20 Aug

IO N IPT SC R SU B

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

03:44 03:54 05:19 11:51 15:27 18:24 17:45

150 Fils

Emsak: Fajer: Shoruk: Dohr: Asr: Maghreb: Eshaa:

No: 15186

RAMADAN 20, 1432 AH

Blasts rock Tripoli; fighting rages

Al-Sadr forbids using Iraq land to attack Kuwait

China-US ‘friendly’ erupts into brawl

7

45

Iraqis stage demos on border against port ‘Zero tolerance’ to deal with infiltration: Kuwait

3 Max 46º Min 30º

KUWAIT: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Ahmad Al-Humoud Al-Sabah visits the northern port yesterday.

Teenager knocks down ‘KD500,000 chandelier’

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: Security personnel at the 360 Mall apprehended a Kuwaiti teenager who destroyed a massive KD500,000 chandelier by throwing his shoe at it and knocking it to the ground, where it smashed.

It is unclear why the youngster threw his shoe at the extremely expensive chandelier, but according to a security source, the boy said during questioning that he didn’t expect the action to be strong enough to knock the huge chandelier to the ground.

The chandelier was the most expensive in the Middle East, although some members of the public have argued that its real worth is no more than KD40,000. No official statement was forthcoming from the mall management over the incident.

Although the teenager was charged with damage to property, the management of the mall are reportedly considering dropping the charges. No information was forthcoming on their reason for doing so.

Pakistan suicide bomber kills 47 KHYBER, Pakistan: A teenage suicide bomber blew himself up among worshippers offering yesterday prayers at a mosque in northwest Pakistan, killing at least 47 people and wounding more than 70, a top government official said. No one claimed responsibility for the attack in Jamrud, a main town in Khyber, but officials suspected Taleban militants who have been active for past years in the tribal region that shares border with Afghanistan.

Officials earlier said 34 people had been killed. “Many of the wounded succumbed to their injuries, adding to the toll that may rise further as there are still people in critical condition,” region’s top government administrator Mutahir Zeb said. — Reuters

British Council in Kabul hit, 10 killed KABUL: Suicide attackers stormed a British compound in the Afghan capital yesterday, killing at least 10 people in a fivehour gunfight on the anniversary of the country’s independence from Britain.

A spokesman for the Taleban, Zabiullah Mujahid, claimed responsibility for the attack on the British Council in the western part of Kabul. The dead included eight Afghan policemen, a security guard whose nationality was not immediately known and an Afghan municipal worker, according to Kabul police official Farooq Asas. Two of four people wounded in the blasts were not Afghans, he said. — AP

By A Saleh and KUNA KUWAIT: Dozens of Iraqis gathered less than 300 meters from the Kuwaiti border yesterday morning, shouting slogans against the Kuwaiti government and approaching the border, eventually having to be restrained

by Iraqi security forces.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Ahmad AlHumoud Al-Sabah visited the northern port yesterday to monitor the situation closely.

He assured Kuwaitis that the security situation at the northern border is absolutely safe, saying, “There is nothing to worry about.”

According to KUNA, Sheikh Ahmad AlHumoud said that he had ordered all security agencies to remain vigilant and take all the necessary measures “to deal with any kind of infiltration of Kuwaiti borders in the future, and to respond to any such actions firmly and with zero tolerance.”

Kuwaiti and Iraqi security authorities reportedly worked closely together to restore order, with the latter assuring their Kuwaiti counterparts that all the necessary measures would be taken to prevent any more Iraqi protesters from staging such protests at the border in the future.

Yesterday’s demonstration, which saw freight transport activities suspended between the two nations for a few hours,

took place at the Safwan border crossing point and was organized by a local movement in Basra via messages on Facebook calling for protests against Kuwait’s plans to build the Mubarak Al-Kabeer port.

“Dozens of movement members demonstrated at the Safwan outlet in protest against the Kuwaiti violations; the latest of which is building the Mubarak Port in a location that hinders mobility at Iraqi ports”, said one of the protesters, Makki Al-Tamimi, an activist with the Shabab Al-Taghyeer (Youths for Change) movement. Fellow protester and activist Ali Al-Bahadli indicated that the demonstration was held to “send a warning to the Kuwaiti government and put pressure on the Iraqi government to take stricter measures against Kuwait.”

A heavy presence of Iraqi security forces and riot police contained the demonstration, with strict security measures put in place to prevent any escalation of the situation, according to an Iraqi police official.

Elsewhere on the same border at Um Qast, meanwhile, local news agencies in Kuwait reported that another group of Iraqi protesters had attempted yesterday morning to remove a massive section of steel barrier erected to thwart illegal attempts to cross the border. Speaking to local daily Al-Aan, an unnamed security insider indicated that seven brigades from the Kuwaiti special task

force were sent to the northern border, using megaphones to warn Iraqi protestors against crossing the border. Kuwaiti and Iraqi security authorities reportedly worked closely together to restore order, with the latter assuring their Kuwaiti counterparts that all the necessary measures would be taken to prevent any more Iraqi protesters from staging such protests at the border in the future.

Speaking to reporters following his visit to the northern border, the Kuwait minister said, “Security forces with their various departments are carrying out their usual duties there with all the necessary vigilance and preparedness.”

He also lauded the Iraqi security forces for their prompt action, saying, “The Iraqi border police have also exerted great efforts in cooperation and coordination with our security forces following an attempt by a number of Iraqis to hold a demonstration on the northern borders,” adding that Iraqi forces had managed to turn demonstrators away from the borders with Kuwait.

The minister hailed the security forces’ high morale while protecting their homeland and their compatriots. During his visit to the northern border, the minister gained firsthand knowledge of the situation there and the precautionary measures taken to deal with emergencies as well as to meet port and border police and Special Forces leaders.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

local

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Amir tours popular venues KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Sabah toured several popular social venues in Kuwait on Thursday evening. He was accompanied on his tour by HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf AlAhmad Al-Sabah and the Chairman of the National Guard Sheikh Meshaal Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, as well as several other sheikhs and senior officials and dignitaries. The tour, part of HH the Amir’s social schedule for the holy fasting month of Ramadan, included a number

in the news MEW launches solar power projects KUWAIT: Kuwait plans to utilize solar energy to produce power for state facilities, through a number of projects, for which KD 22 million has been allocated from the state budget for 2011-12. “The Ministry of Electricity and Water is preparing to launch projects to install photovoltaic panels on top of ministry buildings as part of plans to utilize renewable energy to supply public facilities with electricity,” explained minister Salem Al-Othaina on Thursday, adding that these plans follow analysis of a number of joint studies conducted by the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research and Kuwait University. “The project is a first step towards utilizing renewable energy to produce electricity and water instead of the tradition method of using fossil fuel which costs the state’s budget more than KD2 billion annually,” said Al-Othaina, who is also the state’s Minister of Communication and acting Minister of Information. - Al-Qabas ‘Fund limited to 1,400 scholarships’ KUWAIT: A KD 30 million fund allocated by the Cabinet to send more students on scholarships to universities aboard can only cover scholarships for 1,400 students, an official from the Ministry of Higher Education said. He argued that sending 1,400 students in addition to another 1,800 would prove burdensome to the ministry, placing considerable pressure on financial resources. He added that the ministry should hire more employees both in Kuwait and at Kuwaiti cultural attaches aboard, reported Al-Watan.

of popular cafes in Sulaibikhat and Jahra.

HH the Amir and his entourage were warmly received by the customers, guests and owners at the various cafes and diwaniyas.

HH the Amir chatted informally with members of the public about their daily lives during Ramadan, with some reading him poems and presenting gifts to mark the occasion and extending their warmest wishes to him and his family.

Kuwait seeks to rectify economic policy flaws CB panel reviews global economic situation KUWAIT: The Governor of Kuwait’s Central Bank, Sheikh Salem Al-Abdulaziz Al-Sabah on Thursday chaired a meeting of the subcommittee responsible for setting the agenda of discussions at Monday’s meeting of the top-level state committee established to assess Kuwait’s stance on local and global economic developments. The move comes as the world stock markets saw another turbulent day yesterday, with fears growing of a global double dip recession.

The focus of discussion at the upcoming meeting will reportedly be on repairing ‘errors’ in Kuwait’s current economic structure, and restoring balance in public finance issues and the national economy generally.

The subcommittee also emphasized the need to introduce administrative reforms in the public sector in order to increase work flexibility and efficiency, as well as calling for general improvements in the business environment to strengthen investment and productivity.

The high-level subcommittee also called for tackling overspending, as well as launching a media awareness campaign to increase public understanding of the government’s economic reform measures.

Another subject under discussion at Thursday’s meeting was the probability of a sharp fall in the global demand for oil caused by the looming recession, which would seriously impede Kuwait’s current development plans, with those present calling for the introduction of measures to deal with such a scenario in the event it comes about, including diversifying income sources and increasing national productivity levels.

The newly-formed committee, which features top local economists and experts from both the government and private sectors, was instructed by His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Sabah when he chaired their first meeting on Monday to establish measures to rectify the “structural distortions” in the Kuwaiti economy due to

the spike in public sector spending.

Parliamentary Speaker Jassem Al-Kharafi urged the committee on Wednesday evening to come up with “comprehensive solutions that can be immediately implemented to protect the national economy.”

Meanwhile, Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) board member and former commerce minister Abdulwahab Al-Wazzan blamed “public demands,” in the form of salary increases and other financial benefits, for the growth in governmental spending, indicating that public sector wages have tripled in the past 11 years. Al-Wazzan, a member of the new committee, agreed that enforcing the introduction of corporate taxes is one of the most essential recommendations currently being considered to boost local income, but stressed that taxes would be strictly limited to private sector firms rather than individuals, “leaving nearly 85% of the Kuwaiti people not subject to them.” — Al-Qabas and Al-Shahed

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

LOCAL

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Sadr forbids using Iraq land to attack Kuwait Current tension over port ‘unwarranted’ KUWAIT: A top Iraqi Shiite leader has strongly attacked the idea of militants using Iraqi land to carry out attacks against Kuwait or any other neighboring or friendly nation, describing the current tensions over the Mubarak AlKabeer port as “unwarranted.”

The statement from Muqtada AlSadr, the leader of the Sadrist Movement, which is perceived to serve as a de facto fatwa forbidding the use of Iraqi soil to carry out attacks against neighboring countries, came in response to inquiries on threats by Iraqi militant groups which threatened to carry out attacks against Kuwaiti interests, including Kuwaiti businesses working in South Iraq.

“Using Iraqi land to attack any neighboring country is totally unallowable,” Al-Sadr’s statement reads.

The statement also calls on the relevant authorities in both Iraq and Kuwait to coordinate to stop construction of the Mubarak Al-Kabeer port or find solutions that protect Iraq’s interests “if the port had negative effects on Iraq.”

Al-Sadr also urged Kuwait to view Iraq as a “friendly nation,” saying, “Iraq is no longer a [former Iraqi President] Saddam [Hussein] nation or an invading nation, but a peace-seeking neighbor.”

Meanwhile, the leader of the National Iraqi Alliance Ibrahim AlJaafari called upon the two nations to adopt dialogue while avoiding “media outcries,” and to begin “direct political discussions over the port’s issue”, as well as promoting a culture of coexis-

tence among the people of the two countries.

A team of technical experts and senior officials from Iraq arrived in Kuwait last week to hold talks with Kuwaiti officials over the controversial mega port which Kuwait is currently building in the east of Boubyan Island close to the Khor Abdullah, the narrow waterway separating Kuwait from Iraq’s sole outlet to the Arabian Gulf.

On Thursday, the team held a meeting with the director of Kuwait’s Environment Public Authority Dr. Salah Al-Moudhhi, and viewed a comprehensive study carried out by the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) which demonstrates that the Mubarak Al-Kabeer port has no significant negative impact on the maritime environment in the region. On Wednesday, Kuwait’s Minister of Public Works and State Minister of Municipality Affairs Dr. Fadhil Safar said that the Iraqi team was “satisfied regarding all phases of the project” following talks with Foreign Ministry officials, as well as MPW and KISR representatives.

In the meantime, Iraqi MP Kathem Al-Shemmari heavily criticized statements made by Kuwaiti lawmaker Musallam Al-Barrak, which he described as “offensive to the Iraqi people” and “contain insulting remarks.”

Al-Shemmari had warned in an earlier statement that Iraqi militant groups could carry out attacks against Kuwaiti targets in protest against the Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port, which the

Iraqi government wouldn’t be able to thwart. Al-Barrak was among several Kuwaiti lawmakers who condemned Al-Shemmari’s statements, with the Kuwaiti MP insisting that “Kuwait today is different than Kuwait in 1990” - referring to the year in which Saddam Hussein’s troops launched a crushing assault to invade the Gulf nation. Al-Barrak also addressed AlShemmari directly, saying, “Whatever you and your thugs are plotting is too substantial for your ‘mustaches’ to achieve” - an expression suggesting that a man is unable to accomplish dangerous tasks, which is perceived as a great insult in Arab culture.

“Al-Barrak appears to be suffering from a serious moral crisis especially since he is the only member of the Kuwaiti parliament known for his outspoken and immoral approach”, AlShemmari responded, calling on his Kuwaiti counterpart to be “more polite when speaking to an Iraqi MP or citizen.”

The member of the Iraqiya White Party had clarified following his early statement that he was only pointing out the fact that the Iraqi government doesn’t have full control enabling it to stop militant groups from carrying out attacks against Kuwait. The militant group, Kataeb Hezbollah of Iraq, issued a warning on July 18th to companies constructing the Mubarak AlKabeer port, threatening a couple of weeks later to fire three surface-to-surface missiles against Kuwaiti targets should construction works continue.

—Al-Qabas & Al-Rai

PAB backs call for severing Syria ties

By A Saleh

KUWAIT: The municipal officials conducted flash inspections on many food outlets in the Ahmadi area and closed down two stores for violating rules. They also destroyed 830 liters of dairy products which were found unfit for human consumption. They issued 20 citations.

—Photos by Hanan Al-Saadoun

KUWAIT: The Popular Action Bloc (PAB) has followed independent MP Nadji AlAbdulhadi’s example in putting forward a bill to sever all relations with Syria, said PAB member Musallam Al-Barrak on Thursday. Al-Barrak insisted that Kuwait should sever ties with any regime of this nature and the bloc was attempting to ensure that the Council of Ministers ends all cooperation with the Syrian administration and immediately stops any loans currently being paid to it, directly or indirectly.

After the Eid Al-Fitr holiday is finished, the MPs will begin consultations on an emergency session to discuss cutting off relations with Syria, said Al-Barrak, adding that once the number of MPs signing the petition calling for the emergency session reaches 33 he will automatically file a request for the session with the parliamentary speaker.

Events in Syria have reached crisis point, the MP said, with the regime shelling cities and villages from air, land

and sea and committing savage crimes against innocent people, whilst Arab regimes remain silent. The Syrian regime’s actions mean that it is imperative to suspend all agreements with it, he concluded. A number of MPs have expressed concern over the recruitment

by Kuwait University and the Public Authority of Applied Education and Training (PAAET) of some PhD-holders who do not meet the criteria to serve as teaching staff, with lawmaker Adel AlSarawi saying yesterday that he and a large number of colleagues are opposed to the move.

Despite succeeding in their earlier demand that Kuwait University accept an unprecedented number of students, thereby putting further weight on its already overburdened academic staff and requiring an influx of massive numbers of new staff, the MPs are now voicing concern that the lecturers being recruited as a result are not of a sufficiently high caliber.

“Education is not for sale or trading, and we refuse to allow the education

issue to become one of the political games issues where deals are made and accounts are settled,” the MP asserted, adding, “Education is the future of Kuwait and its children, just as is the case elsewhere.” The MP called on education minister Ahmad Al-Mulaifi and the director of the PAAET to live up to their responsibilities and not bow to MPs’ pressure, citing to the cancellation of the contract of one of the teaching staff recruited by the acting PAAET director after it was discovered that the lecturer’s qualifications were inadequate. Despite this, however, the MP said, the acting director was still postponing the lecturer’s dismissal. Al-Sarawi explained that former education minister Dr. Moudhi Al-Humoud had shown integrity in such cases, refusing to bow to pressure as AlMulaifi has already done, adding that he holds Al-Mulaifi fully responsible for the current situation. The MP added that he would refuse to keep silent over this issue, asking indignantly how lecturing staff could be employed in 2011 based on information from 2008.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

LOCAL

Kuwait oil consumption levels hit alarming levels One million barrels used in June alone KUWAIT: Kuwait consumed nearly one million barrels of oil in June, the highest rate of oil consumption among OPEC countries during that month, according to statistics released by Bloomberg, which cited official information.

“Kuwait’s oil consumption jumped to 922,000 barrels per day in June”, said the news report, quoting information from the Joint Organizations Data Initiative (JODI). This consumption rate means that Kuwait recorded a 26 percent increase in oil consumption in June on the previous month when approximately 730,000 barrels of oil were consumed per day.

Whilst oil consumption usually increase during the summer in Kuwait, it is unusual for the levels to reach such recordbreaking rates. In the meantime, the same statistics show that Kuwait’s consumption rate in June was equal to half of Saudi Arabia’s consumption for the same month, despite the fact that Saudi Arabia’s population is eight times that of Kuwait, and the kingdom’s economy is nearly three times as large as Kuwait’s. Saudi Arabia recorded a consumption rate of 1.89 million barrels per day in June, dropping by 4.3 percent on May’s level, according to the statistics.

Fuel costs in Kuwait are considered to be amongst the lowest worldwide, as a top consultative committee in the Gulf State currently reportedly studying the possibility of increasing fuel prices as a way to help boost rationalization and reduce consumption levels. According to the Financial Times, Kuwait’s oil production is nearing its highest rates in 37 years, setting at an approximate total of 2.6 million barrels per day, which is almost half a million barrels more than the 2.2 million barrels per day quota allocated by the OPEC. — Al-Rai

CSC to discuss second semester students’ enrolment procedures KUWAIT: Senior Civil Service Commission (CSC) officials are to meet after the Eid Al-Fitr holiday to draw up new procedures to organize the process of enrolling nearly 2,100 new students at Kuwait University who are set to begin their studies there in the second semester, according to a government insider.

The Cabinet took a decision to enroll the 2,095 high school students at the university starting in the second semester as KU, the state’s lone public university, was only able to accept 8,000 students for the first semester out of more than 11,000 who applied. The same insider indicated that the government isn’t expected to resolve the issue through official decrees, which would be binding in the long term, preferring to handle it through short-term measures that handle the situation on an annual basis, in the belief that the government can maintain control of the situation in the future through opening new state universities.

Meanwhile, Minister of Education and Higher Education Ahmad Al-Mulaifi reiterated his support for the construction of specialist state universities in Kuwait. The minister was speaking during a celebration held by training staff members at the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET) for former education minister Moudhhi Al-Humoud, who underlined the PAAET’s competency to serve as a solution for providing higher education opportunities to those Kuwaiti high school graduates who were unable to obtain a place at KU. Al-Humoud also reiterated her firm opposition, maintained throughout her ministerial tenure, to the separation of the PAAET into two separate entities, one for applied education and another for training, insisting that a solution to the overcapacity problem should be found through building new universities. — Al-Anba & Al-Rai

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

local

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Takaful society helps prisoners, individuals in debt

By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: Al-Takaful Society for Prisoner Care helped resolve a total of 6,000 cases since it was founded a decade ago. The society’s activities include three main events throughout the year: Ramadan Happiness, Al-Adha Happiness, and the Amiri Amnesty on national occasions. Last month alone the Society assisted with the release of 200 prisoners, canceled 250 subpoenas, and helped 150 humanitarian cases including women, elderly and sick people. Takaful has a shared fund in cooperation with Kuwait Finance House and Al-Zakat House - the two major financiers of the society in addition to donations from individuals and companies. “We invite people to support us and give donations to help other people,” said Dr Musaed Al-Mandani, Chairman of AlTakaful Society for Prisoner Care.

Talking to the Kuwait Times he said that the help is provided for males and females, citizens and expats, and Muslims and nonMuslims. “We study each case that we want to help and make sure they meet the conditions,” he said elaborating that the society helps prisoners who have pending financial cases. After the prisoners receive amnesty the society covers their financial debts and helps their families. It also helps people in need. “The Society tries to protect people from going to prison by helping them financially when they have been subpoenaed,” he added.

The way the society assists is through collecting donations from individual and companies. Sometimes an individual who donates can choose his donation to be given to particular prisoner or prisoners. “If a person wants to help someone in need he or she ask the Society to help. Some donors give their donations to old people or to women. All our activities are local; we only help people in Kuwait,” he said.

Ramadan Happiness project of the Society starts before Ramadan and ends after Eid. For this project this year the budget was set at KD700,000. It aims to help 600 prisoners or people in need. “We are working in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice and the Prison Directorate, and we are in daily contact with them. If we run out of money, and there are more people in need, we leave some of the assistance for the Aladha Happiness project. We try hard not to refuse any case,” Al-Mandani said.

Since the beginning of this year, the Society helped 291 prisoners or arrested people with an amount that totals KD 161, 000. The Society also helped 377 persons who have subpoenas with KD 337, 000.

“We receive the names of those who were imprisoned during this month and we study their case. Then we pay the debts and they are released,” he explained.

There are specific cases when the Society is involved to help. It happens in cases when the debtor was a guarantor who serves as a guarantee for a debtor. For example, the society helps in some cases when the agent who made the authorization for somebody else and was exploited wrongly by the authorized might have escaped outside the country. “We also help the small businessmen who lost their money and had incurred debts due to the bad market situa-

Imams must submit pleas to MAIA to lift suspensions KUWAIT: A minister announced on Thursday that the imams recently suspended over addressing the current unrest in Syria during religious sermons will be allowed to return to their duties only after submitting a plea to the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs (MAIA), provided that they remain committed to the mosques charter which bans the discussion of political subjects in places of worship.

Awqaf minister Mohammad Al-Noumas revealed the measures to reporters accompanying him on a recent tour of the Grand Mosque to assess preparations there for the last ten days of Ramadan. “The imams were only suspended based on evidence that they violated the mosques charter which they agreed to upon signing their contracts,” the minister stated, adding that the ministry is willing to reconsider their suspensions provided that they submit appeals in which they stress their commitment to complying with the charter.

Al-Noumas asserted that preparations at the Grand Mosque are going as planned for the last ten days of the holy month which feature the late night Qiam mass prayers. He noted that preparations this year are not much different to those in previous years, but some measures were taken to tackle obstacles faced previously. — Al-Qabas

tion. We help in cases when fire burns somebody’s house or when someone had a car accident and had debts for not paying the house rent and a case was filed against him,” noted Al-Mandani. Family disputes are also part of Takaful’s assistance funds. Sometimes when a divorced husband is asked by his ex-wife a large alimony.

Also, instances when a woman inherits a debt are also on the agenda of the society. “Many women are oppressed by their male relatives such as husband, brother or even fathers, when they force the women to provide a mandate or authorization for

a commercial license. But when the man loses this business the debts fall on the women who are the victims in such cases. We also help expats who are arrested in the deportation prison for expired visa and who have financial debts and are waiting to be deported. “We pay the amount they owe so they can leave for their home country,” he concluded. If anyone is interested to help they can reach Al-Takaful Society for Prisoner Care in Kefan, block 7, Abdulaziz Al-Mish’al Street, No 29. They can contact them on Tel: 24834414 or 94064060.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

local

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Juvenile arrested for shooting at brothers Policeman assaulted by goons KUWAIT: A juvenile has been taken into youth custody for questioning after he has reportedly fired a shotgun at two former friends, a pair of brothers, injuring one of them in the head. The two youngsters had apparently fallen out with their former friend previously and were surprised when he leapt out in front of them as they were walking down a local street and opened fire. The uninjured brother managed to take his sibling to Sabah Hospital, while police arrested the young gunman at the scene.

Ministers beat MPs in football match KUWAIT: The cabinet ministers defeated on Thursday evening members of parliament 3-2 in penalty shootout after original time of the annual Ramadan exhibition football match ended 4-4 draw. The game, organized by former MP Jassim Al-Kanderi, was sponsored and attended by First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah with the participation of a number of GCC ministers.

Qatari Minister of Environment Abdullah bin Mubarak AlMaadi and Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmad bin Mohammad Al-Khalifa joined the ministers’ team against the team of incumbent and former National Assembly (Kuwait parliament) members. Al-Kanderi, in statements to the press after the concluding ceremony, praised Sheikh Jaber for his sponsorship and the GCC ministers for participating in the game. — KUNA

Thugs assault policeman Police are hunting for a gang of young thugs who took advantage of the kindness of a sympathetic police lieutenant to attack him, steal his car, lock him in the trunk and take the vehicle out on a joyriding spree.

The saga began when the officer took pity on a youth who he saw standing at the side of a road in Sulaibiya and offered him a lift. The seemingly grateful youngster told him that he wanted to go to Block 9 in the area and the unsuspecting policeman set off in that direction. On their way, the youngster asked the officer to stop, which he did, only to be surprised by four other youngsters who appeared from nowhere and brutally attacked him along with their friend who had apparently managed to call or text them en route.

After the savage assault the feral youths bundled the injured officer into the trunk of the car before taking it for a joyride, eventually stopping in a nearby industrial estate where they opened the trunk lid before running off. Police are hunting for the cowardly young thugs.

Journalist summoned Police have summoned a Kuwaiti journalist for questioning after he attacked a worker at the newspaper’s canteen. The innocent worker had apparently approached the petulant scribe to request that he settle his outstanding debts with the canteen when the journalist flew into a tantrum, hitting the man in the face and accusing him and other canteen staff of

dishonesty before demanding that his victim fetch him a coffee. The aggrieved worker immediately went to Jabriya police station and lodged a complaint and the petulant journalist faces possible assault charges.

Mugging Police are hunting for two thugs who attacked the son of a high ranking Ministry of Interior officer and broke his hand before mugging him and fleeing the scene. The victim gave police details of their car license plate number before being taken to Farwaniya Hospital for treatment.

Jealous catfight Five young women attacked three others on Gulf Road apparently after becoming consumed by jealousy over the fact that an attractive young man was flirting with the latter group. Police who were called to the scene discovered upon separating the unladylike brawlers that the attackers had become jealous over the attention being paid to their victims by the young man who had apparently ignored them in the other group favor.

The object of their attentions sensibly fled the scene after the fight broke out, whilst all eight women were taken into custody and charged with public affray.

Bad party A Kuwaiti woman has lodged a case against two former friends who she said had instructed her to accede to the unwanted attentions of a drunken man at a party and insulted and swore at her when she refused to. The woman had apparently gone to the birthday party with the erstwhile friends, believing it to be a women-only gathering. When they arrived at the party venue in Salmiya, however, she discovered it was a mixed gathering. When she told her friends she would prefer to leave, they persuaded her to stay, telling her they would be embarrassed if she left so suddenly. The woman remained and sat in a corner where she said a drunken man

approached her and began touching her inappropriately. When he ignored her pleas to desist, she went and found her friends, who told her to relax and enjoy his attention. After she rejected this idea, however, the two friends swore at and insulted her, at which point she fled the gathering, going straight to the local police station to report the incident and informing officers that she feared her two former friends might do something to harm her. An investigation is underway into the case.

Conmen caught Police in Hawally have apprehended two members of a three-man gang of fraudsters who conned Kuwaiti citizens and expatriates into paying for overseas real estate, which the victims subsequently discovered did not exist. The hunt for the third gang member is underway.

Theft story questioned A mandoub working for a money exchange company is being held for questioning after his account of being the victim of a KD42,000 robbery failed to add up with the evidence. The man said that he had been taking the money from one of the money exchange firm’s outlets to another when he was hit over the head and knocked unconscious by thieves who stole the cash. When he regained consciousness, he said, he found that the money was missing. Police discovered, however, on questioning witnesses who had been present in the area at the time when the alleged attack took place, nobody else had seen anything, despite the location being fairly crowded. The questioning of the mandoub is continuing.

Fraudster found out Police arrested an expatriate who they say falsely claimed to be bedoon (stateless) in order to obtain free treatment at the Sabah Hospital, handing in a forged application form in order to take advantage of the system by which bedoon people can now get free medical treatment.

680 convert to Islam so far this Ramadan KUWAIT: Almost 680 individuals of different nationalities have converted to Islam so far during the month of Ramadan, said the Islamic Presentation Committee (IPC) yesterday.

IPC Director General Jamal Al-Shatti said that the committee’s work was conducted via numerous outlets under the supervision of the Awqaf Public Foundation. Formed in 1978, the IPC’s mission is to inform and educate Muslims and nonMuslims about Islam, said Al-Shatti, adding that the committee supported other organizations within such domain. Al-Shatti called on Muslims to support the IPC’s mission, noting that any kind of support would help the new converts to strengthen their faith. He revealed that the IPC has launched a KD 1.31 million fund to strengthen its activities and to help those interested to learn about Islam and its teachings. — KUN

KUWAIT: A team of Kuwait Fire Services Directorate (KFSD) specialists recently checked the fire alarm system and other safety equipment at the Grand Mosque and in the surrounding marquees as part of the preparations for the last ten days of Ramadan which feature the late night Qiam mass prayers. The KFSD experts’ tour also saw the officials coordinating with 250 volunteers to ensure a safe evacuation process in case of fire. — Photos by Hanan Al-Sadoun

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Turkey bombs Iraq for third day

8

Turkish PM in Somalia to highlight famine

10

Fasting Indian activist promises ‘revolution’

13

ZAWIYA: Libyan rebel fighters rest against a bullet-riddled wall on a sidestreet near the city centre in Zawiya, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) west of Tripoli, on the fourth day of fighting against left over pockets of forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.—AFP

Blasts rock Tripoli; Fighting rages NATO sinks boat carrying Gaddafi troops TRIPOLI: Strong explosions rocked Tripoli yesterday as fighting between rebels and Muammar Gaddafi’s forces raged on multiple fronts in western Libya and the Red Cross warned the humanitarian situation is worsening. The International Organization for Migration said meanwhile thousands of migrants are seeking to leave Tripoli. “There are already thousands of Egyptians who are ready for evacuation now, and what we are hearing is that every day that there are more and more requests,” spokeswoman of the inter-governmental agency Jemini Pandya told reporters in Geneva.

A slew of explosions were heard around 1:00 am in the heart of the seaside capital where Gaddafi’s residential complex is located, as well as in several areas in the west of the city. NATO in its latest operational update said its warplanes had on Thursday destroyed four military facilities and a surface to air missile in the vicinity of Tripoli.

With the rebels pushing closer to Tripoli, vowing to take it before the Muslim holy

fasting month of Ramadan ends late August, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini urged the population of the capital to rise up against Gaddafi.

“We hope the people of Tripoli, who unfortunately are already fleeing, understand the regime has harmed its own people and will therefore join a process of political change to cut off room for maneuver for Gaddafi’s regime,” Frattini said in Rome. The rebels meanwhile said they had yesterday launched a fresh assault on Zliten, 150 kilometers east of Tripoli and after a fight lasting just hours had pushed into the centre of the town. The offensive was launched around 07:30 am and “at 1:00 pm our information indicates that the rebel troops entered the city centre,” the Information Centre For Misrata Military Council said in a statement.

“The battle began with an artillery bombardment on the positions of Gaddafi’s forces, followed by a swift movement forward by rebels,” the statement said. “Gaddafi forces have used tanks to try unsuccessfully

to repel the rebels. There are dead and injured rebels,” it added. A total of “1,230 rebel fighters took part in the attack.” Earlier, the insurgents said they had advanced “to the south of Zliten” in an area called Sir Leslie, forcing Gaddafi loyalists to pull back.

“Between 40 and 50 Gaddafi forces were killed” in the fighting, while some 12 African mercenaries were captured, the statement said, adding that 40 insurgents were wounded, 10 of them seriously.

Rebels have been seeking to sever Tripoli’s supply lines from Tunisia to the west and to Gaddafi’s hometown of Sirte in the east in a move they hope will cut off the capital, prompt defections and spark an uprising inside Tripoli. Fighting was also raging in the western town of Zawiyah, a key source of fuel supplies to the capital, and the last major barrier before the rebels can think about advancing on Tripoli.

NATO warplanes sunk a tugboat carrying troops loyal to Gaddafi away from the strategic western city of Zawiya as rebels

advanced closer to the Libyan capital, the alliance said yesterday. Also, the International Organization for Migration said an operation to rescue “large numbers” of Egyptians and other foreigners from Tripoli will begin in coming days. The attack struck the tugboat Wednesday as rebels in Zawiya laid siege to Libya’s last functioning oil refinery in a symbolic coup for the opposition, although government forces still hold the center. Meanwhile, the opposition forces said Thursday they had seized the refinery in the town but Libyan Prime Minister Baghdadi Mahmudi hotly disputed the claim, saying the refinery was “without doubt” still in loyalists’ hands. An AFP correspondent in Zawiyah, 40 kilometers west of Tripoli, said fighting was taking place in many parts of the town yesterday and it was impossible to determine who was in control.Kadhafi snipers were staked out on rooftops as the battles raged, with buildings and streets in the town centre showing signs of massive damage from the warfare. — Agencies

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Turkey bombs Iraq for third day ANKARA: Turkey kept pressure on Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) separatists in northern Iraq yesterday, with a rebel spokesman saying Turkish jets were carrying out air strikes for a third straight day. “The attacks started again this morning (Friday) against Qandil only,” Dozdar Hammo said, referring to an area of north Iraq close to the border with Turkey. He added that bombings by the Turkish air force lasted for around three hours on Thursday night against Qandil and other bases close to the IraqTurkey border.

The Turkish military said its jets had bombed 28 targets on a second day of attacks on bases in northern Iraq used by PKK. Following bombing raids on 60 targets Wednesday the air force launched an “effective” operation Thursday against 28 targets in the Qandil, Hakurk, Avasin-Basyan and Zap regions of northern Iraq, the military said in a statement on its website. In coordination with the air strikes, 96 more targets in the region were kept under intense artillery fire, the statement said. “The targets were positively identified as belonging to the PKK, and the necessary sensitivity is paid to protect civilians,” it said.”The actions under the struggle against terror will go on with determination inside and outside the country based on the requirements of military needs,” it added.

The military launched a first wave of bomb attacks on Wednesday against rebel targets in Iraq in response to a deadly attack by the rebel group against a military unit in Cukurca town in southeast Turkey, killing nine security officials. It is the first time in more than a year that the Turkish military has carried out air strikes on PKK bases in northern Iraq.

The second bombing raid by Turkey also followed a new rebel attack earlier on Thursday in the southern province of Siirt, killing two soldiers, media reports said. The escalation in violence came as the National Security Council (MGK), which brings together top civilian and military officials, met for five hours on Thursday before pronouncing support for a tougher stance against the PKK. The council, led by Turkish President Abdullah Gul, spoke of the need for “better coordination” of military and police resources in suppressing the Kurdish rebels. The council’s statement also called on Turkey’s neighbors “to accept their responsibilities” to eradicate the PKK from their territory, without naming any countries. The PKK, listed as a terrorist group by Ankara and much of the international community, took up arms in the Kurdish-majority southeast in 1984, sparking a conflict that has claimed about 45,000 lives.—AFP

Air strike kills 5 Islamists in Yemeni town ADEN: A Yemeni jet bombed the southern coastal town of Shaqra shortly after Islamist militants took control of the area, killing at least five of them, a local government official said. In the raids staged on Thursday, the jet also attacked two sites where militants had gathered in the town of Zinjibar, the official told Reuters. He was unable to give details of casualties there.

Shaqra fell to the militants on Wednesday, becoming the third Yemeni town they have seized following Jaar in Abyan province in March and Zinjibar, the provincial capital, in May.’ President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s government has lost control of some areas in the south after months of political turmoil and mass protests demanding an end to his three-decade-old-rule.

Islamist militants, some possibly from al Qaeda, may be exploiting a security vacuum as Saleh and his allies fight to stay in power. In a separate incident, 10 people-mostly women and children-were injured in an explosion at a clothes market in Al-Qatn in the southern Hadramout province on Thursday, which targeted an army officer and his family, a security official told Reuters.

Eyewitnesses said they saw a man throwing a hand grenade who then fled in a car. The officer and his family survived unhurt, the official said. Saleh, in power since 1978, said on Tuesday he would soon return home from Saudi Arabia where he is recovering from a June assassination attempt in which he was wounded and burned. Popular protests against Saleh erupted during uprisings that ousted the presidents of Tunisia and Egypt this year, but the Yemeni leader has clung to power, defying international pressure and three times backing out of a Gulf-brokered transition deal. Protesters and opposition parties suspect Saleh has deliberately loosened security to let militants act more freely, in an attempt to illustrate the dangers of a Yemen without him.—Reuters

RAFAH: Palestinians pray near the bodies of people killed in Israeli air strikes during a funeral in the Rafah refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip yesterday.—AFP

Gaza group denies Negev attacks; gunmen hit Egypt Faction buried five members RAFAH: Gaza militants blamed for shooting attacks near the Egyptian border that killed eight Israelis, denied yesterday that they were involved, as the hunt for the killers moved to Egypt. “We salute (the operation) and we are proud of it, but we do not claim it,” Popular Resistance Committees Abu Mujahid spokesman told AFP in the Gaza city of Rafah as the faction buried five members killed in a retaliatory Israeli air strike a day earlier.

“The occupation wants to pin this operation on us in order to escape its own internal problems,” he said.

Thursday’s attack saw at least seven gunmen armed with explosives, grenades and other weaponry, sneak into southern Israel and open fire indiscriminately on cars and buses, killing six Israeli civilians, a soldier and a policeman. Several hours later, the air force bombed targets in Rafah, killing the PRC leader and several more of the faction’s top cadres, as well as a toddler. Israel said six of the gunmen were shot dead on Thursday, while a seventh blew himself up.

But it was widely reported that between 15 and 20 militants had been involved in the attack, and Israeli and Egyptian forces were sweeping the border area yesterday to find any who may have escaped.

Egypt’s military chief of staff, Sami Enan, headed to the Sinai yesterday to probe the deaths of five policemen killed the previous day, a military source said.

There have been conflicting

reports from the military and police about how the Egyptian policemen died.

A military official told the official MENA news agency on Thursday night they were accidentally killed by Israeli helicopter fire aimed at fleeing militants. But yesterday, the stateowned Al-Ahram newspaper quoted a military official as saying the policemen were killed by gunmen trying to slip in from Israel. Enan’s visit was announced shortly after another policemen was declared dead after a border gunfight yesterday, which left one of his comrades gravely wounded with a bullet in the head.

Earlier, Israeli security sources told AFP they had information that a man had blown himself up on the Egyptian side of the border, saying they believed he was one of the men on the run.

And state television said that on Thursday, two “unidentified Egyptians” had been killed by Israeli gunfire in an area near the site of the attacks. Overnight, the Israeli air force attacked seven targets in Gaza, killing one person and injuring 17. Another three strikes yesterday morning caused little damage and lightly injured one man.

As the air force pounded targets across Gaza, militants there lobbed 12 rockets at south Israel early yesterday.

Three people were wounded-one seriously and one moderately-in the city of Ashdod, police said. In the aftermath of Thursday’s attack, Israel was quick to point the finger at Gaza,

naming the PRC as the group behind the attacks, although the military said it held Hamas as ultimately responsible for violence coming from the territory it controls. “If Hamas wants an escalation, it will pay a high price,” Brigadier General Yoav Mordechai told public radio yesterday, saying some form of ground operation in Gaza was not out of the question. “All options are open, including a pinpoint (ground) operation,” he said.

Hamas has denied any connection to the attacks. As police went on high alert across Israel, the country’s main newspapers painted a much clearer picture of how events unfolded on Thursday involving an estimated 15 to 20 gunmen, some wearing Egyptian army fatigues.

According to these reports, the first attack saw three gunmen open fire on a packed bus heading to Eilat, injuring seven people. Shortly afterwards, they opened fire on a civilian car in the same area, killing four people. Then one of the militants detonated an explosives-packed belt he was wearing as an empty bus drove past, blowing himself up and killing the driver. Further gunfire was directed at another car, killing one man.

The soldier and the police officer were killed in two separate gun battles with the attackers which lasted into the evening, the papers said. Six of the attackers were killed by Israeli troops and special police forces, while the seventh blew himself up; others are believed to have fled across the Egyptian border.—AFP

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Soviet coup anniversary quietly marked in Russia MOSCOW: Russia yesterday quietly marked the 20th anniversary of the start of the attempted coup that led to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Most national newspapers took little or no notice of the anniversary, reflecting the deep ambivalence of many Russians about the events that plunged them into both anxiety and exhilaration. “The victory that we lost,” said a headline in the newspaper Moskovskiye Novosti. The coup attempt was initiated by a coteries of Communist hard-liners who placed Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev under house arrest at his vacation home, fearing that his pending agreement to allow wide sovereignty

for Soviet republics would lead to the USSR’s disintegration.

But wide public opposition quickly weakened the putsch, notably the thousands who gathered around the Russian government headquarters where Russian President Boris Yeltsin famously defied the coup while standing atop a tank. The coup collapsed three days later and Gorbachev returned to Moscow, but his power and credibility were fatally dissipated.

The republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were allowed to split off from the Soviet Union within weeks, and the entire USSR was signed out of existence in December.

Norway killer to appear in court OSLO: An Oslo court held a hearing yesterday to decide whether the confessed killer of 77 people in Norway should be kept in isolation, a month after he detonated a bomb and went on a shooting rampage. Anders Behring Breivik showed up at closed hearing under heavy police protection.

His earlier request to wear a black tuxedo to the session had been rejected by the Oslo District Court, which described it as “unnecessarily disturbing and provocative.” Breivik has admitted killing eight people when he exploded a truck bomb outside government offices in Oslo, then fatally shooting 69 people at a youth camp on Utoya island nearby.

The 32-year-old right-wing extremist denies criminal guilt because he believes the massacre was necessary to save Norway and Europe. He said the attacks were an attempt at cultural revolution, aimed at purging Europe of Muslims and punishing politicians that have embraced multiculturalism. If found guilty on terrorism charges, Breivik could be sentenced to 21 years in prison. An alternative custody arrangement - if he is still considered a danger to the public - could keep him behind bars indefinitely.

Survivors, relatives and close friends of the victims were to visit Utoya later yesterday and today to grieve at the island massacre site. Some 1,500 people were expected on the island. Tomorrow, a national memorial service was to be held at Oslo Spektrum arena, marking the end of a month of mourning in the Scandinavian country. Breivik arrived at the court house in a black car under heavy escort. His lawyer Geir Lippestad told reporters that Breivik would ask the court to lift his isolation. “He wants to describe how he experiences his situation in isolation,” Lippestad told Norwegian broadcaster NRK as he arrived at the court house.

In the first court hearing on July 25, officials decided he could be detained for eight weeks, including four weeks in isolation, meaning he had no access to television, newspapers and the Internet. At yesterday’s hearing the court was to decide on a police request for another four weeks of isolation for the confessed killer.—AP

Prison population jumps after riots in England LONDON : England’s prison population has hit a record high following the jailing of hundreds of people involved in the country’s recent riots, according to figures released yesterday. Prison officials said they were working hard to contain the flow of convicts.

Statistics released by the country’s Ministry of Justice showed that the total prison population in England and Wales has reached 86,654 - just 1,500 places below the countries’ operational capacity.

Prison authorities said they faced an “unprecedented situation” and were working on emergency plans to boost capacity “should further pressure be placed on the prison estate.” The figures show that a net of 700 people have been added to the country’s prison system over the last seven days, many of them people found guilty over their roles in the four nights of unrest that swept London and other major cities last week. —AP

The collapse led to severe economic hardships for tens of millions and to a long period of political chaos and the rise of politically powerful tycoons who became known as oligarchs.

National television channels planned to run documentaries about the period later in the day. In a peculiar reminder of Soviet television practice, the channel Kultura is to broadcast a performance of the ballet Swan Lake - the same performance that state TV showed even as columns of tanks ground through Moscow’s streets two decades ago.

Many of those who gathered around the Russian government

building to protest the coup 20 years ago were to gather again yesterday evening. Some politicians took note of the anniversary yesterday. Sergei Mironov, leader of the party A Just Russia, visited the cemetery where three men who died while defending the Russian government building are buried, praising “all those who believed in the necessity of freedom for Russia.” Lower parliament house speaker Boris Gryzlov, in a comment reminiscent of the Marxist belief in the inevitability of historical progress, said the coup plotters were doomed from the start because “they tried to change the course of history.”—AP

Storm kills 3, injures 71 at Belgian festival Concert structures buckle HASSELT: A storm swept through a popular open-air music festival in this eastern Belgium town on Thursday killing at least three people and injuring more than 70 others, an official said. Ambulances and police cars raced to and from the site of the Pukkelpop festival, near the town of Hasselt, 50 miles (80 kilometers) east of Brussels, late Thursday, their sirens blaring. Concertgoers described scenes of panic as the sky darkened, the winds whipped, rain poured, hailstones nearly half an inch (larger than 1 centimeter) across pelted the crowds, and concert structures buckled.

“It was frightening. It looked terrible. All the structures collapsed,” said Brinnie Gardner, 20, of Aukland, New Zealand, who is on a tour of Europe with a friend. “There was panic. It was crazy.” Hugo Simons, Hasselt’s head of emergency medical planning, told VRT radio that three people had died, 11 had been severely injured and 60 had sustained light injuries as a result of the storm. Organizers estimated that 60,000 people were at the threeday festival, which started Thursday, when the storm broke. Many were streaming out of the grounds after the storm, which turned the festival site into a scene of mud and destruction within about 10 minutes. Video from the site showed stage equipment dangling in high winds as rain-soaked concertgoers at the music festival ran for cover. Trees and branches all around the area were downed, evidence of the sudden ferocity of the winds.

Ambulances ferried the seriously injured to nearby hospitals. Some of those lightly injured were being treated at a local sports complex.

More than 20 ambulances were dispatched to the festival ground.

Images of the disaster showed fallen lighting scaffolds. Dutch NOS tele-

KIEWIT HASSELT: A reveler sits on a bag yesterday following the cancellation anouncement of the Pukkelpop music festival in Kiewit Hasselt. A violent storm that lashed an outdoor rock music festival in northern Belgium killed five people, Hasselt mayor Hilde Claes said yesterday. —AFP

vision reporter Rick Hoogkamp, who was attending the concert Thursday, said several tents collapsed. An AP reporter saw concession stands blown down and a large food tent spread across the ground. One of those who watched a tent collapse was Laura Elegeert, 17, of SaintNicolas, Belgium. “It was utter confusion, mass panic,” Elegeert said.

“People were trying to get out of this tent that collapsed by using their pocket knives and cutting holes in the fabric.”

Two cranes were brought in to try to lift the large tent late Thursday, but the ground appeared too swamped for them to reach the area.

Chokri Mahassine, the organizer of the festival, said, “We have for now put the festival on hold until we understand the situation completely.” The three-day festival’s lineup features internationally known acts,

including Foo Fighters, Eminem and The Offspring.

This was the second deadly incident at an outdoor festival in a week.

On Saturday, parts of a stage collapsed at the Indiana State Fair in Indianapolis, killing five people and injuring dozens when winds of up to 60 miles per hour (96 kilometers per hour) to 70 miles per hour (112 kilometers per hour) hit the site. Last month, a German woman died in a 30-meter (100-foot) fall from a tower at the Roskilde music festival in Denmark, but police said she likely committed suicide.

In 2000, nine people were crushed to death and 43 injured at the same festival during a Pearl Jam concert.

Associated Press Writers Gabriele Steinhauser and Don Melvin in Brussels, and Toby Sterling in Amsterdam, contributed to this report.—AP

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Mugabe succession race could turn ugly HARARE: The death of a top Zimbabwean army general in a bizarre fire has changed the dynamics in internal ZANU-PF battles over President Robert Mugabe’s succession, but analysts say the issue remains unsettled and could lead to some bruising battles ahead. General Solomon Mujuru, a key figure in Mugabe’s party for nearly four decades, was, according to authorities, burnt to ashes when his farmhouse caught fire.

This official version, suggesting the authorities do not suspect foul play although police are still probing the death, has sparked rumours that the general was murdered. Mujuru, 67, popularly known by his guerrilla name Rex Nhongo, was married to VicePresident Joice Mujuru, and was deputy head of Mugabe’s liberation army ZANLA in the 1970s and the country’s first black army commander.

Many saw him as a strongman able to stand up to Mugabe, 87, who has led Zimbabwe for more than three decades. Mujuru headed a ZANU-PF faction which wanted Joice Mujuru to succeed Mugabe as party and state president, jostling against another faction led by Defence Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa.

Recently rumours surfaced that the general was pressing Mugabe to step down and that his ZANU-PF faction also courted the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) of rival Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai for a possible coalition after general elections likely to be held in the next two years.

Political analysts see the Mujuru faction as the moderate wing of a party whose current political and economic policies are driven by hardliners who helped Mugabe’s fightback to power in a disputed poll in 2008. “There is no doubt that Mujuru’s death is a major blow to his faction, and could be a game changer in the succession saga,” said Eldred Masunungure, a political science professor at the University of Zimbabwe.

“There is nobody in his faction with his stature, his political pedigree and his courage to rally support for his wife and to cut political deals,” he told Reuters. Masunungure said an outbreak of political infighting could now be expected because there were other ZANU-PF figures eyeing Mugabe’s position besides Joice Mujuru and Mnangagwa, for years regarded as Mugabe’s prefered successor. Over the last few months, a number of local media reports dismissed by government officials have suggested that the current army commander, General Constantine Chiwenga, has presidential ambitions.

Lovemore Madhuku, head of the National Constitutional Assembly pressure group said Mugabe is likely to have a big say on his eventual successor and may use Mujuru’s death to take a hard look at problems in his party. “I think Mugabe is going to have a big say on how this will all end, because although his critics say he is a big liability he is also a big asset in ZANU-PF because he wields authority, and is a renowned strategist,” he said. Mnangagwa, a secretive political figure known as “the crocodile,” has worked with Mugabe since the 1960s when he was jailed as a teenager after training as a guerrilla fighter and being captured by Rhodesian forces during a botched operation.

In public, Mnangagwa denies he has any ambition for the presidency, but many say Mugabe has tended to gravitate towards his longtime personal assistant for his toughness, his temperament and his loyalty. Analysts say Mugabe has probably maintained the balance of of power in ZANU-PF by playing one faction against the other but his advancing age, the threat posed

by Tsvangirai and the MDC and Mujuru’s tragic death could push him to resolve the thorny succession issue. —Reuters

MOGADISHU: Watched by Somali President Sharif Sheik Ahmed, left, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan, center with his wife Emine Erdogan, right, hold refugee children from southern Somalia during a visit to a refugee camp for internally displaced people in Mogadishu, Somali yesterday.—AFP

Turkish PM in Somalia to highlight famine Erdogan visits refugee camps amid tight security MOGADISHU: Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan visited Somalia’s capital Mogadishu yesterday to draw international attention to the famine sweeping across the Horn of Africa nation, threatening to kill hundreds of thousands of children Erdogan, accompanied by his family and five cabinet ministers, has in the past days appealed for more food aid for the drought-hit nation and lashed out at wealthy Western nations for not doing more.

Somalia’s President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed welcomed Erdogan at the airport with a warm embrace, before Turkey’s premier, dressed in a sharp, crisp suit and his wife in haute-couture Islamic dress drove through the city’s rubbishstrewn streets. At one dusty, windswept refugee settlement, Erdogan crouched inside the tent of Bashir and Fatima, a young couple mourning the loss of two of their four children who died after trekking 90 km (55 miles) to Mogadishu.

Erdogan’s wife Emine handed out chocolates and sweets. The Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) coun-

tries pledged on Wednesday $350 million in aid to fight the famine which has left 3.7 million Somalis at risk of dying of hunger. Erdogan has said he hoped the OIC’s efforts would jolt the consciences of those ignoring the unraveling humanitarian emergency. A pious Muslim, he has called the disaster a “litmus test” for all humanity.The withdrawal of most Islamist militants from their Mogadishu bases earlier in the month has effectively handed full control of the capital to the government for the first time since civil war broke out in 1991. Somali troops and African peacekeepers are, though, still meeting pockets of rebel resistance in the city, highlighting the view of regional observers that the al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab insurgents are far from defeated.Security forces flooded Mogadishu’s main streets where Turkish flags fluttered in the coastal breeze and posters adorned the walls of mortar-blasted buildings. “Prime Minister Erdogan’s visit tells us the Turkish people are closer to us than any other Muslim nation on earth,” said resident Abdirashid Ali Omar.

“The Turkish people are here to share with us in our time of need. It is momentous.”

Muslim Turkey, a rising political and economic power that straddles East and West, is far behind other emerging powers such as China, Brazil or India in the race for new markets in Africa.But under Erdogan’s ruling AK Party government, Turkey has expanded commercial ties in Africa, as well as in the Middle East and Asia, and opened several new embassies in Africa. The U.N.’s World Food Programme said yesterday it was still unable to reach 2.2 million hungry people living in areas of southern Somalia controlled by al Shabaab, whose bloody campaign to topple the government has cost more than 20,000 lives.

Aid agencies say that while droughts are a natural phenomenon, this famine is largely down to conflict and bad governance. “Droughts will happen. They always will, but they don’t have to be disasters. They can be managed,” Oxfam’s Philippa Crosland-Taylor said in neighbouring Kenya. —Reuters

Tunisian man tries to burn himself to death

MOSCOW: Russian helicopters perform during a demonstration flight at the MAKS-2011 International Aviation and Space Show in Zhukovsky, outside Moscow, Russia yesterday.—AP

TUNIS: A Tunisian tried to burn himself to death in front of the governor’s offices at Medenine in the south, to protest at his precarious working conditions, the TAP news agency reported yesterday. “I want to die so that my children can live,” the man yelled before setting himself ablaze on Thursday, the agency said.

Badly burned, he was transferred in the

evening to a hospital in Tunis. The man, aged 40, was coming out of the governor’s offices after an interview where he was asking for his job to be made permanent, an employee in Medenine’s local council told AFP. The man had worked for years as a chauffeur for local officials, but had never been taken on definitively, she said. It

was the self-immolation on December 17 of a young fruit and vegetable seller, Mohamed Bouazizi, in the central town of Sidi Bouzid, which sparked off the popular uprising that led to the ouster on January 14 of present Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. According to official figures, 700,000 people are job-seekers in Tunisia, which is 13 percent of the workforce.— AFP

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

US Republican Perry seen easier for Obama to beat CHICAGO: Republican White House hopeful Rick Perry has at least some supporters in the Democratic stronghold of Chicago-President Barack Obama’s re-election team. The Texas governor, a social and fiscal conservative, is seen by Obama’s top election fundraisers, supporters and senior Democrats close to the campaign as easier to beat than the more moderate Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election.

“I was praying Perry would get in the race,” said a former White House aide closely linked to Obama’s campaign.

While Obama’s campaign headquarters in Chicago will not talk on the record about possible election rivals, fundraisers, senior activists and influential Chicagoans close to the president say Perry’s more polarizing views make him a bigger target for the Democrat in a general election. Perry has quickly leaped into second place in polls of Republicans since announcing his candidacy last weekend. But he caused a fuss with harsh criticism of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that was shunned even by some Republicans.

Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts, tops the Republican field in polls and in the fundraising race. “I think the Romney campaign is very scared of Perry. But I think the Obama campaign would rather run against Perry than Romney,” said John Avlon, a centrist columnist for Newsweek.

Obama’s approval rating has dropped as the unemployment rate remains stuck above 9 percent and his re-election prospects are dimmer than they were just a few months ago.

But the harder a Republican candidate leans to the right the easier it will be for the Democratic president to beat him or her in a general election, several Obama campaigners said.

Romney moved on Wednesday to widen his appeal to conservatives by saying he was “in sync” with the Tea Party, comments that Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt tweeted to supporters. A spokeswoman for Obama’s re-election campaign would not draw distinctions among Republican contenders to challenge the president, focusing instead on their similar positions. “While the president is advocating for a plan that would create jobs immediately and foster sustainable jobs that will maintain America’s competitiveness, the Republican candidates have uniformly embraced an economic plan that would end Medicare as we know it, erode Social Security, eliminate hundreds of thousands of jobs and erase the investments necessary for America to win the future,” said Katie Hogan, Obama campaign spokeswoman.

Michele Bachmann, a senior Tea Party figure, is the Republican contender Obama’s team would most like to take on in 2012, although she seems unlikely to win the nomination, according to several sources close to the Obama campaign. Bachmann surprised many this week by promising that if she won the White House, she would bring gas prices down to $2 a gallon, despite those prices being set on the global market, not by the president of the United States. She is one of the Republicans in Congress most vocal about government spending cuts and deficit reduction, and she voted against a recent debt-limit deal that averted an unprecedented US default.

Sources close to the Obama campaign say that makes her an easy target in the race. “The (Republican candidates’) full attack on government ignores all of the important services

MASSACHUSETTS: President Barack Obama holds a child wearing Boston Red Sox regalia, as he greets people on the tarmac upon his arrival at Cape Cod Coast Guard Air Station in Bourne, Mass. on Thursday.—AP

that people rightfully expect from their government” and when candidates embrace extreme austerity measures “it looks easier to run against them,” said a source involved with Obama’s re-election bid. Obama entered the electoral fray this

week with a campaign-style bus trip through the Midwest, including Iowa, where Bachmann just won an influential poll that serves as an early test of candidates. Perry and Romney did not participate. —Reuters

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Bodies found in Mexico might be kidnapped marines Objects belonging to servicemen found in a raid MEXICO CITY: The Mexican navy said Thursday it found bodies in the Gulf coast state of Veracruz that could include those of three marines and a naval cadet kidnapped by suspected drug cartel gunmen earlier this month.

Mexican drug cartels have kidnapped and killed military personnel before, but it remains a relatively rare occurrence. The navy said in a statement that objects belonging to the kidnapped servicemen were found in a raid on a warehouse Sunday and that investigators later found the four bodies in four pits on the outskirts of the state capital.

The raid also resulted in the capture

of five people suspected of participating in the abductions, authorities said.

Neither the navy nor federal security spokesman would say which cartel the suspects allegedly worked for, but the Zetas gang is known to be active in the area. The statement said the bodies were being examined to determine whether they were the servicemen, who went missing in the first week of August. Three of them went missing while driving in a civilian car and the fourth one disappeared while off duty.

At the time, authorities said that a drug cartel was suspected in the abductions. Two other navy personnel

ACUPULCO: A woman grieves next to bodies of men who were shot to death in the Pacific resort city of Acapulco, Mexico, Thursday. The city of Acapulco has been hit by violence as drug gangs continue to battle for control of the region. —AP

also disappeared earlier this summer in Veracruz. Their whereabouts remain unknown. Also Thursday, soldiers killed eight gunmen in a clash in the northern border state of Nuevo Leon, authorities said. Soldiers were on patrol in the town of Agualeguas when they came under fire from gunmen who were inside a house, said a state official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not allowed to discuss the case.

The official said six gunmen died inside the house and soldiers killed two others on an empty lot nearby. Soldiers seized 10 automatic rifles, 2,000 rounds of ammunition and military uniforms.

Violence in Nuevo Leon state, across the border from Texas, exploded when the Zetas cartel broke away from the Gulf cartel, setting off a battle for control of the area. Their fighting has killed more than 1,000 people so far this year. Elsewhere in Mexico, police in the Pacific coast resort of Acapulco reported Thursday finding two ice chests, one of which held a man’s head and the other containing what appeared to be his leg and right foot. Guerrero state police said three other coolers were found in another part of the city with other body parts. Police were trying to determine if all five coolers contained parts of the same person.

Several other coolers containing body parts were found at other points in the city, and police were investigating whether they were all from the same body. In addition, three men were found shot to death in city buses, including one driver. —AP

US makes criminals priority for deportation WASHINGTON: Many illegal immigrants who were facing deportation despite having no criminal record will be allowed to stay in the country and apply for a work permit under new rules from the Homeland Security Department.

Republicans are balking at the change. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced Thursday that the department will focus on deporting illegal immigrants who are criminals or pose a threat to national security or public safety.

Napolitano announced the plan in a letter to a group of senators who support revamping the immigration system.

Under the change, approximately 300,000 deportation cases pending in immigration court will be reviewed case by case. “From a law enforcement and public safety perspective, DHS enforcement resources must continue to be focused on our highest priorities,” Napolitano wrote in the letter. “Doing otherwise hinders our public safety mission clogging immigration court dockets and diverting DHS enforcement resources away from individuals who pose a threat to public safety.”

The decision comes amid continued protests from immigrant communities and others that the administration has been too focused on deporting people whose only offense is being in the country without the proper documents or who have been arrested for traffic violations or other misdemeanors. There have also been widespread complaints about Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Secure Communities program, which uses fingerprints collected in

state and local jails to identify illegal immigrants in a federal immigration database.

States have balked at the program, arguing it requires them to enforce federal laws. There have also been complaints that immigrants arrested for simple misdemeanors can end up in deportation proceedings. ICE Director John Morton responded to some critics in June with a six-page memo to ICE agents outlining when and how discretion should be used. That guidance covered those potentially subject to a legislative proposal, known as the DREAM Act, intended to give young illegal immigrants who go to college or serve in the military a chance at legal status. Morton also suggested that agents consider how long someone has been in the United States, whether immediate family members are US citizens and whether that person has a criminal record.

Napolitano said in her letter that the policy change was part of implementing that prosecutorial discretion. While advocates and Democratic lawmakers greeted the announcement with a chorus of approval, Republicans recoiled at the policy change. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith said the shift is the administration’s “plan to grant backdoor amnesty to illegal immigrants.”

“They have created a working group that appears to have the specific purpose of overruling, on a ‘case-by-case’ basis, an immigration court’s final order of removal, or preventing that court from even issuing such an order,” Smith said in a statement. —AP

MANAGUA: Workers remove a billboard with political propaganda supporting Nicaragua’s current President Daniel Ortega that reads in Spanish “We keep changing Nicaragua: Christian, socialist, with solidarity” in Managua, Nicaragua, Thursday. —AP

Religion debate raised in Nicaragua campaign MANAGUA: Religious processions and chants have become common at the re-election campaign rallies of leftist Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, who is highlighting his Christianity in his bid for re-election. The image put forth by Ortega’s Sandinista Party has dismayed Roman Catholic Church officials, who say the leader’s spirituality is a ploy to deceive Nicaraguans who will elect a president in November.

“It’s legal, legal, legal,” Ortega said at a recent rally when addressing criticism that he is running a campaign tinged with religion. “No one can ban us from using the word Christian. No one. The Vatican hasn’t said a word about it.”

Ortega, a former Marxist guerrilla who led the leftist Sandinista movement starting in the 1970s, is running for a third term as president, his second consecutive one for the Central American nation.

Nicaraguans are used to the mix of politics and religion from the revolutionary era, when some priests were involved in the insurgency that eventually overthrew dictator Anastasio Somoza, or at least supported its ideals. With the campaign slogan “Christian, Socialist and In Solidarity,” Ortega is taking a new swing in his up-and-down relations with the Catholic Church.

Ortega was never publicly seen attending Mass during his socialist government elected in the 1980s. During that time, the Sandinistas attracted the support of many priests who embraced a left- leaning version of liberation theology. But relations with other clerics, including the late Pope John Paul II, remained prickly.

Then Ortega upset leftist supporters by refusing to oppose a church-supported ban on all abortions that was approved

by Nicaraguan lawmakers in October 2006, just 10 days before he was elected to his second run as president. That decision earned Ortega praise from Catholic and evangelical leaders, and analysts say it helped him get votes. Yet despite that act and the addition of religious symbolism to the campaign, Ortega still has a strained relationship with much of the Catholic hierarchy in Nicaragua. Some Catholic leaders whom he alienated during his socialist government of the 1980s remain unconvinced by the religious overtones adopted by his party.

Bishop Abelardo Mata, one of Ortega’s most outspoken critics, said the Sandinistas use pseudo-revolutionary language laced with religious touches for the sole purpose of deceiving people. “The use of biblical words and church symbols is in bad taste,” Mata said. “They are messing around with religion and the Christian faith.” Ortega says he found his Christian faith in 2005, when he married his current wife and first lady, Rosario Murillo, in a Catholic ceremony. Since then, Ortega and Murillo are often seen receiving communion at Catholic masses, and Ortega has been so intent on showing his Catholic faith he peppers his speeches with references to God. But Murillo, who is also the presidential spokeswoman, enraged church leaders last month when she compared a rally to celebrate the Sandinista Party’s 32nd anniversary of its 1979 rise to power after toppling Somoza with a Catholic mass. “May God forgive me if I offend someone ... but we’re holding a revolutionary Mass. We will sing, we will fill ourselves with the God of the poor, with the love of our neighbors. For God is everywhere,” Murillo said on the eve of the huge gathering July 19 at the Plaza of the Faith of Pope John Paul II in Managua. —AP

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Fasting Indian activist promises ‘revolution’ Protest sends intimidating message to govt NEW DELHI: Activist Anna Hazare vowed a “revolution” in India as he began a public fast yesterday amid astonishing scenes of celebratory protest that sent an intimidating message to a shellshocked government. “We have to bring a total change in this country,” the 74-year-old told a huge crowd of chanting, flagwaving supporters at the open Delhi venue for his 15-day hunger strike to demand stronger laws against official graft. “The whole world will see you as an example of how to bring about revolution with non-violence,” the diminutive, bespectacled Hazare told the massed audience which cheered at every word.

Once seen as just an annoying thorn in the side of the establishment, Hazare has transformed into a national figure whose popularity has destabilised a government elected in 2009 with an unassailable parliamentary majority. His campaign has tapped into a deep reservoir of discontent-especially among India’s burgeoning middle-class-with a culture that requires bribes to secure everything from business permits to birth certificates.

After leaving the jail cell that had been his campaign headquarters since his arrest three days ago, Hazare was driven to the fasting venue in a triumphal convoy that paralysed the capital as hundreds of thousands of his adoring supporters piled onto the streets.

At times, his open-top truck was forced to stop as the crowds surged forward to throw flowered garlands up at Hazare, who was protected from driving monsoon rains by a large, camouflage-patterned parasol. The carefully choreographed event was broadcast live across the country by English, Hindi and regional language 24-hour news networks. Hazare’s campaign has spawned mass protests in cities across India in recent days in the most significant display of popular dissent for more than three decades.

The government’s response, especially the initial arrest of Hazare and thousands of his supporters, has been widely criticised as the clumsy actions of an administration that has lost touch with its electorate. India’s increasingly vulnerable-looking Prime Minister Manmohan Singh denounced Hazare’s campaign as a “totally misconceived” attempt to undermine parliamentary democracy, but his words have gained little public traction.

Although officially released on Tuesday evening, Hazare had refused to leave his cell until the authorities lifted restrictions on what he had originally called an indefinite “fast unto death”. In an embarrassing climbdown for Singh’s Congress Party-led coalition, he was finally given permission to fast for 15 days in a large open venue normally reserved for religious festivals. With his

NEW DELHI: India’s most prominent anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare, wearing a white cap on a truck, greets the crowd during a slow-moving procession to a protest venue, in New Delhi, India yesterday.—AP trademark white cap and large spectacles, and his espousal of fasting as a form of non-violent protest, the veteran activist is seen by many of his followers as a latter-day Mahatma Gandhi.

And Hazare wasn’t shy about reinforcing the comparisons, stopping off en route to the fasting site at the Rajghat memorial to India’s independence icon. Like any visiting foreign head of state, he laid a garland at the plinth that marks the site of Gandhi’s cremation, surrounded by hordes of cheering supporters. — AFP

UN urges Thailand to tackle trafficking BANGKOK: Thailand must do more to combat widespread human trafficking for sexual and labour exploitation, including addressing “deeply-rooted” corruption, a UN envoy said yesterday. “The implementation of policy and legal framework on human trafficking and the law enforcement are weak and fragmented,” said the United Nations special rapporteur on people trafficking Joy Ngozi Ezeilo.

At a press conference following her 11 day mission to Thailand, Ezeilo acknowledged that progress had been made, but she underlined the need for wide-ranging improvements, in initial recommendations ahead of a 2012 report. She said prosecutions of traffickers remain low, contributing to a culture of “impunity” for those who trade in people.

“Corruption, especially among low-cadre law enforcement officers at provincial and local levels, is deeply rooted,” she said. “The government should promote zero tolerance to corruption and complicity of public officials with traffickers, and prosecute and adequately punish offenders to dissuade such practices.” Ezeilo said the underlying causes of trafficking, especially demand for “cheap and exploitative” labor from neighboring Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia, “are not being effectively addressed”.

She noted “widespread” sexual exploitationincluding child prostitution, pornography and sex tourism-as well as new forms of trafficking for domestic labor, begging, forced marriage and surrogacy. Forced labor is also growing in agriculture and construction and is “notoriously common” in the fishing industry. Ezeilo called on Thailand to review its labor and migration laws, recognizing the demand for cheap, low skilled labor and to provide “safe migration options” for those entering the country from abroad.

The US State Department has placed Thailand on its human trafficking watchlist for two years running, accusing it of not doing enough to combat trafficking. It said conservative estimates suggest there are tens of thousands of victims sold into modern day slavery in Thailand from neighboring countries — AFP

Japan city declares nuclear Decontamination Month MINAMI-SOMA: It is a daunting task. Contamination from the world’s worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl has spread far and wide, across fields and farms, rivers and forests. Tens of thousands of residents have been forced to flee their homes. But, shovelful by shovelful, one half-empty city on the edge of the evacuation zone is fighting to bring its future back. Feeling forgotten and left largely to fend for themselves by the central government, officials in Minami-Soma, about 12 miles (20 kilometers) away from the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear facility, have designated August as “Decontamination Month” in a campaign to woo spooked residents home.

“We decided that we could not sit by and wait until Tokyo figured out what to do,” said town official Yoshiaki Yokota. “It’s an enormous task, but we have to start somewhere.” Before the disaster, nearly 70,000 people lived in Minami-Soma. But, nearly six months later and despite relatively low radiation readings in most parts of town, more than 30,000 have left, nearly one-third of them from areas outside the official evacuation zone.

City officials fear that unless action is taken to demonstrate most of the town is safe for habitation, many may never return. So, for the past week, the city has contracted local crews to hose down its schools, parks and community centers. The goal is to reduce by

more than one-half the levels of radioactivity measured at places in the city where people gather. The campaign has created a buzz of activity in the still-shaken town.

The work crews, clad in hazmat suits, also use bulldozers and powers hovels to remove contaminated topsoil from public places, particularly school playgrounds. The washoff from the hosings and the mounds of contaminated topsoil are then moved to less-used areas and buried in huge trenches. “I’m glad to see them here,” Kiyomi Takahashi said as she watched a crew wash down a kindergarten adjacent to the school where her daughters are due to begin the first and sixth grade next week. “I still have my concerns, but it’s important that our city is out there showing that it is doing something.”

For the time being, a large swath of Minami-Soma remains completely off limits. That is because it is within a 12-mile (20-kilometer) no-go zone set up by Tokyo days after the March 11 tsunami touched off meltdowns, explosions and fires at the Fukushima plant. All told, nearly 21,000 people were killed or remain missing after the tsunami, which devastated Japan’s northeast coast. But outside the no-go zone, contamination levels vary dramatically, depending on the local terrain. Most of Minami-Soma is registering below government safety limits, meaning residents who evacuated earlier in the crisis may now return home if they so choose. — AP

MINAMI-SOMA: Workers put masks on before being craned up on the roof of Yasawa Kindergarten for decontaminating radiation from the building in Minami-Soma, about 12 miles (20 kilometers) away from the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear facility, in Fukushima prefecture, northeastern Japan, Thursday. — AP

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

N Korea accepts proposal to discuss war remains SEOUL: North Korea said yesterday it has accepted a US proposal to discuss recovering remains of American troops killed during the Korean War, another sign of easing tensions between Washington and Pyongyang.

About 8,000 US service members are listed as missing from the 1950-53 Korean War, including 5,500 in North Korea. Joint efforts to recover remains began in 1996, according to the US Department of Defense. The work was suspended in 2005 after Washington said there wasn’t enough security for its personnel.

Preparation for talks on restarting the search for remains comes as the countries pursue tentative discussions on resuming stalled nuclear disarmament negotiations. The United States and North Korea fought on opposite sides of the war and have never signed a peace treaty. Ties have been particularly tense in recent years over North Korea’s insistence on building a nuclear weapons program. North Korea has criticized military drills between Seoul and Washington that end next week as practice for an invasion.

Still, there have been recent bright spots in the relationship. Last month, a senior North Korean diplomat visited New York to discuss ways to restart nuclear disarmament talks last held in December 2008. Earlier this month, The Associated Press reported that US officials also called for talks on resuming the excavation of soldiers’ remains and were awaiting Pyongyang’s reply. A North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman told the North’s official Korean Central News Agency yesterday that Pyongyang had accepted the US proposal. The spokesman said Washington and Pyongyang were preparing for talks, but there were few other details.

Between 1996 and 2005, a joint recovery team found 220 sets of remains, according to the Pentagon. The Korean peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the three-year conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. The US keeps more than 28,000 troops in ally South Korea to protect against aggression, a presence North Korea cites for its need to build nuclear weapons.

Tensions rose in 2009 with the North’s launch of a rocket seen as preparation for a long-range missile capable of striking the US A nuclear test by North Korea followed weeks later. In 2010, two attacks blamed on the North that killed 50 South Koreans brought inter-Korean relations to a low point. The United States has said the retrieval of war remains should not be linked to the stalled disarmament talks. North Korea says it is ready to resume the six-nation nuclear negotiations, which involve the two Koreas, the US , China, Russia and Japan.

However, the US and its allies want Pyongyang first to take concrete steps to show sincere intent, such as freezing its nuclear activities and allowing inspections.

Washington has also called for improved inter-Korean ties. Last week, North Korea said it was considering a US proposal to allow Korean Americans to be reunited with family in the North. And on Thursday, Washington said it would contribute up to $900,000 in emergency relief supplies to three North Korean provinces struggling in the wake of heavy rains and flooding. — AP

Myanmar’s Suu Kyi meets president for first time Regime reaches out to opponents NAYPYIDAW: Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi met the country’s new civilian president for the first time yesterday, an official said, in the latest sign the regime is reaching out to its opponents. The closed-door talks with President Thein Sein marked a rare encounter between the Nobel laureate and one of the former top generals who kept her locked up for much of the past two decades.

The meeting took place at the presidential office in the capital Naypyidaw, a government official who did not want to be named told AFP, but it was unclear what was discussed. “It is an important step for national reconciliation. We should all work together,” Ko Ko Hlaing, chief political adviser to the president, told AFP ahead of the talks.

In March power was handed to a new nominally civilian government led by Thein Sein, a former general and junta prime minister, after nearly half a century of military rule.

Suu Kyi, who is 66, was released from house arrest shortly after a November election that was won by the military’s political proxies and marred by complaints of cheating. The NLD, which won a 1990 vote but was never allowed to take power by the junta, boycotted last year’s poll because of rules seemingly designed

NAYPYIDAW: This combo shows file pictures of then Myanmar prime minister Thein Sein (L) arriving for an ASEAN summit in the southern Thai resort town of Hua Hin on October 22, 2009 and Myanmar’s democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi talking to journalists at her house in Yangon on July 11, 2011. —AFP to exclude Suu Kyi, and was stripped of released from detention, addressing its status as a political party as a result. thousands of supporters. The authoriBut more recently there have been ties warned her in June that such a signs that the new government is soft- tour could spark chaos and riots, but ening its stance towards its critics, with the one-day excursion passed without Suu Kyi holding a second round of incident. The new government has also talks this month with labor minister called for peace talks with ethnic rebels and is allowing UN rights envoy Aung Kyi. On Sunday, Suu Kyi travelled unhin- Tomas Ojea Quintana to visit Myanmar dered on her first overtly political trip next week for the first time in more outside her home city since being than a year. — AFP

3 killed in Australia helicopter crash SYDNEY: Three people were killed in a helicopter crash in southern Australia, police said yesterday, with a prominent Australian journalist believed to be among the dead.

Australian Broadcasting Corp. said three members of its news crew, including veteran journalist Paul Lockyer, are believed to have died when their chopper crashed Thursday in a remote part of South Australia state.

Lockyer, cameraman John Bean and pilot Gary Ticehurst were working in the area on a story about Lake Eyre, a massive Outback lake, the ABC said. South Australia police confirmed three people were killed in the acci-

dent and said they were investigating the cause of the crash. A tour guide who had chatted with those on board shortly before they took off saw a large fireball in the distance soon after the helicopter departed, Police Assistant Commissioner Neil Smith said.

The crash site is surrounded by water and boggy land, making access to the area difficult, Smith said. The remoteness of the region was also making it tough to get in touch with investigators on the scene, he said. “We are not expecting to have any positive news, any positive identification or the full extent of the

detail for some time,” Smith told reporters in Adelaide.

Lockyer was an award-winning journalist whose career spanned more than 40 years and included assignments in Washington and Asia. Ticehurst was a well-known media pilot who worked for the ABC for more than 25 years. Bean, a Brisbane-based cameraman, was a 20-year veteran of the ABC who worked throughout Australia, the Pacific and in Washington. “This has been the longest of nights and we fear it will be the saddest of days,” ABC managing director Mark Scott said. — AP

Rogue group a risk to Philippines’ talks with MILF MANILA: The Philippines and its largest Muslim separatist group are set to discuss a political formula to end a long-running insurgency, but a rogue guerrilla leader could hijack the peace negotiations in Kuala Lumpur just as they seem to have gained new momentum. A secret meeting in Tokyo hotel on Aug. 4 between President Benigno Aquino and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) leader Murad Ebrahim produced an agreement to accelerate the peace process.

But the following week a breakaway group of separatists who oppose the peace process attacked MILF forces on Mindanao, showing deep divisions among the rebels that would leave doubts as to whether a peace deal could be implemented. Manila and the MILF have been negotiating since 1997 to end the rebellion that has hobbled development in the poor but resource-rich south. The conflict, which dates back to the 1960s, has killed 120,000 people and displaced 2 million.

The next round of talks will be in Kuala Lumpur from Monday to Wednesday, and the government is expected to present its response to the MILF’s demand for a substate. “If the government’s political formula would cover at least 50 per cent of our position, that could be a very good starting point for any substantive talks to move forward,” Mohagher Iqbal, the MILF’ chief negotiator, told Reuters. “We’re now at the most crucial phase of our negotiations.”

However, analysts say the talks could be sidetracked by the government’s concerns over the activities of rogue commander Ustadz Ameril Umbra Kato. Kato broke away late last year to continue fighting for an independent Islamic state in the south of the mostly Roman Catholic country, but the MILF had maintained it was an internal matter and they could bring him back into the fold.

“Kato’s defection will likely overshadow the peace talks,” said Mars Buan, an analyst at security consultancy firm Pacific Strategies and Assessments.

“Kato’s move doesn’t simply mean more violence in Mindanao. More importantly, it is indicative of the deep fractures within the MILF that will expectedly complicate the peace talks. The MILF itself is a breakaway from Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), splitting in 1978 because it disagreed with a deal the MNLF had stuck with dictator Ferdinand Marcos. Marvic Leonen, head of the government’s peace panel, said the government is ready with its proposal but wants a “serious” discussion on how to deal with Kato.

“Kato is becoming a big problem and we wanted some answers from the MILF,” Leonen told Reuters, although he said the issue would not overshadow the main agenda on finding a mutually acceptable political deal. — Reuters

India growth strangled by hawkish stance

18

Oil falls on renewed demand fears

Business

17

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Biden reassures China on US debt

16

Gold hits latest record high

17

FRANKFURT: A trader works at the stock exchange yesterday. — AP

World stocks plunge on recession fears MILAN: Global stocks fell again yesterday as fears of a possible US recession combined with ongoing worries over Europe’s debt crisis, which is stoking acute fears over the continent’s banking sector.

However, a better than anticipated opening on Wall Street helped European markets recoup a large chunk of their earlier losses. “This week has seen a continuation of the trend of weaker than expected data and political reaction to the European problems which pretty much amounts to ‘Let’s have a get together a couple of times a year,’ “ said Gary Jenkins, an analyst at Evolution Securities.” Britain’s FTSE 100 lost 0.7 percent to 5,056, while Germany’s DAX fell 2.1 percent to 5,483. France’s CAC-40 was down 1.2 percent at 3,041. In the US, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 0.6 percent at 10,931 while the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 0.1 percent at 1,140.

Futures markets had been predicting far bigger declines earlier.

The market turmoil of the last two days has dashed any hopes of a quiet second half of August - a normally quiet period when trading dries up until the US returns from the Labor Day holiday in early September. Financial markets have wrestled for several weeks with fears that a new recession in the US is in the offing. Another round of soft economic data further spooked investors all round the world. A woeful manufacturing survey Thursday from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia renewed US recession fears in particular. A parallel concern centers on Europe after a Franco-German summit earlier this week failed to persuade investors a convincing fix to the spiraling debt crisis was imminent. The leaders promised further economic integration but no concrete measures like eurobonds, which would

spread the risk among the 17 nations using the common currency. Banks have borne the brunt of the selling in the markets on renewed worries of the health of the continent’s banks, while safehaven gold prices nudged up against the $2,000 an ounce mark, and crude prices fell as investors feared a global slowdown will zap demand for crude Europe’s banks have also been hit by indications from German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy that their countries were developing a plan to tax financial transactions. In an effort to smooth out that turbulence, France’s stock market regulator put in place a ban on short-selling last week, preventing traders from betting on the decline in a share’s price. Other European regulators have instituted similar bans.

But on Thursday the Authorite des Marches Financiers eased the

ban, saying it would allow traders to roll over - or extend - their short positions when they expired. It will continue to bar them from taking on new ones. It had been unclear before whether traders could roll over positions they’d held before the ban went into effect. Several countries banned short selling during the financial crisis of 2008 to try to tame volatility. But some experts argued that the bans actually contributed to a feeling of uncertainty since their very existence suggests the system isn’t working as it should and limits how traders can respond.

One moderately bright spot for European policymaker remains the relative calm in the bond markets after the European Central Bank started buying up Italian and Spanish bonds. Both countries’ yields on their ten-year bonds have fallen over a percentage point to below 5 percent, which is considered manageable. There’s also been

some calm in the currency markets, with the euro up 0.9 percent at $1.4423 and the dollar down 0.4 percent at 76.45 yen.

Earlier, Asian shares also took a beating following the big retreat Thursday in Europe and the US. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index dropped 2.5 percent to 8,719.24 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slid 3.1 percent to 19,399.92. Mainland Chinese shares tracked losses elsewhere, with shares in coal, oil and cement leading the decline. The Shanghai Composite Index lost 1 percent to 2,534.36 after dipping almost 2 percent earlier in the day. The Shenzhen Composite Index lost 0.8 percent to 1,133.84. Oil prices continued to tank too amid fears over global demand. Benchmark oil for September delivery was down $1.43 to $80.95 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude fell $5.20, or 5.9 percent. — AP

BUSINESS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

EU weighs oil embargo against Syria BRUSSELS: The European Union could decide to toughen sanctions against Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s government yesterday, imposing a ban on oil imports from the country and banning business with major companies, EU diplomats said. The move would follow a significant stepping up of pressure against Assad by the EU and the United States, in response to continued violence against anti-government protesters contesting the fourdecade rule of Assad’s family. The United States and the EU, along with the governments of Britain, France and Germany, called on Thursday for Assad to step down, marking a dramatic turnaround in the Western approach to

him. Major states had until now urged him to reform rather than leave.

Washington coupled its call with new sanctions, ordering a freeze on Syrian government assets in the United States, banning US citizens from operating in or investing in Syria and prohibiting US imports of Syrian oil products. In Brussels, EU diplomats were to meet yesterday to decide what additional measures, if any, the bloc should take against Syria. Diplomats said options included an embargo on Syrian oil and a ban on exports of equipment for exploration and production, as well as a ban on doing business with main companies in the oil, banking and telecommunication

sectors. “There are several options on the table,” one EU diplomat said. “We will look at expanding the criteria for sanctions, to include companies that not only support the regime’s violence but also profit from it.” The EU’s 27 governments have already subjected 35 individuals including Assad to asset freezes and visa bans and targeted military-linked firms tied to the suppression of dissent. More people or companies could be added to the list after yesterday’s discussions. Europe has taken an incremental approach to Syrian sanctions in recent months, with some EU governments concerned about harming their commercial interests and long-term relations with the

government. Big European corporations such as Anglo-Dutch Royal Dutch Shell and France’s Total are significant investors in Syria. But discussions on new punitive moves have gathered pace, in coordination with Washington, diplomats said. Sweden’s foreign minister, Carl Bildt, said there very strong reasons for an oil embargo to be used to put pressure on Assad.

“What one always has to put in the balance is to make sure it doesn’t hit ordinary people to a too large extent,” he said in Sweden. “I believe it is inevitable that it does to some extent but the situation in which we are now it is important to sent the strongest possible signal.” — Reuters

Biden reassures China on US debt Biden says China, US have mutual market concerns BANGKOK: Thai shoppers are reflected in the window of a shop yesterday. Thailand’s economy has rebounded strongly from political violence during rallies by Thaksinís ‘Red Shirt’ supporters last year—which caused investor uncertainty and hit the key tourism sector—posting strong growth of 7.8 percent in 2010. — AFP

Asian LNG prices rise PERTH: Asian liquefied natural gas (LNG) spot prices for September rose above $15 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) during the week, with strong Asian demand keeping prices high. “Asian markets were holding just north of the $15 level for cargoes as the demand for LNG continues to ramp up,” ICAP analysts said in a note. Top LNG importers Japan and South Korea both reported higher imports for July. Japan’s LNG imports rose 14.3 percent in July compared with the same period a year earlier as the nation continues to depend on the fuel to replace nuclear power lost due to the March earthquake, while South Korea’s imports increased 9 percent year-on-year.

Spot prices in Asia have now risen over 50 percent since Japan’s earthquake in March boosted demand for LNG. The spread between Asian spot prices around $15.10 and British prices was about $5.40 per mmBtu this week, wide enough to coax cargoes to Asia from the Atlantic. Recent Nigerian cargoes have been sent east to higher-paying Pacific markets. Shipments to Asia from the Middle East and the Atlantic Basin increased by 1.357 million and 1.146 million metric tons respectively in July, while Asia-Pacific shipments of LNG to Asian buyers fell, Waterborne LNG analysts said in a note.

Qatar, Nigeria, Trinidad, Yemen, and Abu Dhabi had the largest year-over-year increases shipments to Asia. And the trend looks set to continue, despite extremely high shipping costs of just under $100,000 a day. “Spreads to Asia from the Atlantic remain at all time highs with winter 11 spreads now looking close to $7.50,” ICAP analysts said. Supply from the Atlantic Basin was also seen in South Korea’s long term supply agreements with Shell and Total signed this week. Under the deals, totaling $84 billion, cargoes will be sourced from Australia, and from company portfolios across the Atlantic Basin. The boom in Asian supply may leave European import terminals short as Asia sucks up Atlantic Basin supply, analysts said this week. In the Atlantic, US gas prices hit five month lows on Thursday and ample supply continued to deter spot LNG shipments to terminals there. Flows from US terminals hit 0.63 billion cubic feet per day on average last week, according to Tudor Pickering Holt analysts. The flows are near contractual minimums, as traders ship gas elsewhere. US deliveries averaged 1.2 bcfd in 2010. — Reuters

BEIJING: US Vice President Joe Biden yesterday said China had “nothing to worry about” concerning the safety of its vast holdings of Treasury debt, while China’s Premier Wen Jiabao gave a ringing endorsement of the resilience of the debt-ridden US economy. The exchange came on the second day of Biden’s five-day visit to China where he is seeking to reduce distrust between the world’s two largest economies and build relations with Chinese leaders.

Wen said he was confident that the US economy would get back on track for healthy growth, echoing earlier comments from China’s vice president and heir apparent, Xi Jinping.

“It’s particularly important that you sent a very clear message to the Chinese public that the United States will keep its word and its obligations with regard to its government debt, it will preserve the safety, liquidity and value of US Treasuries,” Wen told Biden. Both sides have been at pains to project a harmonious image during the trip, although there was an unscripted note of discord on Thursday night when a basketball game between a US college team and a Chinese professional side erupted in a fight.

Wen’s comments were the first by a senior Chinese leader to directly address the roiling debt crisis in Washington since this month’s credit rating downgrade by Standard and Poor’s. In response, Biden told Wen that Washington appreciated and welcomed China’s investment in US treasuries.

“Very sincerely I want to make clear you have nothing to worry about,” Biden said.

“Don’t bet against America” Earlier, the US vice president told his hosts that “no one has ever made money betting against America”, according to a transcript of remarks made with Xi. Biden’s China stop is the first leg of an Asia tour that will include visits to Mongolia and Japan.

The upbeat tone from Wen and Xi, who is expected to be China’s next president, was in stark contrast to the sharp criticism by state media of Washington’s handling of its economy, for which China is the biggest foreign creditor.

BEIJING: US Vice President Joe Biden (left) chats with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (right) during their meeting at the Zhongnanhai leaders compound yesterday. — AP Their words highlighted the complex “More precious than gold” Xi said Biden had briefed him on and intertwined relationship between the world’s two-largest economies. While China Thursday “about the efforts of the U.S. govhas tussled with the United States on trade, ernment in spurring growth and jobs, cutInternet censorship, human rights and US ting (the) budget deficit, properly handling arms sales to Taiwan, it has also sought to the debt problem, and preserving the confisteady ties with Washington. Chinese offi- dence of global investors.” “The US econocials have long sought assurances that my is highly resilient and has a strong Beijing’s vast holdings of dollar assets capacity for self-repair,” said Xi, who was including US Treasury debt remain safe, speaking to business leaders at the rounddespite the downgrade. Chinese state table event. “We believe that the US economedia have repeatedly accused my will achieve even better development as it rises to challenges.” Xi reiterated the need Washington of reckless fiscal policies that for China the United States to work together have created uncertainty about Beijing’s to restore confidence in international mardollar assets. Analysts estimate two-thirds of kets, adding that “confidence is more preChina’s $3.2 trillion in foreign exchange cious than gold”. Dong Xian’an, chief econreserves, the world’s largest, are in dollar omist of Peking First Advisory in Beijing, said holdings, making it the biggest foreign China and the United States “need to coorcreditor to the United States. dinate their macro policies and make their Wu Zhifeng, an economist with China fiscal system transparent to each other.”

Development Bank, a state bank in Beijing, “China and the United States are walking said Beijing can do little to divest its existing through this crisis together. If one loses, the dollar holdings. “Biden’s promise is right in other will, too,” Dong said. Earlier, Biden the sense that there will be no US treasury acknowledged that China had legitimate defaults, but his promise does not mean the concerns about its access to US markets, purchasing power of China’s treasury hold- just as Washington is worried about problems US firms face in China. —Reuters ings will not be eroded,” Wu said.

BUSINESS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

US oil slips as low as $80.66 Oil falls on renewed demand fears

ATHENS: In this file photo, the European Central Bank’s chief economist Juergen Stark speaks during an Economist conference. — AP

Austria wants Greek collateral linked to bank aid VIENNA: Austria proposed yesterday linking demands from euro zone states for collateral on loans to Greece to how much protection each country’s financial sector will secure in a parallel private sector bailout for Athens. Finance Minister Maria Fekter said she hoped the proposal, sent to other euro zone members, would defuse tensions over a go-it-alone attempt by Finland to secure cash backing on loans it makes to Greece. On Thursday, Austria, the Netherlands and Slovakia said they also wanted collateral on their loans, which an official in Athens warned would undermine the second bailout deal agreed for Greece last month.

Under Fekter’s plan, Austria, whose banks and insurers have low exposure to Greece, would get collateral on its sovereign loans while heavily exposed countries like Germany and France would not. “What Finland negotiated means that all of us have to pay more so that Finland gets collateral,” Fekter told reporters late on Thursday in remarks released for publication yesterday, reiterating this was “unacceptable” to Austria, which wants equal treatment.

“I know that if everyone demands collateral then (the rescue package for Greece) cannot be financed. That is why I proposed... that we combine the private sector involvement- the protection of the private sector-with the protection via collateral,” Fekter said. Greece’s private sector creditors last month agreed to take a 21 percent loss on their bond holdings as part of a 37 billion euro ($52.12 billion) contribution to Greece’s rescue.

Banks and insurers that participate will be able to swap Greek debt for safe bonds backed by the European Financial Stability Facility bailout fund. The deal limits their potential losses, a relief for exposed countries like France and Germany. — Reuters

Death Cross rocks Wall Street NEW YORK: Before the stormy trading of August, many stock investors probably thought “death cross” was the name of some heavy metal band. But after a period in which the S&P 500 plunged more than 15 percent, daily trading volumes spiked by 70 percent and the United States lost its vaunted ‘triple-A’ rating, a death cross and other technical analysis terms are something investors have had to become increasingly familiar with. For chartists and market technicians, the death cross is a strong bearish signal that indicates a major shift in trading momentum.

In the case of the S&P 500, a death cross occurs when the 50day average for the index sinks below, or crosses over, its 200-day average. There was a time on Wall Street when many regarded technical analysis as something akin to voodoo economics, especially among stock pickers who specialized in fundamental research. But with algorithimic trading all the rage, it appears that cold and dispassionate technical market analysis is coming of age. The recent market plunge which took the S&P 500 to about 1,100 is a prime of example of why more traders are looking to technical analysis for guidance. That’s because many computerdriven trading programs are pegged to buy and sell stocks when certain market levels are breached. “Computers fire off automatically; you don’t have the time lag you’d have in normal decision making,” says Marc Pado, US technical market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. “Clearly this is not stock picking (but) indiscriminate buying and selling.”— Reuters

SINGAPORE: Oil prices fell yesterday, extending the previous session’s plunge, on renewed fears of weak demand following a slew of lacklustre data from the world’s top oil consumer, the United States.

Brent slipped as low as $106.05, after breaking below the 200-day moving average to settle at $106.99 on Thursday. Prices dropped 68 cents to $106.31 at 0437 GMT. The contract has slipped more than 9 percent this month, the worst since a 15 percent drop in May 2010.

US crude slipped as low as $80.66 a barrel and traded $1.01 a barrel lower at $81.37. The contract slipped nearly 6 percent to settle at $82.38 and has lost 15 percent so far this month, the steepest since December 2008. “This short-term downturn is not done yet. It could take WTI to as low as $75. The fundamental picture is not that bad but if the overall economy remains weak it is very hard to make a case for a bull run in oil,” said Tony Nunan, a risk manager with Mitsubishi Corporation in Japan.

“What could turn the situation around is if OPEC tightens supply. The question is at what price trigger it will do that.” Brent oil could extend the current fall to $105.24 per barrel, while US oil is expected to slide more to $78.85 per barrel, as the bearish momentum is strong, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao. The Reuters-Jefferies CRB , a global benchmark for commodities, fell more than 2 percent on Thursday-its largest daily decline since Aug 8, when energy, metals and agricultural markets slumped following the Standard & Poor’s

downgrade of the US triple-A credit rating.

Investors continued to flee riskier assets in favor of safer havens amid the turmoil, with gold prices hitting record highs yesterday, while Asian stocks tumbled as much as 4 percent. The selling came after data showed factory activity in the US MidAtlantic region in August fell to the lowest level since March 2009. The data from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank is viewed as a forward-looking indicator of national manufacturing. An unexpected fall in existing US home sales in July and a greater-than-expected rise in new claims for jobless benefits in the latest week added to growing fears that the US economic recovery could stall and slide into recession.

“The threat of a double-dip recession is made all the more real by the belief that policymakers have few options left in their toolboxes to boost the economy.

QE3 is one of them and likely on the rise after yesterday’s data,” said MF Global analyst Tom Pawlicki in a research note yesterday. In Europe, renewed fears that the euro zone debt crisis could infect the region’s financial system put pressure on short-term funding markets, forcing some European banks to pay higher rates for US dollar loans.

Supporting sentiment were comments

by Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping the world’s No 2 economy will not experience a hard landing. Xi told reporters at a roundtable meeting that China hopes Washington will ease trade restrictions

and provide fair treatment to Chinese firms. Implied volatility in the oil market soared on Thursday, with the Chicago Board Options Exchange’s Oil Volatility Index hitting its highest level in more than a week, snapping a steady downtrend. The US dollar was holding modest gains in Asia yesterday, as the weak US economic data and concerns about European banks sent skittish investors piling into Treasuries.

MENA supply Developments in the oil-producing countries of Libya and Syria could also change the direction of the market, analysts said. Libyan rebels seized an oil refinery in the city of Zawiyah and took control of Sabratha further west on the main highway from Tripoli to Tunisia on Thursday, further isolating Muammar Gaddafi’s stronghold. “The situation in Libya is looking like the beginning of the end. Actual supplies will take some time to come on to the market, but if there is peace and a chance for supplies to return there could be a surprise to the downside,” said Nunan.

The United States and European Union called on Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad to step down on Thursday and US President Barack Obama banned US imports of Syrian oil as part of a wider sanctions effort. While US sanctions will make it very difficult for banks to finance transactions involving Syrian oil exports, the EU is unlikely to pursue similar actions. “EU leaders have thus far resisted efforts to impose sanctions on the country’s energy sector. — Reuters

Gold hits latest record high NEW YORK: The price of gold hit its latest record high, near $1,830 an raised his price target for gold to $2,000 an ounce. Just a week ago, ounce, as investors spooked by the prospect of a return to recession he’d set a $1,700 target. He cited the trend of central banks in emergsought out safety Thursday in the precious metal. Gold prices have ing countries switching more of their currency reserves into gold.

“Physical gold is the ultimate collateral because it has no credit more than doubled since the recession began in late 2007. They’ve risen about 19 percent since the beginning of June, as European risk,” Blanch wrote in a note to clients. Purchases of gold by the leaders struggled to keep the debt crisis from infecting the region’s world’s central bankers more than quadrupled this April through major economies and US politicians nearly drove the country to the June, compared with a year ago, said the World Gold Council. brink of default, prompting Standard & Poor’s to cut the country’s President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela said Wednesday that he AAA credit rating. Morgan Stanley on Thursday cut its forecast for planned to nationalize the country’s gold industry and convert to international reserves. Venezuela global economic growth for this will also bring home its $11 billion year and 2012, saying the US and in gold reserves currently stored in the 17 countries that use the euro US and European banks. Chavez’s were “hovering dangerously close plan alone shouldn’t have much to a recession.” effect on gold’s price, said George While gold has hit a series of Gero, vice president at RBC Global record highs over the past 2 1/2 Futures in New York. months, the Standard & Poor’s 500 “Venezuela’s not a major gold has dropped about 15 percent, producer. This gold has already while the dollar, a traditional safe been mined, stored and allocated haven during periods of market wherever they’re holding it. It’s not turbulence and fear, is flat against changing the markets.” But a group of six major currencies.

Venezuela’s move to nationalize The metal’s value, unlike that of a its gold industry could have a “psycurrency, doesn’t depend on the chological impact” on gold prices, health of a single country’s econoGero said. If investors fear that othmy. Its swift rise has made it popular with investors seeking big SEOUL: An employee works next to a turtle made er big commodity exporters in South America will follow in returns, as well as presumed safety Venezuela’s footsteps, possibly from turbulent financial markets. of gold at a jewelry shop yesterday. — AFP limiting exports and constricting On Thursday, for example, the S&P 500 fell 4.5 percent, following a selloff in European and Asian markets. the supply of the metal in world markets, that could boost the price.

And that’s going to affect consumers. The metal is more than just A new slate of reports that pointed to a sharp slowdown in the econoa currency substitute or an investment opportunity. It’s also a material my spooked investors.

There was a steep drop in US home sales last month, more people used in industrial products and by consumers. With every fresh high filed jobless claims last week and an August regional manufacturing the metal notches, the more consumers will have to pay for engagereport was weak. There was downbeat data from overseas. Gold for ment rings and gold crowns for their teeth. Big US jewelry chains December delivery, the most-traded futures contract, settled at already raised prices this summer, citing the rising costs of gold and $1,822 an ounce, up $28.20, or 1.6 percent. Earlier Thursday it hit diamonds. Despite gold’s big run-up, it remains below its 1980 peak $1,829.70 per ounce, a record high. The metal’s price could go higher. when adjusted for inflation. Then it was worth $850 an ounce, or BofA Merrill Lynch commodities analyst Francisco Blanch on Thursday about $2,400 in 2011 dollars. — AP

BUSINESS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

India growth strangled by hawkish fiscal stance Inflation still above comfort level NEW DELHI: A Chandra Shekhar, the CEO of a small alternative energy solutions firm at the heart of India’s much-vaunted boom story, should be rolling in orders and expanding his business on the coat-tails of near double-digit economic growth. But his funding and growth prospects for the immediate future have dried up, thanks to the anti-inflationary crusade of one of the most aggressive central banks in the world. “The scenario is that industries require my technology and services, but I do not have the funds to start the projects,” said Shekhar, who predicts Solar India Solutions will do well to break even this fiscal year with no chance of order-book growth. “While we are trying to raise money, it has become too costly to even think about it. It is impossible for me to approach a big company without financial backing.” Reeling from 11 interest rate rises since March 2010, Shekhar is one of a chorus of industrialists and corporates suffering from the central bank’s single-minded strategy, which is increasingly presenting policymakers with a dilemma.

With the government effectively paralyzed by corruption scandals and protests, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been left to fight the inflationary battle without fiscal policy support, and equipped with limited tools. It seems determined to persist with its crusade against inflation for now.

“At the moment the biggest priority for India is inflation. Of that, there is very little doubt in my mind”, said Bimal Jalan, a former governor of the RBI. India’s growth rate is slowing - car sales in July contracted for the first time in nearly three years - and consumer goods demand in June slowed substantially from a year earlier. Manufacturing output also slowed substantially in the April to June period. Businessmen like Shekhar are not alone.

Many small businesses in India have abandoned expansion plans or closed down units due to a dearth of affordable finance, says Chandrakant Salunkhe, president of the Small and Medium Business Development Chamber of India. In the debt-intensive real estate industry, major players have sold off land parcels to meet soaring repayments, and there are signs of a squeeze in sectors from autos to mining to fast-moving consumer goods - all at the heart of the India growth story. “There is a likelihood of closing down many SMEs for want of funds ... It is therefore indispensable that the RBI should not only bring down interest rates but also introduce new lending schemes for the sector at lower interest rates,” said Salunkhe. That would be doable if inflation was falling quickly. But headline inflation remains above 9 percent, much above the RBI’s comfort level of 4 to 4.5 percent, forcing the central bank to continue its hawkish monetary policy stance.

“A formal lowering of its GDP growth forecast of 8 percent may not happen until ...

October, but it will probably signal downside risk to its growth forecast,” leading brokerage house CLSA said in a note. “But RBI will maintain its hawkish stance”, the note added.

The US impact India’s stubborn inflation is due to supply bottlenecks, food prices and high oil prices, and now it faces worries that a possible new round of quantitative easing by the US

Federal Reserve could see a flood of capital into emerging markets. “Obviously, Ben Bernanke’s upcoming speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, will be the joker in the pack,” said a note by leading brokerage house CLSA. “Any hint of further strong quantitative easing by Bernanke could favorably affect risk appetite and commodity prices, and hence will be bad for India’s inflation and interest rate outlook.”

With New Delhi only recently showing fiscal discipline with a long delayed 9 percent increase in diesel prices in June, and capacity bottlenecks slow to clear as big projects and reforms stall, fighting inflation has been left to the central bank. Despite the series of policy

Quarterly review The anti-inflationary consensus is expected to broadly shape the contours of the September 16 mid-quarterly review of monetary policy, at which the central bank is expected to raise rates by 25 basis points and continue its hawkish tone. Despite a sign of slowing growth, the government appears on board with the RBI - for now. “I think we understand and fully support RBI’s stance on inflation, that is the priority,” a senior finance ministry official told Reuters, indicating that the battle against inflation has been left with the central bank.

But there is not such consensus among

affect its long-touted approach to pulling millions out of poverty every year. Car sales in India fell almost 16 percent in July, the first drop in two and a half years. Production of consumer goods grew less than 2 percent in June, reinforcing fears that consumer demand is on the wane in the country.

Growth in the January to March quarter was the slowest in 5 quarters and, barring the capital goods segment, industrial output numbers were on the slower side in June.

Market participants might believe growth risks from the global economy could see the central bank loosen policy, at least going by pricing in interest rate swaps. The one-year

MUMBAI: Stock brokers watch the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) index in the trading terminal. - AP rate increases, real interest rates in India are still in negative territory with the repo rate (the RBI’s main lending rate) still lower than the headline inflation rate by about 120 basis points.

Even at an 8 percent pace, India will be the second-fastest economy in Asia, but it needs to grow quickly in order to raise living standards and create jobs for a surging workingage population. There is no sign at all of a possible plunge in growth to a “hard landing”, which is technically difficult to define but conceptually would mean India couldn’t generate the number of new jobs needed for its young population or the revenue gains the government requires to contain its fiscal deficit.

analysts. And even the central bank’s policy advisory team had leaned in favor of a pause on July 26, when the RBI surprisingly raised them by half a percentage point. “The sequential and year-on-year reduction in inflation numbers ... may help in soothing some concerns that the rate hiking cycle will continue”, said Goldman Sachs in a report after India’s inflation numbers were released on Tuesday. Citigroup say that inflation has peaked, but “persistently high inflation and RBI’s hawkish tone raises the risk of a last 25 bp hike in September” The government, reeling under allegations of graft and criticism for failure to tackle rising prices, cannot afford to let growth dip and

rate is currently at 7.80 percent, below the central bank’s main lending rate of 8 percent. Yet, much depends on how the situation in the United States and the eurozone plays out. Another senior official in the finance ministry said that if there is a meltdown in the United States and the eurozone, that may seriously cloud India’s prospects and the central bank may then have to turn its policy around to preserving growth. That could come sooner than later. Private economists have increasingly pared growth forecasts for the fiscal year ending in March 2012 to below 8 percent, while policymakers have also scaled down projections to between 8 and 8.5 percent. — Reuters

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

business

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Japan’s Nikkei closes down 2.51% on fears Sentiment rattled by 6.8 magnitude quake

SYDNEY: A shareholder watches the share price monitors which are reflected on the black granite walls of the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) yesterday. — AFP

Australian retail sales may not be gloomy at all SYDNEY: Australia’s official retail sales data is so soft that it gives the impression that household spending has clammed up, but even official statisticians doubt the situation is really that bad.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics believes its monthly data series, a number that can move currency and interest-rate markets, is in important need of modernizing and probably no longer reflects the true strength of household spending.

“We think retail trade (data) covers around about 35 percent of household consumption spending these days,” said Bruce Hockman, the bureau’s head of national accounts data, explaining that the monthly retail series had slowly drifted away from the full reality of modern household spending habits. “When it (the data series) was first introduced ... it was about 60 percent, so households have moved away from perhaps traditional things and they buy more holidays and they spend more on Internet services and telecommunications services. All these sorts of things are not directly covered by retail trade.”

The most recent retail sales data, for June, showed a fall of 0.1 percent from May and just 2.6 percent growth in the full year to June, the weakest annual growth since 1961-62, according to Commsec economist Craig James, who was born in 1962. “It’s true that people are spending in different ways. Over time our wealth has increased and we are spending less and less on essential goods,” James said, noting that an early-1960s shopping list was mostly made up of food and other essentials. “It’s nowhere near that order of magnitude now.” Those June figures, released on Aug. 3, combined with global fears of a world economic slowdown to hurt the Australian dollar and to help drag the local stock market to an 11-month low.

They seemed to chime with endless complaints from the retail industry about a cautious mood on the high street and with figures showing household savings rates at 20-year highs. But, oddly, the retail data also appeared to contradict the overall health of the economy, which is enjoying its biggest mining boom of all time, low unemployment and rising wages. The bureau’s Hockman suspects retail sales growth would have been stronger if the survey and research used to compile the data had included services such as telecoms and insurance, which now make up a large chunk of actual household spending.

“Services have been a growth area of the economy and our traditional collections (of data) were not quite designed for a modern economy,” Hockman said. “People have not directly noticed, but it has drifted away,” he added.

Keeping up with the times To gauge the extent to which retail sales data understates the strength of the supposedly closeted Australian consumer, it is worth comparing retail sales data with a less conspicuous data series-household final consumption expenditure. Household consumption spending is produced quarterly, as part of the national accounts, and is published about two months in arrears-way too late for markets to pay much notice-but it is a lot closer to actual household spending patterns. In the March quarter, household consumption jumped 6 percent from a year earlier while retail sales rose just 0.8 percent. The government has allocated A$30 million ($31.5 million)over the next four years for the bureau to improve the quality of its economic data, with retail sales a top priority. — Reuters

TOKYO: Japan’s Nikkei index tumbled 2.51 percent yesterday to hit a fresh fivemonth low on deepening worries about the global economy dipping into recession, and as a strong yen hit exporters.

The headline index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange lost 224.52 points to 8,719.24, its lowest close since March 15 when shares tumbled in the wake of the March 11 earthquake, tsunami and a nuclear crisis. Sentiment was rattled yesterday by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake that struck before the market close, near to the location of the devastating March 9.0 magnitude event, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. The tremor triggered a tsunami advisory that was later lifted, as the Nikkei plunged to a low of 8,707.47, before recovering slightly.

The Topix index of all first-section shares closed down 2.04 percent or 15.62 points to 751.69. A strong yen, standing at 76.50 to the dollar from 76.52 overnight in New York, also weighed on sentiment and encouraged selling in exporter shares, dealers said. Shares faced pressure after European and US stocks fell sharply on weak US economic data and renewed concerns about the eurozone debt crisis, analysts said. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 3.68 percent following an earlier rout on Europe’s bourses. New York’s broader S&P 500 sank 4.46 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 5.22 percent.

The feared global slowdown and a strong yen threaten the fragile postearthquake recovery of the world’s number three economy, analysts said. “The deterioration in the global economy will shatter expectations for Japan’s V-shaped

recovery,” said Yutaka Shiraki, a senior equity strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities. According to the Nikkei business daily, more than 100 issues hit their lowest levels of the year yesterday, including Sony, Honda and Toyota.

The strong yen pressured Japan’s automakers, amid concerns that more Japanese production will be forced to move overseas in order for products to remain competitive.

In a research note, Credit Suisse said Japan’s auto sector faces likely restructuring, including eliminating yen-denominated costs, if the Japanese unit remains at current levels or further strengthens.

Honda Motor dropped 3.33 percent to 2,403 yen, Toyota Motor slipped 1.38 percent to 2,768 — more than a two-year low — and Nissan Motor plunged 4.39 percent to 653. Firms with exposure to Europe were also hit as the yen strengthened. Nikon was off 5.84 percent at 1,610, Canon fell 2.39 percent to 3,465 and Sony slumped 3.15 percent to 1,594. Japan’s finance minister said yesterday the government would start considering what long-term preparations are needed to soften the economic impact of the yen if it remains at its currently high levels. The euro stood at $1.4310 and 109.47 yen, from $1.4337 and 109.70 yen in New York. — AFP

TOKYO: A man walks in front of the electronic stock board of a securities firm yesterday. — AP

UK fund firm Jupiter eyes Europe LONDON: Fund manager Jupiter put a brave face on the financial market turmoil that has rattled its core British customers, saying it was pushing ahead with plans to expand in Europe and attract more wealthy clients. Jupiter, one of the UK’s largest retail investment fund managers with around 84 percent of assets invested in equities, said yesterday that first-half net inflows to its funds fell to 676 million pounds ($1.1 million) from 814 million a year earlier. Investor confidence had taken a knock and “significant uncertainty remains,” it said. “Sentiment is definitively more nervous, it would be surprising if it wasn’t. I would be quite amazed,” Chief Executive Edward Bonham Carter told Reuters in an interview.

Rival fund house Henderson forecast a near-term decline in investment from retail clients, when it published results earlier this week. Jupiter is pushing ahead with medium-term plans to diversify its client base, seeking more wealthy investors and expanding into Europe. The moves “over the course of this year and into next year,” will start with a new office in Switzerland, Bonham Carter said. Continental investors, who traditionally favor investment in bonds, are becoming more open to putting their money in stocks, he added, a trend Jupiter hopes to harness with its core offering of equity-focused mutual funds.

“I think we are at relatively early stages in the European investment habit where people are moving from cash and a bond culture to increase their weighting to equity over time... we have seen it in Germany in the last few years.” In the UK, Jupiter is looking to increase its private client business. “It could range from the private client and wealth management fit of a big bank ... we see it as a growth area in the UK and in Europe as

well,” he said. Bonham Carter also identified long-term trends likely to favor the business, such as pension reforms in the UK that will make workers save more, including a move to automatically enroll workers over 22 in a pension plan. “I think savings are structurally picking up and that is a very strong positive in our business in the longer term. The UK is behind the US by about at least five or 10 years where people have a greater tendency to invest in mutual funds,” Bonham Carter said.

Jupiter pledged its first interim dividend since floating on the stock market last year after pretax profit more than doubled in the half-year to end-June. The fund manager will pay a 2.5 pence interim dividend, in line with expectations of analysts at Numis Securities. Jupiter shares were down 2.8 percent at 1040 GMT, trading at 190.7 pence, underperforming the FTSE 250 index down 1.8 percent. Analysts at Peel Hunt gave Jupiter a ‘buy’ rating saying “the longer-term attractions of Jupiter’s model remain - strong brand, consistent flows and high margins.”

Market conditions, however, “have clearly changed” since the end of June, Peel Hunt said. Global stock markets have tumbled in recent weeks on fears of another recession and fresh concern over the euro zone debt crisis.

Jupiter’s first-half pre-tax profit rose to 37.3 million pounds from 14.6 million pounds a year earlier. The company is diversifying its product range, having launched at the end of last year funds in convertible bonds and total return strategies, although Bonham Carter said it will remain focused mainly on equity, long-only funds. Conditions for new products launches are “particularly hostile,” he said. — Reuters

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

BUSINESS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Swiss play host to real off-roaders LAKE NEUCHATEL: You can describe these vehicles as real off-roaders-not only do they drive well on land, they also travel perfectly in the water. This week, owners of more than 50 of these amphibious vehicles brought their World War 2-era military transporters, jeeps and vintage-style cars to Switzerland’s St Blaise for their annual European gathering. Fitted with colorful sun umbrellas and decorated with flags, a motley crew of vehicles carrying families-including babies and dogs-drove off the port and glided smoothly into the water, before moving across Lake Neuchatel.

For many of these enthusiasts, it is the dualfunction of the vehicle that has drawn them.

“It’s a classic car as well as a boat, so it has more than one use, which makes it more appealing,” said Briton Paul Foley. “I’m predominantly car orientated. I like cars, I don’t like boats, but it just gives it a whole new level that you can use the water as well,” he said.

Foley was driving an amphicar, a 1960s German-built cabriolet which was also the only civilian amphibious vehicle to be mass produced. Nevertheless, only 3,878 were ever manufactured. Besides the amphicar, the Germans also manufactured the amphi-ranger, a 4x4 in the 1980s, while the French built the

hobbycar in the 1990s. But Patrick Amerijckx’s favorite vehicle is still the military Dukw truck 21,147 of which were produced by the US army during World War II. Amerijckx, who had travelled 14 hours in the Dukw from Belgium to join in the Swiss gathering with his wife and

two teenage children, said “in the beginning we just drove it like a truck, we brought it to exhibitions.”

“But one day we had the opportunity to go into the water, and we saw that it was really great. We have a particular view, we can do

SAINT BLAISE: Amphibious cars motor across Lake Neuchatel near Saint-Blaise during the 26th meeting of amphibious car. — AFP

NZ’s Telecom FY profit down 56.5% WELLINGTON: Telecom Corp, New Zealand’s largest telecommunications firm, announced a 56.5 percent slump in full-year net profit yesterday after a series of writedowns and one-off charges hit the bottom line.

Telecom said net profit for the 12 months to June was NZ$166 million (US$136 million), down from NZ$382 million a year earlier. The company said oneoff costs included NZ$42 million from February’s Christchurch earthquake, NZ$29 million to demerge its network and retail arms and a NZ$257 million writedown on the value of its copper wire network.

Stripping out the abnormal items, Telecom’s annual profit rose 1.6 percent to NZ$388 million, while group revenue slipped 3.2 percent to NZ$5.1 billion.

“These results represent a strong operating performance in an increasingly competitive environment,” chief executive Paul Reynolds said. The writedown of Telecom’s copper wire network comes after the government finalised plans for a NZ$3.0 billion fiber optic broadband network, which will render the old technology largely obsolete.

The government has granted Telecom contracts for about 70 percent of the planned broadband network, but on the condition that it separate its network and retail arms to dilute its dominance of the New Zealand market. As a result, its network arm, Chorus, will become a separately listed company by the end of 2011, concentrating on building the network and supplying wholesale broadband to other companies that sell their services direct to the public.

Telecom will continue as a retail-focused business, selling fixed-line, mobile and broadband services to the public. The company said the imminent demerger meant it could not provide market guidance for the current fiscal year. Telecom shares rose 1.7 percent to NZ$2.65 after the announcement, outperforming an overall market down 1.3 percent. — AFP

things that others can’t and it’s great. We feel free,” he told AFP. These days, Amerijckx, who owns four amphibious vehicles, brings his carriers into the water five or six times a year, and meets annually with the group of enthusiasts in a different European country. Since 1987, the group has met in various locations, including Sweden, Italy and Germany. In 2012, they will head to Norway.

This year it is Switzerland’s Lifeguards Club of the Low-Lake which is hosting the group as part of St Blaise village’s 1,000 anniversary celebrations. After three days of touring lakes Neuchatel, Bienne and Morat, the group will today also take members of the public out for a ride in the water. For Frenchman Christophe Prier, it is precisely the social aspect that he enjoys about his amphibious vehicles.

He uses them all year long “be it to drive friends or family around, or to participate in such public events where we find ourselves among those who are passionate about such vehicles.” “That’s the main draw,” he said. “We share a common passion, and contrary to other passions, the amphibious vehicle is not selfish, we can allow others to enjoy it as well.

There is sharing involved. That’s what I love,” he said. — AFP

Spain set to announce more austerity moves November polls make drastic cuts unlikely MADRID: Spain will announce further austerity measures aimed at fending off debt market attacks while avoiding drastic cuts which may damage the ruling Socialists’ chances in November’s general election. The government aims to save around 5 billion euros ($7 billion) with measures that include front-loading tax payments from large businesses and cutting drug costs for regional governments with a new bill on generic medicines.

This should shave the equivalent of half a percentage point of gross domestic product (GDP) from its public deficit, which it aims to cut to 6 percent this year. The government has already cut the gap to 9.2 percent of GDP in 2010 from 11.1 percent in 2009. The opposition People’s Party, likely to take power in general elections in November, has called the changing of tax payments an accounting trick by forcing large companies to pay taxes due in 2012 before the end of 2011.

Analysts say hitting this year’s deficit target will be hard for Spain given growth that barely hovers above zero, high debt-servicing costs and broader global growth concerns. Spain’s borrowing costs have come down since hitting euro-era highs in July thanks largely to bondbuying by the European Central Bank. Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has brought forward general elections by several months to Nov 20. His PSOE party is dragging in the polls, shunned by voters suffering the effects of last year’s austerity drive which included wage cuts. For this reason, analysts expect the government to announce savings plans that won’t affect most voters while avoiding unpopular measures like tax hikes or cuts in health services which would damage its outcome at the polls. — Reuters

COSSWILLER: French designer, Eric Wasser poses in front of the ‘Heliodrome’, a bioclimatic solar house that he created in Cosswiller, eastern France. The house is designed as a giant three-dimensional sundial, set on a fixed angle in relationship to the sun’s movements to provide shade or sunlight depending on the season. — AFP

A

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

y

e niv rsar n

Years

Post revolution Tunisia awaits tourists Pages 29

Return of hosiery: Sheer torture or pure polish?

Page 24

An Indian model displays a creation by designer Little Shilpa during the Lakme Fashion Week in Mumbai, India on Thursday. — AP

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Kirstie Alley

Plans for The claims people keep asking her to pay child support

Amy Winehouse Foundation delayed

M

T

he 60-year-old actress - who has two adopted children , William, 17, and 16-year-old Lillie, from her second marriage to Parker Stevenson - has urged those trying to dodge their responsibilities to “man up” and do the right thing. She tweeted: “ For any of u who constantly ask me to pay your child support...MAN Up!!

Take responsibility for your CHILDREN!!...(sic)” Kirstie’s son recently got engaged to his girlfriend, 18-year-old Lauren Sargeant, and while the actress was

thrilled with their news, she admits she is not an expert on marriage. She said: “I feel good because they’re really in love ... You know, I was married [when] I was just 19 years old and that didn’t work. Then I was married when I was 30 years old and that’s when everyone said you should get married and that didn’t work.” She added, “So, I don’t think I’m an expert on the subject. So, I think if somebody’s in love and wants to be married then let them be in love and get married.”

Daniel Radcliffe dating painter’s daughter

T

he ‘Harry Potter’ actor has been linked to a string of girls in the past, but he has quietly been romancing production assistant Rosanne Coker for the past year after meeting on the set of ‘Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince’ in 2007. Her father Malcolm - who runs his own painting business - said he was thrilled with the romance because Daniel is a “lovely” guy. He told the Daily Mail newspaper: “I don’t want to say too much really as they would really prefer to keep things quiet.

“But Rosanne has worked on the last three ‘Harry Potter’ films, so she and Daniel have known each other quite a long time. But they have been going out for just over a year now. I have met Daniel and he is a lovely guy. I’m just really happy for Rosanne and as long as she is happy that is all that matters to me.” Malcolm says Daniel treats his 22-year-old daughter with the upmost respect and he thinks he is great for her but he isn’t sure where their romance is going. He said: “No other parent would ask any more. I know it’s not a normal life they live.

But they have a lot of fun together and at their age, what more could you ask? Who knows where it is going to lead? She still lives over here in London and he is in New York a lot, but she wants to make sure that she continues her career and wants to achieve everything she set out to do.” Daniel, 22, has previously dated Irish actress Laura O’Toole and was recently linked to Olive Uniacke.

itch Winehouse had planned to set up the charity in memory of his late daughter - who was found dead at her London home last month aged just 27 - to help young addicts, but has had to postpone establishing the organization after hitting a problem with the registration. Mitch said: “Somebody else pinched it off of us before we could get it registered.“All these donations which are coming in - we don’t know what to do with them at the moment. We’ll have to hold off for the time being”.

However, Mitch insisted the charity will still be going ahead. He added to BBC News: “The plan is to help all children - not just rehabilitation, not just substance abuse. It’s to help all children in need.”

Meanwhile, Amy’s ex-husband Blake

Fielder-Civil has reportedly told friends he is keen to be involved with the charity as a “roving ambassador”. He is said to have told a pal: “It’s what she would have wanted.” However, Mitch and Amy’s mother Janis are said to be furious at the thought and have told Blake - who is currently serving a 32-month jail sentence for burglary and is accused of being the person who introduced the singer to heroin - his involvement would be an “insult” to the ‘Back to Black’ singer’s memory. A source told the Daily Star newspaper: “Amy’s family obviously have other ideas and really don’t want to know. In their eyes he is a part of their daughter’s life they would rather forget. They accept he was the love of her life but for him to be involved in the charity is crass.

Kim Kardashian plans second wedding celebration in NY

T

he 30-year-old socialite - who is set to marry basketball ace Kris Humphries in a $30 million mansion in Montecito, California, today is said to be putting on a lavish second party on the East Coast 10 days after their original nuptials on August 31. While a venue hasn’t yet been booked for the bash, wedding planner Colin Cowie and media CEO Jason Binn will be hosting the event. Jason wrote on his twitter page: “NY Wedding celebration! @KimKardashian, @KrisHumphries - @colincowie & I are so excited to host. (sic)” To which Kim replied: “So fun!” Meanwhile, Kim - who is believed to be wearing two custom-made $30,000 gowns designed by exclusive wedding dress creator Vera Wang - looks set to be disappointed, as a $7,850 vase the couple put on their gift list has not yet been purchased by any of their guests. After registering with seven different stores to ensure every attendee could afford to buy them a present, but their most expensive item - the Baccarat vase from exclusive department store Geary’s - hasn’t been bought.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Victoria Beckham unable to hold daughter due to slipped disc

T

he 37-year-old fashion designer suffered the injury while pregnant with Harper and has been in so much pain she has even had to have her husband David Beckham hold the baby while she breastfeeds. A source said: “She was suffering with a bad back throughout her pregnancy, and then something untoward happened in the C-section, badly aggravating it. She has had an X-ray which showed she has slipped a disc in her lower back. Victoria is in a lot of pain and even struggling to hold Harper. When she goes to breastfeed, David has to basically prop-up the baby.” The former Spice Girls singer has been left upset at not being able to play with her daughter like she did with her three sons - Brooklyn, 12, Romeo, eight, and six-year-old Cruz - but is hoping it won’t

affect how they bond. The source added to the Daily Mirror newspaper: “She is really down about the whole thing as she just wants to be able to play with her daughter like any new mum. “But Victoria is trying to remain upbeat because she really does feel so blessed with the birth of her beautiful daughter. She is determined not to let this injury overshadow the happiness surrounding Harper’s arrival.” David recently revealed he loves feeding Harper when he gets the opportunity. He said: “It’s so important that they have that mother/daughter bond and breastfeed, I think, is really an incredible thing.

“We’re in the process of putting it in bottles now, so that means I get to feed her which has been amazing.”

Jesse James, Kat Von D reconcile

T

he motorcycle entrepreneur - who was married to Oscar-winning actress Sandra Bullock for five years until 2010 - called off his engagement to the tattoo model last month but has now realized how “special” she is and their plans to marry are back on. Jesse told People: “Sometimes you are only given one chance in life. “It was up to me to open my eyes and see it. That girl is my chance. I will never stop fighting and striving to hold on to her. Showing her how special she is, and how much I love her.” The pair posted photographs of themselves embracing on their twitter pages, with Jesse adding the caption “para siempre”, Spanish for ‘forever’. Jesse admitted he “really loved” Kat when he called off their engagement, but said they split because of the distance between them, with him raising his children Chandler, 16, Jesse Jr, 17, and seven-year-old Sunny, in Austin, Texas, while the brunette beauty lives in Los Angeles.He said: “I’m so sad because I really love her. The distance between us was just too much.” However, Kat’s TV show ‘LA Ink’ has recently been cancelled, so it is unclear whether she plans to move closer to Jesse.

Gerard Depardieu apologizes for urinating on plane

T

he French actor - who relieved himself in front of other passengers on a flight from Paris to Dublin as he couldn’t wait until they were in the air on Tuesday has denied he was drunk and was simply desperate to pass water because he has “prostate problems.” A statement released by his friend, actor Edouard Baer, said: “Gerard is very sorry for what happened. He wanted to go to the toilet but he was forbidden because we were about to take off, so he was forced to do it on the plane in front of everybody.

“He has prostate problems and it was very worrying and humiliating for him. He was also stone-cold sober at the time. This is not the way he usually behaves.” Although Edouard, who was flying with the 64-year-old star on the CityJet plane, tried to rectify the situation by giving him a receptacle in which to urinate, but it overflowed. He added: “I found the solution by passing him a mini Evian water bottle, but it was too small and overflowed.” Passengers and crew on the plane - which had to be held for two hours to be cleaned after the incident - reacted with shock.

Jennifer Lopez considered quitting ‘American Idol’

T

he singer-and-actress split from husband Marc Anthony in July, two months after the TV talent contest ended, and she admits her personal struggles left her feeling worn out and unsure whether she wanted to continue her commitment to the series. She said: “I got a little bit tired at the end with everything going on in my life at the time.” However, Jennifer soon changed her mind because she enjoys working on the show with fellow judges Randy Jackson and Steven Tyler and host Ryan Seacrest. Speaking at a press conference in Savannah, Georgia where the show is currently taping - she said: “It is one of the best things I’ve ever done. Walking in here, they’re working at a diner, and we get to watch them grow into a superstar. I was like ‘OK I’m gonna do it again.” Meanwhile, Ryan has admitted he is pleased that Jennifer signed a new contract - worth a reported $20 million - to return to the show. He told The Hollywood Reporter: “You never know, right? Not until they officially close the deal and tell you that she’s coming back. I was hopeful because we had such a great season last year, I love her to death and I think that she fit in brilliantly. We need her role on the show. So I was very relieved to hear that she signed on again.”

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Return of hosiery:

Sheer torture or pure polish?

S

o you thought they were gone gone forever - until Kate Middleton hit the scene. Then Marc Jacobs put them on the runway, Banana Republic partnered with “Mad Men” and, suddenly, everywhere you look, sheer hosiery seems to be in fashion again. Since the heyday of the ‘80s, there’s been a casual revolution, a revolt

This product image courtesy of Donna Karan Hosiery shows tights

by Donna Karan. — AP

Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, during a welcome ceremony in Yellowknife, Canada as the Royal couple continue their Royal Tour of Canada. Since the heyday of the 1980s, there’s been a casual revolution, a revolt against covered-but-sheer legs. Now hosiery is making its comeback. — AP

R

against power suits and the sexy secretary skirt. Both lent themselves to covered-but-sheer legs. Now, why do women need pantyhose? They wear pants, get spray tans and slap on the Spanx. Because legs look better when you wear them, says Cathy Volker, executive vice president of global licensing for Donna Karan, including Donna Karan Hosiery.

“It’s like mineral cosmetics on your skin but better,” says Volker, who promises the pantyhose of today boasts many advances since previous versions.

The fabric is more comfortable, the elastic less restricting and they can offer toning and shaping benefits, she says.

Celebrity stylist Sophia Banks-Coloma is sold. She wore sheer pantyhose to a recent red carpet event in Los Angeles.

“I do think they are coming back. I especially love them in black or white with a seam up the back. We’re not talking ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ tan stockings, but nice, flattering pantyhose and tights.” Erase any image of brownish, loose legwear that pools at the ankles, she says, and start imagining the stylish Duchess of Cambridge or her sister, Pippa. No one is mistaking them as stodgy or uncool, Banks-Coloma says.

Noni Cavaliere, a social-media marketing specialist in New York, wears them; her favorites are those with the sexy Cuban heel and back seam.

Pantyhose flatter and help a woman appear professional and feminine, she says. “You have that ‘Mad Men’ influence everywhere, and the very feminine office look is popular again,” says the 30-year-old Cavaliere. “I’ve worked on Wall Street where women wear suits and heels, and I’ve worked in the tech world where people wear ripped jeans, flip-flops and a ripped T-shirt. I couldn’t do that. I like looking like a girl all the time, and pantyhose is part of that.”

She’s not wearing them on the hottest days of the summer, of course, but on that first day with a fall chill, she’ll likely be rocking the sheerest pair she can find.

“I like the shiny ones that Kate Middleton wears. Like that compression of Spandex and how it looks with a pencil skirt.” Pantyhose should be a given for job interviews, says Julie Perez, a 22-

year-old apparel studies student at the University of Arkansas. “My professors say, ‘Hosiery - you still have to do it. Yes, it’s 2011, but you have to do it.’” Perez says she doesn’t really mind. She’s a fan of how the Middletons look, and she’s loving the sheer dot-covered hosiery in the Banana Republic ads. “Maybe I’m just old-fashioned like that,” she says.

Perhaps stockings and even pantyhose as Betty Draper and Joan Holloway knew them are a thing of the past, says “Mad Men” costume designer Janie Bryant, and those uncomfortable things should stay that way. But if you’re talking about a modern pair of textured tights, lace tights or seamed sheers (with the added benefit of shapewear), you could be at the forefront of the next big thing, Bryant says. “The trend of the natural leg came to be, and people just gave in that this item was so uncomfortable - and with the suntan leg, it was hard to get the right color. It’s like the slip. It was old- fashioned. But then the slip came back in as streetwear, and I think the trend for legwear is that it’s back and going strong - although probably not the suntan ones.” Market research firm NPD puts women’s hosiery sales in the U.S. at more than $3 billion, up 2.9 percent from May 2010 to May 2011. Tights are the market leaders, showing an almost 30 percent increase in sales - and stockings sales are up, too.

Pantyhose sales, based on dollar amount, dipped 2.7 percent over the year, but Donna Karan’s Volker says recent business of sheers is booming.

“For the Middleton generation, hosiery is new to them. They have always worn tights, and they don’t see sheers as a necessary evil,” she says. —AP

Zoe’s life as a celebrity stylist helps shape line

achel Zoe’s 4-month-old son will probably know his Christian Dior from Yves Saint Laurent before he can walk. At celebrity fittings or business meetings, Skyler is the new favorite accessory of the stylist, reality star and author. But there’s a new baby in her life, too: Her own line of contemporary clothes, designed, she promises, with love, style and careful attention to detail.

There was a small, under-the-radar preview of the fall collection in February, but she’s going center stage in September as part of New York Fashion Week.

Zoe says she doesn’t want her label to be like anything else she’s seen over the years on runways or red carpets. “My personal collection comes from concepts and ideas I’ve been cultivating since I started collecting clothes. I’m inspired by Halston, YSL, but I try to keep it true to who I am,” Zoe says. “I will

still be going to other designers and their shows - that’s something that’s very important for me as a stylist, but I don’t let it influence me. Just like you can’t compare Marc Jacobs to another designer - you can’t say his collection looks like so-and-so - and it’s the same thing with people like Sarah Burton and McQueen, or Prabal Gurung. I want this collection to look like my collection.” Celebrities seem to like what they’ve seen so far. Jennifer Lopez has twice been spotted in clothes from the collection, including a tuxedo-style minidress named after Cameron Diaz.

Also look for long, dolman-sleeve dresses inspired by Kate Hudson for resort. Zoe’s probably most famous for a beachy, bohemian look - very St. Tropez - and she has put a lot of young Hollywood in kaftans, maxi dresses and platform sandals. —AP

Rachel Zoe as she attends the grand reopening of the Chanel SOHO boutique on in This file photo shows, from left, singer Santogold, model Joy New York.

Bryant, actress Eva Longoria, stylist Robert Verdi and stylist Rachel Zoe as they attend the Matthew Williamson Fall 2009 fashion show during Fashion Week in New York. — AP photos

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Danny DeVito receives star on Hollywood Walk

In this photo provided by Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, actor Danny DeVito signs autographs for fans before his star ceremony on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. (Right) Actor Danny DeVito poses at a ceremony honoring him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. — AP photos

Actor Danny DeVito stands on his star with his family, wife Rhea Perlman, left, and their children, from third left, Jacob, Lucy and Grace, as he is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. — AP

D

anny DeVito has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The 66-year-old Emmy-winning actor was honored Thursday with star number 2,445 on the famous walkway. The ceremony was held in connection with the September 13 release of the DVD of the sixth season of the FX comedy “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” in

5 most needless T

his is one of those weeks is which five choices aren’t nearly enough.

We’re talking about unnecessary remakes, which pretty much means ... all of them. Rare is the remake that actually improves on the original - this year’s “The Mechanic” with Jason Statham springs to mind. But the original versions of “Assault on Precinct 13” or “The Longest Yard” or “The Taking of Pelham 123,” for example, were just fine on their own, and in their own time. With this week bringing new versions of “Conan the Barbarian” and “Fright Night,” we’re going to focus on movies that never should have been touched. Stop me if you think you’ve heard this one before: “Psycho” (1998): Pretty much no one should go near Alfred Hitchcock, ever. But if you’re daring enough to try, you should avoid doing a shot-by-shot remake of what is probably the master’s best-known film. Still, you’ve got to admire Gus Van Sant’s chutzpah. He shot it in color - that’s different - and added a few slight tweaks.

Vince Vaughn plays the iconic Anthony Perkins role of Norman Bates and Anne Heche fills in for Janet Leigh as Marion Crane. But other than that, it’s the same characters, same dialogue, same camera angles, even the same Bernard Hermann score from 1960. It’s an intriguing exercise but, ultimately, a noble failure.

“City of Angels” (1998): Wim Wenders’ “Wings of Desire” (1987) is a modern classic, and it featured one of the greatest performances by the late Peter Falk. Melancholy, thoughtful and visually arresting, it followed unseen angels who watched over Berlin, observing people’s actions, listening to their thoughts, quietly shaping their lives. “City of Angels,” by

comparison, was too obvious - it spelled everything out, its emotions were too tidy. Brad Silberling turned this subtle story into a simple romantic comedy starring Nicolas Cage (as an angel) and Meg Ryan (as a heart surgeon), two actors who make absolutely no sense together.

The Women” (2008): George Cukor’s 1939 cat fight, based on the play by Clare Boothe Luce, was intended as a satire of

which DeVito stars as the ne’er-do-well owner of a Philadelphia bar. DeVito played the role of caustic dispatcher Louie De Palma on “Taxi” in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s.

His film credits include “Batman Returns” and “Romancing the Stone.” He also directed several films, including “Throw Momma from the Train” and “Hoffa.” — AP

remakes

In this image released by Warner Brothers Pictures, Nicole Kidman is shown in a scene from “The Invasion.” — AP photos

In this publicity image released by Columbia Pictures, Jaden Smith as “Dre”, left, and Jackie Chan as Mr Han, are shown in “The Karate Kid.” society mavens and their frivolous lives. In directing for the first time and writing the script, “Murphy Brown” creator Diane English made it a celebration. Sure, it had an all-female cast of solid actresses (Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Cloris Leachman), as did the original, though perhaps not quite the stellar collection that included Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford and Rosalind Russell. Cukor’s tone and timing were missing; English applied all the light-

hearted instincts of her sitcom background and seemingly none of the insights of the source material.

“The Invasion” (2007): There’ve been many versions of the sci-fi classic “Invasion of the Body Snatchers,” but this one had the least bite. Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig and Jeffrey Wright went to waste as a few of the last citizens who managed to remain uninfected when a gloopy substance from outer space took over the population, turning people into emotionless drone versions of themselves. The whole point of this story has always been to serve as a reflection of its times, whether it’s making a statement about McCarthyism (1956) or Vietnam and Watergate (1978). This time, there were passing TV news references to the war in Iraq and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il,

but the film’s political ideology felt tossed-in and half-baked. Worst of all, it wasn’t the slightest bit scary or suspenseful.

“The Karate Kid” (2010): This is admittedly a personal, nostalgic choice.

But for anyone who grew up in the ‘80s, “The Karate Kid” inspires a deep fondness.

Harold Zwart’s version maintained the basic structure and even some key details, like the sweep-the-leg moment in the finale. It moved the setting from Los Angeles to Beijing, that’s no big deal. The main problem was the casting of Jaden Smith, who was several years younger than Ralph Macchio was and looks even younger. And so neither the fighting nor the romance with a girl who’s out of his league - two key components of “The Karate Kid” - made sense. — AP

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Newest language used in

Western opera : Chinese

O

Opera singers, from right to left, Julia Metzler, Gabriele Mangione and Melisa Bonetti sing a Mandarin song during “I Sing Beijing” program’s visit to a local factory in Beijing, China.

— AP

n his first attempt, Nicholas Brownlee manages to spit out the sound “shee.” His teacher patiently shakes her head. “It’s not ‘shee,’ it’s ‘xi,’” she says, pronouncing something close to “shee” but not quite the same. It means “west” in Chinese, and the sound doesn’t exist in English. Brownlee scribbles down some notes as the class moves onto “ri,” which sounds like “err” and proves equally challenging. The room fills with renditions of “arr” and “ehh.” “Is anyone doing it correctly?” the 22-year-old American shouts in frustration. A trained opera singer, he is one of 20 young foreign vocalists in Beijing this summer to learn how to sing opera in a new language: Mandarin. It’s a daunting task that culminated Thursday night with a performance at the National Center for Performing Arts, the country’s premier opera house.

China may be better known for its traditional Peking Opera, but a new generation of composers favors Western-style operas in Chinese. So the government, in a bid at cultural diplomacy, organized the monthlong training program - dubbed “I Sing Beijing” with help from the Colorado-based Asian Performing Arts Council and other overseas groups. “You could say it’s an experiment of sorts,” said Tian Haojiang, head of the program and the Metropolitan Opera’s most renowned singer from China. “We hope it will inspire Western singers and bring Chinese modern opera onto the world stage.” The participants were selected from 200 applicants from around the world.

None spoke Chinese when they started.

Brownlee trained for and performed the lead in “Poet Li Bai,” which had its international premiere in the US in 2007 with Tian in the same role.

“I’d be lying to say I wasn’t intimidated,” said Brownlee, winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Gulf Coast Regional Competition. Tian, a bass singer who moved to the US nearly 30 years ago to pursue Western opera, coached Brownlee. At first glance, the husky former athlete from Mobile, Ala., with persimmon-tinted side-

Tenor opera singer Thomas Glenn performs a part from the Peking opera “The Siege of Tiger Mountain” during “I Sing Beijing” — AP burns and freckles, bears little resemblance to the famous Tang Dynasty author revered as one of China’s best poets. But as he begins to sing “Come to the Starry Night,” Brownlee’s passion comes through. In high school, he chose sports over opera. But after watching “La Traviata” in college, he began honing his skills as a bass-baritone.

Brownlee quickly learned to absorb new languages as an opera singer, but Chinese has presented a new set of challenges.

“Singers are already sensitive to pitch, which is a big advantage in learning Mandarin,” said Katherine Chu, a coach for the program. “But certain words, like ‘zi’ and ‘zhi,’ aren’t singer-friendly. These words can

tighten the jaw so we have to teach them how to carry the tones.” The proper placement of words is also important. “When opera singers read “wo bu zhi dao,” which means “I don’t know,” they instinctively want to separate “dao” from the rest of the sentence, because they are used to singing that way in Italian,” Chu said. “But in Chinese, it just doesn’t make sense.”

The students were paired with vocal and acting coaches to learn how to portray roles in some of the most well-known stories to Chinese audiences. The coaches included Peter McClintock, stage director for the Metropolitan Opera for more than 22 years.

Mezzo-soprano Maria McDaniel took on the role of Mai Shu from the modern opera “Chinese Orphan,” singing a heartbreaking scene in which she learns she has to give up her child. “It’s a story that a lot of Chinese know, so I want to be able to move audiences with my performance, even though it’s not my native language,” the Atlanta native said. As China’s economy grows, so does investment in the arts. Local leaders are eager to build performing arts centers as a symbol that their city has arrived. The country boasts about 50 today, with more than 100 expected to be built in the next decade.

Beijing’s National Center for the Performing Arts hosts about a dozen operas a year, including classics such as “Tosca” and “Die Fledermaus.” For the Americans, the growing market in China contrasts with the shaky one at home. “Funding for the arts is being cut in the US, and China is seen as a greener pasture for a lot of us,” McDaniel said. “I definitely can see myself singing again in China one day.” Beijing recently announced plans to promote the global tour of a Chinese trio of tenors, including Dai Yuqiang, one of China’s most famous tenors and a favorite of the late Luciano Pavarotti. “Cultural influence is a form of soft power,” said Kang Wei, chairman of the Beijing Performing Arts Group, which is co-sponsoring the tour. “Although it is not political it can still create a lasting effect.” — AP

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Oasis band brothers take newWitty comedy, slanging match to court ‘Olive and the

T

he Gallagher brothers, who stormed British pop in the 1990s when they were together in rock band Oasis, have taken their increasingly bitter war of words to court.

Younger sibling Liam, former lead singer of the group who now fronts Beady Eye, issued a statement on Friday confirming he was suing songwriter and guitarist Noel for comments he made over why the band broke up in 2009. Noel, 44, who made the remarks during a press conference in July at which he was launching his solo career, had no immediate comment to make on the lawsuit at London’s High Court, his spokesman said.

Liam said in his statement: “I have taken legal action against Noel Gallagher for statements he made during the Electric Cinema press conference on July 6 during which he claimed Oasis pulled out of the 2009 V Festival Chelmsford gig because I had a hangover. “That is a lie and I want Oasis fans, and others who were at V, to know the truth.” He went on to explain he was “gutted” to have had to pull out of the event, and that the real reason was laryngitis as diagnosed by a doctor and explained to Noel. “Noel also falsely stated that the demise of Oasis followed a massive row in which he claimed I demanded to advertise my clothing range Pretty Green in the Oasis tour program,” he added.

“The truth is there was no such discussion or row between us.

There are many reasons why Oasis split. But it had nothing to do with my clothing range.” Noel had said little about the infamous break-up of one of Britain’s most successful bands until the July

Bitter Herbs’

Noel Gallagher (left) and Liam Gallagher (right). — AP briefing, when he gave his version of events in Paris two years ago. Liam, 38, said the case was not about money but about extracting an apology from his brother. “I am used to being called all sort of things by Noel and I have in the past said things about him, but what Noel has alleged this time went way beyond rock-and-roll banter and questioned my professionalism.” Oasis, famous for swirling rock hits including “Don’t Look Back in Anger,” “Wonderwall” and “Champagne Supernova,” has sold an estimated 70 million albums worldwide. — Reuters

In this theater publicity image released by the O&M Co, from left, David Garrison, Dan Butler, Marcia Jean Kurtz, Richard Masur and Julie Halston are shown in a scene from the Primary Stages world premiere of “Olive And The Bitter Herbs,” — AP

E Sugarland tour resumes in NM after stage tragedy S

ugarland returned to the stage yesterday for their first performance since a stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair killed five people. The Grammywinning country duo asked its Albuquerque audience for a moment of silence in honor of those who were wounded “and the beautiful lives that were lost.” Sugarland members Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush were minutes from performing at the fair in Indianapolis last Saturday when 60 to 70 mph winds gusts knocked the massive stage onto the audience. Four were killed instantly, another person died later. About four dozen others were hurt.

The duo was joined on stage by their entire crew yesterday as Nettles sang “Love,” from their 2008 “Love on the Inside” album. Then they took a break and promised to return for a professional show that would begin the healing through “the power of music.” Because the band’s elaborate set and instruments were destroyed in the stage collapse, Sugarland performed in front of the basic black shell of the pavilion stage, with just lights and a little smoke. They used new instruments that were delivered to Albuquerque earlier in the day - even the media passes were generic.

“This incredible machine is more than a tour and more than a set,” the group said in a statement on their website. “We have always celebrated music as a healer. While music cannot change the events and losses at the Indiana State Fair, it can hopefully serve as a ritual and a balm to provide comfort and facilitate healing in this time of great sorrow.” Nettles and Bush weren’t injured in Saturday’s accident. —AP

Surrounded by their tour crew, Sugarland duo Jennifer Nettles, middle left, and Kristian Bush, middle right, react after performing their song “Love” in Albuquerque yesterday. — AP

Sugarland duo Jennifer Nettles, left, and Kristian Bush, right, perform their song “Love” in Albuquerque.

Sugarland duo Jennifer Nettles, left, and Kristian Bush, right, react as they come on stage in Albuquerque yesterday.

ven if you don’t believe in ghosts, you’ve probably caught sight once or twice of “something” out of the corner of your eye that didn’t seem to really be there when you looked more closely. So when the characters in Charles Busch’s impishly funny new comedy, “Olive and the Bitter Herbs” become mesmerized when gazing into a rather special mirror, it’s not that unbelievable. Combine that mystical fluff with the type of cranky, fault-finding person everybody’s met (or been related to), stir in a seasoned cast to portray a group of people generously willing to overlook most of that crank’s rudeness, and you’ve got the recipe for another colorful, sweet-and-sour Busch dish, laced with plenty of laughs. The off-Broadway Primary Stages production at 59E59 Theaters, which opened Thursday night, contains such typical Busch touches as soap operatic plot turns, snappy give-and-take, and human foibles with a bit of folklore folded in. Busch, who had a Broadway hit with “The Allergist’s Wife,” here provides a witty diversion, bristling with humor despite some uneven plotting. Director Mark Brokaw wellserves the plot improbabilities with a skilled hand and attention to details. Marcia Jean Kurtz masterfully manages to be simultaneously touching, sardonic, and unpleasant as Manhattan resident Olive, an irritable, seventy-something, fading actress primarily known for commercials.

Olive is quite a bitter herb herself, infusing negativity into everything she says. Even post-stroke, she’s brusquely combative with everyone, while claiming she’s never started a fight in her life. Kurtz gives her dyspeptic character a much-needed touch of vulnerability whenever Olive gazes wistfully into her mirror in search of a mysterious, fleeting man she’s seen in there. The gifted Julie Halston is determinedly cheerful as do-gooder Wendy, who met Olive on the set of a television movie and continues to keep in touch, trying to persuade her to “embrace life” more. Wendy gamely tries to aid Olive by introducing her to some neighbors whose perceived noisemaking and cooking smells she’s been outraged about. Unfortunately, upon reluctantly meeting this middle-aged gay couple, Olive snarls at them, “So now we’re supposed to be all warm and runny like cheddar cheese, your favorite; the smell of which consistently permeates my wall.” Genteel Robert (David Garrison, quietly effective) tries to be kind to his older and obviously unhappy neighbor. —AP

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Box Office Preview

‘The Help’ looks to clean up

D

isney’s acclaimed “The Help” will need no help against a trio of 3-D newcomers, sweeping up around $20 million to top the domestic box office chart on its second weekend out. After debuting in the No 2 spot last weekend, the film about sisterhood in the racially divided 1960s’ South has lead the midweek derby on strong word-of-mouth and should closet a total of $70 million by Sunday night. Fox’s late-summer hit “Rise of The Planet of the Apes” clung to the top rung at the box office for two consecutive weekends but in its third time out, it will battle the debuting “Conan the Barbarian” for second-place in the mid-teens for a total through Sunday of around $130 million. A remake of the 1982 fantasy epic, Lionsgate’s “Conan” updates the tale in 3-D and

puts pumped-up Jason Momoa in the role that made Arnold Schwarzenegger a movie star. The film delivers the R-rated sword-and-sandal intensity to a new generation of action fans, who should reward it with a solid opening.

The weekend’s two other 3-D arrivals are expected to debut in the low-teens, with Weinstein Co.’s PG-rated “Spy Kids: All the Time in the World in 4D” and the R-rated Disney horror remake “Fright Night” tangling for the fourth and fifth spots on the chart. “Spy Kids 4” is the latest installment of the successful franchise and the brainchild of noted R-rated action director Robert Rodriguez. Adding to the novelty factor is a “fourth” dimension called Aroma-Scope, which will enable an interactive scratch-and-sniff experience for the entire family. — AP

In this film publicity image released by Disney, Octavia Spencer, right, and Viola Davis are shown in a scene from “The Help.” — AP

Review

‘Fright Night’ a cheeky comic remake

Y

In this film image released by Disney-DreamWorks Pictures, David Tennant stars as Peter Vincent, a Las Vegas illusionist and self-proclaimed vampire expert, in DreamWorks Pictures’ horror film “Fright Night.”

Toni Collett, Imogen Poots and Anton Yelchin are shown in a scene from the horror film “Fright Night.” —AP photos

es, “Fright Night” is a remake of the 1985 horror comedy. No, there is no originality left in Hollywood. But at least this new version stays true to its origins by having a bit of cheeky fun, and the way it contemporizes the story is really rather clever.

Once again, a vaguely nerdy teenager named Charlie (Anton Yelchin) thinks his mysterious and seductive new nextdoor neighbor, Jerry (Colin Farrell), is a vampire. No one else believes him except for his even nerdier childhood pal, Ed (Christopher Mintz-Plasse). Come on, the guy’s name is Jerry - how dangerous can he be? But the setting makes this premise make sense. Director Craig Gillespie’s film, based on Marti Noxon’s script, takes place in the overly developed suburban sprawl outside Las Vegas, where people come and go and those who do live there often sleep all day and work all night. The barren wasteland of abandoned houses - if they were ever inhabited in the first place - is the perfect place for a bloodsucker to lay low.

And so as the bodies continue to pile up and Charlie continues to investigate, Jerry continues to charm everyone around him. That includes the beautiful Amy (Imogen Poots), the girlfriend Charlie always thought was out of his league. (And that’s another way in which this “Fright Night” has been updated: The actors got conspicuously better looking.) Farrell is clearly thriving doing showy comic parts lately, between this and “Horrible Bosses.” But Gillespie, whose “Lars and the Real Girl” featured a more subtle and surreal kind of comedy, also shows a deft hand at creating tension with Farrell. A scene in which Jerry is standing outside Charlie’s house, teetering at the kitchen door but not entering - because he hasn’t been invited in - offers a masterful little slice of suspense. —AP

First biography of playwright

Wendy Wasserstein “W

endy and the Lost Boys: The Uncommon Life of Wendy Wasserstein” (The Penguin Press), by Julie Salamon: Wherever Wendy Wasserstein went, women came up to her and wanted to talk about her struggles to find a meaningful balance of work, love and family - all the while being thin. In plays like the Pulitzer- and Tonywinning “The Heidi Chronicles” and her autobiographical essays, Wasserstein unerringly tapped into the innermost yearnings of baby boomer women. She created a persona so warm and endearing - the Yiddish word is “haimish” - that strangers thought of her as a sister, daughter or friend. Now, in the first major biography of the playwright since she died of cancer in 2006 at age 55, veteran journalist Julie Salamon presents a thorough and engaging account of a complex, driven woman who was a fiercely loyal friend yet manipulative and selfish; seemed like an open book but hid her deepest sorrows; satirized the nouveau riche but relished the perks of success.

Salamon begins in Brooklyn, where Wasserstein grew up, the youngest of five children of upwardly striving immigrants. Her mother was a key figure, needling the chubby girl incessantly about her weight and other perceived shortcomings, yet shamelessly bragging about her children’s accomplishments and teaching them, by example, to bury the things that caused pain or shame. Wasserstein’s talent was evident from an early age, but she was not a stellar student. Tormented by self-doubt, she struggled to find an identity in her competitive family whose best-known member after Wendy was probably Bruce, the legendary financier who died at 61, just three years after his baby sister. It wasn’t until Wasserstein started taking drama classes at Mount Holyoke College and later, The City College of New York and the Yale School of Drama, that she realized the theater could be an outlet for her burgeoning ambition.She used her own life as material, capitalizing on a pitch-perfect memory for dialogue and a sharp eye for detail. Later, when her plays started being produced, friends would see them and feel as though she had plagiarized their lives. When she died, Wasserstein, who was named by her oldest sister for the Wendy character in “Peter Pan,” was eulogized as one of the pre-eminent observers of well-educated, affluent,

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Post-revolution,

Tunisia

awaits tourists

Tourists walk in Tunisia. Long known for its sea, sand and sun, Tunisia has a new claim to fame, as the birthplace of the Arab Spring.

L

ong known for its sea, sand and sun, Tunisia has a new claim to fame, as the birthplace of the Arab Spring. Popular demonstrations toppled the tiny North African nation’s longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January, inspiring a wave of pro-democracy protests that has swept the Arab world, from Morocco to Bahrain. While the uprising that ended Ben Ali’s 23-yearlong autocratic rule went relatively smoothly in Tunisia especially compared with the bloody and protracted conflicts that have since erupted in Syria, Yemen and neighboring Libya - the hordes of European tourists that long

Tourists take in the sights whilst vacationing in Tunisia. — AP photos

thronged to the country have largely evaporated.

Tunisia’s border with warring Libya remains dangerous, and poor inland towns still see sporadic protests, but Tunis and the resort towns have regained their pre-revolt calm, and the country is on a path toward democracy.

Still, the country’s Mediterranean beaches and millennial ruins are largely deserted, and bargains abound.

Travel operators who offer all-inclusive package deals at seaside resort hotels have slashed their already reasonable rates in a bid to lure visitors. But while those getaways abound in beachside relaxation, they can be isolating and don’t provide much of a taste of the country’s unique local color. For a stiff dose of it, try the capital, Tunis, a sprawling metropolis peppered with vestiges of its ancient past. The Tunis suburb of Carthage was founded by Phoenicians in the 8th century BC and was hometown of Hannibal, the general who crossed the Alps with elephants to launch his celebrated 218BC attack on Rome. Sacked by Romans - who famously sowed the soil with salt - Carthage would become Rome’s first colony in Africa. You can still visit the vestiges of the city’s Roman past, including the remains of villas, the ruins of a 1st century A.D. amphitheater, and the Antonine Baths, a seaside thermal bath complex.

Carthage is also home to another, more recent, historical site, Ben Ali’s sprawling presidential palace. Police guard the compound, which has been empty since the former president and his family fled into exile on Jan. 14.

If Carthage doesn’t sate your appetite for Rome, a trip to Tunis’ stunning Bardo National Museum is in order.

Housed in the former royal palace, the museum boasts of the world’s premier collections of Roman mosaics, with room after room filled with mammoth, often impeccably preserved tiny tile masterpieces. Tunis also has among the biggest and best conserved medinas (the old city or historic center) in the country - indeed, in much of the Arab world. A warren of narrow streets with whitewashed buildings studded with wooden doors painted a rainbow of eye-popping hues, Tunis’ medina dates back to the 8th century and is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The Zitouna Mosque is both its geographic and spiritual heart. Built in the 9th century, it was remodeled and added on to by successive dynasties, each determined to outdo the last. Non-Muslims can visit the complex, with its breathtaking arched courtyard, mornings every day but Friday. Tourbet el Bey is also worth a visit. Buried

Tourists stroll in the Tunis souk market in Tunisia. deep in the medina, it’s an 18th century mausoleum where Tunisia’s monarchs, or Beys, as well as their children, wives and concubines were buried in elaborate marble sarcophagi. Vendors in the medina who shuttered their shops during the revolution are again open for business. Here are some of the best shops in the sprawling, 667-acre (270-hectare) medina, where you can procure everything from cheap Chinese-made flip-flops to hand-cast gold jewels, as exquisite as their price tags are exorbitant: Ed-Dar: Equal parts shopping extravaganza and cultural outing, a visit to this chock-a-block store is a must. Every surface in the 15th century Arab houseturned-emporium is hung with antique rugs, stacked with hand-glazed ceramics and shines with intricate silver jewelry.

Three brothers, Ali, Youssef and Taoufik Chammakhi, founded the store in their childhood home in 1980 after their collection of handicrafts culled from the breadth and width of the country burgeoned out of control. Most of the pieces here are one-of-a-kind heirlooms that were bought directly from families that had kept them - sometimes for centuries. Prices range from a few dozen dinars for a tile, hand-painted by Ali Chammakhi himself, to tens of thousands of dollars for a collection of gem-covered military decorations with pieces dating back to the 1750s. Don’t miss the rooftop terrace, a lush oasis of potted plants with a knockout view over the medina.

Youssef Gassem: Just downstairs from Ed-Dar, affable rug-seller Youssef Gassem hawks his wares in a tiny shop piled high with Berber and Persian carpets, kilims and rugged tent rugs made from camel hair. There’s something for every budget, from small synthetic models that run for fewer than $100 US to mammoth, century-old kilims in vegetable-dyed wool that fetch upward of several thousand. —AP

TECHNOLOGY

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Google Maps takes armchair explorers into the Amazon New project will allow online exploration of largest river TUMBIRA: Two women washed clothes in the dark water of the Rio Negro as a boat glided past with a camera-laden Google tricycle strapped to the roof, destined to give the world a window into the Amazon rain forest.

A “trike” typically used to capture street scenes for Google’s free online mapping service launched Thursday from the village of Tumbira in a first-ever project to let Internet users virtually explore the world’s largest river, its wildlife and its communities. The project was the brainchild of Amazonas Sustainable Foundation (FAS) which two years ago went to Google Earth with an ambitious vision of turning “Street View” into a river view in the lush and precious Amazon Basin. “It is incredible; all those months of planning and then having this technology here,” FAS project leader Gabriel Ribenboim told AFP as trikes went into action, one atop a boat and another pedaled on land.

“It is very important to show the world not only the environment and the way of life of the traditional population, but to sensitize the world to the challenges of climate change, deforestation and combating poverty.” Trikes have cameras that continuously snap images in every direction. The pictures are woven into Google Maps and Earth services so people can virtually peer about as if they were there. Satellite positioning equipment on trikes pinpoints where images are gathered.

“When I saw this I thought of the first probe they sent to Mars,” Jose Castro Caldas said as he took refuge in the shade next to a Street View trike in Tumbira. “There must be masterminds at Google working on this,” he continued. “But it is funny to see how rustic it is, tooit is a bike with spoke tires.” The 30-year-old architect from Buenos Aires was in Tumbira helping construct an arts-and-crafts building to hawk local wares to tourists intrigued enough by what they see on Google Maps to visit in person.

TUMBIRA: Google team members sail a boat with a 360-degree camera system mounted on its top to record the “Street View for the Amazon” on the Negro River. — AFP “When I try to explain to people where I am, my friends think I must be in the middle of the jungle hunting to survive,” Caldas said.

“Even I didn’t know where I was coming to before I got here,” he continued. “Now, people are going to see this.” One trike travels by river, documenting the journey, while a second is ridden, or pushed if necessary, through riverside communities.Members of a Google team on Wednesday began teaching FAS members and local residents how to use the trikes and a special tripod-mounted camera tailored for capturing insides of schools, community centers, and other public spaces.

The camera, with a fish-eye lens to take panoramic sky-to-ground images, will also be used to recreate walks along rain-forest trails.

“We want the world to see that the

Amazon is not a place only with plants and animals,” said FAS chief executive Virgilio Viana. “It is also a place with people, and people who are not completely at odds with the current thinking of global sustainability.” FAS hopes that the Google project will not only entice people to experience the wonder of the Amazon in real life, but show that people can thrive in harmony with the rain forest.

“People have learned how to live here for centuries,” Viana said. “In a way, this partnership with Google is a window that opens for us to show that there is a solution,” Viana added as he gazed out at the Rio Negro.

“Deforestation is not the result of stupidity,” he went on. “It is an economic decision; so we have to make people earn money with the forest standing.”

‘Nobody knows we are here’ Eco-tourism along with forest and fishery management are being pursued as ways to support local communities without destroying rain forest, according to Viana. Tumbira resident Maria do Socorro da Silva Mendonca told of how men here provided for families by illegally logging trees until FAS arrived and the area was declared a sustainable reserve. FAS was established in 2007 with backing from the Brazilian state of Amazonas. “The families had financial problems in the beginning, but now they are more balanced with the reserve,” Socorro said as chickens pecked at the ground nearby. “With time, they noticed that education was the way out,” she continued. “Things have been changing because the men had to find jobs... like my husband; he is a carpenter.”

FAS built a two-classroom school in Tumbira where teachers in the Amazonas capital of Manaus teach lessons streamed interactively to students over the Internet in what was referred to as “distance learning.” Socorro smiled as she confided that she had never heard of Google. “I don’t know anything about the Internet,” the 40-year-old mother laughed.

She was excited by the prospect of people around the globe virtually visiting her village.

“I think it is wonderful because our community was never published anywhere, not even Manaus,” Socorro said.

“Nobody knows we are here.”The first phase of the project is expected to take three weeks. The goal is to capture a 50-kilometer (30-mile) stretch of the Rio Negro, and along the way train the local team that will keep the imaging gear to broaden the mission. “We want to create a digital mirror of the world, and this is an important place on the planet,” Google Earth Outreach geo-strategist Karin Tuxen-Bettman said aboard a boat as the trike made its maiden run. “Eventually, maybe we will have the whole basin mapped,” she said hopefully. “Who knows?” — AFP

China web giant Baidu sorry after media lashing SHANGHAI: China’s top online search engine Baidu has apologised on state television following a barrage of criticism by official media over allegedly fraudulent advertisements. The staterun China Central Television (CCTV) earlier this week claimed users of the Nasdaq-listed Baidu were losing money on phoney airline tickets allegedly sold by advertisers on the search engine, among other charges. CCTV’s business channel also aired footage of an undercover journalist receiving coaching from a man who appeared to be a Baidu staff member, on how to get approval for pharmaceutical ads using a fake business licence. In a live broadcast late Thursday, Wang Zhan, vice president of sales for Baidu-which accounts for more than three-quarters of China’s Internet search market-apologised “to users affected by the fraudu-

lent information”.

“We are reviewing our sales and approval process to try to plug loopholes as soon as possible,” he added in comments reported by newspapers yesterday. A spokesman for the search engine declined to comment yesterday. This is the second time that Baidu has come in for strong media criticism, after state television blasted its advertising practices in 2008, forcing it to revamp part of its business. At the time, CCTV criticised Baidu for allowing advertisers to pay for space alongside top search results, without labelling it as an ad. Analysts said the latest round of criticism could have hidden motives, such as government worries over the company’s near-monopoly on Internet search in China, or attempts by competitors to erode its market share.

Besides Baidu, CCTV has also previ-

ously targeted “weibo”-Twitter-like microblogs-for spreading rumours after a deadly train accident last month, according to Jeremy Goldkorn, founder of a Beijing-based web research firm. It has also attacked global Internet giant Google-which partially moved out of the Chinese market last year amid a public spat with Beijing over censorship-for illegally spreading pornographic content. “There certainly is a strategic aim behind it and sometimes a political aim,” said Goldkorn. “The context is CCTV and all the central government news and propaganda services are threatened by newer Internet services, particularly ones that are not run by the state,” he said.During the television broadcast, Wang pledged Baidu would make more efforts to filter illegal information.

When asked if the company would

change its business model, he replied the Internet environment was “indeed complex” and Baidu would use technology and staff to eliminate fraudulent information. Baidu shares dropped 6.7 percent on the Nasdaq Thursday, bringing total losses so far this week to more than 14 percent in a jittery market environment overall. The firm’s major rival remains Google. However, Baidu also has a number of Chinese competitors, including new search engines backed by state media giants like Communist Party mouthpiece the People’s Daily and the Xinhua news agency. Li Zhi, analyst at Internet research firm Analysys International, said that despite the drop in share price, the criticism would have little impact on Baidu’s revenue since its advertisers had few other options to turn to. —AFP

TECHNOLOGY

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Review

New BlackBerrys improved, but lackluster

The new Blackberry Torch 9850/9860.

SAN FRANCISCO: Well before the iPhone, BlackBerry gained its “CrackBerry” nickname for its seemingly vital place in users’ lives. Lately, however, the surging popularity of Apple’s gadget and smartphones running Google’s Android software has made the BlackBerry seem less habit-forming. In response, Research In Motion Ltd is trying to spice up its product line by releasing several BlackBerrys with touch screens and new software for better performance. In a first for the BlackBerry, a few can run on super-fast “4G” cellular networks, which wireless providers are rolling out. The phones will be available from the major providers over the next several weeks at a wide range of prices - $50 to $300, with two-year service contracts.

I checked out three: A new version of the high-end Bold, now sporting a touch screen, and two new Torch models, one keeping the slide-out keyboard from before, and the other ditching the physical keyboard.

There are some good features here that will appeal to BlackBerry fans. But chances are many are waiting for devices that run the more advanced QNX software used in RIM’s PlayBook tablet computer, which could be coming fairly soon.

Newcomers, meanwhile, are likely to find the new smartphones too boring-looking on the low end and expensive on the high end. The phones adhere largely to the familiar BlackBerry aesthetic, but with a few twists. They all have the latest version of RIM’s operating software, BlackBerry 7. Although it appears quite similar to previous versions, BlackBerry 7 promises a zippier Web browser, voice search and better rendering of graphics.

The most noticeable change was the improved Web-surfing speed. I connected an old BlackBerry Torch with BlackBerry 6 and the new Torch 9810 with version 7 to the same Wi-Fi network. Generally, the new Torch rendered photos and text more quickly. I did notice, though, that at least with The New York Times’ website, the older Torch would load entire articles on a single page while the newer phone only gave me the first chunk and forced me to click for the rest. The browser supports HTML5 support for viewing rich multimedia content (like the iPhone, these BlackBerrys don’t support Flash videos). Also new is voice-activated universal search, which sounds good in theory but was pretty disappointing in practice.

The first step made sense: I tapped an on-screen button to get the voice software to start “listening.”

But when I was done I had to press another button to tell it I was finished. After a delay to process my request, the phone gave me some options, such as dialing a friend’s number, searching for a profile on Facebook or doing a more general search on Microsoft’s Bing. I’d have to tap some more to check the options out. All this screen-touching defeated the purpose of voice search, which should be a largely hands-free endeavor. The feature looks even more dismal when compared with Google’s voice search, which can reliably determine when you’re done speaking and understands commands for tasks

such as calling a friend. It’s better than the BlackBerry at figuring out what I’m trying to do, without needing tons of taps to confirm.

Another problem is the lack of apps. The BlackBerry App World includes more than 40,000 apps - a smidgen of the more than 250,000 apps available in Google’s Android Market and 425,000 apps available from Apple’s App Store. And many of those 40,000 have yet to be updated for BlackBerry 7 phones. I couldn’t get one for the review site Yelp when I checked the other day. The phones all include standard BlackBerry features such as its secure handling of work email and an updated version of the BlackBerry Messenger program. Despite speedy processors and new graphics technology, they sometimes lagged behind when I opened applications. Each new BlackBerry is equipped with a 5-megapixel camera with a bright flash and plenty of built-in settings for taking different kinds of shots.

The cameras can take high-definition videos, too.

The photos I took were reasonably good and the camera performed pretty well in low light, but colors often didn’t seem as vibrant as they could be.

In terms of the specific models I tested: BlackBerry

The new BlackBerry Torch 9810. — AP photos

The new Blackberry Torch 9810 RIM. Bold 9900/9930 Despite having by far the smallest screen of the bunch (2.8 inches diagonally), the new Bold merges form and function well. The handset is RIM’s skinniest thus far, and it looks like a betterquality handset than the other new releases. I also found its keyboard easiest to use among the three I tested. The Bold is RIM’s first to include an NFC, or near-field communication, chip, which could eventually allow the phone to work as a sort of wireless payment system. Too bad the phone is so expensive.

Sprint will start selling the Bold 9930 on Sunday for

$250, while Verizon is hawking it online now for the same price. The Bold 9900, which can work on TMobile’s high-speed 4G network, will be available Aug. 31 for an even steeper $300 (after a $50 mail-in rebate). You’ll need a two-year contract to get any of these prices.

BlackBerry Torch 9850 RIM, a master of the physical keyboard, hasn’t had much luck with phones that only include a touch screen. Its early attempts with the BlackBerry Storm were dismal. Although the keyboard-free Torch 9850 looks sleeker, I had a hard time typing, as I kept hitting the wrong letters and numbers. The phone also seemed to lag behind, spitting out letters well after I’d typed them and not noticing that I was stabbing feverishly at the browser’s address bar in an attempt to visit another webpage. The Torch 9850 will be available Sunday from Sprint for $150 with a two-year contract.

BlackBerry Torch 9810: This phone is definitely the least attractive of the group, but it gets points for its ability to access AT&T’s high-speed 4G data network, which makes it quick to download documents or upload photos to Facebook. The Torch 9810 weighs in at a hefty 5.7 ounces, and its design, which is essentially identical to a previous Torch, looks tired compared with many other smartphones.

Its slide-out keyboard is more cramped than that on the Bold, yet it is still quite good for typing.What the handset lacks in pizazz it makes up for in price: When AT&T starts selling it tomorrow, it will cost just $50 with a two-year contract. All of the latest BlackBerrys add several good features, but RIM is still far behind the competition in ease of use and availability of apps. There will surely be demand from business users whose employers demand BlackBerrys because of their reputation for security. Still, it’s hard to imagine them wooing many consumers unless they’re already die-hard CrackBerry addicts. — AP

TV listings

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

00:45 Cats 101 01:40 Untamed And Uncut 02:35 Last Chance Highway 03:30 Whale Wars 04:25 Maneaters 05:20 Animal Cops Houston 06:10 Must Love Cats 07:00 Lemur Street 07:25 Michaela’s Animal Road Trip 08:15 The Really Wild Show 08:40 Natural Born Hunters 09:10 New Breed Vets With Steve Irwin 10:05 Bad Dog 11:00 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 11:55 Crocodile Hunter 12:50 Cats Of Claw Hill 13:45 Animal Cops Houston 14:40 Growing Up...: Orang-Utan 15:35 Growing Up...: Polar Bear Orphan 16:30 Growing Up... Wolves 17:25 The Great Polar Bear Adventure 18:20 League Of Monkeys 19:15 South Georgia: Life Under The Furious 50 20:10 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 21:05 Killer Crocs 22:00 Natural World 22:55 I’m Alive 23:50 Mutant Planet

00:00 2 Pints Of Lager And A Packet Of Crisps 00:30 The Weakest Link 01:20 Paradox 02:10 Robin Hood 02:55 Gavin & Stacey 03:25 Doctors 03:55 My Family 04:30 Tweenies 04:50 The Roly Mo Show 05:05 Me Too 05:25 Forget Me Not Farm 05:40 Spot’s Musical Adventures 05:50 Tweenies 06:10 The Roly Mo Show 06:25 Me Too 06:45 Forget Me Not Farm 07:00 Tweenies 07:20 The Roly Mo Show 07:35 Me Too 07:55 Forget Me Not Farm 08:10 Spot’s Musical Adventures 08:20 Tweenies 08:40 The Roly Mo Show 08:55 Me Too 09:15 Forget Me Not Farm 09:30 Spot’s Musical Adventures 09:45 My Family 10:45 Royally Mad 11:35 Robin Hood 12:20 Eastenders 14:20 After You’ve Gone 14:55 The Weakest Link 15:40 Royally Mad 16:30 Robin Hood 17:15 The Weakest Link 18:00 After You’ve Gone 18:30 Holby City 20:10 Robin Hood 20:55 As Time Goes By 21:25 Allo Allo 22:00 Gavin & Stacey 22:30 Rob Brydon’s Annually Retentive 23:00 Mutual Friends 23:55 Robin Hood

00:40 01:35 02:30 03:25 03:55 04:20 05:15 05:40 06:05 07:00 07:50 08:15 08:45 09:40 10:30 11:25 12:20 14:35 Junior

Dirty Jobs Miami Ink Ultimate Survival Wheeler Dealers On The Road Fifth Gear Mythbusters How Do They Do It? How Does It Work Dirty Jobs Street Customs 2008 Wheeler Dealers On The Road Fifth Gear Powering The Future Science Of The Movies Weird Or What?

Mythbusters Auction Hunters American Chopper: Senior vs

00:40 X Games 15 2009 01:30 World Combat League 02:20 Carpocalypse 03:10 M1 Selection 2010 04:00 Summer Dew Tour 2010 05:40 World Combat League 06:30 Ride Guide Mountainbike 2007 08:00 X-Traordinary 09:40 Tread BMX 11:20 Lucas Oil Motocross Championships 2009 12:10 Lucas Oil Motocross Championships 2009 13:00 Fight Girls 13:50 Mantracker 14:40 The Millionaire’s Club 15:30 Ride Guide Mountainbike 2009 16:20 Lucas Oil Motocross Championships 2009 17:10 Carpocalypse 18:00 Mantracker 18:50 Lucas Oil Motocross Championships 2009 19:40 Lucas Oil Motocross Championships 2009 20:30 Fight Girls 21:20 Carpocalypse 22:10 Mantracker 23:00 FIM World Motocross MX3

PANIC ROOM ON OSN ACTION HD 15:30 16:25 17:20 18:15 19:10 20:05 21:00 21:55 22:50 23:45

00:05 00:55 01:45 02:10 02:35 03:25 04:15 04:45 05:40 06:10 07:00 07:30 07:55 07:58 08:25 08:55 09:45 10:35 11:25 14:45 14:48 15:15 15:45 16:10 16:35 17:00 17:50 18:40 19:30

Wheeler Dealers Powering The Future Mythbusters Man vs Fish With Matt Watson Man, Woman, Wild Ultimate Survival Taking On Tyson Flying Wild Alaska River Monsters Air Jaws

Smash Lab Extreme Engineering The Tech Show The Tech Show Powering The Future Scrapheap Challenge How Does That Work?

Extreme Engineering One Step Beyond The Future Of...

The X-Testers The X-Testers Head Rush Sci-Fi Science Weird Connections Brainiac Prototype This Future Weapons Future Weapons Head Rush Sci-Fi Science Weird Connections Bang Goes The Theory The Gadget Show The Gadget Show Prototype This Brainiac Smash Lab Punkin Chunkin 2010

20:20 20:45 21:10 21:35 22:00 22:50 23:40

The Gadget Show The Gadget Show Sci-Fi Science The Tech Show Smash Lab Catch It Keep It Bang Goes The Theory

00:15 00:35 01:00 01:25 Cody 01:50 02:15 02:35 03:00 03:25 04:15 05:00 05:50 06:35 07:25 08:15 09:00 09:25 09:45 10:10 Splits 10:30 11:00 11:50 12:15 12:40 13:05 13:30 14:15 15:00 15:25 15:50

Sonny With A Chance Good Luck Charlie Shake It Up The Suite Life Of Zack And Sonny With A Chance Wizards Of Waverly Place Jonas Kim Possible Fairly Odd Parents Stitch Replacements Emperor’s New School Stitch Replacements Fairly Odd Parents Jungle Junction Handy Manny Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jake & The Neverland Pirates Fish Hooks Suite Life On Deck Good Luck Charlie Shake It Up Fish Hooks Wizards Of Waverly Place Sonny With A Chance Fish Hooks Shake It Up Good Luck Charlie Suite Life On Deck

16:15 16:40 17:00 17:50 18:15 18:35 19:20 20:10 20:30 21:00 21:20 21:45 22:10 23:55

Suite Life On Deck Sonny With A Chance Wizards Of Waverly Place Shake It Up Fish Hooks Good Luck Charlie Shake It Up Wizards Of Waverly Place Good Luck Charlie Fish Hooks Suite Life On Deck Shake It Up Lemonade Mouth Wizards Of Waverly Place

00:25 Kendra 00:55 Behind The Scenes 01:25 E!es 02:20 E!es 03:15 25 Most Stylish 04:10 Sexiest 05:05 Extreme Hollywood 06:00 THS 07:50 Behind The Scenes 08:20 E! News 09:15 Kourtney And Kim Take New York 10:15 Khloe And Lamar 10:40 Khloe And Lamar 11:10 The Dance Scene 11:35 THS 17:25 E!es 17:55 E! News 18:55 THS 19:55 E!es 20:55 The Soup 21:25 15 Unforgettable Hollywood Tragedies 23:25 Chelsea Lately 23:55 The Soup

00:05 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 00:30 Good Eats - Special 00:55 Lidia’s Italy 01:20 Lidia’s Italy 01:45 Chopped 02:35 Good Eats - Special 03:00 Good Eats - Special 03:25 Food Network Challenge 04:15 Good Eats - Special 04:40 Unwrapped 05:05 Ten Dollar Dinners 05:30 Paula’s Best Dishes 05:50 Paula’s Party 06:35 Barefoot Contessa 07:00 Chopped 07:50 Guy’s Big Bite 08:15 Everyday Italian 08:40 Good Deal With Dave Lieberman 09:05 Ten Dollar Dinners 09:30 Paula’s Best Dishes 09:55 Barefoot Contessa 10:20 Good Eats - Special 10:45 Boy Meets Grill 11:10 Unwrapped 11:35 Paula’s Party 12:25 Everyday Italian 12:50 Paula’s Best Dishes 13:15 Good Deal With Dave Lieberman 13:40 World Cafe Asia 14:05 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 14:30 Good Eats - Special 14:55 Unwrapped 15:20 Boy Meets Grill 15:45 Chopped 16:35 Guy’s Big Bite 17:00 Barefoot Contessa 17:25 Paula’s Best Dishes 17:50 Everyday Italian 18:15 World Cafe Asia 18:40 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 19:05 Good Eats - Special 19:30 Food Network Challenge 20:20 Bobby Chinn Cooks Asia 21:10 Food Network Challenge 22:00 Chopped 22:50 Ultimate Recipe Showdown

00:00 Shark Men 01:00 World’s Deadliest 01:55 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 02:50 Python Hunters 03:45 Predator CSI 04:40 Sex, Drugs And Plants 05:35 Bug Attack 06:30 Sea Strikers 07:25 World’s Weirdest 08:20 World’s Worst Venom 09:15 Wild Russia 10:10 Africa’s Lost Eden 11:05 World’s Deadliest 12:00 Fish Warrior 13:00 Hooked 14:00 Ultimate Vipers 15:00 Deep Jungle

16:00 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 17:00 Python Hunters 18:00 Predator CSI 19:00 Ultimate Vipers 20:00 Deep Jungle 21:00 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 22:00 Python Hunters 23:00 Predator CSI

00:00 Shark Men 01:00 World’s Deadliest 01:55 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 02:50 Python Hunters 03:45 Predator CSI 04:40 Sex, Drugs And Plants 05:35 Bug Attack 06:30 Sea Strikers 07:25 World’s Weirdest 08:20 World’s Worst Venom 09:15 Wild Russia 10:10 Africa’s Lost Eden 11:05 World’s Deadliest 12:00 Fish Warrior 13:00 Hooked 14:00 Ultimate Vipers 15:00 Deep Jungle 16:00 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 17:00 Python Hunters 18:00 Predator CSI 19:00 Ultimate Vipers 20:00 Deep Jungle 21:00 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 22:00 Python Hunters 23:00 Predator CSI

00:00 Departures 01:00 Earth Tripping 02:00 The Ride: Alaska to Patagonia 02:30 Graham’s World 03:00 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 04:00 The Frankincense Trail 05:00 Somewhere In China 06:00 Departures 07:00 Earth Tripping 08:00 The Ride: Alaska to Patagonia 08:30 Graham’s World 09:00 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 10:00 The Frankincense Trail 11:00 Somewhere In China 12:00 Departures 13:00Food Lover’s Guide to The Planet 13:30 Pressure Cook 14:00 A World Apart 15:00 Ultimate Traveller 16:00 Don’t Tell My Mother 17:00 Endurance Traveller 18:00 By Any Means 19:00Food Lover’s Guide to The Planet 19:30 Pressure Cook 20:00 A World Apart 21:00 Ultimate Traveller 22:00 Don’t Tell My Mother 22:30 Don’t Tell My Mother 23:00 Endurance Traveller

00:00 02:00 04:00 06:00 08:00 10:00 12:00 14:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00

Burningmoore Incident-PG15 The Bannen Way-PG15 Tears Of The Sun-18 Shanghai Knights-PG15 Timeline-PG15 Panic Room-PG15 Signs-PG15 Timeline-PG15 Jesse Stone: No Remorse-PG15 Signs-PG15 Deadline-PG15 Assassination Tango-PG15

01:00 03:00 05:00 07:15 FAM 09:00 11:00 13:00 15:00

Meet Bill-PG15 The Eclipse-PG15 Secretariat-PG15 Ponyo On The Cliff By The SeaThe Last Airbender-PG15 Stone Of Destiny-PG15 Leap Year-PG15 Charlie & Boots-PG15

TV listings

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011 17:00 The Sorcerer’s ApprenticePG15 19:00 The Losers-PG15 21:00 An Education-PG15

00:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 01:00 The Colbert Report 01:30 The New Adventures Of Old Christine 02:00 Family Guy 02:30 Rita Rocks 03:00 Mad Love 03:30 The Office 04:00 Two And A Half Men 04:30The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 05:30 Will And Grace 06:00 Coach 06:30 The Drew Carey Show 07:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 08:00 Two And A Half Men 08:30 The New Adventures Of Old Christine 09:00 Will And Grace 09:30 Modern Family 10:00 Mad Love 10:30 Coach 11:00 The Drew Carey Show 11:30The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 12:30 Two And A Half Men 13:00 The Office 13:30 Will And Grace 14:00 Coach 14:30 Modern Family 15:00 Mad Love 15:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 16:00 The Colbert Report 16:30 The Drew Carey Show 17:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 18:00 Melissa And Joey 18:30 The New Adventures Of Old Christine 19:00 Rita Rocks 19:30 How I Met Your Mother 20:00The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 Saturday Night Live 23:00 The New Adventures Of Old Christine

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00

21:00 It’s Complicated-PG15 23:00 The Wolfman-18 01:00 03:00 05:15 07:00 09:00 11:00 13:30 15:15 17:15 19:30 21:30 23:30

Dead Presidents-18 Se7en-18 Burningmoore Incident-PG15 Kiss The Girls-18 Ransom-PG15 Independence Day-PG15 What Lies Beneath-PG15 Ransom-PG15 Star Trek-PG Case 39-18 Assassination Tango-PG15 The Alphabet Killer-PG15

00:00 Blue Streak-PG15 02:00 Return To Sleepaway CampPG15 04:00 Head Of State-PG15 06:00 Houseguest-PG15 08:00 Dirty Work-PG15 10:00 Hope Springs-PG15 12:00 Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel-FAM 14:00 Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement-FAM 16:00 Blue Streak-PG15 18:00 The Making Of Plus One-PG15 20:00 Land Of The Lost-PG15

01:00 03:00 05:00 07:00 09:00 11:00 13:00 15:00 17:00 19:00

Knight And Day-PG15 Astro Boy-FAM From Justin To Kelly-PG The Box-PG15 Flicka 2-PG15 Phoebe In Wonderland-PG Love Happens-PG15 Cats & Dogs-PG Flicka 2-PG15 Crazy Heart-PG15

01:00 Arthur And The Revenge Of Maltazard-PG 03:00 Pollyworld-FAM 05:00 Toy Story 3-FAM 07:00 Homeward Bound II: Lost In San Francisco-FAM 09:00 Arthur And The Revenge Of Maltazard-PG 11:00 Astro Boy-FAM 13:00 Babe-FAM 15:00 Shorts-PG 17:00 Astro Boy-FAM 19:00 The Big Green-PG 21:00 Babe-FAM

00:00 07:00 10:00 10:30 12:30 13:00 20:00 20:30 21:00 21:30

Test Cricket Live AFL Premiership Rugby World Cup Classics Super League ICC Cricket World Live Test Cricket ICC Cricket World European Tour Weekly Rugby World Cup Classics Live Super League

00:30 NRL Premiership 02:30 European Tour Weekly 03:00 Total Rugby 03:30 Live ITM Cup Rugby Union 05:30 The Open Championship Official Film 06:30 Rugby World Cup Classics 07:00 Super League 09:00 Currie Cup 11:00 ITM Cup Rugby Union

13:00 13:30 14:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00

Rugby World Cup Classics Total Rugby Live International Rugby Union NRL Premiership Live Tri Nations Live Currie Cup Rugby Union European PGA Tour

01:00 WWE Bottomline 03:00 WWE Vintage Collection 04:00 WWE NXT 05:00 UFC The Ultimate Fighter 06:00 UFC Unleashed 07:00 WWE Bottomline 08:00 Live V8 Supercars Championship 10:00 NRL Full Time 10:30 Live NRL Premiership 14:30 Scottish Premier League 16:30 Live International Rugby Union 18:30 Total Rugby 19:00 Live International Rugby Union 21:00 V8 Supercars Championship

00:00 01:00 01:30 01:55 02:25 03:20 04:15 05:10 05:35 06:05 07:00 08:00 09:00 12:50 13:45

Jerseylicious Fashion Avenue Fashion Avenue Big Boutique How Do I Look?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Homes With Style Area Clean House Big Boutique Clean House Giuliana & Bill Clean House Clean House

Off The Map Inside The Actor’s Studio Burn Notice Drop Dead Diva Strong Medicine Good Morning America Psych One Tree Hill Burn Notice What’s Good For You The View Off The Map Drop Dead Diva What’s Good For You Live Good Morning America Strong Medicine The Ellen DeGeneres Show Emmerdale Coronation Street C.S.I. C.S.I. New York Justified Desperate Housewives Psych

The Cape Burn Notice Drop Dead Diva Inside The Actor’s Studio Off The Map The Gates The Cape Hot In Cleveland Look-A-Like Persons Unknown Burn Notice Off The Map Drop Dead Diva Hot In Cleveland Look-A-Like The Ellen DeGeneres Show Persons Unknown The Cape 8 Simple Rules ...

Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Persons Unknown C.S.I. C.S.I. New York Justified

THE ALPHABET KILLER ON OSN MOVIES ACTION

18:25 19:25 20:20 21:15 21:40 22:10 23:05 23:30

Clean House Clean House The Dish Presents Fashion Police Clean House Comes Clean Jerseylicious Top 10 Top 10

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00

Life After People Ice Road Truckers How The Earth Was Made Egypt: Land Of The Gods Ancient Wonders Battles B.C. Life After People Ice Road Truckers How The Earth Was Made Egypt: Land Of The Gods Ancient Wonders Battles B.C. Life After People Ice Road Truckers How The Earth Was Made Egypt: Land Of The Gods Ancient Wonders Battles B.C. Life After People Ice Road Truckers How The Earth Was Made The Day John Lennon Died The Kennedy Assassination

01:55 Gaby-PG 03:30 The Naked Spur-PG 05:00 Above Suspicion-PG 06:30 TCM Presents Under The Influence-PG 07:00 The Letter-FAM 08:35 Ziegfeld Follies-FAM 10:20 Young Bess-FAM 12:10 Grand Prix-PG 15:00 On The Town-FAM 16:35 Edward, My Son-PG 18:25 Billy Rose’s Jumbo-FAM 20:25 I am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang-PG 22:00 Ice Station Zebra-FAM

00:00 00:30 00:40 01:00 01:30 02:00 02:30 03:00 03:10 03:30 04:00 04:30 05:00 05:10 06:00 06:30 07:00 08:30 09:00 09:30 10:00 10:10 10:30 11:00 11:10 11:30 12:00 12:10 12:30 13:00 13:10 13:30 14:00 14:30 15:00 15:10 15:30 16:00 16:15 16:30 17:00 17:30 18:00 18:10 19:00 19:30 20:00

BBC World News Sport Today Weekend World BBC World News America Our World BBC World News Peschardt’s Business People BBC World News Weekend World Life On The Edge BBC World News My Country BBC World News Feasts BBC World News Fast Track BBC World News Middle East Business Report BBC World News Click BBC World News Weekend World Life On The Edge BBC World News World Features My Country BBC World News World Features Gorbachev BBC World News The Health Show Newsnight BBC World News Our World BBC World News Weekend World Equestrian World BBC World News Sport Today Fast Track BBC World News Dateline London BBC World News Feasts BBC World News Final Score BBC World News

06:00 Kid Vs Kat 06:20 Kick Buttowski 06:45 Pokemon Dp: Sinnoh League Victors 07:10 Iron Man: Armoured Adventures 07:35 Phineas & Ferb 08:25 Suite Life On Deck S3 08:50 Pair Of Kings 09:15 Kick Buttowski 09:40 Rekkit Rabbit 10:00 Phineas And Ferb 11:45 Avalon High 13:15 Kid Vs Kat 13:25 Pokemon Dp: Sinnoh League Victors 14:10 The Super Hero Squad Show 14:35 Kick Buttowski 15:00 Pair Of Kings 15:25 Phineas & Ferb 15:50 I’m In The Band 16:15 Rekkit Rabbit 16:40 Zeke & Luther 17:05 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 17:30 Pokemon Dp: Sinnoh League Victors 17:55 Suite Life On Deck S3 18:45 Phineas & Ferb 19:10 The Avengers: Earths Mightiest Heroes 20:00 New Spiderman 20:25 Zeke & Luther 20:50 I’m In The Band 21:15 Aaron Stone 21:40 American Dragon 22:00 Kick Buttowski 22:20 I’m In The Band

00:30 01:20 02:10 03:00 03:50 04:45 05:15 06:10 07:00 07:50 08:40 09:30 09:55 10:20 11:10 12:00 12:50 13:40 14:30 14:55 15:20 16:10 17:00 17:50 18:40 19:30 19:55 20:20 21:10 22:00 22:50 23:40

Ghost Lab Psychic Witness Nightmare Next Door Disappeared Dr G: Medical Examiner Ghosthunters Ghost Lab Mystery Diagnosis Forensic Detectives Murder Shift Mystery Diagnosis Real Emergency Calls Street Patrol Disappeared FBI Files On The Case With Paula Zahn CSU Mystery Diagnosis Real Emergency Calls Street Patrol Disappeared Forensic Detectives Murder Shift FBI Files Mystery Diagnosis Street Patrol Real Emergency Calls On The Case With Paula Zahn CSU Ghost Lab The Haunted A Haunting

00:00 Trabant Trek 00:30 Word Travels 01:00 Globe Trekker 02:00 Great Scenic Railways-New Zealand 03:30 Surfari 04:00 Short History Of Convict Australia 05:00 Trabant Trek 05:30 Word Travels 06:00 First Class Italy 07:00 Globe Trekker 08:00 Flavours Of Chile 10:00 Flavours Of Peru 11:00 Planet Food 12:00 Globe Trekker 13:00 Globe Trekker 14:00 World’s Greatest Motorcycle Rides 15:00 Rivers Of The World 16:00 Globe Trekker 17:00 Travel Today 17:30 Journey Into Wine...

18:00 Inside Luxury Travel-Varun Sharma 19:00 Short History Of Convict Australia 20:00 Going South

WHAT’S ON

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Embassy Information EMBASSY OF FRANCE On the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr, the French Embassy in Kuwait will be closed on the first and the second day of the Eid. EMBASSY OF ARGENTINA In order to inform that 23rd of October 2011, will be Argentine national election where all Argentinean citizen residents permanently in Kuwait can vote only if they are registered at the Electoral Register of the Argentine Embassy. The procedure of inscription ended on 25 of April 2011. To register it is necessary that Argentinean citizens should come personally at the Argentinean Embassy (Block 6, street 42, villa 57, Mishref) and present the DNI and four personal photos (size 4x4, face should be front on white background). For further information, contact us on 25379211.

Oula Fuel Marketing Co celebrates girgian

T

he recently announced Ramadan campaign by Oula Fuel Marketing Co for the sake of children with cancer took place on Sunday resulting in great success and enjoyment by the children and their families. The girgian event was planned in collaboration with the Women’s Cultural and Social Society for the Amal Club Children to create for them a fun filled event with many surprises and gifts.

Oula’s campaign sponsored 60 children of different ages, backgrounds and nationalities. During the event children were entertained by competitions, Disney characters, face painting, clowns and a lot more. In addition, each child received the gift they had wished for in as well as the traditional Girgean bags.

The campaign was launched internally at Oula two weeks prior to Ramadan to raise funds by the employees and have them participate in a charitable and great cause during the holy month. Oula promised

employees that the donations would be doubled by the company; and it fulfilled its promise. Children were asked beforehand about the gift they wished to receive on Girgean Day and Oula in return made their wishes come true on Sunday.

On behalf of Oula Fuel Marketing, Managing Director Hamzah Bakhash commented: “As the second girgian event hosted by Oula for children with cancer, we are proud to announce the

success of this year’s event as it found great feedback from parents and the children and we are looking forward to more events and activities for the children.”

Bakhash also added: “I would like to thank all of Oula’s employees who donated to create a smile on a child’s face and to those who attended the girgian event on Sunday, their enthusiasm and compassion for the campaign were greatly appreciated.”

EMBASSY OF BRITAIN The Visa Application Centre (VAC) will be closed on the same dates above. The opening hours of the Visa Application Centre are 0930 - 1630 Application forms remain available online from the UKBAs’ website: www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk or from the Visa Application Centre’s website: www.vfs-ukkw.com. And also, from the UK Visa Application Centre located at: 4B, First Floor, Al Banwan Building (Burgan Bank Branch Office Building), Al Qibla area, opposite Central Bank of Kuwait, Kuwait City. For any further inquiries, please contact the Visa Application Centre: Website: www.vfs-uk-kw.com E-mail:info@vfs-uk-kw.com Telephone:22971170.

The Consular Section will also be closed on the same dates. For information on the British Embassy services, visit the British Embassy website: www.ukinkuwait.fco.gov.uk EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, AlMutawakel St., Block 4 in Da’aiyah. Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca.

Canada offers a registration service for all Canadians travelling or living abroad. This service is provided so that Consular Officials can contact and assist Canadians in an emergency in a foreign country, such as a natural disaster or civil unrest, or inform Canadians of a family emergency at home. The Embassy of Canada encourages all Canadian Citizens to register online through the Government of Canada Travel Website at www.voyage.gc.ca. The Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi provides visa and immigration services to residents of Kuwait. Individuals who are interested in visiting, working or immigrating to Canada are invited to visit the website of the Canadian Embassy to the UAE at www.UAE.gc.ca.

Effective January 15, 2011, the only Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) application form that will be accepted by CIC is the Application for Temporary Resident Visa Made Outside of Canada [IMM 5257] form.

All previous Temporary Resident Visa application forms will no longer be accepted by CIC and instead will be returned to applicants. Should old applications be submitted prior to January 15, 2011 they will continue to be processed.

To ensure that the most recent version of the Temporary Resident Visa application form is being utilized, applicants should refer to the CIC website. As of January 15, 2011, forms are to be filled in electronically. The Embassy of Canada is open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday.

Consular Services for Canadian Citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00 on Sunday through Wednesday.

The forms are available on the internet at: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/forms/IMM5257E. PDF. A guide explaining the process can be found here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/guides/5256E.PDF.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

WHAT’S ON

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Adopt a pet

KMCC meets ambassador

K

uwait Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre (KKMCC) met new ambassador of India to Kuwait Satish C Mehta to congratulate on his assignment to Kuwait and to convey its best wishes. During the meeting it submitted a memorandum detailing the activities of the organization and some of the issues facing the community. During the discussion various matters of the community interest was covered. KKMCC brought to the attention of the ambassador the necessity of improving the embassy facilities in proportionate of the community’s growth in Kuwait.

Ambassador appreciated the work being carried out by the organization and support extended to the embassy in community affairs. He emphasized the long-standing India-Kuwait relation and urged everybody to safeguard the good image of our country. He assured that the embassy will do its utmost to serve the community within its possible limits. The organization was represented in the meeting by Acting president Abdul Raheem , General Secretary Basheer Batha, Treaurer Nazeer Khan and vice president Azeez Thikkodi.

F

red is a social five-year-old Golden Retriever male.

Fred loves playing chase with other dogs. He’s very responsive and ever-ready to retrieve his favorite toy in exchange of his favorite treat. Fred will do great in a family with older children. To adopt Fred, contact K’S PATH at (+965) 6700 1622 or visit the website www.kspath.org.

Aware Arabic courses

“T

he AWARE Management is glad to announce that Ramadan Arabic language courses run till September 15th, 2011. AWARE Arabic language courses are designed with the expat in mind. The environment is relaxed & courses are designed for those wanting to learn Arabic for travel, cultural understanding, and conducting business or simply to become more involved in the community. We cater to teachers, travelers & those working in the private business sector.

N

onar is a six-month-old Domestic Short Haired (DSH) male cat. Nonar is a friendly little boy who loves to play, gets along great with other cats and likes a good cuddle. Nonar will be a great addition to a family with children over five. To adopt Nonar, contact K’S PATH at (+965) 6700 1622 or visit the website www.kspath.org.

KERA holds iftar

K

uwait Ernakulam Residents Association (KERA) organized Iftar Sanagamam-2011 on August 13 at Rhythm Auditorium, Abbassiya. General Convener M Parameswaran presided over the meeting. Anilkumar introduced the guests and Abdul Kalam welcomed the audience.

Renowned scholar Sayed Abdul Rahman Thangal, Director The Truth gave Iftar message. Rev Fr (Dr) John Padipurackal, Asst Vicar of St Daniel Comboni Church, Abbassiya and BP Surendran, Former President of FOKE made felicitation speech. Hareesh Tripunithura expressed vote of thanks. The function concluded with a grand iftar. Prominent individuals from various associations attended the function.

Cochin Zainudeen, Mujeeb Rahman, MB Prathap, Prince Ouseph, SP Biju, Cinil Kumar, Bobby Joy, Roy Manvel, Sebastian Kannoth, Sunil Sunny and Wilson coordinated the function.

Announcements Attention kids!

CEF VBS 11 starting from August 22. Six exciting days of singing, games & bible stories for children of all ages. Hurry !!!. Limited Seats. Register Online: www.cefkuwait.org Tulukoota talent hunt Tulukoota Kuwait will hold a “Talent Hunt 2011” a chance to prove an inborn trait in you that confirms your individuality, uniqueness. So step forward to grab this opportunity to show your caliber and entertain. Dance, music, art or any special talent- now is your chance to showcase it - and be part of this year’s Talent Hunt & Tulu Parba. Talent Hunt event is open to all Tuluvas. For more information and registration form kindly log on to our Website: www.tulukootakuwait.org or visit our facebook page Tulukoota Kuwait Talent Hunt 2011. You could also email your form request to: secretary@tulukootakuwait.org or contact our area coordinators mentioned below. Mangaf, Fahaheel, Abuhalifa : Ronald Dsouza- 60035824, Shalini Alva- 23726164, Suma Bhatt- 97834578 Salmiya & Hawally: Swarna Shetty- 99006934, Kripa Gatty66044194 Kuwait City, Jahra, Sharq : Rekha Sachu65044521,97862115 Farwaniya, Abbassiya, Shuwaikh & Khaitan: Sathyanarayana- 66585077 Sanath Shetty67712409.

Pathanamthitta Onam The executive committee of Pathanamthitta District Association has decided to hold 2011 Onam Festival cele-

brations on Friday October 28, 2011 with a grand public function attended by Member of Parliament from Pathanamthitta Loksabha Constituency, Anto Antony and other prominent dignitaries from Kerala and Kuwait. All residents of Pathanamthitta District and persons of Pathanamthitta District origin are hereby invited to attend this function and friends and families.

Art salon Bouhshari Art Gallery Exhibition runs through 15 September. Daily working hours: 10am - 1pm and 5 - 9pm, except on Friday and on Thursday evening.

Rink soccer Don Bosco Oratory is pleased to announce its Major 4-ASide “Rink Soccer Fiesta” in Kuwait! This event is for the soccer lovers in Kuwait and will be played on a League (round robin) cum knock out basis from August 2nd at the IEAS Quadrangle in Salmiya. For details contact Chris: 66519627, Alex: 66069282 from 6-9pm.

Konkani musical show Comedian Philip, the 1st NRI Goan comedian, is all set to entertain you with a Konkani music show titled “Ani, Anik Zaiem?” to be presented by the United Friends Club on September 9 at 4pm at the AIS (American International School) Auditorium, Maidan-Hawalli. This is Kuwait-based comedian Philip’s third musical show after the overwhelming success of staging “Tum Vhoir Aum Sokol” and “Hem Kazar Koslem” in Kuwait and overseas.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

health

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

in the news Virus outbreak kills 81 kids in Vietnam HANOI: Hand, foot and mouth disease, a dangerous intestinal virus, has killed 81 children in Vietnam this year, prompting the prime minister to order ministries and agencies to redouble efforts to stop its spread. The country recorded 32,588 cases of the disease this year, and the deaths happened in 17 provinces and municipalities, mostly in the southern region, a statement on the government’s website said late on Thursday. Hand, foot and mouth disease is relatively common among children, characterized by a fever, sores in the mouth and blistery rashes. There is no vaccine or cure, but patients usually recover in a week without treatment. In severe cases, brain swelling can lead to paralysis or death. The disease was a “large danger to the health and lives of young children”, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said in a statement. Yet attempts to prevent it were ineffective, he said. Dung ordered the Health Ministry to coordinate efforts to stop its spread and stronger efforts to boost sanitary conditions in areas with children. The Vietnam News quoted the health ministry as saying the number of casualties this year was “considerably high”.

Kangaroo genome sequenced PARIS: An international team of researchers yesterday said they had sequenced the first genome of a kangaroo, a project aimed at pinpointing the genes that give the marsupial its remarkable abilities to hop and smell. The DNA code of the tammar wallaby is presented in Genome Biology, published by British-based open-access science publishers BioMed Central. The pint-sized ‘roo measures only 45 centimeters from head to tailtip and has long intrigued biologists. It has a 12-month gestation of which 11 months is a period of suspended animation in the womb. At birth, the young weigh only half a gram, and spend nine months in the mother’s pouch for protection as they grow.The wallaby joins more than other 130 organisms whose genome has been unraveled. They include humans, the chimpanzee, dog, rat, mouse and rabbit, as well as valuable crops, fungus and the fruit fly, a standard model for lab research.

Ecstasy could treat cancer LONDON: Researchers in Britain revealed yesterday they are exploring whether the nightclubbers’ drug ecstasy could be effective in treating blood cancers. Scientists at the University of Birmingham in central England said modified forms of the drug boosted its ability to destroy cancerous cells by 100 times. Six years ago, researchers found that cancers affecting white blood cells appeared to respond to certain “psychotropic” drugs. These included weight loss pills, Prozac-type antidepressants, and amphetamine derivatives such as MDMA-commonly known as ecstasy. The Birmingham scientists said their discoveries since then could lead to MDMA derivatives being used in patient trials.

The derivatives could be effective in treating blood cancers such as leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma. “This is an exciting next step towards using a modified form of MDMA to help people suffering from blood cancer,” said Professor John Gordon, from the university’s School of Immunology and Infection. “While we would not wish to give people false hope, the results of this research hold the potential for improvements in treatments in years to come.” The team found that the dose of MDMA required to treat a tumor would prove fatal, so they set about isolating the drug’s cancer-killing properties.

They are now looking at ways to get MDMA molecules to penetrate cancer cell walls more easily. Doctor David Grant, scientific director of the Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research charity, which part-funded the study, said: “The prospect of being able to target blood cancer with a drug derived from ecstasy is a genuinely exciting proposition. “Many types of lymphoma remain hard to treat and non-toxic drugs which are both effective and have few side effects are desperately needed.” The findings are published in the bi-monthly journal Investigational New Drugs.— AFP

Americans urged to get flu shots Vaccination among pregnant women steady CHICAGO: For the second year in a row, US health experts are urging all Americans to get a flu shot, even though the circulating strains of flu have not changed since the 2010-2011 flu season. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday the recommendation applied to everyone over 6 months of age-even those who got flu shots last year against the same flu strains. This year’s vaccine protects against H1N1 swine flu and two other flu strains called H3N2 and influenza B. The CDC said it was possible that immunity provided from last year’s flu shotswhich included the H1N1 pandemic flu strain-may have faded. The new recommendations from the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which were published in the agency’s weekly report on death and disease, also cover Sanofi-Aventis’ newly approved Fluzone Intradermal vaccine for adults aged 18 to 64.

The vaccine, which uses a short needle and delivers the vaccine into the skin rather than the muscle, can be used as an

alternative to traditional vaccines.

Eventually this season, the CDC officials said, the five companies that make flu vaccine for the US market expect to provide 166 million doses of vaccine. That compares with 157 million doses distributed last year. In addition to Sanofi-Aventis, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, AstraZeneca unit MedImmune, and CSL make flu vaccine for the US market.

‘PLENTY OF VACCINE’ “There is plenty of vaccine for anyone who wants to get vaccinated this year,” Dr. Carolyn Bridges of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases said in a telephone briefing.

Children aged 6 months to age 8 who are getting a flu shot for the first time will need two flu shots-given at least a month apartto build up immunity, according to the CDC recommendations. But children in that age group who were vaccinated last year will need only one flu shot.

Separately, the CDC released data on two studies looking at vaccination rates

among healthcare personnel and pregnant women that suggested the CDC had more work ahead convincing people to get flu shots. In one study, conducted by the CDC and the RAND Corporation, researchers saw only a slight increase in the immunization rates of healthcare personnel to 63.5 percent in the 2010-2011 flu season from 62 percent the prior season.

Doctors and hospital workers had the highest vaccination rates, and mandates made a difference. Among the 13 percent of those surveyed who said their employers required them to get a flu shot, 98 percent had been vaccinated. A second study of vaccination rates among pregnant women found 49 percent had been vaccinated during the past flu season, about the same rate as during the 2009 flu pandemic. Pregnant women and their babies are at higher risk of severe flu complications, while the study showed no gains over the prior year, researchers were pleased the same level of coverage was achieved after fears of pandemic flu had subsided.— Reuters

Famine-struck babies in Somalia lose fight to live MOGADISHU: With a ragged breath soft as the beat of a butterfly’s wing, two-year-old Mahmud Mohamed sighed, rolled his eyes upwards towards his mother, and died, succumbing to the effects of the extreme drought ravaging the Horn of Africa. “My child is gone,” his mother Mulmilla said quietly. Then she gently closed his eyes, wrapped the tiny body in a colorful scarf, bound it with scraps of material, and bore it outside to be buried. Parts of southern Somalia, including war-torn Mogadishu, are reeling from a brutal famine, the first to be declared by the United Nations this century. Thousands have died, according to the UN, and exhausted nurses in Mogadishu’s Benadir hospital barely looked up as Mulmilla left slowly carrying her son. A dozen severely malnourished babies remained on the long bench reserved for the most extreme cases brought in by desperate parents, many of whom had trekked for days from outside the city to reach help. The hospital-a decrepit building without clean water or regular electricity that is the main children’s ward for Somalia’s capital-is as good as it gets for those struggling to survive here. “There are so many coming, and we are doing what we can,” said nurse Asli Ali, taking a brief break in between fixing feeding tubes up the noses of skeletal children too weak to eat food normally. “They come everyday, and many are too sick,” she added.

Many, like Mohamed, are arriving too late for anything that the basic services the grossly overstretched hospital can offer. In the hour before Mohamed passed away, three other children in the cramped ward also died, health workers said. Like Mulmilla-who fled the famine-hit Lower Shabelle region to Mogadishu only to find hunger in the displaced camps here-more than 100,000 people have arrived in the dangerous city to escape drought in recent months. “There too many to cope with,” Ali added, waving at the room, where even wooden office desks are used as hospital beds.

Some simply sleep on the floor: mothers and children use empty cardboard boxes-once filled with specially nutritious peanut paste packs supplied by the UN children’s agency-as mattresses. There is no space available to separate children infected with an outbreak of measles-a common cause of death for children weakened by malnutrition-from those not infected by the virus. A sickly cough from a nine-year old on a stretcher briefly raised a thick cloud of flies that quickly settled back onto him. The stretcher has a hole cut for children sick with diarrhea, underlining a UN warning that a cholera epidemic could spread swiftly.

Given the number of people crammed inside, the ward was eerily

quiet, with children apparently too tired to cry. Many have come from the dozens of new camps appearing in the war-ravaged city, squeezed inside ruins of bombed-out buildings. Despite a ramping up of aid efforts and international pledges of support, the situation remains dire. But outside the capital it is feared to be far worse-areas under the control of the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Shebab rebels, whose draconian ban on key foreign aid groups is blamed for exacerbating drought into famine.— AFP

MOGADISHU: Children from southern Somalia line up to receive cooked food distributed by a local NGO in Mogadishu, Somalia. Thousands of people have arrived in Mogadishu over the past two weeks seeking assistance and the number is increasing by the day, due to lack of water and food. — AP

Al S f Hospital A Al-Seef H i l D Diabetes & Endocrinologyy Unit Offering O ffering the following ser services vices under the t super supervision vision of the best consultan consultants ts :

Control Diabetes for ever

HHfYUhaYbh UbX :c``ck id U`` UWihY UbX W\fccb]W WUgYg cZ ]bhYfbU` aYX]W]bY HfYUhaYbh UbX :c``ck id U`` UWihY UbX W\fcb]W WUgYg cZ ]bhYfbU` aYX]W]bY HfYUhaYbh cZ \mdYfhYbg]cb HfYUhaYbh cZ \mdYfhYbg]cb H HfYUhaYbh cZ \mdYf`]d]XYa]U HfYUhaYbh cZ \mdYf`]d]XYa]U 8 8]U[bcg]g UbX hfYUhaYbh cZ U`` hmdYg cZ X]UUVYhYg ]b U`` U[Y [fcidg 8]U[bcg]g UbX hfYUhaYbh cZ U`` hmdYg cZ X]UVYhYg ]b U`` U[Y [fcidg 8 8]U[bcg]g cZ dfYX]UVYh]W ghUhY 8]U[bcg]g cZ dfYX]UVYh]W ghUhY 8 8]U[bcg]g UbX hfYUhaYbh cZ X]UVYh]W bYifccdUh\m UbX jUgWi`Uf ]bgiZZ]W]YbWm 8]U[bcg]g UbX hfYUhaYbh cZ X]UVYh]W bYifcdUh\m UbX jUgWi`Uf ]bgiZZ]W]YbWm 8 8]U[bcg]g UbX hfYUhaYbh cZ X]UVYhYg ]b dfYY[bUbWm 8]U[bcg]g UbX hfYUhaYbh cZ X]UVYhYg ]b dfY[bUbWm 8 8]U[bcg]g UbX hfYUhaYbh cZ U`` X]UVYh]W Wcad`]WUh]cb 8]U[bcg]g UbX hfYUhaYbh cZ U`` X]UVYh]W Wcad`]WUh]cb = = =bgYfh]cb UbX Zc``ck id ]bgi`]b diadg h] X Z `` ] `] =bgYfh]cb UbX Zc``ck id ]bgi`]b diadg 8]U[bcg]g hfYUhaYbh UbX Zc``ck id U`` YbX XcWf]bY dfcV`Yag ]bW`iX]b[ h\mfc]X [`UbX d]hi]hUfm [`UbX d]hi]hUfm [`UbX gidfUfYbU` gidfUfYbU` 8 8]U[bcg]g hfYUhaYbh UbX Zc``ck id U`` YbXcWf]bY dfcV`Yag ]bW`iX]b[ h\mfc]X [`UbX

[`UbX cVYg]hm g\cfh ghUhifY YlWYgg \U]f ] ]b ZYaU`Yg `ck j]hUa]b 8 [`UbX YlWYgg \U]f ]b ZYaU`Yg For Reser vattion and Further inquires: Reservation

25764241 2576 4241 - 60012078

To adv advertise vertise on this page please co contact ontact us:

248 33 199 ads@kuwaittimes.net ads@kuw waittimes.net

Dermatology & Cosmetology Cosmetology t Dermatology t General Medicine t Internal Internal Medicine t Ent t Ophthalmology Ophthalmology t Peadiatric Peadiatric t Ob & Gynecology Gynecology

t Orthopedic Orthopedic t X-ray X-ray & Ultrasonograph Ultrasonography g p y t General Physician Physician t Dental t Laboratory Laboratory t Pharmacy Pharmacy

Cosmetology C osmetology Clinic.

Clinic.

Non N on SSurgical urggical FFacelift, acelift, Anti Annti Ageing Aggeingg W Wrinkle rinkle Frown Li / Pigmentation D b Chin Frown Lines Pigmenta g ation Double Chin Correction Skin Botox Correction i SSk kiin RRejuvenation ejuv j enation Bot ox / FFillers illers Painless Laser Laser Hair Removal Dermaroller, Dermarollerr, Painless H i Removal Skin Skin Whitening Whitening & Brighting Brightiing Vail Vaail Treatment Treatment

Wee Accept W Accept All All Major Maj ajo j r IInsuramce nsuramce C Cards ards FARWANIYA FA ARWANIYYA - OPP. OPP P. POLICE PO OLICE STATION ST TATION T Behind B ehind Magadheer Magadheer Commercial Com mmercial Complex Complex

s - 65561619 TEL: 24734000

shifakuwait@gmail.com shifak uwait@g gmail.com www.shifakuwait.com www.shifakuwait.com Working i Hours: 8.00 a Working am tto o 12:00am

CLASSIFIEDS SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

ACCOMMODATION One big room attach bath available for decent bachelor or couple, 2 BR C/AC flat in Fintas, near London hospital and close to Fahaheel Highway. Contact 60020168.

(C 3580) 21-8-2011 Sharing accommodation available at Khaitan in a studio flat for a single bachelor with a Mangalorean R/C bachelor near to bus stop.

Contact: 66036893. (C 3565) Room for rent in Hawally, location - interaction of Beirut + Tunis Street behind Popeye Restaurant.

Contact: 66266105/ 66440968.

(C 3575) Sharing accommodation available with Indian decent bachelor single bed room flat.

1+1 basic. Very good location in Salmiya, Amman street, Indian community school-3, adjacent building. Please contact Mob: 99813483. (C 3577) 17-8-2011 Sharing accommodation in Abbassiya near Balansiya Bakery, from 1st September, fully furnished 2 bedroom flat with mini split A/C, looking for executive bachelor or couple to share with Keralite family. Contact: 66944127 or (afternoon) 24334240.

FOR SALE Toyota Camry model 2001, 4 cylinder, very good condition. Tel: 60035758. (C 3581) 17-8-2011 IBM Computer, Printer, dot matrix printers, Scanner, Next

No: 15186

generation bicycle, Washing Machine, Air Cooler, Bunk Bed, Orthopaedic bed, sofa and other household items.

Small amplifier and microphones. Contact: 99443876.

(C 3579) 18-8-2011 Nissan Pathfinder 2002, BMW 740i registered in 2000 for immediate sale. Best offer above KD 2,000 secures.

Contact: 99443876. (C 3576) 17-8-2011

CHANGE OF NAME Busam Aswani holder of Indian Passport No: 42028715, issued in Hyderabad, India. Before I am non-Muslim (Hindu) then I convert to Muslim, hereby change my name to Fatima Riaz.

(C 3582) 21-8-2011 I, Abel C. Abella Tagongtong, Filipino wish to change my name to Vir Niqel Abella Tagongtong.

(C 3578)

information SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 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 THY ETH PIA UAE DHX ETD MSR GFA QTR JZR THY KAC BAW KAC JZR FCX JZR KAC KAC KAC FDB KAC KAC KAC KAC UAE QTR ABY ETD GFA QTR MHK JZR IRC MSR IRM JZR MSR KNE UAL RJA MSR KAC KAC SVA KAC KNE KAC JZR CLX QTR IRC KAC KAC ETD JZR UAE SYR GFA KAC SVA JZR ABY JZR FDB

Arrival Flights on Saturday 20/8/2011 Flt Route 642 AMMAN 772 ISTANBUL 620 ADDIS ABABA 239 SIALKOT 853 DUBAI 370 BAHRAIN 305 ABU DHABI 614 CAIRO 211 BAHRAIN 138 DOHA 539 CAIRO 770 ISTANBUL 412 MANILA / BANGKOK 157 LONDON 416 JAKARTA / KUALA LUMPUR 507 LUXOR 201 BAHRAIN 557 ALEXANDRIA 206 ISLAMABAD 382 DELHI 302 MUMBAI 53 DUBAI 352 COCHIN 284 DHAKA 344 CHENNAI 362 COLOMBO 855 DUBAI 132 DOHA 125 SHARJAH 301 ABU DHABI 213 BAHRAIN 6130 DOHA 711 BAGHDAD / NAJAF 775 JEDDAH 6807 SHIRAZ 623 SOHAG 5066 MASHAD 173 DUBAI 610 CAIRO 703 MEDINAH 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 640 AMMAN 621 ASSIUT 786 JEDDAH 562 AMMAN 500 JEDDAH 552 DAMASCUS 745 JEDDAH 618 DOHA 257 BEIRUT 792 LUXEMBOURG 134 DOHA 6791 MASHAD 118 NEW YORK 550 SOHAG 303 ABU DHABI 535 CAIRO 857 DUBAI 341 DAMASCUS 215 BAHRAIN 178 GENEVA / FRANKFURT 510 RIYADH 561 SOHAG 127 SHARJAH 239 AMMAN 63 DUBAI

Time 0:05 1:15 1:45 2:05 2:25 2:55 2:55 3:05 3:15 3:20 3:50 4:10 6:15 6:30 6:35 6:40 7:00 7:05 7:15 7:20 7:50 7:55 8:05 8:10 8:20 8:20 8:25 9:00 9:10 9:30 9:35 10:25 11:00 11:30 11:35 12:10 12:50 12:50 13:20 13:25 13:30 13:35 13:40 14:00 14:20 14:30 14:35 14:45 15:05 15:10 15:15 15:15 16:00 16:15 16:40 16:50 16:50 16:55 17:00 17:15 17:15 17:20 17:30 17:40 17:45 17:55

ALK KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC JZR KAC SIA JAI AIC KAC VOS FDB OMA MEA KNE KAC MSR DHX KLM UAE GFA QTR UAL KAC MSR MSR KAC JZR DLH JZR AXB KAC

227 1772 104 502 542 774 777 674 458 572 975 790 93 61 647 402 789 788 618 372 445 859 217 136 981 614 606 612 1768 185 636 135 393 1770

COLOMBO / DUBAI JEDDAH LONDON BEIRUT CAIRO RIYADH JEDDAH DUBAI SINGAPORE / ABU DHABI MUMBAI CHENNAI / GOA MEDINAH KANDAHAR / DUBAI DUBAI MUSCAT BEIRUT JEDDAH JEDDAH ALEXANDRIA BAHRAIN AMSTERDAM DUBAI BAHRAIN DOHA BAHRAIN BAHRAIN LUXOR CAIRO JEDDAH DUBAI FRANKFURT BAHRAIN KOZHIKODE / COCHIN JEDDAH

Airlines JZR DLH AIC KLM PIA THY ETH PIA UAE DHX ETD MSR QTR THY JZR RJA GFA KAC BAW FDB JZR JZR KAC KAC UAE ABY KAC KAC JZR QTR KAC

Departure Flights on Saturday 20/8/2011 Flt Route 506 LUXOR 637 FRANKFURT 976 GOA / CHENNAI 447 AMSTERDAM 216 KARACHI 773 ISTANBUL 620 BAHRAIN / ADDIS ABABA 240 SIALKOT / ISLAMABAD 854 DUBAI 371 BAHRAIN 306 ABU DHABI 615 CAIRO 139 DOHA 771 ISTANBUL 774 JEDDAH 643 AMMAN 212 BAHRAIN 785 JEDDAH 156 LONDON 54 DUBAI 172 DUBAI 256 BEIRUT 551 DAMASCUS 561 AMMAN 856 DUBAI 126 SHARJAH 549 SOHAG / SHARM EL SHEIKH 101 LONDON / NEW YORK 534 CAIRO 133 DOHA 107 GENEVA / LONDON

18:00 18:05 18:35 18:45 18:50 19:10 19:15 19:25 19:35 19:35 19:55 19:55 20:00 20:00 20:10 20:15 20:25 20:25 20:55 21:00 21:05 21:15 21:25 21:35 22:00 22:00 22:15 22:50 22:50 22:55 23:00 23:05 23:15 23:25

Time 0:30 0:40 0:50 0:55 0:55 2:15 2:30 3:30 3:45 3:55 4:05 4:05 5:00 5:10 6:05 7:00 7:10 8:15 8:25 8:40 8:40 9:10 9:10 9:15 9:40 9:50 9:55 9:55 10:00 10:00 10:10

ETD GFA JZR KAC KAC QTR KAC KAC JZR MHK IRC KAC MSR JZR KNE IRM MSR RJA MSR UAL KAC KAC KNE KAC KAC SVA KAC CLX IRC VOS ETD KAC QTR SYR UAE GFA ABY JZR SVA FDB JZR KAC ALK KAC JZR JAI FDB JZR KAC KAC OMA KNE MEA SIA MSR KAC DHX KLM UAE GFA FCX KAC QTR KAC KAC MSR UAL KAC MSR JZR

302 214 560 165 617 6131 541 1771 238 712 6808 501 624 776 702 5065 611 641 622 982 673 787 746 789 773 505 1767 792 6792 82 304 1769 135 342 858 216 128 356 511 64 184 613 228 283 134 571 62 538 331 351 648 790 403 457 619 543 373 445 860 218 102 381 137 301 205 607 981 411 613 556

ABU DHABI BAHRAIN SOHAG ROME / PARIS DOHA DOHA CAIRO JEDDAH AMMAN NAJAF / BAGHDAD SHIRAZ BEIRUT SOHAG JEDDAH RIYADH MASHAD CAIRO AMMAN ASSIUT BAHRAIN DUBAI JEDDAH JEDDAH MEDINAH RIYADH JEDDAH JEDDAH HONG KONG MASHAD BAGHDAD ABU DHABI JEDDAH DOHA DAMASCUS DUBAI BAHRAIN SHARJAH MASHAD RIYADH DUBAI DUBAI BAHRAIN DUBAI / COLOMBO DHAKA BAHRAIN MUMBAI DUBAI CAIRO TRIVANDRUM COCHIN MUSCAT JEDDAH BEIRUT ABU DHABI / SINGAPORE ALEXANDRIA CAIRO BAHRAIN BAHRAIN / AMSTERDAM DUBAI BAHRAIN BAHRAIN DELHI DOHA MUMBAI ISLAMABAD LUXOR WASHINGTON DC DULLES BANGKOK / MANILA CAIRO ALEXANDRIA

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

10:15 10:20 10:55 11:45 11:45 11:55 12:00 12:15 12:20 12:20 12:35 13:00 13:10 13:50 14:10 14:15 14:20 14:30 14:40 14:45 15:10 15:20 15:30 15:30 15:50 16:00 16:40 16:45 17:00 17:00 17:35 17:40 17:45 18:00 18:05 18:15 18:20 18:20 18:35 18:40 18:45 19:00 19:10 19:30 20:10 20:35 20:40 21:00 21:00 21:05 21:10 21:10 21:15 21:20 21:55 21:55 22:00 22:05 22:25 22:30 22:30 22:30 22:35 22:45 22:55 23:15 23:40 23:40 23:50 23:55

To Yester

Word Sleuth Solution

Yesterday始s Solution

C R O S S W O R D

4 1 5

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

ACROSS 11. A federal agency established to regulate the release of new foods and health-related products.

4. Situated at the bottom or lowest position.

10. An honorary degree in science.

13. The syllable naming the sixth (submediant) note of a major or minor scale in solmization.

14. Absence of the pupil in an eye.

15. Chiefly perennial grasses of cool temperate regions.

16. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

17. (of complexion) Blemished by imperfections of the skin.

19. Used as a Hindi courtesy title.

21. American novelist (1909-1955).

22. A former copper coin of Pakistan.

23. Capital and largest city and economic center of Peru.

24. (British) A waterproof raincoat made of rubberized fabric.

26. (computer science) A standardized language for the descriptive markup of documents.

29. A literary language of Chinese Turkestan (named for one of the sons of Genghis Khan).

33. A genus of Anatidae.

36. A city in southern Turkey on the Seyhan River.

37. A defensive missile designed to shoot down incoming intercontinental ballistic missiles.

38. A fluorocarbon with chlorine.

41. A member of an Iroquoian people formerly living on the south shore of Lake Erie in northern Ohio and northwest Pennsylvania and western New York.

42. English monk and scholar (672-735).

44. 10 grams.

46. A flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism.

49. A member of an agricultural people in southeastern India.

53. A large metal or pottery vessel with a handle and spout.

57. 1 species.

59. (Babylonian) A demigod or first man.

60. A human limb.

61. Jordan's port.

64. A notable achievement.

65. A potent estrogen used in medicine and in feed for livestock and poultry.

66. An island of central Hawaii.

67. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solely the razorbill.

DOWN 1. Loose or flaccid body fat.

2. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

3. According to the Old Testament he was a pagan king of Israel and husband of Jezebel (9th century BC).

4. The cry made by sheep.

5. English scholastic philosopher and assumed author of Occam's Razor (12851349).

6. A monarchy on a Polynesian archipelago in the South Pacific.

7. A tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown.

8. Swelling from excessive accumulation of serous fluid in tissue.

9. Informal terms for a mother.

10. The complete duration of something.

11. German botanist who is generally recognized as founding bacteriology when he recognized bacteria as plants.

12. An informal term for a father.

18. The face or front of a building.

20. (Norse mythology) One of the Aesir known for his beauty and skill with bow and skis.

25. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in Turkey).

27. An amino acid that is found in the central nervous system.

28. An actor who communicates entirely by gesture and facial expression.

30. A village in eastern Ireland (northwest of Dublin).

31. A blue dye obtained from plants or made synthetically.

32. The United Nations agency concerned with atomic energy.

34. An agency of the United Nations affiliated with the World Bank.

35. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

39. 32nd President of the United States.

40. Young of domestic cattle.

43. Made of fir or pine.

45. Offering fun and gaiety.

47. A coffee cake flavored with orange rind and raisins and almonds.

48. A genus of Ploceidae.

49. An associate degree in nursing.

50. A river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine.

51. A software system that facilitates the creation and maintenance and use of an electronic database.

52. Any of numerous local fertility and nature deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples.

53. Before noon.

54. A Gaelic-speaking Celt in Ireland or Scotland or the Isle of Man. 55. An organization of countries formed in 1961 to agree on a common policy for the sale of petroleum.

56. A quantity of no importance.

58. A master's degree in business.

59. Informal terms for a mother.

62. An associate degree in nursing.

63. The branch of computer science that deal with writing computer programs that can solve problems creatively.

Yesterday始s Solution

SPORTS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Syria disqualified from 2014 WCup DAMASCUS: Syria’s football federation announced yesterday that their national team have been banned from the 2014 World Cup qualifiers by FIFA for fielding an ineligible player.

Syria reached the qualification group phase by beating Tajikistan over two legs - 2-1 in the away leg, 4-0 at home-in a preliminary qualifying tie in July.

However, the Syrian federation was then informed by FIFA that the latter game would be awarded as a 2-0 win for Tajikistan after Tajik officials claimed Syria midfielder George Mourad had previously represented Sweden. Mourad scored in the away leg on July 23 after coming on as a substitute and also played the final 20 minutes of the return leg on July 28.

In the light of FIFA’s decision, Tajikistan will replace Syria in Asian World Cup qualifying Group C alongside Japan, Uzbekistan and North Korea. Syrian federation president Farouq Sarriyeh announced that he would petition the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to overturn the decision. He said he possessed “the necessary documents” from the Swedish federation proving that Mourad was eligible to play for Syria.

Mourad represented Sweden once, playing 13 minutes of a friendly match against Mexico in January 2005.— AFP

U-20 finals: Brazil, Portugal face off

Lyon buoyed by Garde effect PARIS: Hope is in the air at Lyon, after a start to the season in which new coach Remi Garde has blown away the cobwebs that had settled on the club during the trophyless three-year reign of Claude Puel. Unbeaten in six matches since the start of pre-season, Lyon visit Brest today for their third Ligue 1 game of the season after a stirring comeback against Russians Rubin Kazan in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Having fallen behind in the third minute of their play-off first leg at Stade Gerland, the seven-time French champions rallied to win 31 thanks to a performance that brimmed with energy and invention. A long trip to Russia for the return leg awaits on Monday, but Garde says his team will draw strength from their improved performances. “My team are demonstrating their quality,” he said. “It requires a fair bit of energy but I think that the players enjoy it too, which is a source of motivation and energy for them.”

A local boy who joined Lyon as a teenager in 1982 before playing for them for six years, Garde returned to join the OL coaching staff in 2003 and was named coach earlier this summer after patience with Puel finally ebbed away. Lyon won their opening league game 3-1 at Nice before a 1-1 draw at home to Ajaccio last weekend, which left them above title rivals Marseille, Lille and Paris Saint-Germain in the early standings. Over-spending in recent transfer windows has left Garde unable to make any major acquisitions, but he has still succeeded in revitalising the quality of Lyon’s play.

Deployed in an attacking 4-4-2 with wingers on both flanks supporting strikers Lisandro Lopez and Bafetimbi Gomis, the team that tore Kazan apart drew roars of approval from the Gerland terraces.

“Everyone is happy and really enjoying things,” said Lyon’s Bosnian playmaker Miralem Pjanic. “The coach’s instructions are received better. It’s based on playing, taking risks and wanting to cut loose, which we’ve perhaps failed to do in recent years.” Brest, promoted from Ligue 2 in 2010, are seeking a first win of the campaign after draws with new boys Evian (2-2) and Valenciennes (0-0). “Our opponents will be difficult to play against because, with their game, they’ll want to ignite the match quickly,” warned Garde.

Left-back Aly Cissokho is fit to play for Lyon despite being withdrawn early against Kazan with a muscular concern, but Brazilian skipper Cris is likely to remain sidelined with a thigh injury. Brest coach Alex Dupont, meanwhile, believes former Juventus defender Jonathan Zebina is still “a good week” away from match fitness following his arrival from Brescia. The stand-out match of the weekend tomorrow sees Marseille bid to end an unprecedented run of four consecutive 2-2 draws at home to Saint-Etienne, who are seeking a third straight win after beating Bordeaux and Nancy.

Toulouse, currently top on goal difference from Montpellier, Caen and Saint-Etienne and still to concede a goal, visit Nice today, with champions Lille taking their quest for a first win of the season to Caen. PSG coach Antoine Kombouare will seek to relieve some of the pressure on his position when his side host Valenciennes tomorrow, amid reports in Thursday’s L’Equipe that he has just two games to save his job. The club from the capital, who embarked on a massive recruitment drive following their takeover by Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), are languishing in the bottom half following a 10 loss to Lorient and a 1-1 draw at Rennes.— AFP

BOGOTA: Brazil’s players stretch during a training session in Bogota, Colombia. Brazil will face Portugal in the U-20 World Cup final soccer game today. — AP BOGOTA: Brazil and Portugal meet in the World Under-20 final today, 20 years after clashing in the 1991 finale, which was won by the Portuguese and launched the careers of Luis Figo and Roberto Carlos. Brazil beat Mexico 2-0 while Portugal ousted France, also 2-0, in their semi-finals on Wednesday.

Today’s game is a chance for five-time winners Brazil to avenge the 4-2 defeat they suffered against Portugal in 1991, even if the match will not hit the same attendance heights.

Portugal’s win that day was watched by 120,000 people packed into Lisbon’s Stadium of Light. The Portuguese have reached the final

despite scoring just five goals-the same amount netted by Brazilian striker Henrique, who hit both goals in the semi-final win.

But they are still to concede in five games at the tournament. Brazil will start as favorites for a sixth title in their eighth final, having now gone 13 games without defeat. “The final will have a Portuguese flavor to it. We know Portugal are very strong defensively, with (Portugal goalkeeper) Mika yet to concede a goal here,” said Brazil coach Ney Franco.”On the other hand, we have some real quality forwards, which all makes for an appealing clash of styles. We’ve been studying our

opponents carefully but I know this will be a tough match.”

Portugal coach Ilidio Vale believes his team’s rock-solid defense will counter Brazil’s attackers, who have scored 15 goals so far. “We deserve credit in getting to the final without conceding a single goal. We managed to score two goals, and it was enough to beat France, the European (under19) champions,” he said. “Now my players want to write their own history, and it’s a good coincidence that it happens 20 years after our last title.

“Regardless of who are our opponents in the final, it will be a great game, a fiesta of football.”— AFP

Argentina recall Veron and Riquelme; Name two squads BUENOS AIRES: Juan Roman Riquelme and Juan Sebastian Veron were recalled

by Argentina coach Alejandro Sabella on Thursday in a squad of home-based players to prepare for two friendlies against arch-rivals Brazil next month.

Sabella named another squad made up of European-based players for matches in Asia, leaving out controversial striker Carlos Tevez, but recalling 2006 World Cup midfielder Lucho Gonzalez and 2010 defenders Jonas Gutierrez, Martin Demichelis and Nicolas Otamendi.

The 26-man squad of exiles does include Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain and Sergio Aguero among the strikers.

Riquelme, one of the outstanding players of the 2006 World Cup, last played for Argentina three years ago after refusing to play under Diego Maradona

while Veron has not played for Argentina since the 2010 finals.

Sabella was appointed two weeks ago in succession to Sergio Batista, whose year in the job since taking over from Maradona ended after the Copa America in which Argentina lost on penalties to Uruguay in the quarterfinals. He has little time in which to forge one squad for Argentina’s opening 2014 World Cup qualifiers in October. They are at home to Chile on Oct 7 and visit Copa America semi-finalists Venezuela four days later.

Olympique Marseille’s Gonzalez, highly rated in Europe, was overlooked by both Maradona and Batista, while another French-based player, Lyon striker Lisandro Lopez is also recalled after a long absence, while Diego Milito

is dropped. The home-based squad contains six players each from Argentine champions Velez Sarsfield and Sabella’s former club Estudiantes, and four each from Riquelme’s team Boca Juniors and Racing Club.

Among the most internationally experienced players in the local squad apart from Veron and Riquelme are Velez left back Emiliano Papa and Boca’s utility defender Clemente Rodriguez, a member of Maradona’s 2010 World Cup squad. Argentina’s European-based team will play Venezuela in Calcutta on Sept. 2 and Nigeria in Dhaka four days later. The home-based team will meet Brazil, who will pick their side from just locallybased players, at home on Sept 14 and away two weeks later.— Reuters

SPORTS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Chelsea’s keeper headache for Villas-Boas LONDON: Andre Villas-Boas faces an early goalkeeping dilemma at Chelsea after Petr Cech was ruled out for up to four weeks with a knee ligament problem ahead of the visit of West Bromwich Albion. Cech was injured when he fell under the weight of a colleague during training this week and Villas-Boas must now decide whether Hilario or Ross Turnbull should replace the Czech Republic international. The new manager would have preferred to avoid making an enforced change to his defensive unit as he seeks his first Premier League win having been held to a scoreless draw by Stoke City in the opening game.

West Brom are unlikely to pose a similar physical threat as Stoke, but VillasBoas is anxious to get Chelsea’s title challenge underway. “Petr Cech suffered

a medial ligament injury and will be out for three to four weeks,” said the manager. “It was the end of training, normal training incident. He fell awkwardly with his weight on top of him and he stretched a little bit the medial ligament. “We expected much worse when we saw the incident. He’s made the MRI and the good news is it’s just three to four weeks.”

Villas-Boas’ options will be strengthened for the West Brom game by the arrival of Reomelu Lukaku from Anderlecht and the teenager will go straight into the squad but defender David Luiz will again be missing with a thigh problem. With a trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United looming in mid-September, Villas-Boas is anxious to have accumulated as many

Aguero seeking to erase Bolton blot LONDON: Sergio Aguero, whose two-goal debut for Manchester City this week earned widespread acclaim, will aim to banish the memories of his last trip to Bolton Wanderers when he returns to the Reebok Stadium for a Premier League clash on Sunday. Aguero was 19 when he played for Atletico Madrid against Bolton in a UEFA Cup tie in February 2008, coming off the bench in the second half but lasting just 12 minutes before he was sent off for spitting at Bolton’s Matt Taylor.

He could not have imagined then that his next appearance there would be for City, currently sitting joint top of the Premier League alongside Bolton-albeit after one match- after both produced 4-0 wins in their seasonopening games. Bolton scored their emphatic victory at promoted Queens Park Rangers while City beat another promoted team, Swansea City, by the same score at home on Monday when Aguero came off the bench to score twice.

Along with champions Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers, they are the only four teams with maximum points after the opening games, although Tottenham Hotspur and Everton are yet to play. Their match at White Hart Lane was postponed last week because of the London riots with Spurs not starting their League campaign until Monday when they visit United.

Everton kick off their season at home to QPR today.

In other key games this weekend, Arsenal, facing up to life without the departed Cesc Fabregas and probably Samir Nasri who seems set for a move to City, face Liverpool. The Gunners, who also have Gervinho and Alex Song suspended following last weekend’s bad-tempered draw at Newcastle United, are at home, with both sides on one point after the Merseysiders’ draw with Sunderland last Saturday.

Chelsea will be without goalkeeper Petr Cech for three or four weeks after the keeper suffered a knee ligament injury but will be looking for their first win after last week’s 0-0 draw at Stoke City. They play West Brom at Stamford Bridge. While all the title challengers will be concentrating on their own games, they will also be keeping a close eye on City, who demolished Swansea with a fine performance on Monday night at the start of a campaign they hope will end with their first league title since 1968.

SENT OFF Aguero, who since that night at the Reebok 3-1/2 years ago has matured into a world-class player, said he remembered the incident well. The 23-year-old Argentine striker recalled: “I spat in the direction of the player but not at the player himself. “However, the officials thought I had, and they suspended me. I don’t know what it will be like when I go back, but hopefully I can make City’s supporters happy,” he told the Manchester Evening News.—Reuters

points as possible before the meeting with the champions. And this game followed by another home fixture against newly promoted Norwich, the manager is targeting six points from the next two outings.

“We have two games at home that we must do everything in our power to get three points out of both, because it’s seven points and can get us into a good position,” he added. “It’s two games at home and you have to win them. “West Brom, as you saw last week (against Manchester United), provokes a very, very difficult challenge, because they held Man United - the Champions League finalists - up to the 80th minute.”

West Brom were thrashed 6-0 at Stamford Bridge on the opening weekend of last season when Chelsea assis-

tant manager Roberto Di Matteo was still the Baggies manager.

His successor, Roy Hodgson, has made them a more solid unit, however the veteran coach has warned they face a challenge every bit as tough as that presented last weekend by United, who required a late goal to beat them 2-1. “I think we showed against Manchester United we are not a bad football team,” Hodgson said.

“I know people will flag up last year, it went badly for us, but you can’t turn back the clock. Our aim is to go there and get a positive result, which is anything from a draw to a win. “My message to the players is it will be every bit as tough and we will have to work every bit as hard as against Manchester United to stand a chance.” —AFP

Malaysians divided on tycoon’s QPR purchase KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian reaction to local tycoon Tony Fernandes’s purchase of newly-promoted Premier League club Queens Park Rangers (QPR) ranged from patriotic support to indifference, to jibes on fan forums. “I don’t know how this will affect me as an Arsenal fan, but as a Malaysian it makes me very proud to see a fellow Malaysian owning a Premier League club,” said Hasminderaputra Abu Bakar, a spokesperson for the official Arsenal Malaysia supporters’ club.

Fernandes, the owner of budget airline Air Asia and the Team Lotus Formula One outfit, announced on Thursday that he had bought 66 percent of London-based QPR. He is the second Malaysian to buy into a football club in Britain. Vincent Tan, a Malaysian billionaire with interests in retail, gaming and tourism, owns the single biggest stake in Cardiff City, who play in the second tier. “They almost made it to the Premier League this year, so maybe next year they will be in the Premier League with us, and then we will have two Malaysians,” said Hasminderaputra. “I am proud of that.”

On Fernandes, a self-proclaimed West Ham fan, he said,: “I am very pleased to see that he plans to take a different approach to the other rich owners and that they would like to run QPR like a proper business. “So hopefully this means they will not be spoiling the transfer market with obscene amounts of money.” Mohan Thamirajah, president of the official Malaysian Chelsea Supporters club said that it did not matter who owned a football club as long as the team enjoyed success under the new ownership. “Basically, if you want to buy into a premiership club, you have to spend big,” Mohan said. “Tony is talking about spending tens of millions but I don’t know if that’s enough to generate success.”

TELEVISION TIME Southeast Asia is passionate about football and about the English Premier League in particular. In Malaysia, the interest borders on obsession and club rivalries are almost as fierce as on the terraces of faraway English grounds.

LONDON: Malaysian businessman Tony Fernandes holds a club jersey after a press conference at Loftus Road, London.— AP However, Mohan said he did not think having a Malaysian owner would necessarily make the club popular with Malaysians. “If you look at Vincent Tan and Cardiff, they’ve hardly caused a ripple here since the purchase. It may be because they are in the first division, so it might be different if they were in the premiership and had more TV time.” On Twitter, some Malaysian fans suggested there might be a conflict of interest as Fernandes’s investment vehicle Tune Group sponsors Premier League referee gear.

Others called on Fernandes to take Malaysian’s Safee Sali, who plays for Indonesia’s Pelita Jaya FC, to QPR. Fernandes joins a select club of Southeast Asian tycoons who have bought Premier League clubs, including former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin

Shinawatra, who owned Manchester City briefly, and Hong Kong businessman Carson Yeung. Malaysia got independence from Britain in 1957 and English is widely spoken among its 28 million people. In the capital Kuala Lumpur, bars are packed when satellite television channels show live Premier League games.

In the off-season, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea visited Malaysia for friendlies and played to packed houses of up to 80,000 supporters. Liverpool and Manchester United have the biggest fan following, and Chelsea and Arsenal are tied for third place, local supporters say.

Premier League Champions Manchester United are seeking to cash in on their support in the region with a $1-billion planned listing in neighboring Singapore, sources say. — Reuters

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SPORTS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Depleted Arsenal face Liverpool test LONDON: Arsenal may have not lost at home to Liverpool since the turn of the Millennium but the Gunners are already looking unusually vulnerable just two games into the new season. The departure of Cesc Fabregas and the impending sale of Samir Nasri has left manager Arsene Wenger short of two of the top performers from last term ahead of today’s lunchtime kick off at the Emirates Stadium. And injury and suspension will also rob him of a number of others, with midfielder Alex Song and summer signing Gervinho both banned following clashes with Joey Barton in the 0-0 draw at Newcastle last week.

With Jack Wilshere, Kieran Gibbs, Johan Djourou, Tomas Rosicky, Armand Traore and Abou Diaby either out, injured or doubtful, many observers believe Wenger is facing the biggest test since he arrived at the club in 1996. The only bright spot is that Arsenal at least have yet to taste defeat this season and on Tuesday defeated Serie A side Udinese 1-0 at home in the first leg of a

Champions League qualifier.

Theo Walcott, the England winger, scored the only goal of the night and was quick to insist that though sections of the Arsenal support may already be despairing of the future, the players themselves remained optimistic success could still be achieved. “The mood is very good,” he said. “We got a very good result at Newcastle I thought, especially going down to ten men. A clean sheet was very good and we had young players come on and gain experience in the Champions League.”

Walcott admitted that Wenger will have to spend at least some of the money brought in from the sale of Fabregas to Barcelona and Nasri’s expected departure to Manchester City. “I am sure the boss has got players coming - I don’t know - but if you sell one of your best players I am sure he has got options coming in,” Walcott said. At least new captain Robin van Persie will be able to play having been suspended for the Udinese match but Wenger may still have no

Vidic’s injury a blow to Man U

option but to hand first Premier League starts to defender Carl Jenkinson, a summer recruit from Charlton, and midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong, who has come through the youth ranks.

And the same could also apply to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, the 18-year-old who cost £12 million from Southampton who has yet to kick a ball at any level higher than League One. Arsenal could be forgiven therefore for settling for a repeat of last season’s results against Liverpool, which both ended 1-1. The Emirates faithful won’t want reminding of the most recent of those draws however as it saw Arsenal go ahead in stoppage time and yet still fail to win at a time when the still harbored realistic hopes of winning the Premier League.

That was the result of Emmanuel Eboue rashly conceding a penalty and the utility player has also since moved on, to Galatasaray in Turkey. Liverpool have also yet to win this season having drawn their opening game 1-1 at home to Sunderland and are not involved in either

UEFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Wenger

MANCHESTER: Manchester United suffered a fresh injury blow yesterday after manager Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed captain Nemanja Vidic faces up to five weeks on the sidelines. Ferguson, who has already seen Vidic’s central defensive partner Rio Ferdinand limp out of action this season, said the Serbian’s calf problem was worse than initially feared. “The situation has reversed and Vidic has a calf muscle injury, which means he’ll maybe be four to five weeks,” Ferguson told reporters. There was better news for Ferguson however with confirmation that Ferdinand may return sooner than anticipated after initially being ruled out for six weeks with a hamstring strain.

Ferguson said although the England defender would miss Monday’s clash with Spurs at Old Trafford, he may return to full fitness in time for United’s clash with Arsenal on August 28. “Rio is not as bad as we thought and he could be ready for our game with Arsenal,” said the Scot. “I don’t think he’ll be ready for Monday, but it’s amazing how assessments can change in the space of a few days.” With Vidic and Ferdinand absent, Ferguson will pair new signing Phil Jones, 21, and Jonny Evans, 23, at centre-back against Tottenham, who have not won at Old Trafford since December 1989. — AFP

Matches on TV (Local Timings)

English Premier League Sunderland v Newcastle Abu Dhabi Sports HD 4 Arsenal v Liverpool Abu Dhabi Sports HD 3 Abu Dhabi Sports HD 5 Swansea v Wigan Abu Dhabi Sports HD 7 Everton v QPR Abu Dhabi Sports HD 4 Aston Villa v Blackburn Abu Dhabi Sports HD 5 Chelsea v West Brom Abu Dhabi Sports HD 3 Abu Dhabi Sports HD 5

14:00

of the European competitions.

Nevertheless, manager Kenny Dalglish knows much is expected of his players this term, not least because the club spent heavily in the transfer market over the summer. One new recruit was the former Newcastle full back Jose Enrique, who made it clear he had moved to Anfield because he felt the club could restore its reputation in Europe in double quick time.

“I’ve never played in the Champions League and it’s a dream for me,” he said.

“It’s very difficult to be there but if we play like we played in the first half against Sunderland I think we can be there.” Much will also depend on the Spaniard’s former Newcastle team-mate Andy Carroll, who cost £35 million in January. “For Newcastle he was brilliant,” Enrique added. “I know he was in the Premier League for just six months but he was brilliant. He is a really young player and has to learn a lot, like everyone.

But I think he can be really, really important for us.”—AFP

LONDON: Arsenal’s French manager Arsene Wenger (top) who is suspended from the touchline, sits in the stands before the Champions League qualifying playoff first leg soccer match between Arsenal and Udinese at the Emirates Stadium in this file photo. — AP

LONDON: UEFA opened disciplinary proceedings against Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger yesterday after he used a mobile phone to give instructions to his first-team coach during a match while serving a touchline ban. Wenger sat in the directors’ box during Tuesday’s 1-0 home win over Udinese in the first leg of their Champions League playoff, serving a one-match ban, and communicated with firstteam coach Boro Primorac via his phone.

“According to the UEFA disciplinary regulations, a manager may not communicate with his team during the match for which he is suspended and may follow the game from the stands only,” European soccer’s governing body said in a statement. Wenger, who said earlier this week he was confused by the rules, could now face a possible extension to his ban when the case is discussed on Monday. The Frenchman had said Arsenal had been told communication with the bench was allowed during the match but UEFA officials then ordered it to stop at halftime.

Wenger had been suspended for comments made about referee Massimo Busacca after last season’s Champions League last 16 second-leg defeat

by Barcelona.

Arsenal said on their website (www.arsenal.com) they would be appealing the UEFA decision, which comes before the Gunners head to Italy on Wednesday for the second leg of the playoff against Udinese.— Reuters

14:45

Celtic back Ki to steer title charge 17:00 17:00 17:00 19:30

GLASGOW: Neil Lennon has identified Ki Sung-Yeung as the man to help steer his side to Scottish Premier League glory after his blistering start to the new season. The South Korean midfielder joined the club in December 2009 and took time to settle at the Parkhead club. However, the 22-yearold ended last season on a high with a man-of-the-match performance as Celtic clinched the Scottish Cup against Motherwell and the playmaker has taken

that fine form into the new campaign Ki’s displays have been pivotal in the three straight league wins over Hibs, Aberdeen and Dundee United and now the rising star has his sights on St Johnstone at Parkhead tomorrow. And his manager is predicting big things for Ki, who netted his first goal of the season in the comprehensive defeat of Dundee United last weekend. “He is a real asset for the club now, a wonderful footballer,” Lennon said. “Ki has every-

thing you would want in the modern-day midfield player. He is six-foot-two, a fantastic athlete and very good on the ball under pressure. “He is good at passing, excellent with both feet and has a goal in him as we saw again last Saturday. We think he can turn out to be a world-class player.” Lukasz Zaluska, who started the season in goal for Celtic, could find himself warming the bench again after the club brought Fraser Forster back on loan.— FAP

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SPORTS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

India bowling prospect on fast-track to success NEW DELHI: As India cries out for a pace bowler to add some much-needed bite to its depleted attack, one man in the frame to become a future new ball spearhead believes speed alone cannot guarantee success. Mahendra Singh Dhoni may be Jharkhand’s most notable contribution to Indian cricket but Varun Aaron was able to share some of the skipper’s limelight earlier this year when he bowled what many believe to be the fastest delivery by an Indian.

The 21-year-old sent down a 153 kph delivery in the Vijay Hazare Trophy final and can consistently bowl at speeds rarely seen in a land starved of genuine pacemen, but Varun believes he has a lot more to his repertoire than just raw power. “Speed... okay, you got to bowl quick but it troubles international batsmen only to a certain extent.

After that, they adjust pretty easily,” Varun told Reuters in a telephone interview. “You got to have a few tricks up your sleeve and you got to bowl at a good line and length consistently to

get wickets.”

The youngster’s emergence comes at a time when England have not only stripped India of their test number one status but laid bare the frailties of the tourists’ pace attack in the ongoing four-match series. Varun would have plenty to admire from the home side’s formidable attack and had India not been robbed of lead paceman Zaheer Khan though injury, the battle may have been a more even one. “Fast bowling is something people pay to watch,” he added. “When a quick bowler is in good rhythm and is giving the batsman a torrid time, it’s fun to watch. At the end of the day, it’s what people want to watch.

“But even genuine fast bowlers have to have the right line and length.

Everybody assumes that if somebody is quick, he has got to bowl here and there. Former Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram is so convinced of Varun’s ability that he wants Indian selectors to fasttrack his path to the senior side. “If India think he should play domestic

No quick fix for Australia’s ills SYDNEY: The author of a far-reaching and hard-hitting review of Australian cricket said yesterday it will take 18 months to yield significant progress. But as a result of the report, which was seven months in the making, the chairman of selectors will become a full-time role, forcing out incumbent Andrew Hilditch. As national talent manager, Greg Chappell will no longer be a selector and national coach Tim Nielsen will have to re-apply and is likely to lose the job, given its expanded responsibilities.

Don Argus, the former chairman of BHP Billiton, said the report needed time to reap the most significant benefits. “It will take the best part of 18 months before you see the seeds of anything really changing,” Argus told reporters at the announcement of the report’s findings in Melbourne. “People will feel a lot better when the side starts to perform on the field, but hopefully this will take a lot of the side-pressures and other distractions away from the team.”Australia have slumped to fifth in the ICC Test rankings with Ricky Ponting standing down as Test skipper last March to be replaced by his deputy Michael Clarke.

Argus chaired a panel that included former Australian captains Allan Border, Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh and ex-Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive Malcolm Speed. The review was prompted by the disastrous home Ashes series earlier this year which Australia lost 3-1 to England. Among the immediate changes will be Captain Clarke and coach Nielsen to join a five-man national selection panel. CA will begin a search for a national performance manager, a newlycreated position, with the appointee overseeing the revamped selection panel and coaching setup. As a result of the review, the selectors will no longer report directly to the CA board, but be answerable to the new manager.

Hilditch, Chappell and Nielsen will all continue in their current jobs until the performance manager is appointed and the full-time national selector is in place. Argus said his panel hoped having the captain and coach as selectors will mean less angst among players. “Normally communication solves most insecurities - if we achieve that, it will be a huge step forward,” he said. CA chief executive James Sutherland indicated that Chappell may reconsider his job, now he will no longer be a selector.— AFP

cricket for two more seasons before being picked, they are wrong,” Akram wrote in a recent newspaper column, speaking from first-hand experience of working with Varun as his bowling coach at the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL. Further evidence of Varun’s maturity is revealed when he talks of aggression. “I’m a big fan of the great West Indian bowler Andy Roberts because he was an intimidating bowler. A fast bowler has to be aggressive, no doubt about that,” he said. “You should have the adrenalin going on and off but if you are aggressive all the time, I don’t think that helps. You often stray from your plan.

“At times I do get aggressive, it all depends on the conditions. If a batsman hits you, you are angry and you try to bounce him out. But if the pitch is flat and slow, it would not work and he would slap you for another four.”

Varun’s measured approach is hardly surprising for someone tutored by two of the best possible bowling gurus. “I

have been a trainee and now an employee at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai and learnt a lot from (Australian bowling great) Dennis (Lillee) and (former Indian pacer) T A Sekar about my bowling action. “They taught me how important my bowling action is to my bowling well and bowling quick without getting injured.

“If I’m having an ache or a pain now, I can immediately see my action and find for myself if I’m going wrong anywhere. It’s much easier now. “At Kolkata Knight Riders, Wasim Akram shared a lot of experience and how important it was not only to train (in the gym) but also to keep bowling.

And of course he taught me a thing or two about reverse swing.” Varun appears to be taking the sudden attention he has generated in his stride but is ready to wait his dream of winning a test cap. “I follow the same routine,” he added. “I just try and perform wherever I get a chance and whenever they have to pick me, they’ll pick me. It’s not in my control after all.”— Reuters

Pakistani board clears Malik in integrity case KARACHI: Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik has been cleared of wrongdoing in an integrity investigation and can be considered for international selection again, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said yesterday. Malik had been under scrutiny since December as the PCB’s integrity committee sought clarification from him about deposits in his foreign bank accounts.

“Shoaib Malik was directed to provide complete information supported with relevant documents regarding the source of the said deposits, which he did provide,” a PCB statement said. “The committee reviewed all the material in detail and also verified the veracity of the said information from relevant authorities.

“The integrity committee after detailed deliberations has unanimously reached the conclusion that prima facie Shoaib Malik has been able to establish that the said deposits in this overseas account did not emanate from any questionable source or activity,” the statement added. “As against that no incriminating material to the contrary was available on the record hence Shoaib Malik is hereby cleared by the integrity committee.”

The 29-year-old Malik, who has played 32 tests and 192 one-day internationals, last played for Pakistan in England last year. The allrounder has been named among the reserves for Pakistan’s coming tour to Zimbabwe and chief selector Mohsin Khan said the selectors would soon decide if he should be considered for the main team. “He is now cleared by the board and being a senior player who has done well in domestic cricket is a serious contender for a comeback to the team,” Khan said.

Malik, who led Pakistan between 2007 and 2009 before being stripped of the captaincy on disciplinary grounds, said he was delighted to clear his name. “It has been a very hard few months for me because not playing for Pakistan was a huge gap in my life. But it is great to be cleared and hopefully now I can start focusing on my comeback,” he said. The committee has yet to rule on a similar case involving test leg-spinner Danish Kaneria.—Reuters

Former Pakistani cricket captain Shoaib Malik

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

sports

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

China-US ‘friendly’ erupts into brawl BEIJING: As US Vice President Joe Biden built trust with China in Beijing’s corridors of power, goodwill between the two nations unraveled Thursday night on a nearby basketball court, where players traded kicks and punches and even a chair was thrown. A “friendship” game between Washington’s Georgetown Hoyas and Chinese professional side the Bayi Military Rockets erupted into a brawl as the match wound down at Beijing’s Olympic Stadium. It was unclear what triggered the fighting.

Players exchanged blows, someone in the crowd flung a chair, and fans tossed full water bottles at the Hoyas players and coaches as they headed to the locker room, writing off the rest of the game. In China, state media did not report on the incident and microblogs were mostly silent as censors worked quickly to delete any references to the fight.

“Even the news about the fight between the Chinese and US basketball teams needs to be cut,” said a microblogger named Yinnu. The brawl broke out one night after Biden, who is in Beijing on a four-day visit to discuss US-Chinese economic relations, attended a Georgetown game against another Chinese club. That game, which Georgetown won, passed without a fist fight. The games are part of a “China-US Basketball Friendship Match” in Beijing, according to the Washington Post. The Hoyas were on a 10-day trip in China, including other scheduled matches in Shanghai.

Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai told reporters at a briefing that the fist fight was a “small incident”. “But it is my understanding that this morning the skies have cleared,” he said. “The two sides have made up.” Cui said the Chinese side had gone to the airport to send off the American team, adding that “we’re happy to see this” and that both teams had exchanged mementoes. The Bayi Rockets is a professional basketball team associated with China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The name “Bayi” refers to August 1, 1927, the founding date of the PLA. GOODWILL ‘GONE’ Just as many of China’s Asian neighbours say its increasing aggression is to blame for trouble in the South China Sea, some Hoyas fans took to Twitter to accuse the Chinese team of starting the tussle. “All that goodwill Yao Ming garnered for Chinese people in USA, GONE,” tweeted a person with the username of JAIMECITOU, referring to the recently retired Chinese basketball star.

“Not first time Chinese Team fought on court ...

Disgrace.”Another user called cgallaher3 said: “All out brawl at a basketball game in China. This is why the NBA won’t expand there.” After an estimated half-dozen individual altercations on the court, some Chinese onlookers joined the fracas, the Washington Post reported late on Thursday.

As the brawl spilled beyond the court, an unidentified Bayi player pushed Georgetown’s Aaron Bowen to the ground before repeatedly punching the sophomore guard while sitting on his chest, the paper said.

“Tonight, two great teams played a very competitive game that unfortunately ended after heated exchanges with both teams,” coach John Thompson III said in a statement on Georgetown’s website. “We sincerely regret that this situation occurred.” “We remain grateful for the opportunity our student-athletes are having to engage in a sport they love here in China, while strengthening their understanding of a nation we respect and admire at Georgetown University.” Biden’s office declined to comment and calls to the China Basketball Association went unanswered.

A staff member from the news office from China’s General Administration of Sports told Reuters: “I personally heard about it this morning when I surfed the Internet, but our office leaders are on a business trip, so we have no comments and any information to publish so far.”— Reuters

Du Preez: NZ match almost a do-or-die for Springboks

BEIJING: Players of the Georgetown University men’s basketball team and China’s Bayi Rockets fight during their exhibition game in Beijing, China. — AP

World champion Mullings confirms positive drug test KINGSTON: World champion Steve Mullings has confirmed he has tested positive for the banned diuretic furosemide and could now face a life ban from athletics. Mullings, who won gold in the 4x100 relay team at Berlin in 2009, had tested positive for the substance at the Jamaican national trials in June, and was left off the country’s team for the Aug. 27Sept. 4 world championships in Daegu when it was named on Monday. The ‘B’ sample, which was tested in Montreal, had also come back positive and he was informed of the result by the Jamaica Anti-doping Commission (JADCO) on Thursday, a distraught Mullings told Reuters by telephone from his home in Florida. “They say it was in my urine. That’s a drug that has to be prescribed,” Mullings said.

“The people around me know I don’t take drugs, but it’s going to look bad on me because 2004, now it’s 2011 they said I was on drugs that I don’t even know of. “What (does) that drug really do? I really don’t

know,” added Mullings, who lowered his personal best for 100 meters to 9.80 seconds at the Eugene Diamond League meeting on June 4. Furosemide is on the World Anti-doping Agency’s banned list because it could be used as a possible masking agent for other drugs. The Jamaican 200 meters champion now faces a possible life ban from the sport after he was banned for two years in 2004 for excessive levels of testosterone.

Mullings said he was uncertain whether he would ask for a hearing. “What can I do?

I’m going to go in front of the panel and say I never took the drug. But I don’t have the proof to say, ‘ok, it was vitamins’. “I’ve already gone through all my vitamins and there’s nothing in there,” Mullings said. Mullings had been notified by JADCO on Aug. 8 that his initial sample returned an adverse analytical finding at Jamaica’s national trial on June 24.

He now has 14 days to formally request a hearing from the Jamaica Anti-doping Disciplinary Panel.— Reuters

PORT ELIZABETH: South Africa’s final TriNations game against an under-strength New Zealand is “almost do-or-die” for the struggling world champion Springboks, says scrumhalf Fourie du Preez. A desperate South Africa is still without a win this season ahead of its world title defense and faces a string of quality fringe All Blacks in Port Elizabeth today - the Boks’ last chance for a morale-boosting victory before the World Cup. The Springboks have never gone winless through a Tri-Nations, and defeat to the All Blacks’ second-stringers would pile more embarrassment on a humbling campaign. A South Africa without 20 injured frontliners was thumped in Australia and New Zealand, but when the best players were available last weekend, the most experienced Boks side ever lost to the Wallabies in Durban.

“It is true to say that things have not gone exactly to plan for us but hopefully today we can show the improvements we are looking for,” said Du Preez. “We need to perform a whole lot better and get a win now. “I’m not saying this is a do-or-die test for us, but for the sake of doing well at the World Cup it is almost like that. It’s true that beating the All Blacks today would bring back a lot of the confidence.” South Africa’s search for a much-needed win has also overshadowed the final home test for two of its greatest players and mainstays of the last eight years.

World Cup-winning captain John Smit and deputy Victor Matfield will retire from internationals after rugby’s showpiece in New Zealand. Du Preez is also likely to end his Boks career following the tournament. But it’s South Africa’s poor form that has dominated the buildup to the home farewell for 100-test veterans Matfield and Smit. Matfield will stand in as skipper for Smit today, with the front-rower starting on the bench at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. “We need to win, and that’s what we’ll set out to do,” said Matfield. “The winning is important for many reasons; it will give us confidence and it will bring a greater sense of belief in us from the people in this country. We have huge motivation.”

New Zealand is trying out a big batch of World Cup hopefuls in its last match before finalizing its World Cup squad, and they’re determined to strike a telling psychological blow on their biggest rival. The All Blacks made 11 changes after a 30-14 win over Australia two weeks ago, giving fullback Israel Dagg, wing Isaia Toeava, center Richard Kahui and prop Tony Woodcock one game to prove themselves ahead of Tuesday’s World Cup squad announcement.

South Africa dropped captain Smit to the bench amid five changes after its home loss to Australia - a third straight defeat this year for the off-form world champions. While New Zealand has the luxury of leaving captain Richie McCaw, flyhalf Daniel Carter and other senior players at home, the Springboks are still searching for their best World Cup combination, and will play a third different flyhalf in as many games when Morne Steyn returns at No 10.

Dagg leads the group of New Zealand hopefuls, playing his first test of the season after a right thigh injury threatened his World Cup chances. —AP

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SPORTS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

MLB results/standings Major League Baseball results and standings on Thursday.

LA Dodgers 5, Milwaukee 1; Washington 3, Cincinnati 1; Philadelphia 4, Arizona 1; Atlanta 1, San Francisco 0; Cleveland 4, Chicago White Sox 2; Boston 4, Kansas City 3; NY Yankees 8, Minnesota 4; San Diego 3, Florida 1; LA Angels 2, Texas 1; Toronto 7, Oakland 0.

American League Eastern Division W L PCT GB NY Yankees 75 47 .615 Boston 75 48 .610 .5 Tampa Bay 66 56 .541 9 Toronto 64 60 .516 12 Baltimore 47 74 .388 27.5 Central Division Detroit 65 58 .528 Cleveland 62 58 .517 1.5 Chicago White Sox 61 62 .496 4 Minnesota 54 69 .439 11 Kansas City 51 74 .408 15 Western Division Texas 72 53 .576 LA Angels 66 59 .528 6 Oakland 55 69 .444 16.5 Seattle 53 69 .434 17.5 National League Eastern Division Philadelphia 80 42 .656 Atlanta 73 52 .584 8.5 NY Mets 60 63 .488 20.5 Washington 59 63 .484 21 Florida 57 67 .460 24 Central Division Milwaukee 73 52 .584 St. Louis 66 58 .532 6.5 Cincinnati 60 64 .484 12.5 Pittsburgh 58 64 .475 13.5 Chicago Cubs 54 70 .435 18.5 Houston 40 84 .323 32.5 Western Division Arizona 69 55 .556 San Francisco 67 58 .536 2.5 Colorado 58 67 .464 11.5 LA Dodgers 56 67 .455 12.5 San Diego 56 70 .444 14

Trumbo homer lifts Angels over Rangers ANAHEIM: Los Angeles rookie Mark Trumbo hit a game-ending two-run homer as the Angels beat Texas 2-1 to avoid a four-game sweep and claw back one game on the Rangers in the American League West race. Torii Hunter led off the ninth inning with a single, then Trumbo hit his 23rd homer of the season off Mike Adams (1-2) to end it, snapping the Angels’ fivegame skid and ending Texas’ sixgame winning streak with one dramatic swing. Horacio Ramirez (1-0) got one out in the ninth for Los Angeles, which moved within six games of West-leading Texas.

Yankees 8, Twins 4 In Minneapolis, New York hit three more home runs to add to its major-league leading total and overpower Minnesota. Mark Teixeira hit his 33rd homer of the season - a two-run shot in the third inning - and Nick Swisher and Andruw Jones hit back-to-back deep balls in the fifth inning against Twins pitcher Brian Duensing (8-12). New York starter CC Sabathia (17-7) gave up three earned runs over seven innings, struck out nine and walked only

one. The Yankees stayed half a game ahead of Boston in the AL East race.

Red Sox 4, Royals 3 In Kansas City, Dustin Pedroia drove in three runs with a pair of well-timed singles as Boston edged Kansas City. Jason Varitek drove in the other Red Sox run while starting pitcher Josh Beckett survived a shaky start to go seven innings.

Beckett (10-5) allowed all three Royals runs in the first three innings and improved to 7-1 in his career against them. Jonathan Papelbon made it through a perfect ninth to extend his career-best streak to 24 consecutive saves. It was his 29th of the season. Kansas City starter Luke Hochevar (8-10) labored through 114 pitches in just six innings.

Indians 4, White Sox 2 In Chicago, Cleveland edged closer to the top of the tight AL Central race by downing Chicago.

Kosuke Fukudome had a tiebreaking RBI single and Matt LaPorta hit a two-run homer for the Indians, who moved within 1-1/2 games of idle Detroit for the division lead.

The Tribe opened a three-game

series at Detroit yesterday.

Cleveland starter Justin Masterson (10-7) pitched six effective inning, allowing two runs. The White Sox lost starter Phil Humber on a scary play in the second inning. He was struck in the face by Fukudome’s line drive, fell to the ground but stood up immediately and appeared to be alert. However he was soon removed on the advice of medical staff.

Blue Jays 7, Athletics 0 In Oakland, Ricky Romero pitched a shutout to extend his career-high winning streak to five games and lead Toronto past Oakland. Romero (12-9) struck out six while recording his second shutout this season and third of his career. Colby Rasmus homered and scored three times, Edwin Encarnacion and Brett Lawrie had RBI singles, while Jose Bautista doubled and scored in the fourth when Toronto scored three times off Oakland starter Trevor Cahill to break the game open. Cahill (9-12) allowed seven runs over 5 1-3 innings. Since beginning the season 6-0, Cahill is 3-12 with a 5.30 ERA.— AP

Phillies clinch series win PHILADELPHIA: The Philadelphia Phillies won 4-1 on Thursday to complete a series win over the Arizona Diamondbacks, taking a psychological edge in a clash of two teams that could well meet in a National League playoff series. John Mayberry Jr hit a two-run homer for the Phillies, who took two of three games in the meeting of NL divisional leaders, and have a 14-1-1 record in their past 16 series. A thunderstorm delayed the game for 2 hours, 17 minutes after three innings. Neither starting pitcher returned when play resumed.

Philadelphia reliever David Herndon (1-2) struck out four over three scoreless innings to earn just his second career win. Arizona starter Ian Kennedy (154) gave up three runs in three innings, ending a run of winning his previous seven starts. The Diamondbacks remained 2-1/2 games ahead of San Francisco in the West division.

Braves 1, Giants 0 In Atlanta, Mike Minor pitched six scoreless innings to outduel San Francisco ace Tim Lincecum and guide Atlanta to victory. The Braves appeared to be at a distinct disadvantage with Minor, filling in for the injured Tommy Hanson, going up against the two-time NL Cy Young Award winner Lincecum.

But Minor (3-2) pitched brilliantly, striking out a season-high nine. Lincecum (11-10) was no slouch, surrendering one run in seven innings with seven strikeouts. He made one big mistake, serving up a high fastball to Chipper Jones leading off the fifth, and the Braves veteran sent a drive soaring into the right-field seats. Atlanta closer Craig Kimbrel struck out two in a perfect ninth for his 37th save in 42 chances, breaking a tie with Todd Worrell for the most saves by an NL rookie since 1969.

Dodgers 5, Brewers 1 In Milwaukee, Clayton Kershaw throttled streaking Milwaukee with eight scoreless innings, leading Los Angeles to victory. The NL Central-leading Brewers came in winners of 19 of 21 and were looking to complete a 7-0 homestand. But Kershaw (155) was tremendous, retiring 13 of his final 14 batters and never facing serious trouble after the third inning. Rod Barajas hit a solo homer in the second, and the Dodgers built a 5-0 lead by scoring twice in the seventh and two more in the eighth; the first runs allowed by Milwaukee’s bullpen in the past 10 games. Brewers starter Marco Estrada (3-8) allowed three hits in five innings.

Nationals 3, Reds 1 In Washington, Jonny Gomes hit a two-run single that led Washington to victory over his old team Cincinnati. Nationals catcher Jesus Flores also had his first home run in more than two years.

Washington starter Jordan Zimmermann (8-10) pitched 6-2/3 scoreless innings. Reds starter Bronson Arroyo (7-10) got the loss.

Padres 3, Marlins 1 In San Diego, Tim Stauffer tossed seven strong innings to rebound from his worst start of the season and lead San Diego over Florida. Stauffer (8-9) allowed one run, struck out five and walked one in his first outing since he yielded five homers in just three innings against Cincinnati. Jesus Guzman drove in two runs for the Padres. Marlins starter Javier Vasquez (7-11) allowed three runs in six innings and took the loss despite retiring his last 14 batters.— AP

PHILADELPHIA: Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Ian Kennedy (left) collides with Ryan Roberts as he catches a fly ball in the second inning of a baseball game on Thursday, Aug 18, 2011. — AP

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

SPORTS

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

Miyazato aims for back-to-back wins PORTLAND: Japan’s Ai Miyazato will be chasing backto-back titles at the LPGA Tour’s Safeway Classic which began yesterday and features 29 of the top 30 players.

The 26-year-old from Okinawa is back to defend her 2010 title but she will have some stiff competition from reigning British Open champ Tseng Yani, Norway’s Suzann Pettersen and last year’s runner-up Cristie Kerr.

Miyazato held off Kerr and Choi Na-yeon to win by two shots in last year’s final round of the 54-hole tournament at the Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club’s Ghost Creek Course.

This year’s field includes 29 of the top 30 on the money list and the top five ranked players in the world who will be battling for $225,000 in first place prize money.

Miyazato comes into the Portland event playing some of her best golf of the year. Last month she posted her first win of 2011 by capturing the Evian Masters. She finished tied for sixth at the recent US Women’s Open at The Broadmoor course in Colorado. “To be honest, the win at Evian was really an exciting moment because I kind of struggled a little bit in the beginning of this season because of the earthquake in Japan,” Miyazato said.

“It was really tough to focus on my game because I went to Sendai for high school, so I know a lot of people over there and many friends still live in Sendai. So I care about them,” she said, referring to one of the hardest-hit cities. “But since I played at the US Women’s Open, I feel like I’m kind of getting back everything, and I’m starting to feel really well with my game. So I kind of take a little step by step to Evian, but then I was really happy that I could win this year.” Miyazato is not the only golfer in the 150-player field who is dealing with tragedy in her homeland.

Following the British Open, Pettersen returned to Norway to take part in the healing process after the horrific attacks on July 22 left 77 people dead. “The incredible thing is just how everyone’s kind of worked around this together. Everyone’s just been supporting each other,” she said. “I mean, you heard stories of people who survived. It’s just dreadful, to be honest, to hear the stories. You get goose bumps.” World number one Tseng, of Taiwan, won this year’s British Open for her fifth career major. Tseng, 22, is the youngest golfer in history to win five majors.

Kerr, who won this event three years ago and tied for second last year, is still looking for her first win this season. “I’ve worked really hard on my game and I’ve been close a number of times. Even at the end of last year I was close to winning again,” Kerr said. “So it’s not a good feeling not to have any wins on the board at this point in the season, but I still have 10 or 12 events left, and I have to focus all my energy on getting that win.” Former winners at this event include Annika Sorenstam, Nancy Lopez, Betsy King, Amy Alcott and Donna Caponi. — AFP

GREENSBORO: Tommy Gainey watches his shot from a sand trap on the 15th hole during the first round of the Wyndham Championship golf tournament in Greensboro, NC. — AP

Gainey and Quinney share lead at Wyndham GREENSBORO: Jeff Quinney, who is playing in just his 11th tournament of the year, fired a seven-under 63 to grab a share of the lead after Thursday’s first round of the Wyndham Championship. The 32-year old Quinney is tied with fellow American Tom Gainey after the opening round of the final tournament before the start of the PGA Tour’s playoffs. The top 125 players in FedEx Cup points standings are eligible for the playoffs. Quinney currently sits in 215th place and needs a win in Greensboro to gets into the post-season.

“The only chance I get in the playoffs is probably winning this week,’” Quinney said. “Basically, just push all your chips in, and this is what I got.” Quinney, who is chasing his first PGA Tour win, rolled in eight birdies, including five in a row early in his round. Gainey had five birdies and an eagle in equaling his career-best round. Australia’s Stuart Appleby is alone in third after shooting a seven-under 64.

South African Ernie Els, England’s Paul Casey, Fiji’s Vijay Singh and Carl Pettersson of Sweden are part of a group of 10 players tied at 65. Quinney started and finished strong as his approach shot on his final hole of the day landed just three

feet from the cup for a birdie. Starting on the back nine, he birdied four straight holes beginning with No. 12 but gave one shot back with a bogey on the 18th. “It’s my last chance, and don’t hold back, try to get out of my own way,” Quinney said.

Gainey had four birdies and an eagle on his front nine. One of his biggest problems of the day came on No. 15 when he landed in the water off the tee but he still managed to par the hole. “I hit it terrible off the tee, hit my irons really good, made a lot of putts, but I left quite a few shots out there, so I’ve got to definitely work on the tee ball here, because it’s starting to really frustrate me,” Gainey said. “Any time you play and shoot 63, it’s a good day.” Els, who sits at No 126 in the standings, needs a strong showing this week as he is on the bubble of making the playoffs. “I said to the guys, ‘My playoffs started this week. If I don’t play well this week, I’m not advancing,’” said Els. “Most of the other guys have four playoff events. I have five. I feel like I need to do well (to go to) The Barclays and keep going. It’s hard not to think about it. There’s quite a bit of pressure on us guys lower down the field. We need to perform well.” — AFP

Premier League draws 750,000 visitors a year LONDON: The lure of the Premier League has brought many of the world’s biggest names to play football in England-and it also draws huge numbers of fans from abroad to watch it. More than 750,000 visitors to Britain attended a match last year according to figures from national tourism agency VisitBritain, underlining the global appeal of English football. In the process they provided a boost to the British economy, with all those visitors who watched a match spending a combined 595 million pounds (979.6 million). Those visitors who watched a football match spent 776 pounds ($1,277.6) on average-rather more than the 563 pounds ($926.9) spent on average by incoming visitors.

Given the long-standing popularity

of English football in Scandinavia, it is little surprise to note that visitors from Norway are most likely to come to watch Premier League football - one in 13 Norwegian tourists arrive specifically to attend matches. Second on the list are visitors from the United Arab Emirates-a number that may grow given that country’s links with Manchester City, the club owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan and sponsored by Etihad, the national airline of Abu Dhabi.

Around 40 percent of those who attended a match said that watching sport was the main reason for visiting the UK. The research suggests that football helps draw visitors during quiet times of the year, with the greatest proportion of inbound visitors going to

a match between January and March.

Of those who come to Britain to see family and friends, those most likely to take in a football match are from Japan, China and Australia. As for business visitors, it is those from Norway who take in most matches.

MOST POPULAR The most popular grounds for foreign visitors are Old Trafford, Anfield and the Emirates Stadium. Premier League football is broadcast live in 212 territories around the world and the British tourist authorities are doing their utmost to exploit the popularity of the self-styled ‘home of football’.

VisitBritain launched this year a dedicated Premier League section on its website which features interviews with

international Premier League players on what they most like about living in Britain, as well as recommendations on what visitors should see and do in the country. Patricia Yates, Director of Strategy & Communication at VisitBritain said: “Not only do some of the best players in the world want to play in Britain, but their international fans want to follow them here to savour the atmosphere of a match.” Thankfully VisitBritain did not enlist the help of Carlos Tevez, the Manchester Citybased Argentina striker who was highly critical of the place when speaking on a TV chat show in his home country in June. Asked what was wrong with Manchester, Tevez, who is keen to leave the club, said: “The weather, everything.

It has nothing.” — Reuters

A

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

y

e niv rsar n

Sports Years

U-20 finals: Brazil, Portugal face off

41

OHIO: Maria Sharapova, from Russia, hits a volley during a match against Svetlana Kuznetsova, from Russia, at the Western & Southern Open tennis in Mason, Ohio. Sharapova won 6-2, 6-3. — AP

Grand slam champs crash in Cincinnati Li beaten by Stosur again; Sharapova through MASON: The Cincinnati Open claimed two more high-profile victims on Thursday with grand slam champions Li Na and Petra Kvitova crashing out, while Russian pair Maria Sharapova and Vera Zvonareva crunched their opponents en route to the quarter-finals. A day after world number one Caroline Wozniacki, star attraction Serena Williams and third seed Victoria Azarenka exited the tournament in defeat or through injury, French Open winner Li tumbled with a 6-4 3-6 64 loss to Samantha Stosur. Li, China’s first grand slam singles winner, was also beaten last week in Toronto by the Australian, who will meet Sharapova in the last eight.

Stosur is hitting a good run of form in the runup to the US Open, where she reached the quarter-finals last year. “It would be the biggest title I’ve ever won,” the 10th seed told reporters. “It would be fantastic but there is still a fair way to go before that can happen. “I guess making the final last week gives me good confidence going into this week,” added the 10th seed, who was runner-up in Toronto. Wimbledon champion Kvitova fell to emerging German talent Andrea Petkovic, ranked 11th in the world, who enjoyed a 6-3 6-3 win in front of a smattering of fans on an outside court.

At the same time, on center court, Sharapova was making quick work of compatriot Svetlana Kuznetsova in a 6-2 6-3 victory. “I felt really good considering I was playing a pretty tough opponent,” said Sharapova. “We’ve had really tough matches in the past, usually three setters. So it was quite nice to get that win in two. “She’s someone who has a tremendous amount of experience and is a really solid player, always dangerous.”

World number two Zvonareva crunched Croatian qualifier Petra Martic 6-2 6-2 and will face Slovak Daniela Hantuchova, who beat France’s eighth-seeded Marion Bartoli 6-3 5-7 63.. Another Russian, Nadia Petrova, enjoyed a 6-3 6-3 victory over American teenager Christine McHale, who upset top seed Wozniacki in the second round. Serbia’s Jelena Jankovic twice failed to serve for the match but finally prevailed over Italy’s Francesca Schiavone 6-3 5-7 6-4.

Jankovic looked in charge in the second set but allowed the Italian back into the encounter and yet the Serb recovered to go 5-1 up in the third, only for her focus to slip again. “That took a lot out of me mentally and physically,” said the Serb.

Jankovic will face China’s Peng Shuai, who beat Israeli Shahar Peer in straight sets. — Reuters

Nadal scrapes into quarters MASON: World number two Rafa Nadal scraped into the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Open after beating fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 7-6 6-7 7-6 in a fierce battle on Thursday but his rivals all had comfortable paths into the last eight.

Seven of the top eight seeds have reached the quarter-finals with world number one Novak Djokovic and rivals Roger Federer and Andy Murray having little trouble.

The all-Spanish contest though was a grueling grind in the mid-day heat that lasted three hours and 38 minutes and was decided by a mistake-filled third tie-break. It was just the fifth time in 635 matches that Nadal has played in a three tie-break game but he has won on all five occasions. Nadal, who gave up three match points in the decisive tie-break, stuck with the task to finish off a determined Verdasco despite never finding his rhythm. While it was as close as could be, the game lacked the expected

quality as Nadal made 41 unforced errors and Verdasco 59 while the world number two managed only 24 winners. “Probably I had a little bit fewer mistakes than him when the match was close. It’s true he was playing more spectacular points than my ones but I think I played with less mistake than him at the end,” said Nadal. Nadal will face Mardy Fish in the quarter-finals after the American beat France’s Richard Gasquet 7-5 7-5 . World number one Djokovic took his season record to 55-1 with a straightforward 6-3 6-3 win over Czech Radek Stepanek. Djokovic showed some signs of weariness and conceded that it was a game he needed to push himself through. “There are days like this where you don’t feel like playing. But I hate losing, so I need to win and that is what motivates me on the court,” he said. Britain’s Andy Murray had a relatively comfortable 6-2 7-5 win over American qualifier Alex Bogomolov.—Reuters