The Morung Express by The Morung Express

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The Morung Express

A Daily Publication of Morung for Indigenous Affairs & JustPeace

Dimapur VOL. III ISSUE 322

“Enough of kidnappings” DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): The NSCN (IM) today termed as “disheartening” that “anti-social elements” are still ‘on the prowl’ in Dimapur, looking for soft targets. “In recent period, Dimapur has earned the notoriety of being the hotbed of crime, particularly kidnapping of businessmen for extracting heavy amount of ransom” the outfit said in a note from its ‘MIP’. It alleged that today at around 6 AM, a ‘customer’ of one Mayur Hotel in Dimapur was kidnapped “by some miscreants”. Claiming that “such dirty incident” has “again” played into the “moral conscious” of the outfit, the MIP note expressed condemnation of such “social nuisance” that has not “stopped playing hell to the security of the businessmen or any civilian”. Demanding that the ‘culprits’ should not go scot free, the outfit asserted that “we want to see that the confidence of the people in Dimapur or anyone who comes to Dimapur is not shattered”. Demanding serious action by the state police and intelligence agencies, the NSCN (IM) assured, that whether the crime was by an organized gang or any underground group, “the day of reckoning has to be set and NSCN shall be a witness on how this is handled”. “In the eye of NSCN, enough of kidnapping is seen in Dimapur and ‘enough is enough’” it added.

Info on AR ﬁring practices C M Y K

WOKHA, NOVEMBER 19 (DIPR): ADC Bhandari, Ahola Those in an office memorandum has informed the people of Bhandari town and surrounding villages about firing practice hours every Saturday by the 41 AR Company stationed at Bhandari town. The ADC reminds the area’s people to keep in mind the firing practice timings and not to be alarmed unnecessarily.

Five injured in road mishap MOKOKCHUNG, NOVEMBER 19 (DIPR): Five persons were injured, two of them seriously, when a taxi on way to Alongkima plunged into a deep gorge near Chungtia, 17 Kms from Mokokchung. The accident occurred on November 18 when the driver lost control of the vehicle while crossing another vehicle and simultaneously trying to bypass two children coming from the opposite direction. Meanwhile, the injured persons are admitted in the Civil Hospital of Mokokchung.

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” India’s Challenge: HUMAN INTELLECT

A person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the man doing it

- Chinese Proverb

‘Nine-fold increase in HrEdu budget’ Thannganing Hungyo Shillong | November 19

Furah carries wood and her eighteen-month-old daughter Shukyru, on the road linking Rupango to Sake, eastern Congo, Wednesday November 19. Furah walks the 16 kms every day, crossing from the CNDP rebel-controlled area to the government-held town of Sake to sell wood. (AP Photo)

NPF calls for ceaseﬁre among factions DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): Reiterating its call for a peaceful negotiated settlement of the longdrawn Indo-Naga political issue, the Nagaland People’s Front in its resolution arrived at during its general convention said the Naga political problem has eluded solution even after more than half a century of bloodshed turmoil. The NPF has made an appeal to all the

warring factions to ceasefire and to declare a ‘general amnesty’ to arrive at an early solution. The NPF also assured it will adhere to its declared policy of paving the way for an alternative arrangement in the event of a successful dialogue. The resolution also expressed support to the untiring efforts exerted by the Political Affairs Committee ever since its inception

to reconcile and unite the Naga underground workers and bring them to the negotiating table. The party will also continue to lend its “unflinching support to all the peace process and to restore Naga fraternity”. On its slogan, ‘development for peace and peace for development’, the NPF noted that the DAN Government had declared 2008 as the year of capacity-building

and “true to the themes-the government under the visionary leadership of Neiphiu Rio have conquered new frontiers in leaps and bound in the overall development of the state”. While extending congratulations to all its leaders, the NPF said the performance of the DAN government has earned the ‘distinction of having achieved a milestone in this context’. Continued on page 3

IT’S RAINING universities and colleges! But the biggest challenge for India is whether it can irrigate young minds for a rich harvest of knowledge. The dropout rate was high on the last day of yesterday’s conclave featuring the country’s top academicians, but those present took note of the “serious matter” as they participated in the national seminar on ‘Quality and Relevance of Higher Education,’ held at the convention hall of the picturesque NEHU campus. Acknowledging that the second-most populous country in the world needs a makeover in its education system, participants sought to address topical issues by assessing downfalls and suggesting means through which the country can stand at par with foreign universities of repute. According to Ashok Thakur, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Human Resource Development, “The biggest challenge (in the education system) for India today, more important than brick and mortar, is human intellect.” Harder work has to be enforced in terms of both reach and quality of education, he urged. “Our track record in terms of quality is

IN THE PIPELINE

New central institutes in the ofﬁng 30 Central universities 373 colleges 7 IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) 6 IIM (Indian Institute of Management) 20 IIIT (Indian Institute of Information Technology) 20 NIT (National Institute of Technology) 3 IISER (Indian Institute of Science and Educational Research) 1000 polytechnics

not flattering.” Education today, and especially job-oriented education, has become a moneyspinning apparatus, he said, and asked the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) and other regulating bodies to be more vigilant. The HRD ministry is changing gear in the 11th five-year period. “The budget for higher education has increased nine-fold.” Thakur also made known how the ministry intends to expand educational infrastructure. (See box) Calling for more networking between the statutory bodies of education in India, he asked vice chancellors of universities to don the roles of community leaders. He also stressed on the need to urgently look into the faculty crunch. Thakur, however, sees a silver lining in the recent global financial meltdown. With the sixth pay commission in place, the disparity in

Al Qaeda warns Obama NSF rally to ‘salvage the younger generation’ DUBAI, NOVEMBER 19 (AFP): Calling US President-elect Barack Obama a “house negro”, al-Qaida number two Ayman Zawahiri has warned him against sending more troops to Afghanistan, in an Internet audio message released on Wednesday. Zawahiri insulted Obama and other black Americans who have held high office in the US administration with the term used by the late black militant leader Malcolm X. “It is true about you and people like you ... what Malcolm X said about the house negroes,” he said, naming former secretary of state Colin Powell and the current secretary, Condoleezza Rice. An English transcript of the speech purportedly by the al-Qaida number two

was provided by Al-Qaeda’s media arm As-Sahab. The tape features an old speech by Malcolm X in which he used the two terms, referring to house slaves who were considered more docile and on better terms with their masters than the field slaves. On the political front, Zawahiri said: “What you have announced before ... that you will withdraw (US) troops from Iraq (and send them) to Afghanistan is a policy that is doomed to failure ... “If you still want to be stubborn about America’s failure in Afghanistan, then remember the fate of (US President George W) Bush and (Pakistan’s former president) Pervez Musharraf, and the fate of the Soviets and British before them.”

Students seen here in today’s protest rally in Kohima, demanding from the government a review of the superannuation age-limit and length of government service. Our Correspondent Kohima | November 19

IN DEMANDING from the state government a review

White Lion to ‘roar’ Dimapur Dec 16

Shekar’s Kohima date on Nov 21 KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 19 (DIPR): Cabinet Secretary to the Government of India KM. Chandra Shekar along with a team of senior officers arrive in Kohima on Friday November 21, on a two-day visit. During his stay in Kohima, Chandra Shekar will hold a security co-ordination meeting with senior state government officials and security officials and thereafter with administrative heads and heads of departments in the conference hall of the Nagaland Civil Secretariat. During the meeting with the AHoDs and HoDs, Chandra Shekar will review developmental activities in the state particularly the flagship programmes of the government. The Cabinet secretary and his team will also meet the governor and the chief minister.

Thursday, November 20, 2008 12 pages Rs. 3

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The one hair metal band responsible for open for White Lion, one of the most visible launching a dizzying flurry of anti-war glam hard rock bands in the United States themes in America in the 80s with a 4-min- during the hairspray-big-hair-and-spandexute ballad called ‘When the Children Cry’, underwear revolution of the 1980s. White is, well, to be here. Yep, Yes, Lion is scheduled to perform Yeah, in Dimapur, the AmerJN Stadium in Shillong on the Al Ngullie ican-Danish hard rock band Morung Express News 13th and then in Dimapur on White Lion. the 16th. The event for the DiWhite Lion’s official website has con- mapur show is reportedly by Finishing Touch firmed a performance in Dimapur on Decem- while sound reinforcements will be shared ber 16 at the Dimapur District Sports Council with Crescendo Music in collaboration with Stadium. Sources in Dimapur also said local Shillong organizers. bands XTC and Native Rising, are slated to Continued on page 3

of the superannuation age limit for government employees, the Naga Students’ Federation today staged a protest rally starting from

its office to the Nagaland Civil Secretariat complex. More than 1500 students joined the NSF in the protest rally passing through

the main town holding placards, shouting slogans for justice and demanding implementation of the demanded length limit of service. Interestingly, among the many placards carried by the students, some read “Grandpa/Grandma give us chance to serve you” while others appealed for youth involvement and not disregarding them from serving the state. Expressing discontent over the state cabinet’s decision to extend the age of service without considering the length of service, the students demanded that the government employees retire after 33 years of service to give employment opportunity to the younger generation, who are educated but unemployed.

salary packages between the public and private sectors is narrowing, and thus government jobs are now appealing to youngsters, he said. “I am quite positive that this salary increase will attract young boys and girls.” Squarely blaming the educational system for alienating “frustrated youths”, North Eastern Council member, P P Srivastav, asked academicians to redefine the objectives of education. “Certain points in education system need to be modified.” The NEC, with help from academicians, has prepared an 11page document on revamping the education system in the North East. Secretary General of the Association of Indian Universities, Prof. Dayanand Dongaonkar, labeled India as somewhat of a “hypocritical society.” India has the thirdbiggest education system in Asia but only 7% enrolment of the relevant age group.

3 truck drivers abducted KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): Three Manipur truck drivers were reportedly abducted by unknown miscreants this morning at around 3:30 AM near the KMC dumping site. On receiving information, a combing operation was carried out to trace the abducted drivers but their whereabouts are unknown, police said.

Continued on page 3

Media blackout in Manipur

IMPHAL, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Media houses in Manipur have decided not to publish their dailies from tomorrow till the state government of Manipur orders a judicial enquiry to probe into the killing of Konsam Rishikanta, a sub-editor with Imphal Free Press, by unidentified gunmen. Sources in media organizations in Manipur said on Wednesday that they would stop bringing out issues unless the government declares a judicial enquiry into the killing of Rishikanta, 22, who was shot dead by unidentified gunmen at Langol area on Monday last. The All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union (AMWJU), in a memorandum to Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh yesterday demanded a judicial enquiry into the incident. The AMWJU suspects the involvement of security personnel in gunning down the upcoming journalist. A copy of the memorandum said no militant outfit could operate at Langol area where all three entry points are heavily

Scribes in Manipur on an indeﬁnite ceasework and sit-in protest against the killing of a Jr. Sub-Editor of Imphal Free Press, Konsam Rishikanta Singh, on Wednesday at Keishampat, Imphal orginized by the AMJU (All Manipur Journalists’ Union). (UB PHOTOS)

guarded by commandos and on this, queried whether Rishikanta was killed because of personal rivalry with some commandos. Ibobi Singh told a AMWJU delegation that a proper enquiry would be made into the matter. Hundreds of social organizations also strongly condemned the killing of the young journalist.

They, in separate statements, demanded that a judicial enquiry be ordered to find out the truth. No individual or group has so far claimed responsibility for the killing of Rishikanta. Hundreds of media people paid floral tributes to the mortal remains of Rishikanta at Manipur press club yesterday after which he was cremated last evening.

Strongly condemning the murder, Editor of Imphal Free Press Pradip Phanjoubam said Rishikanta was a hard-working, honest and sincere journalist. Sources in media houses said the killing of Rishikanta had nothing to do with his professional work and demanded authorities to order a judicial enquiry into the incident.

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Dimapur

LOCAL

Thursday 20 November 2008

The Morung Express

Call for Churches to ﬁght HIV

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): Issues of survival, health and education, and of children infected and affected by HIV are of paramount concern in the face of many parents infected with HIV, and many children being orphaned by AIDS, stressed Maong Jamir, Asst. Director of Prodigals' Home, at a sensitisation and interactive program on ‘Issues of Orphans and Children vulnerable to HIV’ at the Sumi Baptist Church, in Niuland today. Jamir raised the concern of orphans (other than those orphaned by AIDS) and children vulnerable, besides other things, to HIV and anti-social activities. Orphans, children of sex workers, children of drug users, domestic helps, and street children, Jamir reiterated, “are oftentimes neglected and face so much stigma, exploitation and discrimination.” He thus appealed, particularly to the church, to rise to the challenge of tackling this present day social concerns of these children. Nevertheless acknowledging the role of some churches coming forward to tackle the challenges through spiritual and monetary help, Jamir stated that the church could still do and contribute so much more, “given its enormous resource and manpower,” he noted.

‘Christians need to question the situation of HIV’

Maong Jamir, Asst. Director of Prodigals’ Home, addressing the participants at Sumi Baptist Church, Niuland.

In the ensuing discussion about issues of children and HIV, a visibly concerned pastor posed a trick question of his obligation to help a stranger bleeding from an accident, regardless of the danger of contracting HIV, or to simply ignore the person for fear of contracting HIV. To this, he

HIV/AIDS awareness programme held DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): A one-day awareness programme on HIV/AIDS was held on November 11 at the conference hall of Women Development Nagaland Kohima. The awareness programme was imparted to the vocational trainees and instructors of the training-cum-production centre under the Directorate of Women Development. The resource persons for the programme were Alipoker, Consultant NSACS, Paul R, also from NSACS, and Bazo Kire of the Kekhrie Foundation, Kohima. The instructors and trainees of TCPC were given basic awareness of HIV by Paul. Alipoker spoke on blood safety components, while Bazo spoke on the prevention and cure, and also informed on the services available, for HIV/AIDS.

recounted, a doctor had advised him to use a plastic bag to cover his hands and to which he had replied, “but if there are no plastic bags around?” This induced a ripple of laughter but also raised the larger question of our duty/obligation to one’s fellow being in the face of so much uncertainty in

our society without actually providing a ready answer to such a situation, a release from the Prodigals’ Home’s desk added. The participants, comprising of Pastors, GBs, women leaders, and Sunday School supervisors, raised other thought provoking questions

particularly about HIV. “Is there a drug to cure HIV? How do you justify condom promotion? Should we continue to help HIV+ people and ignore the others? Why is it that HIV seems to germinate and grow in those places where HIV awareness programs are held? How do we identify OVCs and what help can one give after we identify orphans and vulnerable children?” were some of the questions raised and discussed in the interactive program held under the aegis of UNICEF and organised by Prodigals' Home with the help of Henizhe, Pastor of Sumi Baptist Church, Niuland, in mobilising the participants. Taking a dig at the role of “our churches” by virtue of being a “Christian state” in curbing the menace of HIV, Jamir made particular reference to a study which stated that the majority of HIV positive persons in Africa were once very good Sunday school students. Thus making a reference, Jamir posed a question, “Where did they go wrong? And whose fault is it: individual, family, society, or church?” He stressed that each of us, as Christians, need to introspect and question the situation of HIV in our state and question our role in curbing the menace of HIV.

Dr. Chumben inaugurates Meriyan village WOKHA, NOVEMBER 19 (DIPR): Minister for Agriculture, Dr. Chumben, on November 14 inaugurated Meriyan village in Wokha district. As chief guest, the Minister unveiled the monolith of the new village, and addressed the villagers, urging them to give importance to the healthcare sector and asked for their cooperation towards bringing more development. Dr. Chumben appreciated the village elders who sacrificed their best efforts for the fulfillment of setting up a new

village. The Minister also requested the developmental departments to extend their patronage for the development of the new village. Nagaland Legislative Assembly Secretary, A E Lotha, also addressed the public and urged the villages to work hard with cooperation in their efforts for the welfare of the new village. Among others, Deputy Commissioner Wokha, A Woben, Chairman of Shakhi village, Chairman of Sankiton village, and Chairman of Kyong Hoho, Nyan-

bemo Ngullie, spoke on the occasion. Presentation of folksongs by the Meriyan Village Women Club was one of the highlights of the function. About 5000 people attended the function. It may be mentioned that the new village is located in the Nzhu valley, and the land is fertile and has agri-based potential. In this regard, the area is often called the pocket of Canaan in Wokha district. The village is 30 kms away from Wokha town and the Wokha-Bokajan road runs through the village.

KOHIMA

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A function was held at the Secretariat conference hall, Kohima, on November 19 to celebrate the National Integration Week. The function was chaired by Special Secretary (Home), Zanbemo Odyuo, who gave a short speech regarding National Integration, followed by the administration of the pledge. The National Anthem was sung, led by the chairman, as a mark of the day.

TUENSANG

Along with the rest of the country and the state, Tuensang district observed National Integration Week in all respective offices, whereby the pledge was administered

Kiphire | November 19

MOBILE TECHNOLOGY has touched Kiphire district like any other place. However, these expensive cell phones are more famous for MP3s and miscellaneous cyber shots. While citizens can effortlessly operate the gadget, it is used less for communication due to non-availability of network and ‘connection error’ greetings all the time. At present, only one ‘satellite dish’ has been set up for a population of about 1 lakh citizens, thus creating the ‘network problem’ all the time. Nevertheless, the department does not seem too keen on addressing the plight faced by its citizens even after repeated appeals. When enquiring with the department in concern about the problems faced by the citizens, the department is said to have replied, “In a couple of weeks, laying of Optical Fiber Cable (OFC) work will be over, which is in progress; and hope to solve the problem.” Talking with this correspondence, some senior citizens expressed hope that “more mobile towers be erected in the town.” At present, for the entire district there is only one mobile tower and laying of OFC be completed at the earliest, they stressed. It may be mentioned that a few weeks ago, more than 120 postpaid subscribers were given SIM cards. However, without any outlet for payment of bills, the citizens of Kiphire expressed confusion and wondered whether the department was serious about providing service to its citizens. Also expressing concern, the public was of the view that telecommunication, the only source of link to the global village, was always hampered, taking its citizens back to the past centuries confined within the four walls, and confining them in an island of darkness.

MEx File

DC Mkg informs on CMCF MOKOKCHUNG, NOVEMBER 19 (DIPR): Deputy Commissioner and Member Secretary for Chief Minister’s Corpus Fund, Mokokchung, Bendangkokba, has in a notification informed all concerned applicants that the interview for selection of beneficiaries under CMCF, Mokokchung district, during the year 2008-09 would be conducted on November 25, 2008, in the conference hall of the Deputy Commissioner’s office from 9 am. The notification added that all applicants are to attend the interview on the scheduled date, along with all the requisite documents. It also reminded that no separate calling letter would be issued in this connection.

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): The DIS Dimapur has in a notification to all ad-hoc teachers and staff under DIS Office Dimapur informed that application along with required documents, duly recommended by the chairman, VEC or head teacher, for extension of service for the next academic year, i.e. 2009, are to be submitted on or before November 25 without fail. Hetoli Sumi, DIS Dimapur, in the notification added that on failure to submit the same on the stipulated time, “their case would not be entertained.”

PHEK

The National Integration Week was observed at Phek with Deputy Commissioner of Phek, Zachive Thele, administering the pledge at the District Planning & Development Board conference hall, Phek. All officers and staff attended the programme.

AKT Tuensang silver jubilee on Dec 6 TUENSANG, NOVEMBER 19 (DIPR): The Silver Jubilee of the Ao Kekatshir Telongjem, Tuensang, will be held on December 6, 2008, at the Government Higher Secondary School auditorium in Tuensang. Executive Engineer (Irrigation & Flood Control) Tuensang, Lanu, is slated to grace the function as the guest of honour.

MOKOKCHUNG

Along with the rest of the country, Mokokchung District also observed the ‘Quami Ekta Week’ (National Integration Week) with solemnity in all the Government offices in the district. The main programme was held at the Deputy Commissioner’s conference hall, wherein the Bendangkokba, DC, Mokokchung, highlighted the significance of the day and administrated the ‘pledge’ to all public servants present. Those present put their signatures on the pledge and submitted it to the authority.

Lipichem

DIS Dimapur informs ad-hoc teachers

National Integration Week observed across the State

NOVEMBER 19 (DIPR): The Nagaland government today observed National Integration Week across the state and in different governmental departments in each district.

Kiphire annoyed with BSNL ‘connection error’

ANMLTA general meeting Unusual sight: A three wheeler seen here transporting cattle in the busy streets of Dimapur, adding to the trafﬁc congestion. (Morung Photo)

Condolences over Yanger Sangtam’s demise C Kipili Sangtam, Chairman NSMDC On the sudden demise of L Yanger Sangtam who expired on November 17 at Dimapur, C Kipili Sangtam, Chairman of NSMDC, has expressed shock and stated, “On this darkest moment, I extend my heartfelt message to the bereaved family members and his dear and near ones.” Late Yanger Sangtam had served as Excise Assistant Commissioner and he was also serving as Vice President of United Sangtam Likhum Bumji (USLB). Kipili also expressed his deepest gratitude to all ‘walks of life’ who rendered their “best services of mental, physical, financial and material” during the illness and demise of late Yanger Sangtam, and called for a joint prayer to the Almighty God that the departed soul may rest in peace.

United Sangtam Students’ Conference The United Sangtam Students’ Conference has expressed deep shock and pain at the sad and untimely demise of L Yanger Sangtam (Retd. Deputy Commissioner of Excise), also the Vice President of United Sangtam Likhum Bumji (USLB). Lithsase Sangtam, USSC’s General Secretary, in a condolence message stated that at this moment of grief and sorrow, the USSC conveyed heartfelt condolence to the bereaved family members and prayed that the Almighty God would “grant solace to the departed soul to rest in eternal peace.”

KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 19 (MEXN): The All Nagaland Medical Lab Technicians Association (ANMLTA) will hold its general meeting on November 21 at Naga Hospital Authority Kohima at 12:00 noon. Election of new office bearers and discussion of service matter relating to upgradation of post will figure in the meeting. The Association has notified that all the district representatives and technicians are to attend the said meeting compulsorily.

DIS Longleng informs LONGLENG, NOVEMBER 19 (DIPR): The Deputy Inspector of Schools, Longleng, P Lipok Jamir, has informed all concerned that as per the Director of School Education Nagaland notification dated November 17, 2008, which mentioned 8 lists of genuine appointment orders, 56 staff had been declared as genuine. The remaining staff members ‘that are genuine’ are directed to appear for a physical verification on December 2 and 3, 2008, at the Directorate of School Education, Kohima. They are also directed to produce one passport size photograph taken recently. Details of the names included in the list will be available in the Deputy Inspector of School office, Longleng.

Five bands from Nagaland for Hornbill National Rock 2008

Our Correspondent

Kohima | November 19

November 21 11.30am to 4pm Highway-39 Conference Center & Go-Karting Dimapur

Entry is Free All Are Invited

FOUR BANDS from Nagaland – Eximious, Melo Drama, EOE and OFF – after a tough competition, have been qualified for the upcoming ‘Airtel Hornbill National Rock Contest 2008’. Altogether sixteen aspirant bands from Nagaland today auditioned here at the Academy Hall, for the contest. The four bands, besides the band Diatribe, winner of Nagaland Music Safari 2008, will join the rest of the bands for the contest scheduled during the Hornbill Festival from December 1 till 7. Dr. Toshilong, Dr. Wabang and Wenitso Kapfo were the judges of today’s audition. The auditions of ‘Airtel presents Hornbill National Rock 2008’ will continue on December 5, and nine bands will be further shortlisted for the finale. The winner of this year’s National Rock Contest will walk away with a handsome cash prize of Rs.5 lakhs sponsored by Airtel. This year’s Hornbill Music Festival is organised by the Music Task Force (MTF), Directorate of Youth Resource & Sports, while the event is managed by XL. Further information may be sought by contacting the XL team or by logging in at www.hornbillmusic.com/.

One of the rock bands auditioning for this year’s edition of the Hornbill Rock Contest 2008, in performance. Four bands from Nagaland qualiﬁed for the contest today. (Morung Photo)

LOCAL

The Morung Express

Thursday

20 November 2008

Dimapur

Apok for action on climate change NPF calls for ceaseﬁre... Ao dialect website launched

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): Sitting Congress MLA from Nagaland and ex-MP Apok Jamir today paid a visit to the Climate Change Leaders Workshop held at the Kaziranga National Park in Assam. Apok Jamir spoke on the leadership issue from the point of view of a politician and a leader from the region besides interacting with the Climate Change Leaders—twenty six of them selected from all the north eastern States and West Bengal. Jamir spoke about the need for action on climate change at global, national, regional and local levels; and the leadership challenges emerging from this issue. He also spoke about the need for leadership at all levels to energise community processes with communication, deliberation and action and to transcend these at the policy level. He expressed his appreciation to the fact that the Climate Change Leaders Programme (CCL) is the step in the right direction, whose aim is to begin the process of action on climate change and make

it a broad base movement. Other participants include seven LEAD Fellows from the region and resource persons from across the country. The Workshop is organised by the TML Guwahati and the Eastern Himalayan Decentralised Resource Centre (EHDRC) of LEAD India – which is a non-governmental organisation that works towards creating leadership in Environment and Development. “Lack of leadership at the regional and local level is largely responsible for the fact that regional and community level climate change concerns generally do not get reflected into national thinking and policies”, stated a separate press note received here. It may be mentioned that the Climate Change Leaders Programme (CCL) aims to create a network of young climate leaders who are driven by a common goal to combat climate change and foster sustainable development. Individuals drawn from all key stakeholders- academia,

From page 1 The NPF also recorded its gratitude to all the coalition partners. “But for their unwavering support, the foundations towards building a strong and self reliant economy could have never been laid today”, the NPF resolution stated. The NPF in its resolution has also vehemently condemned in the strongest term, the acts of sacrilege committed in many parts of India where atrocities continue to be perpetrated against thousands of Christians, their churches and auxiliaries and put on record its deepest sympathy to all who have fallen victims to the nefarious design of some extreme elements. “It is duty-bound for the GOI and the concern states to uphold in letter and spirit the secular character of the constitution under all circumstances and not yield to forces which are wedded to the ideology of communal and Religion intolerance”. The NPF strongly urged the concern authorities to protect the lives and properties

government, business, media and wider civil society have been selected on the basis of their past engagement with climate change related issues in their respective regions. The programme, being piloted in North-East India and North India, aims to create a network of sixty young climate leaders who are driven by a common goal to combat climate change and foster sustainable development. Individuals drawn from all key stakeholders- academia, government, business, media and wider civil society have been selected on the basis of their past engagement with climate change related issues in their respective regions. The initiative was formally launched on 17th November, 2008 at a 3-day training programme for the climate leaders from the North-East at the Kaziranga National Park in Assam. A similar programme for participants from North India will be launched next month at the Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand.

of the Christians in the effected states and immediately promulgate stringent measures to halt the financial campaign against Christian minorities and their establishments and ensure total implementation of the fundamental rights to freedom of Religion and belief. The NPF resolution also made mention of Neiphiu Rio the Chief Minister of Nagaland and Dr. Shürhozelie the President of NPF under whose leaderships the Party stormed back to power for the second consecutive term despite all odds. The party also placed on record its gratitude to each and every electorate in particular and the Naga People in general for reposing their confidence in the party and its leadership yet again in the 2008 General Election. “The NPF will remain as the custodian of all these valuable mandates and ensure that it transforms into golden policies of multifaceted socio economic and political development for the Naga People”, it stated in its resolution.

CSCs launching today White Lion to ‘roar’ Dimapur Dec 16

KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): Department of Information Technology and Technical Education, Govt of Nagaland is implementing various E Governance Projects as part of the National E Governance Plan. As per this plan, core IT infrastructure comprising of State Wide Area Network, Common Service Centers and State Data Centre are being created. Of these flag ship programmes, the Common Service Centers will be launched on November 20 in the Conference Hall of Chief Secretary with the signing of the Master Service Agreement (MSA) between the Government, State Designated Agency (SDA) which is the Nagaland State E Governance Society (NSeGS) and the Service Centre Agency (SCA) for Nagaland is Terrasoft, Hyderabad a leading software company of the country. As part of the scheme, the Govt of Nagaland in association with the SCA will establish 220 Common Service Centers across the State. Efficient, convenient and speedy Government Services, will be provided to the citizens using Information & Communication Technologies (ICT) through the CSCs. The CSCs

will be utilized as efficient distribution channels through which the Government can offer its services, information and schemes etc to citizens in a cost effective, sustainable and efficient manner. The SCA shall develop, design, build, rollout, establish, manage, operate, maintain and finance the CSCs for delivery of services to the customers in accordance with the provisions of this MSA on a Build, Own and Operate (BOO) basis; provided that the SCA shall be allowed to collect transaction charges for providing Government services as determined by Govt/ SDA and receive revenue support, as agreed to between the SCA and Government of Nagaland, vide the MSA by enabling the private and social sector to use this network for offering a host of IT and non-IT related services to customers and users. The SCA will introduce other services for the benefit of the citizens. The existing Community Information Centers at the 52 blocks will be integrated with the CSCs with a specific condition that all existing CIC personnel will be absorbed by the SCA as per the existing terms and condition.

ZION HOSPITAL & RESEARCH CENTRE FREE STOMACH CANCER SCREENING CAMP Zion Hospital & Research Centre in collaboration with Dr. Reddy’s Lab will be conducting a Free Stomach cancer Screening Camp on the 27th November 2008 from 7:00 AM onwards. Endoscopy will be done free of cost. Any person requiring screening endoscopy may contact the reception for registration. CANCER SURGEON FOR CONSULTATION Dr. Ganesh Das MBBS, MS (PGIMER) Trained Cancer Surgeon from Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai will be available for consultation on the 27th November 2008. Cancer patients requiring operation/consultation may contact the reception for registration. # (03862) 231864, 230889, 227337

Excel Coaching and Computer Centre Mission Road, Near North Police Station- Kohima

Coaching for: 1. INTENSIVE COACHING for Cl-10 & Cl-12 (Science, Arts & Commerce- 2009 Batch 2. NPSC, UPSC, NCS (Prelim-2009), SSC and other Competitive Exam 3. JEE & NERIST Entrance for- 2009 4. Spoken English & Computer Courses 5. Coaching for Sainik School Entrance. Contact: Ph 0370-2290672, 9436071373, 9863143388

Hostel available for both Boys & Girls

From page 1 For now, details pertinent to the show including for tickets and entry details could not be made available. White Lion – whose sixth and latest album, ‘Return of the Pride’ (with AOR giant Frontier Records) is already out – also lists Dimapur in the tour schedule on its official website. Sadly, for guitar enthusiasts in Nagaland, White Lion won’t be performing with its chart-hitting lineup of the pre-breakup White Lion – including yes, guitar God Vito Bratta – one of the most revered of rock guitarists the heady 80s threw up, alongside fret wizards like Adrain Vandenberg (White Snake), Warren Di Martini (remember a bunch of dudes called RATT?) and a guy called Rick Emmet (Yep, that guitar biggie from British rockers Triumph). Singer and chief songwriter Mike

Tramp is the only original member left in the band that used to have reticent bassist James Lomenzo and skinsman Greg D’Angelo (now with Zakk Wyld’s Pride & Glory). But Dimapurians, thou noth throw thine hearts into despair – Mike’s new crew of wreakers include formidable rock veterans in the like of guitarist and songwriter Jamie Law, drummer Troy Patrick Farrell, bassist and songwriter Claus Langeskov and…hold your gasp...even a keyboardist – Henning Wanner! Now, Dimapur, go grow your hair fast-fast. The band’s next performance date lists the Cabin Fever Rockfest in Halifex in Nova Scotia. For those who came in late, here’s a little history for you. White Lion was formed in New York City in 1983 by the “great Dane” Mike Tramp and American guitarist Vito Bratta. Mainly active

in the 1980s and early 1990s, the band achieved double platinum status, with their Number 3 smash which every pork-blooded Naga can warble – yes, ‘When the Children Cry’. After 1985’s Fight to Survive (Asylum Records), the band had considerable success with the albums ‘Pride’ (1987, Atlantic) and ‘Mane Attraction’ (1991, Atlantic) after the forgettable ‘Big Game’ (1989, Atlantic). The compilation ‘Remembering White Lion’ (1999 Cleopatra Records) followed. Following a flurry of the common musicians’ disease called “musical differences” – not to mention a nasty spate of legal fight later over the band’s works – White Lion disbanded in 1991, but was revived by Mike in 1999 with the new lineup. So you gonna be there or not? In case White Lion doesn’t go the Firehouse way, like few years back, that is…

NPCC hits out at NPF

Kohima Press Club meeting

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): The NPCC today said it is “amused to read the contradictory” speech of Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and others who spoke at the NPF general convention yesterday. “The Naga public’s memory is not short to remember that NPF sailed to power in 2003 and 2008 elections with their policy of ‘Equi-closeness’. The statement of Rio that runs as ‘a section that is not part of the solution cannot deny that they are part of the problem’ was contradictory and discriminatory in nature” a rejoinder from the NPCC stated. Rio must clarify “to the Naga people” which “section” he meant, the NPCC said. “It implied that his equi-closeness policy had taken him too close to a section of people while distancing from other section of people. As a regional political party advocating the policy of equi-closeness, he is expected to unite all sections of people. So, it is not the Congress party after all, but NPF which divides the Nagas” the congress said. While “enjoying the fruit of 16-point agreement”, the NPCC said, the NPF leaders continue to condemn it

with impunity ‘trying to exploit the sentiments of Naga public’ and that “the days of fooling the public as the sole champion of the Naga cause are however, over”. The Congress, NPCC asserted, as “responsible” national political party had consistently maintained its equi-distance policy and ushered in peace in Nagaland through the Cease-fire agreements signed between the GOI and the two NSCN factions. But the NPF continues to mislead the Nagas that the President’s Rule was brought to Nagaland the Guwahati High Court’s ruling to the contrary. “It only showed how thick are the skulls of NPF leaders. In this matter, the NPCC had clarified enough on several occasions and public are well aware of it” it claimed. Over the Integration of all Naga-inhabited areas, the NPCC said it is not a new development as “it was part of the sixteen point agreement under clause 13”. The Congress had taken initiative and intensively played its role by passing resolutions on several occasions on the floor of the Assembly and expresses its happiness that NPF has finally decided to follow suit”.

Felicitation We the Kohima Japukong Senso Telongjem (KJST) would like to felicitate Miss Toshinaro Imchen D/o Mr & Mrs Imnük Imchen of Lirmen village for electing 3rd NAGA IDOL-2008. KJST wishes her good luck and urges her to use her talent for good cause. KJST also like to thank Naga People as a whole for your love, support in choosing a gifted and talented one. S. Tinu Aier Gen. Secy., KJST

A. Temjen Longchar President, KJST

Hornbill Finance Limited (RBI Regn. No.b.08.00167 Dated 7.11.03)

NOTICE This is to notify that Land bearing Patta No.22, Dag No.15/33, Mauza No.3 measuring 01-00-00/1338 Sq.m located at Model Village Dimapur District, standing in the name of Smt. Zulumongla, D/o of Tsükmung and wife of Mr I. Ayang Longkumer serving as UDA in Refferal Hospital Dimapur, has been Mortgaged in the ofﬁce of the Deputy Commissioner vide Mortgage Sl.No.275 Date: 02/04/2008 in favour of M/s Hornbill Finance Limited, Dimapur against Loan availed by Mr.I. Ayang Longkumer. Any Person/Society dealing with the aforesaid land will be doing at their risk and responsibility Merentoshi R. Jamir Executive Director

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): The Kohima Press Club will hold its general meeting on November 22 (Saturday) at the KPC building, Kohima at 1:00 pm. Therefore, all the members have been requested to attend the said meeting positively.

Lost Notice I, Mr Vetsuzo Swuro am applying for a duplicate copy of Marksheet and Admit Card as I have lost them. Name: Vetsuzo Swuro F/Name: Mahi Swuro M/Name: Avolu Swuro D.O.B: 14.10.1983 Name of School/Centre: Chozuba Centre Roll No: 451507 Year: 2004 Result: Passed

DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): One of the first website purely in Ao dialect, www.akumlirwadang.com was launched on November 19. The site is a tribute to Late L. Imtisupong Aier (1922-1998) on his 86th birth anniversary, who was a pioneer in writing short stories and novellas in Ao dialect and the site is named after his first book. The site will post the writer's notable works from time to time for the benefit of the younger generation, stated a press communiqué received

from K. Wapongmeren Longkumer. Moreover, it will continue his works in spreading the age old traditional knowledge and information to the rural areas, the release further stated. Meanwhile, family members have expressed gratefulness to Ben Longkmer of bnshost.com for sponsoring and providing the web hosting solutions. Visit the site for more information and edit as required and also for a brief introduction in English visit, http://www. akumlirwadang.com/english.htm.

Mannen ‘expelled’ from RJD DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): The Nagaland unit of the RJD today said to have “expelled” fifteen of its executives including TN Manen for a period of 6 years. Along with Manen, according to a note from the RJD listing 15 “expelled members”, are three vice presidents, four general secretaries and seven “ex-candidates”. “Since the above stated persons resignation was not submitted officially with duly signed by the personal concerned, as RJD party is a national Political Party who follows the constitution of the party guided to each and every members of the party. In the meantime, it is not surprising to us for deserting the party by those persons which were suppose to happen long time before” stated a note from one Inazhe Sumi, ‘spokesperson’. “The RJD party Nagaland unit as a whole is intact and the party is in its full strength and the defection and the expulsion of the above members will not in any way affect the party in the state” it added.

NSF rally to ‘salvage the younger generation’ From page 1 Addressing the gathering NSF general secretary, V Hetoi Chishi said the rally was organized to ‘salvage the younger generation’, by demanding the government to enforce 33 years as the length of service for any government employee. Unless the government reviews the length of service, there will be no vacancies and no chance for the educated youths to enter into government services, he said. “We are not here by chance but by choice”, said former NPF President, Phusikha Awomi. Due to some vested interests of government employees, he said, educated youths are forced to remain unemployed giving further rise to anti-social elements. He said the youths are capable of taking decisions and parents and elders should give chance to the younger generation

and that no political propaganda can move “us”. Awomi urged the student community to join hands with the NSF. “Unless you (students) stand for your rights and stand on your feet, your future is bleak” he said while assuring that the NSF is to see that the future of the younger generation is secured. “This is a fight between the deserving and the desiring” he said. Other NSF federating units including the Delhi Naga Students’ Union also delivered speeches after the rally culminated outside the Nagaland Civil Secretariat. Government service being the only avenues of employment in the state, government employees should retire after 33 years of service and give a chance to the younger generation, they said. Talking to media persons, the NSF assured to intensify the agitations if the government fails to meet the demand made.

Do Visit Us At

The Special Handloom Expo At Local Ground Zunheboto Town For 15 Days W.E.F 12th November 2008. Enjoy The Handloom Colours Of North East. Organised By: Nagaland Handloom& Handicraft Development Corporation Ltd. Kuda Village, Dimapur, Nagaland. Sponsored By: Office Of The Development Commissioner For Handloom, Govt. Of India, Ministry Of Textiles, New Delhi.

REGIONAL INSTITUTE OF e-LEARNING & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY(RIELIT) Lerie Colony, NH-39, (Imphal – Road) Kohima 797 001, Nagaland Tel: +91-370-2241586/89 Fax. +91-370-2241588 Website: rielitkohima.org.in Email-ID: director@rielitkohima.org.in

RIELIT Ref. No. RIELIT-01/22/04-ADMN

Dated: 17th November, 2008

ADVERTISEMENT FOR RECRUITMENT Applications are invited from interested candidates for engaging as Teaching Faculty and Lab. Assistant at Regional Institute of eLearning & Information Technology(RIELIT), Kohima on full time contract basis initially for a period of 6 months extendable thereafter on their satisfactory performance and need of the institute. The posts, salary, maximum age, minimum qualification and experience required are as follows: Post No. 1) Teaching Faculty(Computer) 3 Posts: Qualification: ME/M.Tech/MIT(not less than 3 semesters after B.E/B.Tech/BIT) in Computer Sc. & Engineering OR 1st Class B.E/B.Tech/BIT (4 years Engg. degree after 10+2 in Computer Sc. & Engineering) OR 1st Class MCA/DOEACC ‘B’-Level (Minimum C Grade) Post No. 2) Lab. Assistant(Computer) 2 Posts: Qualification: 1st Class B.Sc.(Comp. Sc.)/BCA/PGDCA/DOEACC ‘A’-Level (Minimum C Grade) OR 1st Class Diploma in Computer Engineering/Technology of 3 years fulltime duration or its equivalent Post No. 3) Lab. Assistant(Electronics) 1 Post: Qualification: 1st Class Diploma in Electronics Engineering/Technology of 3 years fulltime duration or its equivalent Desirable: Candidates having experience in related fields. Maximum Age: 35 years for post no. 1 and 30 years for post no.2 & 3 as on 1st January’09 (age relaxation will be given for candidates in service/SC/ST/OBC as per rules.) Salary: Consolidated salary of Rs. 15,000/-p.m. for post no. 1 and Rs. 8000/- to Rs. 9000/-p.m. based on the qualification & experience for post no. 2 & 3. Eligible candidates may apply to the Director, RIELIT on the prescribed application form, which will be available from RIELIT Administrative Section or its website http:\\rielitkohima.org.in along with relevant documents and DD of Rs. 100/-(non-refundable) favouring “Director, RIELIT” payable at Kohima on or before 12th December, 2008. Note: The number of vacancy may be decreased or increased based on the availability of post/suitable candidates. The Selected candidates are liable to be transferred to other centres/extension centres of DOEACC Society anywhere in the Country. sd/Director, RIELIT, Kohima

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Dimapur

Thursday

BUSINESS

20 November 2008

The Morung Express

What’s Next for Yahoo? Maruti introduces new After Jerry Yang, may need to hatchback ‘A-Star’ Yahoo rethink its strategy.

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Maruti introduces new hatchback ‘A-Star’Maruti sees no fall in sales this fiscalMaruti sees no fall in sales this fiscalHyundai-Kia named Car Company of the Year by Autoc- Country’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki on Wednesday launched its new hatchback ‘A-Star’ in the Indian market and said it would in four years come out with its first indigenous car. The ‘A-Star’ will be available at an introductory price ranging from Rs 3.47 lakh to Rs 4.12 lakh. “We have started the ground work to launch a car which is conceived, designed and developed fully in India,” Maruti Suzuki India Managing Executive Officer (Engineering) I V Rao said. The company is hopeful of rolling out the car in the next four years, he added. He however, declined to comment whether it would be a small car or a bigger one. “We are discussing it internally,” Rao said. A-Star is Maruti’s fifth global model which would be manufactured only in India. The company plans to sell 50,000 units in the domestic market, while targets to export 1 lakh units. The car would be manufactured at Manesar produc-

Erica Naone

Chairman Maruti Suzuki India limited R.C.Bhargava, right, and Director Marketing and Sales Maruti Suzuki India limited S.Shujiojshi pose with the newly launched A-star car, in New Delhi, Wednesday, November 19. A-star will come in three variants LXI, VXI and ZXI costing USD$ 7076, USD $7648 and USD $8403 respectively. (AP Photo)

tion facility. A-Star will be powered by a 998cc K10B petrol engine and will be available in three variants

in the domestic market. For exports, the company would manufacture A-Star in over 200 variants and sell to

around 150 countries across Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, Asia, Australia and Africa. The company

expects that A-Star would contribute half of its overall export target of two lakh units by 2010-11.

ate on Monday, Yahoo announced that Jerry Yang would step down as CEO of the troubled Internet giant. The company’s shares were trading up more than 11 percent on Tuesday morning following the news, but with ad revenue declining and after several rounds of layoffs, Yahoo still faces a major challenge to turn its fortunes around. Yang, who cofounded the company in 1994 and returned to serve as CEO in June 2007, will move back to his previous role as “Chief Yahoo” and remain a member of the company’s board of directors. He steps down after a hard year for Yahoo and decisions that helped heap pressure on him as head of the company. This January, Yahoo rejected a buyout offer from Microsoft, which had offered $31 a share ($44.6 billion), a decision that proved unpopular with some shareholders and led to a protracted battle for control of Yahoo’s board. The company then looked to an advertising deal with Google for help resuscitating its business, but Google walked away earlier this month when it appeared that such a deal could lead to an antitrust lawsuit. Yang’s departure may well reopen the way for a deal with Microsoft. Without such an agreement, Yahoo will be hoping that the open technology strategy spearheaded by Yang as CEO pays off as other companies make money from using its platform to develop new Web tools and software. In the past year, Yahoo has bet heavily on an open strategy that the company credits Yang with creating. The idea is for Yahoo to open many of its tools, including its search index, to other companies and to share in

revenues earned from the use of those tools. Yahoo also has plans to organize its disparate properties into a “single social platform.” Andrew Frank, a Gartner Research vice president, believes that Yahoo has a chance to salvage its fortunes using such an approach. Despite recent negative news, he notes that the company still makes money and still has a large and loyal audience. Frank says that he thinks the open strategy is the right one for Yahoo in the long term: “Yahoo’s fortune, for better or for worse, is largely connected to the fortunes of open platforms and open companies on the Internet, from a technology standpoint.” But other experts are more skeptical that Yahoo can make the strategy pay. “I think the open strategy is on trend, as they say,” says David Card, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research. “A lot of people are creating more and more APIs [tools that open a Web service to outside developers]. It’s acknowledged to be the way you do business, especially if you’re not the leader.” But Card adds that Yahoo must ultimately decide whether to maintain core services such as search or social networking--a task that is becoming difficult in the face of competition--or to more substantially open up popular properties, such as Flickr and Del. icio.us, to other companies, and create similar new niche services--a choice that would be humbling for the portal company. Card adds that Yahoo’s current situation might be helped if the company continues to invest heavily in mobile, an area where no company has yet achieved dominance. Considering how much the company has invested in developing new open systems such as Build Your Own Search Service (BOSS), Frank questions whether new leadership will shift the company away from this direction. Yahoo’s biggest problem in the short term, he says, is the market’s shaken faith in the company. Open projects may have to go on the back burner while the company works to appease investors, perhaps by inking partnership deals, or even agreeing to be acquired.

Trade deal more vital than ever for poor: WTO

NEW YORK, NOVEMBER 19 (REUTERS): Trade deal more vital than ever for poor: WTOGlobal liquidity crisis is over: Nomura chiefUS CEOs urge $300 bn fiscal stimulus’Japan’s economy unlikely to grow in 2009. World Trade Organisation chief Pascal Lamy said on Wednesday a deal on the Doha trade round was needed now more than ever to help poor countries withstand the economic crisis. Applauding the recent political impetus given by world leaders to the trade talks, Lamy told a meeting of poor nations in Cambodia that WTO member countries

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have it within their grasp to reach the outlines of a deal. “The international community must deliver on both trade and aid,” he told the ministers meeting in the tourist town of Siem Reap to discuss how aid can be used to develop trade and industry. The Doha round was launched in the Qatari capital seven years ago to free up world trade by cutting farm subsidies, and tariffs on agricultural and industrial goods, with a clear mandate to help developing countries. But it has hit deadlock amid differences between rich and poor nations and exporters and importers. “In the present eco-

nomic turmoil, what was necessary yesterday has now become indispensible,” Lamy said. “I think there is a growing consensus that only multilateral solutions can address the challenges facing the global economy today” he added. Lamy did not say if it would be possible to gather ministers at the WTO’s headquarters in Geneva to thrash out a framework deal before the end of the year, a target set by the Group of 20 rich and developing countries at a weekend meeting in Washington. The Least Developed Countries (LDCs) represented in Siem Reap would

‘Give India more say in shaping up world economy’

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 19 (PTI): In the backdrop of the global meltdown, Germany has pitched for greater say for India and other emerging economies in revamping international financial structures to help avert repetition of such crisis. German Ambassador Bernd Muetzelburg said BRIC states -- Brazil, Russia, India and China -- have become “important economic players” and it was important to give them more say in shaping of roles for economic globalisation. “Country like India must be at the table

when new rules are being devised,” he told PTI here. “...If you want to grow in a dynamic way these days, I think you need to partner with India and not just in terms of trade but also in terms of investment,” said the envoy, whose country has already gone into recession officially. “Nowadays in our globalised world where the BRIC states have for example become so important also as major economic players, it is obviously important to give them more of a say, more influence in the shaping of the roles for economic

globalisation,” the envoy said. Observing that emerging economies like India and China will continue to grow, Muetzelburg said fundamentals of Indian economy are very strong and the country will be able to “reinvigorate” its markets soon. Germany’s economy, considered Europe’s biggest, has slipped into recession. Its economy has been whacked by the falling export demand and almost every sector, including the banking and automobile sector, of the country’s economy is feeling the pinch of the crisis.

be big gainers from a successful Doha round, since the bulk of their goods would then have duty-free and quota-free access to markets around the world. The talks stalled in July over demands by India that its huge farming sector should be given protection from any surge in imports that followed the freeing up of markets. Relatively wealthy India was not represented in Siem Reap. While appreciating what the WTO and Lamy were doing, ministers at the meeting stressed the need for aid to develop their industries so they could compete in free markets.

Season of pinkslips? Here are the ﬁrms hiring in India

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Citigroup on Tuesday decided to cut 53,000 more jobs, triggering fears of more layoffs across industries. Where are the jobs TOI, however, has decided to be contrarian. Instead of only writing about pink slips, it hunted out companies that are actually hiring. Here are the sectors that are hiring: SBI will hire 25,000 new hands, according to bank chairman O P Bhat. Fresh recruitment will be done this fiscal — 20 ,000 in the clerical cadre and 5,000 supervisory staff. Bank of India will hire 10,000 over the next few months. This, on top of over 30,000 fresh recruits in 2008-09. In next 2 years, the bank plans to take in 75,000. Accenture will hire 10,000 people in India by 2010, says COO Stephen J Rohleder. Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, top global management consultants, is looking to hire 3,500 in India in three years. MetLife, a new private insurance company, will recruit 30,000 agents and 2,000 managers by March 2009, says CEO Rajesh Relan. Aegis BPO Services will add 1,000 people per month this fiscal.

DAILY CROSS WORD

LEISURE W A T D A U F M V O J E M Z Y T S B B O B E I M G K R I

O R K G B M M O J T W S R C Q D Y N T Z N I Z V P A R E

R S M B G X E Y S L K W K W K I U W A K W M D Q J E Z

D S

V P W C R D E R P K D M U L M S W A F F Y W I R S A D P B S Y S T F D Z X R O R S G L A Q J A P O N D Q X T B C R U O Y K J F X U I I P A Q Y O U F Y O R L M W Q S Q R U R G U H I Y N K I D I Q O B S C Y I G T Y M U G U K B D D N M U W M J G P T A W E G C N P H E L N G Z I R O L L E F L X M Q X C W S F O D X Y C S C T R Q

AND AWAY BACK BIRDS COME FLY FOOT HAND JACK JILL LITTLE MINE NAMED

Lamy acknowledged their problems, especially with remittances likely to slow and the market for trade finance deteriorating sharply, especially since September. He noted that international donors would be meeting in Qatar on financing for development aid in just over a week’s time. “I hope sincerely that the signals from Qatar will be in line with the determination which the G20 leaders have shown in Washington to keep to their commitments in development assistance, notwithstanding the obvious difficult economic and budgetary circumstances today,” he said.

V K R Z S C B Z N I A G F F F R V L H K D A P H U B S X B E Z V O O W B Q J K Q H A N Q X D N A S T A J E N O B G Z L W T V C J S I L D U H L R W K S L U A S E Y M C N L R K E Y B B U H T I L X H I N F A A E I F D W K G F F F Y K P E O W P M Q Q W R X R U Z O J

ONE SANDY SITTING STAMP THIS TONY TWO WALL WAVE WAY YOUR YOURS

H T Q J P Y N M L M B J Q Z O R U P A G V G Y E K Y Z

SUDOKU

CROSSWORD # 1157

The Morung Express number game

Sudoku # 1140

A boy stands in the backdrop of a residential complex in a partial state of construction, in Gurgaon on November 19. Finance minister Tuesday urged industrialists to cut prices, including that of real estates, so as to boost growth. India and China’s ability to resist the global economic slowdown will greatly inﬂuence whether the crisis drags the world into a depression, a top Paciﬁc Rim trade community economist said Tuesday. (AP Photo)

DIMAPUR

Civil Hospital: Metro Hospital: Faith Hospital: Shamrock Hospital Zion Hospital: Fire Service: Police Control Room Police Trafﬁc Control East Police Station West Police Station CIHSR (Referral Hospital)

STD CODE: 03862

232224; Emergency- 229529, 229474 227930, 231081 233044, 228846 228254 231864, 230889 232201 228400 232106 227607, 228400 232181 242555/ 242531

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

STD CODE: 0370 2244279 2244923 2242897 2222952 2222916 2243339 2224202

CHEVROLET CARS PRICE LIST NOVEMBER’ 2008

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.”

Yesterdays answer Sudoku #1139

ACROSS 1. Uncommunicative (8) 5. Recompensed (4) 7. Ugandan president ousted by Amin (5) 8. Kilt-pouch (7) 9. Schedule (9) 13. Imperial-measurement (4) 16. Anger (3) 17. Fall m (3) 18. Sword (4) 21. Administration group (9) 24. Violent windstorm (7) 26. Australian town, -Springs (5) 27. Bee colony (4) 28. Structural support (8)

DOWN 1. Cup (6) 2. Common pasture plant (6) 3. River of central England (5) 4. Pinch (3) 5. Easily moved (8) 6. Numbskull (5) 8. Total (3) 10. Clumsy (5) 11. Dodge (5) 12. Dwell (4) 14. Frizzy hair style (4) 15. Shimmering fabric (8) 19. Extol (6) 20. Walks jn (6) 21. Haul (5) 22. Pair (3) 23. Accurate (5) 25. Flatfish (3)

Answers to CROSSWORD #1156 Across: 1. Formal, 4. Pampas, 7. Tear, I. Gulf, 10. Ovine, 11. Platter, 14. Die; E. Enjoy, 17. James, 18. Let go, 19. Saw, 21. Undress, 24. Maker, 26.navy, 21. Dart, 29. Theory, 30. Longed. Down: 1. Fitted, 2. Mural, 3. Light, 4. Pat. 5. Perl, 6. Safety, 9. Foresee, 11. Pm, 12. Adjourn, 13.Timid, 16. Joss, m. Lamont, 20. Wanted, 22. Royal, 23. Sudan, 25. Kale, 27. Amy.

CAR MODEL

PRICE

SPARK 1.0 BASE

268,648

SPARK 1.0 PS

289,992

SPARK 1.0 LS

304,641

SPARK 1.0 LT

334,123

U-VA 1.2 BASE

401,753

U-VA 1.2 LS

444,299

U-VA 1.2 LT

484,090

SRV 1.6 OPT. PACK

790,100

AVEO 1.4 BASE

606,461

AVEO 1.4 LTD EDI

661,631

AVEO 1.4 LT OPT.PACK

754,930

TAVERA 2.5 LT 9S BS3

877,748

TAVERA 2.5 SSD1 7S (C) BS3

993,249

OPTRA ROYAL 1.6 LT (PETROL)

967,686

OPTRA MAGNUM 2.0 LT ACC (DIESEL)

1,074,547

CAPTIVA 2.0 LT VCDI

1,812,688

For details contact: Urban Station, Near NSC Petrol Pump, 6th Mile Dimapur. Ph No : 240994 CURRENCY EXCHANGE

CURRENCY NOTES US Dollars Sterling Pound Hong Kong Dollar Japanese Yen /1000 Malaysian Ringtt Singapore Dollar Thai Bhat / 100 U.A.E. Dirhams Euro

BUY(Rs) 48.54 72.53 5.40 490.49 12.25 29.82 135.95 12.44 61.22

SELL(Rs) 51.08 76.51 7.41 542.54 15.19 34.88 147.45 14.55 64.42

Thursday

REGIONAL

The Morung Express

20 November 2008

Dimapur

Tribal refugees to play crucial role in polls

AIZAWL/AGARTALA, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): About 35,000 Reang tribal refugees, sheltered in Tripura camps for the past 11 years following ethnic clashes with the majority Mizos, will play a crucial role in the Dec 2 assembly polls in Mizoram. The Reangs, also called Bru, are recognised as a primitive tribe and constitute about 10 percent of Mizoram’s one million population. Clashes with the Mizos in October 1997 forced them to flee to Tripura. “We have fielded three candidates in the Mamit, Kolasib and Lunglei districts in southern and eastern Mi-

zoram to have our representatives in the assembly to ensure fulfilment of the hopes and aspiration of the Reang people,” said Elvis Chorkhy, president of the Mizoram Bru Displaced People’s Forum (MBDPF). “The total number of voters among the Reang tribal refugees who received the Electors Photo Identity Cards (EPIC) are 6,479, while the total number of refugees included in the electoral list are 8,061 as per the draft electoral rolls of 2008,” Lalhmingthanga, joint chief electoral officer, told reporters. Chorkhy alleged that due to the conspiracy of the ruling Mizo National

Front (MNF) more than 8,000 tribal refugees could not enrol their names in the voters list and were going to be deprived of the right to exercise their adult franchise. Lalhmingthanga said: “The Election Commission of India (ECI) has not yet taken any decision to enroll about 7,800 more people in the electoral roll even though the issue has been referred to the commission.” The poll panel is expected to make special arrangements for the refugees to cast their votes. Top MNF, Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, including BJP president Rajnath Singh, have

visited the refugee camps in northern Tripura and Reang dominated areas in Mizoram and urged the tribals to caste their votes in favour of their candidates. The BJP’s Tripura observer, Darshan Singh, has been camping in the refugees camps to ensure maximum number of tribals vote in favour of the party’s seven candidates. The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) has alleged that the Congress has been distributing money among the refugees to purchase their votes. “The All India Congress Committee (AICC) has allocated Rs.3.2 million to buy the votes of

tribal refugees and Tripura Pradesh Congress president Samir Ranjan Burman Monday visited the refugee camps along with the money,” a CPI-M spokesman told reporters in Agartala. After 14 rounds of talks, the Mizoram government and the militant Bru National Liberation Front (BNLF) signed an agreement in April 2005 to resolve the ethnic crisis, leading to the surrender of about 1,040 militants belonging to the BNLF and Bru Liberation Front of Mizoram (BLFM). Both the outfits had been fighting to set up an autonomous council for the Reang The body of Meghalaya’s second Chief Minister Darwin Diengdoh Pugh being taken for the last rites in Shillong on November 19. (UB Photos) refugees.

Govt fails to meet SDSA’s demand A sea route to the NE in the making SDSA resumes indefinite economic blockade along NH 39 from November 19 midnight

Newmai News Network Imphal | November 19 IN VIEW OF the failure from the state government side coming forth in starting the repairing work undertaken along the National Highway (NH) 39 as assured by Manipur Works minister K. Ranjit, the Senapati District Students’ Association (SDSA) has affirmed to resume with the indefinite economic blockade along the highway from the midnight of November 19. This brings to an end

the 6 days relaxation given by the students' body to the state officials to show the improvement of the highway repairing. With the condition of the NH-39 getting worse by the day and the call of various organisations upon the government to repair the highway going unheeded, the SDSA imposed the blockade along the highway. The blockade imposed indefinitely from November 1, was also supported by various organisations of the state mainly the drivers unions,

both passengers and goods transporters. However, in a meeting on Friday, November 14 between the SDSA, Works minister K. Ranjit and members of legislative assembly (MLAs) Donkhomang Khongsai, K. Raina and Thorii, the SDSA had decided to relax the blockade for 6 days after assurance from the Works minister that work would be taken up to improve the highway. Interestingly, what is worth noting of the meet-

ing was that the SDSA gave the government the 6 days to show signs of improvement of the condition of the road failing which the students' body affirmed to resume with the blockade after the deadline. And with the 6 days period elapsed today and with no signs of effort to improve the road coming forth from the government, the SDSA has decided to resume with the indefinite economic blockade along the National High-39 for indefinite period, informed the reliable source.

GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF EMPLOYMENT & CRAFTSMEN TRAINING NAGALAND: KOHIMA

NODET-7/58/2007/363

Dated Kohima, the 19th Nov’08.

VTP CENTRE- INDUSTRIAL TRAINING INSTITUTE KOHIMA Applications are invited from interested candidates for undergoing training in different Course under Skill Development Initiative Scheme, based on MES in VTP registered by DGE&T. The objective of the scheme is to provide vocational training to school drop-outs, existing workers, Industrial Training Institute graduate etc to provide their employability. Existing skills of the persons can also be tested and certiﬁed under this Scheme. Sl. Course to be No conducted 1 Basic welding (ARC) 2 Basic Electrical Training 3 Basic of Beauty & Hair Dressing 4 Tailor (Basic) Sewing Operator

Educational Qualiﬁcation 8th Pass 8th Pass 8th Pass

Duration of Hours 120 120 150

Training Fee Rs 1000 Rs 1000 Rs 1000

Assessment Fee Rs 800 Rs 800 Rs 800

5th Pass

270

Rs 1500

Rs 800

Remarks Training Fee/ Assessment Fee will be refunded on successful completion of the course

Candidates belonging to SC/ST Category and Women will be given relaxation of 25% in fee. The candidate will deposit the assessment fee directly to the assessing bodies or respective VTP’s. Successful persons will be awarded certificate issued by NCVT. Training will commence with effect from Jan’2009. Schedule of training will be notified by the respective VTP’s. Application form will be available in the Office of the Principal, Industrial Training Institute, Kohima on payment of Rs 20/-. Last date of submission of application is 15th December 2008. Sd/- N.PANGER JAMIR Director Employment and Craftsmen Training Nagaland: Kohima

SHILLONG, NOVEMBER 19 (PTI): As Bangladesh continues to deny India access to the landlocked northeast through Chittagong port, a little-known Burmese port on the Bay of Bengal has promised to solve the long-standing problem. Sittwe port on the Myanmar coast was not long ago a small village of fishing communities and farmers. Now, it could serve as a commercial sea route to the northeastern States through Burmese territory. A Union Commerce Ministry team, which recently visited Shillong in connection with a seminar, said that the port has attained immense strategic importance with India developing the port, expanding facilities to accommodate goods traffic under an agreement signed by the two governments in

April, this year. From Sittwe the Kaladan River will be made navigable for 225 km, up to Kaletwa (Myanmar). From there, a 62-km highway will take the traffic to the India-Myanmar border in Mizoram. A road from the border will link the project to India's National Highway-54. The sea distance between Kolkata and Sittwe is about 540 km. India is financing the entire $103 million project. Minister for Development of Northeastern Region Mani Shankar Aiyar recently said, "The Union cabinet would soon sanction a project of the Union Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways for developing highway connectivity in Mizoram and along the 250-km route to the port." To improve road connectivity within Mizoram

the Union ministry for shipping, road transport and highways has sanctioned Rs 120 crore to the State for development of national highways during 2008-09 as part of steps to develop the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transport project to link Sittwe Port with India. New Delhi's move to develop the Sittwe port in western Myanmar assumes significance in view of Bangladesh's reported reluctance to give India access to Chittagong, Ashuganj and other ports for transportation of goods to the northeastern region and the rest of India. "Myanmar had become a country of critical importance to India in terms of trade and commerce as Dhaka has denied transit to New Delhi through Bangladesh. We can also bring goods from Sittwe to

GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF EMPLOYMENT & CRAFTSMEN TRAINING NAGALAND: KOHIMA

NODET-7/58/2007/362

Dated Kohima, the 19th Nov’08.

VTP CENTRE- INDUSTRIAL TRAINING INSTITUTE MON

Applications are invited from interested candidates for undergoing training in different Course under Skill Development Initiative Scheme, based on MES in VTP registered by DGE&T. The objective of the scheme is to provide vocational training to school drop-outs, existing workers, Industrial Training Institute Graduate etc to provide their employability. Existing skills of the persons can also be tested and certiﬁed under this Scheme. Sl. No 1 2 3 4

Course to be conducted

Educational Qualiﬁcation Tailor (Basic Sewing Operator) 5th Pass Basic Electrical Wiring 8th Pass Tailor Children 8th Pass House Wiring 8th Pass

Duration of Hours 270 120 210 120

Training Fee Rs 1500 Rs 1000 Rs 1000 Rs 1000

Dated Kohima, the 19th Nov’08.

VTP CENTRE- INDUSTRIAL TRAINING INSTITUTE MOKOKCHUNG Applications are invited from interested candidates for undergoing training in different Course under Skill Development Initiative Scheme, based on MES in VTP registered by DGE&T. The objective of the scheme is to provide vocational training to school drop-outs, existing workers, Industrial Training Institute Graduate etc to their employability. Existing skills of the persons can also be tested and certiﬁed under this Scheme. Sl. Course to be conducted No 1 Basic Electrical wiring 2 House wiring 3 Computer fundamentals, MS-Ofﬁce & Internet 4 Desktop Publishing

Educational Qualiﬁcation 8th Pass 8th Pass 10th Pass

Duration Training of Hours Fee 120 Rs 1000 120 Rs 1000 120 Rs 1000

8th Pass

180

Rs 1000

Electronics (Repair and Maintenance of Power inverters and UPS)

8th Pass

120

Rs 1000

Assessment Remarks Fee Rs 800 Training Fee/ Assessment Rs 800 Fee will be Rs 800 refunded on successful Rs 800 completion of the course Rs 800

Repair and Maintenance of TV Receiver Repair Maintenance of cellular Phone

8th Pass

180

Rs 1000

Rs 800

8th Pass

210

Rs 1000

Rs 800

Candidates belonging to SC/ST Category and Women will be given relaxation of 25% in fee. The candidate will deposit the assessment fee directly to the assessing bodies or respective VTP’s. Successful persons will be awarded certificate issued by NCVT. Training will commence with effect from Jan’2009. Schedule of training will be notified by the respective VTP’s. Application form will be available in the Office of the Principal, Industrial Training Institute, Mokokchung on payment of Rs 20/-. Last date of submission of application is 15th December 2008. Sd/- N.PANGER JAMIR Director Employment and Craftsmen Training Nagaland: Kohima

Rs 800 Rs 800 Rs 800 Rs 800

Remarks Training Fee/ Assessment Fee will be refunded on successful completion of the course

Sd/- N.PANGER JAMIR Director Employment and Craftsmen Training Nagaland: Kohima

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF EMPLOYMENT & CRAFTSMEN TRAINING NODET-7/58/2007/365

Assessment Fee

Candidates belonging to SC/ST Category and Women will be given relaxation of 25% in fee. The candidate will deposit the assessment fee directly to the assessing bodies or respective VTP’s. Successful persons will be awarded certificate issued by NCVT. Training will commence with effect from Jan’2009. Schedule of training will be notified by the respective VTP’s. Application form will be available in the Office of the Principal, Industrial Training Institute, Mon on payment of Rs 20/-. Last date of submission of application is 15th December 2008.

GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND

NAGALAND: KOHIMA

any Indian port by using sea routes," Union Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh had recently said. There is a river route through Bangladesh but that has not been a practical answer for steady commerce as the Bangladesh government was not very enthusiastic. Further, the shallow river bed of the Brahmaputra also did not allow movement of large vessels. At present, all traffic is routed through the narrow and congested "chicken neck" corridor via Assam and West Bengal. Ramesh said after the completion of the project in 2012, Mizoram would become a hub of international trade. The project is expected to give a huge boost to the economic activities in the landlocked northeastern States.

GOVERNMENT OF NAGALAND

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF EMPLOYMENT & CRAFTSMEN TRAINING NODET-7/58/2007/364

NAGALAND: KOHIMA

Dated Kohima, the 19th Nov’08.

VTP CENTRE- INDUSTRIAL TRAINING INSTITUTE WOKHA

Educational Duration Training Qualiﬁcation of Hours Fee 170 Rs 1500 5th Pass 270 Rs 1500 8th Pass 120 Rs 1000 10th Pass

Rs 800 Rs 800 Rs 800

8th Pass

Rs 800

180

Rs 1000

Assessment Fee

Remarks Training Fee/ Assessment Fee will be refunded on successful completion of the course

Candidates belonging to SC/ST Category and Women will be given relaxation of 25% in fee. The candidate will deposit the assessment fee directly to the assessing bodies or respective VTP’s. Successful persons will be awarded certificate issued by NCVT. Training will commence with effect from Jan’2009. Schedule of training will be notified by the respective VTP’s. Application form will be available in the Office of the Principal, Industrial Training Institute, Wokha on payment of Rs 20/-. Last date of submission of application is 15th December 2008. Sd/- N.PANGER JAMIR Director Employment and Craftsmen Training Nagaland: Kohima

IN-FOCUS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express THURSDAY 20 NOVEMBER 2008 VOL. III ISSUE 322

Can We Say Sorry?

orry is always a good starting point to begin some form of honest conversation around historical relationships between people, especially when one group of people has been dehumanized by the other for generations. Sorry does not however imply that everything is okay, nor does it suggest that the hurt committed is acceptable; neither is it forgotten. Sorry enables a broader process of encountering the past hurts and historical injustices that have been meted out to a peoples. The intent to begin a process of healing by saying Sorry is a fundamental step towards building a common and shared future. In situations of protracted conflict, Sorry provides a dilemma. The question revolves around, should the present generation be responsible for historical injustices committed by past generations? The answer is Yes, if a society wishes to genuinely engage in a process of complete healing and re-humanization, and to enable the society to move forward to the future on the basis of mutual respect. It is tragic that political leaders have not quite fully understood how historical injustices burden the paths of the future in ways that are not quite comprehensible. It takes enormous strength and political will to be able to say Sorry, largely because there is so much of fear and a lack of understanding of what Sorry exactly entails and what it means. History has quite clearly shown that only those political leaders with some sense of vision and will have the political courage to take the profound leap of faith to acknowledge historical injustices meted out and to say Sorry for hurts which have been committed in the course of a political journey. It is the process that emerges out of the act of apology that profoundly shapes the future and enables a direction of inclusiveness and healing. For people who have been wronged and on the receiving end of perpetual injustices, an apology is a form of public acknowledgement in which their injustices are being recognized, and not brushed under the carpets. It’s a step that allows them to begin the process of breaking from a hurtful past to that of people who have survived to build a future that allows them to regain their lost dignity. An apology is not really going to advance their lives or enhance their capacities to rebuild their shattered lives, but it is a fundamental necessity to enable a reconciliation process to begin. An apology serves as a bridge; a pathway to respect.” Sorry is not just a social and spiritual necessity, it is foremost a political act with consequences that go far beyond politics; it impacts all spheres of human life. At this time when Nagas are seriously engaged in the process of reconciliation, the Nagas are presented with an opportunity to contemplate the profoundness of saying Sorry to those who we have hurt. No doubt, Nagas feel we have been wronged by others, but it is equally true that we have wronged others as well as each other, and it is only right that we say Sorry to those who we have hurt, so that we too may be lifted off the burdens of our own history. By saying Sorry, everyone wins, no one loses. By saying Sorry to each other, it will be a victory for the Nagas.

LEFT WING |

Robert Jensen

Facing Difﬁcult Truths About An Uncertain Future

xpressions of hope are only as truly hopeful as the honesty of the assessment of reality from which they emerge. Conjuring up hope rooted in a denial of reality can only deepen despair in the long run. That’s why much of the political rhetoric of the past two years may prove not only illusory but counterproductive. So, with much talk of change and hope in the air, now is the time to articulate an authentic sense of hope, one that is realistic. If there is to be a decent future for humanity -- indeed, any future at all -- we must face painful realities with intellectual honesty and moral strength. We can celebrate the victories we achieve along the way but it’s just as crucial that we stay focused on what remains to be understood and accomplished. In that hopeful spirit I offer these observations with the goal of generating productive discussion among organizers and activists who oppose the hierarchy and injustice inherent in patriarchy, white supremacy, imperial nationalism, and an increasingly predatory capitalism, and who are concerned about the fragile state of an ecosystem that has been seriously compromised by human action.

• Within my lifetime (the next 25 years or so), we will see dramatic changes in this country and the world that likely are the beginning of a systemic collapse, economically and ecologically. This collapse is already underway in some parts of the world, producing suffering beyond description for the most vulnerable on the planet. But we can expect this eventually to extend in more dramatic fashion to the entire planet, probably within the lifetime of our children (the next 50 to 75 years). Definitive predictions are impossible, but it is reasonable to assume that the destructive forces set in motion by the hierarchal systems that define our world are close to, or perhaps already beyond, the point of no return. • This country’s political and cultural institutions are not equipped to deal with this coming collapse, and there is very little chance that political organizing rooted in the necessary radical analysis, in the time available, can alter that to any significant degree. We are not prepared for the coming shift out of the current high-energy/high-technology phase, and nothing in recent institutional responses (or non-responses) to the clear signs of this suggests we will be prepared in time. • These claims often are, and will continue to be, dismissed by many as doomsday thinking, which should not surprise us; it is painful to face these realities. But we cannot expect to prosper by ignoring reality. While there is much grief in confronting this, any hope we have for that decent future demands that we face the grief. • Given this likely trajectory of the coming decades, more of our political organizing should focus on what comes after this collapse (recognizing that a “collapse” will not be a neatly defined process that unfolds in a clear and bounded time frame). What are the ways of thinking and the social organizations we will need? What sense of self-andothers will help us cope with a dramatically different world? For most people, nothing in our everyday lives is preparing us for this different reality, and it’s long past time we started thinking collectively about this. What ideas and skills -- what conception of what it means to be a person, what practical knowledge for living -- will be necessary? • Focusing on these questions doesn’t mean we should abandon work on existing campaigns that address war, poverty, sexual violence, racism, or any of the other existing inequalities and injuries that rightly demand our attention. To give up on those projects in the face of widespread suffering in the here-and-now would be to abandon our humanity. But all of those activities should be planned and executed with this larger framework and longer trajectory in mind. The ongoing social-justice work will inform our thinking on these questions, but significant energy should be shifted to long-term projects. • None of this should be confused with the apocalyptic thinking that posits, or even celebrates, the end of the world. Instead, these questions are central to the careful planning we will need if there is to be hope for that decent future. Such a future is not guaranteed, and we have to face the possibility that humans may not have the capacity to create it. But we define ourselves by our commitment to the work that makes it possible to imagine that future. All of this is in flux and open to constant rethinking. Like most of the important choices we must make, we are working not from definitive data but from our best guesses, hunches, informed speculation. While we can’t predict the future with certainty, we still must choose. To assume existing high-energy/high-technology systems will continue indefinitely, simply because many of us in the First World have become accustomed to material comfort and would like this to continue, is delusional. We can make this work joyful, as long as we are willing to face the grief. It is possible to face harsh realities and remain hopeful. Indeed, embracing the joy fully requires that we face the grief, just as embracing hope requires that we face reality.

THE EDIT PAGE

C O M M E N T A R Y

Tariq Ali

How to win in Afghanistan

fghanistan has been almost continuously at war for 30 years, longer than both World Wars and the American war in Vietnam combined. Each occupation of the country has mimicked its predecessor. A tiny interval between wars saw the imposition of a malignant social order, the Taliban, with the help of the Pakistani military and the late Benazir Bhutto, the prime minister who approved the Taliban takeover in Kabul. Over the past two years, the United States/North Atlantic Treaty Organization occupation of that country has run into serious military problems. Given a severe global economic crisis and the election of a new American president a man separated in style, intellect and temperament from his predecessor the possibility of a serious discussion about an exit strategy from the Afghan disaster hovers on the horizon. The predicament the US and its allies find themselves in is not an inescapable one, but a change in policy, if it is to matter, cannot be of the cosmetic variety. Washington’s hawks will argue that, while bad, the military situation is, in fact, still salvageable. This may be technically accurate, but it would require the carpet-bombing of southern Afghanistan and parts of Pakistan, the destruction of scores of villages and small towns, the killing of untold numbers of Pashtuns and the dispatch to the region of at least 200,000 more troops with all their attendant equipment, air, and logistical support. The political consequences of such a course are so dire that even Vice President Dick Cheney, the closest thing to Dr Strangelove that Washington has yet produced, has been uncharacteristically cautious when it comes to suggesting a military solution to the conflict. It has, by now, become obvious to the Pentagon that Afghan President Hamid Karzai and his family cannot deliver what is required, and yet it is probably far too late to replace him with United Nations ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad. On his part, fighting for his political (and probably physical) existence, Karzai continues to protect his brother Ahmad Wali Karzai, who has been accused of being involved in the country’s staggering drug trade, but has belatedly sacked Hamidullah Qadri, his transport minister, for corruption. Qadri was alleged to have taken massive kickbacks from a company flying pilgrims to Mecca. Is nothing sacred? A deteriorating situation Of course, axing one minister is like whistling in the wind given the levels of corruption reported in Karzai’s government, which, in any case, controls little of the country. The Afghan president parries Washington’s thrusts by blaming the US military for killing too many civilians from the air. The bombing of the village of Azizabad in Herat province in August, which led to 91 civilian deaths (of which 60 were children), was only the most extreme of such recent acts. Karzai’s men, hurriedly dispatched to distribute sweets and supplies to the survivors, were stoned by angry villagers. Given the thousands of Afghans killed in recent years, it is small wonder that support for the neo-Taliban is increasing, even in non-Pashtun areas of the country. Many Afghans hostile to the old Taliban still support the resistance simply to make it clear that they are against the helicopters and missilearmed unmanned aerial drones that destroy homes, and to “Big Daddy” who wipes out villages, and to the flames that devour children. In February, Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell pre-

sented a bleak survey of the situation has just appointed will point this out to on the ground to the House Permanent him in forceful terms. Select Committee on Intelligence: Flight path to disaster President-elect Barack Obama Afghan leaders must deal with the endemic corruption and pervasive poppy cul- would be foolish to imagine that Petivation and drug trafficking. Ultimately, traeus can work a miracle cure in Afdefeating the insurgency will depend heav- ghanistan. The cancer has spread too ily on the government’s ability to improve far and is affecting US troops as well. If security, deliver services, and expand devel- the American media chose to interview active-duty soldiers in Afghanistan (on opment for economic opportunity. promise of anonymity), they might get Although the international forces and a more accurate picture of what is hapthe Afghan National Army continue to pening inside the US Army there. score tactical victories over the Taliban, the I learned a great deal from Jules, a 20security situation has deteriorated in some year-old American soldier I met recently areas in the south and Taliban forces have in Canada. He became so disenchanted expanded their operations into previously with the war that he decided to go absent peaceful areas of the west and around Ka- without leave, proving - at least to himbul. The Taliban insurgency has expanded self - that the Afghan situation was not in scope despite operational disruption an inescapable predicament. Many of his caused by the ISAF [NATO forces] and fellow soldiers, he claims, felt similarly, Operation Enduring Freedom operations. hating a war that dehumanized both The death or capture of three top Taliban them and the Afghans. “We just couldn’t leaders last year - their first high-level losses bring ourselves to accept that bombing - does not yet appear to have significantly Afghans was no different from bombing the landscape” was the way he summed disrupted insurgent operations. up the situation. Morale inside the army there is low, he Since then the situation has only deteriorated further, leading to calls told me. The aggression unleashed against for sending in yet more American and Afghan civilians often hides a deep deNATO troops - and deeper divisions in- pression. He does not, however, encourage others to follow in his footsteps. As he sees side NATO itself. In recent months, Sir Sherard it, each soldier must make that choice for Cowper-Coles, the British ambassador himself, accepting with it the responsibilto Kabul, wrote a French colleague (in a ity that going absent permanently entails. leaked memo) that the war was lost and Jules was convinced, however, that the war more troops were not a solution, a view could not be won and did not want to see reiterated recently by Air Marshal Sir any more of his friends die. That’s why he Jock Stirrup, the British defense chief, was wearing an “Obama out of Afghaniwho came out in public against a one- stan” t-shirt. Before he revealed his identity, I for-one transfer of troops withdrawn from Iraq to Kabul. He put it this way: mistook this young soldier - a FilipinoAmerican born in southern California I think we would all take some per- for an Afghan. His features reminded me of the Hazara tribesmen he must have suading that there would have to encountered in Kabul. Trained as a morbe a much larger British contingent tar gunner and paratrooper from Fort there ... So we also have to get our- Benning, Georgia, he was later assigned selves back into balance; it’s crucial to the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg. Here that we reduce the operational tem- is part of the account he offered me:

po for our armed forces, so it cannot be, even if the situation demanded it, just a one for one transfer from Iraq to Afghanistan, we have to reduce that tempo.

The Spanish government is considering an Afghan withdrawal and there is serious dissent within the German and Norwegian foreign policy elites. The Canadian foreign minister has already announced that his country will not extend its Afghan commitment beyond 2011. And even if the debates in the Pentagon have not been aired in public, it’s becoming obvious that, in Washington, too, some see the war as unwinnable. Enter former Iraq commander General David Petraeus, center stage as the new Central Command commander. Ever since the “success” of the “surge” he oversaw in Iraq (a process designed to create temporary stability in that ravaged land by buying off the opposition and, among other things, the selective use of death squads), Petraeus sounds, and behaves, more and more like Lazarus on returning from the dead - and before his body could be closely inspected. The situation in Iraq was so dire that even a modest reduction in casualties was seen as a massive leap forward. With increasing outbreaks of violence in Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq, however, the talk of success sounds ever hollower. To launch a new “surge” in Afghanistan now by sending more troops there will simply not work, not even as a public relations triumph. Perhaps some of the 100 advisers that Petraeus

camaraderie with those he suffers with, and fill his head with racist nonsense like all Arabs, Iraqis, Afghans are hajj. Hajj hates you. Hajj wants to hurt your family. Hajj children are the worst because they beg all the time. Just some of the most hurtful and ridiculous propaganda, but you’d be amazed at how effective it’s been in fostering my generation of soldiers.

As this young man spoke to me, I felt he should be testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The effect of the war on those carrying out the orders is leaving scars just as deep as the imprints of previous imperial wars. Change we can believe in must include the end of this, which means, among other things, a withdrawal from Afghanistan. In my latest book, The Duel: Pakistan on the Flight Path of American Power, I have written of the necessity of involving Afghanistan’s neighbors in a political solution that ends the war, preserves the peace, and reconstructs the country. Iran, Russia, India and China, as well as Pakistan, need to be engaged in the search for a political solution that would sustain a genuine national government for a decade after the withdrawal of the Americans, NATO, and their quisling regime. However, such a solution is not possible within the context of the plans proposed by both present Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Obama, which focus on a new surge of American troops in Afghanistan. The main task at hand should be to create a social infrastructure and thus preserve the peace, something that the West and its horde of attendant nongovernmental organizations has failed to do. School buildings constructed, often for outrageous sums, by foreign companies that lack furniture, teachers and kids are part of the surreal presof the West, which cannot last. I deployed to southeastern Afghani- enceWhether you are a policymaker in the stan in January 2007. We controlled next administration or an absent-without everything from Jalalabad down leave veteran of the Afghan war in Canato the northernmost areas of Kan- da, Operation Enduring Freedom of 2001 dahar province in Regional Com- has visibly become an operation enduring Less clear is whether an Obama mand East. My unit had the job of disaster. administration can truly break from past pacifying the insurgency in Paktika, policy or will just create a military-plus Paktia, and Khost provinces - areas add-on to it. Only a total break from the that had received no aid, but had catastrophe that George W Bush, Cheney been devastated during the initial and former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld created in Afghanistan will ofinvasion. Operation Anaconda [in fer pathways to a viable future. 2002] was supposed to have wiped For this to happen, both external out the Taliban. That was the boast and domestic pressures will probably be of the military leaders, but ridiculed needed. China is known to be completely opposed to a NATO presence on, or near, by everyone else with a brain. its borders, but while Beijing has proved He spoke also of how impossible he willing to exert economic pressure to force found it to treat the Afghans as sub- policy changes in Washington - as it did when the Bank of China “cut its exposure humans: to agency debt last summer”, leaving US I swear I could not for a second Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson with litview these people as anything but tle option but to functionally nationalize human. The best way to fashion a the mortgage giants - it has yet to use its young hard dick like myself [dick diplomatic muscle in the region. don’t think that will last forbeing an acronym for dedicated in- ever.But Why wait until then? Another fantry combat killer] is simple and external pressure will certainly prove the effect of racist indoctrination. to be the already evident destabilizing Take an empty shell off the streets effects of the Afghan war on neighborof LA or Brooklyn, or maybe from ing Pakistan, a country in a precarious state, with a military facing some Podunk town in Tennessee economic growing internal tensions. ... and these days America isn’t in Domestic pressure in the US to pull short supply ... I was one of those out of Afghanistan remains weak, but could grow rapidly as the extent of the no-child-left-behind products … Anyway, you take this empty ves- debacle becomes clearer and NATO allies refuse to supply the shock-troops sel and you scare the living shit out for the future surge. of him, break him down to nothIn the meantime, they’re predicting ing, cultivate a brotherhood and a famine in Afghanistan this winter.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR In support of NSF memorandum •Sir-The undersigned vehemently support NSF Memorandum submitted to the Chief Minister, Nagaland demanding for the fixation of length of service for the State Govt, Employees. As a matter of fact, even majority of our parents (Govt.Servants) are also not in favour of enhancing superannuation age fixed by the Govt, as to pave ways for the educated employment problem. Every sensible citizen is aware that the employment scenario in the present State of Nagaland has reached over saturation point. The role of educated unemployed youth has been increasing from year to year. If we compile the rule of educated unemployed registered in the employment exchange department, the figure is amazing as it shots up every year. The latest figure as per 2007 registration is almost 55,000 unlike other states the present of Government does not have any industries, factories or companies

that can resourcefully engage the educated youths. As of now, the Government job is the only avenue for the educated youth. Therefore, the State Government should reconsider their decision. For, instance, if the length of service is maintain both educated unemployed and Govt.Servant can be benefited. Else the haves and have-nots will grip-in our society and social tension will increase which will ultimately go out of control. Lastly through this write-up the present incumbent officials of NSF will expedite the sensitive matter for the upliftment of the student’s community in particular and our Nagas in general. I also appeal to all the educated unemployed youths and the concern citizen of the State to extend their fullest support to the NSF demand for the better tomorrow. Educated Unemployed: John, Sovima Dimapur Khrietuo, Sovima Dimapur Imti Ao, Ao Khel Dimapur Atopu Sumi, Nuton Bosti

Heartfelt appeal to NBCC •Sir- Keeping an bird-eye view on Naga peace process, I, Welhinyi Krome D.B’s Forum Chaplain, Phek Dist would like to appeal strongly to Nagas brethren in general and Nagaland Baptist Church Council in particular that at this present scenario of Nagas Reconciliation move among Nagas brethren. I, personally believed and sure that every concerned Nagas believer’s are, praying their best to bring the Nagas back into the common platform, and not only Nagas alone are gearing-up an effort for the same, but even across the international level are praying in tears so that Nagas are once again united. However, what ever amount of prayer support we may be receiving from across the global, unless, the Nagas as a whole and the chaplains of different factions eagerly and willingly pray to God’s favor of achieving real peace with their own organization, it is still far behind to dream

of long lasting peace among Nagas. Hence, it is my suggestion and belief that, if pastors/chaplains who are heading their organization could time to time comes fast and pray together, the knowledge of understanding through God inspiration will definitely come to us toward building up Nagas permanent peace. Therefore, first of all reconciliation and understanding among us need to be prevail so that God, favor of permanent peace and unity will be showered. But, initiation of such move of coming together of pastors/chaplains of different factions, could not be made by nominal body or organization. Hence, the urgent need of this initiation by church organization like NBCC is the need of the hour. May the good Lord bless my Naga leaders who are untiringly pursuing for Nagas peace and unity. Welhinyi Krome D.B’s Chaplain, Phek Dist

Letters to the Editor should be sent to: The Morung Express, House No. 4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur - 797112, Or –email: editor@morungexpress.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

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

20 NOVEMBER 2008

PERSPECTIVE NEWS ANALYSIS, FEATURE AND DISCOURSE

'We're all guests in God's land'

Music in the Security Council Carne Ross

The cloistered, fetid world of United Nations negotiation over Iraq convinced Carne Ross of the need for more open, accountable global diplomacy

Palestinian children hold placards during a protest against the sanctions imposed by Israel, in Beit Hanoun near Erez crossing between Israel and Gaza Strip, Tuesday, November 18. The U.N.'s top human rights ofﬁcial has called on Israel to end its blockade of the Gaza Strip, imposed after the Islamic group Hamas violently seized control of the territory in June 2006. Israel tightened the sanctions because of rocket ﬁre at Israeli towns. Signs read the same in Arabic and English. (AP Photo)

As a founding father of the Jewish settler movement Gush Emunim, Rabbi Menachem Froman believes God gave him an inalienable right to live in the Palestinian West Bank. But unlike a growing number of settlers who are using violence to maintain their hold on the land, Rabbi Froman advocates a bi-national entity in which Jews and Palestinians share control. He says that the rejection of arrogance and nationalism can pave the way to a 'human state'

Rabbi Menachem Froman

am one of the settlers, a Jew who prefers his connection to the land than his connection to the state. I believe this is the definition of a settler. I was named Menachem because I was born at the end of the second world war, in 1945. The whole family had vanished and my father didn’t dare to name me after his father, so he called me Menachem, the one who consoles or comforts. Sometimes I ask myself why God has shown me here [to the Tekoah settlement in the West Bank]. One reason might be that Amos, the most extreme of all the prophets, came from here. He was extreme about the fight for social justice – and I am an official socialist – and he fought against Jewish arrogance. My nation is famous for its arrogance. God has sent us his prophets again and again, and gave us the Torah because he wants us to change. But my beloved nation still has the same problem. Every generation had their war. For me it was the six days war [in 1967]. I was a parachutist in the unit that released, or conquered, Jerusalem. We yearned for old Jerusalem. A few weeks before the war, one night after the wedding of my friend, when I had finished dancing, I felt an urge to see the old city. Alone after midnight I tried to cross over to the old city. I was feeling joyous with the idea of love. But when I came to the city walls I was ambushed by Israeli soldiers and taken back. At the beginning of the six day war I was posted to the Sinai and dropped behind the Egyptian lines. I

finished the battle carrying another soldier from my unit on my back. He was shedding a lot of blood and he later died. His name was Haim. In the morning I was taken back to my unit in Jerusalem by helicopter. As we came closer to the city we could hear thousands of soldiers crying "Jerusalem is released!". Men were crying in the street and kissing us and embracing us. The shop owners gave us cakes. One of them opened his shop and gave the soldiers everything. I was there half red, my back still covered with the Haim’s blood. After the war we came back to the yeshiva [religious school] to study, but we were intoxicated by having seen the land of the Bible. We began touring, going to the valleys and villages here in the West Bank. In some villages we were the first Israelis they had seen. We began touring all the biblical sites. We went with no guns, nothing. We didn’t feel that we had conquered the Palestinians. We felt that we had defeated the Jordanian government. The Palestinians were occupied by the Jordanians and now they were occupied by us, but we didn’t see it that way. On one hand you can consider me an outsider [for preaching inter-faith dialogue between Jews and Palestinians], but on the other, my friends who are rabbis and leaders in the other settlements know that what I say is the essence of the Torah. Hillel, a Jewish sage, was once asked by a non-Jew to summarise the whole Torah in one sentence standing on one leg, which he did with a verse from Leviticus: you have to love your neighbour as you love yourself. The Palestinians are my neighbours. So

it is the essence, it is the Torah on one leg to love the Palestinians. From my point of view, the whole purpose of Zionism is to heal my nation from its minority complex. Many times we have been a suppressed minority in the world, and it's natural for men to react to suppression by being arrogant. I think that when the Jews come to their land, to their natural homeland, we can fight our arrogance and learn to be modest as men have to be. We are all guests in the land of God – Jews and Arabs. The nationalistic way of looking at the world and this land is something new. It’s part of the nationalistic age. You can’t love the land, the trees, the rocks and not love the men living here. The idea of a national state for me is like an illness: you have to pass through it as soon as possible – overcome it. I remember sitting on the shoulders of my late father when Israel’s first president, Chaim Weizmann, visited the settlement of Haifa. I was three and a half years old. We came to Haifa to see the president and my father was shouting "Long live the state of Israel; long live the president of Israel", like a madman, jumping. The Palestinians have to experience the same feeling and then overcome it. Then we can, perhaps, establish a human state together. It means there will be two nations here, Israel and Palestine, with no borders. To be part of a nation is to be part of heritage, part of legacy, part of tradition. We can find practical solutions on the basis of modesty, of being humble, or being Muslim. If to be Muslim means to submit, then we could call it an Islamic solution.

A life free of violence is every woman’s right

Nicole Kidman

ne in three women may suffer from abuse and violence in her lifetime. This is an appalling and widespread human-rights violation, yet, it remains one of the invisible and underrecognized pandemics of our time. Think of it: Being a woman or a girl actually puts you at risk. Equally upsetting is the fact that too many people— whether on Main Street or in the corridors of government—think that violence against women is inevitable. We need to change this mentality: It is crucial that violence against women is recognized and responded to as a human-rights violation. Whether domestic violence, rape in war or practices such as female genital mutilation and forced or child marriage, violence against women is a crime that cannot be tolerated. Violence against women, wherever it occurs, must be met with the full force of the law. I became Goodwill Ambassador of United Nations Development Fund for Women (Unifem) to amplify the voices of the women and girls who have been subjected to violence and abuse. In more and more countries, women are refusing to be passive victims. They are organizing, speaking out, demand-

ing accountability and action and saying no to the violence they face just because they are women or girls. Ending violence against women is everybody’s business. That’s why in November of the past year, in observance of the International Day to Eliminate Violence against Women, Unifem launched the “Say NO to Violence against Women” Internet campaign, asking people all over the world to raise their voices and add their names to an ever-growing movement of people. Nearly a year later, hundreds of thousands from all over the globe have responded to the “Say NO” campaign’s call and entrusted us with their names. Over 200 organizations have joined up. Government ministers and presidents representing more than 50 countries have stepped up and publicly made a commitment through the “Say NO” outreach. During a recent trip to New York, I met two heroines who loudly said no and won a major victory against gender-based violence: Nujood Ali, a 10-year old girl from Yemen who escaped from a forced marriage, and her lawyer, Shada Nasser, who put herself on the line to secure the young girl’s freedom. After suffering repeated beatings and rape, Nujood, married at 9, ran away to a courthouse seeking help. Unlike the tens of thousands of young girls who endure the

harmful practice of early marriage, Nujood’s courage found an equal in Shada, a humanrights lawyer. Their case made history in April when, with Shada’s intervention, Nujood won not only her divorce but a victory for individual courage and girls’ and women’s human rights. Nujood is now back at school, and, when asked about her plans, says, “. . . I want to be a lawyer.” Another time in Kosovo, I listened to many women who, caught in the middle of that conflict, experienced brutal sexual violence by soldiers. Their accounts could have been plucked from today’s headlines. Sexual violence is a weapon of war, an instrument of terror that shatters the lives of women and men, fractures communities and forces women to flee their homes. Yet, for too long, wartime sexual violence has been cloaked in one of history’s greatest silences. On June 20, 2008, the United Nations Security Council responded to the accumulated weight of that silence by unanimously adopting Resolution 1820, which explicitly recognizes that there can be neither peace nor security so long as communities live in the shadow of sexual terror. The resolution calls for stepped-up efforts by all involved in the conflict to protect women and girls from targeted attack. Now it is clear that ending

violence against women is really becoming a top priority for governments and important institutions like the United Nations. Unifem, along with the UN secretarygeneral, is calling for vastly increased support to the United Nations Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women, which provides resources to local organizations in developing countries to find practical, hands-on solutions. UN Trust Fund grantees have worked to prevent human trafficking in Ukraine, assisted survivors of domestic violence in Haiti and helped implement a new law on rape in war-torn Liberia. Projects like these and many efforts around the world demonstrate that the pandemic of violence against women is a problem with a solution. When there is commitment and resources, change has a greater chance of taking effect: policies can be adjusted, services can be established and judges and police trained. So, on 25 November, we encourage governments to fulfill their commitments, and for men and women to become involved in the efforts in their communities to stop violence against women, and to let their government officials know that implementing policies that end violence against women are important to them, because a life free of violence is every woman’s right.

Negotiation is the heart of diplomacy. When I was sent to negotiate for my country at the United Nations in New York, I was over the moon. This is it, I thought, the real thing, the hard core. This was my fantasy of diplomacy, my dream career, come true. But the reality of negotiation, its everyday, minute-to-minute lived reality, is of course, like the reality of most fantasies: different. The location of our negotiation was a small cramped room, the so-called NAM caucus room, near the main UN Security Council chambers. The table in the room was not big enough for all fifteen delegates of the council's member-states. So if you were late for the day's session, you had to sit against the wall, with your voluminous papers balanced uncomfortably upon your knees. Light filtered weakly through dusty blinds drawn upon the outside world. After a couple of hours, the air inside the room would be stale and fetid. We were discussing the six-monthly "rollover" of the oil-for-food programme on Iraq. This sounds like it should be straightforward. But by 2001, when I had been working at the British mission for three years, nothing about Iraq at the UN was straightforward. The Security Council, and in particular the five permanent members, was deeply divided. On the one hand, we (the United Kingdom and the United States) wanted to maintain the sanctions imposed on the Saddam Hussein regime after its invasion of Kuwait in August 1990 (and confirmed after its ejection in February 1991) - and therefore, so we thought, the pressure on Baghdad to disarm its weapons of mass destruction (WMD). On the other, the French, Russians and Chinese wanted to "encourage" greater cooperation from Iraq, and ameliorate what they claimed were the negative effects of sanctions. Worse, in our little group of delegates, national divisions had become personal animosities. It wasn't just the air that was bad in that room: the atmosphere was horrible. When the American delegate spoke, the French would smirk and laugh. When the French spoke, the American would stare at the ceiling or shuffle his papers. It wasn't very pleasant being in that small, under-ventilated room. Depressed by the prospect of weeks of this animosity, one day I had an idea. Before negotiations started that day, I asked my British colleague to bring in a CD of his favourite song. He played Wild Wood by Paul Weller, formerly of the punk band, The Jam. The next day the Bangladeshi delegate played a haunting love song. The next, the Chinese played a song from medieval China. And it worked. Somehow, the venomous atmosphere calmed. We got down to work more quickly. The delegates began to listen to each other with more attention. I cannot claim the music brought consensus to the Security Council, but it did bring harmony to our little room. Until one day the Iraqi ambassador got to hear of our music (the press had noticed the CD player). He complained that we were making light of his country's distress. Another Arab ambassador objected too - even though his delegate told me that he was looking forward to choosing his song. And though our music had to stop, it did not stop the story going round the world. In the west, it was reported (in the New York Times and others) as a quirky, almost humorous episode. In much of the middle east, it was another example of the inhumanity of western diplomats towards Iraq. At the time, I thought this criticism unfair: we were simply trying to improve the atmosphere of our negotiations. But looking back, it was symptomatic of something much deeper - and justified. In that room, we were very distant from the reality of the Iraqi people whose lives we were arbitrating. Our arguments were much more about our desires and needs - whether Chinese or British - than they were about the Iraqis'. All of us in that room claimed to care about the condition of ordinary Iraqis. But in truth, we knew little of it. We extracted our information, according to our needs, from poorly-written UN reports. From this partial (in both senses) basis, we created narratives about what was "really" going on. All of us did this, whichever side we were on. Every example of civilian suffering, the French blamed on sanctions, we blamed on Saddam's failure to implement the humanitarian programme. In a complicated story, both had some truth. But neither had the whole truth. This story is but a particular example of something wrong with the way that diplomacy, and international decision-making, is done today. No one outside our musty little chamber even knew where we were, let alone who we were. Sequestered in closed rooms far from prying eyes, decisions of enormous gravity were - and are - being made, in our name, by our diplomats. And though the diplomats are far removed from the places they are discussing, only rarely do the real people their decisions affect get a say in the diplomats' deliberations. This wasn't only true of Iraq; it is also true of Kosovo, or the Western Sahara, or Darfur. More scrutiny, more accountability, more transparency - there are ways to introduce these necessities in structural form. Above all, the closed forums of diplomacy must allow those with most at stake in their decisions to speak. It's not only fairer, better decisions that will result. It's time to bring some air.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NISENO LHOUNGU! As you celebrate your 3rd birthday today, we want to tell you how you brighten our lives everyday with your smiles and a hundred questions. May God bless you and may you continue to bring happiness to everyone's lives. Papa, Mummy and all your loved ones

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.

C M Y K

Dimapur

NATIONAL

Thursday 20 November 2008

RSS, Bajrang Dal are not terrorist groups: British govt

LONDON, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): The British government has said that neither the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) nor the Bajrang Dal are terrorist organisations and their members are not banned from entering Britain. “The government do not consider the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or the Bajrang Dal as terrorist organisations,” British Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Lord Malloch-Brown told the House of Lords. “Neither organisation is proscribed in the UK or in India, nor do the Indian government classify either as a terrorist organisation,” Malloch-Brown said in reply to a question by former cabinet minister Lord Chris Patten. MallochBrown said decisions on whether or not to ban a group in Britain “must be proportionate and based on evidence that a group is involved in terrorism as defined in the Terrorism Act 2000.” The British minister also turned down a plea by Patten, who had visited India in October, to “ensure” that members of the

Children participate in a demonstration for prevention of child abuse in Patna, on November 19. (AP Photo)

3 Naxalites, one commando killed in K’taka encounter

C M Y K

The Morung Express

CHICKMAGALUR, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Three Naxalites and a commando belonging to AntiNaxalite Force (ANF) were killed in an encounter at Mavinahola, near the famous temple town of Horanadu, a top police official said. The encounter took place under Kalasa police station when an ANF team began combing operations following a tip off late Tuesday night. During the operation a gang of four Naxalites, including a woman, started firing at the ANF team, A M Prasad, IGP (Western Range) said from Kalasa over phone. Following this, the ANF team retaliated. The exchange of fire went on for over two hours till 04:30 hrs today, in which three Naxalites and a policeman, Guruprasad, died on the spot, he said. The woman Naxalite however managed to fled the scene under cover of darkness, he said. Arms and ammunition, including a sten gun, three loaded magazines, a country-made pistol and some hand grenades were recovered from near the scene, he said. Two of the Naxalites who were killed have been identified as Naveen and Manohar, while the third body was yet to be identified, he said. Combing operation is still continuing in the vicinity, Prasad said.

3 bank heists in 10 days in Delhi, cops clueless NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 19 (CNN-IBN): In a span of less than 10 days, Delhi has witnessed 3 armed robberies. All of them involved fairly large sums of money. Rupees 5 lakh stolen from Hauz Khas and 24 lakhs from a bank in Rohini and 17 lakhs near the Satya Niketan colony all three from the national capital. The last incident took place near the Satyaniketan colony in South Delhi on Tuesday morning. Two men on a motorbike drove up along a cash-transfer van and fired at the security guard. The guard sustained minor injuries and the culprits escaped with a suitcase containing rupees 17 lakh. “We came out there were two guys on the motor cycle trying to snatch and then there were fire shots,” says Eyewitness2, Beena Garg. Earlier on Monday, armed robbers struck at the State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur near Rohini in west Delhi. They made away with rupees 24 lakh holding bank staff and customers hostage. A week before that, four armed robbers took away Rupees 5 lakh from UCO Bank in Hauz Khas. Police however remain tight-lipped about any possible connection between the three robberies. “Investigations are on and we will see how the case develops,” says Rajan Bhagat. No concrete links have been established so far but with such large sums of money in question, the police will soon have to come up with concrete answers.

BJP to execute Afzal Guru if voted to power NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 19 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has said that if voted to power it would execute Afzal Guru, convicted in 2001 attack on the Parliament. BJP’s chief ministerial candidate Vijay Kumar Malhotra said this while releasing the party’s election manifesto along with other leaders on Tuesday for the Delhi state assembly polls. Malhotra blamed the state’s ruling Congress party for delaying the execution of Afzal Guru. “The President has to decide but the file is with Sheila Dikshit government for past two years. She has not initiated any action on it. If she sends it to the government, then only we can pressurise the central government to take action against him,” Malhotra said. “It shouldn’t take more than one minute. She only has to write a single line on the file, stating that he should be hanged, but she is taking so long to do such a simple thing.... Once our government

gets to power it will take us only one minute to initiate action,” Malhotra added. Meanwhile, senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley questioned the credibility of Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), investigating the September 29 Malegoan blasts in which ten people including a Hindu sadhvi have been detained. BJP has accused the federal ruling Congress party and its allies of deliberately framing Hindu leaders in Malegoan blasts case. “ATS (Anti-terrorist squad) must professionally investigate if its investigations are to carry credibility, not in the manner it is doing,” said Jaitley. All 70-assembly seats of Delhi will go to polls on November 29 and counting of votes will take place on December 8. The assembly elections in Delhi and five other states are expected to be a run down to the forthcoming general elections in early 2009 that would test the political temperature.

RSS and Bajrang Dal are prevented from entering Britain. Malloch-Brown replied that neither the RSS nor the Bajrang Dal are banned in Britain or subject to other restrictions or sanctions. Nor were they classified as terrorist organisations or banned by the Indian government. “Unless an organisation is proscribed in the UK under the Terrorism Act 2000, membership of an organisation does not in itself provide grounds for refusing entry to the UK. “Where there is evidence that the presence in the UK of a particular individual would not be conducive to the public good, consideration will be given to denying entry,” the minister said in his answer earlier this month. While Patten’s questions at the House of Lords may have been prompted by the anti-Christian violence in Orissa, informed sources said the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS) – set up in 1966 as the nearest equivalent of the RSS in Britain – works very differently from Hindu groups in India.

“The HSS was set up in a number of countries. They have little to do with the RSS and abide by the laws of the country where they are based,” said a source closely allied to the HSS in Britain. “They largely undertake activities concerning cultural identity rather than nationalistic identity. You can’t equate what happens in Gujarat, or elsewhere in India with what’s happening in Britain. For the second generation in particular, India is a bit abstract,” the source said. The HSS is said to have around 70 ‘shakhas’ or branches offices in Britain, with around 1,100 regular visitors. “Over the years, British Prime Ministers and opposition leaders have passed through their doors,” the source said. RSS general secretary Mohan Rao Bhagwat stopped over in Britain in September on his way back from a visit to the Caribbean. “He was felicitated by the community. Some important people, including police, were aware of the visit and there was no problem,” the source said.

Indian navy destroys Somali pirate ship

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Even as the world’s largest supertanker the Saudi Sirius Star continues to be in the grip of pirates of the coast of Somalia, the Indian navy appears to have taken the lead in the fight against pirates. An Indian warship deployed in the Gulf of Aden fought Somali pirates and destroyed their vessel after a brief battle, the navy said on Wednesday. Two accompanying speed boats sped away after the main vessel was blown up late on Tuesday. “INS Tabar retaliated in self defence and opened fire on the mother vessel,” the navy said in a statement. “As a result of the firing by INS Tabar, fire broke out on the vessel and explosions were heard, possibly due to exploding ammunition that was stored on the vessel.” Naval officers on board the warship said they spotted pirates moving on the deck with rocket propelled grenade launchers. “On repeated calls, the vessel’s threat-

The Indian navy says the INS Tabar dedicated to ﬁghting pirates has successfully fought off an attempted pirate attack in the Gulf of Aden, sparking explosions and a ﬁre on the suspected pirate ship late on November 18. (AP Photo)

ening response was that she would blow up the naval warship,” the navy said. India deployed INS Tabar, a naval warship, to escort Indian ships after the

country’s shipping firms said they were losing $450,000 a month on cost overruns and delays in meeting deadlines. Crew members are reluctant to sail in the Gulf of Aden,

one of the world’s most important sea trade routes, fearing attacks by pirates. Meanwhile, Saudi supertanker Sirius Star was hijacked over the weekend and has

anchored off the coast of Somalia in Eyl, even as pirates took over another Iranianoperated cargo vessel with a Hong Kong flag ‘Delight’. US navy commander Jane Campbell of the Bahrainbased 5th Fleet said the status of the crew and cargo was not known. There are some Indians among the 25-member crew. In the first-ever action after being deployed in the Gulf of Aden, the Indian navy on November 11 thwarted an attempt by pirates to capture an Indian merchant vessel in the region. The ship, M V Jag Arnav, had recently crossed the Suez Canal and was eastward bound when it was surrounded by pirates, who tried to board and hijack the ship, navy sources in New Delhi said. When the 38,265tonne bulk carrier, owned by Mumbai-based Great Eastern Shipping Company, raised an alarm, it caught the attention of the Indian naval warship, INS Tabar, which was patrolling in the Gulf of Aden waters.

India seeks inter-governmental ‘Hindu man saved me negotiations for UNSC membership from being gangraped’ UNITED NATIONS, NOVEMBER 19 (PTI): Making a strong pitch for expansion of the powerful UN Security council in both permanent and non-permanent categories, India has called for immediate start of inter-governmental negotiations on the issue. Addressing the UN General Assembly, its delegate Vijay Bahuguna, MP, firmly rejected the “minority” view that expansion only in the non-permanent category would suffice, saying this “unrealistic” argument has already been proved wrong by the history. “We should not forget that we had expanded the Security Council in 1965 with addition of only non-permanent members, but problems with the Council have only exacerbated,” he told the delegates. Non-permanent members, he said, have not been A Kashmiri woman looks on as supporters of Jammu Kashmir National Conference, unseen ,shout slogans during a rally at Ganderbal, some 20 kilometers northeast of Srinagar, Wednesday, November 19. able to implement their Pro-Indian parties intensiﬁed their campaigning Tuesday two days after large crowds voted in ﬁrst phase ideas or prevent encroachment of the Council in areas of multistage elections in Indian Kashmir to elect a local government. (AP Photo)

Slain Indian journo honoured by Stockholm

STOCKHOLM,NOVEMBER19(AGENCIES): Six Indian journalists, including Delhi journalist Soumya Viswanathan, among the 87 worldwide who perished in their line of duty during the past 12 months, were among those honoured at the Stockholm Journalists’ Memorial 2008. The memorial, instituted by the Professional Foreign Correspondents Association, PROFOCA, of Sweden 2002, was commemorated for the seventh consecutive year at the the Royal Cathedral of Stockholm, in an ecumenical service, Tuesday. The six Indian journalists that featured in thememorialthathasgrowntobecomeaglobal event of increasing repute were: Mohamad Muslimuddin, a correspondent for the daily Asamiya Pratidin, Ashok Sodhi, a photographer for Jammu’s English-language Daily Excelsior, Ved Prakash Chouhan, a senior journalist, Komal Yadav, a photographer of Amar Ujala, a Hindi daily, Javed Ahmed Mir of a local Kashmir paper and Soumya Vishwanathan, a TV journalist who was shot dead in the capital by unidentified persons earlier this year when she was returning home late at night from work. Soumya was an employee of TV Today Network’s English news channel, Headlines Today. Prior to joining Headlines Today, Soumya had also worked with CNN-IBN. She had stayed back in office on Monday night (September 29, 2008) to moni-

tor coverage of the blasts in Malegaon and Modasa. She had been killed by un-known assailants in the early hours of Tuesday, September 30. The incident occurred when she was driving from her Jhandewalan office to her Vasant Kunj residence at around 0330 hrs (IST). Soumya last spoke to her father at 3:15 am, saying she’ll reach home shortly. Police say she was shot dead while on her way home. Her car was found rammed into the divider on Nelson Mandela road. Her body was still in the driver’s seat and there was a bullet in her head. The police rushed her to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences but doctors declared her dead on arrival. Police have registered a case of murder under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, but the motive for the killing has not yet been established. Meanwhile, in Stockholm, the ambassadors and senior diplomatic representatives of 34 countries – with the exception of India – to which the slain journalists belonged, along with senior representatives of the Swedish government, participated in the memorial. Jose Luis Belmar, the founder of PROFOCA, lamented to IANS, saying that ,”We are extremely saddened that India, the largest democracy in the world, as well as, boasting by far the most extensive free press globally does not see fit to participate in this momentous event in

which neither politics nor any material or individual gain is involved”. Belmar added, “In fact this is the second consecutive year that the Indian embassy in Stockholm has seen fit to outright ignore our invitation that was sent in very good time. I, indeed, cannot imagine why they would scorn our efforts to honour the seekers, and victims, of truth in this world of violence”. The highlight of the ceremony, interspersed with the cathedral choir rendering choice classical music appropriate to the event and the prayers for universal peace and tolerance, was the ambassador or representative of respective country lighting a candle in honour of their fallen countrymen. He or she is escorted, to the table holding the candles, by a member of PROFOCA, as the dean of the cathedral calls out the names. India, being unrepresented officially, was asked to be represented by IANS, just as last year, to do the honours for fallen colleagues. The president of PROFOCA, Francesco Saverio Alonzo, ended his expression of thanks with sound optimism: “We had prayed God to be merciful to our brave colleagues laying their lives on the line in their quest for truth and justice; it appears He is listening to us. “Last year we mourned 154. This year it is, mercifully, down to 87. But, it is 87 far too many”.

beyond its competence under the charter nor improve its decision-making process. Nor have they been able to enhance the participation of countries contributing troops to peacekeeping operations in the decision making, he added. India along with Japan, Germany and Brazil, known as Group of four or G-4, is a strong contender for the permanent slot in the Security Council. “Uniting for Consensus (UFC),” a group led by Pakistan and Spain, opposes expansion in the permanent category, saying that they do not want to create more centers of power. It is self-evident, Bahuguna said, that real change and improvement can come only through inducting new permanent members through the principles of election and subsequent accountability to the wider membership through an appropriate review mechanism.

BHUBANESWAR, NOVEMBER 19 (PTI): The nun who was allegedly raped during communal violence in Kandhamal has told the Crime Branch of Orissa police that after the sexual assault, she was saved by a local Hindu man from being gangraped, police said today. During her examination by the Crime Branch team in New Delhi, the 29-year-old nun said that she was raped at K Nuagaon in Baliguda during Orissa bandh on August 25, the sources said. Though two others also molested and attempted to rape her immediately after the incident, a local Hindu man came to her rescue and saved her from being gangraped, the nun was quoted to have said in her statement before the Crime Branch team. Inspector General of Police (Crime Branch) Arun Ray confirmed that both the nun and Father Thomas Chelan, only witness to the incident, were examined between 5 pm. and 7.30 pm. According to sources, the nun was confident that she would be able to identify the accused, with whom she had a scuffle. However, the alleged victim was worried that she might not be able to identify the two others who had also attempted to rape her as she was in a semiconscious state after being raped, they said. Expressing her unwillingness to go to Kandhamal again, she urged the Crime Branch team to organise the Test Identification Parade (TIP) of accused persons anywhere in Orissa except Kandhamal, sources said.

Locals hold 90 percent of jobs in Maharashtra: Govt records

MUMBAI, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Contrary to the propaganda by leaders like Raj Thackeray that ‘outsiders’ were taking away jobs from locals in Maharashtra, state government’s own statistics reveal that close to 90% of jobs are with the locals. As per government records, the total number of locals working in about 1.6 lakh units across micro, small and medium industries at 10.86 lakh people. Out of this, records said, locals held about 91 percent of the non-supervisory jobs and 97 percent of the supervisory posts. In large-scale industries, over 88 percent of the staff in the non-supervisory category and 78.7 percent in supervisory posts are held by the Maharashtrians. Incidentally, the Vilasrao Deshmukh government had, yesterday, passed a resolution to ensure implementation of existing rules under which local people of the state get 80 percent preference in industrial units. As per the state government rules, a local is someone who is domiciled in the state for 15 years or more. Maha govt wants locals; industry perturbed

wants industry to hire locals in 80 per cent jobs. It’s an old rule, which is now to be enforced by state committees. But there’s an irony – industries in the state already hire more locals than the state’s diktat. The state’s own data shows that small scale industries hire as much as 96 per cent locals while larger units have about 88 per cent locals in their ranks. This is the reason why industrialists are not too perturbed. “There is enough local talent. The state has realised that they can be employed,” said Venugopal Dhoot, Chairman, Videocon. So, why is there a need for the government to add another regulation? With elections round the corner, this could be an attempt to counter the sons of the soil agitation led by Raj Thackeray and the Shiv Sena. By locals, the state means not just Marathis, but all those living in the state for the last 15 years. The Industries Minister says the rules will cover new projects. “We have issued this GR five times before. Now it will be enforced. It will apply to SEZs and new MOUs,” said Industries Minister Ashok Chavan. Thus, there seems to be a lot of obstacles in MaharashNDTV: The Maharashtra government tra government’s way.

INTERNATIONAL

The Morung Express

Thursday 20 November 2008

Dimapur

Congo rebels pulling back “in hundreds” KINSHASA, NOVEMBER 19 (REUTERS): Congolese Tutsi rebels were pulling back south “in the hundreds” from frontline positions in North Kivu province in a gesture to support a United Nations peace initiative, a U.N. military spokesman said on Wednesday. The withdrawal by rebel General Laurent Nkunda’s National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) fighters followed a commitment made by Nkunda at the weekend to a U.N. envoy that he would take part in peace talks and respect a ceasefire. “Since yesterday evening they (the rebels) have been withdrawing. They are pulling back south on three axes - from Kanyabayonga towards Kibirizi, from Kanyabayonga towards Nyanzale and from Rwindi south,” U.N. military spokesman Lt-Col Jean-Paul Dietrich told Reuters. He said U.N. peacekeepers were monitoring the pullback and that the withdrawing rebels were estimated “in the hundreds”. Nkunda’s rebels were pulling back south from territory they had occupied in recent weeks, routing demoralised government troops, more than 100 km (60 miles) north of Goma, capital of Democratic Republic of Congo’s North Kivu province. But they also hold strategic positions just 15 km north of Goma, near Kibati, and the CNDP statement announcing the planned pullback on Tuesday had made no mention of any withdrawal from the specific Goma front. U.N. special envoy Olusegun Obasanjo, a former Nigerian President, is trying to set up peace talks in Nairobi between Nkunda, Congolese President Joseph Kabila’s government and Great Lakes neighbour Rwanda to end the North Kivu conflict which has driven hundreds of thousands of civilians from their homes.

Child malnutrition soars in DRCongo: World Vision

KINSHASA, NOVEMBER 19 (AFP): Malnutrition levels among children in the conflict-riven east of the Democratic Republic of Congo have risen 10-fold in some areas, US-based humanitarian agency World Vision warned on Wednesday. “The number of children suffering from severe malnutrition in eastern Congo is rising dramatically as a result of the increased conflict,” a statement said. “In one hard-hit area, World Vision estimates the number of children under the age of five suffering from malnutrition has increased 10-fold.” Before the conflict intensified in the flashpoint eastern Nord-Kivu region in August, acute malnutrition levels were 19 percent, and 86 percent of the people ate less than three meals a day, World Vision said. Congolese rebels have started pulling back from two fronts north and northwest of the regional capital Goma, where they continued to besiege the city of some 500,000 people, the UN mission in Congo said Woman carry plastic sheeting on their heads that they received from the World Food Programme, during the distribution of aid at a on Wednesday. Aid workers in camp for displaced people on November 18, in Bulengo near Goma in eastern Congo. Congolese soldiers fought pro-government rebel-held areas said that while militiamen Tuesday deep in rebel-held territory, exposing the deepening breakdown of the country's army as it ﬂees a steady rebel hunger was earlier linked only to poverty, the huge numbers advance, witnesses said.(AP Photo)

Israel rebuffs UN calls to open Gaza crossings JERUSALEM, NOVEMBER 19 (REUTERS): Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak on Wednesday rebuffed a call by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to allow humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip through crossings Israel has largely sealed in two weeks of violence. Asked by Israeli Army Radio about Ban’s appeal and whether Israel intends to reopen the passages, Barak said: “No. There needs to be calm in order for the crossings to be opened.” Ban telephoned outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Tuesday and “strongly urged (him) to facilitate the freer movement of urgently needed humanitarian supplies” and U.N. aid workers into the Gaza Strip, the U.N. press office said. Israel closed the crossings after Palestinian

militants responded with daily rocket salvoes to an Israeli army incursion on Nov. 4 into the Hamas-run territory, where a five-month-old, Egyptian-brokered ceasefire had largely been holding. Barak acknowledged in the radio interview that the violence was touched off by the Israeli raid, which the army said destroyed a tunnel at the frontier that Gaza militants dug and could have been used to try to seize Israeli soldiers. More than a dozen Palestinian fighters have been killed in the past two weeks. Several Israelis have been slightly wounded by dozens of rockets. The United Nations and humanitarian agencies have voiced concern that Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip, where about half of the population of 1.5 million is dependent on U.N. aid, could soon spiral into a humanitarian crisis.

“Israel is sensitive and attentive to the humanitarian needs. But also, Hamas has to impose the ceasefire on smaller groups and this will help it receive more goods through the crossings,” Barak said. “Should the other side choose to go back to the ceasefire, there will be a ceasefire,” Barak said. “And if they choose to escalate there will be an operation. We are not scared of an operation but neither are we eager for it.” Olmert said on Sunday he commissioned a new plan for military action in the Gaza Strip to curb rocket attacks. But he appeared to rule out any swift move towards a large ground operation, saying his government would monitor the situation and act in a “calm and settled” manner. Olmert, who began U.S.-brokered peace talks with Palestinian President

Mahmoud Abbas a year ago, resigned in September in a corruption scandal. He remains prime minister until a new government is formed after the ballot. Abbas received a telephone call from U.S. President-elect Barack Obama on Tuesday in response to a letter sent by the Palestinian leader congratulating him on his election. “Obama reiterated to President Abbas his commitment to the two-state solution and said that the continuation of the peace process was an American, Israeli and Palestinian interest,” Palestinian peace negotiator Saeb Erekat said. Israel and the Palestinians have acknowledged they have been unable to bridge gaps on key issues and said that Washington’s target of achieving a peace deal this year would not be met.

Sergeant Mary Dague at her home in San Antonio on October 8. Dague, 24, lost her arms dismantling a bomb in Iraq. She was awarded a Purple Heart. (AP Photo)

of displaced simply had no access to food. “The conflict has intensified the effects of poverty 10 times over and the situation has become dire,” said World Vision aid worker and nurse, Suzanne Kahamba. “But I fully believe that if there is peace ... people will be able to go home, farm their land and look after their families,” she said. World Vision said before the conflict intensified, there were about two children arriving daily on average at a World Vision nutritional centre east of the town of Rutshuru but the number had gone up to between eight and 10 now. Fighting in the area had cut off aid from the centre for about three weeks, World Vision said, adding that supplies had now resumed. “North Kivu province used to supply a large proportion of the country’s food,” said Constance Smith, World Vision’s health and nutrition manager in Congo. “Now people here are foraging for any food they can find. When there is a severe lack of food as there is now, it is always children who suffer the most.”

Obama Vows Climate Action

CHICAGO, NOVEMBER 19 (REUTERS): Barack Obama said on Tuesday the United States would "engage vigorously" in climate change talks when he is president, and he pledged to work to reduce emissions sharply by 2020, despite the financial crisis. The Democratic president-elect, who regularly criticized the Bush administration's attitude toward global warming, reiterated his plans to start a "cap and trade" system that limits carbon dioxide (CO2) emis-

sions from big industries. "We will establish strong annual targets that set us on a course to reduce emissions to their 1990 levels by 2020 and reduce them by an additional 80 percent by 2050," he said in a video address to a global warming summit in California attended by U.S. governors and representatives from other nations. "My presidency will mark a new chapter in America's leadership on climate change that will strengthen our security

and create millions of new jobs in the process," he said. Obama said he would not attend U.N.-sponsored climate talks in Poland in December as President George W. Bush will still be in office. But he sent a message to international delegates who have spent years battling Bush representatives over targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and halt global warming. "Once I take office, you can be sure that the United States will once again engage vigorously in these negotiations and help lead the world toward a new era of global cooperation on climate change," Obama said. The president-elect said he asked members of the U.S. Congress who would be present in Poland to report back to him. European nations have pushed the United States for years to show more leadership on climate change so that China and India, developing nations whose emissions are outpacing the developed world's, will follow suit. Though Obama's remarks were a reiteration of his campaign promises, the timing signaled his commitment to potentially painful environmental objectives despite a teetering auto industry and a financial crisis. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who hosted the conference, praised Obama's climate goals. Schwarzenegger backed Republican John McCain in the November 4 election. "This new administration is very much interested in adopting the same kind of regulations

that we have adopted here in California," Schwarzenegger said, noting the state's landmark 2006 law to cap greenhouse gas emissions. Obama promised during his White House campaign to create an emissions trading system, similar to the European Union's, which sets limits on the amount of CO2 factories can emit and lets companies trade permits that allow them to pollute more. That system is known as "cap and trade." The president-elect said his plans to invest $15 billion every year in solar power, wind power and other renewable fuels would reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil and improve national security while helping the planet. "It will also help us transform our industries and steer our country out of this economic crisis," he said, citing a frequently mentioned estimate of 5 million jobs that could be created in "green" or environment-related industries. Environmentalists welcomed his approach and saw significance in the timing of his words. "As world leaders gather in the coming weeks in Poland to negotiate a pathway out of the climate crisis, the eyes of the world will be upon America and our newfound resolve to rejoin global efforts," National Wildlife Federation president Larry Schweiger said in a statement. "With today's call for action on global warming, President-elect Obama has kicked the gears of change into motion."

Somali pirate attacks ‘out of control’

Flamingoes feed near to where the Kuwait-flagged crude oil tanker Al Samidoon, left, and other tankers are docked near to the port in Muharraq, Bahrain on November 18. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain's neighbor in the Persian Gulf and owner of a hijacked oil supertanker, said Tuesday it will join the international fight against piracy, and a Somali official vowed to try to rescue the ship by force if necessary. Pirates anchored a hijacked Saudi supertanker loaded with $100 million in crude oil off the Somali coast on Tuesday, causing residents in impoverished fishing villages to gawk in amazement at the size of the 1,080 foot (329 meter) tanker. (AP Photo) )

KUALA LUMPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (AFP): Somali pirate attacks have spun "out of control", becoming more violent, frequent and extending further from the attackers' bases, a maritime watchdog said Wednesday. "What we have seen in these last few weeks is an abnormal increase in violence and ships being hijacked despite the increased security in the area," said Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting centre. "The situa-

tion is already out of control," he told AFP. "The United Nations and the international community must find ways to stop this menace." "With no strong deterrent, low risk to the pirates and high returns, the attacks will continue," he added. Choong said that in the latest incident, a Thai-operated fishing boat registered in Kiribati was seized off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden on Tuesday while en route to the Middle East. "Two speed boats with five to

six Somali pirates each came alongside the fishing boat and thereafter hijacked her," he added. Choong said communications were cut while the ship was reporting the incident. The condition of the 16 crew on board the vessel is unknown. Also on Tuesday a Hong Kong cargo ship operating out of Iran was hijacked in the same area, with 25 crew on board, the Kuala Lumpur-based IMB piracy centre confirmed. The China Maritime Search and Rescue

Centre said the freighter, The Delight, was carrying 36,000 tonnes of wheat to Bandar Abbas in Iran when attacked. Choong said Saturday's unprecedented incident, when Somali pirates hijacked a Saudi super-tanker carrying 100 million dollars worth of oil, was worrying as this was the largest ship hijacked and the furthest from pirate bases so far. The Sirius Star, the size of three soccer fields and three times the weight of a US aircraft carrier, was seized on Saturday in the In-

dian Ocean some 500 miles off the coast of Kenya. "This is a new area of attack. It is a very worrying sign for them to go as far as 500 nautical miles, we are very concerned by the capability of these pirates now that they are going further away," Choong added. The international community has increased patrols in the area, thwarting several hijack attempts by heavily armed Somali pirates, but the patrols are unable to prevent all attacks. Since January the

IMB said 94 ships have been attacked in the Gulf of Aden and Somalia. Of those, 38 were hijacked while 17 ships with more than 250 crew are still being held by pirates.. The operators of the hijacked Saudi super-tanker were waiting Wednesday for further contact from the Somali bandits. The Sirius Star arrived off the coast of Somalia on Tuesday, according to an official from the Somalia's breakaway state of Puntland. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Fais-

al slammed the attack. "Obviously this is a very dangerous thing ... Piracy, like terrorism, is a disease," the prince said in Athens. Bile Mohamoud Qabowsade, an advisor to the president of Somalia's breakaway state of Puntland, said the Sirius Star was now at the pirate lair of Harardhere, some 300 kilometres north of Mogadishu. "We have been receiving some information and we now know that the ship is anchored near Harardhere," Qabowsade told AFP. The

super-tanker was loaded to capacity with two million barrels of oil when it was seized along with its crew of 25 -- 19 from the Philippines, two from Britain, two from Poland, one Croatian and one Saudi. "All 25 crew members on board are believed to be safe," said Vela International, a subsidiary of Saudi oil giant Saudi Aramco and operators of the ship. "At this time, Vela is awaiting further contact from the pirates in control of the vessel," the company said in a statement.

Dimapur

SPORTS

Thursday 20 November 2008

The Morung Express

Maradona sets his eyes on WC

‘India need to phase out the retirement of seniors’ NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 19 (PTI): The retirement of India's senior cricketers should be done in a phased manner, according to Pakistan's pace legend Wasim Akram who said it was imperative for India to maintain the ideal blend of youth and experience in the Test team. Akram said it was not easy to find immediate replacements for the senior players in Test cricket where experience counts a lot. "It is important to maintain the right blend of youth and experience in the Test team. In Twenty20 cricket, you may need young legs, but you can't do without experience in Test cricket", Akram told PTI in a telephonic interview. Former captain Anil Kumble and Sourav Ganguly retired from international cricket after the recent Test series against Australia amidst speculation that some of the senior players had been given a deadline to hang their boots. The intense media speculation on the future of the senior players has not amused the former Pakistan captain who said putting pressure on these stalwarts was extremely unfair. "The players should be left to decide when they want to quit", he said. "If too many senior players retire at the same time, there will be a big void. India should guard against that as it could weaken the Test team considerably", he said. On Rahul Dravid's lean form, Akram said it was just a matter of one good knock and the seasoned batsman will rediscover his touch.

Tension still prevails between Ponting and Chappell, Border In this combo of images Argentina's coach Diego Maradona reacts during a press conference in Glasgow, Scotland on November 18, ahead of an international friendly soccer match against Scotland on Wednesday. (AP Photo)

GLASGOW, NOVEMBER 19 (AFP): Diego Maradona has set his sights on claiming football’s ultimate prize for a second time as he embarks on an unexpected career as the coach of Argentina. The little genius who, as a player, almost single-handedly guided his country to glory in Mexico in 1986 now believes he can repeat that triumph in South Africa in 2010 with a squad of players that might not have one individual as outstanding as himself, but is undeniably packed with world class talent. Barcelona’s Lionel Messi and Juan Roman Riquelme were excused international duty for Maradona’s first game in charge, a friendly against Scotland here on Wednesday evening. But after his first training sessions with the likes of Liverpool’s Javier Mascherano and Manchester United’s Carlos Tevez, Maradona was brimming with confidence about his prospect of emulating Franz Beckenbauer’s achievement by captaining then coaching his country to World Cup glory. “First and foremost, I only have one objective and that is to win the World Cup,” Maradona said. “There is no point thinking about making it into the last four. With the players that we have that has to be our goal and that is what I will be striving to achieve. “It has been great for me to work with the players here. My time has come

now and I am really enjoying the moment. I will work on the tactics and how we approach the games but it is very important that I get into the players’ hearts. “I think they need someone to guide them and I can do that. I want to make the players happy and proud to wear the shirt. I hope I will be good for them and they will be good for me.” The 48-yearold’s managerial adventure begins at the ground where he scored his first international goal. He was just 19 when he wowed Hampden and produced a stand-out performance alongside experienced performers who had lifted the World Cup a year earlier. While no-one would ever question the footballing skills that earned him a standing ovation on his last visit to Hampden, Maradona has yet to manage at the highest level and his appointment has raised eyebrows throughout the football world. But his first steps have been taken confidently with questions from the media handled with the kind of deft touch he used to employ to get the better of defenders. Quizzed about Terry Butcher’s assertion that he could never forgive him for the ‘Hand of God’ goal that helped knock England out of the 1986 World Cup, Argentina’s new coach replied with a combination of good grace (he said he would be happy to kiss and make

up) with a hint of a ‘Terry who?’ attitude. “I don’t know why Butcher is taking this attitude,” Maradona said of the former England defender who is now assistant manager of Scotland. “If people are fine with me, I’ll greet them. “Let Butcher get on with his life and I’ll get on with my life. I’m not going to lose any sleep over it. If Butcher doesn’t shake my hand, I’ll still be alive tomorrow.” Maradona further thrilled his hosts by taking a swipe at all of his English critics by pointing out that England’s 1966 World Cup final victory over the then West Germany came with the help of a Geoff Hurst goal that may not have crossed the goalline. “England won the World Cup in 1966 with a goal that didn’t cross the line so I don’t think it’s fair that anyone should judge me when stuff like that went on,” he said. The ‘Hand of God’ goal refers to Argentina’s first in their 2-1 win in the 1986 quarter-final, in which Maradona used his hand to beat England goalkeeper Peter Shilton to the ball and deflect it into the net. Butcher’s lingering bitterness over the match may however be more to do with memories of Argentina’s second goal. Butcher twice failed with attempts to stop Maradona as he waltzed past five English players before finally going past Shilton to claim one of the greatest ever goals.

Maradona shrugs off Butcher snub NEW ARGENTINA boss Diego Maradona will not lose any sleep if Terry Butcher refuses to shake his hand at Hampden. Scotland assistant Butcher said he will never forgive Maradona for the infamous “Hand of God” goal which helped knock England out of the 1986 World Cup. “I don’t understand why Butcher has this attitude,” said Maradona, who then queried England’s 1966 World Cup win. “England won a World Cup with a goal that never crossed the line, so it’s not fair that people should judge me.” He was, of course, referring to Geoff Hurst’s extra-time goal in the final against West Germany at Wembley that may not have crossed the goal-line after thundering off the underside of the crossbar. Hurst’s hat-trick goal to make it 4-2 was also controversial, since several spectators had run on to the pitch before he scored. Maradona has received a warm welcome in Scotland as he prepares for his first game in charge of the national team. However, former England captain Butcher was not in the mood to join in with the adulation for one of the game’s greatest players. “If people are fine with me,

I’ll greet them,” added Maradona. “Let Butcher get on with his life and I’ll get on with my life. I’m not going to lose any sleep over it. If Butcher doesn’t shake my hand, I’ll still be alive tomorrow.” Maradona scored his first international goal at Hampden in a 3-1 win in 1979 and the Argentine legend has fond memories of Glasgow. His virtuoso performance won him many fans in Scotland, while his role in eliminating England from the World Cup in Mexico may have added to his list of admirers north of the border. “I am very much aware of how popular I am and it’s great to think I’ve made them very happy,” said Maradona when asked about his relationship with Scottish supporters. “If I get the chance to make them happy again, that would be marvellous. It’s something that was very special to me. It was nice to start my international career and get my first goal here. What I want to do in terms of repaying them is hopefully put on a good spectacle. I feel great. I feel very good. I’m very happy to be back in Scotland after so long away. It’s a very, very proud moment for me to be heading up the Argentina national side.”

Walcott leaves England and Miandad appointed PCB Director General Capello in depleted state

Theo Walcott, left, jogs during a training session of the national soccer team of England in Berlin on November 18. (AP Photo)

LONDON, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Fabio Capello's depleted England squad worsened last night after Theo Walcott dislocated his right shoulder in training to become the latest casualty to miss tonight's friendly with Germany. Berlin, November 19 (Agencies): England's medical staff will assess the Arsenal winger this morning before deciding when the 19year-old can fly back home. The injury occurred during a challenge with Scott Parker towards the end of training at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin. It also leaves Capello deprived of all but David James and captain John Terry of his first-choice

England starting XI. Walcott's misfortune - his place now expected to go to Shaun Wright-Phillips - will add to the debate about the significance of the friendly fixture, which has already been hit by eight withdrawals. Along with Sir Alex Ferguson, Rafael Benitez and recent addition Martin O'Neill, Arsene Wenger has never made any secret of his belief friendly internationals are a meaningless inclusion in a packed club scene. Walcott could be out of action for up to a month which would mean missing four Premier League games and the rest of Arsenal's Champions League group campaign.

That would include key visits to Manchester City and Chelsea, with Liverpool due at the Emirates on Dec 21, while Arsenal's place in the Champions League knock-out phase is by no means secure even though they currently top Group G. Wenger's opinion is not hard to guess and the fallout could be explosive even if Capello was keen to stress his sorrow at the freak accident. "Our priority is Theo and making him as comfortable as possible before he returns to England," said the Italian. "We are all very disappointed but the important thing is for Theo to travel home and make a quick recovery."

KARACHI, NOVEMBER 19 (PTI): In a major development, Pakistan Cricket Board today brought in former Test captain Javed Miandad as the new Director General of the board. The post of DG has been created for Miandad, who will look after all cricket related matters in the board, takes over as DG with immediate effect. There were talks about Miandad coming in as a member of the governing body, but sources close to him told PTI he had made it clear to PCB chief Ejaz Butt he would not serve Pakistan cricket in a minor position and wanted more powers. Miandad, who played 124 tests and 233 one-dayers in his illustrious career, said

he was thrilled to get the new assignment. "I am happy to back in an official position where I think I can do a lot of good for Pakistan cricket," said the 51year-old Pakistan's most prolific Test run getter."My main task would be to look after all cricket related affairs including international and domestic cricket. And my first priority is to make our club and domestic structures more productive and also work with the national academy staff to make it an effective platform for producing talent," he said. The former captain made it clear that he would not interfere in the working of the national team as the board had appointed a team management.

SYDNEY, NOVEMBER 19 (UNI): The scathing criticism from Australian media and former cricketers for the humiliating 2-0 loss to India in the recent four-Test series has come hard on Ricky Ponting, who remains in a tense stand-off with former captains Ian Chappell and Allan Border. Ponting's decision to bowl part-timers when Australia might have pushed for victory in the Nagpur Test has brought him under fire from former greats, facing a possible suspension for his team's slow over-rate and was accused of placing his own interests first in deciding to bowl the part-timers. The skipper said he remained upset at the criticism he received, particularly from Chappell and Border. ''I haven't spoken to either of those two gentlemen and probably won't for a while,'' Ponting was quoted as saying by 'Sydney Morning Herald'. ''That's fine, I understand people are going to have opinions on players and my captaincy. A lot of times you totally respect that. ''I don't mind people questioning tactics of mine, but the thing that worried me the most was everyone thinking that people were saying I put myself ahead of the team and interests. I thought that was a bit unfair,'' he lamented.

Sponsorship row postpones Sania Mirza's Pakistan tour ISLAMABAD, NOVEMBER 19 (ANI): Due to lack of sponsors, Indian women tennis ace Sania Mirza’s proposed Pakistan tour has reportedly been postponed. The tour was jointly planned by the PTF (Pakistan Tennis Federation) and the (ITF) Indian Tennis Federation to promote tennis and improve bilateral relations between the two federations, reports said. It added that the PTF had announced that it would host top Indian women tennis star in November or December this year, but lack of sponsorship forced the PTF to postpone the scheduled tour of Sania. During Pakistan tour, Sania was also scheduled to play a doubles match against Pakistan’s top tennis player Aisamul Haq Qureshi.

Indian well placed in Olympiad DRESDEN (GERMANY), NOVEMBER 19 (PTI): Starting as underdogs in the absence of Viswanathan Anand, Indian men are doing well with former world junior champion P Harikrishna and Krishnan Sasikiran displaying brilliant forms in the 32nd edition of the chess Olympiad underway here. With six rounds remaining after today's rest day in the 144-team tournament, the Indian team is placed joint seventh and are just one point behind the six leaders Russia, Armenia, Germany, Azerbaijan, England and Ukraine. The Indian women apparently ran out of steam against Hungary in the fifth round that they lost narrowly and the rest would have come as a welcome relief for the eves who are also missing the services of top player Koneru Humpy here. With the advantage of hindsight it can be easily said that dropping Harika against eight seed Hungary did not turn out to be a good strategy as out-of-sort Nisha Mohota lost yet another game which eventually led to a 1.5-2.5 loss for the Indians. World Junior girls' champion Harika's form is probably a cause for concern for the Indian think-tank led by Elizber Ubilava who is training the women's team here. The toprated Indian in the fray - Harika - is yet to win a game on the first board and if the team has to do well in the rounds to come, its high team that she gets in her rhythm.

Graeme Swann called into England squad

England have added Nottinghamshire off-spinner Graeme Swann to their squad for the third one-day international against India at Kanpur

England cricketers warm-up during a practice session before the third one-day international cricket match between India and England in Kanpur, India, Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008. (AP Photo/Gautam Singh)

LONDON, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Following two heavy defeats, England are now poised to include

Swann as a specialist spinner in Kanpur. There was speculation that Monty Panesar, Eng-

land's No 1 slow bowler in the Test side, would be handed an ODI recall. However, captain Kevin Pietersen and

coach Peter Moores have decided to turn to Swann, who was a fixture in the ODI side until the emergence of his county team-mate Samit Patel earlier this summer. Patel could be the man to make way, unless England choose to omit one of their ineffective pace bowlers. Stephen Harmison and James Anderson have taken just three wickets between them in the two matches so far. Harmison has conceded 125 runs in the series, and Anderson has yet to bowl his full allocation. Meanwhile, Essex's Ravi Bopara was unable to train at Green Park because of a stomach complaint and leftarm seamer Ryan Sidebottom has discomfort in his lower back.

Scan results on Sidebottom's injury are inconclusive and England will monitor him over the next few days before deciding on a further course of action. England captain Pietersen says his players have not lost belief despite their desperate start to the series. "I just think we can be competitive and keep improving to get closer and win a couple of games," he said. "We want to try to win this series because that's what we're here to do." Elsewhere, and Stuart Broad has escaped serious punishment after disputing a decision during the second ODI. Broad was summoned to see ICC match referee Roshan Mahanama after he questioned Russell Tiffin's

decision to award a wide for a bouncer. Mahanama did not deem it serious enough to impose a fine, but gave Broad a stern lecture. "I'd have probably been fined my whole match fee if my dad had been the ref," said Broad, whose father Chris is a match referee. "I got called into the match referee's office for dissent but it was just a talking to, nothing more than that. He didn't say a lot to me, he said that on television I shouldn't be showing my disappointment whichever way the decision goes. "I explained that it was a heat-of-the-moment thing and I didn't think I had done anything particularly wrong. I've just got to smile instead of being disappointed."

Portland Trail Blazers' Greg Oden lays up a shot over Golden State Warriors' Ronny Turiaf in the ﬁrst half of an NBA basketball game on November 18, in Oakland, Calif.(AP Photo)

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‘Honeymoon Is Definitely Not Over’

he has been married to Seal for three years, but Heidi Klum still feels like a newlywed. "Sometimes I lie in bed and I'm like, 'Oh my god, there's Seal lying next to me. What's he doing there?' " Klum tells In Style in its December issue. "I get a smile on my face immediately. Our honeymoon period is definitely not over." How do Klum, 35, and Seal, 45, keep the spice in their relationship? "[We] have date nights," she says. "We go to dinner or to the movies. We like to keep it romantic. Some people wake up in the morning and turn over when they see their mate. That's not us." Klum also credits her husband – not

KieferDescribesJailOrdeal

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onths after Kiefer Sutherland completed his seven-week jail sentence for DUI, the 24 star still shivers at the thought of what he endured. "There's no smoking," Sutherland, 41, tells Men's Vogue in its December/January issue, which hits newsstands Nov. 25. "The lights never go out, 24/7. You can't cover anything. You can't even put your head under a blanket. All the cells have cameras in them." Although Sutherland has resumed smoking, the knowledge that he could go

48 days without his Camels is a comforting thought. "My drinking was not a daily thing, so it wasn't an issue. And, oddly enough, neither was the smoking," he tells the magazine, adding, "I was very glad to know that I could quit. And one day soon I will." One thing that didn't work out, he says, was the roommate situation. "I was told, you know, 'You'll have your own cell.' But I didn't for the first two or three weeks; I had a cell mate," he says. "He got out – but not for long. He came back in pretty quick."

1.Kesangu-ü Suokhrie Age: 21 years Height: 5’4 Waist: 24 Chest: 32 Hip: 33 Hobbies: Listening to music and reading Aim in life: Lecturer

5.Visatuonuo Rame Age: 18 years Height: 5’5 Waist: 27 Chest: 34 Hip: 37 Hobbies: Playing basketball and music Aim in life: Designer

2.Vitsizonuo Keyhuo Age: 23 years Height: 5’3 Waist: 26 Chest: 32 Hip: 34 Hobbies: Reading Aim in life: Art expert

6.Keneizakienuo Belho Age: 19 years Height: 5’3 Waist: 27 Chest: 32 Hip: 36 Hobbies: Listening to music Aim in life: Air Hostess

3.Ketuolenuo Pienyü Age: 20 years Height: 5’4 Waist: 25 Chest: 30 Hip: 31 Hobbies: Watching television Aim in life: Successful women

Hill Fusion presents Miss Kohima 2008

20 November 2008

Dimapur

Nicole Kidman accepts growing up grey-fully

her modeling career – for her personal style evolution. "I've gotten more stylish since I've been with my husband," she says in the interview. "I was always making fun of him because he has so many leather coats, jackets and shoes. But he looks hot." "I want to look good for him," Klum says. "So I kind of stepped it up a bit." The Project Runway host also shares her husband's interest in music. They sing together, she says, even if she isn't always on key. "We sing all the time," n the land she calls Klum says. "He's always rollhome, Nicole Kidman ing his eyeballs because I'm was proud to go back to in the wrong key. But I know her roots yesterday. But he's laughing about it too. So heaven knows what her hairI'm not a singer – who cares? dresser will say. Stepping Not everyone is Seal!" out in Sydney before the premiere of her latest film, the Australian actress showed off distinctly silvery strands in her strawberry blonde hair. Her greying roots, however, turned out to be the least of her problems. At one point, as she waved to fans, she almost slipped out of her strapless white dress. Wisely, she had changed ing.' Brad, 44, has also opened up about into a high-necked version family life. During an interview with when she arrived on the red Oprah Winfrey, gushed about the joys carpet for the unveiling of Ausof having children. 'It really tells you a tralia, the epic love story of an lot about yourself and who you are and English aristocrat and a cattlehow you react to things,' he said. 'They man set in the Outback in the make me better. They make me a better lead-up to the Second World person as a father.' But simple trips to War. The £60million film, dithe mall are now a thing of the past for rected by Baz Luhrman, also the large family because of the length of stars Hugh Jackman. Miss time it takes to get everyone ready. Kidman, 41, who gave birth 'It's like a half-an-hour just to get to daughter Sunday Rose four everyone buckled in and make sure months ago, revealed she is they've got their snacks, and Z.Z. [Za- considering a break from acthara, 3] has got a blanket and Shiloh's ing to expand her family. 'In got her silky,' he says. terms of my future as an acBrad Pitt 'Angie's militant about tor, I don't know,' she said. 'I've it. She's right on top of it. Thank God, had some great opportunities because I'm always forgetting some- and I may just choose to have thing.' Asked which of his children is some more children.' the funniest, the star of The Curious Nicole also opened up Case of Benjamin Button said: 'They about kissing scenes with all have their own thing. They don’t Jackman, her close friend and mean to be funny. 'Right now Shi’s in co-star. 'Obviously we're in this thing. First of all, she only wants to be called John. John or Peter. So it’s a Peter Pan thing. So we’ve got to call her John. ‘Shi, do you want’ — ‘John. I’m John.’ And then I’ll say, ‘John, do you — would you like some orange juice?’ And she goes, ‘No!’' 'So, you know, it's just that kind of stuff that's cute to parents, and it's probably really obnoxious to other people.'

“Breastfeeding twins at the same time is too hard”: Jolie

ith her gorgeous boyfriend, six children and glittering career, Angelina Jolie can seem like something of a superwoman. But one aspect of motherhood has proved too tough even for the Oscar-winning actress. In an interview on GMTV, the star revealed she struggled with breastfeeding her twins, Knox and Vivienne, at the same time. 'You think, "Ah, if anybody can do that, I can do that,"' she told Fiona Phillips. 'But it’s a lot harder than it looks in the books. I did that a few times, but [mostly] I would take turns. It just takes a long time.' Despite attempting the 'football hold' she had read about in manuals, she said she stopped breast feeding them at three months, revealing it was 'about as much as I could do'. Angelina, 33, who was in London promoting her film The Changeling, with Brad Pitt and her four-month-old twins in tow. She revealed that it was while filming The Changeling that she fell pregnant. 'We decided to start trying in the beginning, and by the end I was.' The star was adamant, however, that marriage is not important. 'We jumped into being a family first. And that just seems like the biggest commitment you can possibly make. It doesn't feel like anything's lack-

Thursday

character when we kiss, but it was good to go to work,' a laughing Kidman told a news conference before the premiere. 'It was hot. Literally hot,' quipped Jackman, referring to the dusty and remote filming locations. With a huge budget, the new film carries high stakes for its largely homegrown team, including director Baz Luhrmann, Kidman and Jackman. Much of the filming took place during the hot and humid summer months in northwestern Australia, on a remote ranch in the Kimberly region and in Darwin, where the characters become caught up in Japan's bombing raids. Luhrmann, director of the colourful, eccentric Moulin Rouge, said he wanted to create a period drama about 'the far away' and, on a more personal level, discover his home. 'We have amazing landscapes and historical events,' Luhrmann said of Australia. 'Epics are made of these things.' The movie is being simultaneously screened in three other Australian cities that were featured in the film - Darwin, Bowen and Kununurra. It opens internationally on Nov. 26, and the country's national and state tourism boards have launched worldwide campaigns in connection with the movie.

PRIME TIME 06:00 - Fashion House; 07:00 - Friday Night Lights; 08:00 Seinfeld; 08:30 - Friends ; 09:00 - How I Met Your Mother; 09:30 - Hope And Faith; 10:00 - Grey’s Anatomy; 11:00 - The Moment Of Truth; 12:00 - Jimmy Kimmel; 13:00 - Shark; 14:00 The Ellen Degeneres Show; 15:00 - Fashion House; 16:00 - Cold Case; 17:00 - Grey’s Anatomy; 18:00 - Friday Night Lights; 19:00 - Friends; 19:30 - Seinfeld; 20:00 - How I Met Your Mother; 21:00 -The Moment Of Truth; 22:00 - Brothers And Sisters; 23:00 Jimmy Kimmel; 00:00 - Friends; 00:30 - Seinfeld; 01:00 - The Simpsons; 01:30 - My Wife And Kids; 02:00 - Grey’s Anatomy; 03:00 - The Ellen Degeneres Show; 04:00 - Cold Case; 05:00 The Simpsons; 05:30 - Kenneth Copeland

4.Naomi Ringa Age: 16 years Height: 5’6 Waist: 26 Chest: 32 Hip: 37 Hobbies: Listening to Music Aim in life: Singer

06:00 - The Jeff Corwin Experience; 07:00 Teleshopping; 08:00 - All New Planet’s Funniest Animals; 08:30 - Lords Of The Animals; 09:00 Life Of Mammals ; 10:00 - All New Planet’s Funniest Animals; 10:30 - Lemur Street; 11:00 - Max’s Big Tracks; 12:00 - Eye Of The Hunter ; 13:00 - Corwin’s Quest; 14:00 - The Jeff Corwin Experience; 15:00 - Planet Wild; 15:30 - Up Close And Dangerous ; 16:00 - Wild Africa ; 17:00 - Life Of Mammals; 18:00 - The Planet’s Funniest Animals; 18:30 - Lords Of The Animals; 19:00 - Max’s Big Tracks; 20:00 - Eye Of The Hunter; 21:00 - Planet Wild; 21:30 - Up Close And Dangerous; 22:00 - Animal Planet Safari; 23:00 - Wild Africa; 00:00 - All New Planet’s Funniest Animals; 00:30 - Lords Of The Animals; 01:00 - Teleshopping; 02:00 - Petsburgh Usa (Ii) ; 03:00 - Monkey Business 8; 04:00 - Petsburgh Usa 06:00 - Telebrands; 07:00 - Animal Camera - Surveillance On Survival ; 07:30amazing Baby Videos ; 08:00 - Planet Earth ; 09:00 - Science Frontiers; 10:00 - Michael Wood: The Story Of India; 11:00 - Mega Builders; 12:00 - India With Sanjeev Bhaskar; 13:00 - Hunters; 14:00 - Michael Wood: The Story Of India; 15:00 -India With Sanjeev Bhaskar; 16:00 - Wild Discovery; 17:00 Mega Builders 2; 18:00 - Wild India; 19:00 - Hunters; 20:00 - Wildest Asia; 21:00 - Life In Cold Blood ; 22:00 - Man Vs. Wild; 23:00 EXtreme Machines Ii ; 00 :00 - Life In Cold Blood; 01:00 - Telebrands; 02:00 -Extreme Machines Ii ; 03:00 - Wild India; 04:00 - Into Alaska With Jeff Corwin ; 05:00 - Extreme Machines Ii 05:05 - Leonard Cohen - I’m Your Man; 06:55 - Bounce; 09:05 Basquiat; 11:10 - Zatôichi; 13:25 Dead Fish; 15:05 - Daltry Calhoun; 17:00 - Scoop; 19:00 - She’s All That; 21:00 - Dragons Forever; 22:55 - Jersey Girl; 01:00 - Basquiat; 02:45 - Daltry Calhoun; 04:20 - The Pallbearer

7.Khrielhouvinuo Belho Age: 18 years Height: 5’4 Waist: 29 Chest: 36 Hip: 39 Hobbies: Reading Aim in life: Lawyer

0:00 - Pak V West Indies -3rd Odi H/L’s; 2:00 - Australian Golf TourNew South Welse Pga Champ Hls; 3:00 - Autralasian Safari; 4:00 - Great Centuries : Mohammad Yousuf- 192; 4:30 - Fifa: Futbol Mundial; 5:00 - Simply The Best; 5:30 - Rugby League World Cup Live: Semi Final 2; 7:30 Motorsport Asia : Asian Festival Of Speed; 8:30 - Icl Hls - Final 3; 9:30 - Pak V West Indies -3rd Odi H/L’s; 11:30 - Dutch League; 13:30 - Australian Golf Tour-New South Welse Pga Champ Hls; 14:30 - Scottish League; 16:30 - WwE: Raw; 18:30 - Sports News; 19:00 - Pak V West Indies -3rd Odi H/L’s; 21:00 - Icl Hls - Final 3; 22:00 - Sportsnight; 22:30 - Wwe: Raw 06:00 - The Making Of Superman Returns; 06:15 - Any Given Sunday ; 09:15 Hollywood’s 10 Best; 09:45 - Days Of Thunder ; 12:00 - Blood Work ; 14:15 Madeas Family Reunion; 16:30 - Message In A Bottle; 19:15 - Living With The Enemy; 21:00 - Black Mask Ii - City Of Masks; 23:00 - Hollow Man Ii ; 00:45 - Forbidden Secrets ; 02:30 - Trespass; 04:00 - Flying Dagger; 05:45 - The Making Of Norbit 05:30 - Modigliani; 07:30 - Infomercial; 08:00 - Black Hawk Down; 11:00 Rushmore; 13:00 - Asterix And Obelix Mission Cleopatra; 14:50 - Turner And Hooch; 17:00 - Hollywoods 10 Best; 17:30 - Stakeout; 20:00 - Epk; 20:15 - The Three Musketeers; 22:30 - Enemy Of The State; 01:45 - Mr Bones; 03:20 - The Defender; 04:45 - Venom

8.Vilasieü Metha Age: 17 years Height: 5’3 Waist: 29 Chest: 32 Hip: 35 Hobbies: Listening to music and chatting with friends Aim in life: Teacher

9.Keneisenuo Rame Age: 20 years Height: 5’5 Waist: 26 Chest: 31 Hip: 34 Hobbies: Listening to music

10.Mhaletuonuo Keditsu Age: 19 years Height: 5’6 Waist: 28 Chest: 31 Hip: 35 Hobbies: Singing and making new friends Aim in life: Model

11.Rokothono Rhutso Age: 19 years Height: 5’3.5 Waist: 29 Chest: 33 Hip: 39 Hobbies: Listening to music and reading books Aim in life: Entrepreneur

6:00am - The 4400; 7:00am - Top Chef; 8:00am - Pushing Daisies; 9:00am - The 4400; 11:00am - Early Edition; 12:00pm - Pirate Master; 1:00pm - Whacked Out Sports; 1:30pm - Whacked Out Sports; 2:00pm - So You Think You Can Dance; 3:00pm - Top Chef; 5:00pm - House (Season 4); 6:00pm - The 4400; 7:00pm - Pushing Daisies; 8:00pm Pirate Master; 9:00pm - Ripley’s Believe It Or Not!; 10:00pm Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles; 11:00pm - 24; 12:00mn - Ripley’s Believe It Or Not!; 1:00am - Terminator: The SArah Connor Chronicles; 2:00am - 24 (Season 6); 3:00am Early Edition; 4:00am - Pushing Daisies; 5:00am - Top Chef

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2ND OPEN VOLLEYBALL C'hip grand ﬁnale today Manipur Police, 33 Assam Rifles, Trinity Club, Seasoned Players in finals

DSO Dimapur informs

KOHIMA, NOVEMBER 19 (MExN): The District Sports Officer Zunheboto has informed all the selected players at the just concluded Half Marathon Race, Dimapur to report at the States’ Sports School Ground, Half Nagarjan, Dimapur on November 20 at 7:00 AM for preparation of the State Level Championship be held at Kohima on December 7.

NSA to take part in 26th Junior National Softball C’ship DIMAPUR, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): The Nagaland Softball Association (NSA) will be taking part in the 26th Junior National Softball Championship to be held at Jawaralal Nehru Stadium, Hanamkonda, Andhra Pradesh from December 17 to 22. Coaching camp for the championship will start on December 1. Therefore, all interested players who want to take part in the championship are asked to contact the District association Coach. Selected players from the coaching camp will take part in the championship and necessary expenditure for the championship will be done by the association, stated a release issued by T.Alem Aier, General Secretary NSA.

Brazil ace Ronaldo could retire

Our Correspondent Kohima | November 19

THE GRAND finale of the 2nd Open Volleyball Championship 2008 (Men & Women) under the aegis of Kohima District Volleyball Association will take place on November 20 at Kohima Local Ground at 1:30 pm. In men event, Manipur Police will clash with 33rd Assam Rifles, Phek in finals scheduled at 1:30 pm. 33rd Assam Rifles entered the finals after deafening Longsa Sporting Club 25, 25, 25- 17, 19, 21 in the first semi finals while Manipur Police downed Creep-

dle

ers Club 25, 25, 25- 15, 16, 19 in the second semi finals to moved into the finals. In women event, Trinity Club, Poumai will clash with Seasoned Players, Chakhesang in finals. Seasoned Players moved to the finals after overpowering Lamkamg Snulup, Dimapur 25, 25, 26- 22, 15, 24 in the first semi finals while Trinity Club entered the finals after defeating Shark Club 25, 25, 27- 16, 17, 25 in the second semi finals. The third place for both men and women events will take place at 12:00 noon. An exhibition match between Kohima District Volleyball

Association and Botsa catering group has been fixed at 11:00 am. Dr. Nicky Kire, MLA and chairman Khadi &Village Industries Board will grace the closing ceremony as the guest of honour. The programme will be compered by senior journalist Xavier Rutsa while Pastor Zakiezokho Nisa, Peraciezie Baptist Church Kohima will said invocation prayer. Special number will be presented by Aduonuo and friends while vote of thanks will be tendered by Visasielie Suhu, Convenor, Organizing Committee.

MILAN, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Former Brazil striker Ronaldo admits he could retire rather than prolong his career after fighting back from another serious knee injury. The 32-year-old, who left AC Milan last June, made his comeback in a charity match in Morocco earlier this week. "I don't know if I will continue to play or if I will retire," he told Gazzetta dello Sport. "I have not taken a decision yet. I am in no hurry to make a decision. I want to complete my recovery." The three-time world player of the year had spent nine months on the sidelines after rupturing a tendon in his left knee while playing for AC Milan in February. His contract with Milan expired on 30 June and he has been training with Brazilian outfit Flamengo in an effort to return to full fitness. The former Barcelona, Real Madrid and Inter Milan striker turned down an offer to join Italian side Siena earlier this month and admits doubts remain over whether he will make a comeback. "I could decide tomorrow or in a month's time what to do, but I still don't know," he said. "It was beautiful to return to play because football is my life but it was just an exhibition as I only played for 22 minutes. Professional football is a different issue." AC Milan's technical director Leonardo told BBC Sport that Ronaldo would "go down in football history as one of the world's greatest-ever players". The Brazilian said he had been in regular contact with his compatriot since he left Milan in June. "We are very good friends and Milan also still have a very good relationship with Ronaldo," Leonardo added. "At the moment, he is deciding everything. He has to complete the treatment and get fit - then he can make a decision."

Andrew Symonds named in Australia side Gavaskar was no angel in his playing days: Ponting BRISBANE, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Australia will bring back Andrew Symonds into the team for the first Test against New Zealand on Thursday. Symonds was sent home from Australia's series against Bangladesh in August for skipping a team meeting to go fishing, but he will return in Brisbane. "When he was deemed fit and ready to go, it was important we got Symo back in," said captain Ricky Ponting.With Peter Siddle already sent home, either allarounder Shane Watson or spinner Jason Krejza will be 12th man. "It would be desperately unlucky whoever misses out," added Ponting. "Krejza has taken 12 wickets in the last Test match he's played and at different times through the Indian series Shane Watson was probably our best bowler. "But Symo being a senior

member of our team, and a very successful member of our team before he went out of it, it almost becomes like an injury-type replacement. He's been out for a couple of months but he's fit and ready to go now so he deserves his spot back in the side." Australia will be hoping to bounce back after their 2-0 series defeat in India, with a three-Test series against South Africa starting in December. New Zealand are confident both wicket-keeper Brendon McCullum (back and foot) and batsman Jesse Ryder (virus) will recover in time to take their places in the Black Caps' side. They called up Peter Fulton and Gareth Hopkins as cover in case the duo failed fitness tests and were deemed unavailable for the Gabba, but both should play. Skipper Daniel Vettori has told his inexperienced batsmen they must make at least

300 in their first innings if they are to put any pressure on the hosts. "It's something we've been crying out for, for a long, long time, trying to get our top six past the 300mark," said Vettori. "Unless you do that, you have no chance against Australia. It's asking a lot from inexperienced guys, but I think we have the talent to do it." Australia (from): Ricky Ponting (capt), Matthew Hayden, Simon Katich, Mike Hussey, Michael Clarke, Andrew Symonds, Brad Haddin, Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson, Stuart Clarke, Jason Krejza, Shane Watson. New Zealand (from): Daniel Vettori (capt), Aaron Redmond, Jamie How, Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum, Daniel Flynn, Grant Elliott, Iain O'Brien, Kyle Mills, Chris Martin, Tim Southee.

MELBOURNE, NOVEMBER 19 (AGENCIES): Ricky Ponting has lashed out at legendary Indian Sunil Gavaskar and other former players for often blaming the Australian team for on-field confrontations, saying the Indian opener was not an angel during his playing days. "I know that over the past 10 years, probably longer, a notion has developed that the Australian team walks out onto the field intent on getting in faces and having a few words... Unfortunately, as soon as a spectator or a commentator spots one of my team chipping on opponent, they assume it is a pre-meditated attack," Ponting said. "The most laughable aspect is when I hear former players complaining, as though they never put a toe out of line in their day. "I still have a vivid image of Sunil Gavaskar angrily trying to take his opening partner off the MCG with him in 1981 when he was given

out lbw in a Test match, but to hear him today you'd think he was positively angelic when he was the best opening batsman in the world," he wrote in his 'Captain's Diary 2008'. Ponting said he was disappointed by the hypocrisy of former cricketers who never kept the standards in their hey-days but were demanding the same from his team. "In the four or five days after the Sydney Test... inevitably, some ex-players -- mostly the usual suspects --were into us, and I found their hypocrisy extremely disappointing. They were demanding standards from us that they had never kept themselves when they were Test stars. "The classic came when Tony Grieg suggested that the batsmen of today should be walking to make it easier for the umpires. This was coming from a bloke who in his day made a virtue out of not walking. "I always presumed that explayers are employed by media

outlets because their experience gives them a rare insight into the pressure elite cricketers are under and the way we think, but it seems to me that many of them forget about their past lives the minute they are handed a press pass. Ponting also took a dig at just retired Indian captain Anil Kumble, saying his comment 'only one team was playing within the spirit of the game' after the Sydney Test was borrowed from a former Australian skipper Bill Woodfull. "I'm not sure how extensive Anil's knowledge of cricket history is, but -- as was picked up immediately by reporters -- his comments echoed those made by Australian captain Bill Woodfull during the acrimonious bodyline series of 1932-33. "'There are two teams out there, one is trying to play cricket and the other is not', Woodfull had said to English managers during the third Test of that series," he said.

India can be world beaters: Vangipurappu Laxman

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Indian cricket coach Gary Kirsten, left, speaks to cricketers, from second left, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli during a practice session before the third one-day international cricket match between India and England in Kanpur on November 19. (AP Photo)

MUMBAI, NOVEMBER 19 (REUTERS): The emergence of Ishant Sharma as strike force and the resurgence of Zaheer have given India's bowling the edge and made the team potential world beaters, senior test batsman Vangipurappu Laxman said. Wiry fast bowler Sharma took 15 wickets and his new ball partner Zaheer took 11 on docile home pitches this month to record battingheavy India's first test-series victory over top-ranked Australia in seven years. "We'd never seen such kind of bowling on flat Indian pitches by Indian pacers...," Laxman told Reuters in an interview. "The two contributed to half of the dismissals. That's been huge as we have always relied heavily on our spinners," said the wristy 34-year-

old batsman, who became the eighth Indian to play in 100 tests during the series. The 2-0 victory in the four-match series saw India move to second place in the official test rankings. Thirteen points separate them from Australia. Ishant was adjudged player of the series versus Australia but missed the first two one-dayers against England on Friday and Monday with an ankle injury. India play two home tests against the tourists next month. The seasoned Zaheer and the 20-year-old Ishant struck early blows and then troubled Australian batsmen by reverse-swinging the old ball, backing mainline spinners Harbhajan Singh, Amit Mishra and Anil Kumble, who tallied 32 between them.

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