, Brazil’s failure to conjure their customary magic so far means they have hard work ahead of them tomorrrow in Cordoba.

By the time the auriverde take to the field they will know the outcome of the Paraguayans’ encounter with Venezuela in Salta, which kicks off two hours earlier.

A draw for the Brazilians and a Paraguayan win over Venezuela could dump out Mano Menezes’ side although his budding samba stars insist that they will now seek to bring on the jogo bonito that the world associates with them. “Everyone has to give it their all and show why they are in the Brazilian team,” skipper and defender Lucio told reporters at the team hotel. Lucio added Brazil had to “get serious and take responsibility” for ensuring they up their game.

The auriverde, on a hattrick of Copa titles, at least no longer have to suffer unflattering comparisons with their women’s side after the latter’s World Cup exit on penalties at the

hands of the USA. But they are fast running out of excuses for their poor form in Argentina and Menezes says they have to open up and play their game. “We will play to win - that’s what we need and that’s what we’ll go all out for,” Menezes insists, while continuing to stress that he is primarily moulding a team for the 2014 World Cup on home soil - the first time Brazil will play hosts since 1950.

As is the fate of all Brazilian coaches across the generations, Menezes is under enormous pressure to satisfy his nation’s craving for success “If we don’t win the Copa America they will say it is a failure as football is like that (but) Brazil has a team which is a blend of youth and experience and we are preparing it for 2014,” he insisted.

“Anyway, we shall get through” to the quarter-finals, he forecast. “The players know how to deal with pressure.” Asked to comment on the performances of Santos star Neymar, who was expected to use the event as a platform to show he is his country’s new nascent superstar but who has not yet found his feet, Menezes said: “He has a lot of promise. But it’s the first time for him at a major event. “He has to learn to find space and to look up and pass to a teammate.

He is still full of quality and he has shown that with Santos” he added in reference to his performances in helping his club win the Copa Libertadores.—AFP

Matches on TV (Local Timings)

COPA AMERICA (WEDNESDAY) Chile v Peru Al Jazeera Sport +2 Al Jazeera Sport +3 Al Jazeera Sport 1 HD

1:15

Uruguay v Mexico Al Jazeera Sport +2 Al Jazeera Sport +3 Al Jazeera Sport 1 HD

3:45

CORDOBA: Brazil’s Fred, center, celebrates with teammates in this file photo after scoring against Paraguay at a Group B Copa America soccer match.—AP

Ryu captures US Open

India settle for draw after Chanderpaul stands firm

18

17

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

Falcao burns bright for fired up Colombians Page 19

BIRMINGHAM: Jamaica’s Asafa Powell (centre) wins the men’s 100 metre race from countrymen Nesta Carter (left) and Michael Frater, during the Birmingham Grand Prix. —AP

Powell wins without engaging top gear BIRMINGHAM: Asafa Powell led home a Jamaican 1-2-3 in the 100 metres at the Diamond League event in Birmingham on Sunday although the damp conditions meant the former world record holder had to be content with a time of 9.91 seconds. Powell had clocked a 2011 world leading 9.78 in Lausanne 10 days ago but, without the challenge of facing the injured Tyson Gay, he still performed in a manner which again underlined his well-being ahead of next month’s world championships where Olympic and world champion Usain Bolt awaits.

“I was only going to do enough to win today. I didn’t want to push too hard,” said Powell who kept his concentration after two false starts to finish ahead of Nesta Carter (9.93) and Michael Frater (10.01).

“I was a bit cautious in the final with all the false starts and it was cold out there so I didn’t push it from the start.

But it was OK. I’m fine with that. We all want to get the best start but when there’s false starts it puts you in a different zone.”

The biggest cheers from a sell-out 12,500 crowd were reserved for Britain’s Mo Farah who bounded clear in impressive fashion to win the men’s 5000m in 13:06.14. European champion Farah clocked a final lap of 54 seconds, a pace that proved far too hot for rivals including Ethiopian Imane Merga, the fastest man at the distance this year but beaten into third on Sunday. Fellow Briton Dai Greene again demonstrated his credentials as a medal contender at the worlds with an impressive 400m hurdles victory

in a season best time of 48.20.

The 25-year-old Welshman, winner in Lausanne, began strongly but saved enough in reserve to hold off fast-finishing 2005 world champion Bershawn Jackson of the United States by two hundreds of a second with Puerto Rican Javier Culson third.

“I’m very pleased with a season’s best in horrible conditions and I’m happy very happy - to get the win,” Greene said.

“I need to be competitive with these guys and I’m at the top at the moment. I won my first Diamond League of the season in Lausanne and my second this week so it’s given me a lot of momentum.” American Bianca Knight gained compensation for missing out on a place in either of the US 100m and 200m squads for the worlds by upstaging com-

patriots Marshevet Myers and Carmelita Jeter over the half lap. Knight, 22, clocked 22.59, the same time as Myers with Jeter, twice a world bronze medallist over 100, third in 22.62. Jeter will contest both the 100 and 200 in Daegu with Myers in the 100. “I missed the US team by one spot. I couldn’t make the team so I’ve come out here to win the Diamond,” said Knight, who could still travel to South Korea as part of the relay squad. “This is my compensation.” The expected triple jump duel between world and European champion Phillips Idowu and world indoor record holder Teddy Tamgho never materialised with Briton Idowu comfortably winning with a 17.54m leap.

Talented but erratic Frenchman Tamgho, who had jumped a world leading 17.91 in Lausanne, was a long way

short of his best-managing just 16.74 for fifth place. The charismatic Tamgho, still occupying reporters in the mixed zone long after the stands had been vacated, remained optimistic. “I’m close to doing something amazing,” he predicted. “I just have to wait.”

Australian Sally Pearson laid down the gauntlet to her American rivals in the women’s 100m hurdles with a personal best and world leading time of 12.48.

The blonde pony-tailed Pearson, Olympic silver medallist, proved too strong in both heat and final for American Danielle Carruthers who clocked 12.52 with compatriots Virginia Crawford and Kellie Wells third and fourth.

“I’ve always wanted to be the best in the world and I’m heading in that direc-

Spain still riding high a year from WCup glory MADRID: Spain have stuttered in a couple of friendlies since their first World Cup triumph a year ago but Vicente del Bosque’s side are cruising through Euro 2012 qualifying and will be firm favorites to retain their title.

The euphoria left over from the dramatic extra-time victory over the Netherlands in Johannesburg on July 11, 2010 was tempered by a 4-1 defeat in Argentina in September and a 4-0 drubbing at the hands of neighbours Portugal two months later.

However, the continental champions have a perfect five wins out of five in Euro 2012 qualifying and lead their group by six points from the Czech Republic with three games left as they bid to become the first country to win consecutive European Championships with a World Cup in between.

Last month’s 3-0 friendly win in Venezuela was their 39th victory in 44 matches under Del Bosque, putting the former Real Madrid player and coach one clear of his immediate predecessor Luis Aragones to set a national record.

“Spanish football is in exceptional shape,” Del Bosque was quoted as saying in local media on Sunday. “We can be optimistic and say that this time we are among the favorites (for Euro 2012).”

At least for the next few years, Del Bosque can rely on a stable squad built

around Barcelona’s European Champions League winning side.

Record scorer David Villa is not yet 30 and remains one of the most prolific strikers around, playmakers Xavi (31) and Andres Iniesta (27) are second to none and Real Madrid’s Iker Casillas (30), the captain, a rock in goal.

Del Bosque is unlikely to make any significant changes before next year’s tournament in Poland and Ukraine, but Spain’s victory in last month’s European Under-21 Championship shows there is plenty of talent coming through if needed.

“The current squad is a stable one and there are not many positions where we have to think about replacements,” the 60year-old said.

“There will only be changes when there is a guarantee that someone coming in can perform better than the player we have already.

“There won’t be a revolution but instead the normal changes, a step by step renewal that will be done naturally and at the right moment.”

In an interview with As sports daily published on Sunday, Del Bosque singled out new Manchester United keeper David De Gea, midfielders Thiago Alcantara of Barcelona and Ander Herrera of Real Zaragoza and Athletic Bilbao forward Iker Muniain as Under-21 players to watch.

He has already used Bilbao midfielder

Scorer David Villa is not yet 30 and remains one of the most prolific strikers.

Javi Martinez and Valencia forward Juan Mata, who travelled to South Africa last year with the senior squad before helping the Under-21 side to victory in Denmark.

The down-to-earth Del Bosque, with his balding grey hair and distinctive bushy moustache, knows his team cannot afford to live off past achievements and is determined to maintain the players’ hunger for success.

“There is (a certain euphoria) but at the same time in the knowledge that football right now is very equal and that games are decided by small details,” he said.

“We cannot be over-confident. The worst thing an athlete can do is think he is superior to his rival. “Having the [World Cup winner’s] star on your shirt is very nice but it’s also a responsibility and an extra motivation for your opponents.”—Reuters

tion,” Pearson said. “I’ve come to Europe to get ready for the world championships and I’ve had fantastic preparation. It’s all just come together. I’m in shape.” Pearson has returned mentally stronger this year after experiencing triumph and disappointment in last year’s Commonwealth Games.

The 24-year-old was disqualified for a false start three hours after winning the 100m in New Delhi. She atoned for that heartbreak by returning to the same track days later to win hurdles gold.

In other events, double women’s world high jump champion Blanka Vlasic of Croatia put recent below-par efforts behind her with a winning leap of 1.99m and Botswana’s Commonwealth champion Amantle Montsho easily won the women’s 400m in 50.20.—Reuters

India’s 400m star faces doping ban NEW DELHI: Indian 400m runner Ashwini Akkunji, a gold medallist at the Commonwealth and Asian Games, was facing a two-year ban for doping yesterday after her “B” sample tested positive for steroids.

Athletics Federation of India director Manohar Lal Dogra confirmed the positive results for Akkunji and fellow 400m runner Priyanka Panwar, adding that they would now appear before a National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) disciplinary panel. The duo were among eight athletes who have failed drug tests in recent days. The “B”, or second, samples of Sini Jose, Jauna Murmu and Tiana Mary Thomas also tested positive last week.

The eight were provisionally suspended pending the testing of their second samples. Akkunji was part of the women’s 4x400m relay team that won the gold medals at the Delhi Commonwealth Games and Asian Games in Guangzhou, China, last year along with Mandeep Kaur and Jose. Akkunji also took the 400m hurdles Asian title. India has never won a track medal at the Olympics and the women’s 4x400m relay team was seen as the country’s biggest hope of a podium finish at next year’s Games in London. Indian Sports Minister Ajay Maken last week sacked Yuri Ogorodnik, the Ukrainian coach of the 400m runners. The sports ministry also appointed retired judge Mukul Mudgal to head an inquiry into the doping scandal.

He is expected to report within six weeks.

The athletes have all protested their innocence and blamed contaminated food supplements for the results.

They have also said that there were not enough doctors to advise them on which supplements to take.

Meanwhile, a NADA team on Monday conducted raids at the Sports Authority of India’s centre in southern city of Bangalore and took samples from residents at the camp.

The team searched rooms, took urine samples from athletes and checked the medical supplies at the centre, according to the Press Trust of India news agency.

The raids were also conducted last week at the National Institute of Sports in Patiala in northwest India, where some of the female runners who tested positive had been training.—AFP

y

A

Murdoch under pressure to reconsider British bid

e niv rsar n

Years

Page 26

Oil falls on demand, slowdown worries Page 23 TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

US debt talks hit wall Page 25

Nestle takes majority stake sweetmaker Hsu Fu Chi. Page 25

BRUSSELS: Belgian Finance minister Didier Reynders (L), Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos and European Central Bank president Jean Claude Trichet talk prior to the start of a Eurogroup meeting yesterday at the EU Headquarters in Brussels. (Inset) A man looks at a board outside Milan’s stock exchange yesterday. Italy moved to curb financial speculators the same day as the Milan stock market dropped. — AFP

Greece, Italy top agenda at EU finance chiefs meeting Renault sales slide in Europe, rise worldwide PARIS: French automaker Renault reported that first-half vehicle sales fell 7.4 percent in Europe but it expected record sales worldwide thanks to booming emerging markets, it said yesterday.

International sales rose 1.9 percent to 1.37 million vehicles for the first half of the year, the company said in an earnings statement. In Europe sales fell 7.4 percent to 831,700 units, with a 9.9 percent fall in France. The company said it was hoping to sell more than 2.6 million vehicles, a record, over the whole of 2011, as its international sales improved, diverging from its weaker performance in France and throughout Europe.

Outside Europe, sales grew by a fifth to 542,000 vehicles in the first half of 2011 and accounted for 40 percent of the group’s total sales. “Despite mixed results in Europe, the group continued to grow sales, setting a record for first-half sales,” executive vice-president Jerome Stoll said in an earnings statement. “This performance was based as expected on strong international growth (outside Europe), with an increase of more than 20 percent, thanks notably to two key countries for the group, Brazil and Russia.” It said it also performed well in Iran, with sales up 70 percent and a 4.7 percent share of the market, thanks to its Logan and Megane brands. Another key target for Renault is India, where it launched its Fluence model this year and plans five more models this year and next, including its low-cost four-wheel drive “Duster” vehicle built by its subsidiary Dacia.

Stoll told a news conference yesterday that the group aims to “prioritize big emerging countries with prospects for growth.”Renault is due to launch three electric vehicle models this year: the Fluence, Kangoo and Twizy. Sales of Renaults and Dacias suffered in France owing partly to the ending of a government bonus schemed for trading in old vehicles and also to low stock levels which struggled to keep up with demand. “We lacked stocks, we lacked cars. We did not lack customers,” said Stoll. Renault is France’s second-biggest car maker after CSA Peugeot Citroen. Stoll said Renault hoped for worldwide sales of three million vehicles a year or more in 2013. — AFP

Concern grows over 2nd Greek bailout, threat to Italy BRUSSELS: European Union finance officials were to discuss Greece’s intractable debt crisis and the worsening situation in Italy yesterday, with the threat of contagion to the euro zone’s third-largest economy growing. Herman Van Rompuy, the president of the European Council, will meet European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet and JeanClaude Juncker, the chairman of the Eurogroup, for talks in Brussels around midday, ahead of a meeting of the 17 euro zone finance ministers later in the day.

Van Rompuy’s spokesman described the gathering, which also includes European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, and the EU’s economic and monetary affairs commissioner, Olli Rehn, as a “coordination, not a crisis meeting”, and said Italy would not be on the agenda. However, senior EU sources said it would be impossible not to discuss Italy following a large sell-off in Italian bonds and stocks that the Italian media have dubbed “black Friday ”.

Austria’s Finance Minister Markia Fekter said Italy was among the issues to be discussed, saying ministers wanted to quiz Italy about how it was handling the situation.

“We have a Eurogroup meeting today and tomorrow Ecofin. We will (discuss) the IMF decisions and we will also have questions for the Italian minister there,” she told reporters. Shares in Italy ’s biggest bank, Unicredit Spa, were

volatile yesterday after losing 7.9 percent on Friday, partly because of worries about the results of stress tests of European banks that will be released on July 15. Other banks stocks also fell heavily. The cost of insuring Italian debt against default jumped to a record high, with five-year credit default swaps rising 30 basis points to 279 basis points, according to data monitor Markit. The cost of insuring Greek, Portuguese and Irish debt against default also rose.

The sell-off has increased fears that Italy, with the highest sovereign debt ratio relative to GDP in the euro zone after Greece, could be next to get dragged into crisis. If that came to pass, the euro zone’s existing rescue mechanism, the EFSF, would have insufficient funds to help.

The 10-year yield spread between Italian and German debt widened to a euro-era high of 258 basis points and bond yields neared the 5.5-5.7 percent area which some bankers say will start putting heavy pressure on Italy ’s finances. The market pressure is due in part to Italy’s high sovereign debt and sluggish economy, but also to concern that Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi may be trying to push out his long-time finance minister, Giulio Tremonti, who has promoted deep spending cuts to control the budget deficit.

“We can’t go on for many more days like Friday,” a senior ECB official told Reuters. “We’re very worried about Italy.”

German newspaper Die Welt quoted an unnamed ECB source as saying the EFSF may have to be doubled in size to 1.5 trillion euros if it is to be capable of coming to the aid of Italy.

Accepting default?

Yesterday’s gathering of finance ministers will focus on a second bailout package for Greece and the need to secure the private sector’s involvement in the assistance program, which is expected to total 110 billion euros. Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and Finland are determined that banks, insurers and other private holders of Greek government bonds should bear some of the costs of helping Athens — up to 30 billion euros of the total package. But after weeks of negotiations with bankers represented by the Institute of International Finance, there has been next to no progress on agreeing a formula acceptable to all sides.

Initially talks focused on a complex French plan for private creditors to roll over up their holdings of Greek debt, buying new bonds as their existing ones matured. But as that plan has floundered, Berlin has revived a proposal to swap Greek bonds for longer-dated debt that would extend maturities by seven years.

Proposals to buy back Greek bonds and retire them have also been floated.

However, both those plans would likely be regarded by ratings agencies as a default, or at best a selective default, which could have profound repercus-

sions for global financial markets. The ECB has said it will not accept anything that is termed a default, a position Germany also maintains.

“All of the efforts so far have been in order to avoid default because no one is quite sure what its knock-on effects would be,” one EU official said. “Nobody wants a default-it’s not an option.” In a buy-back, the EFSF bailout fund might buy Greek bonds from the market, or lend Greece money to do so. However, these schemes would require changes to the EFSF’s rules which would require the backing of national parliaments, officials say. If euro zone finance ministers do back the idea of a buy-back or a debt swap in an effort to move ahead more rapidly with a second package for Greece, it would effectively mean condoning a default in order to achieve a write down in the value of Greek debt and make its debt mountain more sustainable.

Senior euro zone officials worry that any further delay in putting together a second package-which Greece wants by early September-could further poison investors’ confidence in weak economies around the region, prompting more contagion. German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said Germany agreed with other euro zone states that a second package for Greece had to be agreed rapidly and said it would top the agenda at talks yesterday. — Reuters

Four major Saudi banks post sturdy Q2 profits DUBAI: Four major Saudi banks reported quarterly profits that met or beat analysts’ estimates yesterday, in a sign the kingdom’s lenders have begun to rebound from a punishing bout of a bad loan provisioning. AlRajhi Bank , the country’s biggest Islamic lender, posted a 3.6 percent rise in secondquarter profit. The bank credited higher special commissions, or net interest income, and banking fees income and a decline in expenses for the rise in profits. Al Rajhi had net profit of 1.84 billion riyals in the three months to end-June, compared with 1.78

billion riyals in the prior-year period.

Analysts had forecast average quarterly profit to be flat at 1.78 billion riyals. Rajhi Bank said its board recommended a dividend of 1.25 riyals for the first half of 2011.

Meanwhile, Riyad Bank’s profits surged 9 percent to 836 million riyals in the second quarter, up from 766 million last year, topping forecasts for profit of 789.86 million riyals.

“Riyadh Bank blew away estimates-if this sparks a (market) rally tomorrow, it will negate the affect of the seasonality affect,”

said a Riyadh-based fund manager, who asked not to be identified. “People are a lot more confident on banks, they will see better buyers now.” A massive Saudi government spending plan announced during the peak of regional unrest, which includes building 500,000 new homes, has helped lift sentiment in the kingdom’s banks.

Saudi Hollandi Bank , the kingdom’s oldest bank, reported a 5.1 percent rise in quarterly profit, beating forecasts, to 263.6 million riyals. Hollandi’s operational profit for the second-quarter climbed 3.4 percent to

495.2 million riyals. Bucking the upward trend, Samba Financial Group posted a 9.7 percent drop on profits but still met estimates. The country’s second-largest lender by market value blamed lower special commissions income for the decline in quarterly profit. Samba reported net profit 1.102 billion riyals for the period ended June 30, compared with 1.22 billion riyals a year earlier. Analysts had forecast an average profit of 1.11 billion riyals, according to a Reuters survey. The banks reported results after the Saudi index closed.— Reuters

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

b u s i ne s s

Saudi Arabia Economic Overview SAUDI ARABIA: KAMCO Research has prepared a report that analyzes the performance of the Saudi Economy and provides a detailed analysis of the current economic situation in the Kingdom.

Ranked as the largest producer as well as exporter of petroleum in the world, Saudi Arabia which plays a leading role in the OPEC (producing 28percent of total OPEC oil production) claims the second largest proven crude oil reserves in the world of around 267 billion barrels, after Venezuela which increased its proven oil reserves to 297 billion barrels in January 2011, representing 57percent of the GCC reserves, 29percent of OPEC and almost 20percent of the global oil reserves.

slowdown in the global economy which in turn resulted in a drop in the world oil demand. Despite the global economy witnessing one of its worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, Saudi Arabia has managed to increasingly drive its economic growth, mainly on the back of its aggressive fiscal stimulus packages and expansionary policies which were set forth in order to tackle the ill effects that stemmed from the crisis. The Kingdom’s large financial reserves, accumulated during the boom period, have enabled it to ward off the spillovers of the crisis and secure a relatively fast recovery.

The Kingdom produced an average of 8.19 million oil barrels per day in 2010

The Saudi economy recorded remarkable growth in 2008 taking advantage of the positive developments in the world oil market and the ongoing structural and regulatory reforms made by the government to achieve solid economic growth and also to diversify its economic activities and sources of income. Nominal GDP grew at 23.8percent during 2008 to reach SAR 1.77 trillion ($472 billion), then witnessed a contraction of 21.8percent during 2009 to SAR 1.38 trillion ($369.2 billion); this drop in large part was due to the sharp drop in oil prices and the slowdown in economic activities across the Kingdom. The average price of Arabian light oil dropped 38percent during 2009 from 2008 triggered by the

compared to 9.19 million and 8.04 million barrels per day in 2008 and 2009, respectively. In general, oil sector represents around 85percent of total exports, 85percent of Saudi government’s revenue and 48percent of GDP, while around 32.7percent of GDP came from the private sector in 2009. Since the beginning of the current year, the Kingdom’s crude oil production per day averaged around 8.8 million barrels per day. This increase in production came to compensate for the oil disruption in Libya and is expected to increase further in 2011 to boost global supplies and help lower prices which exceeded the $110 pb mark.

The average Arabian light oil prices surged by around 32percent in 2010, to

stand at $77.8 pb versus $59 pb in 2009, hence recovering around 52percent of the sharp plunge in 2008-2009, amid the global financial turmoil. However, Arabian light prices have been on upward trend since the beginning of the current year to record $104.1 pb as of 1 Jul-11, mainly due to the global economic recovery, revival of world energy demand, increased business confidence, and the rise in geo-political uncertainties in the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia’s economy which is regarded as the economic powerhouse of the GCC region represents around 42percent of aggregate Gulf region’s nominal GDP, followed by United Arab Emirates and Kuwait which contribute to around 26percent and 14percent of combined GDP, respectively.

Chart 2 depicts the high correlation between Arabian light oil prices and Kingdom’s nominal GDP, as measured by a correlation of around 99percent.

Nominal GDP, which stood at SAR 1.384 trillion ($369.2 billion) in 2009, is estimated to reach SAR 1.62 trillion ($430.9 billion) in 2010, reflecting a growth of 16.7percent During the period 2004-2008, and as part of its efforts to attract foreign investments and diversify the economy, Saudi Arabia has launched mega projects, including establishment of six economic cities in different regions of the Kingdom as an endeavor to achieve balanced development of the regions.

Besides, the country has recorded strong economic growth during 2004 until late 2008 on the back of increased oil production and high oil prices.

During 2008, the Government had initiated a 5-year (2009-2014) $400 billion investment plan to upgrade its infrastructure. During Apr-09, in a move that showcased the Kingdom’s determination to push ahead with its $400 billion five-year investment program in the infrastructure and oil industry, the King inaugurated a number of developmental and industrial projects in Jubail Industrial City with a combined investment of more than SAR 54 billion ($14.4 billion). The move emphasized that the Saudi economy has the strength and

resilience to confront the global economic crisis and that economic strength is best manifested in the continuation of investment and spending programs on different development projects.

The non-hydrocarbon sectors, especially construction and real-estate industries, have also played a key role in the economy. Generally, both the private and the public sectors have shown increased contribution over the period 2004-2008, as FDIs and increased government spending supported the development of an effective and sustainable non-oil economy.

Gross Domestic Product Despite the challenges brought forth by the global economic crisis, the Kingdom’s ambitious spending plans and various public initiatives facilitated its economic expansion. The government’s commitment to economic reforms reflected positively on the economy as the country’s GDP, at current prices, recorded a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.8percent over the period 2004-2010 to reach around SAR 1.384 trillion ($369.2 billion) and an estimate of SAR 1.62 trillion ($430.9 billion) in 2009 and 2010, respectively.

The oil sector contribution averaged 54percent of GDP during the period 2005-2009 with a 4-year CAGR of 2.1percent. The oil sector nearly doubled since 2005 from SAR 618 billion ($164.8 billion) to SAR 1.1 trillion ($293.3 billion) in 2008 after oil prices peaked to $147 pb in July-08. However, during 2009, the oil component of GDP dropped by 38.8percent to SAR 662 billion ($177 billion) triggered by the sharp drop in oil prices and the slump in global oil demand.

Preliminary figures of National Accounts for 2010 show that GDP at current prices gained 16.7percent to SAR 1.62 trillion ($430.9 billion) during 2010 against a drop of 21.8percent in 2009.

Due to the rise in oil prices and oil production in 2010, the oil sector, which constituted 51.2percent of the 2010 GDP, gained 25percent during 2010 as compared to a slump of 38.8percent in 2009. The non-oil sector grew by 9.1per-

cent as compared to a growth of 4.7percent in 2009. As for GDP decomposition within the non-oil sector which represented around 48.8percent in 2010, the private sector grew by 5.3percent in 2010 as against a growth rate of 3.1percent in 2009; while on the other hand, the government sector was up by 15.7percent as compared to 7.5percent in 2009. In terms of GDP by economic activity, the mining and quarrying sector contracted by 40percent in 2009; however, it dominated the economic output, representing nearly 44percent of the GDP. The mining and quarrying sector, which also includes output from crude petroleum and natural gas, grew at a 5-year CAGR of 9.8percent over the

Despite the sharp drop in oil prices in 2009, Real GDP grew at 0.6percent to SAR 831 billion ($222 billion), lagging behind the 4.2percent recorded in 2008; this increase was supported by the increase in the non-oil sector which grew at 3.8percent, albeit lower than a growth rate of 4.3percent a year earlier.

The private sector grew by 3.5percent during 2009 versus a growth of 4.6percent in 2008 while the government sector registered a growth of 4.4percent as compared to a growth rate of 3.7percent. On the other hand, Real GDP from the oil sector registered contracted by 6.7percent after growing at 4.2percent in 2008.

Regarding real GDP components, the

period 2005-2009. The construction and building activity grew at 4.4percent in 2009, slightly down from 4.7percent in 2008.

The construction sector that is largely facilitated by massive public spending on infrastructure projects constituted 5percent of the economy in 2009 and grew at a 5-year CAGR of 6.8percent over the period 2004-09. The finance, insurance, real estate and business services activity grew at 6.6percent as compared to a growth rate of 6.8percent in the preceding year. During 2009, the financial sector largely comprising of banks recorded a balance sheet growth of 5.2percent as the banks followed a selective expansion approach due to the tight credit markets.

private sector’s share increased to 48.5percent in 2009, up from 47percent in 2008, while the government segment represented around 23percent, marginally up from 22.5percent in 2008.

Moreover, the oil sector contributed to 28percent of real GDP, down from 30percent in 2008.

According to Central Department of Statistics & Information (CDSI), nominal GDP is estimated to have recorded SAR 1.62 trillion ($430.9 billion) in 2010, reflecting a growth of 16.7percent as compared to 2009. In real terms, GDP is estimated to grow by 3.8percent in 2010. The Ninth Development Plan aims at realizing an average annual real GDP growth of 5.2percent over the five years period (2010-2014)

Iran says plans to spend $18bn to boost oil output $3 billion to be spent on southern projects DUBAI: Iran plans to invest $18 billion by 2015 to boost output the oil-rich south and expects its Yadavaran field to start production in a few months, the Iranian Oil Ministry’s website Shana said on Sunday. OPEC’s second largest producer, which again rejected calls for a coordinated production increase on Saturday, pumped a near-capacity 3.6 million barrels of crude a day in June.

US sanctions over Tehran’s disputed nuclear program have prevented western firms from investing in the Islamic Republic and dampened Chinese enthusiasm for tapping some of the world’s biggest oil and gas reserves. Tehran warned China National Petroleum Corporation in June it would cancel a deal to develop Iran’s South Pars gas field if CNPC continued to delay the project.

The majority of the $18-billion spending plan to 2015 will now be met by Iran, the country’s deputy oil minister said in a ministry news note published on Sunday, adding that about $3 billion would be spent on southern projects by next March. “Many plans are being implemented to accelerate development of shared oil and gas fields while the ministry aims to increase oil production in the oil rich region of the south to three million barrels per day,” deputy oil minister Mohsen Khojasteh Mehr told Shana.

The Yadavaran oil field being developed by Iran’s National Oil Company (NIOC) and China’s Sinopec will start production this autumn at around 20,000 bpd and climb to its expected ceiling of 85,000 bpd over the next two years, he said. China is one of the biggest buyers of

OPEC is to maintain the production ceiling of this organisation,” Aliabadi was quoted as saying by the semi-official Mehr news agency.

“It is an issue which a majority of OPEC members agree with.” Iran was a leading opponent of Saudi Arabia’s US-backed push for oil exporter group OPEC to agree to a coordinated increase in production at its last meeting on June 8. Tehran last week accused Saudi Arabia of seeking to grab market share from other OPEC members. The United States and its European allies fear Iran is trying to build bombs under cover of a civilian nuclear program and have imposed strict sanctions aimed at its lucrative oil industry. Tehran says its nuclear work is aimed at generating power to meet the country’s booming demand for electricity while boosting fossil fuel exports. — Reuters

Iranian crude oil and its top energy company CNPC has deals to boost output at Iran’s North Azadegan oil field and South Pars gas field.

But despite its still voracious appetite for energy, China’s top energy firms are thought to be slowing projects in politically isolated Iran as their ties with US energy companies strengthen while booming North American gas output swells global supply.

OPEC Rejecting pressure from consuming countries for OPEC producers to raise production targets at their next meeting scheduled for Dec. 14, Iran’s caretaker oil minister Mohammad Aliabadi said on Saturday the oil exporter’s group Iran currently heads would oppose any increase. “Iran’s policy as head of

VIENNA: Secretary General of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Abdullah Al-Badri, right, and Oil Minister of Iran and OPEC President Mohammad Aliabadi. Iran recently said it plans to spend $18 billion to boost oil output.— AP

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 .4360000 .3860000 .3240000 .2820000 .2900000 .0040000 .0020000 .0744150 .7250040 .3810000 .0700000 .7107340 .0040000 .0430000

.2765000 .4480000 .3980000 .3360000 .2930000 .3020000 .0072500 .0035000 .0751630 .7322900 .4010000 .0770000 .7178770 .0072000 .0530000

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES .2741000 .2762000 .4386420 .4420030 .3888380 .3918170 .3268930 .3293980 .2840270 .2862030 .0521290 .0525280 .0426660 .0429930 .2935750 .2958240 .0352180 .0354880 .2242860 .2260040 .0033940 .0034200 .0000000 .0062630 .0000000 .0025290 .0000000 .0032270 .0000000 .0037320 .0746560 .0752280 .7273450 .7329180 .0000000 .3906650 .0731130 .0736730 .7122260 .7176820 .0000000 .0064990

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

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

US Dollar Transfer Euro Sterling Pound Canadian dollar Turkish lire Swiss Franc Australian dollar US Dollar Buying

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

ARAB COUNTRIES 48.350 46.074 1.258 201.950 388.010 183.100 5.932 35.669

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES 274.650 395.910 441.090 286.390 168.290 328.060 293.880 272.450 GOLD 278.000 140.000 72.500

Indian rupees Indonesia Iranian tuman Iraqi dinar Japanese yen Jordanian dinar Lebanese pound Malaysian ringgit Morocco dirham Nepalese Rupees New Zealand dollar Nigeria Norwegian krone Omani Riyal Pakistani rupees Philippine peso Qatari riyal Saudi riyal Singapore dollar South Africa Sri Lankan rupees Sterling pound Swedish krona Swiss franc Syrian pound Thai bhat Tunisian dollar UAE dirham U.S. dollars Yemeni Riyal

6.430 0.033 0.240 0.240 3.490 390.930 0.186 94.530 47.500 4.320 233.500 1.867 52.800 715.220 3.310 6.600 76.180 73.520 226.750 43.820 2.648 445.000 45.200 332.200 5.600 9.460 198.263 75.080 275.700 1.200

10 Tola

GOLD 1,595.020

Sterling Pound US Dollar

SELL CASH 298.400 732.320 3.930 290.600 540.900 36.600 54.800 167.800 48.290 395.000 36.070

SELL DRAFT 296.900 732.320 3.690 289.100

226.700 46.283 393.500 35.920

389.180 0.185 94.530 3.900 232.000

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

6.206 3.208 3.691 6.427 674.303 3.508 9.183 5.780 3.959 91.311

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co. 715.040 3.210 6.430 75.750 73.520 226.750 43.820 2.510 443.000 330.700 5.600 9.280 74.980 275.300

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 443.000 275.300

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd

Bahrain Exchange Company COUNTRY Australian dollar Bahraini dinar Bangladeshi taka Canadian dollar Cyprus pound Czek koruna Danish krone Deutsche Mark Egyptian pound Euro Cash Hongkong dollar

6.200 0.033

Selling Rate 274.900 288.830 442.735 394.710 328.760 728.146 74.821 75.458 73.270 386.953 46.176 2.503

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 6.215 2.520 3.700 6.460 74.945 73.495 730.900 46.175 447.800 0.00003280 3.910 1.550 390.600 5.750 397.600 292.600

Al Mulla Exchange Currency US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

Transfer Rate (Per 1000) 274.950 393.300 442.800 289.000 3.435 6.192 46.260 2.510 3.675 6.410 3.202 732.200 74.800 73.450

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

23

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

BUSINESS

Oil falls on demand, slowdown worries China’s crude imports tumble 11.5 percent last month LONDON: Crude oil prices fell by more than a dollar yesterday as worries about the widening euro zone debt crisis and a drop in Chinese crude imports rekindled concerns about a demand slowdown. After Friday’s dismal US employment data, investors remain on edge about a meeting of top European officials on fears the crisis could spread to Italy, the region’s third-largest economy. By 0958 GMT, Brent crude futures for August fell by $1.08 to $117.25 a barrel, while US crude benchmark West Texas Intermediate was $1.14 lower at $95.05 a barrel by the same time.

KUWAIT: Service manager Ralph Geyer hands over winners their prizes.

Abdul Rahman Albisher and Zaid Alkazemi company holds first prize draw As part of its summer activities, Abdul Rahman Albisher & Zaid Alkazemi Company is conducting a promotion for its Oil & Filter Change customers until September 30th.

Every customer who brings in his Mercedes-Benz car for an oil and filter change during this period can enter a draw to win Gift Vouchers worth KD 550 every month which can be redeemed in the Mercedes-Benz Accessories and Boutique items area in its Service and Parts center in Shuwaikh.

There will be a total of 3 winners every month for the gift vouchers, worth KD 50, KD 100 and the grand prize of KD 400. This promotion is valid in the Mercedes-Benz Quick Lube Center in Shuwaikh, ExpressService Centers in AlRai and in Ahmadi.

“We wanted to ensure that our cus-

tomers use the recommended Oil and Filter for their Mercedes-Benz cars and also to make their Quick Lube visit a rewarding experience this summer!” said Mr. Ralph Geyer, Service Manager, Abdul Rahman Albisher & Zaid Alkazemi Company.

The first draw of this promotion was held on July 4 and the 3 lucky winners are: 1. Mr. Mishari Sami - Gift Voucher KD 50 2. Mr. Mohammed Naif Samloun - Gift Voucher KD 100 3. Ms. Najat Mohammed Jafar - Gift Voucher KD 400 The second draw in this promotion will be happening on August 4 2011 and we hope many more customers will take this opportunity to not only do the Oil & Filter Change Service but also avail of the opportunity to win the Gift Vouchers.

“Risk aversion is back after the disappointing US jobs data and concerns about the debt situation in Italy,” Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch told Reuters.

“This is putting oil prices under pressure, and it seems Brent in particular is vulnerable to further losses.” European Council President Herman Van Rompuy over the weekend called an emergency morning meeting yesterday of top officials dealing with the euro zone debt crisis, reflecting concern that the crisis could spread to Italy. “ The European debt crisis seems to spread from one country to the next, and efforts to manage contagion like the EU meeting in Brussels today generally don’t allay immediate fear in the markets,” Petromatrix’s Olivier Jakob said. Fritsch said Europe’s debt crisis would continue to weigh on the euro. The euro fell by 1 percent against the dollar. A stronger greenback can hurt dol-

lar-denominated commodities such as oil by rendering them more expensive for holders of other currencies.

Investor appetite also remained subdued after China’s crude imports tumbled by 11.5 percent in June from a year earlier to 4.8 million barrels per day, their lowest in eight months. “The fall in oil prices this morning is a result of fears that China’s commodity-driven inflation is yet to peak, coupled with worries that Europe’s sovereign debt crisis may be spreading,” said Christin Tuxen, an analyst with Danske Bank in Copenhagen. Fears that Beijing may raise interest rates further to contain its fastest rise in inflation in three years dampened risk appetite, said Ben Le Brun, a market analyst with CMC Markets.

Brent on Friday dipped 0.2 percent after data showed US jobs growth ground to a near halt in June as employers hired the

fewest workers in nine months.

Reduced loadings of North Sea crude were supportive for Brent on Friday, while front-month WTI plunged by almost $2.50. WTI’s discount to Brent hovered above $22 yesterday after it widened to as much as $22.45 in the previous session, the highest since the intraday record of $23.34 on June 15, on news that output from the North Sea Forties oil stream will slip to a two-year low in August.

Fritsch at Commerzbank said the premium remained unsustainable and should narrow. “There is an anomaly that needs to correct”.

IEA trims volume of planned release Last week’s gains in Brent pushed prices well above the level prior to the release of global emergency stockpiles coordinated by the International Energy Agency as traders bet the extra 60 million barrels of oil would be insufficient to stop market tight-

ening later this year. The International Energy Agency said yesterday that it will release slightly less oil and oil products than initially expected under its emergency release plan. Analysts expect OPEC’s monthly report due today will provide insight into oil stock estimates after the IEA’s move. Iran’s caretaker oil minister said on Saturday that OPEC was opposed to any increase in output ceilings in the absence of “well studied justifications”. Saudi Arabia’s offer for additional crude in August met scant interest from refiners across northeast Asia, who are just taking their full contractual volumes.

Limited demand for extra barrels from Asia, the world’s fastestgrowing market, would leave the Saudis with few options to find homes for additional cargoes. Top exporter Saudi Aramco was expected to have raised output to near 10 million barrels per day in June. —Reuters

Bank of Ireland investors decry second rights issue DUBLIN: Bank of Ireland looks likely to fall into majority state control as retail shareholders voiced opposition yesterday to partaking in a 1.91 billion euros rights issue. The country’s largest lender is still in talks with private equity firms but if it cannot persuade its largely retail shareholder base to participate in the 10 cents a share, 18-for-5 issue, then the state, which is underwriting the offer, could end up with a 70 percent stake in the 228-year-old bank.

After shelling out last year for a rights issue at 55 cents apiece, and watched the share price dive to 10 cents now, none of the shareholders at an extraordinary general meeting was in the mood to buy.

“Why are you persisting with this rights issue, because there isn’t a God’s earthly chance of it succeeding,” John Flynn, a small investor, told the bank’s chairman. “I got caught out last time but not again. I might be jaundiced in one eye but I’m not jaundiced in both.”

If 100 percent of shareholders participate in the rights issue, the state will have a 29 percent stake; if none participate, the state will double its current holding, meaning Dublin will have full control of its domestic banking sector. —Reuters

CAIRO: Two Egyptian youths take a nap at a bus stop in Tahrir Square as demonstrators are still camping out for the fourth day, in Cairo, Egypt Monday, July 11, 2011. Egypt's benchmark stock index dropped by more than 2.6 percent Monday, dragged down by concerns of mounting unrest in the Arab world's most populous nation. —AP

The pros and cons of working from home

X-Cite by Alghanim Electronics announces Mercedes winners X-Cite by Alghanim Electronics announced the fourth winner of its grand summer raffle draw for a brand new Mercedes SLS on July 4, 2011 at the avenues store. The lucky winner was Mr. Muzafar Ibrahim Ibrahim who purchased a Sony LED from Fahaheel showroom on June 27th, 2011 X-Cite is giving its customers the chance of a lifetime to win an Audi R8,

Cadillac Coupe, Corvette, Mercedes SLS and the exclusive Lamborghini Gallardo.

For every purchase of 50KD ,one can enter into the weekly draw and win a dream car. In four weeks, four of the luxury sports cars have already been taken by the lucky winners. X-Cite customers now have a last chance to try their luck for the grand Lamborghini Gallardo in the final week of the dream car promotion.

Burgan Bank announces lucky KD5,000 winners KUWAIT: Burgan Bank held its Yawmi account draw announcing a total of 5 lucky daily prize winners, each taking home KD 5000.

The lucky winners for the five daily draws took home a handsome cash-prize of KD 5000 each. The lucky winners are: 1. Anwar abdulrahman jumaah aljawdar 2. Ahmed hasan khalifa alshatti 3. Sultan roum saeed omar 4. Ghosoun fayez marzoug ayedh 5. Hadi fahad shabeb alajmi Congratulating the winners, Burgan Bank Chief Retail Banking Officer- GM Mrs. Muneera Al-Mukhaizeem said: “I extend my warm wishes to the winners of last week’s Yawmi draw. Yawmi today is a well understood product, the popu-

larity of which can be seen from the number of increasing account holders.

We invite customers to opt for this incentive to make the most from their savings and deposits.”

Burgan Bank’s Yawmi account was the first in the country to have a daily draw, thereby entitling account holders who deposit KD 500 to win every day. For every KD 50 deposited in the account, the account holder receives an additional entry into the draw.

Burgan Bank encourages everyone to open a Yawmi account and/or increase their deposit to maximize their chances to becoming a daily winner. The more you deposit, the higher the chances of winning the draw.

As more and more professionals seek a better work-life balance and more companies adopt flexible policies to accommodate shifting workplace priorities and realities the working from home option is becoming increasingly viable. Employees see this as an ideal means to remain in the workforce and continue to be employed thereby maintaining all the tangible benefits of being part of an established company, while enjoying all the advantages of being based at home. The option has its potential pitfalls however and below we discuss some of the advantages and disadvantages of working from home. Working from home is a dream for many but it has its pitfalls. Bayt.com highlights the advantages and disadvantages of working from home.

Advantages: Flexibility This doesn’t just relate to timings either although the flexibility to determine your own work hours to some extent is the most important aspect of this. You can also determine your environment, lighting, temperature, setting, mood; basically work in the framework that suits you best and makes you happiest and most productive.

Less distractions Coworkers banter and distractions, unnecessary interruptions, unimportant meetings can all be avoided if you are safely at home and sealed off in your own environment which

you have barricaded from any possible interruptions.

Less stress The stress of commuting in bumper-to-bumper traffic at rush hour in many countries is extremely counterproductive and can lead to disgruntled workers who are already exhausted and worn before they have even begun their day.

This is especially true where the workplace is far from the office.

Other stresses often cited include unfriendly coworkers, a suboptimal work environment and constant distractions.

More productivity Removed from the stresses

and distractions of the workplace and working independently in their own preferred environment at their own pace, professionals are often a lot happier and a lot more productive.

Better work/life balance Work/life balance, the aspiration of the modern professional, is often achieved and tuned to satisfaction through a working at home arrangement, particularly when a professional has the flexibility to report into the office and work from the office

partially as an option and can fine-tune the arrangement to achieve the most optimal balance.

Disadvantages: Difficulty in separating home from work The temptation to engage in household matters since you are at home is often very strong. Suddenly you may start feeling obliged to clean the home, do the shopping, the childcare, the cooking, the home finances and the socializing all while meeting the full requirements of the job too. It is essential to draw the line between home and work so as to avoid both areas suffering.

Work doesn’t end Since there is no-one looking over your shoulder enforcing strict hours you may feel tempted to work endlessly. This pressure to work endlessly may be compounded by the fact that you feel there are greater expectations made of you as a homeworker or by self-imposed pressures to prove yourself and your abilities in this arrangement.

Moreover the lack of physical separation between home and work may add to this pressure to work endlessly.

Alienated from daily company developments A lot can change from day to day in a company and you may find yourself removed from important developments such as staff changes, new business, changes in company direction, new competitive intelligence etc.

Danger of being overlooked for promotion The danger of being overlooked for promotions and career development opportunities is quite real when you are away from the office and other more visible employees are actively and aggressively vying for them. An open line of communication with management and regular visits to the office are critical in order to prove your dedication and commitment to your career and to prevent the out-of-sight-out-ofmind syndrome.

Need for high self-discipline Working from home is not for anyone. It takes a lot of dedication, self-control and discipline to motivate yourself to persevere in working at home alone over the long run without succumbing to the distractions and losing drive and momentum.

Often a partial arrangement where you report into the office once or twice a week is the optimal arrangement as it allows for close interaction with colleagues and supervisors and ensures you remain in touch with company developments while still permitting you the comfort and convenience of working from home.

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

business

KSE trading activity thin GLOBAL DAILY MARKET REPORT

T

rading activity was thin during yesterday’s session, as value traded dropped to its lowest level since February 08, 2003.

Market weighted, Global General Index ended the day down by 1.02 percent, at 190.40 point.

Market Capitalization was also down for the day reaching KD31.13billion. On the other hand, KSE Price Index closed at 6,183.5 point, shedding 27.70 points (0.45 percent) from its previous close. The weak international data revealed negatively affected the local bourse.

Market Breadth During the session, 92 companies were traded. Market breadth was skewed towards decliners as 50 equities retreated versus 12 that advanced.

Daily Trading Activity Trading activity was down this session. Total volume traded was down by 40.87 percent with 46.97million shares changing hands at a total value of KD7.19million (34.82 percent lower compared to the day before). The real estate sector was the volume leader today, accounting for 34.05 percent of total shares. The services sector was the value leader, with 23.62 percent of total traded value. Kuwait Finance House (KFH) was the most active in terms of values traded during yesterday ’s session, with 0.605million shares exchanged at an aggregate value of KD0.594million.

Top Gainers and Biggest Decliners In terms of top gainers, Gulf North Africa Holding Company took the top spot for the day, adding 9.80 percent and closed at KD0.056. On the other hand, National Industries Company shed 7.35 percent and closed at KD0.315, making it the biggest decliner in the market.

Sectors Wise Most of the market sectors were down with notable decreases in the banking, services, and the food sectors. The real estate sector was the only advanced sector with a slight incline of 0.14 percent, while the insurance sector remained unchanged. Investors’ interest was geared towards the real estate stocks where their aggregate volume of traded shares accounted for 34.05 percent of the total shares traded on the exchange. A’ayan Real Estate Company, with 6.28million shares changing

hands on the scrip, witnessed selling pressure and close the day down by 1.64 percent at KD0.060. The stock topped the volume traded list for the day.

Global Banking Index saw many stocks losing and no single advance. Five of the nine banks in the sector went down including the heavy weight National Bank of Kuwait. Its stock price dropped by 1.72 percent to KD1.140. Another large contributor to the decline of the sector was Kuwait Finance House (KFH). The stock price of KFH shed 1.01 percent from its value to settle at KD0.980.

Global Services Index decline was notable.

The index declined by 1.25 percent, reaching 819.6 points. The sector had many decliners but two large stocks heavily damped the sector index down. Also National Mobile

Telecommunication Company ( Wataniya) declined by 1 percent to close at KD1.980.

The food sector was the biggest decliner in the market closing down by 1.48 percent at 368.1 points.

The sector had two decliners and no advanced stocks. Kuwait Food Company (Americana) was down by 1.28 percent to settle at KD1.540. Moreover, Livestock Transport & Trading, one of the largest decliners in the market, lost 5.26 percent from its stock price and closed at KD0.270.

Oil News The price of OPEC basket of twelve crudes stood at USD112.68 a barrel on Friday, compared with USD110.76 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

EMG shareholders pursue legal action against Egypt JERUSALEM: International shareholders in Israel’s East Mediterranean Gas Co (EMG) are pushing ahead with legal claims against Egypt for $8 billion in damages from contract violations in gas supplies, a company official said. The decision came after saboteurs in the Sinai Peninsula last week for the third time this year blew up part of the Egyptian pipeline that feeds gas to Israel and Jordan.

Nimrod Novik, a member of the EMG board, told Reuters yesterday that shareholders from the United States, Thailand and Israel met a few days ago and decided to “seek protection from the international court of arbitration in Washington”.

Gas supplies to Israel have resumed since the July 4 attack, although only at about 30 percent, officials say. Egypt’s MENA news agency reported on Sunday that repairs to the pipeline were expected to be completed by the end of the week.

The group of shareholders first raised the possibility of taking legal action against Egypt in May, after two previous pipeline attacks halted gas supplies for over a month.

Novik said the Egyptian government’s failure to deliver contractual quantities has already caused Egypt a loss of nearly $500 million as well as serious problems to the Israeli energy market, which gets about 40 percent of its gas from EMG. The disruptions have also undermined Egypt’s reputation as a reliable supplier and caused serious financial losses to EMG, Novik said.

“Consequently, the shareholders instructed their lawyers to take the steps required for claims in excess of $8 billion. The lawyers have advised the government of Egypt as well as the United States and other relevant governments that this process is under way,” he said.

One official who represents EMG

shareholders said the arbitration process requires the company to meet with their Egyptian counterparts within weeks to try and reach a settlement outside of court. If they fail, the official said, the U.S. court will take over within weeks of the meeting.

LOSING CONTROL Israel has hailed the 20-year natural gas deal it signed with Egypt in 2005 as one of the most important agreements to emerge from the historic peace deal the countries reached in 1979. But there has been some uncertainty over relations between the two countries in the wake of the political turmoil in Egypt that led to the ousting of President Hosni Mubarak. Egypt has since said it will review its gas contract with Israel amid accusations Mubarak’s administration had improperly negotiated the sale of gas at preferential prices. It has even ordered a former energy minister and six other officials to stand trial.

Israel says the price it pays for gas is on par with international standards and that it will not renegotiate the price, which was already adjusted upward about a year ago.

Israeli energy officials say the Egyptian government receives more than $3 per million British thermal units (BTU) from Israel.

“EMG’s price is higher than that of any other Egyptian export venue, is better than other regional exporters receive and is in line with international prices,” Novik said. EMG is owned by Egypt Natural Gas Co, Thailand’s PT T, Israel’s Merhav Group, AmpalAmerican Israel Corp and American businessman Sam Zell, chairman of EGI, who also represents shares that were sold by Egyptian businessman Hussain Salem in 2008. — Reuters

25

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

business

As US debt talks hit wall, Obama warns clock ticking Lagarde warns of global fallout if deal not reached

NANJING: A shopper selects varieties of Chinese candies by sweetmaker Hsu Fu Chi at a supermarket in Nanjing, eastern China’s Jiangsu province yesterday. Swiss food giant Nestle said it has agreed to take a majority stake in Chinese sweetmaker Hsu Fu Chi for $1.7 billion. — AFP

Nestle buys majority stake in Chinese candy maker GENEVA: Nestle SA, the world’s biggest food and drink company, took another big step into the Chinese market yesterday with the announcement that it is to buy a majority stake in candy maker Hsu Fu Chi for $1.7 billion.

The Swiss manufacturer of Nescafe coffee, KitKat bars and Dreyer’s ice cream, said it will acquire 60 percent of shares in Singapore-listed Hsu Fu Chi, which had sales of almost $800 million last year.

The Hsu family will retain the remaining 40 percent stake, with current CEO and chairman Hsu Chen continuing in those roles. Investors reacted cautiously to the news, with Nestle shares little changed at $62.83 on the Zurich exchange by late morning.

Analysts at Zuercher Kantonalbank said the price for Hsu Fu Chi was high, but noted Nestle’s strategic ambitions in China - one of the emerging economies where the Vevey, Switzerland-based company sees the strongest chances of future growth.

“This proposed partnership will greatly reinforce our presence in China,” Nestle CEO Paul Bulcke said in a statement. “It also demonstrates our longterm commitment to China and enhances our ability to grow our port-

folio of international and local brands in this dynamic market.” In April, Nestle bought a controlling stake in Yinlu Foods Group, a Chinese producer of ready-to-drink peanut milk and canned rice porridge, for an undisclosed amount.

Nestle is particularly eager to exploit Hsu Fu Chi’s distribution network in China. The confectionery company, founded in 1992 by four Taiwanese brothers, operates four large-scale factories in China and employs 16,000 people. Hsu Fu Chi makes sweets, cereal snacks, packaged cakes and sachima, a traditional Chinese pastry made of flour, butter and rock sugar.

Nestle entered the Chinese market over twenty years ago and last year had sales of 2.8 billion francs in the China region. Its biggest sellers in China - where it operates 23 factories and employs 14,000 people - include Nescafe, Nan and Maggi as well as domestic brands such as Totole, Haoji and Dashan.

Worldwide Nestle sales reached 109.7 billion francs last year, up from 107.6 billion in 2009. The takeover of Hsu Fu Chi is subject to regulatory approval in China, Nestle said. — AP

Kuwait Airways Privatization Committee initiates restructuring of Kuwait Airways KUWAIT: The Privatization Committee of Kuwait Airways (“PrivComm”) has completed a survey reviewing the senior, technical and administrative human resources requirements to ensure the operational effectiveness of Kuwait Airways Corporation is maintained once the privatisation process has commenced. The survey was undertaken by Seabury, the PrivComm’s dedicated specialist aviation consultancy, whose responsibility includes the analysis of Kuwait Airways Corporation’s (“KAC”) existing and short term human capital requirements.

In line with the requirements and obligations set under Law No. 6 for the year 2008, KAC has approached all Kuwaiti nationals employed by the carrier and its subsidiaries (a total of approximately 2,600 individuals) to ascertain their preference for their future role with the Company.

Each employee was offered one of three choices as provided by the law: move to the new operating company of Kuwait Airways, retire (if qualified) or transfer to another Government entity.

Employees who have elected to either retire or transfer to another Government entity will be released at the conclusion of the privatisation process.

In collaboration with Seabur y, PrivComm has also undertaken a review of the privatized Company’s human resources requirements and resolved that at a date that falls in line with the privatisation process, transitional interim management positions will be offered as

the Company proceeds with the privatisation process.

This forms part of a series of initiatives that are designed to provide the appropriate interim management structure for the privatisation process and the new Company’s initial period of operations.

Seabury has started and is progressing the interview process of prospective applicants and the decision relating to the interim management positions will be announced once the financial, structural and legal framework of the new Company has been established. This process of transition is ongoing and PrivComm will keep all parties fully updated about developments as they occur.

The importance of the Company’s human capital will be paramount in its success moving forward. The employees will form the foundation of the successful implementation of the revised operational strategy in the next phase of the airline’s development, in which the airline will seek to improve the efficiency of its operations to face future competitive challenges.

The privatization of a Government company requires detailed strategic and operational planning, in order to ensure that the company is fully prepared to face future responsibilities and challenges. PrivComm is confident that with a revised business model, KAC will maintain its leading role in the national airline industry, with the support of the employees who will take responsibility for the airline’s operations in the future.

WASHINGTON: Deficit reduction talks between President Barack Obama and Republican leaders ran into trouble yesterday at a meeting marked by testy exchanges and a failure to mend rifts on taxes and socialspending cuts. With negotiations aimed at averting a debt default entering a critical phase, Obama made clear that he and congressional leaders were racing the clock to reach a deal needed to avert a debt default. In a 75-minute meeting at the White House, Obama’s Democrats and congressional Republicans were at odds, not only about the specifics of debt and deficit talks, but also on their scope.

Obama’s Democrats tried to revive a push for a sweeping $4 trillion package that would cut the deficit through spending cuts and tax increases while Republicans urged a focus on a smaller, $2 trillion measure and underscored their opposition to tax hikes. A Democratic official familiar with the discussions said that when Republicans in the room said the time was not right for an ambitious deficit-cutting plan, Obama asked them: “If not now, when?”

The Democratic official said the president was prepared to meet every day this week in hopes of breaking the impasse. The US Treasury has said it will exhaust its borrowing capacity by Aug. 2, meaning it will run out of money to pay all its debts. Republicans have balked at raising the $14.3 trillion US debt limit without steep spending cuts while Democrats want to increase revenue by eliminating tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations in some sectors such as the oil and gas industry. Asked on Sunday whether an agreement could be reached within the next 10 days, Obama told reporters: “We need to.”

Failure to seal a deal by August 2nd could spook investors, causing US interest rates to surge, stock prices to plummet and putting the United States at risk of another recession, Treasury officials and private economists have warned. Sunday’s debt talks of less than 1-1/2 hours were unexpectedly brief. Late last week, the White House said it viewed the talks as “vital” and congressional aides predicted a

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama meets with House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Md., from left, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Va., House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif., House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nev., right, in the Cabinet Room of the White House on Sunday to discuss the debt. —AP session lasting four or five hours.

Loss of momentum But Saturday ’s decision by House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner to abandon the goal of a far-reaching deficit package in favor of a smaller one led to a loss of momentum and finger-pointing on both sides. Boehner, the top US Republican, had previously agreed with Obama on the aim of a wider agreement. One source familiar with the meeting said Boehner said little during the talks while Representative Eric Cantor, the No. 2 Republican in the House, was more vocal. In one particularly tense moment, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid berated Republicans for talking a lot about deficit reduction but then backing out whenever it comes time to make tough decisions.

He raised several examples stretching over the past year and a half, most recently Cantor

Industry unhappy with Australia’s pollution tax SYDNEY: Airlines, miners and industry launched a furious attack on Australia’s bold new tax on carbon emissions yesterday, as Prime Minister Julia Gillard began selling the levy to skeptical voters. Business leaders warned the tax on the nation’s 500 biggest polluters would not only cost taxpayers billions and force major industry to slash production and jobs, but would fail to reduce global carbon emissions. The government defended the scheme, which will price carbon at Aus$23 per ton from July 1 next year, saying it was the best way to help slow global warming and save natural treasures such as the Great Barrier Reef.

“At its core it really is quite simple, we at the moment put carbon pollution into our atmosphere for nothing, a big polluter can just keep chugging it up into the skies and not pay anything,” Gillard said. “The core of this is those big polluters will pay a price, they’re smart business people, when a bill comes in for carbon pollution they’ll say, ‘How can I reduce that bill, how can I change my processes so I generate less carbon pollution?’.” Gillard said the levy, which will be offset by a package of personal tax breaks including the lifting of the taxfree threshold for workers, would slash carbon pollution in Australia, one of the world’s biggest per capita emitters.

Under the plan, which is under heavy attack from the conservative opposition party, there will be a fixed price on carbon pollution until the Asia-Pacific’s largest emissions trading scheme to date is launched in 2015.

As the Australian share market dipped more than one percent yesterday, industry leaders rounded on the plan driven by Gillard, who had pledged during last year’s election campaign not to introduce a carbon tax. The coal industry came out with all guns blazing, warning the new tax would force mine closures and cost thousands of jobs in the industry that is one of the major

drivers of Australia’s mineral exports-led economy.

“It ’s a regrettable policy,” Ralph Hillman, executive director of the Australian Coal Association, told public broadcaster ABC. “You are going to lose jobs in Australia, we calculate about 4,700 direct jobs (through closures of existing mines), but for no cuts in emissions,” he said, casting doubt on the effectiveness of the scheme. The Minerals Council said the plan would “take a baseball bat to the Australian economy”, including a Aus$25 billion hit to mining, while doing little to reduce emissions. Managing director of Rio Tinto Australia David Peever described the reform as “an unfair tax on Australian exporters” that left them at a disadvantage compared to international rivals.

And Australia’s richest woman, mining magnate Gina Rinehart said the carbon tax, along with a proposed levy on iron ore and coal, were hurting the country’s competitiveness.

“Obviously the carbon tax and MRRT (minerals resource rent tax) don’t help our cost competitiveness. They hurt us,” Rinehart said, Dow Jones Newswires reported. Qantas and Virgin Blue said the multi-million dollar cost of the tax would be passed on in full to their passengers while the nation’s biggest employer lobby group, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, warned it would weaken the economy dubbed the “Wonder from Down Under”.

But Gillard, who engaged in a vigorous election-style media blitz to sell the tax yesterday, said the coal industry would not be harmed and jobs would not be jeopardized. “ There will be growth in jobs in coal,” she said. “The demand for coal will continue,” she said.

But the government faces a tough battle convincing voters, who polls have shown are resistant to the tax, which is expected to increase consumer prices by 0.7 percent. — AFP

SYDNEY: A businessman is reflected in the window of the newly refurbished Australian Stock Exchange in Sydney yesterday after the announcement of the new tax on carbon emissions. — AFP

walking out of talks led by Vice President Joe Biden and Boehner saying on Saturday that a big deal was not possible. In addition to taxes, one major sticking point in the talks has been Democratic resistance to cuts in huge social welfare programs such as the Social Security retirement program and Medicare health plan. Investor worries about the debt ceiling were expected this week to put pressure on the US dollar, which fell on Friday after a grim jobs report. Christine Lagarde, the new head of the International Monetary Fund, warned that a US default would have global repercussions.

“If you draw out the entire scenario of a default, yes, of course, you have all of that, you know, interest hikes, stock markets taking a huge hit and real nasty consequences,” the former French finance minister told ABC’s “This Week.” — Reuters

Agility signs Nando’s deal DUBAI: Agility, a leading global logistics provider, has been appointed by Nando’s, renowned international restaurant chain, as its provider of complete end-toend supply chain solutions for the UAE, Kuwait and Oman. As part of the contract, Agility will provide Nando’s with a range of integrated logistics solutions.

These services include sourcing goods from multiple suppliers, consolidation of shipments from the Netherlands and South Africa, freight forwarding and warehousing. Agility will also distribute Nando’s frozen goods and dry food items to their franchise partners, covering the needs of their growing portfolio of restaurants.

“With a well-established presence and a growing regional footprint, Nando’s needed a partner with the expertise, flexibility and assets to help facilitate our development in the Gulf,” said Dave Corbett, Logistics Director, Nando’s. “With Agility, we have found that partner.” Houssam Mahmoud, Agility’s Senior Vice President, UAE and Oman, commented, “ We are delighted to enter into this relationship with Nando’s.

This win is a testament to the strength of our regional capabilities and further proof of our expertise in helping customers expand their business within complex emerging markets.”

Austria’s economy healthy but reforms needed: OECD VIENNA: Austria’s economy has recovered well from the global crisis, thanks to strong exports, but the government needs to enact reforms on pensions, education and competition, the OECD said yesterday.

“The Austrian economy continues to impress with very good economic performance while maintaining a high degree of social cohesion,” the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said in its economic survey of Austria.

For 2011, the OECD set growth at 2.9 percent of gross domestic product, followed by 2.1 percent next year. It also forecast an unemployment rate at 4.2 percent in 2011 and 4.0 percent in 2012, with inflation set at 3.1 and 1.8 percent respectively.

Earlier this month, Austria’s leading think-tanks had predicted growth of 3.0 percent this year, dropping to 2.3-2.5 percent in 2012. Despite these positive results however, the OECD warned that Austria was in serious need of reforms. These included dropping any subsidies for early retirement; boosting work incentives for low skilled workers and encouraging further training; promoting competition in such sectors as rail, electricity and post; providing expanded childcare; and reforming the education system by, for instance, introducing university tuition fees.

Austria’s good economic results gave the government “a golden opportunity ” to implement changes, the OECD urged. “These reform directions are essential for the future growth performance, because positive external shocks in the wake of European integration will most likely not continue with the same strength as in the past two decades, and drivers of growth will depend more on domestic sources,” it said. The Paris-based organization also warned of fiscal vulnerabilities, pushing for a tax system reform and more efficient spending, and encouraging the government to further improve the expensive healthcare system. — AFP

26

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

BUSINESS

Murdoch under pressure to reconsider British bid Ministry ‘aims to block BSkyB deal on competition grounds’ LONDON: Britain was looking for a way out of approving media baron Rupert Murdoch’s multi-billion dollar deal to buy broadcaster BSkyB amid a phone-hacking scandal that has damaged the prime minister and raised broader questions about politicians’ relations with the media. Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, from the junior coalition partner the Liberal Democrats, urged Murdoch to reconsider the bid after revelations one of his newspapers hacked into the phones of murder victims and relatives of Britain’s war dead.

“Do the decent thing, and reconsider, think again about your bid for BSkyB,” Clegg told BBC News after meeting relatives of one of the victims of phone-hacking, a murdered schoolgirl. The government, which faces a stormy parliamentary debate tomorrow, earlier asked media regulator Ofcom and the consumer watchdog to reassess the bid in the light of the scandal, a move that could provide a basis to block the buyout. The new request to Ofcom, which is already assessing whether News Corp is a ‘fit and proper’ holder of a broadcast licence, and the Office of Fair Trading follows a report in

Sources close to his company said he could consider other options to get it through if he felt the government was going to block or delay it, but they did not elaborate.

Several people have been arrested and others are likely to give evidence to a police inquiry into the hacking allegations, which include reports police may have been paid for information and a company executive may have destroyed evidence. News Corps’ British media arm firmly denies any obstruction of justice. “You wouldn’t be human if you weren’t totally appalled by the revelations that have come to light, they’re just stomach churning and I think everyone feels

$14-billion bid for the 61 percent of BSkyB that it does not already own.

He said yesterday that the government had moved reluctantly.

“They are doing it not because they want to, but because they have been forced to,” he said. A vote in parliament could split the coalition between Cameron’s Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats who, traditionally less favoured by Murdoch’s media, have signalled they could vote with Labour on the issue. It would also give Labour a chance to cast itself as the champion of a public angered by allegations that News of the World reporters and editors

LONDON: News Corp chief Rupert Murdoch leaves his London home yesterday. Media baron Rupert Murdoch yesterday fought to keep his bid for satellite broadcaster BSkyB alive after reports that his top executives were aware of the widespread phone-hacking which felled News of the World. —AFP the Independent newspaper that government lawyers were drawing up plans to block the BSkyB deal.

Shares in BSkyB dropped more than 7 percent yesterday morning after a similar fall on Friday. News Corp shares fell more than 7 percent in New York last week. “We believe the deal is all but dead,” Panmure Gordon analyst Alex DeGroote said. The head of UK equities at one top 30 investor in BSkyB told Reuters they expected the deal to be delayed. “I believe the takeover will happen in due course but it is unlikely to go through until next year at the earliest,” the investor said. Murdoch flew to London on Sunday from the US to try to contain the damage to his media empire, which wields influence from Hollywood to Hong Kong and includes US cable network Fox and the Wall Street Journal as well as Britain’s biggest selling paper, the Sun. He has shown no sign of backing away from the BSkyB deal.

totally shaken,” Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt said in a television interview.

Hunt’s strong comments, and the approach to the regulators, may have been designed to give the government some political cover ahead of tomorrow ’s debate, lawyers said, as from a legal standpoint the takeover deal and hacking scandal are not linked. Both Hunt and Prime Minister David Cameron, from the centre-right Conservatives who lead the coalition government, have been accused by leftleaning Labour of being too close to Murdoch and too slow to act to uncover the full extent of the scandal. Andy Coulson, a former editor of the News of the World, was until earlier this year Cameron’s spokesman, before he was forced to resign over the scandal. Labour party leader Ed Miliband said on Sunday he would force parliament to vote this week if Cameron did not take steps to halt News Corp’s

were complicit in breaking into voicemails including those of bombing victims for stories. “We are working on a plan to suspend the deal while the police investigation is taking place,” the Independent quoted a senior government source as saying. A spokesman for the prime minister declined to comment.

Hunt’s letter to the regulator asked them to consider whether News Corp’s undertakings which were made to secure the deal were still credible given the revelations. “Given the well-publicised matters involving the News of the World in the past week...I would be grateful if you could let me know whether you consider that any new information that has come to light causes you to reconsider any part of your previous advice to me including your confidence in the credibility, sustainability of practicalities of the undertakings offered by News Corporation,” the letter said.

Murdoch’s own Sunday Times

reported that a 2007 internal investigation at the News of the World had found evidence that phone hacking was more widespread than the company had admitted and that staff had illegally paid police for information.

As Murdoch, 80, was driven into his London headquarters on Sunday, he held up the final edition of the News of the World, the 168-year-old newspaper he bought in 1969 then closed last week in a bid to stem the crisis.

Christina Camargo-Lima, walking on her way to work past Murdoch’s London flat yesterday morning, welcomed the criticism of Murdoch. “I think it’s time the mogul came down. They just can’t control democracy like that.”

LURID HEADLINES The News of the World is best known for its lurid headlines exposing misadventures of the rich, royal and famous. Its last headline said simply “Thank You & Goodbye” over a montage of some of its most celebrated splashes of the past 168 years.

Yesterday, the Daily Mirror newspaper reported, citing an unidentified source, that News of the World journalists had offered to pay a New York police officer to retrieve the private phone records of victims of the September 11, 2001, attacks.

Murdoch dined on Sunday in an up market hotel with his British newspaper arm’s chief executive Rebekah Brooks, a friend of Cameron’s and editor of the News of the World at the time of the alleged phone-hacking, and his son and heir apparent, James.

Cameron has since said she should step down.

The affair has thrown a harsh spotlight on the long-standing ties between British politicians and Murdoch. Cameron has insisted that the government has no legal power to block the BSkyB deal if it is satisfied that enough media plurality-competition-will be maintained. It had already indicated it would accept News Corp’s assurances on this count.

“FIT AND PROPER” The Independent said the government had latterly hoped the broadcasting regulator Ofcom would stop the deal going through on grounds that News Corp directors were not “fit and proper” to run BSkyB, but this was unlikely to happen until a possibly lengthy police investigation had been completed.

Instead, it said lawyers in the depar tment of Culture and media were now looking at using competition criteria to block the deal. That would still be embarrassing for the prime minister, who has ordered a public inquiry and also admitted media barons had too much influence over politicians, but arguably less damaging than a split with his coalition partners. —Reuters

Refiners in northeast Asia decline more Saudi crude SINGAPORE/TOKYO: Saudi Arabia’s offer of additional crude in August drew scant interest from refiners across northeast Asia who declined supplies beyond contracted volumes, while one buyer each in India and Southeast Asia accepted extra barrels of light oil. Ten refiners in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan turned down the Saudi offer, traders said yesterday, as oversupply of highquality Russian ESPO crude prevails in the region and China’s crude imports tumbled 11.5 percent in June from a year earlier to their lowest in eight months.

Limited demand for extra barrels from Asia, the world’s fastest-growing market, would leave the Saudis with few options to find homes for additional cargoes. Top exporter Saudi Aramco was expected to have raised output to near 10 million barrels per day in June. “If buyers do not ask for more, I think Aramco will not provide more,” said a trader with one of the northeast Asian refiners. “Maybe they will switch the grade only.

Arab Heavy is still tight for summer.” Sources with European oil companies said they would receive the same contracted volumes from Saudi Arabia in August as they did in July. At least one source said Aramco did not actively ask if there would be any additional requirement. “Volume-wise, August is same as July.

Everything is according to what we want,” one source with an oil company that had received its allocation, said. “They used to say, ‘if there

is any additional requirement, let us know and we can discuss.’ But not recently.”

SLATE BECOMING LIGHTER The composition of the kingdom’s exports to Asia is getting lighter. At least three refiners of those receiving steady overall amounts will get more of the lighter crude and less of the heavy grades next month, traders said.

Saudi Arabia is aiming to increase exports of light crude to compensate for the disruption to high-quality Libyan oil exports, crimped by the country’s civil war for the past four months. The kingdom had so far aimed those additional volumes of Arab Extra Light at refiners in the Mediterranean.

Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi last month pledged to meet an expected increase in demand in the third quarter after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) failed to agree to a collective production increase. The kingdom’s output in June was expected to be more than 1 million bpd above the May average. Some of the incremental output, typically Arab Light and potentially Arab Heavy, may be staying in the kingdom to fuel power generation to meet peak summer use.

Some traders said the southeast Asian refiner buying more crude was probably Thailand’s PTT, a traditional importer of Abu Dhabi Murban crude from the United Arab Emirates. —Reuters

PHNOM PENH: The Cambodia Securities Exchange building is seen in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, yesterday. Cambodia officially launched its longdelayed stock exchange yesterday although no companies are yet listed for trading. Finance Minister Keat Chhon said at the opening of Cambodia’s exchange that trading was expected to begin by the end of the year. —AP

NEW JERSEY: Celebrity master baker, Buddy Valastro of Carlo’s Bakery, hands out slices of cake at the unveiling of a one-of-a-kind cake in honor of 7-Eleven’s 84th birthday yesterday in Hoboken, New Jersey, as part of the company’s nationwide birthday celebration themed “Our Birthday Your Bash”. —AP

UK gold miner accuses Uzbeks of smear campaign ALMATY: Lawyers for a British gold mining company said yesterday that Uzbekistan authorities are waging a smear campaign in a bid to steal the company’s half of a lucrative joint venture. Robert Amsterdam, who represents Oxus Gold PLC, said in a statement that the company’s state-run partners have concocted stories of alleged violations of environmental standards as a way of forcing the joint venture into liquidation.

Oxus has a 50-percent interest in the Amantaytau Goldfields (AFG) venture, where some of the world’s most promising fields are being developed, while Uzbek authorities own the remaining half through two state-owned entities.

Uzbekistan is the world’s ninth largest producer of gold, which brings in some 20 percent of its export revenue, according to the US State Department.

Uzbek authorities this year initiated an audit that Oxus said was being used to squeeze the company out of the venture. In a new escalation of tensions, AGF’s state-owned stakeholders last month accused Oxus of failing to live up to its investment obligations, introduce new equipment and putting workers’ lives at risk by disregarding safety standards. Amsterdam dismissed those charges and said Oxus has implemented an environmental plan that far exceeds local regulations. “In most countries, these false allegations would be the

source of jokes, but the Uzbek officials are shamelessly motivated by their desire to steal a profitable foreign investment,” he said.

Amsterdam said that as well pursuing bogus tax claims, Uzbek authorities have subjected Oxus to a campaign of bureaucratic harassment and jailed a senior technician in the company on fabricated spying charges. “This kind of conduct effectively holds Oxus hostage.

The international business community should take note of what happens to foreign investors who achieve success in Uzbekistan,” he said. Amsterdam, who is representing Oxus in an international arbitration case against Uzbekistan, says the government’s treatment of the company has cost it more than $400 million.

Oxus operations are focused on Uzbekistan, where it has been operating since the mid-1990s. The company estimates reserves at sites being developed

by AGF at 2.8million ounces of gold and 6.7 million ounces of silver. Several partly foreign-owned ventures were liquidated in Uzbekistan in the past.

The government was quick to buy them up at what market observers consider below-market rates. Uzbek officials say they were willing to part ways with Oxus on amicable terms, but adds that the British miner has resisted all overtures and insisted on trying to sell its assets to another foreign company. —AP

Where was SEC as trouble festered at Chinese firms?

NEW YORK: Alarmed by widening accounting debacles at US-listed Chinese companies, American regulators are scrambling to stem the damage from gaps in laws adopted to protect investors after the Enron scandal a decade ago. US investors had risked billions of dollars on hundreds of companies based in China under a belief they were subject to US rules when they sell and list shares in the United States - but a lot of that money has gone up in smoke.

The accounting blowups have humbled some prominent American investors such as top hedge fund manager John Paulson and former AIG CEO Maurice “Hank” Greenberg, spawned lawsuits and prompted a broad investigation by US regulators. Since March alone, more than two dozen US-listed Chinese companies have announced auditor resignations or accounting problems, and there have been similar blowups in Canada. Regulators and exchanges also have appeared flat-footed in the face of the growing scandal. US laws, including the sweeping 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley reform act meant to root out accounting fraud, lose some of their power with Chinese-based entities. The US has no extradition treaty with China and the evidence gathering process in China is impeded by state secrets laws.

“The Chinese accounting problem has been festering for a long time,” said Duke University law professor Jim Cox, who serves on a standing advisory group of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), which was set up under SarbanesOxley to oversee accounting firms, including doing thorough inspections of their work.

Thwarted by state laws?

“It’s going to get worse before it gets better,” said Cox, who faults the US Securities and Exchange Commission for not taking quicker action. In particular, he said, the SEC has been slow to tighten oversight of US shell companies acquired by Chinese firms through socalled “reverse mergers” to gain access to US capital markets without having to go through an initial public offering. SEC officials acknowledged problems with inspecting the accounting records of China-based companies well over a year ago at a meeting of the PCAOB advisory group, he said. Meredith Cross, head of corporation finance for the SEC, said the agency has stepped up its reviews of Chinese reverse merger firms over the past year.

“We’re currently thinking through whether there is more that we can do,” Cross said.

A year ago, it launched a cross-border working group to review issues with Chinese reverse mergers and other companies with substantial foreign operations. Officials from the SEC and PCAOB are holding talks with counterparts in Beijing this week in an attempt to get inspection access to Chinese auditors for US-listed companies as one way to get on top of the problem. But regulators

said there is a core problem with tackling the reverse merger question head on because mergers come under state rather than federal law. “We don’t have a way to say, ‘You can’t do reverse mergers,’” said the SEC’s Cross.

“Because the issue of whether someone can merge is not an SEC question, but a matter of state law, it’s not something where we could just wave a magic wand and say, ‘we’re not going to let reverse mergers happen anymore.’”

She did, though, note that such firms were bound by reporting requirements once they were listed. The SEC also has resource constraints, she said, with about 350 people in its corporation finance division reviewing financial reports of more than 10,000 public companies. It has, though, been devoting more resources to the reverse mergers problem, she noted. Further complicating matters, the SEC’s Chinese counterpart, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, has no enforcement authority over many of the companies accused of fraud because they only sell shares in the United States.

Like other securities regulators, the CSRC has limited resources, said former SEC chairman Christopher Cox. “When triage is the name of the game, it’s natural that the home country’s priority is protecting its own citizens.”

The SEC has brought several actions against China-based issuers in recent years. In most cases, action consisted of suspending trading or revoking companies’ registration, though more severe penalties were also pursued.

China Energy Savings Technology Inc and its managers were ordered by a federal court in 2009 to pay a $34 million judgment after being charged with a stock manipulation scheme by the SEC. Chinese courts typically do not enforce US judgments, though at least $4 million will be recovered in that case because the SEC froze assets in the United States.

Access to work papers difficult Accounting misconduct fell dramatically in the United States after authorities cracked down on corporate crime in the wake of the Enron and WorldCom frauds. A section of Sarbanes-Oxley that made it a felony for executives to certify false financial statements was one big deterrent. That provision applies to companies that sell securities in US markets, whether they are based in the United States or another country, but few Chinese executives fear being led away in handcuffs because of the lack of an extradition treaty, lawyers said.

“If you’re a CEO of a company based in China and sign a false Sarbanes-Oxley certification, it’s very difficult for the US government or Justice Department to charge you with that crime, indict you and bring you to justice,” said Phillip Kim, attorney at the Rosen Law Firm.

“There are no treaties that provide for that.”

Some Chinese executives resist answering to US authorities at all, auditors said. —Reuters

27

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

TECHNOLOGY

Storage options for home networks BERLIN: The modern data driven world brings with it modern problems. The networked man or woman today needs to manage an increasing volume of information scattered across multiple computers, smartphones, and hard drives. That can include vacation snapshots, videos from the internet, email messages and multiple years’ worth of tax returns. Juggling that stream of data can get complicated.

One potential source of relief is NAS drives: networked hard drives that can back up and store data from all connected devices and provide a common storage space for the entire family. Some are also suitable for redundant storage of data - or even for jukebox duty. NAS stands for Network Attached Storage. It is a form of storage space connected directly to the home network. The NAS device itself is simply attached via a LAN cable to the router.

An NAS box contains one or more hard drives as well as a processor.

“That means the system works even if no PC is turned on or connected to it the entire

time. It works autonomously,” explains Danny Ullrich, a manager at hardware maker Netgear. The advent of NAS brings with it major benefits.

“USB devices are connected to individual computers. With NAS drives, you can create a platform and provide content to a restricted circle of users,” says Richard Rutledge, manager at peripherals maker Western Digital.

The entire family can access the network hard drive. The US company is one of any number of firms that sell NAS devices.

Buffalo, Netgear, Synology, and D-Link are other notable names with NAS units available. User access rights can be assigned by an administrator to define who can access what. “That means, for example, that I can prevent my children from having access to the tax documents, but allow them access to the folder with kids’ movies,” Ullrich explains.

Ullrich suggests that users look for devices offering multiple slots for hard drives. That makes it easier to scale up the

NAS if someone in the family starts collecting gigabyte upon gigabyte of data. It also makes it easier to back up the trove of digital data as RAID technology allows for data to be mirrored or stored redundantly.

However, the process requires a lot of storage space. “Users have to consider whether they want maximum capacity, major security against failures or a compromise between the two,” Ullrich notes. If you opt against mirroring, then you should be sure to routinely connect an external hard drive to the NAS unit and make a backup.

NAS drives cost more than simple hard drives, but can do much more. As a rule of thumb, the higher the price, the more functionality they offer. Even the lower priced devices can connect to a printer. Others can be used as a BitTorrent client for swapping data via the popular peer-to-peer network, or can be configured to allow access to data from on the go.

Some can even serve as a jukebox and VCR in one, delivering streaming music and videos to smartphones, laptops or a PC.

“Almost all NAS drives support iTunes nowadays,” says technology expert Wolfgang Tunze from Germany ’s Association for Entertainment and Communications Electronics (gfu). If the device is compatible with the broadly implemented UPnP or DLNA standards, then it can also feed content to modern TVs, gaming consoles or internet radios. That provides an easy way to display vacation snapshots on the big flatscreen TV in the living room.

Many providers of online hard drives offer similar functionality to NAS drives, such as secure storage of data and remote access for users wherever they are. The approach is known as ‘cloud computing.’

Storing data “in the cloud” has disadvantages over NAS technology, Tunze says. For starters, monthly fees apply if the data volume exceeds a specific monthly threshold.

Another factor to take into account is that internet connectivity tends to be slower than access over a home network.

There are also “emotional objections” raised by some users in light of the recent

data privacy breaches suffered by big name companies. For this reason he recommends: “Don’t put anything in the cloud that you don’t intend to use on the go.”

Many NAS drives offer a compromise between home server and cloud, namely remote access to the home network. The data can easily be downloaded using a browser or NAS-specific program although the function is not always easy to set up.

“For many of the devices, it’s the kind of thing that only an ambitious network hobbyist can manage,” says Tunze. There are many long forum discussions on the internet to attest to this. A combination of cloud services and NAS drives is offered by the web-hosting company Strato, for example.

Low-end NAS drives are available for as little as 140 dollars. More money brings greater storage capacity and better hardware for quicker data transfer rates. Many mid-range models also offer power management, including a stand-by mode when not in use and an internal clock for switching on and off at specific times. — dpa

Clever technology steers cars through roadworks Diesel hybrid can cut fuel consumption by 30%

SUN VALLEY: Eric Schmidt, left, executive chairman of Google, talks with Jeff Bewkes, chairman and CEO of Time Warner during the 2011 Allen and Co. Sun Valley Conference, in Sun Valley, Idaho. —AP

Belgium’s highways shine into space - but for how long?

BRUSSELS: When Belgian astronaut Frank De Winne feels homesick when in space, all he needs to do, provided it’s night, is look down for the bright spot for even nowadays, Belgium keeps its highways switched on. The almost 100 percent illumination of the country’s highways can indeed be seen from space with a telescopic lens, said European Space Agency (ESA) spokesman in the German city of Cologne.

But down on earth, the mood is changing and Belgium soon may not shine so brightly. Almost no other country on earth can currently afford such a luxury, and as energy-saving and costcutting measures bite, even Belgium is beginning to consider a switch-off.

Another exception is its tiny but wealthy neighbour, Luxembourg, which too offers almost 100-percent lighting on its 150 kilometres (93 miles) of highways.

Belgium currently each and every evening turns on 335,000 lights fitted to 150,000 lampposts on its motorways and main roads. In the economically struggling southern French-speaking region of Wallonia, 750 kilometres of the 860-kilometre grid are lit up at night. In the wealthier Dutch-speaking north, Flanders, the roads are 100 percent illuminated, according to transport ministries from both regions.

But officials are beginning to look at the cost. Cash-strapped Wallonia last year paid out 9.5 million euros for 105 gigawatt-hours of electricity for road lighting-to produce that amount of electricity a standard nuclear reactor would need to run for about four days.

The kingdom’s affection for road lights dates to concerns some 60 years backthe post-World War II period when more

and more families were buying carsover spiralling fatalities on roads at night.

In the 1950s, the Wallonia transport ministry said, while only a quarter of road traffic took place after nightfall, more than half of fatal casualties occurred during the night. Lamps were therefore introduced “mainly for safety reasons, all the more since energy costs seemed reasonable at that time,” a recent ministry report said.

Twenty years later, exits and driveups were illuminated too as planners sought to spare drivers the constant change from darkness to light. But the apparent benefits for road safety have come under question. The Belgium Institute for Road Security (IBSR) offers mixed conclusions in a recent report.

While lighting was installed “with the best of intentions”, it presents “a certain number of more or less important inconveniences”, it says. While lighting undoubtedly increases visibility, it can also give those at the wheel “a (false) sense of safety”, the experts add. And lampposts in many cases have turned out to be “extremely rigid and dangerous obstacles” responsible for more than 18 percent of fatalities involving obstacles, the report added.

It said that a driver who loses control of his vehicle faces double the risk of being killed against a lamppost than against a highway railing. Conservative European parliamentarian Peter Liesse, a member of Germany’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) — Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party-who works on the implementation of European energy efficiency targets, says the European Union cannot force Belgium to switch off the highway lighting. — AFP

BERLIN: Many a motorist finds it stressful driving through a narrow single lane of road works on the motorway, fearing that the driver in front could hit the brakes, swerve unexpectedly or do something else that might cause a collision. With an electronic helper taking over control all that could soon become a thing of the past.

The “road works” electronic system is one of seven results of the European Union project HAVEit that is working on automatic driving systems. “The project’s main objective was to develop ideas that could be put into reality in the near future without becoming too unrealistic,” according to project coordinator Reiner Hoeger. At present the HAVEit fleet comprises of four VW Passat cars, two trucks and a bus from Volvo.

During a recent event the fleet demonstrated the potential of future driver assistant systems on a test track near the Swedish city of Boras.

The “road works” system uses an assortment of cameras, sensors, radar and onboard computers that can already be found in some of today’s vehicles. The components are combined in such a way that they can discern

between normal road markings and those found at a road works. They at the same time regulate the distance to the car in front and if necessary can trigger an emergency braking procedure.

The German Centre for Aviation and Space (DLR) is working on a FasCarII system where the driver need only give a signal that he wants to overtake the car in front. The system then does the rest by checking the traffic situation and whether it is safe to overtake, changing the lane and returning. “With these autopilot functions it is important that the driver remains in control,” says Birgit Pattberg from the DLR project.

The driver always has the choice in deciding when to refer tasks to the autopilot functions. Even if the driver allows the car to accelerate, brake and steer by its own, it does not mean he can take a nap. A camera monitors the driver all the time and if need be gives off a command to switch off the automatic mode and to drive the car himself.

In a similar way the “Active Green Driving” system installed in the Volvo test bus keeps a constant tab on the driver. With the help of sensors, digital maps and GPS data the bus

KEEP IT CLOSE

Guarding against mobile, laptop theft

TAIPEI: A Micro-Star International tablet computer is diplayed at Computex Taipei. Simpler and more powerful notebooks are facing challenge from Apple’s iconic product. — AFP

New app enables to book hotels

TOKYO: A model displays Japanese electronics giant Panasonic’s tablet device for the electronic book reader “UT PB1”, equipped with a dual-core processor on its CPU with Google’s Android OS and a 7-inch LCD display. — AFO

has an exact picture of the route. Apart from teaching the driver to drive economically, the system optimises engine management.

A diesel hybrid alone can cut fuel consumption by 30 per cent compared to a standard vehicle but the Active-Green-Driving system can further reduce consumption by between six and eight per cent, according to Achim Beutner from Volvo.

The two trucks in the fleet are fitted with innovative systems to improve safety and driving comfort. A “Brake-by-Wire” system transmits the braking impulse to the brake pedal electronically. This electro-mechanical brake can reduce the braking path by up to 15 per cent.

The second truck can switch to an automatic mode in stop-and-go traffic. “The driver is facing growing traffic density and information overflow. At the same time we have a population growing older which will inevitably lead to highly automatic vehicles,” project coordinator Hoeger argues.

Both man and the environment stand to benefit. “The driver can relax more and is steered through traffic with less impact on the environment,” he adds. — dpa

NEW YORK: With air fares remaining stubbornly high, more people are taking to the road for summer getaways, making them more likely to need on-the-go travel resources. Travel giant Orbitz has launched an app which is billed as the only online travel company iPad app to enable GPS-powered mobile research and hotel bookings.

Orbitz CEO Barney Harford said the new app was designed “from the ground up to take advantage of iPad’s format and interface.” He added that it will allow customers to search for, compare and book hotels effortlessly. In developing the app Orbitz noted its survey results which showed that more than half of the 1,000 people questioned said their mobile device was the most helpful for researching and planning activities once they arrived at their destination, com-

pared to one-third who find it most helpful before they leave.

Only 15 percent said their mobile device was most helpful for booking vacations. And interestingly, more than one -quarter of men said they had booked travel with a mobile device, compared to only eight percent of women.

Mobile device users are also many times more likely to be booking same-day accommodations than people using the original website.

The app includes hotels at thousands of destinations worldwide available on Orbitz’ website, which boasts 10 million visitors a month, and filters hotels by price, ratings or location. It also allows users to locate nearby hotels using the iPad’s GPS capabilities, and to compare hotels and prices on an interactive map. — Reuters

BERLIN: Smartphones, tablets, netbooks and notebooks are small, lightweight and easy to steal. Worse, in cases of theft, people don’t just lose expensive technology, but important data.

All it takes is one quick grab. And people make it easy for thieves by laying their devices in front of them at restaurants, when they go to their bathrooms or when they put them in an outside pocket of a backpack.

It’s awful, says Rainer Hattenhauer, a technology author. “A modern smartphone is at least as important as money or credit cards and should be treated the same way.” He’s also sceptical of technologies that help people find these devices if they do get stolen: “I’ve never heard of a case where someone got his mobile back after a robbery.” Thus, protection means prevention: making sure the device never gets stolen. Second, make sure the damage is limited if the worst does happen.

Andreas Mayer, who heads a German police criminal prevention unit, agrees. It’s important to never give thieves an opportunity, he says. “The most effective protection is to keep the device on your person.” He says notebook locks or padlocked briefcases aren’t as useful, partially because they’re impractical.

“If the security doesn’t sensibly fit into your day, then it disrupts more than it’s useful,” says Hattenhauer. There are also physical security devices for smartphones, like alarm devices on key chains that automatically sound when they’re a certain distance from the phone. The problem there is that the devices operate via Bluetooth, says Mayer.

“Third parties can eventually access sensitive data with an active Bluetooth connection,” he says. That creates a new risk. Prevention also requires clearly identifying smartphones and notebooks. That’s easy with smartphones thanks to the International Mobile Equipment Identity number, individualized for each mobile and accessible by dialing *#06#.

Owners should note this number. If the device is stolen, it can always be identified this way.

Identification is a little more difficult with a notebook. One possibility is creating an owner identification number that can be engraved into the housing or affixed with a special sticker. That way, police or lost-and-found offices can contact the owner. Some police departments can help with putting on the numbers.

Stores also offer software designed to help track down notebooks or smartphones. “It’s not always useful,” says Mayer. Usually, the location service is not specific enough and the area range shown too big. The chances of finding a device this way are slim. But that doesn’t mean throwing your hands up in the air if you’ve been robbed. — dpa

y

A

28

e niv rsar n

Years

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

HEALTH & SCIENCE

To fight obesity, even babies should exercise LONDON: In a new campaign against obesity, the British government issued guidelines yesterday saying that children under the age of 5 - including those who can’t even walk yet should exercise every day. In its first such guidelines for children that young, the health department said kids under 5 who can walk should be physically active for at least three hours a day. Officials also said parents should reduce the amount of time such kids spend being sedentary

while watching television or being strapped in a stroller.

The three hours of activity should be spread throughout the day.

Officials said the children’s daily dose of exercise is likely to be met simply through playing but could also include activities such as walking to school. For babies who can’t walk yet, the government said physical activity should be encouraged from birth, including infants playing on their stomachs or having swimming ses-

sions with their parents. The government said children’s individual physical and mental abilities should be considered when interpreting the advice.

“It’s vital that parents introduce children to fun and physically active pastimes to help prevent them becoming obese children, who are likely to become obese adults at risk of heart disease, diabetes and some cancers,” Maura Gillespie, head of policy and advocacy at the British Heart Foundation, said in a statement.

Nearly a quarter of British adults are obese, and experts estimate that by 2050 about 90 percent of adults will be heavy.

According to a 2008 health survey that used devices to measure how much people actually exercised, officials found only about five percent of Britons meet the government’s minimum physical activity advice - about 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise every week, including some every day. For children aged 5 to 18,

Britain recommends at least one hour of exercise, but that should include intensive activities to strengthen muscles and bones. In the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises children and teenagers to get about one hour or more of physical activity every day. According to the Institute of Medicine, an independent organization in Washington, D.C., toddlers should get at least 15 minutes of exercise for every hour they spend in child care. — AP

Scientists find superbug strain of gonorrhoea Gonorrhoea can cause ectopic pregnancies, infertility

BEIJING: India’s Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Ghulam Nabi Azad (C) speaks to China’s Minister of Health, Chen Zhu (C) and China delegate Ren Minghui (R) after the first BRICS health minister’s meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing yesterday. The BRICS group of emerging countries which account for more than 40 percent of the world’s population vowed to improve access to low-cost and high-quality medicines as Health ministers from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa said they would work with the World Health Organisation and UNAIDS to “expand health benefits” and ensure access to “affordable, safe and effective technologies.” — AFP

LONDON: Scientists have found a “superbug” strain of gonorrhoea in Japan that is resistant to all recommended antibiotics and say it could transform a once easily treatable infection into a global public health threat. The new strain of the sexually transmitted disease-called H041 — cannot be killed by any currently recommended treatments for gonorrhoea, leaving doctors with no other option than to try medicines so far untested against the disease. Magnus Unemo of the Swedish Reference Laboratory for Pathogenic Neisseria, who discovered the strain with colleagues from Japan in samples from Kyoto, described it as both “alarming” and “predictable”.

“Since antibiotics became the standard treatment for gonorrhoea in the 1940s, this bacterium has shown a remarkable capacity to develop resistance mechanisms to all drugs introduced to control it,” he said.

In a telephone inter view

Unemo, who will present details of the finding at a conference of the International Society for Sexually Transmitted Disease Research (ISSTDR) in Quebec, Canada yesterday, said the fact that the strain had been found first in Japan also followed an alarming pattern. “Japan has historically been the place for the first emergence and subsequent global spread of different types of resistance in gonorrhoea,” he said.

The team’s analysis of the strain found it was extremely resistant to all cephalosporinclass antibiotics-the last remaining drugs still effective in treating gonorrhoea. Gonorrhoea is a bacterial sexually transmitted infection and if left untreated can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy and infertility in women.

It is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases in the world and is most prevalent in south and southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. In the United

States alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of cases is estimated at around 700,000 a year. British scientists said last year that there was a real risk of gonorrhoea becoming a superbug-a bacteria that has mutated and become resistant to multiple classes of antibioticsafter increasing reports of gonorrhoea drug resistance emerged in Hong Kong, China, Australia and other parts of Asia.

Experts say the best way to reduce the risk of even greater resistance developing-beyond the urgent need to develop effective new drugs-is to treat gonorrhoea with combinations of two or more types of antibiotic at the same time. This technique is used in the treatment of some other diseases like tuberculosis in an attempt to make it more difficult for the bacteria to learn how to conquer the drugs.

Unemo said however that experience from previous

degrees of resistance acquired by gonorrhoea suggested this new multi-drug resistant strain could spread around the world within decades. “Based on the historical data ... resistance has emerged and spread internationally within 10 to 20 years,” he said. Asked whether a class of drugs called carbapenems-known as the most powerful antibiotics yet devisedmight be a last ditch option for treating this new gonorrhoea strain, Unemo said there would first need to be trials to assess their potential. “Carbapenems have never been used for the treatment of gonorrhoea so we cannot interpret the data in any reliable or quality-assured way at the moment,” he said.

The World Health Organisation estimates there are at least 340 million new cases of curable sexually transmitted infectionsincluding syphilis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia and trichomoniasisevery year among people aged 15 to 49. —Reuters

Cutting AIDS funding to China a big mistake BEIJING: It will be a “big mistake” for donors to cut funding to China in the fight against AIDS, the head of UNAIDS said yesterday, rebuffing critics who say the world’s second-largest economy should no longer be a recipient of such aid.

Several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) involved in fighting AIDS in China say they are facing more difficulties in receiving donations from developed nations because of the country’s wealth.

“I think it’ll be a big mistake for a donor and particularly, for anyone who’s invested in China today, to withdraw, for the simple reason that this funding is a catalytic fund,” Michel Sidibe, executive director for the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS told Reuters in an inter view.

Sidibe said the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria was helping to bring innovation and make a difference in most-affected countries by establishing a new link among the government and civil society and

NGOs to work together. The Global Fund has approved funding of $947 million to China, of which $369 million goes to fighting AIDS. The fund’s chief said in April that donors’ decisions to suspend $180 million of aid to the Global Fund could hit efforts to combat the diseases. Germany, Spain and Denmark temporarily stopped payments to the Genevabased fund earlier this year after hearing reports donations had been misused.

Sidibe, a Mali national, is in China for the first meeting of BRICS health ministers, made up of emerging markets of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. HIV/AIDS became a major problem for China in the 1990s when hundreds of thousands of impoverished farmers in rural Henan province became infected through botched blood-selling schemes. It is now spreading primarily via sexual contact.

Beijing was initially slow to acknowledge the threat of the dis-

ease but has since stepped up its efforts, spending more on prevention programmes, launching steps to give universal access to antiretroviral drugs to contain the disease, and introducing policies to curb discrimination. But China has also been war y of AIDS activists who have agitated for the rights of AIDS victims. Hu Jia, an advocate of rural victims of AIDS, was released in June after serving three-and-a-half-years in jail on subversion charges.

Asked about China’s tight controls on AIDS-related NGOs, Sidibe said Vice Premier Li Keqiang told him in a meeting yesterday that making “community-based organisations in the fight against AIDS...was an important transformation that China wants to see.” China, the world’s most populous nation with 1.34 billion people, had 740,000 people infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS and 105,000 AIDS patients in 2009, state news agency Xinhua said, citing United Nations estimates. — Reuters

People with eating disorders to die earlier NEW YORK: Anorexia increases a patient’s risk of death fivefold, and people with bulimia or another nonspecified eating disorder also face an increased risk of deathabout twice as likely to die as people without those disorders, a study said.

The cause of deaths wasn’t always clear, but among anorexics who died, one in five was a suicide. The other deaths were attributed to the eating disorders’ brutal effects on the body over time, researchers wrote in Archives of General Psychiatry.

“Of course, eating disorders have serious physical consequences,” said lead author Jon Arcelus, of Loughborough University in the UK. “The study could not identify how people died, but there is no doubt that the reasons behind this are related to the physical problems of the illness,” he told Reuters Health in an email.

His group carried out a meta-

analysis of 36 studies published between 1966 and 2010, which included 17,000 people with an eating disorder, of whom 755 died.

Their analysis showed that five of ever y 1,000 people with anorexia died each year, which was five times greater than would be expected for comparable people in the general population without an eating disorder.

Among those with bulimia or other eating disorders, the death rate was twice as high as expected compared to those without an eating disorder.

One reason for the results is that people with anorexia nervosa have both psychiatric and medical problems, but most facilities that treat anorexia focus only on the psychiatric problems, said Laird Birmingham, medical director of the Woodstone Residence, a residential facility for people with eating disorders on Galliano Island in British Columbia, Canada.

He noted that most people with anorexia also suffer from depression, anxiety or obsessive compulsive disorder. “Almost all centers only treat (the) anorexia, not the other disorder. Unless both are treated, they won’t get better,” he told Reuters Health. The higher risk of death among those with anorexia reflected the more serious consequences of the disease, he added.

“They are very malnourished.

That isn’t the case with the other disorders,” he said. Arcelus and his colleagues wrote that the results highlighted the seriousness of eating disorders, noting that people who are diagnosed with anorexia later in life, those who are already severely underweight when diagnoses and those who also abuse alcohol seem to be at the greatest risk of dying. “ This sor t of study reminds people that a significant percentage of people die of this disorder,” Birmingham said. — Reuters

MIAMI: Yoga instructor Sarah Henry leads a class during a paddleboard yoga session at Adventure Sports Miami yesterday in Miami, Florida. The paddleboard is said to give the body’s core more of a workout then in a gym since the platform is unstable and one must use the muscles to remain balanced on the board. —AFP

Making the cardio scene with the rowing machine NEW YORK: Overshadowed by rows of treadmills and elliptical trainers, the rowing machine is vertically challenged, usually solitary and often consigned to one of the darker corners of the gym. But experts say if you take time to explore this wallflower of the fitness center, you’ll discover a smooth operator that’s easy on the joints and endowed with a powerful burn.

“It’s probably the best piece of workout equipment in the gym,” said Dr. Timothy Hosea of the American College of Sports Medicine. “It’s a total fitness machine. Unlike running or elliptical, where you use your legs, you exercise every major muscle group in the body in a smooth, controlled manner.”

Hosea, an orthopedic surgeon based in New Brunswick, New Jersey, has rowed since college. He said the rowing machine actually burns more energy per hour than running or swimming. “The average person can easily burn 700 to 750 calories per hour going at a pretty moderate pace,” he said.

So why is the rower ignored?

Hosea thinks part of the problem may lie in the less-than-dignified position of the exerciser. “When

you’re rowing you’re sitting down, and everyone’s towering over you,” he said. Then there’s the learning curve. In the gym physical prowess rules, but the rowing machine requires patience.

“It takes time to learn proper technique,” Hosea said. “It looks really easy but people don’t know how to row in an efficient manner, so tend to avoid that machine.” Power in rowing comes from the legs, Hosea said, but many people think it depends more on the arms and back. “They get discombobulated if they don’t understand that you drive with the legs first.”

Another mistake, he added, is putting so much resistance on the machine that core strength is compromised, and the lower back is stressed. Tiffany Boucher, a personal trainer at an Equinox fitness center in New York City, suspects even some of her fellow trainers don’t know how to use rowing machines properly. “You don’t have a lot of people coming from a crew or rowing background,” she said. “People walk, climb and run on a daily basis, but they have no experience with that movement.”

Trainer Jenn Burke said she rarely uses the one rowing machine at the

Crunch gym in New York where she works, even though it burns a lot of calories quickly. “If you do it on a regular basis you can start to see changes in two to three weeks,” she said. “But you have to have good technique.”

But Richard Louis, another Crunch trainer, uses the rower with clients. “For some people one-half hour of cardio is unthinkable,” he said. “This gets them to start with short periods.” Louis likes to do intervals. “Row hard for 30 seconds, rest for 30 seconds and gradually increase rowing and decrease rest,” he said. “Work hard, back off.” Tom Spring, a Detroit-based trainer who works with high-risk populations, seniors and the chronically ill, uses rowing machines and recommends them, but he cautioned that the under-instructed are at risk for back issues.

“I cringe when I see the way people sometimes use rowing machines,” he said. “That said, rowing machines are underutilized.

There needs to be a call to action for trainers to become more comfortable.” Boucher agrees. “Done correctly it’s really a great workout,” she said. “I just think people don’t often think about it.” —Reuters

y

A

29

e niv rsar n

Years

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

health& science

Does too little sleep lead to weight gain?

NEW YORK: Want to avoid weight gain? Maybe some more sleep would help. People who got very little sleep ate more but didn’t burn any extra calories, according to a US study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition that adds to evidence supporting a link between sleep deprivation and weight gain.

Approximately 50 to 70 million US residents-including a significant number of shift workerssuffer from chronic sleep loss and sleep disorders, according to the National Institutes of Health.

“If you’re trying to control your weight, it would be helpful not to be sleep-deprived,” said Marie-Pierre St-Onge of the New York Obesity Research Center at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital, who led the study. Although the most recent study, like other that have gone before, doesn’t prove that sleeplessness causes people to pack on the extra weight, they do show that sleep should be a

priority, experts said.

St-Onge and her colleagues recruited 30 men and women in their 30s and 40s, all of roughly normal weight. The participants lived and slept in a research center during two different fivenight periods. During one of those visits, they were allowed to sleep for nine hours each night. During the other, they were only allowed four hours of shut-eye. Both times, they were fed a strict diet for the first four days of their stay and then were allowed to eat whatever they wanted on the fifth and final full day.

Tests showed that regardless of which sleep schedule they were on, people burned a similar amount of calories, about 2,600 per day. But when they were sleep-deprived, they fed themselves about 300 more calories on average on the final day of the study compared to when they had been sleeping normal-

ly. Well-rested participants ate an average of 2,500 calories that day, compared to 2,800 when they were running on less sleep.

If that kept up in a person’s normal daily life, it would put the sleep-deprived at a higher risk of obesity, the authors said.

Participants also said they felt more sluggish and less energetic after a few days on the short sleep schedule. There are a few possible explanations behind the link between sleep and eating, with previous studies having shown that sleep-deprived people burn fewer calories.

One is that sleep “seems to play a role in how your body manages the hormones that control how hungry you are, when you’re hungry (and) what kinds of foods you’re hungry for,” said Michael Grandner, who studies sleep and sleep disorders at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Another explanation is that when people are

World Leading Weight Loss Surgeon

tired, they may be less good at making healthy eating decisions.

“It’s possible that when you’re on short sleep you’re more susceptible to giving in to your desires,” St-Onge told Reuters Health. “You walk past a (food) cart or bakery and it smells so good. If you’re sleep-deprived, you may be like, ‘oh, what the heck.’”

Grandner added that it’s possible the link goes both ways, and that eating too much of certain kinds of foods can disrupt a person’s sleep schedule, or that somebody with a stressful job may sleep too little and also eat too much as a result. Too little sleep has also been tied to a host of other health problems, including heart disease and diabetes, which have their own associations with weight, complicating the picture even further, he added. The findings do show that “sleep should be a priority,” he said. — Reuters

British care homes owner to shut LONDON: Southern Cross, the financially troubled owner of 752 care homes in Britain, said yesterday that it would close, but added that its 31,000 elderly residents would continue to receive care. The company said in a statement that it plans to cease operating and hand its homes over to Southern Cross’s landlords after failing to reach a deal to restructure its rental agreements.

Shares in Southern Cross were suspended after the firm finally collapsed, though shareholders had already lost their investments after a dramatic share price slump in recent months. The group employs 44,000 staff. ‘My objective, and that of my team, is to continue to provide excellent care to every resident and to manage the programme of transition professionally,’ Southern Cross chief executive Jamie Buchan said in the statement.

British Prime Minister David Cameron’s spokesman said that no care home residents would be made homeless following the company’s collapse. ‘We have said all along that no-one will be left homeless as a result of this,’ the spokesman told reporters yesterday.

“Local authorities have a duty to ensure people get appropriate care. There are currently around 50,000 spaces available across the country so there should be no reason why anyone will be out on the street. We will ensure that they have somewhere to live and they have appropriate care. ‘The department are talking to Southern Cross about precisely what happens next.’

The spokesman added: ‘Obviously we want to minimise disruption to anyone who might be affected by this.’ — AFP

Al-Seef Al-S Seef Hospita Hospital al International Inter national Visiting Doctors Program m Professor/ Profes sor/ Michel Gagner MD MD, D, FRCSC, F FACS ACS Recipien Recipient nt of «Best Doctor A Award» ward» in the t United States of America for f the years 2006 , 2007 , 20 2008 008 , 2009 & 2010 .

Presiden nt and member of several Inte ernational Medical Association s.

President International Associations.

Surgeryy Depart Department (1995 Chief of Laparoscopic Surger tment at Cleveland Hospital (1 995 - 1998). tment at New Y Surgeryy Depart Department York Chief of Laparoscopic Surger ork Presbyterian Presbyteriaan Hospital (2003-2007). announce international Gagner AI-Seef Hospital is pleased to annou unce the visit of the internati onal Professor/ Michel Gagn ner shall perform procedures Who sha all per form the following 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 FYdU]f cZ \]UhU` \Yfb]U UbX hfYUhaYbhh cZ ;6F8 @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

From

19-2 8 Jul y 201 1

inquiries: 60014054 For Rese Reservation ervation and Further inquiries:

To advertise a on this t page l t t us: please contact

Dermatology tology & Cosmetology Cosmetology t Derma t General Medicine t Int Internal ernal Medicine t Ent tO Ophthalmology phthalmology tP Peadiatric eadiatric t Ob & G Gynecology ynecology

tO Orthopedic rthopedic t XX-ray -ray & Ultrasonograph Ultrasonography g y t General Physician Physician t Dental t LLaboratory aboratory t Pharmac Pharmacyy

Cosmetology C osmetology C Clinic. linic.

248 33 199 ads@kuwaittimes.net

Non SSurgical Non urggical FFacelift, acelifft, Antii AAgeing ggeingg W Wrinkle rinkle Frown Li / Pigmenta Pigmentation D b CChin Frown Lines g tion Double hin Correction Rejuvenation Botox Correction i Sk SSkin kiin R ejuv ox / FFillers illers j enation Bot Painless Laser Laser Hair emoval Dermar ollerr, Painless Removal Dermaroller, H i R Skin Brighting Skin Whitening Whitening & Brightin ng VVail aail TTreatment reatment

Wee A W Accept ccept A All ll M Major a ajjor IInsuramce nsuramce C Cards ards FARWANIYA FA ARWANIYYA - OPP OPP. P. POL POLICE LICE ST STATION TATION T Behind Behind Magadheer Magadheer Commercial Comm mercial Complex Complex

s - 65561619 TEL: 24734000 6 shifakuwait@gmail.com shifak uwait@g gmail.com w www.shifakuwait.com ww.shifakuwait.com Workiing Hours: 8.00 am m tto o 12:00am Working

30

W H AT ’ S O N

PAAET holds scholarship program graduation The Public Authority for Applied Education and Training held a ceremony to celebrate the graduation of its scholarship program students. The event was attended by PAAET director Abdul-Razaq Al-Nufaisi and other staff members. —Photos by Fouad Al-Shaikh

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

31

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

W H AT ’ S O N

French School students celebrate graduation day

T

he French School in Kuwait celebrated the graduation of its high school students in a ceremony held at the school’s campus. The event was attended by the French Ambassador to Kuwait Nada Yafi, as well as the school’s staff and owner Fahad Al-Rashid, in addition to graduates’ families.

Announcements Winds of change “The winds of change in the Arab World,” by Dr. Mohammed Alforgi will be held today July 12 at 7:00pm. Arabs and those 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.

BBQ night Get ready for a mid-summer beach BBQ night on one of the most prestigious venues in town. Relax and enjoy the stunning bay view while massaging your ears with the finest electronic music performed by DJ Patrick. A buffet of salads and live cooking grills will be available on Thursday, July 14th at Al-Corniche Club from 8pm.

Telecommunications and Navigations students awarded The Institution of Telecommunications and Navigation held a celebration to award participants of recently concluded training courses, as well as staff members who supervised these courses. — Photos by Fouad Al-Shaikh

Art salon Bouhshari Art Gallery invites you to attend the opening ceremony of Bouhshari’s 3rd Annual Art Salon on Tuesday, 12 July at 7:30pm. Exhibition runs through 15 September. Daily working hours: 10am - 1pm and 5 9pm, except on Friday and on Thursday evening.

Indian bowling league Indian Bowling League Season 2 would like to invite you and your families to participate in an Indian bowling event where all nationalities, the young and the old can have fun playing an enjoyable game while meeting new people in a healthy competition from July 12th August 15th For more details contact: Uly 99503348, Amaldo 66052062, and Nasha 99516960. If anyone is looking to assist them in this event with sponsors, they will be really obliged to have your help to make this event a success. Registrations are open.

Bodybuilding competition The Philippine Body Building & Fitness Association in Kuwait will be holding its first Bodybuilding competition for all Filipino Instructors and enthusiasts on July 22nd at Al-Zumareida Hall, Salwa along the Gulf Road from 5pm - 9pm. The competition will be one of a kind in Kuwait. It will highlight the participation of highly skilled Filipino fitness and aerobics trainers and showcase remarkable presentations during the competition.

Three categories for the Bodybuilding competition: Small, Medium, Tall, all of which are based on required height measurements. There will be three winners from each height category and one overall winner. The competition will be covered by Al Watan Daily News, TFC (The Filipino Channel) and GMA 7 from the Philippines.

KuwaitBodyBuilding.com will be one of the sponsors for this event and PBBFAK are actively looking for other organizations that may also be interested in becoming a sponsor.

The early bird catches the best fish!

T

he clock’s a ticking... come early and get the best price on your favorite food - only at the Al Noukhaza Seafood restaurant. Welcome to a place where the enchanting treasures from the deep blue seas arrive on your platter,

cooked the way you like it. Choose from a sumptuous buffet of regional specialties or even from the Far East. Fish, crabs, prawns, lobsters - you name it and it is there. A decor that features the interior of a ship, the ambience of the restaurant transports

you a time long ago, when the wealth of Kuwait came from the seas with the most beautiful pearls. Watch the fish swim past you in the tanks. You can even choose your fish to be cooked the way you like it by the chef, right before your eyes. Come and

dine at the Al Noukhaza Seafood restaurant during any of the early hours starting from 12 noon to 2 pm for lunch and 6 pm to 8 pm for dinner. It is not just about the price - the food and our staff awaits you too...

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

08:15 Adventure Time 08:40 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 09:05 Hero 108 10:00 Ben 10: Alien Force 10:55 Bakugan: Gundalian Invaders 11:20 Bakugan: Gundalian Invaders 11:45 Skunk Fu! 12:35 Batman: The Brave And The Bold 13:00 Batman: The Brave And The Bold 13:25 Ben 10 14:15 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 15:05 Samurai Jack 15:50 Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes 16:10 Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes 16:35 Robotboy 17:15 Hero 108 18:30 Cartoon Network Dance Club 18:45 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 18:55 Chowder 19:20 Adventure Time 19:45 The Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy 20:10 Courage The Cowardly Dog 20:35 Cow And Chicken 21:00 Best Ed 21:25 Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends 21:50 Robotboy 22:00 Adventure Time 22:25 Hero 108 22:50 Ben 10 23:15 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 23:40 Chowder

00:45 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 01:40 Untamed & Uncut 02:35 Queens of the Savannah 03:30 Speed of Life 04:25 I’m Alive 05:20 Animal Cops Houston 06:10 Dogs vs. Cats 07:00 Lemur Street 07:25 The Really Wild Show 07:50 Jeff Corwin Unleashed 08:15 Natural Born Hunters 08:40 Breed All About It 09:10 Cats 101 10:05 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 11:00 Michaela’s Animal Road Trip 11:55 Lemur Street 12:20 Wildlife SOS 12:50 Animal ER 13:45 Animal Cops Houston 14:40 Animal Precinct 15:30 RSPCA: On the Frontline 16:00 The Really Wild Show 16:30 Jeff Corwin Unleashed 17:00 Natural Born Hunters 17:25 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 18:20 Breed All About It 18:45 Planet Wild 19:15 Crocodile Hunter 20:10 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 21:05 Venom Hunter with Donald Schultz 22:00 Wildest Africa 22:55 Buggin’ with Ruud 23:50 The Animals’ Guide to Survival

00:15 01:00 01:50 02:35 03:05 03:35 04:30 04:50 05:10 05:40 05:50 06:10 06:30 07:00 07:20 07:40 08:10 08:20 08:40 09:00 09:30 09:40 10:10 10:40 11:25 12:15 12:45 13:15 14:10 15:40 16:30 17:15 17:45 18:15 19:10 20:00 20:45 21:15 21:45 22:40 23:30

The Weakest Link Holby City The Fixer Eastenders Doctors Dinnerladies Fimbles Balamory Tikkabilla Charlie And Lola Fimbles Balamory Tikkabilla Fimbles Balamory Tikkabilla Charlie And Lola Fimbles Balamory Tikkabilla Charlie And Lola Dinnerladies Dinnerladies The Weakest Link Inspector Lynley Mysteries Doctors Eastenders Holby City Dinnerladies Inspector Lynley Mysteries The Weakest Link Doctors Eastenders Holby City Inspector Lynley Mysteries The Weakest Link Doctors Eastenders Holby City Spooks Dinnerladies

00:15 01:50 02:15 02:45 03:10 04:50 05:35 07:05 08:20 09:10 10:50 11:15 11:40 12:05

Come Dine With Me New Scandinavian Cooking New Scandinavian Cooking Come Dine With Me Come Dine With Me Fantasy Homes By The Sea Daily Cooks Challenge New Scandinavian Cooking Antiques Roadshow Come Dine With Me Come Dine With Me New Scandinavian Cooking New Scandinavian Cooking Antiques Roadshow

TV PROGRAMS

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 Cow And Chicken 07:50 Angelo Rules 08:05 Cartoon Network Dance Club

00:40 01:35 02:30 03:25 04:20 05:15 05:40 06:05 07:00 07:50 08:45 09:10 10:05 10:30 10:55 11:25 12:20 13:15 14:10 15:05 16:00 16:55 17:50 18:45 19:10 19:40 20:05

THE LAST SONG ON OSN CINEMA

Dirty Jobs LA Ink Ultimate Survival Heartland Thunder Mythbusters How It’s Made How Stuff Works Dirty Jobs Heartland Thunder Street Customs 2008 How It’s Made Mythbusters Cake Boss Border Security Auction Hunters Flying Wild Alaska Swords: Life On The Line Ultimate Survival LA Ink Dirty Jobs Heartland Thunder Mythbusters Dual Survival Cake Boss Border Security Auction Hunters How Stuff Works

00:05 Science Of The Movies 00:55 Mega Builders 01:45 Things That Move 02:10 Things That Move 02:35 Nyc: Inside Out 03:25 Punkin Chunkin 2010 04:15 How Stuff’s Made 04:45 Mega Builders 05:40 One Step Beyond 06:10 Nextworld 07:00 Punkin Chunkin 2010 07:55 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 08:50 The Gadget Show 09:15 The Gadget Show 09:40 Junkyard Mega-Wars 14:55 Junkyard Mega-Wars 15:45 Weird Connections 16:10 Brainiac 17:00 The World’s Strangest UFO Stories 17:50 Sci-Fi Science 18:15 The Gadget Show 18:40 Space Pioneer 19:30 Sci-Fi Saved My Life 20:20 Punkin Chunkin 2010 21:10 The Gadget Show 21:35 The Gadget Show 22:00 Space Pioneer 22:50 Sci-Fi Saved My Life 23:40 The Gadget Show

00:00 00:25 01:15 02:00 02:50 03:35 04:25 05:15 06:00 06:20 07:05 07:55 08:20 08:35 09:00 09:10 09:25 09:40 09:50 10:10 10:35 10:50 11:15 12:00 12:45 13:30 15:20 15:45 16:10 16:35 17:25 17:50 18:15 18:45 19:10 20:00 20:25 20:50 21:15 21:35 22:00 22:25 22:50 23:15 23:35

Kim Possible Fairly Odd Parents Stitch Replacements Emperors New School Stitch Replacements Fairly Odd Parents Emperors New School Phineas & Ferb Suite Life On Deck Good Luck Charlie Fish Hooks Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jake & The Neverland Pirates Jungle Junction Handy Manny Jake & The Neverland Pirates Sonny With A Chance Fish Hooks Phineas And Ferb Shake It Up Good Luck Charlie Wizards Of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Den Brother The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody Fish Hooks Shake It Up Wizards Of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Fish Hooks Suite Life On Deck Shake It Up Good Luck Charlie Wizards Of Waverly Place Jake & Blake Hannah Montana Phineas & Ferb Good Luck Charlie Shake It Up Hannah Montana Sonny With A Chance Yr 2 Wizards Of Waverly Place Jonas

06:00 Kid Vs Kat 06:20 Kick Buttowski 06:40 Pokemon Dp: Sinnoh League Victors 07:05 Phineas & Ferb 07:40 Phineas & Ferb 08:05 Kick Buttowski 08:30 American Dragon 09:00 Pokemon 11:05 Pokemon 11:30 Pair Of Kings 11:55 Phineas & Ferb 12:20 Phineas & Ferb 12:45 Kid Vs Kat 13:10 Kid Vs Kat 13:30 Kid Vs Kat 13:50 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 14:15 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 14:40 Zeke & Luther 15:05 Kick Buttowski 15:35 Pokemon Dp: Sinnoh League Victors 16:00 I’m In The Band 16:25 Pokemon 18:30 Pokemon 18:55 Kick Buttowski 19:20 Kick Buttowski 19:45 Kid Vs Kat 20:15 Kid Vs Kat 20:40 I’m In The Band 21:05 The Avengers: Earths Mightiest Heroes 21:30 Zeke & Luther 22:00 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 22:20 The Super Hero Squad Show

00:15 00:40 01:30 02:20 03:10 04:00 04:50 05:40 06:30 2008 07:00 2008 07:30 2008 08:00 08:25 09:15 10:05 2008 10:30 2008 10:55 11:45 12:10 12:35 13:25 14:15 15:05 15:30 15:55 16:20 16:45 17:10 18:00 18:50 2008 19:40 20:30 21:20 22:10 23:00 23:50

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

Glutton For Punishment Mantracker World Combat League Glutton For Punishment Aiya TV The Millionaire’s Club Mantracker World Combat League FIA European Drag Racing FIA European Drag Racing FIA European Drag Racing Quattro Events 2009 Winter X Games 15 2011 X Games Heroes Kiteboard Pro World Tour Kiteboard Pro World Tour Dr Danger Man’s Work Man’s Work Glutton For Punishment Mantracker World Combat League Dr Danger Dr Danger Man’s Work Man’s Work Quattro Events 2009 Winter X Games 15 2011 X Games Heroes Kiteboard Pro World Tour Mantracker Glutton For Punishment The Millionaire’s Club World Combat League Aiya TV Glutton For Punishment

MAXIMUM RISK ON OSN MOVIES ACTION

Classifieds TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

I The International Olympic Committee chose Pyeongchang, South Korea, to host the 2018 Olympic Winter Games. Pyeongchang beat out Munich, Germany, and Annecy, France.

I Seoul, South Korea, hosted the 1988 Summer Games, but this is the country’s first time hosting the Winter Games.

“I don’t believe an accident of birth makes people sisters or brothers.

It makes them siblings, gives them mutuality of parentage. Sisterhood and brotherhood is a condition people have to work at.”

— Poet Maya Angelou, on quotegarden.com

— MCT

Phineas and Ferb Live!

Adventurous inventors Phineas and Ferb — along with Candace, Perry the platypus and others — take to the stage in “Disney’s Phineas and Ferb: The Best LIVE Tour Ever!” The musical includes everything that makes the TV show a hit: crazy inventions, an evil scientist, clever songs (such as “Squirrels in My Pants” and “Busted”), and, of course, a pet platypus who’s a secret agent. The tour begins in August and will make more than 80 stops across the United States. Visit phineasandferblive.com for more information.

— Disney FamilyFun magazine

ACCOMMODATION

Perry the Platypus Cap ummertime and the living is easy for Alex B., of River Grove, Ill. During the school year, his schedule is packed with homework and sports practices. But summer means more free time — and that means more time with his two older siblings, especially his older brother.

“We go swimming in our pool and play out in the field behind our house,” he says. “We just hang out with each other.”

For most kids, more time with the sibs means more time to squabble. But Alex says he avoids arguments by trying to be agreeable. “I just listen to what (my brother) says and wait until he’s done. Then I say what I want to say,” he says.

Sibs often spat because they are angry about something else.

A brother or sister is a “very convenient target,” says Peter Goldenthal, pediatric and family psychologist in Wayne, Pa., and author of “Why Can’t We Get Along?” (Wiley, $17.95).

BY EMILIE LE BEAU Chicago Tribune

Happier kids fight less. But siblings are more likely to squawk if they feel their parents are unfair, says Goldenthal.

Feeling like second fiddle can really burn a kid up.

Comparison also can cause kids to clash. “Sometimes parents aren’t especially smart in the way they try to encourage each child to do what they want them to do,” Goldenthal says. “Parents will say, ‘It really could be better if you were more like your sister.’”

Problems with parents can be a big reason why siblings spat.

So kids need to go straight to the source and talk to their par-

Give Perry, the unsung hero of Phineas and Ferb, the recognition he deserves by making this platypus cap you can wear to the show.

Start with a plain, aqua-blue baseball cap (or paint a white cap with fabric paint). Trace the cap’s bill onto a sheet of orange craft foam, then cut out the shape, leaving a bit of overhang.

With an adult’s help, attach the bill to the cap with hot glue and use a serrated knife to halve a small Styrofoam ball.

Place dabs of hot glue onto two black buttons and attach them to the halves. Dab the hat with hot glue and attach the eyes. (Note: putting hot glue directly onto Styrofoam may cause it to melt.) Cut out a sprig of hair with three points from black craft foam, then cut a half-inch slit in the center of the base. Cut a slit at the top of the cap and insert the hair. Fold over and glue the two flaps in opposite directions, as shown above.

ents. “Approach it like it’s business,” Goldenthal says. “Say, ‘I’d like 15 minutes alone with you, Mom and Dad, in private.”

Once you have your parents’ attention, don’t be pouty or whiney. Give them specific examples of when they compared you to your sis or treated you unequally. But don’t diss your sibling, have a temper tantrum or stomp off, Goldenthal says.

If parents still can’t see the big picture, kids shouldn’t react with anger. Instead, show that your feelings are hurt. Respond to “Sorry, we can’t come to your violin recital because we have your sister’s swim meet” by saying, “Ouch.”

“You will get their attention more than if you say ‘Fine!’ and slam the door,” Goldenthal says.

Even if parents don’t improve, don’t take it out on your brother or sister. Goldenthal says now is the time for siblings to start getting along. If you wait until you’re grown up, it might be too late.

— Disney FamilyFun magazine

I L L U S T R AT I O N B Y R I C K N E A S E / D E T R O I T F R E E P R E S S / M C T

Needed: Attitude adjustments DEAR AMERICAN GIRL: I am a perfectionist. When my friends and I work on a group project, if something isn’t how I think it should be, I can get bossy. Then we argue. Help! — Perfect I It’s good to be a leader, but no one likes to feel bossed around. On a group project, each person should have some of the responsibility. Worry about your part of the project first.

Then, if you have time, offer to help the others, but remember that you are not in charge of their parts. If you are supportive and helpful instead of bossy, you’ll win your friends’ respect — and turn in a good project.

Sharing available for family in a double bed room flat + 2 toilet + hall, Abbasiya near opposite Asianet building, opposite Garden, Variety Store. Contact: 50202206/ 97213877.

(C 3513) 12-7-2011 Sharing accommodation available in Hawally, Fourth Ring Road, for Pilipino couple, opposite Royal Hayath Hospital, Jabriya. Contact: 66189873. (C 3511) 11-7-2011 Sharing accommodation available in Abbasiya, furnished 2 bedroom flat, from September 1. Rent KD 35.

One vacancy. Contact: 99162583. (C 3507) 10-7-2011

P H O T O G R A P H B Y T I M M A C K AY / D I S N E Y FA M I LY F U N M A G A Z I N E

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. Historians say 384 big battles were fought during the Civil War. Fighting took place in 25 states and territories, and Washington, D.C. The South was especially hard-hit. These states had the most battles.

1. Virginia: 123 battles 2. Tennessee: 38 3. Missouri and Georgia: tie with 27 4. Louisiana: 23 5. North Carolina: 20

Visit “Fun for Girls” at americangirlmagazine.com to get or give advice. © 2011 American Girl, LLC. All rights reserved.

© 2011 Time Inc. All Rights Reserved.

TIME FOR KIDS and Timeforkids.com are registered trademarks of Time Inc.

S O U R C E : N AT I O N A L PA R K S E RV I C E

L I B R A RY O F C O N G R E S S

The 1862 Battle of Chantilly (Ox Hill), Va.

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/ 9337034. (C 3503) 7-7-2011 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 Farwaniya (live in or part time) (Indian, Sri Lankan preferred) salary KD 100/-.

Contact: 97220933.

(C 3510) 10-7-2011

FOR SALE

Civil War battle States

DEAR AMERICAN GIRL: I’ve been really moody lately. At school I feel fine, but when I’m home my “moody meter” goes to grumpy! What can I do? — Moody I Moodiness often happens when your energy level is low. That can be because you’re growing, feeling stressed, or just worn out. Try to spend a few minutes relaxing when you get home. Try to eat right and get plenty of sleep, too. If you still find you’re feeling cranky, talk to your parents about how to reduce stress in your life.

(Installment possible).

Contact: 66396517. (C 3502)

Corolla XLi 2002, silver color, KD 1,350/-. Contact: 55323839.

(C 3514) 12-7-2011 Toyota Corolla model 2009, white color, 1.8 engine, excellent condition, cash price KD 3,250/-

Required a foreign Maths lady teacher to teach grade 4 Maths. Please Contact: 99011855. (C 3504) A family is seeking to hire a houseboy who is fluent in English and is Christian.

Contact: 99199020.

(C 3506) 9-7-2011

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 3509) 12-7-2011 A well qualified Nigerian lady, office administrator inter personal skills with several years of experience in Kuwait, visa transferable, seeks suitable placement.

Please contact: 94979702.

Email: hettycharls@yahoo.com (C 3511) A well qualified female executive secretary with several years of experience

in Kuwait with US company, Visa transferable, seeks suitable placement. Please Contact: 99907403. Email: david_angel2003@yahoo.com (C 3512) 11-7-2011 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

CHANGE OF NAME I, Abdul Quyoom, holder of Indian Passport No. E0372009, hereby change my name to Abdul Quyoom Shaikh. (C 3515) 12-7-2011

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 JZR THY ETH LZB UAE DHX ETD MSR JZR FDB GFA QTR JZR KAC AFR JZR JZR KAC BAW KAC FCX JZR KAC KAC KAC FDB KAC KAC UAE IRA QTR ABY QTR ETD GFA IRA MEA JZR JZR MHK JZR KAC MSR UAL RJA KAC FDB QTR KAC KAC

Flt 642 267 772 620 7779 853 370 305 614 269 67 211 138 529 544 6700 505 555 412 157 416 201 1541 206 302 332 53 352 284 855 605 132 125 6130 301 213 619 404 165 121 711 201 672 610 982 640 512 57 140 562 546

Arrival Flights on Tuesday 12/7/2011 Route AMMAN BEIRUT ISTANBUL ADDIS ABABA SOFIA / BOURGAS DUBAI BAHRAIN ABU DHABI CAIRO BEIRUT DUBAI BAHRAIN DOHA ASSIUT CAIRO PARIS LUXOR ALEXANDRIA MANILA / BANGKOK LONDON JAKARTA / KUALA LUMPUR BAHRAIN CAIRO ISLAMABAD MUMBAI TRIVANDRUM DUBAI COCHIN DHAKA DUBAI ISFAHAN DOHA SHARJAH DOHA ABU DHABI BAHRAIN LAR BEIRUT DUBAI BAHRAIN BAGHDAD / NAJAF DAMASCUS DUBAI CAIRO WASHINGTON DC DULLES AMMAN TEHRAN DUBAI DOHA AMMAN ALEXANDRIA

Time 0:05 0:35 1:15 1:45 2:00 2:25 2:55 2:55 3:05 3:05 3:10 3:15 3:20 3:35 4:40 5:25 5:50 6:10 6:15 6:30 6:35 7:00 7:10 7:15 7:50 7:55 7:55 8:05 8:10 8:25 8:55 9:00 9:10 9:10 9:30 9:35 9:40 10:55 11:10 11:15 11:20 12:45 13:15 13:20 13:30 13:35 13:40 13:50 14:15 14:20 14:30

SVA KNE KAC JZR QTR JZR MLR ETD UAE GFA SVA JZR JZR ABY JZR FDB RBG ALK JZR KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC JAI SIA FDB VOS OMA MEA KAC MSR DHX KLM UAE JZR GFA QTR UAL AIC JZR JZR MSR DLH AXB JZR PIA

500 745 746 257 134 535 403 303 857 215 510 777 239 127 213 63 3555 227 177 104 166 502 542 618 786 614 674 774 790 572 458 61 93 647 402 552 618 372 443 859 183 217 136 981 981 135 787 612 636 389 539 205

JEDDAH JEDDAH ABU DHABI / DAMMAM BEIRUT DOHA CAIRO COLOMBO / DUBAI ABU DHABI DUBAI BAHRAIN RIYADH JEDDAH AMMAN SHARJAH DEIREZZOR DUBAI ALEXANDRIA COLOMBO / DUBAI DUBAI LONDON PARIS / ROME BEIRUT CAIRO DOHA JEDDAH BAHRAIN DUBAI RIYADH MEDINAH MUMBAI SINGAPORE / ABU DHABI DUBAI KANDAHAR / DUBAI MUSCAT BEIRUT DAMASCUS ALEXANDRIA BAHRAIN AMSTERDAM DUBAI DUBAI BAHRAIN DOHA BAHRAIN CHENNAI / AHMEDABAD BAHRAIN RIYADH CAIRO FRANKFURT KOZHIKODE / MANGALORE CAIRO LAHORE / PESHAWER

14:30 14:55 15:05 15:10 15:15 15:50 16:40 16:50 16:55 17:15 17:20 17:25 17:35 17:40 17:50 17:55 17:55 18:00 18:00 18:35 18:40 18:45 18:50 18:55 19:00 19:20 19:25 19:25 19:30 19:35 19:35 20:00 20:00 20:10 20:15 20:15 20:55 21:00 21:05 21:15 21:15 21:25 21:35 22:00 22:05 22:10 22:20 22:50 23:00 23:10 23:30 23:55

Airlines DLH AIC BBC PIA THY ETH LZB UAE FDB DHX ETD MSR QTR JZR RJA AFR GFA JZR KAC JZR BAW FDB JZR KAC KAC JZR KAC KAC UAE ABY IRA KAC QTR ETD GFA IRA QTR KAC MEA KAC JZR JZR JZR MHK KAC KAC JZR MSR RJA FDB

Departure Flights on Tuesday 12/7/2011 Flt Route 637 FRANKFURT 576 GOA / CHENNAI 44 DHAKA 240 SIALKOT 773 ISTANBUL 620 BAHRAIN / ADDIS ABABA 7780 BOURGAS / SOFIA 854 DUBAI 68 DUBAI 371 BAHRAIN 306 ABU DHABI 615 CAIRO 139 DOHA 164 DUBAI 643 AMMAN 6700 DUBAI / HONG KONG 212 BAHRAIN 200 DAMASCUS 545 ALEXANDRIA 120 BAHRAIN 156 LONDON 54 DUBAI 534 CAIRO 671 DUBAI 745 DAMMAM / ABU DHABI 256 BEIRUT 511 TEHRAN 561 AMMAN 856 DUBAI 126 SHARJAH 604 ISFAHAN 101 LONDON / NEW YORK 133 DOHA 302 ABU DHABI 214 BAHRAIN 618 LAR 6131 DOHA 165 ROME / PARIS 405 BEIRUT 541 CAIRO 776 JEDDAH 212 DEIREZZOR 238 AMMAN 712 NAJAF / BAGHDAD 501 BEIRUT 785 JEDDAH 176 DUBAI 611 CAIRO 641 AMMAN 58 DUBAI

Time 0:40 0:50 1:00 1:10 2:15 2:30 2:55 3:45 3:50 3:55 4:05 4:05 5:00 6:55 7:00 7:05 7:10 7:15 7:40 8:20 8:25 8:40 8:50 9:00 9:05 9:10 9:15 9:15 9:40 9:50 9:55 9:55 10:00 10:15 10:20 10:40 10:40 11:45 11:55 12:00 12:00 12:05 12:10 12:20 13:00 13:30 13:40 14:20 14:30 14:35

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

KAC UAL KAC KAC KAC KNE SVA KAC QTR KAC JZR VOS JZR ETD MLR QTR UAE GFA ABY JZR RBG SVA FDB JZR JZR ALK KAC KAC JAI FDB JZR KAC KAC OMA MEA SIA MSR DHX KLM JZR UAE GFA KAC FCX QTR KAC KAC JZR JZR KAC UAL MSR

789 982 551 673 617 746 501 773 141 613 538 82 182 304 1405 135 858 216 128 266 3556 511 64 786 134 228 283 361 571 62 528 343 351 648 403 457 619 373 443 240 860 218 381 102 137 301 205 502 554 411 981 613

MEDINAH BAHRAIN DAMASCUS DUBAI DOHA JEDDAH JEDDAH RIYADH DOHA BAHRAIN CAIRO BAGHDAD DUBAI ABU DHABI DUBAI / COLOMBO DOHA DUBAI BAHRAIN SHARJAH BEIRUT ALEXANDRIA RIYADH DUBAI RIYADH BAHRAIN DUBAI / COLOMBO DHAKA COLOMBO MUMBAI DUBAI ASSIUT CHENNAI COCHIN MUSCAT BEIRUT ABU DHABI / SINGAPORE ALEXANDRIA BAHRAIN BAHRAIN / AMSTERDAM AMMAN DUBAI BAHRAIN DELHI BAHRAIN DOHA MUMBAI ISLAMABAD LUXOR ALEXANDRIA BANGKOK / MANILA WASHINGTON DC DULLES CAIRO

14:40 14:45 14:55 15:10 15:35 15:40 15:45 16:05 16:15 16:20 16:40 17:00 17:05 17:35 17:40 17:45 18:05 18:15 18:20 18:30 18:35 18:35 18:40 18:40 19:10 19:10 19:30 20:20 20:35 20:40 20:50 21:00 21:05 21:10 21:15 21:20 21:55 22:00 22:05 22:20 22:25 22:30 22:30 22:30 22:35 22:45 22:55 23:05 23:10 23:40 23:40 23:50

34

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

s ta rs CROSSWORD 376

STAR TRACK

CALVIN & HOBBES

Aries (March 21-April 19) Left to your own devices, you tend to take a course that avoids responsibilities and obligations—living as if there were no tomorrow. You find it easy to work with other people and tend to pour a lot of energy into those around you. Your home and surroundings reflect this. You tend to have a guest room and extra amount of food and drink always ready. This afternoon you could find yourself communicating with young people. You seem to shine when you are with young people and they seem to enjoy listening to what you have to say. When it comes to teaching or coaching, you are a natural—always able to motivate and inspire. With your powerful spirit, you enjoy your strong emotions. A Pisces comes into your life this evening. Most positive!

Taurus (April 20-May 20) You have worked long enough in mass marketing and have been thinking of stepping up your career. There are several ways you could go about it but now would be a good time to check out the import-export business. Check with someone you know that is in the import-export business and get them to give you pointers—research. Your career always seems to get the support you need and today is no exception. Fascinated by the latest technology, you may have some very original ideas. If you speak a language or are familiar with a language other than your own, this can be very helpful when you travel. Always thinking of the world as a unity, you are idealistic and believe in putting into practice what is preached. You make a virtue out of plain talk.

POOCH CAFE ACROSS 1. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in Turkey).

4. Baseball player with the New York Yankees.

10. Headdress that protects the head from bad weather.

13. Thigh of a hog (usually smoked).

14. A landlocked republic in central Africa.

15. A constellation in the southern hemisphere near Telescopium and Norma.

16. Small terrestrial lizard of warm regions of the Old World.

18. The general activity of selling.

19. The last (12th) month of the year.

20. Island country in the Atlantic east of Florida and Cuba.

22. A Hebrew prophet in the Old Testament who opposed the worship of idols.

24. A leisurely walk (usually in some public place).

26. Being nine more than ninety.

27. A drama set to music.

30. (Akkadian) God of wisdom.

31. A telegram sent abroad.

35. (informal) Roused to anger.

37. A ductile gray metallic element of the lanthanide series.

38. Containing an unusual amount of grease or oil.

39. Any of a number of fishes of the family Carangidae.

41. The longer of the two telegraphic signals used in Morse code.

44. Owed and payable immediately or on demand.

45. God of love and erotic desire.

46. A large number or amount.

48. Flat tableland with steep edges.

51. Leaf or strip from a leaf of the talipot palm used in India for writing paper.

52. A member of the Semitic speaking people of northern Ethiopia.

56. The principal evil jinni in Islamic mythology.

60. The cry made by sheep.

61. Of someone who has not been married.

64. An amino acid that is found in the central nervous system.

65. Bulky grayish-brown eagle with a short wedge-shaped white tail.

66. An esoteric or occult matter that is traditionally secret.

68. The use of nuclear magnetic resonance of protons to produce proton density images.

69. An informal term for a father.

70. A city in western Germany near the Dutch and Belgian borders.

71. A condition (mostly in boys) characterized by behavioral and learning disorders.

DOWN 1. According to the Old Testament he was a pagan king of Israel and husband of Jezebel (9th century BC).

2. Mentally or physically infirm with age.

3. A woman hired to suckle a child of someone else.

4. Pasture grass of plains of South America and western North America.

5. A bivalent and trivalent metallic element of the rare earth group.

6. An angry disturbance.

7. A nucleic acid that transmits genetic information from DNA to the cytoplasm.

8. Not in action or at work.

9. Relating to or characteristic of the Celts.

10. A pilgrimage to Mecca.

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

12. Measuring instrument for indicating speed of rotation.

17. A flat-bottomed volcanic crater that was formed by an explosion.

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

23. The United Nations agency concerned with civil aviation.

25. (used of count nouns) Every one considered individually.

28. Large burrowing rodent of South and Central America.

29. Mild yellow Dutch cheese made in balls.

32. The capital and chief port of Qatar.

33. (Welsh) A warrior god.

34. Opinion or judgment.

36. Being one hundred more than three hundred.

40. Fallow deer.

42. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

43. A small island.

47. Open-heart surgery in which the rib cage is opened and a section of a blood vessel is grafted from the aorta to the coronary artery to bypass the blocked section of the coronary artery and improve the blood supply to the heart.

49. Annual to perennial herbs of the Mediterranean region.

50. The capital and largest city of Yemen.

53. God of death.

54. The (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb.

55. Not only so, but.

57. A Tibetan or Mongolian priest of Lamaism.

58. A United Nations agency created to assist developing nations by loans guaranteed by member governments.

59. Being the one previously mentioned or spoken of.

62. Blood cells that engulf and digest bacteria and fungi.

63. A chronic skin disease occurring primarily in women between the ages of 20 and 40.

64. Being nine more than ninety.

67. An associate degree in nursing.

Yesterday’s Solution

Gemini (May 21-June 20) You are ready and willing when it comes to pulling a group together in order to complete a project today. You have an easy way with those in authority and can always manage to talk your way into better working benefits for all. You will get the most benefit out of your energies as you follow through and meet those deadlines. Getting personal with you may create some fear and it would be good for you to learn how to move a little more with the routine of the day. You are fascinated by behind-the-scenes and so-called secret information.

You have a wonderful opportunity to be with friends this evening. Close relationships, whether they are from a working situation or from your personal life, tend to be optimistic and have a great deal of faith.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

NON SEQUITUR

This is a good day, when your efforts seem to run smoothly.

Now you have the ability for sustained work that allows you to organize like never before. Now you can bring to fruition uncompleted tasks or character development. You could be most persuasive with others through speech or just in communicating. The situation is a natural for self-expression and lends itself to your particular ideas and thoughts. A young person needs your advice—you may find yourself guiding this person in some very important decisions. Sympathy and understanding are emotional qualities that take on greater importance now. It’s wisdom, not knowledge, that counts most. Close and rewarding conversations are possible with those you love.

Leo (July 23-August 22) This is a good day to solve problems and make important decisions. You will find a way around almost any obstacles and are in control and able to guide yourself with ease. Your sense of inner direction is good and should lead to good work opportunities that will help you improve your income. You are in top form when choosing or helping others to choose business ventures today.

Your keen business sense is never sharper than when you are working with or for others—a group, corporation, etc. You are great at finding excess or the non-essential in order to eliminate it. Your actions will receive support from higher-ups as well as from co-workers around you. Opportunities are available for social interactions and you may find yourself feeling confident.

ZITS

Virgo (August 23-September 22) You may take your work a little more seriously than usual as this week begins. A lot of energy goes into getting things scheduled and organized. This is a time for new accomplishments, during which insights and breakthroughs in organization and determination are in order. There is a revolution within the established order, when new ideas and ways to do and use things become clear.

Everything may be pouring in at once today—and it’s all good news. Your career direction gets some encouragement and life’s problems should find easy solutions.

You may benefit from an older person or one in authority. Others value you for your ability to make practical decisions. You have a natural sense of management and can make clear decisions.

Libra (September 23-October 22)

MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM

This is a great time to be with others and to work together. You may be sought after as just the person for a particular job. Your management abilities are in high focus. Making your mark on the world has special significance for you. Achievement, ambition and authority are the things that take on a greater importance now. Organizing and administering to people and projects will become central to your lifestyle. You are at your mental best with clear thoughts.

Consider the quiet time of this afternoon a good time for decision-making. The supportive help of a young person now could be an important factor that will affect business or reputation and increase your sense of security. A little study of genealogy opens up new avenues of interests.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) You are a born doer, with an incredible drive to accomplish and achieve in life. A conservative by nature, you tend to stand up for the status quo. This is a great time to be with others and to work together. This ability to solve problems, advise and always put others at ease is the key to meeting and coming to know you. There are opportunities springing up all around you but always seem to challenge your status quo—be prepared. You must decide whether the risk is worth the change it will bring about in your situation. New ways to communicate or an easy manner will make conversations and interactions go well. You may find yourself more talkative and relaxed than usual. You are appreciated for your ability to multi-task.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) You may find that both your personal growth and your career may depend upon how you can handle the very sensitive psychological material that may be coming up now. You benefit from analytical insights.

Responsibilities are easy for you and you tend to pile on tasks, one-after-another. You work very hard, with a gritty resolve and can accomplish much. It takes a lot to overload your willingness to take charge and help. You strive to make your dreams and ideals real. You have an easy way with superiors or those in authority and can always manage to get the most out of any skill or ability you have. You will find it particularly easy to work with those in authority or those who are more experienced than yourself.

Rest early this evening.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

To

You could be most persuasive with others. The situation is natural for self-expression and lends itself to your particular ideas. Fine verbal skills and a natural sense of justice makes legal work a distinct possibility.

Working with laws, natural or manmade, amounts to a real talent. You also have a great interest in ideas, the truer and more lasting the better. Religious concepts will be a lifelong concern. You may be sought after for your advice and counsel regarding very personal emotional issues. You will be able to handle all of this unpredictable material easily. You are able to cut through the red tape and get at what is beneath and behind most difficult situations. You must also learn the art of relaxation. An invitation is most mysterious.

Yesterday’s Solution Yester

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) You could take a vacation from your work responsibilities and explore some more imaginative regions—perhaps in tending to personal business as well. Your friends need you this afternoon and you may have to reorganize your plans in order to help. All of this should go rather smoothly, however.

An unexpected social event this evening finds you at your most elegant. This event may bring about some wonderful opportunities to network. Much conversation over abstract ideas will present themselves and you are interested—others will listen to your ideas. You like to add your two cents to conversations and otherwise show your breadth of scope—like a coat of many colors. You are creative, original and can present new ideas for others to ponder.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Word Sleuth Solution

Your abilities and common sense come into play in the working world today. You will know just what to do and can act without haste and emotion. This afternoon your taste in art and appreciation in general are heightened. Perhaps this is a good time to select furnishings, colors, etc. Comparing prices, you will do well. Your sense of value is outstanding. Growth and success could be tied to your possessions or to the way you possess and respond to the various ideas and impulses operating in your life now. You could benefit through material support and possessions. You are a real charmer this evening—able to enchant others and bring them under your spell. You will be able to show off your investments this evening.

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

i n f o r m at i o n

FIRE BRIGADE

112

Al-Madena

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

24812000

Al-Jahra

25610011

Amiri Hospital

22450005

Al-Salmiya

25616368

Maternity Hospital

24843100

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

Chest Hospital

24849400

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

Adan Hospital

23940620

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

Ministry of Interior website: www.moi.gov.kw For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128

Hospitals Sabah Hospital

POLICE STATION Al-Madena Police Station Al-Murqab Police Station Al-Daiya Police Station Al-Fayha’a Police Station Al-Qadissiya Police Station Al-Nugra Police Station Al-Salmiya Police Station Al-Dasma Police Station

Clinics Rabiya

4732263

Roudha

22517733

Adhaliya

22517144

Khaldiya

24848075

Keifan

24849807

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Al-Khadissiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

22451082

Al-Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

Mishref

25381200

W.Hawally

22630786

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Al-Ardhiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Al-Omariya

24719048

N.Kheitan

24710044

Fintas

3900322

22434064 22435865 22544200 22547133 22515277 22616662 25714406 22530801

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FOR CIVIL INFORMATION Automated enquiry about the Civil ID card is 1889988

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

e niv rsar n

Years

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

li fe s t y le G o s s i p

Hasselhoff takes girlfriend to Switzerland

D

avid Hasselhoff flew his new girlfriend to Switzerland for their first date. The 58-year-old star met Welsh beauty Hayley Roberts in a hotel bar when he was in Cardiff for the ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ auditions, and after hitting it off straight away, he paid for her to watch him perform in Europe. Hayley said: “He called me and told me, ‘I want to fly you out to Switzerland.’ He met me at the airport and took me to his concert. “I sat on the side of the stage watching him sing to 8,000 fans. It was crazy. “As we drove to this amazing hotel in the mountains, it started snowing. We had the best time ever - just the two of us in an outdoor pool with the snow falling all around us. “It was so romantic. I thought, ‘This guy is perfect.’ I knew I was right to give him a chance.” While they had a wonderful time in Switzerland, Hayley, 31, has different tastes to her famous boyfriend, which has led to some of his romantic gestures going awry. David explained in a joint interview with Britain’s Hello! magazine: “In Switzerland, they kept this incredible restaurant open for me and she looked at the menu and said, ‘There’s nothing on here I can eat.’ “I had to drive her to McDonalds on the way back to the hotel.”

Moss gets healthy for baby

R

ate Moss has adopted a new healthy lifestyle in the hope of falling pregnant. The British supermodel - who married The Kills rocker Jamie Hince on July 1 - is said to be on a mission to get healthy on her honeymoon so she can try for a baby as soon as the couple return from sailing around the Mediterranean on a £10 million yacht owned by Topshop boss Sir Philip Green. A friend of the star said: “Kate peaked at her wedding with alcohol, cigarettes and bacon butties, but Jamie wants her to become healthier as they try for a child. “Kate’s gone to the Med equipped with wheatgrass, barley grass and fish oils, with a view to getting pregnant when she comes home.” The 37-year-old catwalk beauty - who already has an eightyear-old daughter, Lila Grace, with former partner Jefferson Hack - is keen to show spouse Jamie she can live a healthier lifestyle. The source added to the Daily Star newspaper: “Jamie adores Kate and wants her around for a long time. She hasn’t completely cut out the booze and cigarettes just yet, but this is definitely the first step and a new side to married Kate.”

K

he 57-year-old supermodel - who has three children from her four marriages - insists her acrimonious divorce from fourth spouse Peter Cook in 2008 has made her feel the institution is “ridiculous” and put her off walking down the aisle again. Christie - who split from Peter after he admitted being unfaithful and later accused him of using “overwhelming” force with her children - said:

T

iv Tyler is trying to “define” what she wants from life. The 33-yearold model-and-actress - who learned Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler was her father when she was eight years old, after believing her dad to be Todd Rundgren - feels “grateful” that her childhood was spent with different relatives because her mother Bebe Buell needed support as she has learned to “adapt” to situations, but now wants to put herself first. She said: “My mum was young and I think she might not have had the emotional tools to know exactly how to take care of me, so she turned to her family for support. I spent two years with my aunt, a year with my mum and two years with my grandparents. “I feel grateful for those dynamics. I’m good at adapting, so it’s easy for me to suss out a situation and adapt to it. “At this point in my life, howev-

L

Lohan ‘enjoyed’ house arrest indsay Lohan “enjoyed” being under house arrest. The troubled actress spent 35 days confined to her Californian home and was monitored by ankle bracelet in lieu of jail time for taking a necklace from a boutique and violating the terms of her 2007 conviction for driving under the influence (DUI) last month. The ‘Machete’ star was grateful for the punishment as it gave her an opportunity to stay out of the limelight. She told Australia’s 2Day Fm radio station: “I enjoyed it, actually, as I was able to get a lot of work done from home, and it was very nice not to have to worry about cameras being outside.” Lindsay also clarified when her ankle bracelet went off during her house arrest it was because of a false alarm. She explained: “It was actually the people who work with the ankle braces [fault]. The battery had died in the machine, It was a lot of drama for no reason.” Since she was freed on June 29, Lindsay has started her court ordered 480 hours of community service at the Los Angeles Downtown Women’s centre and maintained her new low-key lifestyle, cancelling a planned 25th birthday party at the beginning of this month to spend time with only a handful of friends and family. Speaking of her birthday, on July 2, she added: “I literally just had dinner with my closest friends and sister then had some friends over at my house and that was it, it was nice. They didn’t tell me where I was going so that was a little surprise.” Lindsay is now hoping to continue her acting career and has signed up to appear in ‘Gotti: Three Generations’, which is due to start shooting next year. She is also keeping coy about any potential love interests.

When asked if there is anyone special in her life, she replied: “Not really. Even if there was I wouldn’t tell you! I’m really happy now, and I’ve learned I need to love myself first and foremost.”

L

“I can now say unequivocally I would never get married again.

There’s absolutely no reason to. “I learnt in my divorce that marriage is ridiculous. You take a vow but you don’t get brownie points when you honor your vow and the other person doesn’t.

“The court doesn’t recognize that. It’s like, ‘All right now, let’s see how we’re going to divvy up the kids.’ Well, obviously, the one that didn’t break the vows should be the role model, but no.’ “

er, I’m trying to define a bit more of what I want, as opposed to adapting to what other people want.” Liv split from husband Royston Langdon in 2008 after five years together and says she will always put their six-year-old son Milo first. She told Sunday Times Style magazine: “Since Milo was born, I’ve been going through all kinds of personal things - getting divorced and trying to allow myself the room to heal from that and rebuild my life. “Milo and I have been in such transition - I’ve been trying to be patient. I can’t go to work and be happy unless he’s happy and feels secure.” — Bang Showbiz

Twitter on Friday night to address her disappointed fans: “DALLAS!!! We set the stage on FYAH tonight!!! LITERALLY!!! I’m so pissed, I was having so much fun wit yall too!!!

I gotta come back man!!” She later tweeted that she would be attending a production meeting to figure out exactly what happened, although the accident seems a result of the show’s elaborate pyrotechnics.

Kerr thought she would die givigng birth

ihanna lit up Texas when a fire broke out on stage during her “Loud” tour stop in Dallas. Sparks flew and smoke sizzled in the packed American Airlines Center Friday night as Rihanna was ushered off stage. No injuries were reported. The crew quickly came in to put out the fire, with Dallas firefighters following shortly thereafter to survey the scene, according to NBC in Dallas. The accident occurred following a particularly offnight, in which the “Rude Boy” singer was reportedly an hour late to kick off her concert. Rihanna responded on

iranda Kerr thought she was “going to die” when giving birth to her son. The Victoria’s Secret model - who is married to Orlando Bloom - delivered son Flynn naturally in January and while she has previously admitted her labor was “long and difficult” she has now revealed she struggled to cope giving birth without pain relief because the agony was so intense. She said: “I actually thought I was going to die at one point and left my body. I was looking down on myself - the pain was so intense. “I kept thinking, ‘How do women do this?’ But if other women have done this, I can do it too. I was determined.” The 28-year-old catwalk beauty and her actor spouse share domestic duties, refusing to have a nanny, though they occasionally get night time assistance with the baby. She told Australia’s InStyle magazine: “It’s whoever has their hands free. When I’m not working we don’t have a nanny.

Some nights we have a lady who comes in to help out but Flynn is getting better at sleeping now, so not as often. And if I need to get on a plane for one day of work, I pump my milk and put it into the freezer for Orlando.” Miranda and Orlando divide their time between Los Angeles and London but the model wants Flynn to have some of the country experiences she had growing up so has cultivated a vegetable garden in their Hollywood home. She added: “Flynn would love it [Australia]; I had such a wonderful childhood in the country. He is going to have a diverse upbringing.”

M

Despite her stance on marriage, Christie hasn’t ruled out falling in love again. She told Stella magazine: “You’ve gotta believe there are truly compassionate, kind, great people out there. Who also happen to be extremely funny. “It’s getting harder and I’m a little more wary but I look at my parents, they’ve been together forever and are still madly in love.”

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

37

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

li f e s ty le M u s i c

&

M o v i e s

An image of Argentine folk singer Facundo Cabral is projected on a screen while a chair stands empty during a posthumous tribute at the Ruben Dario National Theater in Managua, Nicaragua, Sunday . — AP un Hill Road,” which was featured during Outfest 2011’s Opening Night Gala Friday night, is a sophisticated and intimate twist on a fatherson drama. Set in the Bronx, Rashaad Ernesto Green’s first feature film follows Enrique (Esai Morales), a macho ex-inmate returning home from a three-year prison sentence to find the domestic power he once enjoyed slowly leaving his grasp.

His wife, Angela (Judy Reyes), has been sleeping with someone else in his absence, and it becomes increasingly apparent that his son, Michael (Harmony Santana), is transitioning into Vanessa, a woman. Newcomer Santana’s performance is nothing if not authentic. A transsexual female on-screen and in real life, Santana’s most effective moments are the unspoken ones.

We see the insecure, vulnerable gestures she makes when negotiating sex with her first boyfriend, the painful injections and body-changing pills, moments spent admiring her biological female peers, and the dangerous interactions with her father in which she is pushed to engage in baseball and other masculine activities that just don’t fit.

We are taken into Vanessa’s pre-date routine and the challenges she endures in an effort to present herself as she feels inside.

“G

UN-backed panel that probes crime in Guatemala joined Sunday the investigation into the killing of popular singer Facundo Cabral, a well-known performer in the Spanishspeaking world whose shooting death has shocked Latin America. A spokesman for the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) confirmed to AFP the panel had joined the probe as the region reeled from the killing Saturday after Argentine-born Cabral, 74, had finished two performances in the Guatemalan capital. Tributes poured in Sunday far and wide, with famed Cuban singer Silvio Rodriguez hailing Cabral, and the

A

Salvadoran Catholic church lamenting his death, saying it was a “crime that moved the world.”

The secretary general of the Organization of American States (OAS), Jose Miguel Insulza, condemned the murder as an “irrational crime.”Cabral was driving to the airport to fly to nearby Nicaragua for more performances when unidentified gunmen attacked his white four-wheel drive vehicle. Riddled with bullets died in the car, police said. The motive was not immediately known, but Interior Minister Carlos Menocal said Saturday it appeared gunmen could have mistakenly killed the singer after taking him for Nicaraguan business-

A man reacts after singing the Guatemalan national anthem during a demonstration in honor of murdered Argentine musician Facundo Cabral. — AP

man Henry Farina, who had hired Cabral for the shows. “So far everything seems to indicate the hit was supposed to have been against Farina and not the singer,” said Menocal, adding that police found a car used in the killing with bulletproof vests inside.

Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom decreed three days of official mourning “for someone who was committed to the country.” Colom said Guatemala had to be painstaking in its investigation. “I know that this is not easy, but I hope that we will join together in finding the truth and capturing these criminals,” the president said.

The Argentine embassy here said it would take the lead on repatriating Cabral’s body, with the ambassador Ernesto Lopez saying the family was “devastated” by the events and would not be traveling to Guatemala to claim his remains. Cabral, who was born in La Plata, in Buenos Aires province, became a star as part of the 1970s protest music movement. A global nomad who said he was deeply inspired by the US poet Walt Whitman, his music was largely about peace, love and everyday pleasures and pain. Cabral’s songs, which include the 1970s hit “I’m not from here, nor am I from there,” are frequently performed by other wellknown Spanish-language singers like Julio Iglesias, Juan Luis Guerra and Joan Manuel Serrat.—AFP

J Fresh’s “Louder” featuring Sian Evans, leapt to the top of the singles chart with sales more than double that of its nearest rival, the Official Charts Company said Sunday. The soundtrack to the Lucozade Sport Lite advertising campaign gives DJ Fresh, also known as Daniel Stein, his first No 1 hit after two decades as DJ and producer at the forefront of the drum ‘n’ bass scene. Sales of the single topped 140,000 over the week, a feat only exceeded by Bruno Mars’ “Grenade” which notched up sales of 149,000 in January.

DJ Fresh recently played Glastonbury and will be appearing at numerous festivals this

D

fter only two weeks in theaters, “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” has sparked $261 million in North American box office receipts to roll into the number one film spot for 2011. The sequel raked in $47 million in expected sales over the weekend and bypassed “The Hangover Part II,” to become the highest-grossing film of the year to date. Michael Bay’s big budget action film starring Shia LaBeouf focuses on alien robots in a quest to save the world. Someone needs to save bosses Kevin Spacey and Jennifer Aniston in the weekend’s second-biggest hit, “Horrible Bosses.” In this dark comedy, abused employees played by Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis conspire to kill their supervisors. The film

A

summer including Parklife, Isle of Wight, Wakestock, NASS festival, Pukkelpop, Bestival, and Ministry of Sound at Space Ibiza. There is just one other new entry in the singles top 10; Loick Essien’s “How We Roll” which comes straight in at No 2. In the Official Albums Chart, Beyonce holds firm to the No 1 spot with “4.” There are no new entries but two re-entries. Rihanna’s “Loud,” a former No 1, climbed from 11 to eight and Cee Lo Green’s “The Lady Killer” moved up from 13 to nine. — Reuters

Her life parallels her father’s as he struggles under the watchful eye of his parole officer to resist a return to a life of crime. At the moments when Enrique feels most out of control, and most distant from the life he once had, he lashes out the strongest. At one point he cuts Vanessa’s hair when he discovers the way she styles it for a night out.

The climax of the film comes when Enrique takes Vanessa to a modern-day brothel to engage with a woman-the violation forces her to run away from home.

Enrique, pushed by his wife (Judy Reyes, in a moving performance), must find his daughter and begin to relinquish the control he once had over her. These scenes especially will make audiences cringe, and their hearts pound. “Gun Hill Road” is a moving portrayal of transition, and how gender, sexuality, race, and culture intermesh and become embodied in one family.

Enrique, Angela, and Vanessa each struggle to express their desires within the confines of community and society. The film premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, and will open in Los Angeles and New York on August 5.—Reuters

File photo shows the Beckham family, with David and Victoria Beckham, and their sons, from left to right, Brooklyn, Cruz and Romeo. — AP

elebrity couple David and Victoria Beckham welcomed a new baby girl into the world on Sunday, adding a daughter to the three sons they already have in their growing family. “I am so proud and excited to announce the birth of our daughter Harper Seven Beckham,” Beckham posted on his Facebook page. “She weighed a healthy 7 pounds 10 ounces and arrived at 7.55 this morning, here in LA. Victoria is doing really well and her brothers are delighted to have a baby sister.”

C

The Beckhams have three sons, Brooklyn is 12 years old, Romeo 8 and Cruz 6. A representative for the family said the boys’ baby sister was born “happy and healthy ” at Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

David Beckham is the British football superstar who has played on soccer teams in the United States, and Victoria is an equally well-known singing star and fashion designer who was a member of the Spice Girls pop music group.—Reuters

is projected to gross slightly more than $28 million on its opening weekend, according to industry experts, Exhibitor Relations. The weekend’s other big comedy, “Zookeeper,” opened at number three with an estimated $21 million in sales. Trailing behind was the animated sequel “Cars 2,” which made $15.2 million in its third week. “Bad Teacher,” dropped from number three in last week’s rankings to number five with $9 million in box office receipts. —AFP

It’s a boy for Kate Hudson, rocker fiance Bellamy ate Hudson is a mom again, and the father is another rocker. Hudson’s rep said Sunday that Hudson and fiance Matt Bellamy, singer with the British band Muse, are new parents. Publicist Brad Cafarelli tells The Associated Press in an email that “Matthew and Kate welcomed a healthy baby boy” Saturday in Los Angeles. The birth gives a brother to Hudson’s other son, 7-year-old Ryder, whose father is Black Crowes lead singer Chris Robinson. And it means Hudson’s mother Goldie Hawn is a grandmother again. Hudson and Robinson divorced in 2007. She and Bellamy got engaged in April. The 32-year-old actress was nominated for an Oscar for 2000’s “Almost Famous,” and has since appeared in several romantic comedies including “Fools Gold” and “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.”— AP

K Kate Hudson, a cast member in ‘Something Borrowed,’ poses at the premiere of the film in Los Angeles.—AP

Chinese performers dance and sing a Chinese version of Swedish pop group ABBA’s hit ‘Dancing queen’ during a preview of the classic musical ‘Mamma Mia’ in Shanghai yesterday. The Chinese version of the show is translated from the English version and features more than 20 songs re-interpreted in Chinese.— AFP

A

y

e niv rsar n

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

Years

lifestyle T r a v e l

Sunrise was muted by storm clouds at the Korean Bell in San Pedro where athletes did stretching routine.

D

id somebody order fish and ships? The harbor area of southwest Los Angeles County-the closest thing we have to a blue-collar coast-is where cruise ships call, where global cargo is loaded and unloaded, where ton upon ton of maritime machinery hums and looms. It’s where the Queen Mary passes its awkward retirement. Just north, the Pacific pounds the bluffs and pebbles of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, and 22 miles off the mainland, the island of Santa Catalina primps and sparkles for weekend admirers.

This territory “to me, is like a secret,” says Anthony Geich, who works the desk at Hostelling International’s LA/South Bay hostel in San Pedro. “You’re in LA, but you’re away from all the bull.” * A bottle of vino, a little boat and thou Just before Los Angeles County runs out and Orange County begins, a southbound traveler comes across the watery Long Beach neighborhood known as Naples. It’s a cluster of three upscale residential islands, with waterways between. They’re a fine place to float, perhaps in a kayak from Kayaks on the Water (5411 E Ocean Blvd ) or maybe in a Venetian gondola. For $85 a couple, Gondola Getaway (5437 E Ocean Blvd ) offers 50-minute floating adventures just about every day, complete with gondolieri in striped shirts and straw hats. Bring a refreshment (no corkage fee).

Or a crowd: The 10-vessel gondola fleet offers various options for larger groups (including a “pizza cruise” for six to 10 people at $35 a person). Some of the guys sing-a nice effect under the echoing bridges-and many play mood music. Especially around sunset, it’s a memorable float as you drift past snazzy homes under the darkening sky.

Ignacio Villanueva, a veteran gondolier, says he’s seen many a marriage proposal and only one turn-down. Excellent odds, gentlemen. And if your proposal doesn’t pan out, well, you can jump ship and swim for Tantalum restaurant (6272 E Pacific Coast Highway, Suite J), which overlooks one of the marinas on Alamitos Bay and gets some serious happy-hour traffic.

This way to the bat ray You’ve gone as far south as the 710 goes, to the damp heart of Long Beach. You’ve stepped into the Aquarium of the Pacific, a big and bright attraction that opened in 1998

A pair of couples enjoys a gondola ride through the Naples canal in Long Beach, California. near the city’s convention center. Now find the Touch Pool.

Reach into the shallows. And tickle the gray skin of the first flat, triangular creature that Slithers by. That’s a bat ray, its spine clipped (painlessly) to prevent venomous stings. Its skin, you’ll agree, is surprisingly soft. And Long Beach, for all its heavy-metal maritime machinery and antiseptic waterfront redevelopment, can be downright cuddly here and there. This aquarium includes about 11,000 sea creatures and a see-through tunnel that surrounds you with sea life.

Along the Rainbow Harbor waterfront outside, whalewatching boats, harbor cruises and dinner-cruise vessels will compete for your attention, as will Bubba Gump, PF Chang and a bevy of the usual national-brand restaurant characters. If it’s a weekday, you might grab a drink and a happy-hour snack at the three-story, red-roofed Parkers’ Lighthouse in Shoreline Village, before the higher dinner prices kick in. But for more serious meat (and less view), you’ll head about a mile east to 555 East, an old-school steakhouse on Ocean Boulevard. The walls are wood-paneled, and the meatloaf will brighten your day. As for the rest of your night, of course, Hilton, Hyatt and Westin are all huddled near the convention hall, but why not some place on a smaller scale? Stay at the 138-room Avia Hotel, which

opened in 2009, a few blocks from the aquarium, and has a pool on the roof. Or, out on Queensway Drive by the Queen Mary, check out the Hotel Maya, a DoubleTree by Hilton that in 2009 was jazzed up with modern Mexican design.

Bold colors, nice ocean views.

Big ships In a slightly different universe, the Long Beach waterfront would still be dominated by the Long Beach Pike, a massive amusement park that went up in the early 20th century, a cousin to similar setups in San Diego, Santa Monica and Santa Cruz. But the Pike did not age well, and city leaders were scrambling for a new way to lure tourists.

Enter the Queen Mary, a British ocean liner built in the 1930s, retired in 1967 and recast here as a floating hotel.

The ship cuts a striking figure seen from land or sea, especially if you’re about to board a contemporary cruise ship from the embarkation center next door, where many Carnival Mexican cruises begin. And ghost-hunters love the place. But up close, the Queen Mary is tired. Red ink and management changes have been frequent. Many of its historical features have been removed or remodeled. Think hard before you hand over $24.95 to tour the ship (or $139 to stay overnight). But if you really love old ships and you’re going to the Aquarium of the Pacific anyway, buy the combo ticket. That way, instead of paying $24.95 adult admission for the aquarium alone, you get the Queen Mary, too, for $36. By the way, that pass won’t get you aboard the remarkably small old Russian submarine that’s moored next to the Queen Mary, but the gift shop is free and entertaining (need a vodka flask?), and you can replicate the $10.95 self-guided tour by imagining yourself wedged inside a vacuum cleaner with torpedo tubes.

Going retro Just when you think you’re beginning to figure out Long Beach, up pops bohemian Retro Row, a medley of funky vintage and design shops on 4th Street, to show you how little you know. More than two dozen shops are concentrated between Cherry and Junipero avenues. Near St Louis Avenue, check out the dinette sets and Dean Martin albums in Elan Collection, the lanais and lamps at J-2 Design, the hipster hats at Imonni, the wines at 4th Street Vine shop, the written words of Open books. Or settle in at Vintage Collective with its art prints and View-Master reels of Mexico City in 1957 and Anchorage in 1973. When hunger rises up, stroll over to Lola’s Mexican restaurant. Or sink into the calm, white corridor that is noodle house Number Nine. Or duck into Portfolio for coffee. If there’s time, top off your day’s artsy excursion with a visit to the nearby Museum of Latin American Art, which is housed in a boldly colored Mexican modern building, or the Long Beach Museum of Art, which has grown from a 1912 brick-and-timber home to include a later expansion.

(imported for a movie shoot in the 1920s) roam the back country. You need to know that pretty quickly you’ll run out of town to explore, you’ll see some steep prices on summer weekends and you may not want your kids splashing in the shallows around Avalon’s green pier.

(That beach ranked among the state’s 10 most polluted beaches in a 2011 study by Santa Monica-based Heal the Bay.) But the island is fetching, from its distinctive tile work to its signature 1929 casino building (which houses a little museum and screens movies nightly), and there’s just enough here to fill a family weekend or a romantic one. The history is hard to resist, beginning in 1919, when chewinggum mogul William Wrigley Jr bought a controlling interest in the Santa Catalina Island Co Western author and sportsman Zane Grey (whose old house is a hotel now) summered here in the ‘20s and ‘30s. Actress Natalie Wood drowned here while on a 1981 boat trip with husband Robert Wagner and friend Christopher Walken. And teen bride Norma Jean Dougherty lived here briefly in the 1940s before divorcing and renaming herself Marilyn Monroe.

The island, new and improved To impress the adults in your traveling party, book a room at the renewed Pavilion Hotel, right on bayfront Crescent Avenue. Formerly known as the Pavilion Lodge, the place was redone and reopened in 2010 with lush landscaping in its courtyard, an inviting fire ring and hints of Midcentury Modernism here and there. (And go in spring or fall, preferably on a weekday, when you can often get in for less than $180 nightly. On summer weekends the same room can cost more than twice that.) For dinner, head to the sleek dining room of the Avalon Grille, which opened in 2010 a few doors away at 423 Crescent Ave. (Both places are run by the Santa Catalina Island Co, as are many other island businesses.) The next morning, browse or snack in tile-fronted CC Gallagher , which sells sandwiches, coffee, landscape paintings and sushi. That’s right: CC sells sushi down by the seashore.

Taking flight If your Catalina trip is a family venture, look into renting a house or condo from Catalina Island Vacation Rentals so you can defray costs by doing some of your own cooking.

Also, between bike rentals, glass-bottom boat rides and miniature golf tournaments at Golf Gardens, you’ll want to

where the ocean views are augmented by a lighthouse that dates to 1874. Once there, you may or may not be tempted to try a beer at Walker’s Cafe, a tiny, rumpled throwback bar and grill across the street that draws a close-knit crew of grizzled locals and bikers.

But for a wider selection and a far kid-friendlier scene, head instead to the Corner Store , which isn’t on a corner but welcomes families with pb&j sandwiches and sells more kinds of sodas than you’ve ever imagined. Now, having bought your picnic lunch, take it down to sea level at Cabrillo Beach Park, where you’ll find picnic tables, tide pools facing the open ocean and Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, a facility that dates to the 1930s and now plays David to the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific’s Goliath. The Cabrillo building, startlingly wrapped in chain-link fencing and rugged metal accessories, was designed by architect Frank Gehry in the early 1980s, before his name became a global brand. Inside, there’s plenty to keep a family absorbed (sea stars, jellyfish, leopard sharks) and a homespun feel to the exhibits. Best of all, the recommended donation is $5 for adults, $1 for kids-about a fifth of what the Long Beach aquarium costs. (But stay out of the shallows inside the breakwater. This beach, too, is on Heal the Bay’s most-polluted list.)

Of golf, God and redwoods Venture north of San Pedro and boom-you’re out of blue-collar territory and onto the genteel slopes of Rancho Palos Verdes, snaking along the not-at-all-smooth blacktop of Palos Verdes Drive. First, exit at Trump National Golf Club and park in the free lot on the left. Alongside this ritzy golf course and restaurant is a network of public trails. You can follow one down to the water’s edge, where wave action has smoothed the many-colored pebbles almost halfway to becoming glass. Of course, you could play golf here, too, if you don’t mind greens fees of $215-$275 for morning starts.

Your second stop, farther north and west on Palos Verdes Drive, is the Wayfarers Chapel. This is a small but remarkable church, dedicated in 1951 — almost all glass walls and skylights, with light filtering in through flanking redwoods.

Lloyd Wright, son of Frank Lloyd Wright, designed it for followers of 18th century mystic Emanuel Swedenborg, but all are welcome; donations are requested. From just about everywhere on the grounds, the views are stupendous, the tranquility considerable.

A group of young travelers cruise through Avalon Bay, off Catalina Island.

Eat, drink, shop, stroll The commercial spine of Long Beach’s Belmont Shore area is a 15-block stretch of 2nd Street, three blocks from the beach. Tuck into a mound of Lebanese kebabs at one of Open Sesame’s two busy locations and rest assured that next time you could try crepes, pasta, cupcakes, tacos, Thai, whatever. Require a pint? Choose among Murphy’s, Quinn’s and Shannon’s pubs, or head to Legends, a sports bar with dozens of TVs. Then, to give your legs and elbow a little more exercise, hike half a mile to Belmont Brewing Co, which serves lunch, dinner on a beach-view patio next to the Belmont Pier. Look north beyond the bike path and you’ll see a horizon full of maritime machinery. Look south on a windy day and you’ll see the billowing sails of windsurfers at play.

When Catalina calls Between Dana Point to the south and Marina del Rey to the north, there are five places to catch a ferry for Catalina.

But you probably want the shortest boat ride possible, and that means starting in Long Beach with the Catalina Express. It’s an hourlong and it ends in sleepy Avalon Bay. Catalina, you’ll soon find, is a strange and charming land where golf carts far outnumber cars, where tourists often outnumber the island’s 3,700 or so residents, where buffalo

line up at Big Olaf’s ice cream shop (220 Crescent Ave.) along the waterfront, where $4.50 buys a single scoop of Dreyer’s ice cream with topping. Then-if nobody’s afraid of heights-walk north past the casino to the Descanso Beach Club, where the Catalina Zipline Eco Tour opened in 2010.

It’s a series of five lines that take you slope to slope in Descanso Canyon, skittering along at up to 40 mph, up to 300 feet high, while the scrub and eucalyptus trees flash past below. (To ride alone, participants must be at least age 10 and weigh 80 to 245 pounds. Children 5-9 may ride in tandem with an adult.) With instruction beforehand and pauses between zips, it takes about two hours. You wind up back at the Descanso Beach Club, where there are many other sports on offer, along with a beachfront bar and restaurant where you can agree on how much to exaggerate how high and fast you went.

High ground and chain link San Pedro is a sleeper. Wedged between the docks of Long Beach and the mansions of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, it has a throwback look (lots of 50-year-old signage) and a Croatian accent, because many local families came from Croatia to work seafaring or waterfront jobs.

Along 6th Street and Pacific Avenue, you’ll notice businesses such as Slavko’s Harbor Poultry and Ante’s Restaurant.

You begin by climbing to high ground: Angels Gate Park , where a 17-ton Korean Bell of Friendship and pagoda shelter tower over the grass (and the neighboring LA/South Bay Hostel), with wraparound views of the Pacific, Catalina Island and the occasional passing whale. In all LA County, there can’t be a better place to fly a kite. Well, except perhaps the lawn at nearby Point Fermin Park and Lighthouse,

A student from the City of Terrace Elementary gets up close and personal with a Queensland Grouper at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California.

Does that name ring a diving bell?

A little farther north on Palos Verdes Drive, you’ll reach a grand bluff-top chunk of land that longtime Angelenos will remember as the site of the Marineland theme park from 1954 to ‘87. Since 2009, these 102 acres have been the site of Terranea, a luxury resort that opened just in time to get kicked in the teeth by the recession. It has 582 hotel rooms (each at least 450 square feet) and rates that begin around $360, with a nine-hole golf course, spa, three pools, multiple restaurants and views of the Point Vicente lighthouse (next to which is the Point Vicente Interpretive Center, a prime whale-watching spot). Terranea is not a beach hotel.

It’s all about bluffs, rocks and pebbles. And if you’re splurging, it’s worth a thought. If you’re not splurging, come anyway and grab a free parking spot (first lot on the left as you enter). Make the rounds on the cliff-top public trails, and wind up around sunset at the casual resort restaurant that looks out toward the lighthouse. It’s called Nelson’s-in honor of Mike Nelson, the heroic scuba diver portrayed by Lloyd Bridges on TV’s “Sea Hunt” from 1958 to ‘61. The show was shot around Palos Verdes, in glorious black and white, and the restaurant walls are filled with posters (in jarring color) promoting ancient episodes. Give them a look. Then glance again at the sea, take a bite of seared ahi, and be glad. To be any more immersed in SoCal culture, you’d have to strap on air tanks and flip overboard backward. — MCT

A

y

e niv rsar n

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

Years

lifestyle T r a v e l

The sun sets on a beach at the end of County Road 669 in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Park in Michigan.

— MCT photos

I

t finally happened. The famous Dr Beach acknowledged that the Great Lakes has great beaches worth mentioning.What made him do it? “Years and years of being battered by all the people who were from the Great Lakes,” said Stephen Leatherman, director of the Laboratory for Coastal Research at Florida International University. “I get hundreds of e-mails every year from people claiming that I don’t know there are beaches on the Great Lakes.”

For years, he resisted because his expertise was ocean beaches. But finally, when even colleagues from the Great Lakes started needling him at conferences about why his influential annual Dr Beach ranking of top-10 US beaches excluded the Great Lakes, he changed his mind.

Announced July 1, the top-five Great Lakes beaches list named Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore beaches No 1. The area was praised for its “variety of beaches with fine to grainy sand and clean, clear water.”

Sleeping Bear’s gorgeous sand helped it win, Leatherman said. Although the sand on Great Lakes beaches is mostly quartz, just like the ocean, “it does vary,” he said.

“Ohio has more minerals in their sand, darker sand. The Michigan side of Lake Michigan has remarkably fine sand.” To evaluate freshwater beaches, he got advice from Erin Dreelin, associate director for the Center for Water Sciences at Michigan State University. She helped him come up with slightly different evaluation criteria for Great Lakes beaches than what is used for ocean beaches.

He obviously did not need categories for jellyfish or sharks-more important were water quality and beach safety. Beaches were evaluated on things like whether they had tar balls, trash or litter. They were rated on beach width, sand quality in and out of the water, beach slope (how quickly it drops off ), if they had been closed for algae or E coli. They were checked for their surroundings (shore breaks, near a dump or nuclear power station), safety (rip currents, drownings, pickpockets, swimmers’ itch cases), among other things.

Leatherman has traveled most of the marine coast on the Atlantic and Pacific surveying beaches for the federal government and for his own research, compiling 60,000 slides and 10,000 maps. But his travels in the Great Lakes have been more limited. He’s familiar with Lake Michigan and Lake Superior, less so with the others. “I haven’t seen it all; it’s huge,” he said, reached by phone in Anchorage, Alaska, where, yes, he had been to look at the beach.

Sleeping Bear has beaches that front both the open lake and calmer inlets, including Peterson Road Beach, Glen Haven Beach, County Road 669 and 651 beaches, North Bar Lake Beach, Platte Point Beach and Esch Road Beach. Sleeping Bear gets 1.1 million visitors a year, many of them there for the giant sand dunes and panoramic views.

The other Michigan beach that won, Lake Superior’s Sand Point Beach at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, was complimented for its water-”crystal clear and surprisingly emerald green in shallow

Glen Haven Beach is seen in the early morning light at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan.

M

agical things happen atop the great sand dunes here. The dunes include the largest on the East Coast, which soars 80 to 100 feet above most everything else and offers fine views in all directions: the gleaming Atlantic to the east, a picturesque estuary to the west and beach houses and tourist swarms below. “I’ve been living here 25 years, and every New Year’s Eve we go up to the dune to watch the sun set,” Leslie Deligio, 59, a nurse, said as we sipped beers at Outer Banks Brewing Station brew pub on the teeming strip along this state’s coast. “Then we come down and party.”

Another local, a man, leaned over and offered his own bit of dune mythology: Certain more lascivious activities are known to happen up there. Wink, nudge.

However, it was the Outer Banks’ legendary winds and sand for soft landingsnot the extracurricular activities-that lured the Wright Brothers here from Ohio

water areas.” Pictured Rocks, in the Upper Peninsula between Munising and Grand Marais, has multiple beaches with water usually too chilly for all but the heartiest of swimmers, including Chapel Rock Beach, Twelvemile Beach and Miners Beach.

Pictured Rocks has 499,000 visitors a year.

Will this be an annual list? Michigan has 3,200 miles of coastline, more than even the US Atlantic coast. Will other beaches get a chance to shine? “We’re going to see what happens this year, how it comes out, how people respond,” Leatherman said.

“So, maybe. It’s a bit of work on my part, but it’s interesting.”

Also in the top 5 In addition to Sleeping Bear (No 1) and Pictured Rocks (No 3), these beaches placed in Dr Beach’s Great Lakes list: Presque Isle State Park on Lake Erie in Erie, Pa (No 2). It has 13 swimming areas on a 7-mile stretch of “a naturally occurring sand spit” that lend themselves to water activities.

Bayfield Main Beach on Lake Huron in Bayfield, Ontario (No 4). It is 1 1/2 hours north of the Blue Water Bridge. Although “the sandy beach grades into cobbles offshore,” the ranking said, “there are amenities close to the beach, and crowds are never a concern.”

Oak Street Beach on Lake Michigan, Chicago (No 5). This popular Lake Michigan beach has good, fine sand and also “provides stunning views of the historic architecture of Chicago and Lake Michigan.”

The other beach list Dr Beach releases an influential US Beaches Top 10 list every May, but it includes only ocean beaches. That has been the source of endless criticism from Great Lakes fans. Here’s this year’s list of winners, which came out in May: 1. Siesta Beach, Sarasota, Fla 2. Coronado Beach, San Diego 3. Kahanamoku Beach, Waikiki, Hawaii 4. Main Beach, East Hampton, NY

A hang gliding student has a rough landing at Jockey’s Ridge State Park in Nags Head, North Carolina.

A small rock formation is seen at the mouth of the Platte River Point in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Michigan.

5. Cape Hatteras, Outer Banks, North Carolina 6. St George Island State Park, Florida P anhandle 7. Beachwalker Park, Kiawah Island, SC 8. Coast Guard Beach, Cape Cod, Mass 9. Waimanalo Bay Beach Park, Oahu, Hawaii 10. Cape Florida State Park, Key Biscayne, Fla — MCT

for their famous Kitty Hawk flights of 1903. Today that same combination summons thousands of tourists for worldclass kite flying, hang gliding and intense games of make-believe.

“We need to get to the top of the mountain!” a 4-year-old yelled as his little feet chugged up the searing dune one toasty summer afternoon. “It’s the only way we will survive!” I, however, skipped the make-believe and went right for the hang gliding.

Kitty Hawk Kites, one of the area’s oldest outfitters, offers four beginning and

we would travel 125 feet-five more than the Wright Brothers on their first flight on Dec 17, 1903. Didn’t matter.

“The feeling of weightlessness is the same at 18 feet as 18,000 feet,” our lecturer said. And then came a warning: “Do not panic. Panicked is no state to be in a hang glider.” That, of course, made us only more nervous. But out we went, from the classroom to the hot sand, where our instructor, Hunter Deakle, quietly admitted to me that he was new to the sport, even though he became a quick addict.

“Unpowered flight,” said Deakle, 26.

“It’s birdlike, man. People dream of this stuff.” We dream of it indeed, but we’re also intimidated by it. Birds fly. We walk. It makes even hang gliding off a sand dune intimidating. But helmet on head, latched to the glider, instructions firmly in head about turning and maintaining flight, it seemed impossible until actually taking that first running leap off the dune and stepping into freedom and weightlessness.

Well, sort of. Most first flights, mine included, ended with a quick thud, the glider’s metal tip nosing into the sand. My first flight was a mere 20 or so feet, but my second extended to about 40 feet. I don’t remember looking at anything during that flight-only the feeling of brief soaring. “That was nice!” Deakle said. “It’s because you had a sick takeoff.”

“How do you know when your takeoff is sick?” I asked. “You move all the energy from your legs to this,” he said, and shook the glider. “There’s not a lot of banging around. It’s smooth.” We all had our moments, both high and low. Succeeding took equal amounts of concentration and absolute letting go. You knew it went well when, at the moment it seemed you should be heading back to terra firma, you stayed aloft. You defied your own expectation. A bad flight ended jarringly, quickly, thuddingly. We all had them.

“I call that one the IHOP special,” said Joe Hewitt, 44, of Raleigh, NC, as he brushed sand off his body. “I pancaked. I think there might be a spot behind one of my molars that doesn’t have sand in it.”

My last flight was my best-I traveled about 100 feet. I was still short of the Wright Brothers but soared far enough to want to continue, to go farther and to go higher. After skydiving the first time, I knew it probably would be my last time.

After five flying leaps off a 100-foot sand dune, all I wanted was more.

But the lesson was over. The sun was setting, the moon was rising and people with good sense to wait for the weather to break started filing across the dune

A hang gliding student catches air at Jockey’s Ridge State Park.

A boat tour, boarding in Munising, travels along the sandstone cliffs at Rocks National Lakeshore located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

The Grand Sable Banks and Dunes are one of the many sights to see at Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan.

four advanced courses a day off the area’s dunes, and they appeal to a wide swathfrom 9-year-old girls with braids to grandfathers in shorts and white athletic socks pulled high. My lesson came on a hot afternoon moderated by warm ocean breezes.

Training began with signing away my life-repeatedly. Five signatures and 12 initials across several pages, though what I signed away, I didn’t know. It seemed better that way. Then came an hour of talking, as a lecturer told my 20 classmates and me what we faced. Anxiety was palpable-we were going to fly? — even if we all tried to hide it. Our flights would not be epic, we were told; if we were lucky,

with their children and their kites. The sand, scorching hot by day, was turning silky and cool, and I sat on it to watch a dozen kites bob and weave through the sky. The great dune had done its best for me, offering the gift of flight. Though whether it offered much more than that, I’m sorry to say, I never found out. Wink, nudge.

If you go Getting there: The closest major airport to North Carolina’s Outer Banks is Norfolk (Va) International Airport, about 90 miles north. Raleigh/Durham International Airport is about 200 miles west. Renting a car, especially for a family, is a must. The Banks essentially are one long strip, and getting to a restaurant, accommodation or beach requires wheels.

Staying there: The heart of the Outer Banks-Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head-is thick with tourists in high season and therefore has more activity: more bars, more restaurants, more coffee shops and more to do. For a quieter escape, look to the Banks’ north-

ern and southern ends, where the beaches will be quieter. There is no shortage of accommodations, from camping to $90 motel rooms to vast beach houses. Book in advance.

Taking flight: Kitty Hawk Kites (252-995-6060; kittyhawk.com) offers four three-hour hang-gliding dune lessons for $99 at Jockey’s Ridge State Park in Nags Head (jockeysridgestatepark.com). Also worth a visit is Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills (252-473-2111; nps.gov/wrbr), where the brothers made history. — MCT

e niv rsar n

y

A

David, Victoria Beckham welcome new baby girl Years

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

Miss Lebanon 2011 Yara Khoury Mikael poses before winning the beauty pageant in Beirut, Lebanon, late Sunday. — AP photos

Yara Khoury Mikael receives kiss from her father after winning the Miss Lebanon 2011 contest.

Yara Khoury Mikael fixes her crown after winning the Miss Lebanon 2011 contest.

Yara Khoury Mikael and her court at the Miss Lebanon 2011 contest.

Some of the candidates of Miss Lebanon 2011.

B

ritain’s Prince William and wife Kate ended their southern California stay Sunday, bearing witness to both the poverty of Skid Row and the power of Hollywood. In their first trip to the United States since marrying in April, the royal couple chose to favor charity and business over celebrity in their three-day visit. But the glitterati of Hollywood were never far away, as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge drew the movie stars and studio executives to help raise funds and awareness for their causes in the entertainment capital of the world.

At their final event at Sony Studios to support military families and a job fair for veterans, William said he would take ideas home to Britain, where he serves as a Royal Air Force pilot and Kate is a military wife. “I am delighted, therefore, that our Foundation-and in that I include Harry, my low-flying Apache, very average brother-is a partner in today’s event,” William quipped to the

Prince William and Kate, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, depart the Inner City Arts academy in Los Angeles.

37

crowd. “We have much to learn from you.”

Earlier in the day and far from the media glare, the royal couple was given a private tour of Skid Row, the gritty terminus for the homeless in downtown Los Angeles and a growing population of single mothers after the economic recession. The tour was a late addition to the royal agenda and served as preparation for a visit to the Inner-City Arts Center for children living around Skid Row, one of the largest concentrations of homeless people in the United States. It was also a stark contrast to the opulent events Saturday-a charity polo match in coastal Santa Barbara and a black-tie dinner with Hollywood royalty.

Outdoing hollywood glamour Even with the emphasis on work and business, wherever they went William and Kate brought a royal glamour that even Hollywood couldn’t emulate. At the bright and airy arts center, Kate,

Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, plays with clay with students in a ceramics class during a tour of the Inner City Arts academy in Los Angeles, Sunday. — AP photos

Miss Lebanon 2010, Rhaf Abdallah, right, hands over the crown to Yara Khoury Mikael.

dressed in a navy lace top and white pleated skirt from UK retail chain Whistles, donned a smock and painted a snail along with the kids. William, sans smock, appeared to paint something more abstract. It gave the couple an opportunity to be playful in public.

“William, do you know what you’re doing? Start from the center,” Kate said.

He took the direction and returned to his canvas.

The day had started off on a glamorous note as the duke and duchess attended a private brunch with Hollywood notables like actress Reese Witherspoon and the CEO of Disney, Bob Iger, to garner interest in Tusk, a charity for African wildlife conservation.

They had also charmed the stars at the gala Saturday night, where A-listers like Tom Hanks, Nicole Kidman and Barbra Streisand turned out to support the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, of which William is president. He asked the Hollywood power crowd to give opportunities to a new generation of British talent.

The California leg of the 11-day overseas visit had none of the large crowds of their Canadian tour, and most Californians had to resort to the media to get a glimpse of the royals.

But for the lucky few, like Vietnam war veteran Jose Ramos, the contact with the potential king and queen of Britain was special. He gave William his original jump wings from 1966. “When he thanked me for being a veteran and serving in Vietnam, I offered them to him and he said he’d wear it proudly,” Ramos said. “That was my original set. I don’t give those out lightly for sure. I’ve worn them every day since I received them.” — Reuters

‘Dancing with the Stars’ winner Hines Ward arrested

P

rofessional football player and recent ‘Dancing With the Stars’ winner Hines Ward was arrested over the weekend on drunken driving charges in Georgia, according to police.

Hines, a Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver, was detained early Saturday morning in Dekalb County, just outside Atlanta, and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol. He was released on $1,000 bond.

The two-time Super Bowl winner was named the 12th season winner of widely-watched television competition show ‘Dancing With the Stars’ in late May. He and his dance partner Kym Johnson squared off in the finals against actress Kirstie Alley and Disney Channel star Chelsea Kane. He was the second pro football player to win the show, following Dallas Cowboys star Emmitt Smith’s win in 2006. — Reuters

In this photo released by the Dekalb County Sheriff’s office, Hines Ward is shown on Saturday, July 9, 2011. —AP