December 24th, 2015 by The Morung Express

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www.morungexpress.com

ThursDAY • December 24 • 2015

DIMAPUR • Vol. X • Issue 350 • 12 PAGes • 4

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T R u T H

Christmas is the day that holds all time together — Alexander Smith Some heed to Pope Francis’s call to succour refugees, others look away PAGe 09

National Anganwadi Workers award conferred PAGe 02

Bryant leads Lakers past Nuggets PAGE 12

tHe DWinDlinG forest coVer NSCN (IM) affirms position Morung Express News Dimapur | December 23

As the role of tropical forests, or what’s left of it, becomes more crucial in the reduction of atmospheric carbon, a fresh report from the India State of Forest Report 2015 on the decrease of 628 sq km forest cover in the North East region of India is more than a cause for worry. According to the report there has been a net decline of 628 sq km in the forest cover since 2013 in the North East. The loss is more than the total area of Mumbai city. This alarming report released by the Environment and Forest Minister Prakash Javadekar comes at a time when nearly 200 nations across the world approved a first-of-its-kind universal agreement to wean Earth off fossil fuels and slow global warming at the recently held Paris Climate Change conference. Dangerous trend According to current assessment, the total forest cover in the North East is 171,964 sq km, which is 65.59 per cent of its total geographical area, in comparison to the national forest cover of 21.34 per cent. Very dense, moderately dense and open forest cover constitutes 14.81 per cent, 43.85 per cent and 41.34 per cent, respectively, the report said. The main reason for this decrease is attributed to the biotic pressure and shifting cultivation in the region. Among the NE States, Mizoram has recorded the highest decrease in forest of 307 sq km, followed by Nagaland (– 78 sq km), Arunachal Pradesh (–73 sq km), Tripura (– 55 sq km),

reflections

By Sandemo Ngullie

India State of Forest Report 2015 reveals woodlands of the North East region has decreased by 628 sq km – more than the size of Mumbai city – in a span of 2 years

Trucks loaded with timber on their way to Dimapur from Peren district of Nagaland. A report from the India State of Forest reveals that there has been a net decline of 628 sq km in the forest cover since 2013 in the North East. (Morung File Photo)

while Sikkim recorded a forest cover loss of 1 sq km. On the other hand, nationwide, the forest cover has increased by 3,775 sq km as compared to 2013 assessment, the report said. Why NE region matters A recent study published in the journal - Nature Climate Change - said tropical forests can be the bridge to this transition by causing uptake of atmospheric carbon, provided, astute forest management combined with fossil fuel use reduction are effected in a speedy manner. The study is especially significant because forest management can be much more easily and quickly implemented than development of alternate renewable energy technologies and would account for much of the reduction in atmospheric carbon until reliable and efficient renewable energy technologies are put in place.

The forest of North East region is known around the world for their rich biodiversity and dramatic scenery. It has been identified as one of the 18 biodiversity hot spots of the world. The region is broadly classified as six major forest types: Tropical moist deciduous forest, tropical semi evergreen, tropical wet evergreen, subtropical, temperature and Alpine. Largely closed to the outside world for the last fifty years, in recent decades, deforestation and watershed deterioration has progressed rapidly due to land clearing by migrants and local people and high timber demand from Bangladesh and urban centers in India. Illegal logging and forest clearing is made easier where tenurial rights to forest are weak and unclear. According to a paper on the ‘Forest sector review of North East India,’ the watersheds of the region are

critical catchment that regulates hydrological flows to some of the world’s most densely populated agricultural land and cities, including nearly 250 million people in Bangladesh and eastern India. An intensive scientific study by India’s North East Climate Change Adaptation Programme (NECCAP) in 2012 confirmed that the region is suffering from the impacts of climate change and the impact on people, fields and livestock is devastating and set to get worse. Due to its unique location and topography, the study found the region has distinct precipitation and drainage patterns. From March to May, thunderstorms contribute about 20 % of annual rainfall. From June to September, monsoon rains supply another 70 %. The monsoon season is marked by frequent floods, as melting Himalayan snow and tor-

rential rains feed the Brahmaputra River. Because of climate change, moreover, rainfall is becoming more unpredictable and erratic, it stated. Adaptation measures The study also provided adaptation measures depending on specific circumstance and varying significantly from state to state and district to district: • In Assam, the main focus is on flood protection in the plains. Moreover, climate change necessitates preventing erosion and improving water-resources management in higher altitudes. • Nagaland, Meghalaya and Mizoram are higher elevated, and their emphasis is on improving the prevailing agricultural practice. This is a shifting cultivation system called “jhum”, according to which plots are used for a while but then abandoned again so they can recover. Another focus will be on conservation of community forests with high biodiversity. • In Sikkim, the main emphasis will be on the prevention of erosion and the protection and development of springs. Reduced rainfall is making it harder to provide households with safe drinking water, at least in valleys in the shadow of the monsoon. More than ever, the India State of Forest Report 2015 on the declining forest cover is an earnest reminder on the urgent need for actions that promote the conservation and sustainable use of the region’s endangered forest and watersheds.

on Naga Political Issue Says that it “is bound to go for a kind of solution, which is transitional to the final goal” DIMAPUR, DECEMBER 23 (MExN): The NSCN (IM) today declared that “this is the era of the Nagas the good Lord has given...Come one and all. We welcome you all. Together we will build our nation.” A press note from the Joint Council of the NSCN (IM), issued through the MIP affirmed its position with regard to the invitation extended for a unified approach to the Naga solution issued by Chairman Isak Chishi Swu. It recalled Swu’s appeal to all people to “forgive our (NSCN) past mistakes, (as) we have also forgiven their past mistakes, big or small.” It asserted that the Framework Agreement is “based on the uniqueness of Naga history, which means Nagas are a free people and they have never been a part of Union of India or Burma or any other power either by conquest or consent.” It further stated: “both parties agreed that sovereignty, according to universal principle of democracy, lies with the people, not government or monarch. And that sovereignty of Nagas lies with Naga people and sovereignty of India lies with Indian people.” However, it added that both parties agreed to share sovereign power for an enduring and peaceful co-existence. The Agreement also says that land and its resources totally belong to Nagas, it stated. It further said that Nagas will have right to exercise sovereign power over their territories. While stressing that “our identity needs to be recognized,” the NSCN (IM) cautioned: “otherwise we will always be exposed to the danger of assimilation, aggression and annexation by any states.” The Government of India, it said, has now recognized the unique identity of the Nagas, which it termed as a “bold step forward.” “Nothing on earth stays put and everything is transitional. People and nations are also transitional,” it stated, while affirming the principle of “growing and walking with time and tide.” It stated that

the NSCN (IM), as dictated by objective reality, is bound to go for a solution, which is transitional to the final goal. “We do not believe in the myth of solving problem through unprincipled consensus. Solution of the kind of national political issue is by nature, principle-based, not majority-based. One should be fully informed of the political line of one’s people. All Nagas should unite in the line of the people, which is their rallying point,” it stated. It recalled how the Nagas were placed in a perilous situation “when NNC had failed to uphold the national trust by signing the infamous Shillong Accord in 1975.” “The wheel of history cannot be pulled back or stopped by any force. The Nagas too have to move forward along with the moving world,” it stated, while asserting that “no one should doubt about it that NSCN is the embodiment of the Naga national trust inasmuch as NSCN is built upon the rock of national decision.” It also cautioned Nagas to be aware of groups or individuals “propagating hypocritical slogans and high sounding phrase with no foundation whatsoever.” “We are very much clear with regard to the road map for the final solution of the Indo-Naga issue. The agreement arrived at between the two parties (India and Nagas) will constitute the final political settlement that is acceptable and honourable to both India and the Nagas,” it said. The NSCN (IM) stated that “as mandated by the people NSCN has been faithfully working for the cause with total dedication till date. It put up tough resistance against the aggressors with conviction and courage when situation demanded.” It assured that the political settlement “shall not come via any other route including pre-conditions or the Constitution of India,” while claiming that “there is no other peace process or political negotiation outside the present one between the GoI and the NSCN, in which the process had started at the highest level, without pre-condition and outside India in a third country and consequently, the GoI recognized the unique history and situation of the Nagas and a Framework Agreement was arrived at.”

nnc cadre killed Our Correspondent Imphal | December 23

An NNC cadre was killed in an encounter with the Indian Army at the Khoupum area of Tamenglong district on Wednesday morning. The shootout occurred at Luwangkhulen Part-I under Khoupum Police Station around 10:30 am, according to a police report which added that the cadre was killed when personnel of 8 Gorkha Rifles (GR) exchanged fire with a combined team of What do you need money NSCN (K) and Naga Nationfor? Your friends will supply al Council (NNC). The slain NNC cadre you the booze...

has been identified as Thaimei Kanamsoi, 40, resident of Luwangkhulen Part-II of Tamenglong. According to police, the 8 GR team conducted operation in Luwangkhulen Patrt-I where a joint meeting of NSCN (K) and NNC was being arranged. Upon reaching the spot, the GR team came under fire from the militants, which resulted in a shootout lasting about 40 minutes, police added. The GR team backed by Assam Rifles later carried out a massive search to nab other cadres, but no arrests were reported.

4 killed in Phek bus accident Our Correspondent Kohima | December 23

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Four persons were killed in a tragic bus accident at Phek town this morning at around 9:40am. The bus reportedly lost control on the road and fell down around 20 feet down off the side of the road. Three people were killed on spot while one succumbed to injury while being taken to Kohima for treatment. The three deceased who died on the spot were identified as Chivozo, Zhokulu and Vechikho (Driver) while Vetanieyi died on the way to Kohima. It was informed that three people were injured critically and airlifted, while seven more injured were taken

The ill fated bus which fell off the road at Phek town of the morning of December 23.

to Kohima in ambulance. Others who suffered injury were admitted to Phek Hospital. The community bus,

belonging to Kutsapo, the first VDB village in Nagaland, met with the accident in Bethany colony while coming from the village.

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ThursDAY 24•12•2015

NAGALAND

‘I am SANTA’ campaign

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

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Children at Sheanghah Mokok and Hakki in the Mon district receive sweaters, socks, stationeries and snacks as part of the ‘I am Santa’, a crowd funding campaign initiated by BASIC group.

Spreading the joy of giving this Christmas Kohima, December 23 (mexN): Children in the Mon district of Nagaland witnessed a surprise and joyful visit of Santa this Christmas season. ‘I am Santa’, a crowd funding campaign initiated by BASIC group raised fund to support children in need in the states of Nagaland and Manipur. The first phase covered as many as 80 children in two villages – Sheanghah Mokok and Hakki in the Mon district. BASIC’s state Co-ordinators Veronica Miachieo and Benny Dzuvichu

CYO raffle draw postponed

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Kohima, December 23 (mexN): The Chisomi Youth Organisation (CYO), Khezhakeno has expressed regrets to inform that the raffle draw in aid of Golden Jubilee scheduled on December 18 had been postponed to March 18, 2016 due to some unavoidable circumstances. In a press release, Kadzüpfelo Koza, President and Lhouvielo Chiezou, General Secretary of CYO requested all members and well wishers to bear with the inconvenience.

Phek students’ union new team

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pheK, December 23 (mexN): The Phek Students’ Union (PSU) has selected its new team of executive council for the tenure 2015-17. President- Ozo Venuh, Vice President- Kuthovo Chizo, General Secretary- Kudezo Vero, Finance Secretary- Velato Rhakho, Banker- Satalu Venuh, Publicity & Information Secretary- Khriesave Venuh (Phek village), Mhashekho Venuh (Phek Town), Magazine Secretary- Kupa H. Keyho, Women Coordinator- Bechovelu Rhakho, Assistant Women Coordinator- Nonie Chizo, Education & Statistical Secretary- Khruhive Keyho, Games & Sports SecretaryVesheyi Soho, Assistant Games & Sports SecretaryZamule Hoshi, Debate & Symposium Secretary- Vekiihii Venuh, Social & Cultural Secretary- Thupunieta Soho, Speaker-ZhovotoLohe,Deputy Speaker- Nukuyi Venuh, representative to CSU- Zhogii Venuh and Veshe Chizo.

visited the two villages and distributed the gifts which included sweaters, socks, stationeries and snacks. “We want to thank all our Santas who have contributed to the campaign and helped spread joy to the children in need. Special thanks to our friends from Medical Department Kohima for their immense support. We would also like to thank all those who allowed their shops to be used as a drop point for the donations in Kohima and Dimapur. Christmas is a season to share love, joy and care for people around us. BASIC is extremely happy that many people responded so posi-

tively towards our campaign and selflessly contributed. Humanity is a language which transcends any boundary or culture or caste, and we at BASIC believe in coming together to do good work and make the world a better place for all, “shared BASIC’s executive director Khevito Elvis Lee. I am Santa campaign started in November 2015 with an aim to support children in Mon district of Nagaland, Hospice center in Kohima and Tabitha Home in Imphal. The campaign has been receiving good support from individuals as well as groups. People from Nagaland residing in other countries too joined and ex-

pressed their desire to give back to society and extend support to the children. The campaign Facebook page posted selfie pictures of many supporters saying ‘I am Santa’ which was widely shared and liked by many. BASIC will be reaching out next to the children at Hospice center, Kohima and Tabitha Home, Imphal. The organizers request all for supporters and friends to continue your support and spread the joy of giving this Christmas. BASIC (Be Aware, Support, Inform & Care) is a non-profit organisation based in Delhi which was started in 2011 to bring about positive social change through

various social innovations and collaboration with diverse social contributors. We desire to make people aware of the issues that society live with, garner support from people to tackle these issues, inform people of ways and means to tackle the issues, whilst caring for all of God’s creation by serving with a heart of love and inculcating an attitude of stewardship. Rev. Temjenliba Pastor, Khensa Baptist Church offers Contact BASIC at: • Mobile - 09811369216 • reachbasic@gmail.com • https://www.facebook.com/ basicteampage • www.b-a-s-i-c.org

National Anganwadi Workers award conferred Dimapur, December 23 (mexN: Leena from Naga Gaon, Dimapur was conferred the national award for Anganwadi Workers (AWWs) for exceptional achievement during a function held at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi on December 1. The awards were given for the years 2011- 12, 2012-13 and 2013-14 and comprises of Rs.25,000 cash and a citation. The Minister of Women and Child Development, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi gave away National Level Awards to the selected Anganwadi Workers (AWWs) for Exceptional Achievement on the basis of their dedication and exemplary performances. In order to motivate the Anganwadi Workers and give recognition to MMC sanitation workers along with MTBA Pastor Rev Ponen Longchar, Associates Pastors and good services in Child DeChurch deacons seen after the distribution of Christmas token on December 23. (Morung Photo) velopment and related ar-

(Right) Anganwadi Worker Leena from Naga Gaon, Dimapur receives the national award from Minister of Women and Child Development, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi on December 1.

eas, Government of India al Level and State Level in formulated a scheme for the year 2000-2001 for the awarding AWWs at Nation- first time under Central-

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ly Sponsored Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS). Since then the scheme is being continued on a year to year basis. A total of 118 Anganwadi Workers have been selected for National Awards for the years 2011-12 (32), 2012-13 (32) and 2013-14 (54). Congratulating, Leena who hails from Mopungchuket Village for receiving the National Award, the Naga Gaon Council in a press release issued by its chairman Mhashevikhozao and secretary Akangyanger stated that she been efficiently serving as an Anganwadi Worker in Naga Gaon Colony, rural ICDS project under the State Social Welfare department since 2001. The Naga Gaon Council appreciates Leena for her dedication and exemplary performances.

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Inter Ward Christmas Cake Race held at Tuensang

TueNsaNg, December 23 (mexN): To mark the celebration of the advent Christmas, Inter Ward cake race was organized by the District Administration in collaboration with Police administration Tuensang. The programme was held at the Parade ground Tuensang on December 23. The rally was attended by a huge score of people which included Kejong Chang Parliamentary Secretary to Horticulture Gov-

ernment of Nagaland, District Admin Officers, Police officers, District officers and many dignitaries. The thirteen wards competed in tug of war and musical chair for men and women respectively and also participated for the rally race. The tug of war ended with 3rd NAP ward claiming the 1st position and Post office ward ending as runners up. The musical chairs competition Kejong Chang Parliamentary Secretary and others give away the prize during the Inter Ward cake concluded resulting Anti of race organized by the District Administration in collaboration with Police administration Tuensang.

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thanksgiving prayer for Katibenla on December 20. Katibenla has achieved National Award FOR Best Creative Child WITH Disabilities. Meanwhile, Care and Support Society (C&SS) congratulates Katibenla for achieving the award. She is one of the members of Disable People Organization (DPO) Khensa. DPO is under CBR (community based rehabilitation) programme covering seven villages under Ongpangkong block of Mokokchung district by C&SS.

highschool ward A finishing the winner, Mongshai of Bazaar C Ward and H Yensen of Bazaar B ward finishing as first and second runners up. The main event of the day inter ward Christmas rally race was competed between thirteen teams comprises of ten members each had a rally race circling almost all the town which was flagged off by Alem Jongshi Deputy Commissioner of Tuen-

sang. The rally was finished by officers’ ward claiming the champion and was followed by bazaar ward C and High School ward A bagging first and second runners up respectively. The programme also included the best Santa Clause competition. The crowd was entertained by Christmas Band Display by women of High School ward A and also by a special presentation by DEF Tuensang.

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WEAR HELMET DIMAPUR TRAFFIC POLICE in collaboration with The Morung Express

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ThursDAY 24•12•2015

NORTH-EAST

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Consultation resolves to ‘Protect Barak River’ SeNaPati, December 23 (mexN): The Zeliangrong Land Preservation Committee (ZLPC) organized a protest cum consultation on “Protection of Barak River” at Zuimi Village, Senapati on December 19 and 20. The interaction meet on December 19 was organized to discuss the importance and the role of Barak River in sustaining the livelihood and ways of life of indigenous peoples and to discuss all development processed impacting the natural heritage and the free flow of the Barak River in Manipur, a press release from the Zeliangrong Land Preservation Committee informed. A proposed 67 MW Khongnem Chakha Dam on the Barak River is set to submerge close to 2000 Hectares of prime agricul-

tural land including thousands of forest land along nineteen villages, including Chakha, Zuimi, Beike, Yangkhullen, Willong etc. Speaking on the occasion, H. James, Secretary, ZLPC, shared on how Barak River has sustained the indigenous communities in Senapati district including the Maram, the Zeme and Liangmai people etc. Expressing concern that the proposed 67 MW Khongnem Chakha Dam will lead to immense suffering among communities dependent on the river, he stressed on the need for the government of Manipur and the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO) to recognize “traditional land rights” of indigenous communities over their land and resources and to re-

Tension in Assam town after bus set ablaze Guwahati, December 23 (iaNS): Tension gripped Nikasi town in Assam's Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD) after a mob set a bus ablaze following a road accident on Wednesday morning in which a man was killed, police said. There was, however, no report of any injury to passengers of the bus. Police said the mob stopped the bus and set it afire after the vehicle hit retired teacher Manmath Medhi, killing him on the spot. Moments after the accident, people gathered in a large number and set the bus on fire. The bus was carrying people to a rally organised by the Bodoland People's Front (BPF) in nearby Kadamtal area.

Gogoi sanctions Rs 292.40 cr for rural local bodies Guwahati, December 23 (Pti): Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today approved Rs 292.40 crore for payment to rural local bodies to enable them to work more efficiently for the development of local areas. According to an official release, Gogoi sanctioned the fund to the local bodies to expedite the implementation of various schemes to bolster rural development. "Moreover, an amount of Rs 13.43 crore has also been released to Guwahati Development Department for payment to Guwahati Municipal Corporation," the statement said. The fund released will be used exclusively for the development of various civic aspects of Guwahati, it added.

frain from constructing the mega project. Jiten Yumnam, Secretary, Centre for Research and Advocacy, Manipur (CRAM), shared how the Government of Manipur had already signed Memorandum of Understanding with a power company, the NEEPCO, to build four mega dams in the rivers of Manipur, especially on the Barak River and its tributaries, including the 67 MW Khongnem Chakha Hydroelectric Project. He explained that the proponents of the project had failed to take the free, prior and informed consent of the affected people settled along the Barak River. Yu m n a m f u r t h e r shared on how previous development projects taken up in the state during the 1970s such as the

Loktak Project, the Khoupam dam, Khuga dam etc. led to negative impacts on their environment and how these dams either underperformed or has failed to meet their objectives. Sanaton Laishram, President CRAM, in a keynote address stressed on how development projects, such as mega dams affect the lives of indigenous people. He said large scale development projects like the Khongnem Chakha HEP project will lead to multiple human rights violation. He stressed on the need to adhere to the principle of the right to free, prior and informed consent of indigenous communities before undertaking all development projects. He also expressed concern that such large scale development projects often failed to conduct a holistic impact as-

sessment. Two documentaries, ‘Wall of Justice’ and ‘Turbulent Water of Loktak Wetlands’ both directed by Jiten Yumnam was showcased to make the villagers understand how people are struggling in the name of projects. The participants later resolved to urge upon the government of Manipur and government of India to desist from constructing the 67 MW Khongnem Chakha Dam along the Barak River and to initiate all necessary actions to protect and defend the Barak River and other livelihood sources along the River. A protest was also organized to “Let the Barak River flow free” and to stop the Khongnem Chakha Dam construction at Zuimi Village.

56.01 seconds in a single run only. Tiluck Keisam said that he feels very good for breaking the Guinness World Records.”This is my dream and it has come true so I feel very happy,” he said.

Assam to distribute free textbooks Guwahati, December 23 (tNN): After reports of delay in distribution of free textbooks for schoolchildren, the state education department has decided to start distributing them from Thursday itself so that the entire process can be completed before December 30. The new academic session begins on January 1. "We don't want any delay in sending textbooks up to Class VIII. Delay in getting textbooks hampers classroom teaching. We have prepared a comprehensive action plan for the distribution of textbooks. We shall do it cluster-wise in a shorter span of time," said Khabir Ahmed, inspector of schools in Kamrup (Metro) district. Nearly three lakh textbooks will be distributed in schools in Guwahati, Ahmed said. The district-level committee for supervising textbook distribution met recently and government officials were apprised of the guidelines on free distribution of textbooks. The Asom Rajyik Prathamik Sikshak Sanmilani, on the other hand, demanded that the education department expedite the process of sending free textbooks to schools. "By the fourth week of December, textbooks should reach the students. Otherwise, it will not be possible to start classes on time," said Jiban Chandra Borah, president of the teachers' body.

PCI & Editors Guild condemn death threat to Manipur media New Delhi, December 23 (Pti): The Press Council of India and the Editors Guild today expressed grave concern over the death threats to the Editors and working journalists in Manipur from some underground and banned organisations in the recent days. The PCI sought a report from the state government on the issue. In a statement, the Council Chairman Justice C K Justice Prasad said any "diktat" to the Editors or working journalists for publication or nonpublication of news by state or non-state players amounted to "invasion" of the news room and it violated freedom of the press guaranteed under the constitution. The Council move followed reports of death threats received by Impact TV Editor-in-Chief Yumnam Rupachandra Singh from a militant organisation for not broadcasting a press note issued by it. Terming it as unacceptable in a democratic society, Justice Prasad said the Press Council of India, a statutory body mandated to protect freedom of the press in the country, had taken suo-motu cognizance of the threats to the media and media personnel in Manipur.

The Council further said it will explore the possibility of sending a sub-committee to assess the situation in Manipur and neighbouring States in the wake of such threats. The Editors Guild of India termed it as a serious "threat" to press freedom and demanded protection of media persons by the government. "Editors Guild of India condemns violence and attack on media people by militants. Guild calls upon government of Manipur to arrest the culprits and give protection to journalists in the state. There is a serious threat to freedom of media in the state," an official statement said. "All the newspapers in the state closed their publication on December 16 and not even a single newspaper hit the stands on December 17. In their editions dated December 16 they left the editorial space blank...Impinging on the freedom of the media," it added. The move by the Editors Guild followed reports of death threats received by Impact TV Editor-in-Chief Yumnam Rupachandra Singh from a militant organisation in Manipur for not broadcasting a press note issued by it.

Committed to develop tourism in North East region: Taj Hotels Arunachal Govt's success visible: Minister Guwahati, December 23 (iaNS): Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, India's leading luxury hotel chain owned by the Tata Group, on Wednesday affirmed its commitment to the development of the hotel and tourism sector in the northeast region. "We remain very committed to the development of the hotel and tourism industry in Assam and beyond in the northeast for we know the future lies to our east. "We know we must develop the infrastructure in order to develop the people and human capital of Assam and the northeast. We are duty bound to do that," Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces,

Rakesh Sarna said here. Speaking at the launch of the Vivanta by Taj here, Tata Group chairman Cyrus P. Mistry hoped the hotel would boost tourism in Assam and the region. "It will spur tourism in the region: in Assam, in other parts of the northeast and neighbouring countries," Mistry said. India's northeast, said Mistry, "will also be a natural gateway for us and other Indian business to access key markets with which India is building longterm relationships: Bhutan, Bangladesh, Thailand, Myanmar and China". Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi formally opened the hotel by unveiling a plaque in the presence of Mistry and Sarna.

Gogoi hoped Assam would emerge as the hub of not only the northeast India but also of the south Asian countries. "The message to the whole world is peace has returned to Assam... stability has returned to Assam. We want to be the hub of not only northeast India but also southeast Asian countries. There is a lot of potential. This Guwahati is definitely going to be the hub of whole of southeast Asian countries," he said. Equipped with 150 guestrooms, the hotel's main pavilion is based on the famed Kamakhya temple in Guwahati while the motifs represent Assam's strong tradition of woven crafts.

Skating prodigy from Manipur creates world record New Delhi, December 23 (aNi): Meet 7-year-old Tiluck Keisam, son of Keisam Ricky and Pravabati Takhellambam from Manipur, who’s got an amazing talent in Limbo skating or roller limbo. On December 20, Tiluck made India proud when he bettered a world record in the ‘Farthest Distance Limbo Skating Under Bars’ at Siri Fort Stadium in New Delhi. He covered 116 meters as against the previous record of 50 metres in 31.87 seconds with cones and bars under the bars which were set at the height of 28 cm from ground level against the required 35 cm and the gap between the bars was kept to 1.0 meter. He covered 144.7 meters without cones and bars in

A Class two student of Bluebells School International in Delhi, Tiluck has been skating since 2013. He has participated in various competitions and so far won a total of 42 medals and many certificates. Tiluck has already

etched his name in the Limca Book of Records on 25th May this year by performing a 50-metre limbo skate under a horizontal bar set at the height of 7.5 to 9 inches from ground level. Under the guidance of Coach Rohtash Dino-

dia, Tiluck was adjudged as the overall best Limbo skater for the year 2014-15. Recently, Tiluck also appeared on the Reality show “I can do that” where he performed skating with a Bollywood celebrity. His coach Rohtash Dinodia said, “We have already organized such event before i.e Limca Book of World Records on 25th May. And today, we organized for Guinness Book of World Records.On 20th Sunday at around 3:30 pm he (Tiluck) attempted for Guinness records and this is his best performance.” A senior official of the stadium said the association planned to send the video of his performance to the authorities of the Guinness Book of World Records.

Bangladesh energy drinks flood markets in NE Guwahati, December 23 (aGeNcieS): Energy drinks of various brands from Bangladesh, suspected to contain banned ingredients and illegally exported by traders from across the border, are flooding markets in the northeast, West Bengal and Odisha, according to a report by India based online the northeasttoday. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which lays down food quality standards

and regulates manufacturing, processing, distribution, sale and import of food, has recalled several Indian energy drinks from the market in recent years. According to a source, Bangladesh-made energy drinks worth Rs 20 to 40 million enter the country every month via the India-Bangladesh border points at Sutrakandi in Karimganj district of Assam, Akhaura in Tripura and Siliguri in West Bengal.

These energy drinks are suspected to have obtained certificates from private laboratories in Kolkata and Agartala, but not from FSSAI. Bangladeshi energy brands like Power Energy Drink, Bullet Energy Drink, Tiger Energy Drink and Akume Extra Power have flooded markets in Arunachal, upper Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, West Bengal and Odisha, according to a news agency.

Aizawl to promote non-motorised transport aizawl, December 23 (uNi): With the ever increasing traffic congestion in Aizawl, the Mizoram government is planning to promote non-motorised transport in the hill city. Speaking at a workshop in this connection here today, State Urban Development & Poverty Alleviation Minister, Zodintluanga, said based on a proposal submitted by Aizawl city authority, the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) has selected Aizawl, along with Visakhapatnam, for Non-Motorised Mobility (NMM) project. On an average, 50 new vehicles are registered in Aizawl district every. With the present rate of vehicle population, within a few years, the narrow roads in Aizawl will be full of vehicles without any space for pedestrians movement. Being a hilly terrain, there is no way to increase the width of the roads in Aizawl, therefore the only option is promotion of non-motorised transport

system, he said. Non-motorised transport includes walking, cycling, cycle rickshaws and others that do not produce smoke. Officials said during a workshop at New Delhi in 2013, Aizawl city authority proposed NMT plan for Aizawl. Acting on this, the MoUD selected Aizawl and Visakhapatnam for the project, and selected IBI Group and Innovative Transport Solutions (iTrans) to prepare guidance documents on transit oriented development (TOD), non-motorised transport (NMT) and bike sharing (BS) scheme. According to iTrans report, 50 per cent of Aizawl citys population is using NMT mode despite lack of proper pavements and other NMT infrastructure. The report stresses on the need for improvement of non-motorised transport in Aizawl, UD&PA secretary C Vanlalramsanga said during the workshop.

itaNaGar, December 23 (aNi): Taking a dig at the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and dissident Congress MLAs for telling blatant lies, Arunachal Pradesh's Public Works department (PWD) Minister Gojen Gadi today said that the achievements of the Nabam Tuki-led administration were there for all to see. Focussing on the achievements of his department specifically, Gadi said major progress has been made in the constructions of mini secretariat buildings (MSBs) and in the cementing of concrete roads (CCRs). The percent-w ise progress of MSB included Namsai (Phase-1) (95%), Changlang (65%), Sagalee (50%) and Khonsa (30%), the tendering process for

Daporijo and Ziro MSB is on while for Roing and Tezu the financial bids opened are under scrutiny, Gadi disclosed. The percent-wise completion of CCRs included Capital Complex (80%), Ziro (30%), Aalo (phase-I) (80%)), Yingkiong (phaseI) (80%), Pasighat (phase-I) and Roing (40%), Longding, Khonsa and Changlang (35%) each) and work at Tezu awarded a month back. While the MSBs are built under special plan assistance allocated in 2013-14 and 2014-15, all CCRs are state flagship programmes, he said, adding that work has been taken up in district and ADC HQs to improve road connectivity on need for basis for which the state government had allocated Rs.30

crore in the last budget. Asked to qualify reasons behind delay, Gadi attributed it to legal litigation, citing the example of Bomdila. Stressing on the cooperation of the people, Gadi said that the reconstruction of 218.5-meter span steel suspension bridge over River Siang at Nubo funded by DoNER has been complete and would be inaugurated soon. When asked about the dilapidated condition of the Capital Complex Road, Gadi reasoned that the Centre wanted but had failed to float the tender and entrusted the responsibility to the chief engineer of the PWD. He also said that the non-availability of a hot mixture plant with the contractor delayed the process.

ThursDAY 24 •12•2015

Business

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Samsung’s mobile woes rooted in hardware legacy SINGAPORE/SEOUL, DEcEmbER 23 (REUtERS): Efforts to revive its once stellar smartphone fortunes may be doomed if Samsung Electronics cannot overcome its dominant engineering culture, according to serving and former executives and those who have dealt with the company. This culture, they say, has stymied many previous efforts to develop software and service platforms to support the smartphone business. In the past year several such services have closed down, at least one of them within a year of being launched. “There’s a lot of distrust of top executives who can actually implement stuff that is more of a software and services offering,” said one person familiar with the company’s inner workings. “It’s still ‘we know how to sell boxes, we sell boxes’.” Growth in handset sales is slowing as the smartphone market matures, and without its own

A Samsung logo is seen at Samsung Electronics’ headquarters in Seoul on December 18. Picture taken on December 18. (REUTERS Photo)

distinctive software, content and services, Samsung has little to differentiate itself from other Android phone makers selling similar devices at lower prices. Samsung points to the launch of its mobile payments service, Samsung Pay, and its home control “internet of things” platform, SmartThings,

as among the signs it has learned from its past. But this may not be enough. Interviews with former and serving employees paint a picture of confusion and overlap between competing divisions, where the short-term interests of promoting hardware trump long-term efforts to build platforms

that would add value for customers and increase their loyalty to the brand. One said he only learned from someone outside the company that the hands-free app his team was updating for the upcoming Galaxy S4 launch had competition — from inside Samsung. For the manager, who has since left the company but declined

to be identified because his present employer does business with Samsung, it was one of many examples of the low priority the hardware-minded company placed on software, which was treated as little more than a marketing tool inside the firm. “Samsung ’s upper management just inherently doesn’t understand software,” the former employee said. “They get hardware - in fact, they get hardware better than anyone else. But software is a completely different ballgame.” As a result, critics say, initiatives involving software or services languish and often fail. Despite being pre-installed on Galaxy phones, Samsung’s ChatON messaging service gained few adherents and closed without fanfare in March, while the Milk Video app, a high profile project run by newly hired U.S. executives, lasted a year, closing in November.

sung’s struggles are hardly unique - firms such as HTC Corp, Nokia and BlackBerry also failed in their attempt to develop viable platforms. And Samsung overcame a late start in smartphones and still remains the No.1 player: researcher TrendForce says it will this year ship about 100 million more than No. 2 Apple Inc. But former and serving executives say Samsung has failed to support innovation within the company, shrinking margins to stay competitive while losing ground to Chinese rivals such as Huawei Technologies Co Ltd. The mobile division’s earnings contribution shrank to 39 percent of January-September operating profit, on track for the lowest contribution since 2010 and down sharply from 68 percent in 2013. Market share is expected to slip below 20 percent this year, from 24.6 percent in 2013, according SHRINKING MARGINS to research firm Trefis. To be sure, SamThis decline helps ex-

plain why long-time mobile chief J.K. Shin recently ceded his day-to-day role to Dongjin Koh, another mobile division veteran. The firm credits Koh with helping develop its new Samsung Pay mobile payment service and the Knox security platform two services Samsung says are helping turn things around. “Samsung has achieved notable progress in recent software and service offerings that have been well received by the market,” the company said in a statement. “Including mobile payment service Samsung Pay, SmartThings IoT platform, mobile security solution Knox, and the Tizen operating system which powers our TVs and wearables.” Samsung Pay is gaining traction in South Korea and the United States, while Tizen got a push from launch of new smartphones and appliances this year. The company also said its Silicon Valley-based Global Innovation Cen-

tre was seeking to tap into new software-related technologies developed outside the company. Some investors and analysts say worries of Samsung’s decline are overstated, noting its dominance in memory chips and displays. Its foray into automotive components also has promise, analysts say. But this is unlikely to revive the explosive earnings growth its smartphones delivered at the beginning of the decade. What’s needed, according to Chang Sea-jin, a business professor at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, is strong backing for a push into software and services from Samsung Group heir apparent Jay Y. Lee. “There are signs that Samsung is trying to change and the company is acknowledging its failures,” said Chang. “The company is moving in the right direction, but there is a high probability this is too little, too late.”

Yamaha recalls YZF-R1, YZF-R1M in India Mahindra to refund booking amount to NEw DELhI, DEcEm- stantly monitor the per- value our customers and voluntary recall exercise customers affected by Delhi diesel ban bER 23 (NDtV AUtO): formance of the vehicles their safety is our prime today through a factory

Yamaha has announced a recall on YZF-R1 and YZFR1M superbikes in India too, following a global recall of the flagship superbikes over a fault in the gearbox. The recall was first announced in US and Canada and then extended over the world. Now, Yamaha’s Indian arm, Yamaha Motor India Sales Pvt Ltd has also issued a statement saying that the recall will be extended to customers in India as well. There are only nine such bikes sold in India so far - 7 units of YZF-R1 and 2 units of YZF-R1M. “ The Y ZF- R1 and YZF- R1M has been a significant milestone in the company’s history and a lot of thought and hard-work has gone into its establishment and design. We at Yamaha con-

used by our customers as well as the performance of various motor parts. During the extensive study of the products, our parent company Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd., Japan has found a defect, which relates to deformation of transmission gears & breakage which exists in R1 and R1M motorcycles manufactured in the year 2015. “However, no such problem has been reported from anywhere in India so far but we

concern. Therefore, India Yamaha Motor has decided to run a voluntary recall campaign on 9 units of motorcycles which include 7 units of YZF-R1 and 2 units of YZF-R1M. We will be rectifying the error by replacing the transmission with a modified one on a free of cost basis. We at Yamaha ensure that our customers continue to enjoy riding our products. The company plans to begin t h e

modification campaign which will be run through the company’s authorized superbike dealership network across the country. The customers will be contacted through mail as well as phone calls starting today, to fix an appointment to extend every support through this campaign,” said Ravinder Singh, Vi ce President, Strategy & Planning, Yamaha Motor India Sales Pvt Ltd. The recall was originally issued due to a faulty transmission design in which the second gear wheel and pinions in the transmission could break during operation due to extremely high stress, and/or improper shifting, Yamaha had earlier said, announcing the recall. The recall covers replacement of the existing gearbox.

LEISURE

Simple Rules - There is just one simple rule: “Fill in the grid so that every row, every column, and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9.”

SUDOKU Game Number # 3444

NEw DELhI, DEcEmbER 23 (NDtV AUtO): Mahindra and Mahindra will refund booking amounts to all customers in Delhi who are set to purchase new diesel SUVs which come under the recently-imposed Supreme Court ban. The move comes after India’s top court banned the registration of new diesel-powered vehicles above 2000cc from January 1, 2015 till March 31, 2016 in an attempt to tackle the alarming levels of pollution in the national capital. The Indian carmaker added that the affected customers who have placed orders for these SUVs will be given options to purchase cars in the sub-2000cc range, such as the Mahindra TUV300. There is hope for dealers as well as they will be provided with alternatives such as relocating those vehicles to adjoining regions. Mahindra’s mainstays - Bolero, Xylo, Scorpio, Thar, and XUV500 which make up for over 95% of the company’s sales, come under the ban. According to Pawan Goenka, Mahindra’s Executive Director, the company has more than 1,000 un-

sold cars with its dealers in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR). Though Delhi and NCR account for just about 2% of the carmaker’s passenger vehicle sales, Goenka said the market plays a very important role in building the brand even as its volume contribution may not be large. “I don’t think anybody can afford to ignore Delhi as a market... We certainly respect the order of the Supreme Court. We will work to find solutions in line with the court’s order, in fairly short time,” Goenka said. According to industry experts, about 4 lakh units of diesel vehicles with 2000cc or higher capacity engines are sold in the country annually and, out of that, 5-8% are sold in Delhi and NCR. Across India, Mahindra has more than 50% share of this market, while Toyota has about 20% and Tata Motors less than 5%. In order to not let the diesel vehicle ban result in a massive drop in Mahindra’s sales, the carmaker plans to introduce more petrol variants in its SUV line-up in the

DAILY CROSS WORD

CROSSWORD # 3456

Answer Number # 3443

near future, with Mahindra Scorpio and XUV500 the first in line to be equipped with petrol mills. The company already exports a variant of the Scorpio with a 2.2-litre MPFI turbocharged petrol unit from India, but has not introduced it in the country, considering the fact that there is no demand for a petrol SUV.

Bithday Greeting

Dear Laphen, May your birthday and every day be filled with the warmth of sunshine, the happiness of smiles, the sounds of laughter, the feeling of love and the sharing of good cheer. Loving parents, sisters & brother

DIMAPUR Civil Hospital:

STD CODE: 03862 232224; Emergency229529, 229474

Metro Hospital: Faith Hospital:

227930, 231081 228846

Shamrock Hospital

228254

Zion Hospital:

231864, 224117, 227337

Police Control Room

228400

Police Traffic Control

232106

East Police Station West Police Station

227607 232181

CIHSR (Referral Hospital)

242555/ 242533

Dimapur hospital

224041, 248011

Apollo Hospital Info Centre:

230695/ 9402435652

Railway:

131/228404

Indian Airlines

229366

Nagaland Multispe- 248302, cialty Health & 09856006026 Research Centre

StReSS ReleASe CONFUSION NIGHTMARES BLAMING FEAR GUILT GRIEF PANIC DENIAL ANXIETY AGITATION DEPRESSION APPREHENSION ANGER SHOCK OUTBURSTS OVERWHELMED ITCHING HIVES RASHES COLDSORES HICCUPS INDIGESTION DIARRHEA UCLERS SPASM BLOODPRESSURE INCREASEDPULSE HEARTBEAT ALLERGIESCOLDHANDS SWEATING STRESS COUGHING MUSCLECONTRACTIONS

K G V N O G P G D L X P B I S A Z J B L

O V S P U C C I H U K O Y G D U D J K E

I G N D A M N R C O L D S O R E S I G E

N J O B L A M I N G R I E F B S H J I R

D O I Z L F N K P O V O S R E L C U D U

I U T I E F I F Q Y P F F O I U A Z N S

G T C H R V G A N O I S S E R P E D O S

E B A C G P H E A R T B E A T D D I I E

S U R O I Z T R D G R F H L V E I A S R

T R T N E G M H V Y N M S A P S T R N P

I S N F S D A R R E G N A U P A C R E D

O T O U C F R G U F E A R S E E H H H O

N S C S O V E R W H E L M E D R I E E O

A L E I L C S S E R T S A G I C N A R L

N E L O D K L V J S W E A T I N G Q P B

X A C N H P J X X D C O U G H I N G P Z

Police Control Room: North Police Station: South Police Station: Fire Brigade: Naga Hospital: Oking Hospital: Bethel Nursing Home: Northeast Shuttles

I A S L A I N E D N W S J U I C I N A P

E W U C N O I T A T I G A I V X I Q J P

T U M R D N E T F E N A A L E P Y N K N

Y R W O S P H B Z V L A P T S H O C K Z

STD CODE: 0370 100/2244279 2222222 2222111 2222952 2222916 2243339 2224202 08974997923

ACROSS

1. Young cow 5. Chills and fever 10. Head 14. Listen 15. Unit of weight for gems 16. So be it 17. Murres 18. Coherent 20. Mutt 22. Coach 23. Chart 24. Daft 25. Resembling sleight-ofhand 32. Spy 33. Sidekick 34. Explosive 37. Lean 38. Prevaricators 39. Sneaker or pump 40. American Sign Language 41. Verse writers 42. Jaegers 43. Road lamp 45. Gash 49. Take in slowly 50. Maybe 53. Storm 57. Obese

DOWN

1. Buddy 2. Relating to aircraft 3. Reclined 4. Shard 5. Hold as true 6. Jail (British) 7. A large vase 8. Where the sun rises 9. Blend 10. Terrace 11. Catkin 12. Basic belief 13. Vestibule 19. In an unfortunate way 21. Awestruck 25. Information 26. Auspices 27. Mobile phone 28. Less friendly 29. Give a speech 30. Like the Vikings 31. Autonomic nervous system

34. Goon 35. Ark builder 36. Exam 38. A parcel of land 39. Boat captains 41. “Hogwash!” 42. Slender 44. Sleeping sickness carrier 45. Blots 46. Embankment 47. Mountain crest 48. Rip up 51. Kind of moss 52. Storage cylinder 53. Part of a comparison 54. Sweeping story 55. Bristle 56. Adolescent 58. Martini ingredient Ans to CrossWord 3455

WE4WOMEN HELPLINE 08822911011

Police Station 1:

DIMAPUR: 03862-232201/ 101 (O) 9856156876 (OC) CHUMUKEDIMA: 7085982102 (O) 8732810051 (OC)

MOKOKCHUNG: 0369-2226225/ 101 (O) 8415830232 (OC) PHEK: 8414853765 (O) 8413822476(OC) ZUNHEBOTO: 03867-280304/ 101 (O) 9436422730 (OC) TUENSANG: 8414853766 (O) 9856163601 (OC)

KIPHIRE: 8414853767 (O) 9436261577 (OC) PEREN: 7085189932 (O) 9856311205 (OC) LONGLENG: 7085924113 (O) 9862414264 (OC)

Toll free No. 1098 childline

MOKOKCHUNG:

KOHIMA NORTH: 7085924114 (O)

MON: 03869-251222/ 101 (O) 9862130954 (OC)

CHILD WELFARE COMMITTEE 59. Type of sword 60. French for “Head” 61. Assumed name 62. Liturgy 63. Sow 64. 1000 kilograms 65. Glance over

KOHIMA SOUTH: 0370-2222952/ 101 (O) 9402003086 (OC)

WOKHA: 03860242215/101 (O) 8974322879 (OC)

Chumukedima Fire 282777 Brigade Nikos Hospital and 232032, 231031 Research Centre

KOHIMA

FIRE STATIONS

STD CODE: 0369

2226241

Police Station 2 :

2226214

Civil Hospital: Woodland Nursing Home:

2226216 2226263

Hotel Metsüpen (Tourist Lodge):

2226373/2229343

TAHAMZAM (formerly Senapati) STD CODE: 03871 Police Station: Fire Brigade

CURRENCY NOTES

222246 222491

BUY(Rs)

SELL(Rs)

US Dollars Sterling Pound Hong Kong Dollar Australian Dollar Singapore Dollar Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen

64.77 96.29 8.09 46.64 45.99 46.39 53.17

67.74 101.02 9.01 48.97 48.27 48.68 56.19

Euro

70.64

74.11

Thai Baht Korean Won New Zealand Dollar Chinese Yuan

1.74

1.94

0.0533

0.0594

44.00

46.19

9.58

10.68

ThursdAY 24•12•2015

APO for unity among Nagas

Angami Public Organisation officials with Angami legislators during the pre-Christmas celebration on December 21.

Kohima, December 23 (mexN): Angami Public Organisation (APO) today opined that if Nagas put aside their differences and be more united “we can achieve and develop so much in every possible field.” In a press release issued by its Secretary Info & Publicity, Neisakholie Ziephrü, APO prayed that the spirit of love and brotherhood grow and be forever more

strong among the Nagas from this festive season. “We Nagas with our diverse traditions and culture are all a blessing and a plan of our Almighty God. We have mesmerised tourist and travellers from other parts of the world with our diverse traditions at the Hornbill Festival every year,” it stated. Meanwhile, the release informed that the members of APO met with the

Angami legislators for a pre-Christmas celebration hosted by MLA Khriehu Liezietsu on December 21. APO along with the Angami legislators wished everyone a Merry Christmas and Prosperous New Year. “It is APO’s wish that the spirit of Peace and Brotherhood grow this festive season.” It further wished that 2016 be a year of happiness and success for all.

Christmas GreetinGs Chief Minister: Extending Christmas and New Year greetings on behalf of the Government of Nagaland and his family, Chief Minister TR Zeliang today wished that the birth of the Prince of Peace may usher in peace, goodwill and harmony. In this festive season, the CM also asked to pray for God’s continued counsel and wisdom to all “our” leaders so as to enable them to deliver justice to the people they administer. NNC : Naga National Council (NNC) has extended to the Naga people and Christians Merry Christmas and Peaceful Happy New Year 2016. “May we all celebrate this Christmas with recommitment of our lives to our living God for Christian love and peace towards one another and tranquility to prevail in our homeland for the extension of His Kingdom,” wished a note issued by Z Royim Yimchungrü, Acting President, TS Keyho, Vice President, and Gen. (Rtd) TM Keyho, Central Executive Council Member of NNC. Expressing belief that God has a specific purpose for the Naga

Nagaland to observe National Consumer Rights Day Kohima, December 23 (mexN): Nagaland along with the rest of the country will observe National Consumer Rights Day on December 24 under the theme “Safe & Healthy Food: Combating Food Adulteration.” The day is being observed to create awareness among the consumers of the State about combating food adulteration to choose safe and healthy food. Food adulteration amounts to non-compliance of food substances to health and safety standards. With the rising income and affluence, more and more prefer readymade fast food and eating out at restaurants. Usually, poor quality ingredients are used to attract and satisfy the platter rather than provide a wholesome nutritional meal. There is variety of food to choose from; however, surveys show that about 25 to 30 per cent of food items in India are intentionally

adulterated. Food can be adulterated intentionally and accidentally. Unintentional adulteration is a result of ignorance or the lack of facilities to maintain food quality. Intentional food adulteration is usually done for financial gain, and the most common form of it is colour adulteration. Examples are addition of extraneous matter to ground spices, removal of substitution of milk solids from the natural product. There are also natural toxic varieties of mushrooms, green and other vegetables, and fish. Therefore, there can be serious health consequences on consumption of such kinds of food. The Legal Metrology & Consumer Protection Department enforces the Legal Metrology Act, 2009 and the Legal Metrology (Packaged commodities) Rules, 2011, which have been enacted by the government to curb the sale of packaged

commodities in the State such as food products without the mandatory declarations on the packages such as the name and address of the manufacturer or the packer or imposter, the month and year of packaging or import, the net quantity of the package, and the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) of the product. Defaulters are prosecuted under the Legal Metrology Act and Rules. The Consumer Protection Act, 1986 also ensures that the consumers of the State are not deprived of the consumer rights and that their consumer grievances are redressed by the consumer courts in the state, i.e., District Forum in the districts and state commission in Kohima. Moreover, consumers can seek guidance on consumer related queries from the Nagaland State Consumer Helpline through the Toll Free No. 1800-3453701 and phone No. 03702292232.

people in this part of the large world for His Kingdom, NNC prayed to God and appealed to every Naga to come together and work together for the very purpose to be fulfilled. “We praise God for His work for the Naga people,” it added.

birthday of Lord Jesus Christ is to be celebrated with joy and enthusiasm with the message of love, peace, tolerance and brotherhood to inspire entire humanity,” stated NPF Minority Wing President, Bishnu Bhattacharjee.

NSCN (IM) Kilo Kilonser: On behalf of the NSCN (IM), Kilo Kilonser Rh. Raising has extended Christmas greetings to all the people of Nagalim. “Indeed, this is the blessed day, which brings hope to the hopeless, light to the people living in the dark and life to the perishing,” Raising stated. He further wished, “May this Christmas bring a new hope to all the Nagas! May the spark of this Christmas kindle in the heart of all Nagas and shine! May it renew the heart and mind of all Nagas like the eagle! May it give the spirit of one people, one nation and one vision to the Nagas! May it open an era for the Nagas with the coming of the New Year - 2016!”

BJP: BJP Nagaland and BJP National Secretary In-charge for Minority Cell and Nagaland in-charge Farooq Khan have wished the people of Minister of Forest, Environment & Climate Change, Dr. Neikiesalie (Nicky) Kire along Nagaland a Merry Christmas with the office bearers of NPF 9th Kohima Town A/C during the annual picnic cum preand Happy and Prosperous Christmas celebration on December 19 at Puliebadze, Jotsoma. New Year. “Let this Christmas Season usher in God’s grace and blessing’ among the people all over the state and beyond.” The Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) Nagaland in separate note also wished the people of Nagaland Merry Christmas and Prosperous New Year.

NPF: NPF Minority Wing has extended Christmas greetings and best wishes to the people of Nagaland. “The

mex FiLe RYO 51st session on January 4 Kohima, December 23 (mexN): The Rachü Youth Organization (RYO), Viswema will hold its 51st session on January 4 at Tazwe-o Kita. Dr. Hovithal Sothu, Deputy Director, ATI Kohima will grace the occasion as the chief guest, while Eyongol Neikha, Chairman, Rachümi Panchayat will exhort the gathering. Meanwhile, RYO will also hold its wrestling meet 2016 for both senior and junior on January 9 at Phuzwü. Er. Zale Neikha, President, Southern Angami Sports Association will grace the meet as the chief guest.

KSU golden jubilee celebration Kohima, December 23 (mexN): The Kandi Students’ Union (KSU) is all set to hold its golden jubilee celebration from December 30 to 31. Minister for school education & SCERT Yitachu will be the chief guest, while parliamentary secretary for PWD (Housing) Er. Levi Rengma will be the guest of honour. Haiwalo Apon, Executive Secretary, Council of Rengma Baptist Churches (CRBC) will be the main speaker. Greetings will be shared by Naga Students’ Federation, Rengma Students’ Union, Angami Students’ Union, Sumi Aphuyemi Kiphimi Kughakulu, and Lotha Students’ Union.

40th Bhandari ACCC rebuts statement WoKha, December 23 (mexN): Reacting to the press statement which claimed that office bearers of 39th Sanis Assembly Constituency Congress Committee (ACCC) and thousands of Congress supporters from 38th A/C and 40th A/C in Wokha district have decided to join NPF, the 40th Bhandari ACCC has termed the statement “baseless and unfounded.” The rejoinder issued by B Longshi Odyuo, President and Konathung Ezung, General Secretary of 40th Bhandari ACCC stated that rather thousands of electorates from the above constituencies have joined the Congress.

AGBCN office foundation stone laid Dimapur, December 23 (mexN): The foundation stone laying ceremony for new office building of Association of Gorkha Baptist Churches Nagaland (AGBCN) was held on December 8 at AGBCN Mission Centre, Singrijan Village, Dimapur. The ceremony was graced by Rev. Dr. Hevukhu Achumi, Executive Secretary, WSBAK.

Cattle fertility awareness camp held

ZuNheboto, December 23 (mexN): Department of Veterinary & Animal Husbandry, Zunheboto conducted fertility awareness camps for cattle and mithun from November 27-December 2 sponsored by the Nagaland Livestock Development Board at Aghunato, Akuluto, Satakha, Suruhoto and Zunheboto blocks. 145 farmers rearing cattle and mithuns attended the camp, which emphasized on the sexual health and fertility of the animals. The farmers were also enlightened about the benefits of Artificial Insemination. The department Chavara Home celebrated advance Christmas with over 100 participants on December also conducted health camps, where a good amount of 16. The programme had games and entertainments, where winners were handed out medicines were distributed for the animals.

Assam Rifles: Assam Rifles have wished all citizens of Nagalad Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. The AR hoped and prayed for good health and happiness for the denizens of the State. It also wished for peace and tranquility in the State, safety and security of all Nagas. prizes by the chief guest, Kesonyu Yhome, Deputy Commissioner, Kohima.

Sümi Village Baptist Church under CBCC celebrates 50 years Catholic church inaugurated at Trongar

pheK, December 23 (mexN): The Sümi Village Baptist Church under Chakhesang Baptist Church Council (CBCC), Phek district celebrated its Golden Jubilee on December 19 and 20. The inaugural ceremony was chaired by Kekhwelhilo Tara, Chairman, Golden Jubilee Organising Committee and Rev. Dr. Vezopa Tetseo, Executive Secretary, CBCC dedicated the monolith.

Speakers in the programme were Rev. Dr. VK Nuh, General Secretary, Fellowship of Naga Baptist Church Association and Rev. Dr. Vezopa Tetseo, Executive Secretary, CBCC. Jubilee choirs were represented by local church choir, Chizami Baptist Church, Sümi Baptist Church Zunheboto, while cultural troupe was from Losami Baptist Church. Greeting messages

were delivered by Rev. RV Thakzü, Minister At Large, Indian Evangelical Mission North East India, Senapati, Rev. Hotokhu Zhimomi, Executive Secretary, SBAK Pughoboto, Rev. TK Kachüsie, Senior Pastor, Meluri Village Baptist Church, Hekato Awomi Youth Secretary, Nito Mount, Zunheboto, and Küduhüto Dazo, Chairman, Secheku Baptist Church Council. The 60 churches under

CBCC and other 15 churches from different tribes attended the celebration, comprising five different tribes - Chakhesang, Sümi, Pochury, Tangkhul and Poumai. Two thousand and above delegates and 18 ordained ministers also participated in the celebration. This was informed in a press release issued by the Golden Jubilee Organising Committee Chairman Kekhwelhilo Tara.

NMBOA celebrates pre-Christmas in Dimapur Morung Express News Dimapur | December 23

New Market Business Owners’ Association (NMBOA), Dimapur on Wednesday evening celebrated preChristmas at New Market with entertainment programmes and lucky draws. Attended by hundreds of business owners at New Market and also members of ACAUT Nagaland and Business Association of Nagas, the audience swayed to special numbers presented by a number of Naga and

One of the lucky business owners collecting a blanket from NMBOA President, Hokivi Chishi in Dimapur on Wednesday. (Morung Photo)

non-Naga artists. Hokivi Chishi and his famNMBOA President, ily sponsored Scooty and

10 numbers of blankets which was picked through lucky draws. For the lucky draw, the NMBOA freely distributed chits stamped with its office seal to every shop in New Market. The chits with serial numbers were then collected in a bucket where 10 consolation prizes of blankets and one winning Scooty was drawn from the collected chits. Later, the business community of New Market were treated with preChristmas eateries.

KCJA yearlong silver jubilee celebration concludes Kohima, December 23 (mexN): The yearlong silver jubilee celebration of Kidima Catholic Juniors’ Association (KCJA) concluded with a two-day programme held at Kidima Village Council Hall on December 19 – 20. Reverend Father Alex Keduoneilie Vizo, Parish Priest of St. Francis De Sales, Kohima Town was the Main Celebrant. In the homily, he asked the faithful to continue to live in the love and blessing of God received from the jubilee. He urged the gathering to follow Jesus Christ’s character, words and works. Reverend Father Jerome SJ, Parish Priest of Mary Help of Christians, Jakhama asked the faithful

to continue in the service of God. A release informed that Vitsu Martin Rikha, Vice President of Southern Angami Catholic Union, who was the guest speaker, urged the participants to follow Jesus Christ and not to fall in worldly materialism. Throughout the year, Franciscan Sisters of Saint Mary of the Angels, Sr. Riya (Superior), Sr. A. Salomi (Headmistress), Sr. Medosenü Jacinta Thakro, and Sr. Roselyn gave trainings, religious guidance. The Juniors Instructors taught catechism of the Catholic faith to the children. The jubilee monolith was blessed by Reverend Father Raymond D’ Souza SJ, Director of Eden Garden and unveiled by Reverend Father Thomas

Muttathil, Parish Priest Kidima. Father Raymond, the pioneer of Catholic faith in Kidima village, lighted the jubilee light, while Reverend Father Alex Keduoneilie Vizo released the Jubilee Souvenir. Competitions like solo, quartet, dance, quiz, recitation, group hymn were also held. Quiz master was Sr. Medosenü Jacinta Thakro FSMA, while the competitions were adjudged by Sr. Roselyn FSMA, Swedele Celina and Thinusaho Titus. Southern Angami Catholic Union and Youth Association, Kidima Village Council, youth organisation, students’ union joined in the occasion, where 27 children received the First Communion.

Kohima, December 23 (mexN): The newly built St. Peter’s Catholic Church at Trongar in Tuensang was blessed by Most Rev. Dr. James Thoppil, Bishop of Kohima and inaugurated by Rev. Fr. S. Charles, Director, Development Association of Nagaland (DAN), on De-

cember 22. 11 priests, village chairman, GBs, village elders and other communities from Kohima, Mokokchung, Tuensang, Shamator, Tseminyu, and Aghunato attended the programme. Bishop congratulated all those who contributed in the

construction of the church, particularly the small Catholic community of Trongar. During the Holy Eucharistic celebration, eight children received the sacrament of the First Holy Communion. Rev. Fr. Joseph Ottukalathil, Parish Priest, accord-

‘B’ Khel, New Chumukedima informs Dimapur, December 23 (mexN): The ‘B’ Khel, New Chumukedima has banned all kinds of hunting, fishing, collecting forest products etc in its jurisdiction with immediate effect. The general public have been warned not to indulge in any prohibited activities, failing which, the khel authority will take stern action deemed fit.

A press release from Secretary, ‘B’ Khel New Chumukedima, Theja Angami further informed that in case of hunting, the arms used by the hunters will be seized. Meanwhile, the ‘B’ Khel people who are yet to renew their allotment patta have been directed to produce and renew it from the Khel chairman on or before January 15, 2016. The

authority will not entertain anyone who fails to renew within the stipulated time. The release also informed all the villagers and neighbouring villagers that those who leave domestic animal like goat, cow etc. without proper care will be penalised accordingly. Hence, all have been requested to keep their domestic animal under proper guidance.

ed the words of welcome. He briefed about the history of the Catholic community of Trongar and also applauded the unison shown by the students’ union and Baptist community of Trongar in rendering help during the construction of the church.

Birthday GreetinGs

Jai Kisan Jai Vigyan Week in Dimapur Dimapur, December 23 (mexN): A weeklong programme to celebrate Jai Kisan Jai Vigyan Week is being organised by KVK Dimapur, ICAR Research Complex for NEH Region, Jharnapani. The programme started with group discussion at Selüphe, the Model Village adopted by Lok Sabha MP Neiphiu Rio, on December 23 to celebrate the birth anniversary of former Prime Ministers Atal Bihari Vajpayee on December 25 and Late Chaudhary Charan Singh on December 23. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Anamika Sharma, Programme Coordinator, KVK Dimapur appealed to the farmers to utilize the latest agriculture technology available with the ICAR

or any other institute to maximize the production and self sustainability. "The celebration is being organised keeping in view the immense contribution of Prime Ministers Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Late Chaudhary Charan Singh for promoting use of science for the welfare of farmers," Dr Anamika said. Joint Director of ICAR Research Complex, Dr Bidyut C. Deka, in his remark said that ICAR has many technologies, but the famers should be interested to adopt the new technologies. He cited that the dual purpose poultry birds for backyard poultry farming can give profit of Rs 20,000/- to Rs 25,000/in 6-7 months. Hampshire and Ghungroo cross bred

pigs can also provide 8-9 piglets/ farrowing and they can earn Rs 15,000 – Rs 18,000 per year from the sale of piglets and pigs. Meanwhile, Dr KK Burman, Principal Scientist urged the farmers to develop saving habit for their future. The chairman of the village assured to extend their full cooperation for the village development, while Z. James Kikon, SMS, Soil Science appealed to the farmers to get their soil analyzed and apply the manure/ fertilizers as per the requirement of crops. He also asked the farmers to help and cooperate in collection of soil samples for analysis. The participants of the programme comprised of 35 farmers and 10 officials from ICAR.

Dear Alem, Best friends are hard to find. But, I’m glad I have mine. Happy Birthday to you my friend. Stay blessed and happy this day! Sumit

Dearest Alem On this special day, we all wish you the very best, all the joy you can ever have and may you be blessed abundantly today, tomorrow and the days to come! May you have a fantastic birthday and many more to come... HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! And lastly we are waiting for big bash… From cousins and friends Amen, Achi, Among, Aren, Lenti, Moalong, Apong, Moanaro, Maipo, Sumit, Sanjeev, Alemba, Aien, Asen, Amenla

ThursDAY 24•12•2015

IN FOCUS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express X issue 350X issue 185 Thursday 9volume July 2015 volume By moa Jamir

This Christmas, Say Little Prayer for Change

s December sets in with its menacing cold, most people eagerly await the upcoming Christmas with bated breath; our hearts gladden with joyful thoughts of the upcoming festivity. As cities, towns, and village squares get beautifully adorned, yearning for the festive season, we feel awed at the resilience of the human spirit. For beneath the opulence, we know something is terribly wrong with our state of affairs. Retrospectively, many citizens will declare the year nonchalantly as ‘normal’ in their most sincere assessment. The year has not been very kind to us. Just like a proverbial sleepy town, nothing much has changed around us besides some ‘showdown’ here and there. Bad governance, bad roads, bad service and bad politics – all have become a way of life and drained us as we continue to struggle with other existential challenges. Yet, we toil on. The short winter sun sets early. As we gather before our hearths reminiscing the days bygone, the conversation invariably turns to topical issues – which apart from the impending festive season, is about the socio-economic and political state of affairs we are endowed with. We complain, mumble and often ridicule our circumstances and talk in earnest enthusiasm about various issues surrounding us and haplessly give remedies for the malady. But like a battle weary soldier numbed by the catastrophic impact of war, with prudence we gently put them behind with the usual shrug. As the charcoal burns to ashes, our enthusiasm quietly soothes along with the dying fire, waiting for another dinner conversation. Tragically, in all this process, there are perceptible signs of weariness and lamentable realisation that we are hapless to do anything about the same besides an animated conversation. This has become a way of life. It is terribly unfortunate to be caught on the wrong side of poverty at this time of year. Incidentally, such situation is created by the governance and polity around us. If you are a parent, it’s a double whammy. The world has materialistically galloped exponentially, yet the crawling salary remains unpaid for months. How pitiful and painful for them to see the ‘want’ in their children with all the festivity surrounding them. In spite of all this, for those in politics and helm of affairs, if measured from their own yardstick, they had a wonderful year. The year started ingloriously for them with an acrimonious infighting in the Party with a majority in the ruling government. By the year-end, however, it curiously ended up creating a situation where there is no formal opposition in the State Assembly. Even opposition outside the assembly, to some extent, was absorbed by a matrimonial alliance. This holds great implication for its subjects. The desolation of our times has been created, in many ways, by such realities. As Christmas beckons, however, heart-warming gestures and camaraderie is perceptible in the air. In the process, let’s pray for rediscovering the magnanimity of the human spirit as we exchange greetings and other pleasantries. Say a little prayer for the unfortunate and hope that a change of heart will befall upon those at the helms of affairs, to bestow upon us an ‘unusual’ year in 2016. For any comment, drop a line to moajamir@live.com.

lEfT wiNg |

Nadia Prupis CommonDreams

Backing MSF, Human Rights Watch says the US Must Consent to War Crimes Probe

here is "strong" evidence that the U.S. military attack on a Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan two months ago constituted a criminal act, and should be investigated as such, Human Rights Watch said Monday in a letter to Defense Secretary Ashton Carter. "The attack on the MSF hospital in Kunduz involved possible war crimes," said the advocacy group's Wash'We believe that there ington director Sarah Maris a strong basis for gon. "The ongoing U.S. inquiry will not be credible determining that it considers crimicriminal liability exists,' unless nal liability and is protectgroup states in new ed from improper comletter to Gen. Carter mand influence." The 30-minute airstrike on October 3 killed at least 42 patients and staff and wounded several others. In November, the Pentagon released the summary of its internal inquiry into the bombing, which blamed the attack on "human error"—a conclusion that human rights groups rejected and which MSF said provided "more questions than answers." The Pentagon's report, as well as the military's "poor record prosecuting alleged war crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq," demonstrates the urgent need for an investigation conducted by an independent source, rather than the government or the army, HRW said. "It is essential that you publicly and explicitly clarify that ongoing investigations into the Kunduz attack include a thorough inquiry that considers the possible criminal liability of U.S. personnel, including at the command level," the letter to Carter states. "We believe that there is a strong basis for determining that criminal liability exists.... We also call on you to take all necessary steps to ensure that the investigation is independent and not subject to undue command influence." Carter said the Pentagon's inquiry was "thorough and unbiased," but numerous critics questioned the legitimacy of the government investigating itself for possible war crimes. "U.S. military commanders who oversaw the Kunduz military operation shouldn't be deciding who gets prosecuted for the MSF hospital attack," Margon said Monday. "The U.S. government should recognize that its resolution of this horrific incident will have repercussions for U.S. military operations far beyond Afghanistan." MSF has also repeatedly called for the U.S. government to submit to an inquiry conducted by the International Humanitarian Fact-Finding Commission, which was created under the Geneva Conventions in 1991. The commission has said it was ready to carry out an investigation, but could only do so with the U.S. government's consent.

C O M M E N T A R Y

New Internationalist Editorial New Internationalist

‘Indigenous people were SIlenced and eraSed’ An open letter from the Wretched of the Earth bloc to the organizers of the People’s Climate March of Justice and Jobs

n 7 December, indigenous activists from across the world kayaked down the River Seine to protest against the removal of the protection of indigenous rights as a crucial aspect of the climate treaty being negotiated in Paris. The pushback against indigenous rights was led by the US, European Union and Australia – all states with a rich past and present of colonial exploitation of people and land – who feared that the protection of indigenous rights might create legal liabilities. The securing of indigenous rights over land and resources is not only crucial to preventing the key causes of climate change, but also is about doing justice to those peoples most impacted. The protest on the Seine was a clear message of the kinds of devastation already under way due to state-sponsored corporate greed. The silencing and erasure of indigenous people, and of the vulnerable peoples from the Global South (the treaty also features a weakening of the human rights clause), at the climate talks is part of a long history of violent colonialism and racism that is at the heart of climate change. This form of silencing is not limited to state and corporate powers – it runs rampant as well within the climate movement of the Global North. So, before you can begin to claim some empty support for indigenous and Global South peoples, we would like to remind you of your treatment of these very people at the People’s Climate March for Justice and Jobs that happened two weeks ago in London. The climate march in London was led by the Wretched of the Earth, a bloc made up of indigenous people and people descended from communities from the Global South. Indigenous delegates who had travelled from the Pacific Islands and from the Sami Nation in Sweden were invited to join the London Climate March after the attacks in Paris meant they could not attend there. Our communities, in both the Global South and the Global North, bear the heaviest burden of climate change and environmental degradation. This is through the deprivation of water and food, and the destruction of culture and life itself. The impacts of climate change are continuous with, and a consequence of, colonial and imperial violence that sees these lands and lives as expendable. Our place at the front of the march was therefore rightful, because we are from and of frontline communities. However, like the history of any just cause, our place at the front of the march was not bestowed upon us. It was fought for, behind the scenes, for months, and after much pushback, it was agreed that we would lead the march. However, the agreement it seems was contingent upon us merely acting out our ethnicities – through attire, song and dance, perhaps – to provide a good photo-op, so that you might tick your narrow diversity box. The fact that we spoke for our own cause in our own words resulted in great consternation: you did not think that our decolonial and anti-imperialist message was consistent with the spirit of the march. In order to secure our place at the front, you asked us to dilute our message and make it ‘palatable’. On the Sunday, our bloc arrived at the march only to find that you had organized a most colourful form of sabotage. Our place had been given to a group of people dressed in animal headgear. After having invited the Pacific Island and Sami people to lead the bloc, you then took away the main banner of the march and asked them to hold signs instead. The banners made by indigenous communities were covered up. Signs that proclaimed indigenous and

he assassination two decades ago of Yitzhak Rabin, the warrior who became Israel’s peacemaking prime minister, has proved one of the most successful in history. Like Mahatma Gandhi, assassinated by a Hindu fanatic, Rabin was killed by one of his own, a fanatical Jew who could not abide territorial compromise for peace. Yigal Amir, the assassin, was a religious-nationalist follower of Baruch Goldstein, the American-born killer of 29 Palestinian worshipers in Hebron in 1994. Reason ebbed. Rage flowed. The center eroded. Messianic Zionism, of the kind that claims all the land between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River as God-given real estate, supplanted secular Zionism of the kind that believes in a state of laws. An opportunistic right-wing politician named Benjamin Netanyahu, who had compared Rabin to Chamberlain, rose to power. He may supplant David Ben-Gurion as Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, but his legacy looks paltry beside the founding father of Israel. A warrior-peacemaker was lost to an assassin’s bullet in 1995. A marketer fearmonger replaced him. Leadership, in its serious sense, disappeared. Without leadership, every problem is insurmountable. With it, no problem is unsolvable. It will soon be a half-century since Israel took control of the West Bank and backed the settlement movement that now sees several hundred thousand Jews living east of the Green Line, enjoying Israeli citizenship and various state handouts. Why then has Israel not asserted its sovereignty over all

Global South communities as the ‘Wretched of the Earth’ and charged ‘British Imperialism causes climate injustice’ were to be removed in favour of those that projected a more ‘positive message’. To repeat: the place of indigenous, black and brown people was stolen and given away to people dressed as animals. Let’s say it again: so long as indigenous, black, and brown people were unwilling to merely add decorative value they were replaceable by animals. This is colonialism at its most basic and obvious. The history of conquest, genocide and slavery is the foundation of our modern economic system – the very system responsible for the global disaster that is climate change. This is the same history that compares indigenous, black and brown people to animals and treats them as such. The history of colonialism is the ensuing legitimization of theft, occupation and erasure. Your decision to overshadow the indigenous communities’ banner and to replace our bloc with animals indicates at best your historical amnesia, and at worst your own colonial mentality. It also highlights the wilful hypocrisy of the climate movement in the Global North: well before you started caring about polar bears and recycling, colonized and postcolonial peoples were already fighting to reclaim and heal their connection with the earth and all its life forms that were so brutally violated by European colonialism and extractive industries. So, in response to your own colonial tactics, we changed ours. As some of us in the UK say, ‘If they don’t give us justice, then we won’t give them peace.’ And so we didn’t. We charged forward to hold our place at the front, we had a sit-in and a die-in, and each time you tried to by-pass us, we ran again. We acted in full solidarity to hold the space for people who had travelled long distances to be present with us at this time of great change. We can therefore proudly claim that the UK’s biggest climate march was indeed led by representatives of the Sami peoples in Scandinavia and of Islander peoples of Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia, as well as black and brown communities living in the UK. At various points during the march you called the police on us: first by complaining that the coffins we carried to commemorate the victims of environmental and climate genocide were a health hazard. Later, you called on them to kettle us during a brief die-in near BP’s headquarters so that the rest of the march could continue uninterrupted. In case you missed it: you, the organizers of the climate march, called on the official agents of colonial and capitalist power to separate indigenous, black, and brown people from the march, portraying us as protesters against the march rather than frontline community members and soldiers for climate justice. Our peoples bear a long history of resisting colonial domination and erasure in all its forms. The banner that we held while leading the march read ‘Still fighting Co2onialism’, bearing testament not only to

this long history but also to our treatment by the organizers of the march. The chants that were heard first as the march headed through the streets of the city were those charging genocide, and demanding decolonialization as the only viable solution to climate change, ending with the traditional songs of the Sami people. Your strategy of trying to erase us was continued well by the mainstream media, whose coverage made it appear as though we weren’t even there. You have since made no reference to your numerous and deliberate efforts to sabotage the bloc and deny our message. In fact, you have been trying to ignore us in the hope that our message will simply fizzle out, unworthy of mainstream attention. All of this is just one of the many ways in which our communities are consistently erased as frontline fighters against climate change. Your attempts to replace the reality of the genocidal impacts of climate change on indigenous communities with bobbing animal-heads adds insult to injury – not because the protection of animals among all life forms is insignificant but because who other than frontline communities can better speak to the utter devastation of flora and fauna on their own lands. We face an uphill battle in fighting climate change as part of the wider system that has created and enables it – capitalism and colonialism. But what happened at the London climate march is also a clear confirmation that the climate movement itself perpetuates these very oppressions. The climate movement, in the UK and globally, will be decolonial or it will be nothing. That Sunday in London, the indigenous communities and Wretched of the Earth bloc proved this: the first to die, the first to fight, the first to march. A movement that erases, silences and calls the police on frontline communities, those who do most of the dying and most of the resisting, is doomed to fail. Those who seek to silence us must be held accountable – both the executives at the top who tell their employees that the clash ‘never happened’, and their foot soldiers who pulled away the banner and tried to take down our placards. We are angry, but we are not hopeless. We do not want saviours, we know how to fight. Accountability, therefore, does not imply an apology. Accountability is redress and just action. For too long we have been speaking, shouting and chanting, often to no avail. Your active silencing of dissenting indigenous and Global South voices has contributed to yet another failed COP. But now, as one of our comrades has noted, we demand: ‘Listen when oppressed people speak’. In the lead-up to COP22 in Morocco, indigenous rights and human rights, as collective rights, must be at the forefront of any climate movement. To paraphrase Utah Phillips: The climate movement is not white, but it is being white-washed. Indigenous rights and racial justice are not a distraction. They are the heart of climate justice. There is no more time for your dirty games. The clock is ticking.

The assassination in Israel That Worked roger Cohen IHT territory and granted the vote and other democratic rights to all inhabitants? The answer is simple: too many Palestinians. Asserting sovereignty would have meant the end of the Jewish state. Israel chose instead the undermining of its own democracy. As Gershom Gorenberg has put it, Israel has “behaved as if the territories were part of Israel for the purpose of settlement, and under military occupation for the purpose of ruling the Palestinians.” This policy is corrosive. No democracy is immune to running an undemocratic system on part of the land it controls. Across the Green Line, millions of inhabitants are noncitizens. This is the combustible “one-state reality” of which Secretary of State John Kerry spoke this month. The noncitizens are Israel’s colonized Palestinians. Oppression and humiliation are hewn into the topography of the West Bank. Israel, through the settlement movement, has undermined its Zionist founders’ commitment to a democratic state of laws. Vikram Seth, the novelist, has ob-

served: “The great advantage of being a chosen people is that one can choose to decide who is unchosen.” The great disadvantage of Messianic Zionism is that it makes it impossible for Israel to be a Jewish and democratic state. It makes violence inevitable. Since October more than 20 Israelis and more than 100 Palestinians have been killed in what some are calling a third intifada. This is the status quo. Three Gaza wars since 2008 are the status quo. Israel today is a miracle of rapid development perched on the brittle foundation of occupation. Stabbings are the status quo. The Palestinian leadership has been hopeless. It is divided. It is corrupt. It lacks democratic legitimacy. It has wallowed in the comforting embrace of injustice rather than making the tough decisions to end it. It has opted for theater over substance. It incites against Jews. Time, as the last 67 years demonstrate, is not on the Palestinian side. None of this annuls Palestinians’ right to a state called Palestine in the

wRiTE-wiNg

West Bank and Gaza, nor the longterm interest of both sides in working to that end. Rabin hated what Palestinians had done. Still, for Israel's security, he chose peace. The cornerstone of Israel’s United Nations-backed legality was territorial compromise, as envisaged in Resolution 181 of 1947, calling for two states, one Jewish, one Arab, in the Holy Land. This was humankind’s decision, not God’s. The covenant Jews bore around the world was a covenant of ethics, not a covenant granting Jews the hills of Judea and Samaria forever. Its core is the idea that what is hateful to yourself should not be inflicted on your fellow human being. It must apply to the strong Jew of Israel as much as to the cowed Jew of the diaspora. As the liberal Israeli daily Haaretz has recently chronicled, various U.S. entities and nonprofit organizations, for which donations are tax-deductible, provide funding for the settler movement opposed by the United States government. Daniel Kurtzer, a former American ambassador to Israel, summed up why this is unacceptable: “The government — and we, the public — are subsidizing an activity which undermines government policy.” The Obama administration has understandably tired of providing the fig leaf of a “peace process” to Israeli and Palestinian leaders. But it can set down a marker by making public its view of a territorial compromise at or close to the 1967 lines, with agreed swaps. It can seek leverage in its opposition to settlement growth. It can close American tax loopholes that benefit Israeli settlers. It can try to make Rabin’s assassination a little less successful.

Letters to the Editor should be sent to: The morung express, House No. 4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur - 797112, Or –email: morung@gmail.com All letters (including those via email) should have the full name and Postal address of the sender. Readers may please note that the contents of the articles, letters and opinions published do not reflect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

ThursDAY 24•12•2015

PERSPECTIVE

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

ImpatIent for JustIce

Chris Webb

n his 1923 essay “The Problem of Generations,” Hungarian sociologist Karl Mannheim argued that the social consciousness of youth is heavily influenced by epochal events in which youth play a prominent role. Each generation, he wrote, develops an original and distinctive consciousness connected to the scope and pace of historical change that is potentially at odds with the previous generation. Over the past year, we have seen such age-based divides emerge, widen, and erupt in South Africa in a series of student uprisings that have called attention to institutional racism and inaccessibility at universities and the working conditions of precarious campus workers. Their grievances speak to the violent continuities between the apartheid past and present, where, for the vast majority, access to post-secondary education and a job is out of reach. The student demonstrations come at a critical juncture in post-apartheid South Africa, with a rising tide of community protests against inadequate service delivery and labor unrest outside officially sanctioned union channels. Alongside widespread state corruption, these various upsurges are contributing to the erosion of the ruling African National Congress’s legitimacy. Post-Apartheid Myths and Realities On October 23, under the banner of Fees Must Fall, thousands of students gathered at the union buildings in Pretoria, South Africa’s seat of government to protest a proposed 10 percent tuition fee increase at universities across the country. Earlier the same week, students had mobilized at university campuses in Cape Town, marching to South Africa’s parliamentary buildings as the finance minister delivered the nation’s interim budget. There they stormed the parliamentary precinct, where they were met by a phalanx of police firing stun grenades. The country’s higher education minister, Blade Nzimande, also general secretary of the country’s moribund Communist Party, addressed students from behind an iron fence and suggested they should be content with a 6 percent increase. Unmoved, students escalated the protests in subsequent days, engulfing university campuses in demonstrations. Campus security and police responded with brutality. But the students prevailed. Jacob Zuma, South Africa’s president, announced that tuition fee hikes would be scrapped for 2016 — a momentous victory for students in a country where less than 5 percent of families can comfortably afford tuition. The Fees Must Fall movement, however, has been about more than student demands for lower tuition. At the Universities of Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and the Western Cape, students organized around the working conditions and wages of outsourced campus workers — a growing problem born of universities’ desire to cut costs. Outsourced campus workers struggle to survive on poverty wages, as a study conducted by University of Witwatersrand sociologists documents; in one case a cleaner at the university was found to be supporting twentyone extended family members across the country on a monthly salary of around $100 USD. (Approximately one-third of South Africans are now employed in contingent jobs, fixed-term contracts, and informal occupations, most of which pay less than $200 per month.) In a remarkable display of solidarity early last month, hundreds of students were arrested at the University of Johannesburg while demonstrating for improved wages and working conditions on campuses. Once again, the students were successful. The University of Cape Town, Witwatersrand, and University of Johannesburg all bowed to student pressure to end labor outsourcing. Fees Must Fall built on the Rhodes Must Fall (RMF) movement and the student mobilizations at the University of Kwa Zulu Natal over campus safety and fee increases. Originally launched in March to demand the removal of a statue of colonizer Cecil Rhodes from the University of Cape Town campus, the RMF movement quickly took on issues like institutional racism, the absence of black faculty members, and the continued veneration of colonial and apartheid symbols on university campuses. For philosopher Achille Mbembe these movements reflect a sense of “political impatience, in which brashness, disruption and a new anti-deco-

ince her party’s thumping election victory last month, Myanmar’s democracy leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, has said little and made few public appearances. So when she emerged recently in her constituency, she was mobbed by reporters and photographers, eager for some hint about how her party will govern after the new Parliament is seated next month. It was not to be. She had come to pick up trash, an exercise described by her party as bringing change through acts of individual responsibility. “Don’t just take photos,” she scolded the photographers as she crouched to the shrubs covering the sandy soil of the Irrawaddy Delta and began picking up bits of trash. “Help pick up the garbage.” During the six weeks since Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi emerged as the most powerful person in this country of 51 million people, she has kept the country guessing on details of the transfer of power to her democracy movement from the military establishment that has ruled for more than five decades. She has done a lot of meditating, one aide said. “She says when things are so complicated in her mind she meditates, and it gives her clarity and gives her simple answers,” said U Phyo Min Thein, a member of the party’s budget committee. Nonetheless, behind the scenes, a transition is slowly starting to take shape. Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, 70, has met behind closed doors with minority ethnic groups, members of her party and crucial figures in the military with whom she will have to share power. While the participants have given little public indication of what was said, interviews with senior officials on both sides suggest that she has quietly conveyed a message that she will not rock the boat too much, too soon.

What must we do to enhance our ability to compete in the global economy?

rum ethos are meant to bring down the pretense of normality and the logics of normalization in this most abnormal society.” Yet the connection between the two movements goes beyond mere frustration and disruptive protest tactics — they both speak to the lived realities of race and class in post-apartheid South Africa. Race still structures exclusion from educational institutions and erects barriers to housing, jobs, and services. To harken back to earlier debates around race and class in South Africa, race is often the modality through which class is lived. A recent survey by the Department of Trade and Industry, for instance, found that black university graduates are three times more likely to be jobless than their white counterparts. Another study, conducted by the Cape Higher Education Consortium, indicates that pathways of employment in South Africa continue to reflect apartheid-era patterns of discrimination. Being white in South Africa, then, is still a fairly good guarantee of private-sector employment. And for black South Africans, access to the lecture halls of the country’s top universities doesn’t automatically translate into employment or an escape from poverty. South Africa has the third highest youth jobless rate in the world, the contours of which still correspond to the racial and spatial ordering of apartheid. (Factoring in discouraged job seekers who are not actively looking for work, the country’s youth unemployment rate hovers around 60 percent.) Meanwhile, job shedding in sectors like mining and agriculture, and sluggish growth in manufacturing, has been accompanied by the expansion of sectors like finance, insurance, and real estate — those hallmarks of neoliberal economic prosperity. This has fueled demand for highly educated and skilled workers. In the face of pricey tuition, families have responded by borrowing to finance their children’s education. Over the past two decades aggregate household debt has increased significantly as a result, particularly among the black middle class. Just from 2002 to 2008, South Africa’s household debt rose from 52 percent of income to 83 percent. Today, even after the economic crash, household debt still accounts for three quarters of South Africans’ disposable income. And a 2012–13 report found that the country’s residents carried around $140 billion (USD) worth of personal debt. On top of high rates of debt, unemployment, and low wages, service delivery to poor and workingclass communities is so lackluster it’s sparked an upsurge in community-level demonstrations that target local councilors and politicians. In 2014–15 South African police responded to 14,740 service delivery protests — 2,289 of which were violent — more than double the number of protests in 2007–8. Unemployed youth have, unsurprisingly, taken center stage in these movements. Service-delivery struggles and protests by students are more than episodic outbursts of anger against the state. They speak to a wider crisis of politi-

cal legitimacy, as poor and working-class communities question the parties and organizations that claim to represent them, and increasingly articulate their demands outside of official channels. The massacre of thirty-four mine workers by the South African Police at Marikana is a case in point. Workers abandoned their union after it not only failed to represent them but attacked them for daring to challenge its legitimacy. By forsaking their union, these workers also distanced themselves from the ruling party and its alliance with the trade union federation COSATU and the South African Communist Party. For challenging these institutions and the power of mining capital, they paid the ultimate price. Though it hasn’t turned lethal, the ruling party’s response to the student movement has also been strident. While the president met with official student representatives (many of whom are aligned with the ruling party), it has accused other students of being ideologically and financial supported by a shadowy “third force.” The movement’s fight for affordable education in South Africa is intricately connected to a broader set of struggles aimed at decommodifying other facets of social life. Drawing on the organizational forms of the liberation movement while simultaneously creating new ones, they view their struggle for affordable education as part of a larger fight to undo the economic violence of apartheid still being meted out in the neoliberal present. Indeed, those born in the twilight years of apartheid or raised after 1994 have increasingly come to question the degree to which apartheid actually ended. Many of them view discourses of reconciliation and rainbow nationhood as myths, propagated by their parents’ generation to distract from the lack of substantive economic and social transformation. Connecting Struggles This cascade of protest, among students and the poor, continues to erode the ANC’s hegemonic position. Yet in the absence of a credible and mobilized political alternative — and, it should be said, there are some stirrings of emerging formations — the ruling party is able to simply deflect or repress opposition. Still, it is essential that youthful anger be taken seriously rather than dismissed or treated in a functionalist manner. The legacy of past mistakes is borne by those youths who fought pitched street battles against apartheid forces in the 1980s, only to find themselves beset by high levels of poverty and unemployment after 1994. What’s lacking in South Africa is not critical consciousness or anger. That exists in abundance. What is needed is a political direction for this anger that connects the struggle against tuition fees to everyday struggles for survival occurring in the country’s most impoverished communities. As Fanon said, it is the duty of each generation to discover its historic mission, and fulfill or betray it. South Africa cannot afford more betrayal. Chris Webb is a PhD candidate at the University of Toronto and a visiting researcher at the University of Cape Town.

After Victory in Myanmar, Aung San Suu Kyi Quietly Shapes a Transition Thomas Fuller NYT Like Nelson Mandela, another former political prisoner and Nobel laureate who came to rule a country that had kept him as a political prisoner, she appears keen on building bridges with her former jailers. “The first intention was to soothe their nerves, that they would not be harmed,” said U Win Htein, a senior party member and one of Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi’s closest advisers. “We just said we didn’t want revenge, that we didn’t have a personal grudge and that we wanted to move forward and talk about the future.” Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi has told her party that it would be “unwise” to push the military right now, he said. Despite the election landslide, party members still recall the last election they won, in 1990, which the military followed up with the arrest of party leaders and two more decades of dictatorial rule. She has also reassured the bureaucracy, which is packed with former military officers. At a meeting with senior civil servants last week, she told them they should not fear losing their jobs. “She said she has no plans to terminate any government staff, none at all,” said U Win Myint, a parliamentarian from her party who attended the meeting. For years she has said that she wants national reconciliation, not revenge, but she has also promised to shake up the system. Her party’s election manifesto calls for a reduction in the number of ministries to “establish a lean and efficient government.” Before the election, she

campaigned extensively to change the Constitution, which was written by the military and has a provision barring her from office. Her party now appears to be willing to wait. “We won’t be doing anything that will reduce the power of the army for the time being,” Mr. Win Htein said. “We have to convince them that we really aim for national reconciliation.” Analysts say it is hard to read how that approach has been received by the military. In one of the few public readouts of the meetings she held with the military establishment, the grandson of the dictator Than Shwe wrote on Facebook that “everyone has to accept the truth that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will be the future leader of Myanmar after winning the elections.” Yet possible signs of friction have also emerged. Officials in the outgoing government have expressed annoyance at her alliance with Thura Shwe Mann, a former general who was the No. 3 official in the dictatorship but who has since been purged. Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi appears to have selected him as a go-between with the military; he has also been discussed by analysts as a possible proxy president for Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi. U Zaw Htay, a former military officer who is deputy director general of the office of the president, warned that could be a mistake. “If they use the wrong people as brokers, it could backfire,” he said. Amid the intrigue, there have also

been hints of how Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi’s party might govern. Mr. Win Htein said the party would look to ethnic minorities to lead some ministries, an effort to build even broader support for her government, and to experts outside the party to run some “important ministries,” like energy. Mr. Phyo Min Thein, of the party’s budget committee, said the party would seek to follow through on its promise to decentralize power after years of hierarchical governance. “Right now the system is topdown,” he said. Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi’s party, the National League for Democracy, is widely seen as top-down, too. With the exception of a few senior members, the party has been largely a one-woman show since she helped found it in 1988. During her years under house arrest, she grew accustomed to confiding in a close-knit group of advisers. Given Myanmar’s crushing problems — drug trafficking, corruption, ethnic insurgencies, poverty and inadequate health and education systems — even some close aides worry that she needs a deeper bench. “It really is a problem,” said U Nyan Win, a senior party member who is also Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi’s lawyer. “She needs a good team. She doesn’t have it yet.” Perhaps owing to her days in confinement, when the military dictatorship sought to destroy the democracy movement, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi puts high value on trust and loyalty among her aides, senior party members say. On several occasions, those closest to her have been instructed not to speak with the media. Buttonholed in the halls of Parliament, Daw Tin Mar Aung, a physician whose role has been described as a combination of chief of staff and lady in waiting, was asked for an interview. “Never,” she said.

ir Walter Raleigh, a 19th century Englishman, says, “Whoever commands the sea, commands the trade of the world; whoever commands the trade of the world, commands the riches of the world, and consequently the world itself.” This is because the ocean ceases to be a barrier as it has become ‘a wide common’ over which men may pass in all directions. In other words, the amount that a nation trades with others is determined not only by government policies but also by geography. For example, countries with good natural seaports find trade easier than countries without this resource. As such, it is not a coincidence that many of the world’s major cities, such as London, New York, Singapore, Hong Kong, Port Hedland, and Mumbai, are located next to oceans. On the other hand, many landlocked countries do not have easy access to the world’s waterways, and some economists point to this fact as one reason why they are poor. What does this mean for Nagaland as a landlocked state? As a non-coastal inland, Nagaland lacks access to things which the ocean can provide—that is, it lacks ocean resources and oceanic trade connections. Since it is located far away from any seaport or big airport, longer time is required for traders to come to Nagaland. Even our mountainous terrains render vehicular transportation more difficult. Because of these reasons, goods and supplies cannot flow in or flow out easily. This geographical disadvantage, however, shouldn’t discourage us from international trade. To compensate this problem, we should do everything possible to reduce trade barriers along our national borders and develop good relations with all the countries around us. By doing so, we can convert our homeland into a commercial hub as it is strategically located in the midst of some most populous nations. We must understand that the only way to survive economically in today’s world is not by resisting the market forces, but by learning how to make these forces work for us. People from the United States to Taiwan to Argentina are interconnected and interdependent on one another for a variety of goods and services. The United States and other nations are increasingly importing products from other countries, and exporting domestically produced products to other countries. Having understood the need to adapt oneself to market forces, the former President of America, Bill Clinton, once said, “Globalization is not something we can hold off or turn off … it is the economic equivalent of a force of nature---like wind or water.” As such, the old saying “No man is an island” is becoming increasingly appropriate for everyone in this global age. Because the world economy is becoming more interconnected and interdependent, what happens in one country can affect other countries economically, thereby producing changes and challenges for businesses and workers all over the world. One example of this can be seen in the booming economies in China and India. Their growth is a major reason for the increasing global demand for energy, which, in turn, drives up higher prices at the gas station for people everywhere. It is, therefore, imperative that we Nagas also learn how to enhance our ability to compete in the global economy. Economic opportunities are much greater in the global market than at the local level. For this reason, we must move away from thinking of the market as being the local market, or the national market, to thinking of the market as being the entire world. This means that a person can come up with almost any product as long as he can find a market somewhere in the world where that product can be sold (globalization of market). Or, he can find a manufacturing firm to partner with and have a contract to produce a component part of a product (globalization of product). As it is, many brand name products are composites of components manufactured around the world. This is how the Ford Motor Company manufactures its cars: the engine is made in USA, transmission produced in Mexico, stereo and other electrical components manufactured in Japan, dash and other plastic components manufactured in China, seats made in Great Britain, and finally the Ford car is assembled in Canada. When government restrictions are less harsh on international trades, manufacturing firms can move their production facilities to the least-cost location for that activity and make their products at less cost, which often results in lower prices for customers too. To be able to succeed in the international market, a country should sell to other countries the goods it can manufacture most efficiently and most effectively and buy from other countries the goods it cannot manufacture as efficiently or effectively. If this economic principle is followed, each nation will have a greater quantity and variety of higher-quality products to purchase at lower prices. But for this mutually beneficial system to work, each country must specialize in the production of those products for which it possesses a comparative advantage---that is, the ability to produce a good or a service relatively more efficiently compared to other countries. Coming to Nagaland, what are some of the comparative advantages we have in terms of our ability to produce goods and services for the global market? No doubt, Nagas are blessed with mineral resources which, when properly exploited, can provide huge trade opportunities. But I believe there are many other areas where our Nagas can develop an edge in the world market. Some of these may be in the areas of sports and music, eco-tourism and hospitality services, bamboo works and native crafts, meat production and organic foods, just to name a few. To be competitive in the world market, our government must invest more in health, education, and training, including vocational training and apprenticeships, to enhance employment opportunities as well as increase the productivity of our citizens. Similarly, businesses must grapple with many of the same issues as governments do to be more competitive. That is, business firms must try to gain access to cheap raw materials, invest in their workers’ training and productivity, and purchase the state-of-theart equipment that will give them an edge. As to how far our Naga people have progressed in trade and commerce so far, we must admit that we haven’t seriously produced anything that is even nationally, if not internationally, worth mentioning. This is so because we are still content to remain as a consumer society, which is even a step lower than those societies which produce their own goods for sale to their own people. That this is still the prevailing state in Nagaland can be observed, for example, at every Friday Bazaar in Medziphema Town, where only non-locals seem to do all the selling while the locals do all the buying as customers. To become an economic powerhouse, we Nagas must become producers and suppliers of goods and services. We must also build a strong non-Naga consumer base, both at home and beyond. Only by attracting more non-Nagas as buyers of our goods and services can we become more prosperous and more powerful.

Readers may please note that, the contents of the articles published on this page do not reflect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

ThursDAY 24•12•2015

INDIA

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Cancer mitigation, prevention Closing in on Westinghouse deal challenge for doctors: President to build 6 nuke reactors: Official

new DelhI, DecemBer 23 (reuterS): India expects to seal a contract with Westinghouse Electric Co LLC to build six nuclear reactors in the first half of next year, a senior government official said, in a sign its $150 billion dollar nuclear power program is getting off the ground. The proposed power plant in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state of Gujarat will accelerate India's plans to buildroughly 60 reactors, which would make it the world's second-biggest nuclear energy market after China. India wants to dramatically increase its nuclear capacity to 63,000 megawatts (MW) by 2032, from 5,780 MW, as part of a broader push to move away from fossil fuels, cut greenhouse gas emissions and avoid the dangerous effects of climate change. The United States signed a pact with India in 2008, opening the way for nuclear commerce that had previously been stymied due to New Delhi's nuclear weapons program and shunning of the global Non-Proliferation

Treaty (NPT). But hopes that reactor makers would get billions of dollars of new business evaporated after India adopted a law in 2010 giving the state-run operator Nuclear Power Corp of India Ltd (NPCIL) the right to seek damages from suppliers in the event of an accident. Indian officials have been trying to assuage suppliers' concerns, including by setting up an insurance pool with a liability cap of 15 billion Indian rupees ($226.16 million). A final hurdle – ratification of the International Atomic Energy Agency's Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage (CSC) – is expected within weeks, the Indian government official said. The CSC requires signatories to shift liability to the operator and offers access to relief funds. In a statement, Westinghouse said it expected India would move towards a framework that satisfies the CSC and channels accident liability exclusively to the operator. The state-

ment made no reference to ongoing negotiations. A deal with Westinghouse, a unit of Toshiba Corp, could also put pressure on General Electric Co, whose nuclear energy venture with Hitachi was offered a site six years ago to build reactors. GE has still not decided whether it would move ahead with the plan, the official said, adding that India was keen for a decision from the company soon. GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy said it had strong interest in India, and that the CSC would be "a sustainable solution to concerns about India's existing domestic nuclear liability law". India's plans for ramping up nuclear capacity have in the past fallen far short of targets and industry officials say that the aim to lift the share of nuclear power to a quarter of its energy mix, from barely 3 percent now, is very ambitious.

of Andhra Pradesh to build six reactors, on top of the six it is already expected to build in neighboring Tamil Nadu, Indian and Russian officials have said. Separately, India expects Japan, which supplies components used in most reactors, to ratify an agreement some time in the second quarter of 2016 to support its nuclear program, another senior Indian government source said. "There are no more technical hurdles in the development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes," the source said. French nuclear company Areva, which uses Japanese components, also has a deal to build six reactors in India, although restructuring within that company was likely to delay construction until 2017, the first official said. French utility EDF agreed earlier this year to buy a majority stake in Areva's reactor business. Areva NO MORE has been in price negotiaTECHNICAL HURDLES tions with NPCIL for sevLater this week, India eral months now, officials is expected to offer Russia at the Indian operator told a site in its southern state Reuters in November.

Areva did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

WESTINGHOUSE DEAL Negotiators from Westinghouse and Indian operator NPCIL have held several rounds of talks on the nuclear plant in Mithi Virdi, the government official said. NPCIL declined to comment on the negotiations. Federal minister for Atomic Energy Jitendra Singh told parliament this month that talks were going on with French and U.S. firms to arrive at project proposals. He offered no details. But the government source said Westinghouse and NPCIL were negotiating all six reactors in one go, instead of an earlier plan to strike deals for two at a time. Construction of the roughly 1,100 MW reactors could begin later in 2016, the official, who is close to the negotiations, added. The idea was to allow the Americans and the French, India's two close partners, to catch up with the Russians in its nuclear sector, the official said.

Bengaluru, DecemBer 23 (IanS): With increasing cases of cancer across the country, the medical fraternity and policy planners face the challenge of mitigating and preventing the dreaded disease, President Pranab Mukherjee said here on Wednesday. "Official data reveals one in 15 men and one in 12 women in urban areas face cancer risk in their life time. With rapidly growing population, doctors and policy makers face the challenge of its mitigation and prevention," Mukherjee said at a function. After laying the foundation stone for the state-run cancer institute of Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, the President said the unabated spread of cancer was a cause for concern despite steps for preventive, curative and palliative care. "Efforts are being made to pave way for structuring strategies to plan, guide, monitor and evaluate cancer control programmes," Mukherjee said on the occasion. Referring to the state-run Indian Council of Medical Research's (ICMR) efforts to make cancer a notified disease on a national basis for generating data, the President said such reliable data would help in grasping the magnitude of the problem and formulating a comprehensive cancer cure policy for the affected. "Early detection is a game changer in the overall treatment and management of cancer which will get a boost with reliable data," Mukherjee asserted. Observing that facilities for early detection, treatment and palliative care were sub-optimal in rural areas where more people live, the President urged the doctors to develop a system for early detection and proper disease management. "We need to explore technology to pre-

Juveniles gun down policeman in Delhi court

RS passes 9 bills in winter session new DelhI, DecemBer 23 (IanS): Hit by protests throughout the winter session, the Rajya Sabha managed to pass only nine bills during this session that began on November 26, with a bulk going through on Wednesday, the last day of the session. The bills passed by the Rajya Sabha are: * The Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill: The bill seeks to amend the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. The Act defines promissory notes, cheques and specifies penalties for bouncing of cheques, and other violations. * The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill: The bill amends the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. The new offences added to the act under the Bill include garlanding with footwear, compelling to dispose or carry human or animal carcasses, or do manual scavenging, abusing SCs or STs by caste name in public, attempting to promote feelings of ill-will against SCs or STs or disrespecting any deceased person held in high esteem, and imposing or threatening a social or economic boycott. * The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill - It provides for the trial of those between 16-18 years as adults for heinous offences. Also, anyone between the age of 16-18 who commits a less serious offence may be tried as an adult if he is apprehended after he attains the age of 21. * The Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Bill - It enables the creation of commercial divisions in high courts, and commercial courts at the district level. * The Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill - The bill replaces an ordinance. Under the Act, the relevant court for all arbitration matters would be a principal civil court or high court with original jurisdiction. The ordinance modified this to state that in the case of international arbitration, the relevant

court would only be the high court having original ordinary jurisdiction. * The Atomic Energy (Amendment) Bill The bill proposes to amend the Atomic Energy Act, 1962. The Act empowers the central government to produce, develop, control, and use atomic energy. Under the Act, a government company is one in which at least 51 percent of the paid-up share capital is held by the central government. The bill expands this definition to include companies where the whole of the paid up share capital is held by one or more government company and whose articles of association empower the central government to constitute its Board of Directors. This provision will allow for the formation of joint ventures between Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited and other government companies. * The Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Bill - The bill amends the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965. The Act provides for the annual payment of bonus to employees of certain establishments (including factories and establishments employing 20 or more persons). Under the Act, bonus is calculated on the basis of the employee's salary and the profits of the establishment. * The Appropriation Bills - These are money bills, which the Rajya Sabha returned to the Lok Sabha. The Rajya Sabha has limited power with money bills. Even if it does not return a bill to the lower house, it is deemed as passed by both houses in 14 days. Apart from these, the house referred The Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Bill, 2013 to a Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha and the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2015, was referred to a Joint Select Committee of Parliament. On Wednesday, government also tried to pass a bill on the sugar cess, but following objections from the members, Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien decided not to take it up. Presented as a money bill by government, it will be deemed as passed in 14 days.

vent and treat cancer with a communication strategy to fight against its spread across the country." Mukherjee pointed out. Admitting that affordable health care was a challenge for all stakeholders, especially the needy, the President said huge investment on manpower and equipment was increasing the cost of cancer treatment. "Literacy and awareness about cancer will make more people seek medical advice at an early stage and access to diagnostic methods help in early tumour detection," Mukherjee told the gathering, including state governor Vajubhai R Vala and chief minister Siddaramaiah. On the recommendation of the national cancer control programme, oncology wings have been set up in medical colleges to extend cancer care facilities to people. In addition, the central government has upgraded regional cancer centres to state cancer institutions through funding for diagnosis and treatment. The 40-year-old Kidwai institute is one of the beneficiaries of such a drive to provide cancer care facilities to the people in Karnataka and other parts of India. "We have to declare an all-out offensive against cancer and achieve a decisive victory through active collaboration and participation of government, industry and academia," Mukherjee added.

BJP activists set on fire a state bus and ransacked three lorries during a day-long bandh called by their district party unit in North Dinajpur district on December 22. The North Dinajpur unit of the BJP called the bandh to protest against police lathicharge on them and subsequent arrest of 35 activists. The bandh was near-total throughout the district as schools, colleges and offices remained shut down.. (PTI Photo)

new DelhI, DecemBer 23 (IanS): A policeman was killed when four armed youths in the age group of 16-18 years fired at a member of a rival gang in a packed court here, police said. The target was injured. Head Constable Ram Kumar received bullets in his head and chest and collapsed dead on the fifth floor Karkardooma courtroom when two of the four killers opened fire at Irfan alias Chhenu, their target. Irfan, who was involved in 23 criminal cases in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh including those of murder, suffered a bullet wound in his leg while another bullet scraped his head. He was declared out of danger. But as the killers tried to get away, an unidentified lawyer and a policeman pounced on the two men, who had fired 8 or 9 rounds from pistols, and captured them. The other two members of the killer gang who were waiting outside the courtroom tried to flee but were chased and overpowered. Lawyers thrashed all four criminals before handing them over to police. All of them were 16 to 18 years old. Three of them were residents of Dakshinpuri and one lived in Madangir -- in south Delhi.

BJP suspends Kirti Azad for taking on Arun Jaitley new DelhI, DecemBer 23 (IanS): The BJP on Wednesday suspended its MP Kirti Azad, who has alleged large-scale corruption in Delhi's cricket body when it was headed by now Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. Azad termed the action "unfortunate" and vowed to fight on. "He has been suspended with immediate effect for anti-party activities," Bharatiya Janata Party general secretary Anil Jain told IANS, reading out an official statement. The action came eight years after Azad unleashed a campaign to expose what he said was massive corruption in the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA), which Jaitley headed for 13 years till 2013. The action against Azad drew

immediate criticism from Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who said the suspension had "totally exposed" the BJP. Azad has been punished for battling corruption, he said. Congress leader Digvijay Singh demanded to know if Azad had been suspended for speaking out against corruption. BJP spokesman G.V.L. Narasimha Rao said the party acted against Azad, a three-time Lok Sabha member from Darbhanga in Bihar, for taking an "anti-BJP line". Party sources said a show cause notice was issued to Azad asking him to explain his "antiparty conduct". Azad, a member of the 1983 Indian cricket team which won the World Cup, is the first BJP MP to be suspended since Narendra Modi became the prime

minister in May last year. In Ahmedabad, Azad said it was unfortunate he had been suspended for "speaking the truth" about corruption in Delhi's cricket body. "What anti-party activity have I done?" Azad asked as journalists sought his reaction. "I have served my party faithfully. I never called Jaitley corrupt. I only exposed corruption." He said he had never targeted Jaitley "although much of the wrongdoing took place during his tenure" as DDCA head. Azad also denied that he was acting in collusion with the Congress or the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which too have taken on Jaitley over the DDCA issue. "It is they who have taken up my issue." Asked about his future programme, a visibly defiant Azad

said: "See, what happens now. The fun starts." Son of former Bihar chief minister Bhagwat Jha Azad, the younger Azad has for years carried on a campaign against what he said was major financial irregularities in the DDCA. Although Azad's campaign against the alleged corruption in the DDCA began years ago, matters came to a head after Kejriwal took up the issue in a major way following a CBI raid on the Delhi Secretariat this month. Despite denials by the CBI that it never searched Kejriwal's office and it was after his principal secretary Rajendra Kumar for corruption, the AAP leader has said that CBI officials did enter his room in search of a file on the DDCA and Jaitley.

Nanomeds, combating dengue, 3D printing trended in India KolKata, DecemBer 23 (IanS): India became the world's third country with the prowess to manufacture raw materials for nanomedicines, addressed a growing public health concern by approving a new drug for hepatitis C and made strides in 3D printing in healthcare as 2015 ended on a cliff-hanger with the launch of the world's first anti-dengue vaccine in Mexico giving hope to the South Asian country. India was hit hard by dengue cases this year while the Mexican government gave the green signal to the world's first anti-dengue vaccine, called Dengvaxia, developed by France-based Sanofi Pasteur. It may however be quite a while before Indians have access to it. "The vaccine is cur-

rently in the third phase of clinical study. At present, only the Mexican government has approved it. This vaccine has still not been approved globally but if it passes the third phase it will get the required approval," Rajesh Kumar, senior consultant (internal medicine), Paras Hospital, Gurgaon, told IANS on the phone. The total number of dengue cases in Delhi reached over 12,000 in October. The city recorded the highest number of patients of the viral disease in 19 years. Climate change was one of the reasons attributed to by researchers for this surge and continuance of the disease into the winter months. While the wait is on for India to give its nod for the vaccine, the nation gave

a breather to patients of chronic hepatitis C with the Drug Controller General of India okaying the launch of generic hepatitis-C drug Harvoni by two Indian drug makers. It is estimated that 1218 million patients are infected with hepatitis C in India. Looking back, the country also made good on its attempts to harness the power of the small: nanotechnology. It entered the select league of nations (the US and Ireland) which have the technology to manufacture raw material for generating nano-crystal based medicines. The National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Mohali, designed and licensed the technology for producing nano-crystal based medicines that could

bring down costs. Drugs in the form of these nanoparticles with crystalline characters, act faster and are more efficient than conventional ones. Dubbed NanoCrySP, the solid dispersions are water soluble and, therefore, easily absorbed. NIPER has already got an Indian patent for the technology and has now applied for the US and European patents. Apart from nanotechnology, examples of use of 3D printing of prosthetics, implants and surgical aids signalled the next wave of innovation in India. In 3D printing, successive layers of material are laid down under computer control. Thanks to a Mumbai-based company, a 3D printed heart model aided experts in the surgery of a two-month old baby with a

difficult form of heart disease earlier this year. Led by the Narendra Modi government's Make in India campaign, the USbased Stratasys, the world's largest 3D printing company, set up its India operations to tap into the growing manufacturing activity. India's potential in this sector has been vouched for by Dutch orthopaedic bio-engineering expert Nico Verdonschot, a foreign faculty member for India's Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN) programme, who said the country's technical capabilities could augment the 3D printing sector for profitably manufacturing implants. Another area where researchers and doctors were active is the application of light-based technologies and photonics in cancer

screening and diagnosis. While the US and countries in Europe, such as Germany, have already made a mark in this field, India is waking up to it, given the increasing incidences of cancer, according to Nirmalya Ghosh, who heads IISER-Kolkata's Bio Optics and Nano Photonics (BioNaP) group, one of the few teams in the country to work on such techniques. (The premier Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research are spread across seven locations in the country.) Incidentally, 2015 which happened to be the International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies, also saw researchers in India and the US testing a handy solar-powered device for early detection of oral cancer which could be integrated with mobile

technology, enabling faster and accurate diagnostics in rural areas. In its race to the top, India's department of biotechnology announced it plans to scale up start-ups in the biotechnology sector to at least 1,500 in the next two to three years to boost technological interventions in the health and agriculture sectors. A US report earlier this year also brought cheers to people who had been avoiding high-cholesterol foods such as eggs or butter in the fear of hurting their heart health. A top nutrition advisory committee said that people, except those with certain health problems such as diabetes, no longer have to be worried about eating foods that are high in cholesterol. The committee's report will help shape the next

version of the US Dietary Guidelines, set to be released later this year. The year just ending was also remarkable as for the first time in 30 years researchers discovered a new antibiotic named teixobactin. The new compound, which is expected to be available for use within five years, could play a major role in the fight against bacterial infections such as tuberculosis (TB). It could also lead to antibiotics that are likely to avoid development of resistance. This discovery could have major implications for India, as according to a report published earlier this year in The BMJ, each year, India has 2.2 million new cases, more than 300,000 deaths, and economic losses of $23 bn from TB, making it India's biggest health crisis.

ThurSdaY 24•12•2015

WORLD

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

Some heed to Pope’s call to succour refugees, others look away VATICAN CITY, DeCember 23 (re uTers): One Catholic parish in Germany tore out its pews to make space for refugees. Franciscan monks near Rome took a family into their hilltop convent. But in northern Italy, a rural priest faced hostility when he asked his flock to shelter Muslims. Four months after Pope Francis appealed to the parishes and religious communities of Europe to each take in one family of refugees, the response is decidedly mixed. Arms have opened wide in some places but indifference, bureaucracy, fear, and xenophobia have reared their heads elsewhere, particularly after the attack by Islamist militants who killed 130 people in Paris last month. Around a million migrants arrived by sea in Europe in 2015, with some 3,700 dying, according to the International Organisation for Migration. Some of them, if Francis is heeded, should be heading to safety among the roughly 120,000 Catholic parishes in Europe But in Italy - which with more than 25,000 has the largest number of parishes - only about 1,000 have responded, according to Father Giancarlo Perego, head of the Church-affiliated Migrantes Foundation. Another 1,500 families had offered to host refugees. Perego

Ten migrants drown off Greek Island, coastguard rescues 13

A Syrian refugee holds onto his children as he struggles to walk off a dinghy on the Greek island of Lesbos, after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea from Turkey to Lesbos September 24. (REUTERS File Photo)

and other Church officials pointed out, however, that many Catholic parishes were already supporting refugee services well before the pope’s appeal. Italian bishops have published a “How To” booklet for parishes, dealing with everything from how to prepare parishioners for the arrival of refugees, legal issues, and a glossary explaining terms such as asylum and repatriation. When Francis announced the initiative on Sept. 6, he set the example by welcoming two families into the Vatican’s own two parishes.

MIXED WELCOME Many of the migrants entering Europe have headed to Germany, where the Catholic Church is one of the richest in Europe, partly because of a Church tax on members, and which has an institutional tradition of helping refugees. More than 3,000 staff members work full time to help refugees and are backed up by about 100,000 volunteers, according to a spokesperson. St. Benedikt’s parish in the northern port city of Bremen removed pews and confessionals and converted the church into a tempo-

rary refugee shelter. “This is our duty. We can’t sing Christmas carols about opening doors to those in need and at the same time refuse to let anyone enter,” said one of its priests, Father Johannes Sczyrba. St. Roch church in Brussels opened its doors at night and now shelters about 200 refugees. “The numbers grow and grow and grow. It’s like a little explosion,” said Father Hugo Van Gee. Gilles Cnockaert, spokesman for Catholic charity Caritas International, said the pope’s call was

“like an electrical shock” for Belgian Catholics and prompted more than 550 people to offer to house asylum seekers. But it had not all been welcoming. A number of Catholic prelates, particularly in Eastern Europe, were less than eager and warned of the long-term effects that migrants, most of them Muslim, could have on local culture. “We are not being xenophobic or inhospitable,” said Bishop Piotr Libera of Plock in central Poland. “We are being wise. If you let a stranger into your home, into a home that

ATHeNs, DeCember 23 (reuTers): Five children, one woman and four men drowned when their boat sank off the small Greek island of Farmakonisi, Greek coastguard officials said early on Wednesday. Another 13 people, 11 men and two women, were rescued and two were still missing according to witnesses, the officials said adding that a helicopter, a patrol boat and private vessels assisted the search-and-rescue operation. “The vessel, a 6-metre (20-foot) speed boat, sank under unknown circumstances,” one of the officials told Reuters. “They were in the water when they were spotted by a rescue boat.” The incident took place east of Farmakonisi, close to Turkey’s coast. Tens of thousands of mainly Syrian refugees have braved rough seas this year to make the short but precarious journey from Turkey to Greece’s islands. is just being built, a small home, a home that is frail, you may get yourself into a great deal of trouble”. In Italy, a major gateway into Europe for migrants, it has also been mixed. The Rome newspaper La Repubblica said only 80 of Rome’s more than 300 parishes had responded to Francis’ call. The response was much lower in other Italian cities, the paper reported. Parishioners of the church of San Saturnino in an up-scale Rome neighbourhood refurbished a two-room apartment for three African refugees. They take turns helping

More than 1 million refugees and migrants came to the European Union in 2015, while almost 3,700 died or went missing during the journey, which has reaped huge profit for smugglers, the International Organization for Migration said on Tuesday. The EU is counting on Ankara to stem the flow of refugees from Turkey into Greece and onward to Germany and other EU countries. A report said there was little evidence of progress since Turkey signed an “action plan” with the EU. Its neighbour, Greece, which is a gateway to the EU, is also trying to rebuff criticism that it has done too little to manage the people arriving on its shores. Athens has promised to speed up the construction of EU-assisted reception and registration centres on five islands, but so far only the so-called hotspot on Lesbos is operational.

them shop and cook. Father Michael Perry, worldwide head of one of the branches of the Franciscan order, said monks in a convent south of Rome had taken in a refugee family and another convent in the central Rome neighbourhood of Trastevere was housing 15 people. But the appeal has also run into stubborn resistance, including in some areas of northern Italy where anti-immigrant feelings run high and defending regional identity has long been a political battle cry. In September Father Lucio Mozzo, who looks af-

ter six rural parishes, called a meeting to see how parishioners felt about housing a family of Syrian refugees in a disused vicarage. “My grandfather built that place for priests, not for Muslims,” one man shouted. Perry, the Franciscan leader, said he sensed that the Paris attacks had made some Catholics more hesitant and wary. “That (the Paris attacks) is having some consequences. There is a rising fear in some people because they don’t know what systems and controls are in place (to vet refugees),” he said.

International trade helps Russian bombing of Syria may France to pursue plans to strip dual be a war crime: Amnesty says citizens’ nationality in terrorism cases spread infectious diseases mOsCOw, DeCember 23 (reuTers): Russia’s bombing of Syria may amount to a war crime because of the number of civilians its strikes have killed, Amnesty International said on Wednesday, presenting what it said was evidence that the air raids had violated humanitarian law. “Russian air strikes in Syria have killed hundreds of civilians and caused massive destruction in residential areas, striking homes, a mosque and a busy market, as well as medical facilities, in...attacks that show evidence of violations of international humanitarian law,” Amnesty said in a new report. Russia started its campaign of air strikes against militants in Syria on Sept. 30, saying it wanted to help the Kremlin’s main Middle East ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, defeat Islamic State and other militant groups. It has repeatedly and forcefully denied targeting civilians, saying it takes great care to avoid bombing residential areas.

When asked by Reuters to comment on the Amnesty allegations, the Russian Defence Ministry said it had no immediate comment, while the Russian Foreign Ministry said it first needed to study the report before giving any official reaction. Amnesty, whose charges echoed those of some Syrian observers, said Russian air strikes had killed at least 200 civilians and around a dozen fighters from September to November of this year. It said its report, which focused on six attacks in Homs, Idlib and Aleppo, was based on interviews with witnesses and survivors, as well as on video evidence and images showing the aftermath of attacks. The Russian strikes “appear to have directly attacked civilians or civilian objects by striking residential areas with no evident military target and even medical facilities,” Philip Luther, director of the Middle East and North Africa programme at Amnesty International, said in a statement. “Such attacks may amount to war crimes,” Luther said.

PArIs, DeCember 23 (reuTers): The French government will go ahead with contested plans to strip dual citizens of their French nationality in terrorism cases, Prime Minister Manuel Valls said on Wednesday, brushing aside his own justice minister’s concerns. The decision was met with fierce criticism from left-wing allies of the Socialist government. There were also calls from the right for Justice Minister Christiane Taubira to resign as she had publicly opposed the measure. After Islamist gunmen and suicide bombers killed 130 people in Nov. 13 attacks in Paris, President Francois Hollande called for the measure as part of a constitutional amendment aimed at stepping up the fight against terrorism. Taubira had said on Tuesday that it had been dropped from the amendment bill and that it posted fundamental problems regarding the right to French citizenship based on birthplace. Unveiling the bill on Wednesday, Valls defended the measure saying that it would be strictly lim-

ited to people convicted on terrorism charges and would be used after they had served out their sentence. Speaking at the same news conference as Valls, Taubira squashed speculation that she would resign: “In the current state of things, my presence or absence from government is not what matters, it’s the president’s and the government’s capacity to deal with the dangers facing us.” Currently only naturalised citizens can be stripped of their French citizenship. Extending the measure to all dual nationals has divided politicians on both the left and right. Conservative lawmaker Eric Ciotti led calls on the right for Taubira to resign, saying that the government’s credibility and coherence was on the line. France’s highest administrative court, the Conseil d’Etat, has given a lukewarm backing for the plan and the government appointed rights watchdog came out against. “It clearly means that there will be two classes of nationality and

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls leaves the Elysee Palace in Paris on December 23, following the weekly cabinet meeting and a news conference where the prime minister presented reform proposals. (REUTERS Photo)

two classes of citizenship, that’s why I say it raises fundamental questions,” Jacques Toubon said on France Inter radio. A constitutional amendment requires a three-fifths majority of the Congress of both houses or a referendum vote.

Thai junta reaffirms will hand back power in 2017 bANGKOK, DeCember 23 (reuTers): Thai prime minister and junta leader Prayuth Chan-ocha gave a sweeping year-end speech on Wednesday in which he reiterated that the junta will hand back power in 2017 and that it was entering “phase two” of its reform plan. The junta, or National Council for Peace and Order, seized control in May 2014 and overthrew an elected government, putting an end to protests in Bangkok led by the middle classes and elites who wanted to get rid of the civilian government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Since then, it has busied itself with drafting a new constitution and reforms which critics say are designed to limit the powers of political parties and neutralize those seen as loyal to controversial former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, Yingluck’s brother who was ousted in 2006. The junta has repeatedly delayed planned elections, claiming the country is not yet stable enough to hold a poll.

Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha addresses the nation and summarises the junta government’s annual report in Bangkok, Thailand on December 23. (REUTERS Photo)

Prayuth said the junta was sticking to its plan to hand back power in 2017. “We have one year and six months left starting January 2016 to July 2017 and the government will lay the foundations for the things it did not do and if it cannot complete them they will be put in the reform plan,” he said in a televised speech. “We are entering phase two now.” The military government, led by coup-maker Prayuth, has stifled dissent and has gone hard after critics of the monarchy by using a harsh royal insult law to detain dozens of people, prompting

stern criticism from rights groups, the United Nations and Western governments. Nineteen months after the coup it is struggling to revive Thailand’s export-dependent economy. Despite announcing big-spending on large road and railway projects, domestic demand remains weak and record-high household debt is hurting Southeast Asia’s secondlargest economy. The junta continues to wield wideranging powers under a special security measure that allows security forces to make arrests without court warrants and detain people without charge.

Prayuth addressed accusations of rights abuses in his speech saying it was not his fault if dissenters violate the security order. “The law says you can’t do this and they still do it,” said a visibly angry Prayuth. “Then they say I violate human rights.” Despite an order that bans public gatherings, open opposition to the junta has increased over the past year. The coup was the latest chapter in more than a decade of conflict in Thailand with the country bitterly divided between supporters of Yingluck and Thaksin and the country’s traditional royalist-military establishment.

Junta leader writes new song, leaving Thais to face the music bANGKOK, DeCember 23 (reuTers): Thailand’s junta leader released the lyrics to a new patriotic ballad on Tuesday, the second song he has written since seizing power in 2014. Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who as army chief led the May 2014 coup, first wrote the song “Return Happiness to Thailand”, which is played constantly on television and radio stations as part of a public relations campaign by the junta to win over Thais. The tune has racked up more than one million views on YouTube but has been mocked by critics of the junta. His second song, “Because You Are Thailand”, includes lyrics like “If we join hands ... the day we hope for is not far away” and “Because you are Thailand, you will not let anyone destroy you.” Prayuth told reporters the song was his New Year present to the Thai people. The junta, or National Council for Peace and Order, overthrew an elected government, putting an end to months of protests in Bangkok led by the middle class and elite who wanted to get rid of the civilian government of populist Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. A military government installed after the coup has largely stifled dissent and has gone hard after critics of the junta and monarchy by using a harsh royal insult law to detain dozens of people, prompting stern criticism from rights groups, the U.N. and some Western governments. The junta has repeatedly delayed planned elections, claiming the country is not yet stable enough to hold a poll. Prayuth comes from a musical family. His daughters enjoyed brief fame in Thailand as a pop duo called BADZ.

New YOrK, DeCember 23 (IANs): Besides opening up new vistas for humans, ranging from travel to exotic places to enjoying the products and services of those distant lands, international trade and travel also increases risk of spreading infectious diseases, a study says. “The more trade grows as a proportion of global production, the more likely it is that diseases will be spread through trade, and the higher the economic cost of resulting trade bans,” said researcher Charles Perrings, professor of environmental economics at Arizona State University in the US. An example of international trade’s impact of an infectious disease came in 2001 in Britain when an outbreak of hoof and mouth disease cost some $10 billion and more than two million sheep and cattle had to be destroyed, Perrings said. More recently, African swine fever -- a much more serious disease of pigs - has been spread in the Caucasus region through trade in pork, pork product or through waste in trade vehicles. “What is at risk is the food we eat, the fibres we wear and build with, and the fuels we burn,” Perrings noted. “In addition many infectious diseases that affect animals also affect people,” he added. “Zoonoses like SARS, MERS, HIV AIDS, or highly pathogenic avian influenza, all originated in wild animals and were then spread person to person through trade and travel,” he explained. Perrings said current instruments to control infectious diseases are far from adequate. “There are two problems to address,” he said. “One is that disease spread is an unintended (external) effect of trade. To solve this problem exporters and importers need to be confronted with the risks they impose on consumers.” “The other is that the control of infectious disease is a public good - the benefits it offers are freely available to all, and so will be undersupplied if left to the market,” he explained. “To solve this problem we need to undertake cooperative, collective control of infectious diseases at the source,” Perrings said. The study appeared in the journal Food Security.

Know if you are dependent on Facebook New YOrK, DeCember 23 (IANs): From reading news to playing games, people use Facebook for various reasons but those who use the social media site to meet new people are the most dependent on Facebook overall, says a new study. The more people use Facebook to fulfill their goals, the more dependent on it they become, the study said. However, Facebook dependency - whether it is for news, games, feedback on your posts or meeting new people - is not necessarily bad as it is not equivalent to an addiction, explained the researchers. To identify dependency factors, the researchers studied 301 Facebook users between the ages of 18 and 68 who post on the site at least once a month. They found that people who perceive Facebook as helpful in gaining a better understanding of themselves go to the site to meet new people and to get attention from others. Also, people who use Facebook to gain a deeper understanding of themselves tend to have agreeable personalities, but lower self-esteem than others. “They might post that they went to the gym. Maybe they will share a post expressing a certain political stance or personal challenge they are facing. They rely on feedback from Facebook friends to better understand themselves,” said one of the researchers Amber Ferris, assistant professor of communication at The University of Akron’s Wayne College in Ohio, US. The findings were presented at the National Communication Association conference in Las Vegas, US.

ThursDAY 24•12•2015

public discourse

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

The Ten Commandments of Moses - Its Graveyard in Nagaland

o people in the world have suffered so much as the Jews and no people have made greater contribution to the human race as the Jews. This is history and not fiction. Today the legacies of these remarkable Jews live on in this world – Which has both history and spirituality on their side. Abraham who happened to be the first Patriarch and the first Jew, fathered his first son Ishmael followed by his second son Isaac by different mothers as stated in the Holy Book. Both the Arabs and the Jews trace their ancestry to them respectively. It was Abraham, who for the first time turned away from idolatry and gave a call to worship only one god. Later on, Moses the deliverer and the leader of the Jews, added much to the heritage of Abrahamic religion. Moses was a Jew by birth, was brought up at the Egyptian court, spent several years with the Midianites and it was there that he received a revelation from God to lead the Hebrews from captivity to freedom. He cemented the fragmented Jews into one nation and taught the Jews to follow the Abrahamic religion. God further revealed to him the promised land of freedom (Canaan), but unfortunately

Moses could not reach the Promised Land all because of his ill-tempered personality. He disappeared on Mount Nebo. But he had the satisfaction of resting his eyes on Canaan – the Promised Land, knowing fully well that his earthly task was fulfilled. While the Jews were struggling on the way to independence, God handed over to Moses two tablets of stone on which were engraved the Ten Commandments of God. They were meant for those marching Jews who were wandering in the wilderness without vision, rule of law and any morality. The jealous God was angry over the iniquity of Hebrews of that generation. The Ten Commandments was the disciplinary covenant between the Jews and their God – an eternal memorial for His chosen people. This has been and is the source of Jewish soul. Later on the Ten Commandments have become the ethical charter of the whole human race – the foundation of the early Roman Laws, the common law of England, USA, India and many democratic countries. The greatness of England, USA and Europe to a great extent was due to the contribution made by the sons and daughters of Canaan. Till today no author-

ity on earth has ever questioned the veracity of these holy commands. These are accepted as universal truths. Since the whole world has accepted the value of the Ten Commandments, it is necessary to have periodical review on how well these ancient rites run on a multi-religious secular country like India with special reference to the state of Nagaland. Here goes the First Commandment: “Thou shall have no other Gods before me”. Worshipping a single God is acceptable to Muslims and to some extent the less disputatious Christians. It is pointed out that the Muslim monotheism is strictly Unitarian whereas the Christian monotheism is Trinitarian. But half the world is polytheists. In India, the idea of conversion to a single God will lead to instant apprising by Hindus. Imposing the first commandment will not be a pleasant one, even in Nagaland as there are many material Gods and Goddesses to take care of. The Second Commandment: “You shall not make for yourself a graven image”. As for graven images, India’s billion populations spend some time everyday bowing down to them and serving them. Crore of rupees are invested on

Christmas Message

ay the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.’ Romans 15:13 Christmas means so many things. It is a time for giving … a time for receiving … a time for putting away, for a little while, the cares and worries of the world, and rejoicing in the promise which is embodied in the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. While this day is most sacred and the promise most meaningful to the Christian world, there is a message in it for all mankind which the world never quite remembers, but has never quite forgotten.The messageof God’s Love. And God’s Love involves hope and promise for an improving future. It was period of great unrest, a time when many prophets spoke with many tongues and a time when the problems seemed overwhelming that Hope was born, in the person of the Child who was to become, for a great part of the world, the embodiment of the salvation of the human kind. Jesus taught us love as the source of healing for the human condition. He taught the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of man. He taught that this earthly life is not the end for the human spirit. He taught that each man is accountable for his actions, but most of all, He taught the doctrine of Hope. Hope for the future in the promise that the result of goodness is Godliness. And, more than any other person in history, Jesus taught us to respect the Godliness in ourselves, and to give

it expression by doing God’s work in the world. Hope is a fundamental Christian quality, but never individualistic. Hope is something we are called to bring into the world in the name of Christ. If we are to be people of hope, we are also to be agents of hope. When we follow the call of Christ and seek to bring hope into the lives of others – material as well as spiritual hope – we then have grounds for real hope. What we do for others – in simple ways, or sometimes demanding ways – is sowing hope for the future. Let us therefore become envoys and people of hope in the name of the Christ, who was born in a stable in Bethlehem. Just as he came into our world to bring hope into places of despair and light into the midst of darkness. The gifts which we give this Christmas Season, as symbols of God’s great gift to the world, will pass and be forgotten. But the gift of Hope, as embodied in the Christ, will live eternally. May we in all sincerity wish each other Hope-filled Christmas and New Year, in our acceptance of the responsibility to bridge the gaps and heal the wounds in our society, whatever our religious beliefs.

making graven images of gold, silver, bronze, marble, stone, etc. Where will these thousands of artists, masons, sculptures, jewelers, etc go? Politicians and practitioners of democracy will not agree. There will be backlash from every trade union and voters. It is once again, a tough goal. The Third Commandment is easier. There is no reason why everyone whether they subscribe to Jehovah or not, should take His name in vain. There is no material benefit in it. Gain and not vanity is the thirst of the day. The Forth Commandment relates to how holy one keeps the Sabbath. There will be uproar if there is no satellite operation, electricity, television, mobile phone network, internet , etc on Sabbath day. On this day we keep ourselves holy differently. The Fifth Commandment says, “Honour thy father and mother”. Honouring one’s father and mother, would not be a problem so long as they do not have to live with you, or are not dependent on you or regular monetary support and other desires are taken care of by them. This two way traffic is dicey. The Sixth Commandment is a blanket order : “Thou shall not kill” One assumes that this does not include animals for food or trade, other-

wise where will all these butchers, meat eaters, poachers go? Also, there are millions of well armed soldiers ready to destroy enemies of the state. There are hired killers, mercenaries, etc working for monetary benefit. Secondly, there are arms and ammunition industries, alcohol, tobacco, drugs, heroine, etc factories. They lead you to the path of destruction and can despatch you to your graveyard. In defence they argue that these provide employment to millions that keep their families away from poverty and also protect the integrity of the country, otherwise this world would have turned into a killing field. This commandment is highly sensitive politically. The Seventh Commandment would have put an end to adultery but since time immemorial this has failed miserably. Spirit may be willing but so long as the flesh remains active, nothing much can be done against this time tested temptation. The Eight Commandment forbids you the opportunity to steal. But how do you implement this one? There will be more crime on the street if government prohibits strongly the palm greasing practices in offices and outside. Now, it has become a regular affair

all different when the Jews were wandering through the desert in search of the Promised Land. Now they have found it by practicing Zionism. Primarily, it is a political liberation dream of the Jews. God never forgot the descendents of Abraham. The descendents of Ishmael, the eldest son of Abraham, too settled in the desert of Arabia. Prophet Mohammad of the Qureysh clan was a descendent of Ishmael who presented Islamic religion before the world. They have also found black gold (oil) below the desert. Today the whole world is after their oil. God says, “I will make him a great nation” Genesis 17:20 and 21:13-18. The descendents of Isaac too are remarkable people. Jesus and His disciples are all Jews and it is through them that Christianity was presented to this world. Karl Marx’s book Das Capital became a world sensation and led the foundation of present day Communism. Harold Laski presented the democratic principles to this world. We have heard of Emile Zola, Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, Epstein, Reuter, Yehudi Menuhin, Irwin Shaw, Ginsberg, Bergson, Pulitzer, Nathan Strauss, etc. There are hundreds of them who have enriched mankind. It is

a fact that 20% of the Nobel Prize winners are Jews even though they make up less than 0.2% of the world population. In their success they have forgotten the Ten Commandments and replaced it with Zionism. Jews have Canaan (Israel) no doubt, but has no spiritual milk and honey. They are still waiting for the Messiah-savior. The Christians, however believe that Messiah has come in the person of Jesus Christ. This has been the incurable sore point between Jews and Christians. The vast majority of Christians have embraced capitalism in its worst form more whole heartedly than before with all the costs and risks involved. It is crass commercialism at play here. In reality they want everything except the holy commandment for which we are embroiled in many undesirable consequences that threaten peace and spiritual growth. Today if you ask anybody about his or her religion they will tell you that they go to a church and belong to a certain denomination. That is all that they know and think is sufficient. This is their shepherd – the most difficult to live with, yet they shall always want. Have mercy, O Lord. Mapu Jamir, IAS (Retd.)

Jesus- the Cause of our Joy and the reason of our Hope

hen Rev Fr. Umberto Marrocchino SDB raised the first Christmas star (lit with Kerosene lamp) in Kohima in 1952 it was an object of great wonder and subject of talk among the people of Kohima. People wondered how a man-made star could shine bright in the dark sky. When the moving star that the wise men saw and followed came to rest on the place where the Child lay, they rejoiced exceedingly. St. Mathew tells that going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother and they fell down and worshipped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. Today 2015 years after the birth of Christ, what star leads us to Christ? There are hundreds of stars raised in

the sky during the season of Christmas. Do any of them lead us to the manger to meet the Child Jesus? Are we able to recognise and adore the Child in the manger, that is, Jesus in the world? Does our meeting the Child give us joy? What treasure do we have to present to him as gifts? It was St. Francis of Assisi who began the practice of making crib. When St. Francis of Assisi requested his friend, John (Messier Giovanni Velitta) to make the Christmas scene in 1293 a year before his death, he wanted to tell the world the simplicity of God’s mystery and how God comes amid the poor to give joy and hope to them. Many times this year too many places and families in the world have experienced more Good Fridays than Christmas Days. Em-

manuel, God with us has often been totally obscured by the lethal horror unleashed on every continent, in many countries, communities and families. Our experience in Nagaland had not been very different. Many tragedies have struck us and also many opportunities have come to us. These are the stars which should lead us Christ and through which we experience “Emmanuel” God with us. Often times, instead of experiencing the joy of meeting the Emmanuel through these stars of our life we often, like the Scribes and Pharisees, have demonstrated how poor we are at living with and respecting each other especially with our differences. But this should not discourage us. Just look at Christmas - the modest and unpromising way Jesus came among

us; the way he experienced and endured misunderstanding and rejection until betrayal finally claimed him. Any hope we have for ourselves, the planet or our contemporaries can only come if we, as Jesus did, discover a deeper life beyond the horrors and miseries. Let us take our small gifts of forgiveness, mercy (this year being an extraordinary year of mercy as proclaimed by Pope Francis), tolerance, understanding, honesty, sincerity and present to Jesus, present in each other, so that we too experience the joy and peace that Jesus came to give us. Let us daily pray and live the prayer of St. Francis Assisi during the year 2016 so that our Christmas celebration may give us joy and hope: "Lord, make me a channel of thy peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek To be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, To be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; It is in dying to self that we are born to eternal life”. May the steadfast love of God which never fails us be our blessing this Christmas 2015 Most Rev. Dr. James Thoppil Bishop of Kohima

CHRISTMAS WORDS: Christians between Christmas Jesus & Eschatological Jesus

he center of Christmas is the birth of Jesus for every ChrisElias T. Lotha, tian. The birth of Jesus ineviPresident Catholic Association of Nagaland tably embeds the miraculous life of Joseph and Mary that cannot be Johnny Ruangmei obliterated. The honesty of Joseph to Secretary General trust Mary who revealed her honesty Catholic Association of Nagaland of conceiving Jesus out of marriage, moreover, prior to their marriage, remains historic that completes the story of Jesus every day. The story remains consistence throughout generations without relegating the meaning of Joseph, Mary and Jesus for Christians. Neither the birth date of Jesus nor the mythical Santa Claus n this Christmas, let us REMEMBER: JESUS is better than Santa!!! is mentioned in the Bible. However, 1. Santa lives at the North Pole. JESUS is everywhere. the long culture of date emanated 2. Santa rides in a sleigh. JESUS rides on the wind and walks on the water. from somewhere according to their 3. Santa comes but once a year. JESUS is an ever present help. culture which fixed December 25 4. Santa fills your stockings with goodies. JESUS supplies all your needs. continues to remain as the birth date 5. Santa comes down your chimney uninvited. JESUS stands at your door and of Jesus. There are no adversaries on knocks and then enters your heart. the date which is celebrated by Chris6. You have to stand in line to see Santa. JESUS is as close as the mention of His tians that is not found in the Bible. name. One reason for accepting it as truth 7. Santa lets you sit on his lap. JESUS lets you rest in His arms. 8. Santa doesn't know your name, all he can say is "Hi little boy or girl, what's perhaps is due to blind faith and asyour name?"JESUS knew our name before we did. Not only does He know our sociation with people who trust what name, He knows our address too. He knows our history and future and He common Christians believe and had been practicing for decade. Perhaps even knows how many hairs are on our heads. 9. Santa has a belly like a bowl full of jelly. JESUS has a heart full of love like a no one recedes from celebrating it due to fear of deviating or culminatburning flame. 10. All Santa can offer is “HO HO HO” and some toys. JESUS offers health, help ing from society or particular community to which he/she belongs. and hope. 11. Santa says "You better not cry." JESUS says "Cast all your cares on me for I There is a question for every Christian whether to believe December 25 as care for you. 12. Santa's little helpers make toys. JESUS makes new life, mends wounded the birth date of Jesus, is a psychological hegemony of foreign culture or a hearts, repairs broken homes and builds mansions. personal conviction that cannot be 13. Santa may make you chuckle, but JESUS gives you joy that is your strength. 14. While Santa puts gifts under your tree, JESUS became our gift and died on shaken by any questions. In addition, there are Christians like Puritans who the tree. It's obvious there is really no comparison. We need to remember for WHOM stood against Christmas in England in 1600s, naming December 25 as the Christmas is all about. We need to put Christ back in Christmas. JESUS IS STILL AND MUST BE THE Roman Catholic tradition (Forbes, 2015). According to prominent scholREASON FOR THE SEASON. May the Lord Bless and Watch over you and your loved ones this Christmas ars on Christology, the Bible does not tell the specific date Jesus was born. 2015, and May He prosper and bless the work of your hands in the New Year. Jonah Achumi It was Pope Julius around 350 years

The Reason for the Season: Santa versus Jesus

and is getting perfected towards exertion, exaction, exploitation and extortion in one plea or the other. Eve too failed in front of the material world in the Garden of Eden. The Ninth Commandment is the easiest nowadays because no one wants to bear any kind of witness either true or false because the hassles of court cases are too demanding. This command is many centuries old but till date we keep this instruction securely in place. The Tenth Commandment is almost impossible to follow. It says: “You shall not covet” How can you not covet and be jealous in this day and age? Stop coveting for one day and every market and economy will collapse. The whole consumer market is hinged to coveting. Advertisement is a big world by itself. Advertisement is coveting, recreated tactfully. This is greed, pure and simple. The kingdom of heaven is run on faith but here on earth everything is run on money. The Ten Commandments is the disciplinary law given to Moses by God and is known as the original Torah- The Divine Law of Judaism. But they could not do much justice to it and hence they could not build their nation for a long time. It was

chosen the date, which became the Christian tradition until now (Borge & Crossan. 2007). This brings threshold for people who believe December 25as the birth date of Jesus to introspect and prospect between Christmas Jesus and Eschatological Jesus which may emerge as one of the challenging moments to answer. One may discern this introspection and prospection as anti-Christian or rationalist than understanding the context of the process to identify one’s own identity of religious conviction during Christmas. However, the genealogy of the birth of Jesus in the two Gospels: Matthew which was written around A.D 80 and Luke which was written around A.D 90 (James D. 2006) strengthen Christians to continue the celebration of Christmas though date is unknown. What count the most are the work, ministry and testimony of Jesus in association to His birth. There is a difference between Matthew and Luke. The Gospel of Matthew provides less genealogy of the birth of Jesus than the Gospel of Luke (Holy Bible). The birth of Jesus remains as emotional power, the death of Jesus remains more emotional power and if so the eschatological Jesus would be the most emotional power for Christians. The birth of Jesus brings joy or emotion, happiness and wonders for people who believe in it. The death of Jesus brings more emotion for people feel pain to lose the one who came as the Son of man and Son of God. People did not realize that Jesus’ death was for saving the sinners but the unreturned death. The significance of Jesus’ death becomes more visible and powerful only when resurrection takes place. It elucidates the reason of death in resurrection moment which

brings the emotional power of joy after sorrows. The chronological introspection of these emotional moments of Jesus propels the prospection of the eschatological Jesus brings more emotional to Christians from spiritual aspect of fear whether Jesus would choose them to remain seated on His right hand or left hand. The theology of sitting on left and right hands of Jesus is mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew 5: 31 – 46. In verse 34 says “Then the Kind will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you sine the creation of the world. 35 “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a strange and you invited me tin…….In verse 41 says “The he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 “for I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 “I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me”. There are two different responses from the two parties. People on the right hand of Jesus would give a response of humility that 37 “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you or thirsty and give you something to drink but the party on His left give a paradoxical response that sounds justifying to remain saved 44 “Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison and did not help you?. These verses remind Christians who are celebrating Christmas Jesus whether the act of celebration justifies the end joyful

hour i.e eschatological Jesus or it remains as act of following the tradition of community to obviate from being remained odd and excluded. The history of Jesus class profile is that He was born in a poor place, wrapped with poor cloths, among low class people and His teaching and miracles mostly took place among the poor. This low class identity of Jesus continues to interpret by every Christian and postulate Jesus is born to save the poor people, help the poor and so on. However, regardless of any status and religious identity, people in Nagaland celebrate Christmas every year and this signifies that Christmas means for those who believe in celebrating the birth of Christ. Contrasting to many Christians assumption of Christ who was born in a poor atmosphere is for the poor, the contextual truth reveals that Jesus was born both for the poor and the rich whoever believes in Him and He will come again for the poor and the rich who remain righteous. The extended message and the ethic of Jesus being born for the poor are to reflect on the habit of every rich and middle class people to help the low class and haves not in every possible act. Therefore, while celebrating the Jesus Christmas, in the process of what he/she does count and justify in final destination during the time of eschatological Jesus. This is why Christians who live between Jesus Christmas and eschatological Jesus need every day introspection and prospection through the act upon fellow beings when they celebrate Christmas. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Lemwang Chuhwanglim Researcher & Activist

Readers may please note that the contents of the articles, letters and opinions published do not reflect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

THURSDAY 24•12•2015

Miss Colombia’s touching message after embarrassing mix-up: ‘My Destiny Was This’

YK Cafe at Jail Colony Kohima held its Acoustic Night on December 22 at its newly opened coffee bar. The Acoustic Night featured young upcoming local artists namely Bozio Nienu, Lelo Mero Lindi Nienu, Ketu Nagi, Kevi Vizol and Penthungo. The young artists performed Christmas songs, pop fusion genres and cover songs of Nirvana and Chris Brown.

Johnny Depp named Hollywood’s most overpaid Actor Johnny Depp has been named and shamed as Hollywood's most overpaid actor in 2015. Zowe Madrigal with their director Nise Meruno performed at the launch of the Harvard Business School in Mumbai on Sunday evening. The event was hosted by top industrialists The Piramals. They later performed a Christmas Concert for the opening of Piramal Realty flower garden the following day.

The Beatles Come To Spotify, Apple Music And Other Streaming Services

fter a couple of weeks of rumors, The Beatles website confirmed that the entire band’s catalog will be available on Spotify, Apple music and all music streaming services out there. This is perfect timing for the holidays, and also a significant move as some artists are moving away from streaming services. As a reminder, it took years before The Beatles released their albums on the iTunes Store. The albums became available in 2010 after years of speculations and intense negotiations between Apple, Inc. and Apple Corps, the company managing the band’s rights. It was all about

maximizing album sales as the iTunes Store lets you buy individual songs. The same was true for streaming services as it doesn’t pay as much as an iTunes Store purchase. But it looks like Apple Corps is thinking that it now makes sense to release The Beatles albums on streaming services. 13 remastered studio albums, and 4 special collection albums will be released at 12:01am local time. Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play, Amazon Music, Deezer, Tidal, Slacker, Groove and Rhapsody will all feature the classic albums. Spotify has also stated that both free and

premium users will be able to stream the records. Other popular artists have made some waves this year by opting out of streaming services. Taylor Swift was one of the most vocal artists against streaming services, saying that artists and labels don’t get enough revenue from these services. After opting out of streaming services for 1989, she chose to release her album on Apple Music after all. More recently, Adele also rejected streaming for her latest album, 25. Other artists, such as Thom Yorke, have also also refused to appear on streaming services for years.

iss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez, 21, is a class act. After any beauty queen’s worst nightmare – having your crown taken away – happened to her, she has responded as gracefully as humanly possible on Dec. 22, saying “my destiny was this.” Ariadna looked understandably horrified on Dec. 20 when Steve Harvey demanded back the Miss Universe crown he had mistakenly given her. She stood quietly as it was handed to Miss Phillippines Pia Wurtzbach, thanks to an error that created the most embarrassing moment of her life. After spending a couple of days simmering, Miss Colombia has finally given a full response to the evening’s events, and instead of anger or sadness, she expresses gratefulness

and poise. “After the storm comes the calm,” said Ariadna on Instagram on Dec. 22. “I want to thank each and every one of you who have sent messages of support and strength. Every one of you has become an incredible human being in my book and I am the most fortunate and thankful for having the support not only from one country but from the whole entire world.” You can shop for your own tiara right here. Ariadna went on to explain that she feels that this mistake, no matter how shocking, was meant to happen. “Your destiny is written for you. And my destiny was this. I was able to bring happiness to my country after becoming Miss Universe for only a couple of minutes… Today

because of that Colombia and the Latin community are being talked about in every corner of the world.” The fact that Ariadna is okay with having endured something so upsetting to bring attention to her country is truly touching. Furthermore, she did the hardest thing ever and made peace with the woman who crown instead. “I also want to congratulate the Philippines for their new Miss Universe. The happiness that you must be feeling must be incredible. Life continues and in the future we will find out why things happen the way they happen. Thank you all for your love support and kindness. Wow. This woman is truly a class act and we’re sure that we will see great things to come from Ariadna!

'Duck Dynasty' to return for Ninth Season in January

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he 52 year old replaces Adam Sandler at the top of Forbes magazine's annual list after a string of flop movies, including Transcendence and Mortdecai, with both films returning a measly $1.20 (£0.81) for every $1 (£0.68) he was paid to make them. Crime caper Mortdecai made $47.3 million (£31.9 million) on a $60 million (£40.5 million) budget, although just $7.7 million (£5.1 million) came from the North American box office. Meanwhile, Transcendence grossed $103 million (£69.5 million) worldwide, which barely covered its production costs. To draw up the list, Forbes examined the performance of the last three movies each actor starred in before June, 2015, al-

T though animated films and those in limited release were not included. Adam had previously topped the countdown for the last two consecutive years, following flops such as Jack and Jill and That's My Boy, but due to his new production deal with streaming service Netflix, he was ruled ineligible for this year. Denzel Washington is a surprise second on the new Forbes list, and while he hasn't had any particularly big flops, he still only returned $6.50 (£4.39) for every $1 (£0.68) he earned, despite The Equalizer reeling in $192.3 million (£129 million) on a $55 million (£37.1 million) budget. Will Ferrell, Liam Neeson and Will Smith round out the Forbes top five.

Nargis Fakhri reacts to the Pakistani ad that sparked outrage online

ollywood actress Nargis Fakhr i’s advertisement on the front page of leading Pakistani Urdu newspaper Jang created stir over social media where people have condemned it by calling the advertisement ‘cheap’ and ‘absurd’. Many, including journalists, took to Twitter to condemn the ‘obscenity’ of the ad that simply shows Nargis Fakhri lying down with a phone in her hand while donning a red dress, the Express Tribune reported. Pakistani investigative journalist Ansar Abbasi was the first one to condemn the ad on the micro-blogging site while others later joined him. Reacting to the growing outrage, the actress stated, “I’ve been with

Mobilink as their brand ambassador for the last 3 years and there has never been an issue like this. I was unaware that they would consider using this visual for a mainstream newspaper ad – an Urdu daily as it was never meant to be. As a model or celebrity, I have always believed in using my persona to help further a brand’s communication but never to have it used where I end up being objectified for my looks. Culturally too, my team and I are aware and respectful of what visuals work for what mediums, markets and audiences and hence given the brand’s firm penetration in the Pakistan market, we left it upto their expertise to use the images appropriately.”

he Robertsons are back. A&E announced on Tuesday, December 22, via Deadline, that "Duck Dynasty" would return to the network next month. The series' upcoming season 9 is scheduled to kick off on January 13 with back-toback episodes starting at 09:00 P.M. The nine-episode new season will see the Robertson clan facing new challenges, including Alan and Willie Robertson helping Miss Kay open her own bakery, the family members trying to settle an old dodge ball rivalry and pro wrestler Kurt Angle helping Jep Robertson with his wrestling. The season will conclude on February 17 with a one-hour episode featuring a family road trip to move Mary Kate and John Luke Robertson into Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA. Once a hit, "Duck Dynasty" became the biggest in cable history following season in August 2013. Af- harsh anti-gay comments later in the year, the family by A&E and the show's ratnonfiction series telecast the premiere of its fourth ter Phil Robertson made in an interview with GQ patriarch was suspended ings began to dip.

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SPORTS

THE MORUNG EXPRESS ahead to stay, and the Pistons rallied from 18 points down for the road win. Reggie Jackson led the Pistons with 18 points, while Stanley Johnson and Caldwell-Pope each had 14. The Pistons were 15 for 29 from 3-point range, outscoring Miami 45-12 in that department. Chris Bosh scored 20 points for Miami, which missed a pair of go-ahead shots in the final three seconds. Dwyane Wade missed a 14-footer, and after Andre Drummond missed a pair of free throws at the other end and the Heat got the ball back with 1.1 seconds left, Bosh missed a jumper as time expired. Wade finished with 19 points, and Hassan Whiteside had 16 points and 16 rebounds for Miami.

Bryant leads Lakers past Nuggets

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DENVER, DEcEmbER 23 (AP): Kobe Bryant tied a season high with 31 points after missing a game with a sore right shoulder, and the Los Angeles Lakers rallied from a 21-point, first-half deficit to beat the short-handed Denver Nuggets 111-107 on Tuesday night. Bryant also had five assists and played stellar defense to help bottle up the hot-shooting Will Barton, who had 23 points in the first half only to finish with 25. The 37-year-old Bryant announced last month he would retire after the season. He received plenty of cheers during his penultimate game in the Mile High City, including chants of "Kobe! Kobe!" in the waning seconds. Up 103-100 with 1:23

remaining, Bryant hit two free throws and then a jumper to seal the Lakers' fifth win of the season. The Nuggets were without Danilo Gallinari (sprained left ankle) and Emmanuel Mudiay (sprained right ankle). Gary Harris went down with a strained right knee early in the game, but returned to score 21 points, tying a career high. Denver's reserves actually outscored the starters by a 58-49 margin. Los Angeles turned things around in the third quarter thanks to a 27-10 run, with Bryant leading the way. He didn't play in Oklahoma City on Saturday because of a sore shoulder, two days after dunking for the first time this season against Houston.

And while coach Byron Scott said his star's shoulder was still "a little sore," it hardly showed. He also had five assists, including a behind-the-back pass in the third quarter that set up a 3-pointer by Lou Williams. Barton entered after Harris went down and was instant offense, scoring 18 points in 8:29. RAPTORS 103, MAVERICKS 99 DeMar DeRozan scored 28 points and Bismack Biyombo had a career-high 20 rebounds, leading the Toronto Raptors to a 103-99 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night. Kyle Lowry added 17 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists for Toronto, which swept the two-game

season series against Dallas. Terrence Ross scored 16 points, and Luis Scola finished with 15 points and nine rebounds. The Raptors appeared to be on their way to a comfortable victory with five minutes to go in the fourth. But the Mavericks battled back. Jeremy Evans scored with 11.6 seconds remaining to trim Toronto's lead to 101-99, but missed a foul shot that would have got Dallas within one. Ross then closed it out with a couple of free throws. Dirk Nowitzki led the way for Dallas with 20 points and seven rebounds.

GRIZZLIES 104, 76ERS 90 Marc Gasol scored 19 points for Memphis, and Mike Conley had 18 points and six assists. The Grizzlies had five players score in double figures. Courtney Lee had 15 points, reserve Zach Randolph added 14 points and eight rebounds, and Matt Barnes finished with 12 points and 10 boards. Jahlil Okafor scored 18 points and Hollis Thompson contributed 16 for Philadelphia, which dropped to 1-29 while losing its 11th straight game. Now the 76ers head out for a six-game trip, and they have lost 22 in a row on the road. PISTONS 93, HEAT 92 Philadelphia had 28 Kentavious Caldwell- turnovers and shot 65.6 Pope's jumper with 55.5 percent (21 for 32) from the seconds left put Detroit free-throw line.

US investors 'in talks to buy Everton'

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LoNDoN, DEcEmbER 23 (AFP): A consortium led by two US technology investors is negotiating to buy Everton Football Club for an estimated £200 million (272 million euros, $297 million), The Times newspaper reported on Wednesday. The report said the group had signed a preliminary agreement with owner and chairman Bill Ken-

wright and was checking the club's accounts with the aim of completing a takeover within the next six weeks. The agreement means the investors have been given time for exclusive talks on the deal. The consortium is led by John J. Moores and Charles Noell, co-founders of venture capital firm JMI Equity. The 71-year-old Moores, who is also the founder of business soft-

ware firm BMC, bought the San Diego Padres baseball team in 1994 and sold it in 2012. Contacted by AFP, Everton's press office could not immediately comment on the report. The report comes after fellow English Premier League side Crystal Palace last week said US investors Josh Harris and David Blitzer had bought a 36-percent stake.

Ecclestone says German GP could make a comeback FRANKFURT, DEcEmbER 23 (REUTERS): Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone said Germany could return to the grand prix schedule if an agreement was reached with track owners, according to an interview in a German magazine. "I am sitting here with my pen and am prepared to sign a contract if they send me one," Auto Motor und Sport magazine on Wednesday quoted Ecclestone as saying. Formula One's governing body, the International Automobile Federation, this year dropped the German grand prix from its Formula One calendar for the first time since 1960. The Nuerburgring had been due to host the July 19 race under an alternation agreement but a change of ownership and financial difficulties

left Hockenheim as the only option. However, with low attendances at that circuit last year, organisers were unwilling to risk a further loss with so little time to sell tickets and get ready, though they still had a contract to host the race in 2016. "I had hoped that the new owners of the Nuerburgring would be able to agree a contract with me, but that does not appear to be the case," Ecclestone told Auto Motor und Sport. He also cast doubt on whether Hockenheim could continue to shoulder the financial strain of the grand prix. "We really have an extremely favourable contract with Hockenheim. That won't be the case in the future anymore. They have to accept what other European coun-

tries pay too," he said. Asked whether next year's U.S. Grand Prix in Austin would go ahead, Ecclestone said: "Forecasts are difficult." The Oct. 23 race in Texas, the only round in the United States and important for teams and sponsors, is on the 2016 calendar with an asterisk against it as subject to agreement with the commercial rights holder. "They knew exactly what it would cost when they signed the contract with us. They knew that they would have to build a race track, and what it costs to put on a grand prix," Ecclestone said. Ecclestone has said this year that he wanted to add more American venues, but he told the magazine that 2016 would be too soon for a race in California.

Barcelona go to CAS after UEFA turn down appeal bARcELoNA, DEcEmbER 23 (REUTERS): Barcelona will go to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after UEFA dismissed the club's appeal against a 40,000 euro fine imposed after its fans chanted in support of Catalan independence at a Champions League match in September. European governing body UEFA, which takes a tough stance against political messages, acted after Barca's match against German club Bayer Leverkusen. The club released a statement on Wednesday saying it would appeal to CAS. Barca were already fined 30,000 euros ($33,963) in July after supporters waved the flags, known as "Esteladas", and chanted pro-independence slogans at the Champions League final in Berlin. Barca, whose motto is "more than a club", has long been an outlet for fans who support Catalan independence from Spain to express their beliefs. Supporters of the club were criticised by politicians from Spain's ruling People's Party (PP) after they whistled the national anthem at the King's Cup final at the end of May.

Steve Smith named ICC 2015 Cricketer of the Year

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LoNDoN, DEcEmbER 23 (REUTERS): Australia captain Steve Smith was named ICC Cricketer of the Year for 2015 on Wednesday after scoring a world leading 1,734 runs at an average of 82.57 with seven centuries over the voting period. The 26-year-old righthander kept the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy in Australia for the third straight year after pace bowler Mitchell Johnson and his predecessor as skipper, Michael Clarke, won in 2014 and 2013. Smith also scored four centuries and 1,249 runs in 25 one-day internationals from Sept. 18, 2014 to Sept. 13, 2015, notching up the winning runs as Australia stormed to a fifth World Cup triumph. "I'm obviously completely surprised by it, very humbled," said Smith, who was also part of the team that lost the Ashes to England during the voting period. "You don't think about these accolades, you just want to go out there and

do the best you can for the team and try and win as many games as possible. "My favourite moment would have to be winning the World Cup, playing against New Zealand at a packed house at the MCG. It was an amazing feeling to be able to hit those winning runs." The Australian also scooped the ICC Test Cricketer of the Year award while South Africa batsman AB de Villiers was rated the best player in the one-day game, winning the award for the second successive year. De Villiers, South Africa's captain in the ODI format, also won the award in 2010. The 31-year-old's brilliant quickfire batting lit up the World Cup, not least his unbeaten 162 against West Indies in Sydney, and he racked up 1,265 runs in total at an average of nearly 80 an innings over the relevent period. His team mate Faf du Plessis won the award for best Twenty20 performance of 2015 for his 56-

ball innings of 119 against West Indies in January, the third highest score of all time in T20 internationals. Australian paceman Josh Hazlewood was named best emerging player, while the Spirit of Cricket Award went to New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum, who made a virtue of his team's sportsmanship as he led them to the final of the World Cup. McCullum said on Tuesday that he would be retiring from international cricket after the two-test series against Australia in New Zealand in February. Australia captain Meg Lanning was the women's One Day International Cricketer of the Year, while her West Indies counterpart Stafanie Taylor won the women's Twenty20 award. Khurram Khan of the United Arab Emirates was named Associate and Affiliate Cricketer of the Year, while England's Richard Kettleborough was named best umpire for a third year in a row.

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FIFA presents reform package for February congress

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ZURIcH, DEcEmbER 23 (REUTERS): Shaken by corruption scandals, global soccer body FIFA on Wednesday presented the detailed reforms it will ask members to adopt in February at a special congress that seeks to restore its reputation and elect a new leader. The reforms include limiting the number of terms top officials can serve, following the banning for eight years of Sepp Blatter, who had been FIFA president for 17 years. His reign ended in the worst graft scandal of the body's history. The amendments also seek to put a tighter rein on FIFA's 209 member associations and separate policy and management positions, with a 36-member FIFA council replacing the 25-member executive committee.. "This is a landmark oc-

The FIFA logo is seen outside the FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, December 17, 2015. (REUTERS)

casion in the history of FIFA, and it comes at a crucial time as we focus on the hard work of restoring credibility and stability," acting FIFA President Issa Hayatou said in remarks prepared for a Feb. 26 congress in Zurich. "I hope that all of the confederations and our member associations will fully embrace these re-

forms. This will demonstrate to the world that we have listened and learned from recent events and are taking the necessary steps." FOSTERING A POSITIVE IMAGE FIFA is in the throes of criminal investigations in the United States and Switzerland. Its ethics committee

this week banned Blatter and UEFA boss Michel Platini, long expected to succeed him in the job, for eight years for ethics violations. Both deny any wrongdoing. Soccer bosses from across South and Central America were among the latest 16 people charged this month by the United States with multi-milliondollar bribery schemes for marketing and broadcast rights, bringing the number of indictments so far to 41 in an investigation spanning dozens of countries. The draft statute amendments released on Wednesday take responsibility for good conduct right to the top. "The President shall aim to foster a positive image of FIFA and to ensure that FIFA's mission, strategic direction, policies and values, as defined by the Council, are protected and

advanced," one amendment reads. It set a similar high bar for Council members, which now must "faithfully, loyally and independently act in the best interests of FIFA and the promotion and development of football at global level." In future, each member association would be responsible "for any and all acts of the members of their bodies caused by the gross negligence or wilful misconduct of such members". One new statute stipulates that the congress may suspend a member solely at the request of the Council. This appeared to be an attempt to avoid an incident last year, when the Palestine football association proposed the suspension of the Israeli FA. This sparked fears of similar situations should FAs seek to kick out political enemies.

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