23 nov 13 nlm

New Light of Myanmar

THE MOST RELIABLE NEWSPAPER AROUND YOU Volume XXI, Number 221

6thWaning of Tazaungmon 1375 ME

Saturday, 23 November, 2013

President U Thein Sein attends ceremony to lay cornerstones for the place where the Buddha attained Nibbana

Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—A ceremony to lay cornerstones for construction of the place where the Buddha attained Nibbana was held at the four Samvejaniya places in Ottarathiri Township, here, this morning. Also present on the occasion were members of the Sangha led by Chairman of State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee Presiding Nayaka Sayadaw of Bhamo Monestary in Mandalay Abhidhaja Maha Rattha Guru Abhidhaja Agga Maha Saddhammajotika Dr. Bhaddanta Kumarabhivamsa, President U Thein Sein, Vice-Presidents Dr Sai Mauk Kham and U Nyan Tun, Chief Justice of the Union U Tun Tun Oo, Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Senior

General Min Aung Hlaing, Deputy Commanderin-Chief of Defence Services Commander-in-Chief (Army) Vice Senior-General Soe Win, Chairman of Constitutional Tribunal of the Union U Mya Thein, the Union ministers, the Chief of the General Staff (Army, Navy and Air), senior military officers, the deputy ministers, members of Nay Pyi Taw Council, departmental heads and wellwishers.

The congregation led by the President received the Nine Precepts from Agga Maha Saddhammajotikadaja Bhaddanta Kusala, Vice-Chairman of the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee Abbot of Manawhari Monestary in Hleseik Model Village in Htantabin

Township, Yangon Region at Sasana Beikman.

After that, the President offered gems casket, bronze plaque, stone plaque, golden brick, jade bricks and offertories to the SSMNC Chairman Sayadaw.

Then, the Vice-Presidents and the congregation presented offertories to the Sayadaws and 17 wellwishers donated over K 165.8 million for construction of the four Samvejaniya places. A total of 130 donors presented over K 273.4 million at today’s ceremony (See page 9)

President U Thein Sein lays cornerstones for place where the Buddha attained Nibbana. mna

Ngwehsaung ready for SEA Games yachting event Now is the time when monsoon is going to end and winter is approaching.

Now I am in a room of Emerald Sea Resort hotel fronting the sea in Ngwehsaung. I felt fresh cool wind passing through the sea and saw row after row of sea waves reaching the beach.

Ngwehsaung is a natural scenery beach. It is situated in Pathein District of Ayeyawady Region

and it is 114 miles from Yangon. With nine miles in length, Ngwehsaung is the longest coastal beach in Myanmar. The government opened Ngwehsuang beach resort in 2000 and now it has 20 hotels with 1000 rooms in total, hosting around half a million local and foreign visitors a year.

Thanks to its transformation to a recreational beach since last 13 year, the seaside

village was upgraded into a town with necessary infrastructures in education and health and a 16-bedded hospital, a high school and concrete roads emerged.

As one of sports venues for the upcoming the 27th SEA Games, Ngwehsaung beach will be served as SEA Game’s yachting event. All hotel rooms and reserve rooms are ready to host 25 VVIPs and VIPs from Myanmar,

Byline and photo: Kayan Soe Myint Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysial, Singapore and the Philippines, 20 referees and judges at Aureum Palace Hotel and media persons, observers and athletes at Aureum Palace Hotel, Bay of Bengal Resort Hotel, Yuzana Hotel, Myanmar Treasure Hotel and Sunny Paradise Hotel, Central Hotel, Ocean Paradise Hotel and Yamonar Oo Hotel. Room fees and food prices determined by the government will be charged there, U Aung Thaik, vice-chairman of Ngwehsaung Hotelier Association, said.

All in all, Ngwehsaung is ready to host the SEA Games yachting event, making the visitors known not only Myanmar’s natural beauty but also hospitability of its people.

Myanma Alinn: 22-11-2013 Trs: YM

ESIA report on Latpadaungtaung copper mining project to be made public soon Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov — A committee to implement the report of the investigation commission on Latpadaungtaung copper mining project held a three-day session at Mount Pleasant Hotel, here, from 19 to 21 November to explain an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) (draft) compiled by Knight Picsold Pty.Ltd in accord with the commission's report to an environmental conservation team and officials of ministries concerned.

At the session on 19 November, Deputy Minister for Mines U Than Tun Aung, leader of environmental conservation team, stressed the need for

greater transparency while implementing the mining project without harming the environment and socioeconomy of local people and to implement the project in accord with the international standards as it is a project serving the interests of the country and its people as well as the next generation. He also called for coordination and collaboration between the organizations.

Next, M. Brett Loney, expert of Knight Picsold Pty. Ltd, gave the accounts of ESIA report, environmental management plan, social management plan, evaluation and monitoring process and those present held discussions on the draft report.

(See page 9)

Storm News According to the observations at (15:30) hrs MST today, the severe cyclonic storm “Helen” over West Central Bay of

Bengal downgraded into cyclonic storm and has crossed Andhra Pradesh coast near Machillipatnam, India.

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Saturday, 23 November, 2013

New Light of Myanmar LOCAL NEWS

Self-reliant electrification undertaken in rural areas of Yaksawk, Pindaya Alechaung Village located in Kaungboh Village-tract of Yaksawk Township in Taunggyi Township, Shan State (South), is now enjoying electricity on a self-reliant basis as of 20 November.

Taunggyi, 22 Nov— Chief Minister of Shan State U Sao Aung Myat switched on the supply of electricity for Alechaung Village.

Shan State Minister for Electricity and Industry U Sai Tun Yin, Pyithu Hluttaw MP U Khin Maung Myint, Shan State Electrical Engineer U Thein Htay, Managing Director U Ohn Myint of Maga Myint Co and village electrification committee U Aung Than Po opened the ceremony.

The Chief Minister made an opening address.

The state minister explained electrification matters.

The chairman of village electrification committee presented commemorative pennants to the Chief Minister and officials.

On arrival at Mongin Village of Pindaya, Danu Self-Administered Zone,

Chief Minister of Shan State U Sao Aung Myat views devices and equipment used in development tasks of rural areas in townships of Shan State. the Chief Minister heard reports on electrification of three village-tracts presented Chairman of the committee U Tin Shwe.

Cash assistance provided to schools in Hsipaw H sipaw , 22 Nov—A ceremony to donate cash to the education fund was held at the hall of Township General Administration Department on 20 November.

Chairman of Township Development Supportive Committee U Aung Khin made a speech.

Deputy Township

Education Officer U Tun Htaik explained academic matters.

On behalf of the wellwishers, U Yan Tin Chan explained purpose of donation and presented K 2 million to Township Development Supportive Committee and K 2.3 million to the schools through officials.

Chairman of the Leading Committee of the Danu Self-Administered Zone U Htoo Ko Ko and the State minister reported

Education In memory of late U Yan Chun Pha, the wellwishers donated cash to monasteries, Sitagu free eye hospital, health and social tasks.

The ceremony was attended by the deputy township administrator and officials, members of the school boards of trustees and school heads and guests.

Kyemon-Myo Myint

Poverty Alleviation

Loans disbursed to vendors by Hsipaw DAD H s i p a w , 22 Nov— Hsipaw Township Development Affairs Department manages Rural Development Bank to disburse loans to vendors.

The third time disbursement for the vendors was held at the town hall in Hsipaw on 20 November.

Chairman of Township Development Affairs Committee U Aung Khin made a speech. Chairman of Microfinance Service Committee Executive Office U Sai Win Myint of Township Development Affairs Committee explained matters related to loans.

Next, the executive

officer issued K 16.4 million to 63 vendors.

On behalf of the vendors, Vendor Committee member

U Zaw Min Htaik spoke words of thanks.

Kyemon-Hsipaw Ko Latt

on arrangments for ensuring electrification in the region.

The Chief Minister gave instructions on supply of electricity to

Mongin Village of Pindaya Township.

While in Pindaya, the Chief Minister and party looked into progress of

Electrification Border Region National Races Youth Development Training School (Pindaya) being built by Danu Thawda Group of Companies.

Staff Officer U Naing Win Aung of Rural Development Department reported on matters related to the building.

They also viewed construction of staff quarters of Department of Human Settlement and Housing Development and heard reports on progress of apartment buildings by Taunggyi District Senior Engineer U Kyaw Thiha of Public Works.

They also visited Pindaya Township People’s Hospital and presented cash assistance to patients.

Head of Township Health Department Dr Than Min Htut explained on ECG machine and other facilities.

After viewing round the hospital, the Chief Minister looked into x-ray room.

Kyemon-Innthalay

Rural health centre handed over in Nyaunglebin Construction Nyaunglebin, 22 Nov—Japanese government and people donated one-storey building of rural health centre, 70 feet long and 50 feet wide in Yedwingon Village of Nyaunglebin Township.

The facility was put into service on 15 November.

Bago Region Minister for Kayin National Race Affairs U Saw Jubilee San Hla and Pyithu Hluttaw MP U Soe Myint made speeches.

Head of Bago Region Health Department Dr Nay Myo Ohn explained future tasks of the rural health centre.

Third Secretary of

Japanese Embassy Miss Tokunaga explained the purpose of donation. Officials of Johne Engineering Co Ltd handed over documents related to the building to Head of Township Health Department Dr Khin Zaw.

The region minister presented gifts and certificate of honour to the Japanese third secretary.

The brick nogging building was built at a cost of K 90 million.

Nay Lin (Nyaunglebin)

Census taking process explained in Mingin Tsp Mingin, 22 Nov—An educative talks was given at the Dhammayon of Kyaynin Village monastery in Mingin Township of Sagaing Region on 18 November.

The Kyaynin Village administrator made a speech.

Head of Township Information and Public Relations Department Daw Htay Su Hlaing explained raising of reading habit and development of human resources, 41 points in taking

census to be undertaken across the nation in 2014.

Assistant Head of Township Immigration and National Registration Department Daw Aye Aye Mon explained population, housholds and laws.

U Muang Maung Soe of village development supportive committee spoke words of thanks.

The talks was attended by local people from Kyaynin, Htanngechaung,

HRD Thebokkya and Linpadan villages of Kyaynin Villagetract in Mingin Township, totalling 155.

The talks was jointly organized by Township Information and Public Relations Department and Township Immigration and National Registration Department.

Kyemon-Chindwin Thar

New Light of Myanmar

Saturday, 23 November, 2013

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WORLD

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban (far L) and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (far R) hold talks at Abe’s office in Tokyo on 21 Nov, 2013.

Kyodo News

sent to Busuanga in the western Philippine Province of Palawan. Johnson said the Philippine government needs help considering the massive reconstruction work that needs to be undertaken.—Reuters

Beijing, 22 Nov — North Korea said on Thursday it plans to set up 13 economic zones as part of its efforts to attract more foreign investment.

The zones, which will offer preferential treatment such as tax breaks, are planned to be established in wide areas in North Korea, including Chongjin in North Hamgyong Province and Wonsan in Kangwon Province, according to the plan released by the country’s official Korean Central News Agency.

Kyodo News

Qingdao, 22 Nov— An explosion in a Sinopec Corp oil pipeline killed 22 people in Qingdao in eastern China on Friday, causing a blaze that took several hours to bring under control and halting the city’s port, state media and ship brokers said.

The explosion in the underground pipeline caused a huge hole to appear in the roadway above and state television showed a truck that had fallen into it, with a residential apartment block in the background.

The local government

said on its microblog that the blast happened at 10:30 a.m. (0230 GMT) as workers were trying to repair leaks in the pipeline. It said oil had spilled into the port, which had also caught fire.

Ship brokers said Qingdao oil terminal had stopped operations.

Qingdao is one of China’s largest crude oil import terminals, supplying at least two major Sinopec refineries -- the Qingdao plant and Sinopec Qilu Petrochemical Corp -- as well as many small, independent refineries.

Reuters

Typhoon Haiyan, earthquake render 5.2 million Filipino workers jobless Manila, 22 Nov— Around 5.2 million workers are now jobless after an earthquake and typhoon Haiyan, locally named “ Yolanda,” struck central Philippines, the International Labour Organization (ILO) said on Friday.

ILO Country Director for the Philippines Lawrence Jeff Johnson said many of these workers are at risk of losing their livelihoods permanently.

“As of today, over 5.2 million workers were affected and have lost their livelihoods either temporarily or permanently. This is close to the entire population of Singapore,” Johnson said in a statement.

He noted that even before the typhoon battered the central Philippines, 2.3 million workers in “vulnerable” employment are

already living in poverty— accepting or creating whatever work is available in order to survive.

“However, this is not just a matter of numbers.

We talk about people living in uncertainty,” Johnson said. He called for the need to increase funding for programs aimed at increasing livelihood. The ILO is currently coordinating with the Philippine government in the implementation of an emergency employment programme in areas severely affected by typhoon Haiyan. Johnson said ILO has deployed six teams to Tacloban City in Leyte, Roxas City in Panay, Northern Cebu, Negros Occidental, and Bohol in central Philippines which was struck by a 7.2-magnitude earthquake on 15 Oct. An ILO team has also been

Riga, 22 Nov— Rescue services said on Friday that 32 people had died after the roof of a supermarket collapsed in the capital, Riga, the previous day.

“Up to 6 am (local time) 12 people have been found dead, three of them were state fire and rescue service officials,” Latvian

rescue services spokeswoman Viktorija Sembele said.

“Overall eight firefighters have been injured,” Sembele said.

The roof of the building collapsed around 6 pm on Thursday. Firefighters who responded were caught in another collapse.

Reuters

Rescue services say 32 dead after Latvia supermarket roof collapse

N Korea to set up 13 economic zones to attract foreign investment

Sinopec oil pipeline blast kills 22 in eastern China

Smoke rises after a pipeline explosion in Huangdao, Qingdao, Shandong Province 22 Nov, 2013.—Reuters

Photo released by Press Information Department (PID) on 21 Nov, 2013, shows Pakistani Prime Minister meeting with Salahuddin Rabani (L), head of Afghan High Peace Council, in Islamabad, capital of Pakistan. Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif assured the visiting Afghan High Peace Council President that his government will fully support the peace efforts in Afghanistan, reported local media here on Thursday. —Xinhua

US military to deploy latest equipments in Asia-pacific region Seoul, 22 Nov—The US military is deploying the newest and best equipment, weapons and human resources into the Asia-Pacific region to fight against regional security threats, indicating the region’s immensely importance to the interests of the United States, US Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Harry B Harris said here on Friday.

Harris, who was promoted to admiral and assumed command of the US Pacific Fleet in October 2013, paid his first visit to South Korea following his trip to Japan.

“We are putting the best equipment we have forward in the Pacific before we send them anywhere else,” Yonhap news agency quoted Harris as saying.

The admiral said the US Navy will soon replace the P-3C Orion with the

newest maritime patrol aircraft, the P-8A Poseidon, for its first deployment in Japan.

Besides, the DDG1000 Zumwalt-class stealth destroyer will join in the Pacific Fleet and the Littoral Combat Ship will rotate near Singapore. MH-60 maritime helicopters and Virginia-class attack submarines in Hawaii are also on the list of latest weapons.

Harris called this move as a “physical manifestation” and said the US government’s budget cut on the military policy will not affect its rebalance commitment toward Asia and the Pacific.

“Maintaining stability, peace and prosperity is what the US rebalance to the Pacific is all about. And a key component to that policy is strengthening our regional alliances and partnerships,” said Harris.—Xinhua

Japan MSDF relief ship arrives near typhoon-hit island in Philippines

A firefighter watches the rescue operation at the site of the collapsed Maxima supermarket in Riga on 21 Nov, 2013.—Reuters

Cebu, (Philippines), 22 Nov — A Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force vessel carrying the bulk of SDF personnel to join emergency response and relief operations teams in the typhoon-hit Philippines arrived Friday near the worst-

hit island of Leyte.

Cmdr. Takashi Inoue, deputy director of public affairs for the MSDF, told reporters that the Ise escort vessel has arrived at Leyte Gulf carrying the majority of the 1,180 SDF personnel sent to the Philippines in

addition to relief goods.

Japan has sent a total of three vessels to the Philippines, with the Osumi transport vessel and Towada supply vessel expected to arrive in Leyte shortly.

The ships will be used to provide medical services

and transport relief supplies. The death toll from Typhoon Haiyan has risen to over 4,000 with thousands reported missing, and hundreds of thousands of people displaced, mainly in the central part of the country.—Kyodo News

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New Light of Myanmar

Saturday, 23 November, 2013

S c ie nc e & Te ch no l o g y

Microsoft sues Acacia over smartphone patents New York, 22 Nov — Microsoft Corp filed a lawsuit against Acacia Research Corp on Wednesday, charging that Acacia broke a contract to license various smartphone and mobile computing technologies to Microsoft. The lawsuit, filed under seal in New York federal court, follows a number of patent infringement lawsuits brought by Acacia subsidi-

aries against Microsoft in October in Texas, Delaware and Illinois.

In 2010, Microsoft agreed to pay an Acacia subsidiary to license a portfolio of patents related to smartphones and tablets ultimately owned by Tokyo-based web browser firm Access Co. In October, various Acacia subsidiaries filed lawsuits against Microsoft, charging that the

software company had infringed more than a dozen patents.

Microsoft’s lawsuit is a response to those actions, but further details were unavailable as the lawsuit was sealed. “Acacia’s lawsuits are the worst kind of abusive litigation behavior, attempting to extract payment based on litigation tactics and not the value of its patents,” said David Howard,

Microsoft’s deputy general counsel, in an emailed statement. A representative for Acacia did not immediately return a call seeking comment.—Reuters A Nokia Lumia 820 smartphone with Microsoft logo on the screen is shown in a photo illustration taken in the central Bosnian town of Zenica, on 3 Sept, 2013.

Reuters

Vodafone open to higher network spending after two-year boost

Barcelona, 22 Nov — Vodafone is open to keeping network spending above its traditional levels once its two-year booster programme has ended if it needs to respond to customer demand and competitor moves, its chief executive said. Vodafone, the world’s No 2 mobile operator, said this month that it would spend an extra 7 billion pounds ($11.3 billion) on its network in the next two years to put it in pole position for when the economy recovers.

The British group usually spends about 6 billion pounds a year on its network but Chief Executive Vittorio Colao told a Morgan Stanley conference in Barcelona that he could keep spending higher — or reduce it — de-

Vodafone branding is seen on the side of a London taxi in London on 12 Nov, 2013.—Reuters pending on how his compet- (after the two years). Also itors respond. “We are con- if tomorrow there is a new vinced that this is the right macro crisis ... and we think moment, to be very strong this (investment) was necesin two years time is the sary for four years down the right thing to do,” he said. road and not two years, then “Our current plan is to do a we could go lower.” big boost then return to the “It is, if you want, a normal level. “But we could big tap that we can open come down at a higher level and close to some extent.”

Dueling dinosaur fossils fail to sell at New York auction New York, 22 Nov — Fossils of two dinosaurs locked in a death match failed to sell at auction on Tuesday despite predictions they would fetch a record $9 million. The top bid for the dinosaur fossils was $5.5 million and did not meet the reserve price, Bonhams auction house said. Pre-sale estimates had been $7 million to $9 million.

The dueling dinosaurs, which were discovered in Montana in 2006, were two The skeleton of a Nanotyrannus lancensis is displayed as part of the ‘’Montana Dueling Dinosaurs & Distinguished Fossils’’ collection at Bonhams auction house in New York, on 14 Nov, 2013.

Reuters

of the most well-preserved dinosaur remains ever unearthed and included pieces of skin, Bonhams said. One of the skeletons belongs to a ceratopsian, which is similar to a triceratops, but there is debate about its opponent.

Scientists are unsure if the second animal is a juvenile Tyrannosaurus Rex or a new species. The remains could help settle the question.

The most expensive dinosaur fossil ever sold at auction is a Tyrannosaurus

Rex skeleton named Sue, which fetched $8.3 million in 1997. Thomas Lindgren, co-consulting director of natural history for Bonhams, said he is confident that the dueling dinos will sell in the future. “I’ve had museums mention that they had difficulty coming up with the funds this quickly.

But should the lot not sell, which of course occurred, they want us to be in negotiations immediately,” Lindgren said.—Reuters

Strong growth in data consumption by smartphones, tablets and other devices means network quality is becoming more important in the fight to win and keep customers. Vodafone believes an expected economic recovery in its core markets of Europe in a few years time will coincide with an increase in the amount of data consumers want to use, making network quality a big factor in how customers choose which operator they take.

With that in mind, Vodafone has decided to plough some of the proceeds from the $130 billion sale of its stake in US company Verizon Wireless into infrastructure in a programme called Project Spring.

Reuters

Panasonic to launch fewer digital cameras in fiscal 2014 Bangalore, 22 Nov — Japanese consumer electronics firm Panasonic Corp will launch about five compact digital cameras next year, half of this year’s number, as it looks to return the business to profitability by fiscal 2014, the Nikkei reported.

Panasonic has been shifting its focus to products for businesses, such as automotive systems and housing fixtures, as it steps back from struggling operations in TVs and other consumer gadgets.

The new cameras, with features such as high-magnification zoom, will cost at least 30,000 yen ($300). Panasonic will focus on mirrorless single-lens models,

the business daily said.

The company expects its digital camera business to report losses for the second straight year, Nikkei said. Global digital camera sales will likely fall by more than 2 million units this fiscal year to about 4 million, the newspaper reported.

Reuters

A man browses a Panasonic camera at an electronics shop in Tokyo on 10 May, 2012. —Reuters

Frog named after Darwin croaks its last

A Rhinoderma darwinii frog is seen in an undated handout photo from the Zoological Society of London.

A frog named after Charles Darwin has gone extinct because of a deadly amphibian skin disease, scientists believe. —Reuters London, 22 Nov—A frog named after Charles Darwin has gone extinct because of a deadly amphibian skin disease, scientists believe. Darwin’s frogs were named after the father of evolution, who discovered them in 1834 in Chile during his voyage around the world on the ship HMS Beagle.

They are notable for having evolved to escape predators by looking like a dead leaf, with a pointy nose, and the fact that the males carry young tadpoles around inside their vocal sacs.

Researchers think the northern Darwin’s frog, one of two species, has been killed off completely

by a fungal disease called chytridiomycosis that infects their skin. Numbers of the related southern species have plunged dramatically.

An analysis into the spread of the disease by a team from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and Chile’s Universidad Andres Bello found that habitat loss contributed to the decline, but this alone could not explain the animal’s demise.

“Only a few examples of the ‘extinction by infection’ phenomenon exist,” said Andrew Cunningham, from ZSL’s Institute of Zoology. “Although not entirely conclusive, the possibility of chytridiomycosis being associated with the extinction of the northern Darwin’s frog gains further support with this study.” The scientists’ findings were published online on Wednesday in the journal PLOS ONE. Reuters

New Light of Myanmar

Eating nuts makes people live longer Washington, 22 Nov —People who ate a daily handful of nuts were 20 percent less likely to die from any cause than those who didn’t consume nuts, a US study said on Wednesday.

The research, published in the US journal New England Journal of Medicine, also found regular nut-eaters were more slender than those who didn’t eat nuts, which would alleviate the widespread worry that eating a lot of nuts will lead to overweight.

“The most obvious benefit was a reduction of 29 percent in deaths from heart disease — the major killer of people in America, “ Charles Fuchs, senior author and director of the Gastrointestinal Cancer Center at DanaFarber Cancer Institute, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, said in a statement. “But we also saw a significant reduction — 11 percent — in the risk of dying from cancer,” added Fuchs, who is also affiliated with the Channing Division of Network Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. It couldn’t be determined whether any specific type of nuts was

crucial to the protective effect, said the researchers.

However, the reduction in mortality was similar both for peanuts and for “ tree nuts” including walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, Brazil nuts, macadamias, pecans, cashews, pistachios and pine nuts.

Several previous studies have found an association between increasing nut consumption and a lower risk of diseases such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, colon cancer, gallstones, and diverticulitis. Higher nut consumption also has been linked to reductions in cholesterol levels, oxidative stress, inflammation, adiposity, and insulin resistance. Some small studies have linked increased nuts in the diet to lower total mortality in specific populations. But no previous research studies had looked in such details at various levels of nut consumption and their effects on overall mortality in a large population that was followed for more than 30 years, the researchers said.In the new research, the researchers looked at the association of nut consumption with total and cause-specific mortal-

B US INE S S & H E A L TH

ity among 76,464 women between 1980 and 2010 in the Nurses’ Health Study and 42,498 men from 1986 to 2010 in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study.

Participants in the studies filled out detailed food questionnaires every two to four years. With each food questionnaire, participants were asked to estimate how often they consumed nuts in a serving size of one ounce.

A typical small packet of peanuts from a vending machine contains one ounce (about 28 grams).

“In all these analyses, the more nuts people ate, the less likely they were to die over the 30-year followup period,” said Ying Bao, of Brigham and Women’s

Children at risk of AIDS should be tested at birth — UN

A nurse takes blood for a free HIV test on the National Day of HIV-AIDS testing in San Salvador on 25 June, 2010.—Reuters Geneva, 22 Nov — epidemic, yet 260,000 babies More than a quarter of a mil- joined their ranks last year, lion children each year are mainly in sub-Saharan Afborn infected with the virus rica, he said. “Irrespective that causes AIDS, but too of the market size we need few are being tested early to to make sure that diagnostics receive treatment and pro- are made available for chillong their lives, the United dren,” he told a news conNations said on Wednesday. ference in Geneva ahead of Michele Sidibe, executive World AIDS Day on 1 Dedirector of UNAIDS, called cember. “We made a lot of for diagnostic kits to be im- progress during the last 2-3 proved for detection in ba- years in terms of treatment, bies of the Human Immuno- in terms of medicines, in deficiency Virus (HIV) that terms of making sure that the causes AIDS, and for their molecules are more well-tar“still high” current price of geted for children. But where $25-50 to be brought down. we are failing is also making Children are the “for- early diagnostics.” gotten” victims of the AIDS US-based Abbott Labo-

ratories and Swiss drugmaker Roche are among the main manufacturers of HIV diagnostics, according to senior UNAIDS officials. Some 3.3 million children under age 15 have HIV, but only 1.9 million of them require treatment today, according to the Geneva-based agency. Fewer than 650,000 or 34 percent of the 1.9 million received antiretroviral AIDS drugs in 2012, still a rise of 14 percent from the year before, it said.

Some 14 million adults with HIV need treatment, and 9 million of them or 64 percent are receiving it, a far higher coverage rate than for children.

UNAIDS has identified 22 priority countries for stopping infections in children, 21 of them in sub-Saharan Africa, home to 90 percent of women living with HIV. The other is India. In three of these priority countries— Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo and Malawi - fewer than 5 percent of infants at risk are being tested for HIV at birth, UNAIDS says.

Reuters

Hospital, the first author of the report. Those who ate nuts less than once a week had a seven percent reduction in mortality; once a week, 11 percent reduction; two to four times per week, 13 percent reduction; five to six times per week, 15 percent reduction, and seven or more times a week, a 20 percent reduction in death rate.

The researchers noted that this large study cannot definitively prove the cause and effect but the findings are strongly consistent with “a wealth of existing observational and clinical trial data to support health benefits of nut consumption on many chronic diseases.”—Xinhua

Saturday, 23 November, 2013

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IMF urges Australia to scrutinize property investment lending Sydney, 22 Nov —The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that the Australian housing market could “overshoot” due to recent jump in house prices and growing investor expectations. In its latest report card on the Australian economy released on Thursday, the IMF suggested the Australian authorities take preventative actions to ensure banks take a more conservative approach to mortgage lending.

“Attention should be paid to the risk — as in any situation where asset price inflation accelerates — that a prolonged period of rapid price growth could give rise to expectations-driven, self- reinforcing demand

dynamics and price overshooting,” the IMF said in the report. “A sudden house price decline, were it to occur —possibly triggered by a shock to household incomes and borrowing costs — could reduce consumer confidence and impact overall economic activity.

“The authorities would need to be prepared to take preventative actions if household credit growth, transactions volume, and prices accelerate.” The IMF said features of the Australian regulatory and supervisory approach to property lending would help to limit the impact of a sharp decline in house prices on the financial system.

Xinhua

Honda unveils nameless car, says fuel cell drive to take time Los Angeles, 22 Nov — Honda Motor Co Ltd (7267.T) has high hopes for its hydrogen fuel cell vehicle and its advanced technology to reduce tailpipe emissions, although the Japanese carmaker concedes consumers may take a few years to warm to the concept. Honda unveiled the 5-passenger vehicle at the Los Angeles Auto Show on Wednesday. It doesn’t have a name, for now, and is referred to simply by the acronym for a fuel cell electric vehicle — the ‘FCEV Concept’.The fuel

cell vehicle is expected to launch in the United States and Japan in 2015, but the odds are the car won’t make an appearance in most US showrooms until well beyond that year.

Adoption of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles has been stunted by their high price and a lack of investment in fueling infrastructure. There are currently just 10 public hydrogen fueling stations in the United States, according to the US Department of Energy.”The beginning of the launch, the timing of 2015, I don’t think we will

The Honday FCEV Concept vehicle is pictured during the 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show in Los Angeles, California on 20 Nov, 2013.—Reuters

have a big volume,” Tetsuo Iwamura, chief executive of Honda’s US business, told reporters at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Higher volumes will come gradually, he said.Honda did not say how much it expects the vehicle to cost.”This type of technology can’t happen immediately across the US,” he added, saying adoption of fuel cell vehicles would likely begin to grow in small markets like Southern California.

Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of Renault SA (RENA. PA) and Nissan Motor Co (7201.T), echoed Iwamura’s concerns at the Tokyo Motor Show on Wednesday, saying infrastructure costs could stall the uptake of fuel cell cars.California aims to have 1.5 million zero-emissions vehicles, which would include fuel cell cars, on its roads by 2025. Fuel-cell cars use a “stack” of cells that combine hydrogen with oxygen in the air to generate electricity.

Reuters

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Saturday, 23 November, 2013

New Light of Myanmar WORLD Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong speaks during the fourth China-US High-level Consultation on People-toPeople Exchange (CPE) in Washington, the United States, on 21 Nov, 2013.

China and the United States reaffirmed on Wednesday the importance of and commitment to deepening practical cooperation and enhancing the people-topeople exchange in ensuring a better future for the China-US ties.—Xinhua

Venezuela to grant more benefits to university students

Caracas, 22 Nov— Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro pledged to give greater benefits to university students on Thursday, which marked National University Students’ Day. The benefits announced by Maduro at a celebration rally in Caracas include 10,000-US-dollar

Safety assessment process for TEPCO’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant begins Tokyo, 22 Nov— Nuclear regulators on Thursday began a safety assessment process to decide whether two reactors at Tokyo Electric Power Co’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant are qualified to restart, nearly two months after the utility filed an application.

The move is a sign of progress for TEPCO, which is eager to restart the sevenreactor plant in Niigata Prefecture to improve the tough business conditions it faces due to the crisis at its Fukushima Daiichi complex, but the Nuclear Regulation

Authority suggested earlier that the process may not go smoothly.

At the outset of the first safety review session for the Nos. 6 and 7 reactors, TEPCO Managing Executive Officer Takafumi Anegawa said, “We are deeply aware that we are facing doubts over our safety awareness, organization, technical abilities and management. We are expecting strict screening.”

Questions from regulators during the 90-minute session focused on a filtered venting system TEPCO

plans to install so that radioactive substances will be reduced when gas and steam need to be released to prevent damage to reactor containment vessels.

The installation of the equipment has become a requirement for boiling water reactors for the first time in Japan, after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis led to the release of a massive amount of radioactive material amid the meltdown of three reactors.

Regulators said they want to check the system’s filtering ability as well as its

Saudi Arabia heavy rains kill 11, while four missing Riyadh, 22 Nov— Heavy rains on Thursday killed 11 people as the search continues for four more who are missing, Saudi Civil Defence said.

Among those killed, seven were in Riyadh region, two in the city of Araar, one in Al-Gunfuza and one in Al-Baha, according to a statement by the Saudi Press Agency.

The statement also highlighted that Civil Defence squads successfully rescued 448 citizens and expatriates from rains and floods that down poured on all parts of Saudi Arabia this week.

A spokesman of the Civil Defence said his department has received 6,800 distress calls from people stranded or businesses damaged by the flooding. He said the Civil Defence also retrieved 309 vehicles that were trapped underneath strong floods.

Casualties and damage have been attributed to the poor infrastructure, especially the drainage system, according to local newspapers.

Xinhua

operation procedures, given that TEPCO stated in its application document that it will start using the equipment after securing local approval. TEPCO has included the statement as a result of exchanges with Niigata Gov Hirohiko Izumida, who has been critical of TEPCO’s behavior.

The activity of small geological faults beneath the two reactors could also become a contentious point in the following review process, although TEPCO has denied that the faults are active.—Kyodo News

scholarships to help students study abroad “at the best universities,” and raise the number of university scholarships to 200,000.

The government will also give each university student a tablet and ensure free Wi-Fi service at all universities, Maduro said.

As students marked the day with marches along the capital’s four main avenues, Education Minister Maryann Hanson underscored education as a constitutional right as well as a free, inclusive and quality

public service.

“This public and social service has led to great achievements and progress that the (socialist) revolution can show to the world,” Hanson said, highlighting the role of students in strengthening society to guarantee and defend the country’s independence and sovereignty.

Venezuela has increased university enrollments from 600,000 students in 1998 to more than 2.5 million at present.

Xinhua

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras (R) and US Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker visit the Acropolis museum in Athens on 21 Nov, 2013. Pritzker is in Greece on a one-day working visit.

Xinhua

Afghan Loya Jirga continues discussion on security pact with US for 2nd day Kabul, 22 Nov — Members of Afghanistan’s traditional Loya Jirga or grand assembly of tribal elders and notables continued their debate on the controversial security pact known as Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) with the United States for the second day on Friday.

Around 2,500 members of the gathering which divided into 50 working committees have been thoroughly reading the 26-article security pact ti-

tled “Security and Defence Cooperation Agreement Between The United States of America and The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan”, reading and reviewing all the articles of the document to take final decision whether to accept or reject the proposed security pact.

The four-day historic gathering which opened on Thursday would announce their decision at the last day of their meeting on Sunday afternoon, according to officials and the members of

the traditional Jirga.

However, the decision of the Jirga will be referred to the parliament for approval.

Washington reportedly wants the security agreement to be signed by the end of this year, but the Afghan president Hamid Karzai said in his opening remarks at the Jirga on Thursday that his successor could ink it after Afghanistan’s presidential elections slated for 5 April, next year.

Xinhua

Lagos, 22 Nov — Nigeria has launched a trust fund to support human trafficking victims in the country, Minister of Justice Mohammed Adoke said on Thursday.

The minister said this at the African Regional Consultation Meeting on the Rights to an Effective Remedy for Trafficked Persons in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.

He said the fund was

established in accordance with the Trafficking in Persons Protocol.

“At the heart of our anti-trafficking strategy is human rights-based approach, to ensure adequate promotion and protection of the rights of trafficked persons,” he added.

“In addition, the Federal Executive Council had since 2008 approved the National Policy for the protection of traf-

ficked persons to provide uniform guidelines for all stakeholders in Nigeria, involved in providing assistance to trafficked persons,” the minister said.

He recognized the right to effective remedies for trafficked persons and the need for providing incentives for victims to support law enforcement efforts at tracking down perpetrators of such crime.

Xinhua

Nigeria to support human trafficking victims

Photo taken from a Kyodo News airplane on 21 Nov, 2013, shows smoke rising from a new islet created by a recent undersea volcanic eruption near Nishinoshima Island (front) in the Pacific, an uninhabited islet in the Ogasawara chain of islands, some 1,000 kilometers south of Tokyo. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the new land area cannot be called an island yet, because it would submerge under the sea if the volcanic activities come to a halt.

Kyodo News

New Light of Myanmar

N a y P y i T a w , 22 Nov—Union Minister for Commerce U Win Myint met Chairman of JapanMyanmar Economic Committee of KEIDANREN (Japan Business Federation) Mr. KATSUMATA Nobuo and party at his office here yesterday morning.

The meeting focused on bilateral trade conditions between Myanmar and Japan, promotion of trade and investment, trade convenience and development of human resources and infrastructures such as road, bridge and electricity. The Japanese entrepreneurs reported on

LOCAL NEWS Japan eyes boosting trade and investment in Myanmar

Saturday, 23 November, 2013 7

93rd Anniversary National Day 10th Waning of Tazaungmon, 1375 ME (27-11-2013)

Objectives of 93rd Anniversary National Day trade difficulties, future prospects and market opportunities.—MNA

Union Minister U Win Myint holds talks with Chairman of Japan-Myanmar Economic Committee of KEIDANREN Mr. KATSUMATA Nobuo.—mna

Union Attorney-General receives APG Executive Secretary

General Office is responsible to provide legal advices on the draft laws sent by ministries concerned as soon as possible in accord with the Union attorney-general law.

MNA

(1) Uplift of national prestige and integrity and dynamism of Union spirit (2) Promotion of national educational standard (3) Perpetuation of independence and sovereignty (4) Building of a new modern, developed nation

Deputy Commerce Minister attends meetings on Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment

Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov — Attorney-General of the Union Dr Tun Shin received Executive Secretary MR. Gordon Philip Hook of Asia-

Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) at his office, here, yesterday noon.

The Union AttorneyGeneral responded to a

Crowd management course conducted Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov— The crowd management, conducted by EU, was opened at No 8 Police Battalion of Myanmar Police Force, here, on 19 November, with an address

by No 2 Police Battalion Control Commander Police Brig-Gen Thura Bo Ni. The training course was attended by Commandant of Police Cpl Training Depot

Police Col Tun Min, seven instructors and assistant instructors including Mr Patrick Gistelinck of EU, intrepreters, Commanding Officer Police Lt-Col Zaw Thiha of No 5 Police Battalion, officers and other ranks totalling 220.

The training course will be run 12 days up to 30 November.—MMAL-Police Information

question about measures undertaken for enactment of anti-money laundering law and anti-terrorism law in Myanmar that the Attorney-

National Sports Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov— Time is approaching to the 27th SEA Games. As motivational activities, vinyl mascots have been set up at Nay Pyi Taw Thapyaykon roundabout as well as on both sides of the roads in Nay Pyi Taw. The vinyl mascots warm up the sports enthusiasts to participate in the SEA Games. Besides, a poster of welcoming SEA Games

by President U Thein Sein, Vice-Presidents Dr Sai Mauk Kham and U Nyan Tun, Union Sports Minister U Tint Hsan and Nay Pyi Taw Council Chairman U Thein Nyunt can be seen as a gesture of hailing the 27th SEA Games.

Moreover, vinyl mascots

Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—Deputy Minister for Commerce Dr Pwint Hsan attended Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Week meetings at United Nations Conference Center in Bangkok of Thailand organized by Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) from 18 to 20 November.

On 18 November, the deputy minister participated in the discussion under title of “Role of aid for trade

in integrating Myanmar into a regional trade” in expects-level meeting on aid for trade.

Then, he attended the meeting on read reports 2013 of Asia-Pacific trade and investment.

On 19 November, high level panel talks under title of “Reviving Multilateralism: Road to Bali and Beyond”.

At the talks, six Panelists including the Deputy Minister focused on the necessities of Bali

talks to affirm the important role of multi-countries trading system under rules, the attitudes on WTO, seeking ways for successful holding of Bali talks, root causes of delaying Doha meeting, estimated results for Bali talks based on their experience.

On 20 November, the Deputy Minister and party observed Ford Thailand Manufacturing and RMA Group in Laem Chabang City of Chonburi Prefecture.

MNA

Vinyl mascots for SEA Games put up in Nay Pyi Taw

near Wunna Theikdhi Sports Ground and along both sides of motor roads make foreign sports men aspire to clinch

victory in the Games.

Myanmar’s fantastic sports infrastructures are ready to host the 27th SEA

Games.

MMAL-Wai Yan Oo, Photo; Tin Soe (Myanma Alinn)

8

Saturday, 23 November, 2013

Saturday, 23 November, 2013

Promote Literacy Evolved from stone scripts, books used to serve as the sole knowledge-dissemination medium for mankind. Today, internet search engines and social media are increasingly taking up the knowledge-sharing role of books. Nonetheless, the essence has not changed—knowledge is power and knowledge comes from reading.

The very first step towards education and lifelong learning starts from literacy. It is a welcome move of the Ministry of Education taking initial steps to introduce ethnic languages to school curriculum. As Myanmar is an ethnically diverse country, inclusive education systems are

New Light of Myanmar a must to promote mutual understanding, respect and tolerance. Unless and until this requirement is fulfilled, it would still be difficult to build mutual trust between its citizens to pave the way for lasting peace which is founded on respect for human rights and social justice.

While the government is delivering free compulsory primary education, it also needs to make sure that street children, child workers and children with disabilities have access to education. It should also take into consideration that there are many children whose dream of learning has been subjugated to the need of their families.

Meanwhile, illiteracy is the large contributor to exclusion and marginalization, which if coupled with other certain factors, can destabilize societies, thereby hindering the economic growth and undermining democratic process. Illiterates being devoid of reasoning power are prone to fall under

the sway of opportunists who would use them for their own ends at any cost as long as their interests are guaranteed.

In the olden days, the government, with the help of volunteers who are usually the undergraduates, used to organize 3-Rs programs in rural areas. Nowadays, a large number of libraries have been opened across the country, but the problem is many of them remain just for show and we are yet to promote more effectively the reading habit of rural people.

Literacy enables individuals to effectively take part in democratic process, instilling them with confidence to claim a voice in designing decent public policies. It plays a pivotal role in promoting human resources, gender equality, conflict resolution and cultural diversity apart from its significant role of reducing poverty. It is the very basic foundation of democracy which we are trying to establish in our country.

ARTICLE

The Lofty Quest of Longevity and Lasting Youth Definitions: Aging is defined as the general deterioration of the body with increasing age, while longevity is the success in reaching the maximum lifespan of a person.

An Immutable Law of Nature?

All living beings without exception are subject to the cycle of birth, aging, disease, and death (Jati, Jara, Byati and Marana). But even though knowing such a certainty, we still crave to live long and stay youthful, as long as possible, which are universal desires among all of us mortals. Thus it is no wonder that many unsuccessful insolated attempts had been made through the ages, and no doubt some are still going on, to reach for the elusive goal of immortality, if that is attainable at all. Now, for the first time in the history of mankind, we are trying to wage a really serious and concerted war against a seemingly Immutable Law of Nature.

Programmed Aging The life-span of a person could be likened to a springaction clock wound up to tick for a number of years, the length of which varies from individuals to individuals, the maximum being most likely to be round about 120. For, to cite a prominent figure in the Buddhist Scriptures, even the great philanthropist lady Visaka, the monastery donor, who was renowned for her youthful appearance until the very end of her life, lived up to the age of 120 years only.

May be that is why astrologers casting a horoscope, as a postscript used to add a prayer for their clients to live to be 120 (and no more), a time limit perhaps set by the keen observation of the profession on the mortal nature and limitation of human life.

(While discussing about the maximum life-span that could

be attained, granted here however was a lone exception in Shin Parku, holder of the pre-eminence-in-health title during Buddha’s time, who was said to have survived to the super-ripe old age of 160 years without suffering from any diseases!)

Now, to continue with our model of a preprogrammed life-span, this wound-up life-spring may be broken untimely by the various disease causations, which

Cause of Aging Many theories have been advanced to explain the causes of aging. Currently the most important ones include: (1) Genetic control.

(2) Deterioration of the immune system.

(3) Somatic mutation.

(4) Cross-linkage of macromolecules.

(5) Metabolic and hormonal causes, and (6) Accumulated damage by free radicals, (which are

Tan Myint Maung according to the concept of Ayuvedic Medicine comprise of the following categories, and shown below reconciled with their modern equivalents.

(1) The Kammic Forces: which can be more practically interpretted as the genetic factors.

(2) The Mind: Psychological factors leading to the stresses and strains of life resulting in secondary somatic changes.

(3) The Weather: Environmental factors including inclement weather, pollutants, infections, trauma, etc. and (4) The Diets: That is the nutritional causes.

But the pre-determined conclusion of program is that even, if say, we could remove all the different causes of disease, however hard we may try to resist, still the human body will inevitably age and wither and eventually dying off after a certain number of years.

All things in the universe are subject to gradual wear and tear. But unlike the inanimate objects, living beings uniquely have the power of repair and to some extent regeneration of their bodies when damaged. Then why still we age and decay with the passage of time?

continually being produced inside the body as a result of respiration— Nature’s clever way of an “auto-destruct” mechanism, a biological requirement of evolution.)

Out of the above list, the last one i.e. the “Free Radical Theory” is at present gaining ground and is in the ascendancy. While no single theory accounts for all the observations about aging, recent research suggests that the primary process is under genetic control, with contributions from the environmental factors including nutrition, and these latters will accelerate the degenerative changes of aging and decrease the likelihood of reaching the maximum life-span.

The Mechanism of Aging At the gene level the patho-physiology of aging is determined by the length of the telomeres, i.e the tips of the chromosomes within the cells—the shorter the telomeres, the shorter the life-span of the cell and the faster the body’s deterioration.

The original length of the telomeres is under genetic control and seems to have been set for each person by the cruel hands of an “evolutionary master” and then modified later by the level of environmental hazards as

well as being snipped away by how “fast” the living of the individual. (Then why should one bother with “life in the fast lane”?) But there is hope that this DNA damage is reversible and certain people are less vulnerable than others to this age-related cumulative damage from free radicals, probably due to the presence of a survival gene or genes.

Any way, it has been claimed recently that with genetic tinkering, a lifespan of 150 years or so is well within reach and not at all impossible to achieve.

However, after witnessing the catastrophe of the Holocaust, very few scientists and politicians now-a-days dare to openly advocate the Science of Eugenics, although we cannot rule out for sure that such genetic researches to produce a super-race of human beings might be actively going on in secret in some laboratories!

Still A Forlorn Hope.

But……

There are many suggestions and recommendations by scientists, physicians, psychologists, religious personnels, etc. on how to stretch the life-span (i.e. adding years to life) and how to prolong youth (i.e. adding life to years)—not merely striving for a superficial good look and living a few years longer—which will only add up to a bigger and bigger burden on mankind in the long run. In fact how to live a longer and more functional life is a more practical proposition for us. At present no known substance can definitely extend the maximum life-span of a person, but by reducing the rate of attrition from environmental factors the chances of staying healthy and living a long time can be improved by the following life-style adjustments.

Tips for Healthy Aging (1) Eat a balanced diet.

(2) Exercise regularly.

(3) Get regular health checkups.

(4) Do not smoke.

(5) Practice safety habits at home, work and play.

(6) Stay in contact with family and friends. Stay active through work, play and community.

(7) Avoid over-exposure to the sun and cold.

(8) If you drink, moderation is the key.

(9) Keep your personal and financial affairs in order.

(10) Keep a positive attitude towards life.

(11) Antioxidants supplements: In addition to their free radicals scavenging action, they are harmless at the recommended doses, may have at least a placebo effect, which can boost the morale and this in turn will benefit the immune system, and (12) Lastly, the simple relaxation technique of concentrating your mind on the process of a focused controlled deep breathing (practiced as a mode of meditation by the Buddhists), has a calming effect, reduces stress, and serves to allay anxiety, which through the cortico-pituitary-adrenal axis, improve the body’s defense and healing mechanism and thus help to relieve, revive and rejuvenate it.

The Treatments of Aging Per se Apart from the management of the various complications arising from the degenerative changes of aging, a few treatment options with the noble aim to ameliorate, disguise or even by-pass the aging process itself will not be out of place here.

Some of those “specific” treatments for aging include: (1) Cosmetics: At least their

efficacy to give a semblance of youth in the user may extend as far as having been confessed by some of the cosmetic industries that they are selling hope rather than guaranteed effectiveness of their products.

(2) Cosmetic Surgery: A camouflage and a temporary expedient to restore the proverbial “skin-deep” quality of the person, and with it a greater degree of self-assurance.

(3) Dieting: A Semi-starvation low-calorie but wellbalanced diet containing certain nutrients especially those derived from some vegetables or synthetic equivalents is touted to increase the life-span as well as extend the youthful vigour of the faithful.

This (4) Transplantation: spare part replacement therapy may confer a few more years of life for the patient but rarely improves the quality. The expressed wish for part-after-part renewal of one of our famous old surgeons (now deceased) is still a long way off.

(5) Stem-cells implants and gene therapy are just in the pipe-line, waiting for assessment of their merits, and thus giving a ray of hope for us.

(6) Finally, getting cloned to produce a new copy of one-self, or joining the “Cryo Society” and waiting for the day so as to thawed out and then get treated when the necessary hoped-for expertise and technology to revive a dead person become available in the future.

These are of course extreme instances which serve to show how far human nature will go, up to the very end, to satisfy his ego. The urge to live long and stay young indeed can be so strong! *******

New Light of Myanmar

Saturday, 23 November, 2013

9

national

President U Thein Sein attends ceremony … (from page 1) and the donation of wellwishers across the country for the project amounted to K 2540.7 million so far.

Then, the SSMNC Chairman Sayadaw delivered a sermon, and the congregation shared merits gained.

At the ceremony, the President, the Vice-Presidents and those present put the gems casket, bronze plaque, stone plaque and golden bricks at the place dedicated to the Buddha attained Nibbana.

A stake-driving ceremony was held at the place where the Buddha attained Nibbana on 3 November.

MNA

President U Thein Sein holds talks with Thai Deputy Prime Minister Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov— President U Thein Sein received Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Surapong Tovichakchaikul and party at the Credentials Hall of the Presidential Palace, here, at 4:30 pm today.

During the meeting, both sides discussed making affirmative resolutions of disputes between the two countries through findings of the MyanmarThailand Joint Commission Meetings, making appropriate comment on recognizing Chiang Mai and Kengtung as twin towns, further cementing bilateral ties between the

Chief Justice of the Union receives American guests Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—Chief Justice of the Union U Tun Tun Oo received first Secretary from US Embassy and Director Ms Jennifer Marie Link from Office of Democracy and Governance of USAID and party at the hall of the Supreme Court of the Union, here, this afternoon.

They had a cordial discussion on cooperation programmes beneficial to

the judicial sector of Myanmar, role of judiciary in enforcing the rule of law in Myanmar and mutual cooperation for enhancing judicial sector.

Present at the call together with the chief justice of the Union were judges of the Supreme Court of the Union U Soe Nyunt, U Aung Zaw Thein and the deputy directorsgeneral.—MNA

Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—Union Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement Dr Daw Myat Myat Ohn Khin received Economic and Commercial Counselor of the People’s Republic of China Mr Jiang Yingang and party at her office, here, yesterday

afternoon.

They held talks on ongoing humanitarian and risk management works, progress of 350 modular houses donated by the PRC for disaster victims and arrangements for handover of USD 1 million to Myanmar.—MNA

Myanmar, China discuss risk management works

two countries and development of the border areas, bilateral cooperation in implementing of Dawei Deep Sea Port, as well as follow-up plans for emerging Mesauk-MyawadyKawkareik road session.

Besides, they concentrated on implementation of economic zones in the border areas and upgrading of Dawei Airport.

Also present at the call together with the President were Union Ministers LtGen Thet Naing Win, U Wunna Maung Lwin, U Win Myint, Acting Union Minister Dr Myo Myint, Thai Ambassador to Myanmar U Tin Oo and officials concerned.—MNA

ESIA report … (from page 1) At the sessions on 20 and 21 November, experts from Knight Piesold Pty. Ltd, the environmental conservation team and an independent monitoring team held talks on technical matters about the ESIA report and follow-up tasks to approve the report.

The reviewing committee will scrutinize the ESIA report and it is cooperating with experts of Knight Piesold Pty.Ltd to revise the report. Necessary measures will be taken in accord with rules and regulations of the Environmental Conservation Department of the Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry for approval of the report.

The completed ESIA report meeting international standards will be made public soon. — MNA

Union Minister Dr Daw Myat Myat Ohn Khin holds talks with Economic and Commercial Counselor of China Mr Jiang Yingang and party .—mna

President of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar U Thein Sein shaking hands with Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Surapong Tovichakchaikul at the Credentials Hall of the Presidential Palace. mna

Diabetes kills one person in every six seconds: Union Health Minister Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—Diabetes killed 5.1 million people in 2013 and every six seconds a person dies from the disease, said Union Minister for Health Dr Pe Thet Khin at the ceremony to mark World Diabetics Day at the meeting hall of the ministry here yesterday morning.

World Diabetes Day has been annually held on 14 November around the globe and this year theme is "Diabetes; Protect Our Future”.

The scholars have estimated that over 60000 peo-

ple will lose their lives due to diabetes in Myanmar yearly and about 2 million people age between 20-79 years are estimated to develop diabetes, he said. Every 100 persons, nearly six persons are suffering from diabetes and over 0.9 million men and 1 million women in Myanmar are diabetic patients and about 1.2 million people are estimated that they don't know themselves that they are living with diabetes.

Diabetic patients need to eat healthy diet and take physical exercise regularly

and the State has adopted and is implementing national policies for prevention of diabetes, he added.

He urged those present to actively take part in the task for prevention of diabetes.

The Union minister then viewed educative booth on diabetes.

Then, educative talks about the disease followed.

Associate Professor Dr Ko Ko shared knowledge about World Diabetes Day and Professor Dr Tint Swe Latt, knowledge about the disease.—MNA

Take caution when it comes to purchasing and selling land in cultural zones Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—The entrepreneurs purchased land plots in the areas of cultural heritage zones of Bagan, Inwa, MraukU, SriKestra and Mingun as their investments. As a result, the price of land plots became very high. In that regard, Director-General U Kyaw Oo Lwin of the Department of Archaeology, National Museum and Library explained rules and regulations to be followed by the people in the cultural zones.

According to cultural heritage site prevention and preservation law 1998, a total of 46 cultural heritage zones across the coun-

try are designated and being preserved as ancient buildings zone, ancient site zone and preserved zone.

According to the law, construction of hotels, motels and guesthouses is not allowed in ancient buildings zone and ancient site zone. The preserved zones where construction of hotels is not allowed in Bagan include NyaungU in the east, Kyaukgu Cave and Moenatgon creek near mile post No (22) on NyaungUKyaukpadaung motor road in the north, Ayeyawady River in the north-west and Nalattaw creek near Gantgar Village in the south.

Operation of hotel industry,

fencing and construction of buildings in the village and farmlands in the rest area of Bagan are restricted.

Since February 2009, the ancient cultural zone of Bagan, the heritages of ancestors have been preserved by enacting the law.

Plan is underway to preserve Bagan as National Cultural Heritage Region at present.

The public are urged to make enquiry at archaeological branch offices across the nation in purchasing and selling land plots in the cultural zones not to occur unwanted problems.

(Ko Myo-Shwe Paukkan)

10

Saturday, 23 November, 2013

New Light of Myanmar Wo r l d

Al- Qaeda affiliate captures Syrian town on border with Turkey

The photo provided by Colombia’s Presidency shows Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos (R) greeting a girl after an event to review the social achievements in Pereira, Colombia, on 21 Nov, 2013. Juan Manuel Santos stressed the achievements during the last three years thanks to social assistance programmes. —Xinhua

Education key to defeating terrorism United Nations, 22 Nov — Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair said here on Thursday that cross-cultural education is key to defeating terrorism and should be treated as a security issue.

“Today we face a scourge that has seen innocent lives taken, communities scarred and nations destabilized, in an arc that stretches from the Far East through the Middle east to the streets of cities here in the USA,” he told an open session of the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee at the UN Headquarters in New York.

“It is extremism based on a perversion of religious belief, a fanaticism that abuses faith to justify violence against innocent civilians,” Blair said, speaking as head of the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, which is aimed at providing support to prevent religious prejudice, conflict and extremism. He noted that the soil where extremists plant the seeds of hate is the one of ignorance, of warped thinking producing warped minds and in particular of a distorted and false view of religion.

“That is why in the 21st Century, education is a security issue and not any education but education specifically that opens young minds to ‘the other,’ those who are culturally and religiously different; and shows them how the only future that works is one in which people are respected as equals whatever their faith or culture,” Blair said.

Noting that as yet the international community is doing neither adequately or with the necessary urgency, the former British leader stressed that it is time to achieve this aim.

“The battleground between us and the religious extremists is to win over the hearts and minds of those with low levels of religious and cultural literacy,” Blair said. “We have to educate the next generation of young people to have an open mind, to know about ‘the other’ and through that understanding to learn to respect them as equals.”

The UN Chef de Cabinet to the Executive Office, Susana Malcorra, also spoke at the meeting on behalf of the Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.—Xinhua

Ceylanpinar, 22 Nov — An al-Qaeda affiliate has captured a northern Syrian town on the border with Turkey after ousting a moderate Islamist rebel unit and detained its leader, activists said on Thursday.

The fall of the town of Atma, a crossing point for weapons and for Syrian rebels, signals disarray among some of the rebel groups, which are ceding ground to hardline Islamist units.

Some of these groups

are now playing a lesser role on the battlefield in the war against President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, opposition sources said.

The rise of al-Qaeda in Syria has helped change the international diplomatic calculus and tempered Western calls for Assad’s removal from power.

Europe and the United States have baulked at military intervention in the conflict and are negotiating with Russia, Assad’s main international backer,

Members of the Free Syrian Army walk with new youth recruits during a military training in the northern Syrian town of Ras al-Ain, as seen from the Turkish border town of Ceylanpinar, Sanliurfa Province, on 24 Nov, 2012.—Reuters

Chadian PM resigns under pressure of censure N’Djamena, 22 Nov— Chadian Prime Minister Joseph Djimrangar Dadnadji rendered resignation on Thursday under the pressure of a motion of censure in parliament.

More than 70 members of parliament on Monday blasted Dadnadji for frequent cabinet shakeups in 10 months, vowing to table the motion against his government. In his resignation letter to President Idriss Deby, Dadnadji said he had to quit because of the crisis.—Xinhua

to hold peace talks.

Activists said fighters of the al-Qaeda affiliate — Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL — had stormed the headquarters of Suqur al-Islam, a moderate Islamist unit that controlled Atma, and set up roadblocks within the last 48 hours.

They detained Mustafa Waddah, the head of Suqur al-Islam, along with two dozen of his men.

A brief firefight took place at the headquarters and also near a Turkish security post in the town of Bukulmez, which overlooks Atma and its hilly terrain, the sources said.

With its proximity to Turkey, Atma has been largely spared shelling and air raids by Assad’s forces.

But thousands of people who fled bombings elsewhere in the country had taken refuge in the town and surrounding area.

“The ISIL deployed anti-aircraft guns at the main roundabout and took Atma quietly,” said one of

the activists, who did not want to be named.

“The Turks have not stopped supplies from crossing into the town and movement across the border fence is normal.”

He said Waddah’s whereabouts were not known, but he may have been taken to the town of Dana, an ISIL stronghold where the group had set up a religious court.

Suqur al-Islam is a unit of the Free Syrian Army General Staff, headed by General Selim Idriss, the main opposition military figure, who is based in Turkey. But Suqur al-Islam and the General Staff have fallen out over sharing the weapons crossing through Atma, the activists said.

In the last few days, fighting erupted between Sukur al-Islam and other Free Syrian Army members after Sukur al-Islam seized seven trucks loaded with weapons sent by the General Staff that crossed through Atma.

Reuters

More women officers needed to meet peacekeeping challenges United Nations, 22 Nov — Top UN police officials on Thursday emphasized the necessity of increasing the number of women officers in peacekeeping missions around the world.

“We must have more female police officers among our blue berets, “ Stefan Feller, police adviser in the UN’s Department of Peacekeeping Operations, said at a press conference on the participation of women in UN police forces.

Efforts are made to ensure that women are seen not just as victims, but as

providers of safety and security, said Feller, who insisted it is also necessary to recruit more women in domestic police forces so as to continue to build women’s representation in peacekeeping forces.

Hester Paneras, police Commissioner for the African Union-UN Mission in Darfur, said that women police are particularly critical to mandate implementation in the troubled region of Sudan, where protection of civilians is a priority and women are often left on their own due to conflict. “We need women

who can give attention to the needs of these women.”

Beside their roles in security, they have helped women develop livelihood projects and gain self respect, Paneras added.

The UN in 2009 set a target of increasing the proportion of female police officers to 20 percent in an initiative known as the “Global Effort.” Since then, the number of female officers has increased in many UN missions, most notably in Haiti, Liberia and Sudan.

Xinhua

Northern Iraq oil belongs to all Iraqi people Istanbul, 22 Nov — Iraqis have the right to the oil in northern Iraq and the revenue that will be generated from its use, Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said on Thursday.

Yildiz made the statement at a joint press conference with US Energy Minister Ernest Moniz at the Atlantic Council Energy and Economic Summit which was held in Istanbul.

“Turkey believes in the territorial integrity of Iraq

and will continue to act in accordance with Iraqi government interests,” he said.

The most important issue in the process of retrieving the oil from the area is to set up systematized legal process, Yildiz said.

Turkey has both public and private companies located in northern Iraq and has signed contracts for oil fields in Erbil. The money generated from these transactions will be blocked in a state bank and Turkey will

send the receipts of each transactions to the central government in Baghdad.

After that Iraqi central government and autonomous Northern Iraq Kurdish Administration will share the money according to the ratio they decide. A total of 19 countries together with 39 companies have been signing agreements and conducting projects in oil fields in northern Iraq for three to four years now.

According to the meet-

ing, Iraq is expected to generate 5 trillion US dollars and become the second largest oil-exporting country by 2035 and is likely to see 45 percent of the total increase of world oil production. During the summit almost 350 representatives from more than 40 countries discussed not only the latest developments in the energy field but also cyber-security issues, world finance, and the revival of the Silk Road.

Xinhua

Workers arrange the voting booths that will be used in the presidential election, in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on 21 Nov, 2013. Honduras’ presidential election is scheduled for 24 November.— Xinhua

New Light of Myanmar

Saturday, 23 November, 2013 11

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Indonesia to hold 1st World Culture Forum in Bali

Yu Zhengsheng, chairman of the National Committee of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), presides over a seminar of the National Committee of CPPCC in Beijing, capital of China, on 21 Nov, 2013.—Xinhua

Vietnam, Mongolia to boost bilateral ties Hanoi, 22 Nov — Vietnam and Mongolia vowed here on Thursday on boosting bilateral ties, particularly in the fields of trade, defence, security and combating crime. The consensus was reached by Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang and his visiting Mongolian counterpart Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj.

During their talks, the two leaders agreed to maintain exchanges at all levels and sectors, strengthening the people-to- people exchanges in culture and education.

Truong Tan Sang proposed that Mongolia should create favorable conditions for Vietnamese investments to accelerate trade and investment. Mongolian President welcomed Vietnamese investments in oil and gas exploitation, as well as mining in his country.

Meanwhile, the two presidents expressed their pleasure at bilateral coordination on regional and international arena, including the United Nations, NonAligned Movement, ASEAN, World Trade Organization and the Asia-Europe Meeting. After talks, the two leaders witnessed the signing of bilateral agreements in the fields of defence, public security, foreign affairs and energy development.

On the same day, Elbegdorj also met Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, during which the two sides expressed their willingness to further promote the bilateral ties in the favour of both nations.—Xinhua

Jakarta, 22 Nov — Indonesia will host the selfinitiated World Culture Forum (WCF) during 24 to 27 November in the country’s resort island of Bali, aiming at digging cultural influence on global sustainable development agenda in the post-2015 period, said the country’s cultural minister here on Thursday.

Addressing a cultural discussion prior to WCF, Mohammad Nuh, Indonesian minister of culture and national education, stressed that the forum was initiated by the country’s President

Susilo. Moreover, Indonesia plans to build such forum on cultural topics once every two years, same as the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on economy.

The minister also called for greater global consideration on the contributive role of culture on economy, politics and environment.

Themed “The Power of Culture in Sustainable Development,” the maiden forum will be officially opened by Susilo and Irina Bukova, Director General

of UNESCO, and attended by government officials, experts, non-government organizations from various nations, including China, Turkey, Japan, Brazil and India, according to the minister.

President Susilo had expressed his commitment on promoting the power of culture on sustainable economic development under the framework of post-2015 Millennium Development Goals when addressing the UN General Assembly forum earlier this year.—Xinhua

Sharp mulls supplying LCD panels to manufacturers other than Apple Osaka, 22 Nov — Struggling electronics maker Sharp Corp is considering supplying liquid crystal display panels that are now made at its Kameyama plant in central Japan specifically for Apple Inc to other manufacturers including a Chinese firm, sources close to the matter said on Friday.

The Osaka-based

company currently produces LCD panels for Apple’s iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c smartphones at its Kameyama Plant No 1, but it is seeking to diversify its customer base for the panels due to uncertainty about how long the popularity of the new handsets will last, the sources said.

In order to procure LCD panels stably for

iPhones, the US technology giant has invested a little less than 100 billion yen in the plant, with the operating rate of around 80 percent currently, according to the sources.

Sharp has been holding talks with Apple to obtain understanding over diversifying its supply destinations, the sources said.

Kyodo News

Harare, 22 Nov— Game rangers in Zimbabwe recently engaged three poachers who had crossed into the country from Zambia, leading to the recovery of two rifles, one of them an AK 47 and several rounds of ammunition, the wildlife authority said on Wednesday. The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority said in a statement that the shootout with the Zambian poachers took place in the Sharu general area of Rifa in the Zambezi Valley on 13 November.

“They (rangers) tracked for a short distance and came across a place where the poachers had camped. The poachers fired at the rangers who also fired back. This led to the poachers fleeing from their camp,” the wildlife authority said.

Apart from the rifles and ammunition, the rangers also recovered cooking pots, maize meal with a Zambian label, cooking oil with a Zambian label, a hand axe and ripping knife, a lighting torch, various

tablets and water purifying liquid and an assortment of clothing, among others.

But it seemed the poachers had not yet shot anything as they had just entered the country on the poaching expedition the previous night, the statement said.

The authority warned that it would be suicidal for poachers to enter areas under its jurisdiction as its rangers would be “be proactive in order to remain on top of the situation.

Xinhua

Suspected Zambian poachers flee after shootout with Zimbabwe rangers

Chinese girl Lian Mingqiao and curator of Rahmi M. Koc Museum Ertugrul Duru pose for photo during the collection ceremony in Istanbul on 20 Nov, 2013. Lian Mingqiao, a 90s-born girl from southwest China’s Sichuan Province, traveled across Eurasia from China’s Beijing to Turkey’s Istanbul by motorcycle alone in the past five months. Rami M. Koc Museum held a ceremony on Wednesday to collect her motorcycle to commemorate this legendary journey and indomitable spirit of the girl.

Xinhua

Tourists walk past a bell tower in Galle, Sri Lanka, on 18 Nov, 2013. Founded in the 16th century by the Portuguese, Galle reached the height of its development in the 18th century, before the arrival of the British. It is the best example of a fortified city built

by Europeans in South and South-East Asia, showing the interaction between European architectural styles and South Asian traditions. Old town of Galle and its fortifications was listed as one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1988.—Xinhua

Malaysian police believe kidnapped Taiwanese tourist still alive Kuala Lumpur, 22 Nov — Malaysian police said Thursday that the information they got suggested the Taiwanese tourist who was abducted at an island resort last week remains alive.

National police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said police believe that the 58-yearold Chang An Wei was still safe based on a recording of a conversation between the kidnappers, without disclosing further details on the recording. Malaysian police also believed that

Chang was brought to the neighboring southern Philippines by the kidnappers.

The police earlier declined to confirm reports that the kidnappers had asked for ransom, saying that the intense media coverage would threaten Chang’s safety. Chang was abducted from the Pom Pom Island Resort on Malaysia’s Borneo state of Sabah on Nov. 15 when her husband was shot dead during the assault by unknown gunmen.—Xinhua

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New Light of Myanmar

a d v e r tis e m e nt & Ge NERAL Claims Day Notice Claims Day Notice Claims Day Notice MV e.r turku voy No (031)

Consignees of cargo carried on MV e.r turku VOY NO (031) are hereby notified that the vessel will be arriving on 23.11.2013 and cargo will be discharged into the premises of h.p.t where it will lie at the consignee’s risk and expenses and subject to the byelaws and conditions of the Port of Yangon.

Damaged cargo will be surveyed daily from 8 am to 11:20 am and 12 noon to 4 pm to Claims Day now declared as the third day after final discharge of cargo from the Vessel.

No claims against this vessel will be admitted after the Claims Day. Shipping Agency Department Myanma Port Authority Agent for: M/s ever green shipping Phone No: 256908/378316/376797

MV gold star voy No ( )

Consignees of cargo carried on MV gold star VOY NO ( ) are hereby notified that the vessel will be arriving on 23.11.2013 and cargo will be discharged into the premises of a.w.p.t(2) where it will lie at the consignee’s risk and expenses and subject to the byelaws and conditions of the Port of Yangon.

Damaged cargo will be surveyed daily from 8 am to 11:20 am and 12 noon to 4 pm to Claims Day now declared as the third day after final discharge of cargo from the Vessel.

No claims against this vessel will be admitted after the Claims Day. Shipping Agency Department Myanma Port Authority Agent for: M/s sl shipping co ltd Phone No: 256916/256919/256921

MV noble coral voy No (-)

Consignees of cargo carried on MV noble coral VOY NO ( -) are hereby notified that the vessel will be arriving on 24.11.2013 and cargo will be discharged into the premises of m.i.t.t where it will lie at the consignee’s risk and expenses and subject to the byelaws and conditions of the Port of Yangon.

Damaged cargo will be surveyed daily from 8 am to 11:20 am and 12 noon to 4 pm to Claims Day now declared as the third day after final discharge of cargo from the Vessel.

No claims against this vessel will be admitted after the Claims Day. Shipping Agency Department Myanma Port Authority Agent for: M/s ecl (s’pore) co ltd Phone No: 256924/256914

One child dies, four others injured after car crashes into Minnesota pond

Han Lei, who lodged an appeal after receiving death penalty, is brought into the court at the Beijing High People’s Court in Beijing, capital of China, on 19 Nov, 2013. Han Lei, 39, grabbed a girl from her pram and hurled her to the ground in Daxing District of Beijing on 23 July after an argument with her mother over a parking space. The girl was severely injured and died days later despite treatment. Han was sentenced to death by Beijing No1 Intermediate People’s Court on 25 September, on charges of intentional homicide. Han appealed to have his crime reduced to involuntary homicide on the grounds that he didn’t know it was a baby carriage or that he was hurling a baby.

Xinhua

Fireman killed at farmers’ blockade near Paris

Paris, 22 Nov—A road accident killed on Thursday a fireman at a farmers’ blockade near Paris, local media reported.

Speaking to the news channel BFMTV, French Transport Minister Frederic Cuvillier said “a firefighter who is going to work has been hit at the fatal acci-

dent caused by a collision between a car and a truck.”

Six other people were wounded at the blockade which is part of farmers’ protest against tax hikes.

The minister called on protestors to immediately lift the roads blockade to avoid further accidents.

Xinhua

New York, 22 Nov — One child died and four others were seriously injured when the car they were riding in slid into a nearfreezing pond in suburban Minneapolis on Thursday, police said.

Zenavia Rennie, 5, was killed after the vehicle she and the four other children, ages 1 to 7, were in veered off a rain-slicked highway ramp and plunged into the pond in St. Louis Park, Minnesota State Patrol spokesman Eric Roeske said.

They were rescued about a half hour after the car went into the water.

The children were unresponsive after being pulled from the car, which slid 40 feet down an em-

bankment into a retention pond, said Jamie Zwilling, spokesman for St. Louis Park, a suburb west of Minneapolis.

The children were seriously injured, according to the Minnesota State Patrol website, and were being treated at Hennepin County Medical Center and University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital. The hospitals would not release further information.

The driver, 23-year-old Marion Guerrido of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, is the mother and stepmother of the children, Roeske said.

Witnesses said they heard Guerrido, who was apparently uninjured, calling for help.

“I could see someone screaming, ‘Help me! Help me! Help me!’” said Jeffrey Robertson, 40, of St. Louis Park, who was in a nearby second-story apartment and called emergency services.

Robertson, who said Guerrido was standing knee deep in the water, could not see the car from his vantage point.

When he learned there were children in the water, “My heart just sank,” he said. A passerby, Joel Oine, also of St. Louis Park, tried to rescue the children but could not, according to Roeske. Initially, emergency responders also were unable to reach the children, he said.

A water rescue team was able to remove the chil-

Fiji, Burkina Faso establish diplomatic ties Suva, 22 Nov— Fiji and Burkina Faso established diplomatic relations Friday, the Fijian government announced.

Peter Thomson, Fiji’s permanent representative to the United Nations, and his Burkina Faso counterpart Der Kogda signed the joint communique establishing diplomatic relations be-

tween the two states at the Fiji mission to the UN, according to Fiji’s Ministry of Information.

The communique expresses the desire of Fiji and Burkina Faso to establish diplomatic relations in accordance with the provisions of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, guided by the

principles and purposes of the United Nations Charter and international law.

It calls for the promotion of mutual understanding and the strengthening of friendship and cooperation between Fiji and Burkina Faso in political, economic, humanitarian and other fields.

Xinhua People take pictures during the “Night Noodle Markets” event at Alexandra Gardens in Melbourne, Australia, on 19 Nov, 2013.

Xinhua

dren, and a tow truck pulled the car from the water.

Roeske said police were investigating what caused the car to go off the ramp, which does not have guardrails, and whether the children were in seat belts or car seats.

An emergency call was received at 6:10 a.m. and the last victim was retrieved at 6:55 a.m. The water was about nine feet deep where the car sank, Roeske said.

The four other children were identified as Aliyana Rennie, age 1; Zarihana Rennie, 6; Alarious Coleman-Guerrido, 7; and Amani Coleman-Guerrido, 5, all of Brooklyn Center, according to the Minnesota State Patrol website.

Reuters

Kazakhstan elected to UNESCO World Heritage Committee Astana, 22 Nov— Kazakhstan has been elected to the 21-member World Heritage Committee of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), local media reported on Thursday.

Currently, three Kazakh cultural and natural heritages — the Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yassaui, Petroglyphs within the Archaeological Landscape of Tamgaly and Korgalzhyn & Nauryzumsky reserves — are on the UNESCO World Heritage List.—Xinhua

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Saturday, 23 November, 2013 13

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Steve Coogan brings comic relief to sorrowful story of ‘Philomena’

Actor Hugh Jackman signs autographs for fans at a red carpet event for the Japan premiere of ‘’X-men Origins: Wolverine’’ in Tokyo on 3 Sept, 2009.

Reuters

Actor Hugh Jackman reveals skin cancer scare on Instagram

Los Angeles, 22 Nov —Australian actor Hugh Jackman said on Thursday that he had a skin cancer scare when doctors diagnosed a mark on his nose as cancerous cells.

Jackman, 45, posted a photo of his face and a bandage on his nose on his Instagram page, saying his wife, Deborra-Lee Furness, told him to get his nose checked, and he was diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, cancerous cells that grow on the surface of the skin.

“Please don’t be foolish like me. Get yourself checked. And USE sunscreen!!!” the “Les Miserables” actor said in the Instagram caption.

Representatives for Jackman had no updates on the actor’s condition beyond his Instagram post.

The online medical site WebMD.com said basal cell carcinoma is the most common form of skin cancer and accounts for more than 90 percent of US skin cancer patients. The basal cell carcinomas rarely Actor Leonardo DiCaprio waves to supporters as he arrives for a photocall to promote the movie “Shutter Island’’ at the Berlinale International Film Festival in Berlin on 13 Feb, 2010.

Reuters

Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation gives $3 m grant to save tigers New York, 22 Nov — Actor Leonardo DiCaprio’s conservation foundation has awarded a $3 million grant to the World Wildlife Fund to help Nepal increase its tiger population.

The WWF said on Thursday that the money from the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, set up by the 39-year-old star of “The Great Gatsby” and the upcoming film “The Wolf of Wall Street,” will be used for an initiative to double the number of tigers in Nepal by 2022 — the next

Chinese year of the tiger.

“His foundation is all about delivering real results for conservation on the ground and empowering local communities; nowhere is that more evident than in Nepal,” Carter Roberts, the president and CEO of the WWF, said in a statement.

Nepal’s tigers, known as the Panthera tigris, have been classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with numbers declining over the years.

Reuters

spread but if not removed can damage and disfigure surrounding tissue.

Jackman is one of Hollywood’s leading action stars, best known as superhero Wolverine in the “X-Men” films. He was nominated for a best actor Oscar this year for his role as prisoner-turnedbusinessman Jean Valjean in the film adaptation of “Les Miserables.” He also starred alongside Jake Gyllenhaal in this fall’s gritty drama “Prisoners.”

Reuters

Beverly Hills, 22 Nov — When British comedic actor Steve Coogan first read the mournful story behind his new film “Philomena” in a newspaper, he noticed that the two people in the accompanying picture were laughing.

The photo showed Philomena Lee, an elderly Irish woman looking for the son she was forced to give up as a teenage girl, and former BBC journalist Martin Sixsmith who had accompanied her on her search and written a book about it in 2009.

The photograph “struck me as being at odds with the tragic nature of the story,” said Coogan. “I wondered if I could tell a story like this,

a tragic and moving story, and find the way to make people smile at the same time.”

That musing led Coogan to co-write, co-produce and co-star as Sixsmith in “Philomena,” opposite veteran British actress Dame Judi Dench in the title role.

The film directed by Britain’s Stephen Frears opens in US theaters this weekend.

The film is a step up in the serious department for a man whose name alone makes people chuckle in Britain. There he is best known as Alan Partridge, the buffoonish and politically incorrect regional BBC broadcaster he portrays to parody TV talk shows and commentators.—Reuters

Actors Judi Dench (L) and Steve Coogan (R) pose during a photocall for the movie “Philomena’’, directed

by Stephen Frears, during the 70th Venice Film Festival in Venice on 31 Aug, 2013.—Reuters

Sony says to make fewer films as it shifts to television New York, 22 Nov — Sony Pictures Entertainment will produce fewer films as it makes a “significant” shift from motion pictures to higher-margin television production and to operating TV channels, Sony Corp executives told investors gathered at the company’s Culver City, California, studio lot.

The declaration came as Sony battles to win investor support after a letter from hedge fund investor Daniel Loeb in May called on Sony to spin off to investors a portion of its entertainment business and take steps to improve the studio’s profitability.

The studio has identified $250 million in overhead and procurement cost cuts that it expects to make in the next two or three years, said Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton.

The studio is also working with a “third party” — identified in prior

media reports as Bain & Co — to identify further cuts, he said.

Lynton forecast that the company’s pictures business, which includes its film and television operations, will have revenues of $8.4 billion in fiscal year 2015, and an operating margin of 7.4 percent. In its music business, the company expects revenue of $4.8 billion with a 9.5 percent operating income margin.

Sony studio chief Amy Pascal said the studio will cut the numbers of films it makes, and next year

will release fewer than 20 films, down from the 23 it released in prior years. It will release four films in the summer, compared to nine this summer, she said.

Sony had a mixed year at the box office, with hits like “Grown Ups 2” and “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2,” but also flops like “White House Down,” which was made for $150 million but generated just $205 million in worldwide ticket sales that it shares with theater owners, according to the site Box Office Mojo.—Reuters

An entrance gate to Sony Pictures Entertainment at the Sony Pictures lot is pictured in Culver City, California on 14 April, 2013.—Reuters

‘Jersey Shore’ cast member under federal investigation Newark, 22 Nov — Former “Jersey Shore” cast member Mike ‘The Situation’ Sorrentino is facing a federal investigation into his finances, his publicist said on Thursday.

The probe centres on his businesses, which include MPS Entertainment, Situation Productions and a clothing line, Situation Nation, according to the website TMZ, which first reported on it.

Sorrentino’s publicist confirmed that he is under investigation by federal prosecutors in New Jersey.

“Michael Sorrentino is fully aware that the US Attorney’s office has issued subpoenas for records relating to several businesses he owns,” publicist Cindy Guagenti said in a statement.

He is cooperating and providing the requested records, she said.

“Although the nature and the scope of the investigation is not clear at this time, Sorrentino fully expects that when all the facts are revealed, no further action will be taken,” she said.

Television personality Mike Sorrentino arrives at the 2013 MTV Movie Awards in Culver City, California on 14 April, 2013.

Reuters Sorrentino, 32, was a cast member on MTV’s reality series “Jersey Shore,” which featured a group of drinking, tanning, club-going young men and women.

The popular show also featured such distinct characters as Snooki and her friend JWoww.

His famed line to describe his daily routine was “Gym, tan, laundry,” which is referred to in slang as “GTL.” The show ran from 2009 until 2012.

Reuters

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Saturday, 23 November, 2013

New Light of Myanmar S PO R TS

Liverpool’s Enrique set to have surgery on knee injury

Liverpool’s Jose Enrique (R) challenges Wigan Athletic’s Emmerson Boyce during their English Premier League match in Liverpool, northern England on 17 Nov, 2012.—Reuters London, 22 Nov — Everton. Enrique has missed Liverpool’s Spanish de- the last four matches having fender Jose Enrique will failed to completely recover probably need surgery on a from the injury picked up long-standing knee injury, earlier in the season in a manager Brendan Rodg- League Cup tie. ers said on Thursday ahead “We’re just waiting for of the 221st derby against clarification on his injury,

but it looks like he’ll probably need a small operation,” Rodgers told a press conference on Thursday. “It’s disappointing because he has been out for a couple of months and we’ve tried various ways to get him back fit. But he’s still in pain.”

Striker Daniel Sturridge will face a late fitness test before Saturday’s lunchtime kickoff at Goodison Park after he played 90 minutes for England against Germany on Tuesday despite pain from a dead leg.

Rodgers said defender Kolo Toure was back in contention to start after missing the club’s last game, and that Steven Gerrard was fully fit despite needing an injection for a hip complaint ahead of England’s defeat

by Germany.

Reuters

Motivated Robinho offers hope in gloom for Milan

Rome, 22 Nov — Massimiliano Allegri is again in the spotlight at struggling AC Milan as the political machinations at the club rumble on but at least Brazilian striker Robinho is trying to look on the bright side. Milan host Genoa on Saturday having failed to win in their last six games in all competitions and are a

AC Milan’s Robinho shoots and scores against Catania during their Italian Serie A football match at Angelo Massimino stadium in Catania, on 31 March, 2012.

Reuters

Poyet issues Sunderland ultimatum on transfer policy London, 22 Nov — English Premier League strugglers Sunderland could be looking for their fourth manager of the season if current boss Gus Poyet does not get his way in the January transfer window, the Uruguayan has warned.

Poyet said he was happy to work alongside director of football Roberto De Fanti and chief scout Valentino Angeloni, providing he had final say on who arrived to try to help his side improve on their 19th position and avoid relegation.

“We talked about a position the other day and considered four players,” Poyet was quoted as saying

by British media.

“I picked two. It was simple. One of the other two (selected by De Fanti) was a definite no. If that one

Sunderland’s manager Gus Poyet reacts after their English Premier League soccer match against Newcastle United at The Stadium of Light in Sunderland, northern England, on 27 Oct, 2013.—Reuters is coming, I won’t be here.

The player has to be the right one for me. If not, I’m not going to accept it.

“They need to give me the options and I need to pick the ones I like. We

need to see if they are available and if they fit into the financial possibilities, then we will move forward.

“I’m sure it’s going to be done in the right way, in the common sense way.

lowly 10th after losing five of their 12 league games, collecting a paltry 13 points in the process.

Failure to beat a Genoa side enjoying a three-match winning streak could hasten the end of Allegri’s rocky relationship with the club’s bosses although Robinho offered an upbeat message for the fans. He scored the win-

Everyone has a responsibility.”

Italian Paulo Di Canio started the season as Sunderland boss but he was less than impressed by De Fanti’s work, complaining that he had chosen none of the 14 players signed by his compatriot.

The volatile Di Canio failed to mould the new recruits into a squad he barely kept up the previous season and was dismissed in September with the side bottom of the table. Former Sunderland midfielder Kevin Ball then took charge on a caretaker basis before last month’s appointment of Poyet, who has enjoyed a promising start with home wins over northeast rivals Newcastle United and bigspending Manchester City.

Reuters

ning goal for Brazil against Chile this week and is clearly keen to impress Luis Felipe Scolari by scoring goals for his club.

“After every match and every training session I feel better adapted to the role,” Robinho, who is expected to play alongside Mario Balotelli and Kaka in a front three, said at this week’s gala for the charitable Milan Foundation.

“Slowly my understanding with my team mates is improving and that means at the same time that I will be able to take situations in hand like a leader.”

Milan are without suspended Italy midfielder Riccardo Montolivo while injured Stephan El Shaarawy is unlikely to be available until the Champions league clash with Celtic in Glasgow next Tuesday.—Reuters

Arsenal’s attacking options bolstered as Walcott returns

London, 22 Nov — Premier League leaders Arsenal have received a boost with the inclusion of Theo Walcott in the squad for Saturday’s match at home to his old club Southampton while Lukas Podolski’s return is less than a month away.

Manager Arsene Wenger has hailed the availability of England international Walcott, who he signed as a 16-year-old in 2006, after the forward’s season was interrupted by an abdominal operation in September.

“Strikers who get behind the defenders have a very important quality and Theo has that quality,” Wenger was quoted as saying on Arsenal’s official

website (www.arsenal. com) on Thursday ahead of the league leaders’ clash with the third-placed Saints.

“Of course you miss a player like Theo Walcott.

Theo had a good start to the season, he scored goals, he provided chances and had assists. He can always give you a different option in the game and that is of course vital.”

Wenger said that although the pacy forward had now fully recovered from surgery, his lack of match fitness meant he would be used cautiously against Southampton who are only three points behind Arsenal after a superb start to the season.

Reuters

Sharapova takes on Groeneveld as coach

Maria Sharapova of Russia hits a return to Sloane Stephens of the US at the Women’s Cincinnati Open tennis tournament in Cincinnati, Ohio on 13 Aug, 2013.

Reuters

New York, 22 Nov — Four-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova has hired Sven Groeneveld as her new coach for the 2014 season. The Russian world number four made the announcement on her Facebook page on Thursday after being without a coach since parting ways with Jimmy Connors in August.

Connors lasted just a month after joining the 26-year-old following the

Wimbledon tournament in July. “I’m happy to announce my official partnership with Sven Groeneveld,” Sharapova wrote.

“We’ve been working together since I got back on the court and after seeing him on the opposing side for so many years, I’m excited to have him become a part of my team. “It has been a very seamless transition and I have had a lot of fun with the hard work we have put in so far. Looking

forward to the year ahead.”

Groeneveld has previously worked with other top players in Monica Seles, Mary Pierce and Ana Ivanovic. Sharapova withdrew from the US Open with a shoulder injury and has not played since.

She is scheduled to return to competition at the Brisbane International tournament as she finalises her preparations for the Australian Open, the year’s first grand slam.—Reuters

England’s Theo Walcott talks during a news conference, ahead of their 2014 World Cup qualifying match against Moldova on Friday, at the St George’s Park training complex near Burton upon Trent, on 3 Sept, 2013.

Reuters

New Light of Myanmar GE NE R A L

LatAm officials call for further regional integration Brasilia, 22 Nov — Latin American officials have called for further regional integration toward sustainable and inclusive development.

Integration is a strategic requirement for reducing inequalities in the region in the context of an increasingly competitive international environment, said Miriam Belchior, Brazil’s minister of planning, budget and management, on Thursday.

“The political dimension of integration has provided countries in the region with unity needed to confront challenges in the 21st century,” she told her colleagues at a conference co-sponsored by the Brazilian government and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).

ECLAC Executive Secretary Alicia Barcena said Latin American countries should adopt a lasting and inclusive model for economic growth and a post-2015 agenda for regional development. Though the region has made great achievements in economic development and poverty reduction over the last two decades, there is doubt over whether the current model can sustain and can reduce economic and social segmentation, she said.

Xinhua

Indian main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate for 2014 general elections Narendra Modi attends a rally in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India, on 21 Nov, 2013.—Xinhua

Obama hails Slovakia’s interest in helping destroy Syrian chemical weapons Washington, 22 Nov —US President Barack Obama on Thursday welcomed Slovakia’s interest in helping destroy the chemical weapons stockpiles in Syria.

Joining Vice President Joseph Biden in his meeting with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico at the White House, Obama discussed ongoing efforts on Syria and welcomed the prime minister’s interest in “contributing to the international effort to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons,” the White House said in a statement.

Albania, seen as a pos-

sible place for destruction of Syrian chemical weapons, rejected a US request to host the operation last week. The Hague-based Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), entrusted to oversee the destruction, is considering other options including involving private companies.

According to the OPCW, the “most critical” chemical weapons will be shipped out of Syria for destruction by 31 December, and the rest will be transported outside its territory no later than 30 June, 2014.

Xinhua

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(23-11-2013, Saturday)

23-11-13 07:00 am ~ 24-11-13 07:00 am) MST

6:00 am 1. Paritta By Hilly Region Missionary Sayadaw 6:25 am 2. Physical Exercise 6:50 am 3. Nice & Sweet Song 7:00 am 4. News 7:20 am 5. Business News 8:00 am 6. News 8:30 am 7. India Drama Series 9:00 am 8. News/International News 9:30 am 9. Documentary (Traveller) 10:00 am 10. News 10:15 am 11. Documentary 10:25 am 12. Teleplay 11:25 am 13. Game for Children 12:00 pm 14. News/International News/Weather Report 12:25 pm 15. Round Up of The Week’s TV Local News 1:45 pm 16. Teleplay 2:45 pm 17. Hyper Sports

Adidas extends World Cup football sponsorship until 2030

Frankfurt, 22 Nov — 45German sportswear maker Adidas will remain the official partner and sponsor of the FIFA World Cup until 2030 as it defends its market leadership in football against US rival Nike.

Under a deal covering the four tournaments from 2018, Adidas will provide the match balls and the uniforms of volunteers who help fans find their way around. It will also sell licensed World Cup products and have its name on advertising at venues.

“Adidas is an integral part of the FIFA World Cup story, quite literally featuring at the heart of the action at every tournament since the 1970 World Cup,” FIFA Marketing Director Thierry Weil said in a statement on Thursday.

Saturday, 23 November, 2013 15

Herbert Hainer, chief executive officer of Adidas, the world’s second largest sports apparel firm, attends the company annual general meeting in the northern Bavarian town of Fuerth near Nuremberg on 8 May, 2013.

Reuters The last contract extension with FIFA was announced in 2005, covering the 2010 World Cup and next year’s tournament in Brazil. That deal was estimated to be worth $350 million. Adidas declined to give financial details of the

latest extension.

Adidas and Nike are almost neck and neck in the market for football kit - replica shirts, balls and boots - estimated to be worth around 5 billion euros ($6.7 billion) annually.

While Adidas was

boosted by last year’s Olympics and European football championships, it has struggled to maintain momentum in 2013, losing ground in the European market for sports apparel to the larger Nike and warning of smaller than expected growth in profits.

But all eyes are already on Brazil. Adidas has forecast record football sales of more than 2 billion euros in 2014, a jump from the 1.5 billion it raked in for the last World Cup year.

It has already kicked off its World Cup football campaign, launching new lines of boots and the jerseys for teams like Germany, Spain and Argentina in time for them to make their way into the Christmas stockings of fans.

Reuters

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* Local News * Auspicious Grounds And Devotional Posts * World News * Let’s Explore the Customs of Mindut * Local News * Myanmar Traditional Festival * World News * Guiding Star of Song Birds * Local News * Youth of the future (Episode-16) Young Photographer (Thi Ha Aung) * World News * Myanmar Puppet * Local News * A Day Out With Sarah (Episode-5) * World News * To The Blue Ridge Mountains of Rhododendrons * Local News * The Beauty In The North of Myanmar * World News * Myanmar Alternative Medicine (Noni) * Local News * My Native Town Meiktila * World News * Lucrative Business of Tanintharyi Region * Local News * Rakhine Traditional Wedding Ceremony * Made in Myanmar “Mixxo” * The Wachet Jivitadana Sanga Hospital * MURAL PAINTING BAGAN

PSG will help Ibrahimovic forget about World Cup Paris, 22 Nov—Club success will help Zlatan Ibrahimovic overcome the disappointment of missing out on the World Cup, his Paris St Germain coach Laurent Blanc said on Thursday.

Ibrahimovic’s Sweden team were beaten 4-2 on aggregate by Cristiano Ron-

Paris St-Germain coach Laurent Blanc reacts before his team’s Champions League football match against Anderlecht at the Parc des Princes Stadium in Paris on 5 Nov, 2013.

Reuters

aldo’s Portugal in a playoff tie on Tuesday, meaning the striker only has club titles to fight for this season.

“His behaviour and his state of mind are good,” Blanc told a news conference ahead of Saturday’s trip to Stade Reims, where Ligue 1 leaders PSG will look to extend their unbeaten run in all competitions to 34 games.

“I found him well, I talked to him yesterday. He told me they were up against a very good Portugal team.

Of course there is disappointment,” the 1998 World Cup winner added. PSG, however, are the hot favourites to retain their Ligue 1 title as they lead second-placed Lille by four points after 13 games with third-placed Monaco five points off the pace.

Reuters

R/489 Printed and published by the New Light of Myanmar press in Nay Pyi Taw, the News and Periodicals Enterprise, Ministry of Information.

6th Waning of Tazaungmon 1375 ME

New Light of Myanmar

Saturday, 23 November, 2013

Vice-President U Nyan Tun enjoys friendship cultural show Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—Vice-President U Nyan Tun enjoyed the friendship cultural show to commemorate the 65th Anniversary of diplomatic relations between Myanmar and Thailand held at MICC, here, this evening.

It was attended by the Union ministers, the deputy ministers, Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Surapong Tovichakchaikul, the Thai Ambassador to Myanmar and guests.

On the occasion, the Vice-President, Union Foreign Affairs Minister

U Wunna Maung Lwin and the Thai Deputy Prime Minister extended greetings.

Next, they posed for a documentary photo together with those present on the occasion.

The Vice-President and those present enjoyed the performances of Thai dance troupes and Myanmar traditional cultural dance troupes from the Fine Arts Department under the Ministry of Culture.

The Vice-President then presented baskets of flowers to the performers.—MNA

Friendship cultural show to commemorate 65th Anniversary of diplomatic relations between Myanmar and Thailand in progress.—mna

UEC Chairman pledges to hold free and fair elections in 2015

Meeting between strategic programme drawing committee of UEC and Political parties at Panda Hotel in progress.—mna Yangon, 22 Nov — Chairman of Union Election Commission U Tin Aye addressed a meeting between the strategic programme drawing committee of UEC and political parties at Panda Hotel, here, this morning.

The committee led by UEC member Dr Daw Myint Kyi and representatives

from 50 political parties held talks on 12 points included in the strategic porgramme.

Next, the UEC Chairman made clarifications about the reports submitted by those present.

Then, the UEC Chairman pledged that 2015 general elections will be free and fair and be held in

accord with the law calling for participation of political parties in the electoral process. He also called on political parties to perform their works in accord with the law.

After the meeting, the UEC Chairman posed for a documentary photo together with those present.

MNA

Nay Pyi Taw Expo on 23-27 November Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—Organized by Winner Economics Enterprise Services Co, Ltd, Nay Pyi Taw Expo will be held near Yarza Htarni Road in the compound of Uppatasanti Pagoda in Pobbathiri Township in Nay Pyi Taw Council Area from 23 to 27 November with the participation of the companies from Yangon and Mandalay.

Over 250 booths including car showrooms will be showcased at the expo.

Moreover, model show, dancer show, entertainment and Anyeint programme and performing of comedians will be presented to the visitors at the expo.

As a special pro-

gramme, SkyNet will organize singing contest and present gifts to the visitors, according to Ma Ei Thandar, an organizer of the expo.

Ko Myo (Shwe Paukkan)

Seventh Myanmar-Thailand joint commission meeting held

Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—The seventh ministerial level meeting of Myanmar-Thailand joint commission on cooperation took place at Myanmar International Convention Centre-MICC, here, this morning.

After holding a Myanmar-Thailand high-ranking officials meeting, the joint commission meeting, cochaired by Union Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin and Mr. Surapong Tovichakchaikul, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of Thailand,

Assessment on inclusive education discussed Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—Acting Union Minister for Education Dr Myo Myint received a delegation led by UK Parliaments International Development Committee (IDC) Mr Michael McCann at his office, here, yesterday evening.

They held talks on free and compulsory primary education, appointment of teacher and capacity building, building infrastructure development, assessment on inclusive education and inspection and evaluation works being carried out by special task forces and working groups numbering 18.

MNA

followed.

The meeting focused on further strengthening friendship and cooperation between the two countries on a mutual basis.

Next, Thai Deputy Prime Minister handed over sports gear and technical equipment to be used at the upcoming 27th SEA Games to the Union minister.

Then, the Union minister and the Thai Deputy Prime Minister attended a stake-driving ceremony for construction of a new school building to mark the 65th Anniversary of diplomatic ties between Myanmar and Thailand at Thabyehla village in Pyinmana in the afternoon.

MNA

Union Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin accepts sports gear and technical equipment donated by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affaris Minister of Thailand Mr Surapong Tovichakchaikul.—mna

17 days to XXVII SEA Games

Request to sports fans Nay Pyi Taw, 22 Nov—Only ticket holders for opening and closing ceremonies of the SEA Games and football matches will be allowed to enter the stadium as tickets for opening and closing ceremonies and men/ women football matches of the SEA Games will be sold in advance to the fans.

Under the principles of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and Asian Football Confederation (AFC), only ticket holders will be allowed to enter the stadium according to the seating plan, said the Ministry of Sports and Myanmar Football Federation.

MNA