Active Nation Vol 2, No 26 - Jan 9-15,2012 by Active Nation Publisher

LOUT L U P E FRE INE MAGAZ 17- 20 e g a P on

VOL. 02 ISSUE. 26 ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012 SSP - 3 Ugx 2,000 - Ksh - 50 TZ 600 RWF - 400 BIF - 1500 EGP - 200

USA will not allow Khartoum to bomb Blue Nile and South. Kordufan”, Senator Kerry Page 2

Army to investigate Khorfulus Christmas church attack By Alupo Sarah South Sudan army on Tuesday said it is conducting an investigation into the killing of four civilians and one of its soldiers in Jonglei’s Khorfulus during Christmas Eve celebrations. Phillip Aguer, spokesman of South Sudan’s army, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) told Sudan Tribune on Tuesday that the security situation in the wake of the incident is “normal” and suggested that the major insecurity concerns in the country are due to the actions of Khartoum. Aguer said that during the burial the rebel leader, George Athor, on the 23 December, an SPLA soldier who was on duty, providing protection to those burying the deceased,

UN secretary General end to violence in South . S U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has expressed deep concern about continuing ethnic tensions in South Sudan’s Jonglei State, following fresh rounds of deadly clashes between Lou Nuer and Murle. In a statement issued on Wednesday, Ban spoke out about ongoing tensions between the two communities, echoing comments earlier this week by Hilde F. Johnson, the head of the UN peacekeeping force in South Sudan (UNMISS). “The Secretary-General calls on the leadership of both groups to cease violence and to work with the Government toward a long-term solution

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SPLA soldiers

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LOCAL NEWS

ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

USA will not allow Khartoum to bomb Blue Nile and S. Kordufan”, Senator Kerry By Sarah Alupo

The Chairperson of the Foreign Relationships in the United States Congress Senator John Kerry said that women are the center of economic development in the developing countries and called upon the women to clearly define their priorities to guarantee that their voices are heard, and provide everybody a country recommendation of building a state. Senator Kerry made the remarks in the closing session of the International Engagement Conference

yesterday evening at Marriot Wardman Hotel in Washington D.C. Senator Kerry emphasized in his speech to the IEC that the conference was not only about the development but was an opportunity to share a commitment to seeing the promises of January 9th and July 9th 2011 being fulfilled, adding that USA is ready to help South Sudan develop its oil resources and that time has come to making South Sudan institutions accountable. Senator Kerry underlined to the conferee that Sudan

Government in Khartoum has diverted from resolving the political issues of its marginalized people to aerial bombs and denial of humanitarian assistance. Kerry announced that USA will not allow Khartoum Government to move forward with its aerial bombs against the villagers in Blue Nile and South Kordufan. He stated that the position of the USA is always requiring the fulfillment of the CPA including the three areas of Blue Nile, South Kordufan and Abyei.

H.E Kiir shakes hands with Senator Kerry

Army to investigate Khorfulus Christmas church attack was severely injured by a landmine. The SPLA claim Athor was killed by their forces on 20 December. The rebels claim Uganda was responsible - a claim which Uganda denies. During the evening of 24 Decemeber an SPLA was shot multiple times and was found dead on his way to night prayers at the church in Khorfulus. Upon discoveing his body, his comrades in arms then began to

shoot indiscriminately into the crowd leaving the church, killing four people and wounding 15, explained Aguer. “Upon receipt of the information, he said, the SPLA general command immediately ordered for the arrest of the SPLA officer who was in charge of the platoon which committed the incident [...] Investigation is underway [sic],” said Aguer. Aguer described

the general security situation in the country as “normal” other than tension in the borders of Raja county, Western Bahr el Ghazal state and Unity state, where, he claimed, Khartoum’s army, the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) are preparing to annex part South Sudan’s to the north. Aguer also claimed SAF are resettling Arab nomads in the Abyei area, disregarding

The SPLA claim Athor was killed by their forces on 20 December. The rebels claim Uganda was responsible - a claim which Uganda denies.

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Aguer said that during the burial the rebel leader, George Athor, on the 23 December, an SPLA soldier who was on duty, providing protection to those burying the deceased, was severely injured by a landmine

SPLA soldiers

the UN resolution to withdraw. SAF took control of the disputed Abyei in May. It is a border area populated by Ngok Dinka, traditionally aligned with South Sudan, and the seminomadic Misseriya who generally look to Khartoum for support. Despite the deployment of a new UN force in the region, thousands of people remain displacedby th e dispute.

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LOCAL NEWS

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UN secretary General “American business calls for end to community to invest in RSS”, violence in south US ambassador sudan Contd from Page 1 to the root causes of the hostilities,” the statement said. Demand for high bridal dowries and consequent increased levels of cattle rustling have exacerbated existing ethnic tensions in Jonglei. Air patrols by UNMISS last weekend identified thousands of Lou Nuer youth massing to attack Murle communities near Likuangole, north of Pibor. The Mission has deployed more peacekeepers in the region stepped up air and

ground patrols in a bid to dampen tensions. Ban commended the efforts of the South Sudanese Government to calm the situation and to ensure that vulnerable civilians are protected. More than 1,000 people are estimated to have been killed in ethnic clashes within South Sudan this year, with Jonglei one of the states worst affected by the violence. Thousands more civilians have been displaced from their homes.

The American Ambassador to the Republic of South Sudan Susan Page assured of the readiness of the American business community to invest in the Republic of South Sudan. Speaking to the press in Juba ,the US Ambassador said the December 14th to 15th Iternational Engagement Conference that was sponsored by the government of the United States of America, UK, Norway, UN, African Union, World Bank

IFC and NGOs had scored two important successes that will see many investors coming to invest in the world’s newest nation. Ambassador Page outlined the waving off of sanctions on the oil sector with South Sudan and the commitment of the government of the Republic of South Sudan to join the International Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), a body that looks at transparency over payments which oil, gas and mining which

UK to cancel all of Sudan’s debt by 2014: report The British government intends to forgive more than $ 1 billion in debt owed by Sudan over the next few years, according to a report by the Financial Times. The newspaper said that Britain is expected to relieve Sudan of £740 million ($1.2 billion) in debt. It noted that Sudan defaulted on its £173m debt to the UK in 1984 under the rule of late President Ja’afar Nimeiri, and ever since

it has not made a single repayment. But with astronomical interests rates that ranged between 10%12% annually the debt now stands at £678 million ($1.0 billion). The UK-based Jubilee Debt Campaign, which says that debt repayments and loan conditions cripple economic development in poor countries, criticized the move on Sudan’s debt and suggested that it is

simply a smoke screen. “Any debt cancellation for Sudan is not aid,” said Tim Jones, policy officer at the Jubilee Debt Campaign. “Most of the debt is made-up money based on ridiculously high interest rates. The debt should be cancelled because it is unjust and unpayable, not used to meet targets and massage figures” he said. But the UK Department for International Development defended

its debt cancellation policy. “By cancelling debts, we are freeing up money that can then be spent tackling poverty and providing essential services such as schools and hospitals to their people” it argued. Sudan has been lobbying the international community intensively to have its debt canceled as a reward for letting South Sudan secede peacefully last July. Sudan and South Sudan

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are aimed at improving the service delivery to all citizen of a member country as being landmark achievements. She explained that the removal of the sanctions on the oil sector in South Sudan will allow easy importation of equipments and other items for the development of the oil sector. “These two aspects are tremendous achievements for South Sudan for it will become easy doing business here in South Sudan for investors”, she said.

are negotiating how to split up the national debt but no progress has been made up so far. Legal experts say that until a deal is reached between Sudan and South Sudan on splitting up national debt, Khartoum is liable for making the necessary payments. Most of Sudan’s debt dates back to the days of president Nimeiri. It grew from $9 billion in 1985 to $37.8 billion. The majority of it is owed to the Arab Gulf States of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Last September, the Sudanese foreign minister Ali Karti wanted of economic collapse in his country unless the international community steps in to assist particularly with regards to debt relief. “We are working also on debt relief with France and others, because debt servicing incurs more than $1 billion annually,” Karti told reporters in Paris at the time following a meeting with his French counterpart Alain Juppe. He said that the world could not simply stand back and watch the economy collapse describing the economy’s woes as “really serious”.

USA lifts sanctions on South Sudan The United States of America has lifted sanctions on the Republic of south Sudan, Hon Dr Barnaba Marial Benjamin, the minister for Information and Broadcasting disclosed yesterday upon his arrival from the International Engagement Conference (IEC) in Washington DC. Dr Marial further revealed that the US government has promised South Sudan the membership of the African Government Opportunity Act (AGOA) which makes possible the export and import of South Sudan’s product to the USA without any taxes charged. He also reported that during the high profile conference, South Sudan was introduced by the

South Sudan the membership of the African Government Opportunity Act (AGOA) USA to the international community. Similarly, the role of the international community in enhancing development in South Sudan was highlighted. At the same time, the minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Hon Kosti Yokania Manibe reported that the government of South Sudan put across to the world the vision of the young nation during the conference. He also said that the vision was well received by the international community. In his statement at Juba International Airport, Hon Manibe said that the conference was a resounding success for the Republic of South Sudan.

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Fire guts Beijing Juba Hotel again For the second time,fire gutted Beijing Juba Hotel destroying property worth millions of pounds. The block that survived last year’s fire is what has been reduced to ashes today. The block that is mostly built of prefabs accommodates many of the hotel’s clients who are both nationals and foreign clients. Many of the hotel clients that spoke to goss.org,

maintained that today’s fire has destroyed almost all their property. One of the clients who only identified himself as Makur said all his belongings have been burnt. “I was at work when I received a call that the hotel was on fire. This is my home, all my belongings were in there”, he narrated sorrowfully. Mr. Makur maintained that the hotel was filled

Dr Marial slams Khartoum over students’ recruitment into military

up and that it was a very big loss to the people who were living in the Hotel. Another client, a Chinese national, said he was only lucky that by the time the fire begun he was around to pick his belongings before the fire intensified. Most of the eyewitnesses could not establish the cause of the fire but pointed out that the possible cause could

have been an electrical fault. Most of the original hotels in Juba are built with prefabs making it difficult to save belongings of people who frequent these hotels in times of such fire outbreaks. Getting comment from the hotel management was futile as most of them were engaged in rescuing the situation. By the time the fire brigade arrived much of

the block was reduced to the ground level but it managed to stop the fire from causing more damage to the remaining blocks. The hotel management had started putting permanent structures after the first fire incident most likely to avert such damages but have been challenged again by today’s fire outbreak.

President Kiir accuses Khartoum of stealing South Sudan oil

I Dr Marial (right) addressing the press. He is accompanied by his deputy Hon Atem Yaak Atem The minister for Information and Broadcasting who is also the Official Spokesperson of the government of the Republic of South Sudan Hon. Dr. Barnaba Marial Benjamin condemned the government of Sudan over the recruitment of South Sudanese university students across the Republic of Sudan into the Republic of Sudan’s military. “The attitude of recruiting South Sudanese university students into the military by the Khartoum regime is an irresponsible exercise”, said Dr. Marial during a media briefing at the ministry’s premises. “Our students in Khartoum are there for studies and not for military purposes; we strongly protest the exercise as a government”, stressed Dr. Marial.

“I thought our conflict is only on petroleum and its facilities, but if we have to step into the citizens and looting their properties, then it is another problem”, he wondered. Dr. Marial said South Sudab will not to copy Khartoum’s attitude though north Sudan has its citizens, properties and even their embassy in South Sudan. Dr. Marial reiterated that the President of the Republic of South Sudan, H.E. Gen. Salva Kiir Mayardit has promised that South Sudan is committed to remain in peace with its neighbor and not to go back to war. According to available reports, the Khartoum government has launched a campaign against the SS university students across Khartoum to join the military by force over the past week.

n his New Year message to the people of South Sudan, Salva Kiir said that Sudan was taking South Sudan’s oil without permission but provided no details. Kiir described this as ’looting in a broad day light’ in his message which was published on the website of the South Sudanese government. The two nations are set to enter a new round of negotiations regarding oil this month. It is hoped that the new round of talks will bring both sides closer to a settlement of the longstanding dispute relating to the fees paid by landlocked South Sudan for the use of pipelines owned by Sudan. The pipelines are used to transport oil to export terminals in the coastal city of Port Sudan. The African Union HighLevel Implementation Panel (AUHIP) chaired by former South African president Thabo Mbeki had previously tabled proposals which were rejected by both sides. The AUHIP’s previous proposal outlined a compromise which would require South Sudan to pay Khartoum an annual percentage of its oil exports. However this proposal failed when Sudan rejected the

New passports to launch in January South Sudan has received samples of the new passports of the country which now meet international standards. The Minister of Interior, Alison Monani Magaya, told UNMISS Radio Miraya that President Salva Kiir Mayardit will officially launch the passports on January 3rd 2012. The new passports which are valid for five years, will replace the previous ones which were issued last July.

Jonglei minister meets forces loyal to late George Athor

Pesident Salval Kiir South Sudan’s offer of US$5.4 billion per year, and instead demanded US$7.4 billion. Sudan is desperate for an accord to be sealed with its southern neighbor because it is undergoing a severe economic crisis after losing 75% of its oil reserves after South Sudan succeeded in July Last year. Kiir said that his country had “made substantial offers that would improve the economic and financial gaps of the Republic of Sudan in the spirit of Comprehensive Peace Agreement and to ensure mutual viability of the two states as a good gesture”. He warned Khartoum that its’hostile attitude’ should stop, adding that Juba will continue with diplomatic avenues to address the outstanding

issues between the two nations. The two countries have recently exchanged accusations regarding support for rebels who are fighting the respective governments. Sudan has lodged three complaints with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) against South Sudan in this regard. China, which has the largest stake in South Sudan’s oil, urged both countries to settle their disagreements through negotiations, while cautioning Khartoum against disrupting the flow of oil as it has threatened before. Sudan has also warned that it will take a portion of the oil pumped by the South Sudan as a form of payment if negotiations fail.

Jonglei Law Enforcement Minister Gabriel Doup Lam and other top security officers on Tuesday met with a delegation of forces loyal to the late George Athor in Ayod County of Jonglei, to negotiate an amnesty. Speaking to Radio Miraya from Ayod, Lam said that this is the third time that he has been in talks with the group since the death of their leader George Athor just before Christmas. He emphasized that the rebels are afraid of being imprisoned or killed after laying down their arms, despite his assurances that they will be safe and free to either join the national army, or disarm and reintegrate back into their communities. Doup Lam added that this Christmas has been very peaceful in Ayod County and asked the citizens to forgive, reconcile with each other and focus on developing the new nation.

ACTIVE NEWS OCTOBER - 20th ACTIVE NATION 9th 14th - 15th JANUARY 2012

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OCTOBER

LOCAL NEWS

Six dead in Sudan chopper crash, fire: army All six crewmen aboard a Sudanese military helicopter were killed when it crashlanded and burned in North Kordofan state on Friday, the army said. Fire broke out because of a “technical problem” aboard the Russian-made aircraft three minutes after takeoff from a base at El Obeid, the state capital, army spokesman Sawarmi Khaled Saad told AFP. The pilot crash-landed in a yard “but the fire destroyed the plane completely and all six crew were killed,” he said. Saad said the chopper was carrying “military equipment” on a logistical mission.

The official SUNA news agency reported that the aircraft was a helicopter gunship. El Obeid is a base for the Sudanese military but there is no known rebel activity in that immediate area. Sudan’s armed forces since June have been battling rebels further south in adjacent South Kordofan state, as well as in Blue Nile state. On Thursday South Sudan’s military spokesman said Sudanese air raids killed 17 people in the border state of Western Bahr al-Ghazal, the second day of stepped-up bombing along the northern frontier. The spokesman also said

bombing had resumed over the previous two days around Jau, a disputed area along the South Kordofan-Unity state border. Khartoum dismissed the allegations of bombing in Western Bahr al-Ghazal as “incorrect”, and accused South Sudan of building up its troops in the Jau area to attack inside Sudan. South Sudan separated from Sudan in July after an overwhelming vote for independence that followed more than two decades of civil war. Each side has accused the other of supporting rebels inside its borders.

Sudanese war helicopters sitting on the tarmac of the ElGeneina airport in West Darfur

“General security situation calm”, Col Aguer Severe

Col Aguer addressing the media forum. The spokesperson of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) Col. Phillip Aguer yesterday in his address to the media said the general security situation in the country is normal and calm. Col. Aguer while briefing the media forum at the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting headquarters hosted by the government of the Republic of South Sudan spokesperson Hon. Dr. Barnaba Marial Benjamin said there are no major events except for the

reported movement of Sudan Armed Forces along the border with the Republic of South Sudan. He said that the SPLA is closely monitoring their movements and maintained that so long as they don’t enter into the territories of the Republic of South Sudan, they will only be monitoring their activities. “We are strictly implementing the policy of the government of the Republic of South Sudan and that is to be on the defensive position”, asserted Col. Aguer.

He said Jua payam, in Unity state, is now under the control of the SPLA after being invaded by the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF). He said that in Unity State and Southern Korodofan SAF is still maintaining their presence as opposed to their supposed withdrawal from these locations explaining that SAF are about 6km from SPLA positions in Jua. Col. Aguer also said Maban, parts of Blue Nile and the borders of Unity state are

relatively quiet from the remnants of the late rebel leader George Athor. On Jonglei communal clashes Col. Aguer said the SPLA is sending more troops alongside police officers. He said these forces were already on the way to Janglei. He said the by yesterday the reports emerging from the affected area of Pibor was that the Lou Nuer youths were already vacating Pibor towards their territories. He said this is a good gesture that the President of the Republic of South Sudan H.E Salva Kiir’s massage to the two communities is being implemented. President Kiir in his New Year message had asked the Lou Nuer to leave Pibor Murle area. The President had also assured that their cattle, children and wives allegedly taken by the Murle would be returned. He also asked the Murle to return the alleged cattle they had taken. Col. Aguer decried the state of roads that he said have been a major setback for the SPLA in averting such clashes. He called on the government to prioritize the construction of roads so as to provide easy access to save lives in the future. He lauded the support of the UNMISS saying that they are helping with air patrols to see the movement of the communities hence helping SPLA to plan better in stopping the clashes.

water crisis looms in Lakes State By Deng Michael Lakes State is at risk of a sever water crisis as result of the lack of spare parts for the boreholes. The State Director for Water and Sanitation, Barnaba Makuac Magol, on Tuesday told Radio Miraya that more than one thousand boreholes in the state lack spare parts. “We have a problem with the supply chain which is spare parts or rehabilitation of boreholes. At the moment, we do not have stock of spare parts which is a challenge for us. People are reporting breakdown of boreholes,” said Magol. Magol fears this may result into severe shortage of water in the state if remedies are not sought immediately. He said maintenance of the boreholes requires both local and donor support. According to Magol, Lakes State has 1,486 boreholes.

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Sudan asks Juba to extradite SPLM-N leaders By Komakech Ivan The Sudanese police has submitted a formal request to its counterpart in South Sudan asking it to handover leaders of the armed rebel group, Sudan People’s Liberation Movement North (SPLM-N). The request said that a number of individual SPLM-N’s members, including its chairman Malik Aggar and secretary-general Yasir Arman, are wanted by the Sudanese authorities for their role in “sparking the war” in Blue Nile State. Blue Nile became the scene of an armed

conflict between the Sudanese government and the SPLM-N in September, three months after a similar conflict erupted in South Kordofan State. The conflict is rooted in the refusal of the SPLM-N fighters in the two states to surrender their arms following the secession of South Sudan with which they shared a long history of armed struggle against Khartoum. According to a police source cited by the government-sponsored Sudanese Media Center (SMC), the Sudanese

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Interpol addressed its counterpart in South Sudan and the regional office in Nairobi asking for the extradition of Arman and Aggar along with others. Sudan’s request to South Sudan follows an earlier request from Khartoum to the Interpol for the issuance of a Red Notice for the arrest of Arman, Aggar along with 16 other individuals who are charged by the Sudanese Justice Ministry in relation to the outbreak of the conflict in Blue Nile. The SPLM-N individuals are charged with

“conspiracy to wage war against the state” in Blue Nile. Reacting to the news, Yasir Arman poured scorn on Khartoum’s move, saying that the arrest warrant against him is issued by people who are themselves wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The SPLM-N secretarygeneral was referring to the ICC’s arrest warrant for Sudan’s president Omer Al-Bashir against the background of the conflict in Sudan’s western region of Darfur.

50000 displaced in tribal conflict in Jonglei

By Ocet Oyeng- ki-pii

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator for South Sudan said about 50000 people have been displaced in the recent clashes between Murle and Lou Nuer in Jongolei state. Lise Grand said the United Nations Mission in South Sudan is tracking out civilians who have fled the areas through air and ground patrols. “We are currently conducting air and ground patrols to track out civilians who have fled the areas”, she said. Grand said the UN is currently evacuating wounded civilians out from the area. She said the UN is mandated to use Chapter Seven to protect the civilians. She

added that the UN is providing shelters to the civilians. She added that the government of the republic of south Sudan is deploying 3000 troops and 800 police in Pibor county. She said the displaced civilians had fled Pibor and nearby towns to escape the violence. “We are worried about their conditions. They are without water, shelter and food. They are hiding in the bush”, she said. Alison Manani Magaya minister of Interior said they are in preparation to create a buffer zone that will prevent the two tribes from fignting each other as a preliminary step.

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S. Sudan activist call for Jonglei state of emergency By Komakech Ivan The Government of South Sudan (GoSS) should immediately declare a state of emergency and establish a Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) buffer zone in the conflict areas of Jonglei state, a civil society entity said on Wednesday. In a statement published ahead of a planned visit by government officials to assess the security situation in the state, Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) argues that such measures will help resolve the tense

LOCAL NEWS

ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

situation between the Luo Nuer and the Murle communities. According to section 187 (1) of South Sudan’s transitional constitution, “The president, may upon the occurrence of an imminent danger, whether it is war, invasion, blockade, natural disaster or epidemics, as may threaten the country, or any part thereof or the safety or economy of the same, declare a state of emergency in the country, or in any part thereof, in accordance with this Constitution and the law.”

On Monday, at least 24 people, mostly civilians, were reportedly killed in a clash involving Lou Nuer and Murle ethnic communities in Pibor County, Jonglei state, authorities said on Tuesday. CEPO advocate for the involvement of perpetrators and victims of the conflict in the ongoing peace negotiations. Over the weekend, UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) air patrols reportedly identified thousands of armed Lou Nuer youths preparing to attack Murle communities near

Likuangole in Jonglei state. UNMISS head, Hilde Johnson, on Tuesday urged GoSS to take all necessary measures to protect civilians in the country’s most populous state “to avert a major tragedy.” As well as consistently advocating an end to the ethnic violence in the troubled region, UNMISS has also facilitated a reconciliation process between various communities, particularly the inclusive peace process led by the Sudan Council of Churches (SCC).

Police arrest two heavily armed men in Juba The South Sudan Police said on Monday that it has arrested two men carrying Kalashnikov rifles while riding on a motorcycle along the Gudele Road in Juba around 8 am. In a statement issued the police said they also found three large

daggers and sixty rounds of ammunition on the suspects. The police did not give further details on the identity or nationality of the men, but said that they are currently in custody pending further investigations.

WFP to increase food aid in S.S

Refugees wait for food aid to be distributed near the volatile border, in Yida refugee camp in SS The World Food Program reports it is scaling up its humanitarian operation in South Sudan this year to support 2.7 million people affected by hunger and conflict. WFP says crop failure brought about by little and erratic rainfall last year is worsening food

insecurity in this newly independent country. War is raging along the border between South Sudan and Sudan, its northern neighbor. This is adding to the misery already felt by the nearly eight million people living in this newly independent state.

The World Food Program says food prices are rising because of the bad harvest. It says trade between Sudan in the north and South Sudan is disrupted because of border closures. On top of that, it says the large numbers of returnees and displaced people is

putting great pressure upon the country’s limited food stocks. WFP spokeswoman, Gaelle Sevenier, says lack of food is causing malnutrition to rise among children. So, as part of its scaledup operation, she says WFP will provide highly fortified supplementary foods to more than onehalf million children, pregnant women and nursing mothers. “The World Food Program is deeply concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in South Sudan,” said Sevenier. “We have very high food and fuel prices. We have rising poverty, a growing insecurity, and all this is pushing onethird of the population into hunger. So, a third of the population in South Sudan is hungry.” Recent assessments by the World Food Program and Food and Agriculture Organization find 3.7

million people in South Sudan are moderately to severely food insecure. This is about 12 percent higher than in 2010. The same assessments estimate the national grain deficit in 2012 will be about 400,000 metric tons. Sevenier says WFP has begun pre-positioning food in South Sudan, in advance of the rainy season, which begins in March. “When the rainy season starts, 60 percent of the country is completely cut off. Sixty percent of the country is unreachable,” added Sevenier. “We cannot bring the food to 60 percent of the country except by plane. If we have to bring the food by plane, it is very costly. So, we are planning ahead. We have four months in front of us, four months to bring as much food as possible to the different places.” The World Food

Program says it urgently needs around $92 million to address hunger needs in South Sudan in the first four months of next year. In addition to emergency assistance, WFP is supporting other programs aimed at helping communities and families become more self-sufficient and productive. The agency says it also is laying the groundwork for other projects to build longer-term resilience.

2.7 million people affected by hunger and conflict in South Sudan.

ACTIVE NEWS 9th 14th- 15th OCTOBER 20th OCTOBER ACTIVE NATION JANUARY- 2012

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Commentary

Editorial 2012;South Sudan and the Sudan need strong bilateral ties Republic of South Sudan (RSS) and the Republic of the Sudan (RS) relationships have reached its lowest ebb ever. During the Interim Period from 2005 to 2011, the two erstwhile foes had differences, but the situation didn’t reach the height of the military and wild provocations, as is the case now. Between RSS and RS there have been accusations and counter accusations against one another, a scenario that have technically put the two countries into unnecessary cold or ‘hot’ war. The two countries therefore must work out some ways to peacefully resolve their differences. Belligerency and confrontation won’t help resolve the outstanding differences, but dialogue. For the good of the people of the two nations, there has to be ties and bilateral relations, bad blood and ugly history notwithstanding For the Republic of the Sudan, just to begin, they must play a fatherly role to matters related to South Sudan, and the RSS should also not forget the history that binds it with that ‘father’ called the Republic of the Sudan. Khartoum ought to relax its stance on Abyei, Border Demarcation, citizenship and its restrictive trading policies or market practices against the RSS. The RS has a fundamental role to play when it comes to building of relationship with the RSS. RSS has just started from nowhere and RS needs to show restraints and patience and help this new nation to pick up. In contrast, what the Sudan is doing right now, by competing with the new emerging nation called South Sudan, is not desired! They must go slow and complete the noble mission they have started in the Kenyan town of Machakos in 2002. A responsible government can’t and will not be lured into prolonging the suffering of its citizen it purports to protect. Khartoum being the epicenter for political and military mantra of the larger Sudan should have avoided becoming obstacle to other regions well being. There is no reason for that at all. Khartoum must allow the people of Abyei the right to choose their destiny, as came from the Abyei Protocol Plot 7 Madras Garden off Sir, Apollo Kaggwa Rd, Daily Loaf Bakery Junction, After Old Kampala Police Station 0714 / 0754 / 0703 / 0776 23 54 23 Juba Office: 150 metres Walk from American Embassy & Zara Hotel off Minitries Road, Nabari Juba, ROSS. Email: activenation@makerere-edu.org 0955 710 805, +211 955 677 996 editor@makerere-edu.org; www.makerere-edu.org, www. activenationss.webs.com www.facebook.com/activenation

Disclaimer The views experienced in these pages are not necessarily those of the publisher. The publisher does not guarantee the accuracy of the views expressed by any third party.

EDITORIAL

How to discourage revenge attacks in South Sudan

By Zechariah Manyok Biar

We in South Sudan are living under John Locke’s state of nature in which “everyone has a right to punish the transgressors of that law to such a degree as may hinder its violation.” In Jonglei State, retaliatory attacks are now under way in Murle area in revenge for the Murle’s revenge killing of Nuer some months ago. This is going on despite the appeal of the Vice President Dr. Riek Machar against such attacks two weeks ago. So, is the Government helpless to stop these circular retaliatory attacks in which many innocent lives are often lost? It seems. When Nuer was massacred by Murle in response to Nuer’s retaliatory attacks few months ago, the Government condemned both killings and urged the Nuer to refrain from retaliating again. The Nuer accepted it. But the Murle did not seem to have noticed such a move. They came to Bor and massacred innocent people in Jale, angering both the Nuer and Bor. That was the time Nuer youth decided to proceed with the action that they had suspended earlier because of the appeal from the Government. They might have concluded that any community is on its own in South Sudan even though the Government claims to be in control. Their conclusion would be reasonable. There is no way the Government can have control on some communities and not on others. But are the Nuer now justified for choosing the state of nature as the means of achieving their justice against Murle? Even though I sympathize with the

Nuer community, I would still argue that no community is morally justified to take the laws into its own hand in its pursuit for justice. Retaliation begets retaliation, leading to unnecessary suffering of innocent people. There are many people on both sides who do not approve of what their youth is doing against other communities. To kill these people in retaliation together with criminals is against justice itself. The state of nature’s way of achieving justice sometimes goes beyond the proportionate amount of punishment deserved for a particular wrong done. Robert Nozick in his book “Anarchy, State, And Utopia” argues that those who avenge themselves under the state of nature “will overestimate the amount of harm or damage they have suffered, and passions will lead them to attempt to punish others more than proportionately and to exact excessive compensation.” It is because of this disproportionate nature in revenge killings that many people all over the world make sure that nobody is allowed to take the law into his or her own hand. We believe that our Government can do more to stop this practice and it is trying to do its best. The Government is willing to stop these attacks, but reality proves them wrong. The style of intervention that the it is using to deter these kinds of attacks is not working. The Ministry of Interior, for example, has sent one thousand police personnel to prevent

these attacks, but they are faced with many difficulties beyond their control. There are no roads that would make the movement of those forces easier to deter those attacks because the border between Murle and Nuer communities is wider. One thousand police can just be a drop in the ocean to control that border. Both Murle and Nuer are aware of this fact and they cannot be bothered by a mere presence of those forces since they know those bushes more than those forces or even more than the unarmed UNMISS helicopters that patrol the border. So what is the alternative? There is no concrete answer to this question, but I will give my personal suggestions. I believe that there are two alternatives to the current method of control: the marking of cows and the armed helicopter gunship. First, the marking of cows is not a new thing in Jonglei State. Our communities have their own ways of marking their cows to help find them when they are stolen. But these markings are not legally binding for the government to use for the identification of stolen cows. I am proposing new markings that will be legally defined by the Government. All cattle keeping communities should be given their unique marks for their cattle. Whenever cattle raiding happen, the police and the army should be sent to the communities where the raiders are suspected

to have come. When marked cows of the raided communities are found, the chiefs of the raiding communities should be arrested to identify the raiders. The identified raiders should be arrested and forced to hand over all the cows that they had stolen as well as pay compensations for the people they killed during the raiding. They should also pay fines for their wrongdoing, including the fuel used by the forces who tracked down the stolen cows. Chiefs in those areas should be fined for failure to control their youths. The legally exchanged cows must be registered. For example, cows given to another community as dowries should be registered by the Government and should be known during the identification of stolen cows. The same thing can be done for cows bought in the market. Second, the armed helicopter gunship should be used to shoot the raiders before reaching their areas so that they know that the Government has the right to punish criminals as individuals and not the entire community where they come from. The Government will also show the raiders that dodging Government forces successfully does not mean that they can hide from the Government. Somebody may think that the attackers are civilians and therefore should not be shot with gunship. It is true they are civilians. What is not true is that they fit the status of innocent civilians. They are civilians who have armed themselves in order to be threats to innocent civilians.

Zechariah Manyok Biar lives in Juba, RSS. Email:manyok34@gmail.com

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AFRICAN NEWS

ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

Nigeria probes Christmas carnage Nigeria is probing a wave of Christmas Day bomb attacks that killed at least 40 and was blamed on Islamists, including one blast that ripped through a crowd of worshippers exiting mass. The government blamed Islamist sect Boko Haram for three attacks, including bomb explosions at two churches -- the deadliest as Christmas mass ended near the capital Abuja -- and a suicide attack in the northeast. A third church was targeted in the northeast on Christmas Eve, but no one was reported killed. Residents reported another explosion near a church in the northeastern city of Maiduguri but an army spokesman denied it. The attack at St Theresa Catholic Church in Madalla outside Abuja killed at least 35 and left a gruesome scene, with rescuers picking up body parts and putting them in plastic bags while emergency workers pleaded for ambulances. Some of the wounded, including one man whose entrails protruded from his body, ran toward a priest for final blessings. The attacks drew widespread condemnation, including from UN chief Ban Ki-moon, the United States and Britain. Authorities and officials pledged to bring the attackers to justice, but the government in Africa’s most populous nation has so far been unable to stop the Islamists, whose attacks have grown increasingly sophisticated and deadly.

Men look at the wreckage of a car following a bomb blast at St Theresa Catholic Church outside the Nigerian capital Abuja. The string of bomb attacks were targeting churches in the country during Christmas killed dozens. President Goodluck Jonathan condemned the violence and his national security adviser called it “unnecessary bloodletting by a group whose objectives are not in consonance with any genuine religious tenants.” While the government blamed Boko Haram and a purported spokesman for the sect claimed responsibility for the violence, conflicting accounts emerged of both the investigation and the attack in Madalla. A spokesman for police in Niger state, where Madalla is located, said that authorities had not yet determined who was behind the attack.

“We are looking beyond Boko Haram because other people bent on destabilising the government might be doing these things in the name of Boko Haram,” said Richard Oguche. Describing the attack, National Security Adviser Owoye Azazi said attackers threw improvised explosive devices from a moving vehicle in Madalla, adding that “two of the criminals had been apprehended, caught in action.” Oguche said no one was arrested and the blast occurred after a minibus pulled up near the church. He added

that three police officers were among those killed. “It was just about the time people were leaving the church and there was a (minibus),” said Oguche. “There were three police officers at the gate and they were trying to prevent those people from coming in. There was an argument and in the process the thing exploded.” The attack sparked further chaos in the area, with angry youths setting fires and threatening to rush a police station. Police fired into the air to disperse them and cleared a road for rescue workers. Other explosions occurred in

the central city of Jos, where a church was targeted and policeman was killed in a resulting shootout, and in the northeastern city of Damaturu, where authorities have clashed with Islamists in recent days. A suicide blast occurred in Damaturu when the bomber sought to ram into a military convoy in front of a secret police office, killing himself and three security agents. Sporadic gunfire broke out in the city on Sunday afternoon. In Damaturu, hundreds of residents were seeking to flee, lining up at taxi and bus stands, seeking to take advantage of the momentary calm in the tense and violencetorn city. Boko Haram had also claimed responsibility for a deadly wave of attacks in the Jos region on Christmas Eve last year. Violence blamed on Boko Haram has steadily worsened in recent months, with bomb blasts becoming more frequent and increasingly sophisticated and death tolls climbing. There has been intense speculation over whether Boko Haram has links with outside extremist groups, including AlQaeda’s north African branch. It is believed to have a number of factions with varying aims. Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer and most populous nation with 160 million people, is roughly divided between a mainly Muslim north and predominately Christian south.

Somali pirates hijack Italian cargo ship Somali pirates have hijacked an Italian cargo ship with 18 crew off the coast of Oman, according to Indian shipping officials. The Turkey-bound Enrico Ievoli is now reportedly headed for the Somali coast. The crew includes seven Indians, six Italians and five Ukrainians, the report said. The incident comes at a time when Somali pirates appear to be finding it increasingly difficult to hijack vessels at sea. Latest figures provided by the European Naval Force

show just 12 attempted pirate attacks in November 2011, compared to 35 in the same period last year. Correspondents say this is partly the result of the growing number of armed guards on board ships. But at least 200 hostages are still being held in, or just off, Somalia. India’s Directorate General of Shipping said in a statement that the hijacked ship was carrying a cargo of caustic soda from Iran to Turkey. “The master of the vessel

has reportedly informed the owners that the ship is now bound to Somali coast. There are no reports with regards to any injuries to the crew,” the release said. It added that 43 Indian crew members of various ships have been held by Somali pirates. Correspondents say this is partly the result of the growing number of armed guards on board ships. Somali pirates appear to be finding it increasingly difficult to hijack vessels at sea

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ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

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AFRICAN NEWS

ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

Libya independence: King Idris anniversary celebrated

Libyan revellers gathered in Tripoli to celebrate the return of their nation’s Independence Day

Darfur rebel chief Khalil Ibrahim dead A key rebel movement from Sudan’s Darfur region vowed to press on with its agenda for national reform on Sunday after confirming that government forces had killed their leader. “We, the Justice and Equality Movement, announce to the Sudanese nation that the leader of the movement and the commander of its troops, Khalil Ibrahim Mohammed, was killed on December 23 at 3:00 am,” London-based rebel spokesman Gibril Adam Bilal told AFP. Bilal said Ibrahim, 54, was killed by a fighter plane directed by “a spy,” and denied there was a battle between rebel forces and government troops. “When Khalil was attacked he was in his camp,” the spokesman said, vowing that the movement will remain true to Ibrahim’s programme “to change the regime by all means, including military.” Bilal said one of Ibrahim’s

Khalil Ibrahim, the leader of the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). A rebel group from Sudan’s Darfur region confirmed on Sunday that he had been killed in an air strike.

guards also died in the air strike. His statement came shortly after Sudan’s army announced the death to reporters in the capital Khartoum. Ibrahim was wounded on Thursday evening in a clash with government forces in Umm-Gozain, an area of North Kordofan state near North Darfur, army spokesman

Sawarmi Khaled Saad told a news conference. “He died on Saturday evening” and was buried shortly afterwards, he said. “In the clashes on Thursday, 30 of his troops were killed and a number of them were injured,” Saad added. “We destroyed 12 Land Cruisers, four trucks and a tanker of oil.”

Libya has celebrated the anniversary of its independence from Italy and France - for the first time in 42 years. The United Libyan Kingdom was formed on 24 December 1951 under King Idris. But after Col Muammar Gaddafi seized power in 1969, only the coup date in September was allowed to be marked. In Tripoli, crowds marched from Martyrs Square to the former Royal Palace, chanting “No more Gaddafi!” Separately, the economy minister who had served under Col Gaddafi resigned. Taher Sharkas was appointed by the former leader just two months before his capture and death at the hands of rebels in October. Mr Sharkas resigned after weeks of rallies, during which protesters had demanded the exclusion of former regime officials from the cabinet. The day’s central event was a march to the former Royal Palace, which currently houses the country’s national museum.

“Today, we begin the building of Libya as our forefathers have done,” Prime Minister Abdurrahim al-Keib from the National Transitional Council said. “We call on our sons to build Libya after its destruction,” he added. One of those present at the celebrations, Prince Idris bin Abdullah al-Senussi, who was among the royal family members forced into exile, said that he had dreamed of being able to one day return to Libya. “Libyans are determined to build a country, to have a democracy,” he said. “I think they will never accept any more somebody to dictate or humiliate them. Libyans will run their country by themselves.” However, a planned mass lunch for several thousand people in Tripoli was cancelled for security reasons. Even today, many Libyans remain unaware of the significance of 24 December - the anniversary was not celebrated during Col Gaddafi’s four-decade rule.

Trial of Hosni Mubarak resumes in Cairo The trial of the former Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak, has resumed after a delay of almost two months. State TV showed the 83-yearold being stretchered into the court, at the police academy in the capital, Cairo. Mr Mubarak is accused of corruption and of ordering the killing of protesters during the uprising which forced him to step down last February. His two sons, Alaa and Gamal, the former interior minister and six senior police officers are also in the dock. All the defendants have denied the charges against them. State TV carried live footage of Mr Mubarak’s arrival at the court Wearing a black tracksuit and covered with a blanket, he was taken on a stretcher from an ambulance to a waiting room. He was earlier flown to the police academy by helicopter from a Cairo military hospital, where he has received treatment for a heart condition. Proceedings were delayed because lawyers representing the families of the nearly 840

protesters killed during the 18-day uprising demanded that the presiding judge, Ahmed Refaat, and two other judges be replaced. Their request was rejected earlier this month. In mid-August, Judge Refaat angered the lawyers when he banned live TV coverage of the trial, saying he was exasperated by them showing off for the cameras. Some of Egypt’s most powerful figures have testified since the trial began in August. The head of the ruling military council, former Defence Minister Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, told a closed-door session in September that Mr Mubarak had never given orders to shoot protesters. The former president could face the death penalty if found guilty. More than 5,000 policemen were deployed on to secure the police academy, according to the interior ministry. Riot police have often had to separate anti- and proMubarak crowds, who have fought outside.

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Page 9 LIFESTYLE

ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

Love, Lust and Romance what is the difference. What is Love at LoveSessions All the beings in the world, mammals, birds, marine species, etc. have an in-born lust so that they are able to mate and reproduce. Reproduction is the only way to continue the existence of the species. As such, lust is a basic biological need. For the male and the female to get attracted to each other as well as for the selection of the most suitable mate, romance is necessary. Both lust and romance are gender-specific and occur normally between a male and female. On the other hand, love is universal and love is neither gender-specific nor species-specific. A man could love a woman or another man or an animal or a bird. Love knows no bounds. Let us make a brief analysis on the manifestation of love, romance and lust in human beings and the resultant repercussions of each one of them. Love is a tender but deep feeling of attraction towards a being or an object. Love is not limited to any one single thing. You can love your dog and at the same time, you can love your dress. Love is expanding by nature and the more you love, the happier you feel. It is very difficult to restrict love because it is a second nature for all of us. We cannot live without love. The reasoning is very simple. Our first love is we ourselves. Unless you love yourself, you would not be able to live. Think for a minute. Those who commit suicide do it only in that fraction of a moment when they hate themselves, whatever is the reason for that. Our personal love progresses

further to include members of our family, relatives, friends, coworkers, neighbors, and others in our community. Love could be mild in nature or an intense one. The intense love or desire makes you obsessive and highly possessive of that person or object of your love. All our problems and conflicts start at this point only. There is one more thing about love. Love does not get restricted to physical objects. Even our emotional aspects are part of our love. You say, I love swimming, I love singing, etc. We can love even physical and emotional activities. Many of us love to daydream about several things. This is emotional love. In English language, so many idioms use love as their theme. A few examples are given below. • Love is blind • Make love • Puppy love • Labor of love • No love lost • Fall in love • Not for love or money • All is fair in love and

covers up the negative traits. Later on, when the knowledge of such negative aspects starts growing, disenchantment sets in. As such, for a romance to succeed, both the partners should be clear on what each one expects from the other. An open discussion on such matters makes understanding each other easier and results in a harmonious relationship. It is important to enjoy the companionship and remain relaxed in a romantic relationship. Psychologists hold that romantic love emerges purely from a desire for self-gratification. They feel that the illusions that lead to romantic love are war very powerful emotions • Love at first sight and have to be properly Diane Ackerman wrote, controlled. Everyone admits that On the other hand, lust love is wonderful and is a somewhat dangerous necessary, yet no one one because mostly lust agrees on just what it is an intense feeling. Lust is. It is very difficult to could be between human describe love in words. beings or you could even To quote Barbara De lust after money or other Angelis, Love is a force material objects. When more formidable than any other. It is invisible it one is in lust, normally cannot be seen or meas- the thinking cap slips off and the results could ured, yet it is powerful be disastrous. Hence, enough to transform deep and clear analysis you in a moment, and and understanding the offer you more joy than any material possession nature of your lust is very much needed. Lust could. While love encompasses is also a desire for selfeverything, romance and gratification but much more powerful than a lust occur normally between a male and female. romantic love. When you Margaret Anderson said, lust after somebody or something, your strong In real love you want the other person’s good. craving to get that person or object tends to make In romantic love, you you transgress borders. want the other person. Romance is always con- Controlling the emotion of lust is very difficult. sidered to be a pleasant Most of the time, after experience. Maximum you have attained the numbers of novels are person or object that you based on romance only. So are many movies and lusted after, a guilty feeling sets in. Hence, proper television shows. Howrestrain in needed when ever, many romances you have the feeling of end as a failure because lust. the initial infatuation

Why women in their 20s rush into marriage

or women who get hitched in their 20s, divorcing in the first couple of years has become a common pattern now, and most of them go through this horrifying phase even before hitting 30. While the factors behind every relationship’s downfall are different, the underlying impetus behind marriage is similar for some of the women. For women, who maintain a comfortable longterm relationship in their 20s, the next logical step is to get hitched, mainly because they find it convenient. Madison, a 29 year-old accountant from New Jersey admitted to marrying even though she didn’t feel ‘crazy love’, because was ‘content and secure instead’, Huffington Post quoted her as telling. Many times it is a previous relationship, which leaves a woman heartbroken and propels them to marry ‘Mr Wrong’. They say you never really get over your first love. “I didn’t think I would ever fall in love again so I figured it didn’t matter who I married,” said Tara, a 26 year-old freelance writer from North Carolina. There are many women who take the decision of

getting married simply because they hope that marriage would change things. For instance, Casey, a 35 year-old travel correspondent thought that once she settled into newlywed bliss, her ex-husband would be happier with his own life, will be able to hold a steady job and show her more affection. However, in due course Casey, who married at 24, found her ex husband “immature and insecure”. Then there are instances when women hasten to tie the nuptial knot apparently because of low self-esteem. “I was a very insecure individual at that time. I was losing weight from gastric bypass surgery and wasn’t happy with my appearance. He told me I couldn’t do any better and I believed him,” said Kim, a 30 year-old social worker. There is not one main reason, which can be blamed for getting married. There are women who had a clue that their marriages were not meant to be but still went ahead with it anyway. These interviews were conducted for the book ‘Trash the Dress: Stories of Celebrating Divorce in your 20s’.

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ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

LIFESTYLE

The top 10 richest people in the World 2011 As we say bye to 2011 and Usher in 2012, Active Nation brings you the richest people in the world, The ones you should look up to in the New Year if your aiming at becoming rich or rather making the top richest list.

1. Carlos Slim Helu & family, Mexico $63.3 Billion The world’s richest man owns stakes in more than 200 companies, notably in retail (Saks), media (The New York Times), tobacco (Philip Morris) and telecommunications. 2011 Lowlight: In April Slim’s América Móvil was fined $1 billion for monopolistic practices, a decision it’s appealing.

2. Bill Gates, USA $59 Billion Microsoft’s software wizard and the world’s secondrichest man is having the most productive midlife crisis in history. His focus on creating, promoting and distributing vaccines is having a massive impact on global health. Gates’ goal is to eliminate infectious disease as a major cause of death in his lifetime

3. Warren Buffett, USA $39 Billion Buffett recently raised hackles when he penned an op-ed claiming that his ¬secretary pays a higher tax rate than he does, suggesting that “it’s time for our government to get serious about shared sacrifice.” Obama then proposed a “Buffett tax” to ensure that no millionaire would pay less in taxes than a -middle-class family. Conservative commentators immediately went on the offensive, including FORBES Editor-in-Chief Steve Forbes, who suggested that Buffett was free to “send in his extra billions” to the U.S. Treasury. 2011 Highlight: In March Berkshire Hathaway spent nearly $10 billion to acquire specialty chemical maker Lubrizol, one of the company’s largest-ever transactions.

87% of his fortune from his stake in the publicly traded firm. The company, which operates under several brand names including Zara, Massimo Dutti and Stradivarius, has 5,000 stores in 77 countries. Ortega also owns properties in Florida, Madrid, London and Lisbon, a horse-jumping circuit, a stake in a soccer league; and has interests in gas, tourism and banks. Railway worker’s son, he started as a gofer in a shirt store. With then-wife Rosalia Mera, also a billionaire, started making dressing gowns and lingerie in living room. Daughter Marta works for Indite

4. Bernard Arnault, France $41 B The world’s arbiter of good taste is also Europe’s richest man, he is the Chairman, Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH) In 2011 , Arnault’s wealth soared as demand for luxury goods grew, especially in Asia.

5. Larry Ellison, USA $33 B Larry Ellison seems to be spending more time in court than on the water: Oracle has been battling German software firm SAP over alleged software theft and rival HP over Ellison’s hiring of its former chief Mark Hurd. Oracle stock is unharmed -- up 15% from a year ago. Ellison sold his halfshare in 453-foot yacht Rising Sun to co-owner David Geffen in late 2010. After quietly donating millions to medicine and education, Ellison joined the Giving Pledge at Buffett’s behest in 2010.

6. Lakshmi Mittal, India $19.2 B Net worth down $6.9 billion as shares of his ArcelorMittal, world’s largest steelmaker, tanked 40% thanks to surging costs, despite an ongoing recovery in steel demand. Company expanded mining interests, buying Canadian miner Baffinland Iron Mines in January. In August it partnered with Peabody Energy to buy Australia’s Macarthur Coal for $4.9 billion. Son Aditya was recently given additional responsibilities for Europe, sparking speculation about succession.

8. Eike Batista $30 B Brazil’s richest man is gearing up to take over the world. Making a play for foreign investors, Batista announced this year the opening of an office in New York and his intention to list some of his companies on the London Stock Exchange. Through his holding company, EBX, Batista controls businesses spanning mining, shipbuilding, energy, logistics, tourism and entertainment. After months of discussions, he was triumphant in February in taking control of Canadian gold outfit Ventana. Two-thirds of his fortune comes from OGX, the oil-and-gas exploration company he founded in 2007 and took public a year later. He says the company will start producing oil this year. The son of Brazil’s revered former mining minister who presided over mining giant Companhia Vale do Rio Doce got his start in gold trading and mining. Onetime champion offshore powerboat racer; formerly married to Playboy cover girl. In media interviews he’s been warning Carlos Helú Slim that he’ll soon take his spot as the world’s richest man, but he still has a ways to go.

9. Mukesh Ambani $22.6 B His Reliance Industries inked $7.2 billion deal with BP, which took 30% in 23 of its oil-and-gas blocks in India. Subsequent government auditor’s report alleging it had breached terms of its contract for developing one of those blocks and possible probe by federal investigating agency cast pall over Reliance’s shares, down 11% in past year. Nation’s most valuable company briefly ceded spot to stateowned coal miner Coal India in Augus

10. Christy Walton & family $24.5 B The world’s richest woman, Wal-Mart widow Christy Walton inherited her wealth when husband John Walton, a former Green Beret and Vietnam war medic, died in an airplane accident near his home in Wyoming in 2005. Her late husband’s investment in First Solar also boosts her total net worth by nearly $2.7 billion. The bulk still comes from her holdings in Wal-Mart, the retailer founded by her father7. Amancio Ortega, Spain $31 B in-law Sam Walton and his brother James in 1962. Walton Amancio Ortega stepped down as chairman of Inditex, the received almost $300 million in Wal-Mart dividends since last year. The stock was up only 3% in the past year. $15.8 billion (sales) fashion firm in January; he still gets

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Diploma in Risk and Insurance Mgt Diploma in Rural Mgt Diploma in Sales & Distribution Diploma in Software Mgt Diploma in Take Over & Acquisition Mgmt Diploma in Telecom Mgt Diploma in Total Quality Mgt Diploma in Retail Mgt Diploma in Risk Mgt Diploma in Safety Mgt Diploma in Sales Mgt Diploma in Supply Chain Mgt Diploma in Taxation Mgt Diploma in Textile Mgt Diploma in Travel and Tourism

Admission in Progress, Limited Seats Available, Class of 25 Student Per Month

Main Campus – Kampala, Uganda:

Plot 7, Madras Garden, oﬀ Sir Apollo Kaggwa Rd, Daily Loaf Bakery Junction, After Old Kampala Police Station, P O Box 26995, Kampala, Uganda | +256 776 23 54 23 | +256 714 23 54 23 | +256 753 23 54 23 Email: info@makerere-edu.org | www.makererebiztech.webs.com

Juba Oﬃce: S Sudan:

150 meters Walk from American Embassy & Zara Hotel, oﬀ Ministries Road, Nabari, Juba. 0955 710 805 | +249 955 677 996 | Email: sudan@makerere-edu.org

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VOL. 02 ISSUE. 26, 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

SARAH YOUNG

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King of Lokwilil; former freedom boy’z member goes solo Success Page 18

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Get all the interesting Social life style of Young and Talented Stars of South Sudanese Artists, Models, Actors, Actresses e.t.c..............

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PAPARAZZI

King of ofLokwilil; Lokwilil;former former freedom King freedom boy’z member member goes boy’z goessolo soloSuccess Success We introduce to you the freedom boy’z success who has collaborated with artist such as Uganda’s Jose Chameleon and also released dozens of albums to his credit, the freedom boy’z have surely found a place in the newly founded Republic of South Sudan as musical Legendaries. Our Paparazzi reporter caught up with Mr. W.J real name James Wonlok as other group members are currently engaged in studies. Below are the extracts of the conversation. Paparazzi: Why did you opt to go solo? W.J: I’ trust my voice and I’m good at singing alone as most of the songs I’ do compose them and call my crew to follow with me in on the singing, now that they are for studies I had to go in alone coz I wouldn’t wait for them. Paparazzi: So far how many albums do you have as a solo artist? W.J: all the songs that people are hearing on the airwaves are my songs, but having been in a group, we had to sing as group. As a solo artist I’ have five songs and the most notable one being “Season of peace”, I know South Sudan is free and there will be no more going back to bush life that is why I’ came out with that song, we are now in peace, but that’s not all I’ have, I’ have been collaborating with Ugandan artist the likes of Jamiel, Dr hilderman, Good life crew of Radio and Weasel. Paparazzi: How many different languages do you sing? W.J: (Gives a hearty Laugh) I’m the King of Lokwilil I’ do sing in eight languages together with the international language which is English but poor with our Arabic from Khartoum. I only know Konyokonyo Arabic, but I’ fill my fans outside love it because it sounds good like if one is to listen to our song with Jose Chameleon the course I’ took my self that “dere wa’re le ita beniya geyafar” real their I’ took my our time enough breading before singing Paparazzi: Tells us something about your manager. W.J: Yeah, that is a good question, you know one thing in this world is that every person wants to get somewhere so as to be recognized thing to make him be recognized but God created us differently and also gives us different works of life, what one needs and what one dislikes, so currently I’ have some one who is managing me as a solo artist by the names of Kenny B he who was an artist but currently he works with SSBL and his a good person in general. Paparazzi: Are you planning to rejoin the freedom boy’z when the other group members are back? W.J: Well as in one of our song Lokwilil, people

should not take this as my name it’s a bat, also as being the king of Lokwilil group, I’ will of course because without me the group will not be there and they will not make it, but people should know that the freedom boy’z are now only left two, me and Lomoro. Lagu has his own group with Rashkobia as their director Paparazzi: So who is that lucky lady in your life? W.J: Thanks for such question, most people especially the girls can be funny at times, when they see you on stage, their want to take thing’s very far, but for me I’m content with my lovely dear wife who I’ will not mention for now Paparazzi: How often do you go for clubbing? W.J: Well I’m not a party animal, and not a fun of clubbing. Paparazzi: As a South Sudanese there are lot of artist out

PAPARAZZI

side, who will you love to work with if given chance? W.J: You know is not all about what or who is who but is only support and trust in ones heart and being dedicated to whatever one is doing, but judging from the current situation of music here in South Sudan, there are guy’s I would love to work with most especially this guy’z of the Rhymes like Fed J currently call Khawaja this a guy who has forces in music and have the hopes to achieved some thing in what God has given him Paparazzi: What advise do you have for the local and upcoming artist in South Sudan? W.J: if one is given the talents, he/she should not sleep on it, God creates every person with different skill, so them to the public, but do not dream to be minister

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to appear on this page +211 956 192 439, +211 955 710 805, +211 955 677 996

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o Duration: 18 to 24 months o Eligibility Criteria Senior 6 or A level or Equivalent o No of Subjects: Ten + 2 specialization o Fees: Ugx 4,950,000 or US$ 1,899 or SSP 7,500 or its equivalent o Examination Fees Ugx 130,000 or US $ 50 or SSP 250 o Study Material Ugx 130,000 or US $ 50 or SSP 250 o Administrative Charges Ugx 60,000 or US$ 25 or SSP 50 at the time of Registration

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Duration: 12 to 24 months Eligibility Criteria: Senior 6 or A level or Graduate or Equivalent with two year’s work experience No of Subjects: Six + one specialization Fees: Ugx 4,250,000 or US$ 1,599 or SSP 6,500 or its equivalent Examination Fees: Ugx 130,000 or US $ 50 or SSP 250 Study Material: Ugx 130,000 or US $ 50 or SSP 250 Administrative Charges: Ugx 60,000 or SSP 50 at the time of Registration

Admission in Progress, Limited Seats Available, Class of 15 Student only Monthly

Main Campus – Kampala, Uganda:

Plot 7, Madras Garden, off Sir Apollo Kaggwa Rd, Daily Loaf Bakery Junction, After Old Kampala Police Station, P O Box 26995, Kampala, Uganda | +256 776 23 54 23 | +256 714 23 54 23 | +256 753 23 54 23 Email: info@makerere-edu.org | www.makererebiztech.webs.com Juba Office: S Sudan: 150 meters Walk from American Embassy & Zara Hotel, off Ministries Road, Nabari, Juba. 0955 710 805 | +249 955 677 996 | Email: sudan@makerere-edu.org

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Makerere Biz Tech College (BTVET) wishes to congratulate. H.E President Salva Kiir, H.E Vice President Riak

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Machar, The Entire Government of College

South Sudan, State Governments, Civil Society Organisations,International Aid Organizations, The Bush war Heroes, The Business Community and all the well

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wishers of South Sudan upon reaching the Memorable CPA day celebration. Long Live South Sudanâ&#x20AC;ŚSouth Sudan Oyee!!

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Intensive Support Center-Distance Learning Correspondence Program. We would like to notify all our registered students that we are conducting weekend lecture programs effective Jan 14th 2012 at our ISC situated at 150 meters walk from American Embassy and Zara Hotel off Ministries Road, Nabari, Juba, South Sudan. All those students who students who have made payments in full or part should collect their course materials and IDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s from ISC starting 14th Jan 2012. Happy New Year- Management

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Active Nation Publication wishes to congratulate. H.E President Salva Kiir, H.E Vice President Riak Machar, The Entire Government of South Sudan, State Governments, Civil Society Organisations,International Aid Organizations, The Bush war Heroes, The Business Community and all the well wishers of South Sudan upon reaching the Memorable CPA day celebration. South Sudan â&#x20AC;Ś.Justice, Liberty and Prosperity for everyone, forever.

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India, Japan agree to $ 15 bn currency swap

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda India and Japan on agreed to a dollar swap agreement of $15 billion, a move which will help stabilise the rupee and boost trade between the two countries. An earlier $3 billion arrangement, that came into force in 2008, had expired in June. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda “decided to enhance the earlier bilateral currency swap arrangement from $3 billion to USD 15 billion,” a joint statement said. The dollar swap arrangement would help India in supporting the rupee, which has depreciated by about 15-

16 per cent against the US currency since April due to various global and domestic factors. The arrangement would provide a supply of the US dollar in an unforeseen economic situation. New Delhi will have access to funds from Bank of Japan, which it can return at a later date. The two leaders expressed hope that the enhancement will further strengthen financial cooperation, contribute to ensuring financial market stability and further develop growing economic and trade ties between the countries, the statement said.

The two Prime Ministers also decided to accelerate efforts by the relevant authorities for an early realisation of the some projects including seawater desalination at Dahej, a microgrid system using large-scale photo-voltaic power generation at Neemrana and gas-fired independent power producer in Maharashtra, it said. The leaders also decided to strengthen efforts to improve infrastructure such as ports, industrial parks and their surrounding facilities in Ennore, Chennai and the adjoining areas, it added.

Sudan’s central bank outlines its 2012 policies The governor of Sudan’s Central Bank Mohamed Khair al-Zubair said the bank in the upcoming period will focus on ensuring the stability of the exchange rate, balancing demand and supply by boosting domestic production and cutting down government borrowing from the banking sector. In his meeting with Sudanese business owners, al-Zubair also revealed that among new policies would be the expansion in gold exports through the Central Bank by establishing a stock

BUSINESS exchange for gold and encouraging foreign currency investments as well as regulating the flow of remittances from expatriates abroad. The governor also called on the private sector to take advantage of regional funding institutions and international organizations such as the Arab Fund for Economic & Social Development, Kuwaiti and the Saudi development funds, Islamic Development Bank, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Al-Zubair said that Sudan has begun to attract the internal and external support for implementing its three-tier development plans starting from the next budget. He added that the Bank of Sudan will continue its policies to strengthen the microfinance projects and provide financial support to revive small industries in the country by allocating 12% of the banks’ portfolio for financing. He explained that there is $100 million in available funding from agricultural and the Industrial Banks to help in financing projects. Last July, the oil-rich South Sudan broke away to become a separate nation denying the north billions of dollars in revenue and causing an erosion in the value of the pound. Analysts and critics say that the Sudanese government failed to use the oil money to diversify the economy and help non-petroleum sectors such as agriculture. They also accuse the government of overspending and mismanaging the country’s resources with special focus on defense and security. Khartoum is hoping that fees it wants to charge the landlocked south for transporting its oil through the infrastructure in the north will partially offset the economic impact of the country’s breakup. But to date negotiations between the two countries on how much the fee should be per barrel failed to yield results.

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INTERNATIONAL

50 fascinating facts about Kim Jong-il 50 fascinating facts about the dead leader Kim Jong-il and North Korea North Korean leader Kim Jong-il died following a stroke or heart attack. Here are 50 facts about the late dictator and his country. 1 According to his biography, he first picked up a golf club in 1994, at North Korea’s only golf course, and shot a 38-under par round that included no fewer than 11 holes in one. Satisfied with his performance, he reportedly immediately declared his retirement from the sport. 2 He was a near-obsessive film buff with a reported collection of 20,000 plus video tapes. 3 Kim, thought to be 5ft 2in (157cm) tall, is said to have worn lifts in his shoes and sported a bouffant hairstyle 4 He was suspected of killing his younger brother Kim Shu-ra when he was five after the child drowned in the family’s swimming pool in their Pyongyang mansion. The claims were never proved. RELATED ARTICLES 5 He was born on Feb. 16, 1942 aged 69, in a secret military camp on Baekdu Mountain, on the North Korean border, his official biography says. But Soviet records claim he was born on February 16, 1941 in the village of Vyatskoye, in Russia, where his parents were in exile during the Japanese occupation of Korea. 6 North Korea has one of the largest armies in the world. According to the US State Department, it has an estimated active duty military force of up to 1.2 million personnel, compared to about 680,000 in the South, with about one in five of men aged 17-54 in the regular armed forces. 7 In 1960, he began to study at the politics and economics department of Kim Il-sung University and graduated four years later. 12 He was known by more than 50 names

including Dear Leader, Supreme Leader, Our Father, The General, Generalissimo. 13 He is said to have broadcast once in his country - in 1992, during a military parade in Pyongyang, he said into a microphone at the grandstand: “Glory to the heroic soldiers of the Korean People’s Army!” Applause broke out in the crowds and the parade participants cheered. 14 Nine years later, he was elected secretary of the committee before in becoming a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee in February 1974. 8 His survivors are believed to include five children. The youngest, Kim Jong-un, is expected to eventually succeed him. 9 His eldest son, Kim Jong-nam, once believed to be the designated heir, appeared to have fallen out of favour after being arrested in Tokyo in 2001 while travelling to Disneyland on a forged passport . 10 According to his official biographers, his birth in Baekdu Mountain was prophesied by a swallow and heralded with a double rainbow and a new star in the heavens. 11 Kim was eight when his mother, Kim Jongsuk, died in childbirth, according to his official biography, although there are suggestions that his mother died of gunshot wounds. 15 He was hailed as a demigod in North Korea while South Korea portrayed him as a vain playboy with a penchant for bouffant hair, jumpsuits and platform shoes designed to make him look taller. 16 The dictator travelled by private train for state visits – a decision believed to be connected to his apparent fear of flying, a phobia he was believed to share with his father. 17 In December 1992 he was Supreme Command-

er of the Korean People’s Army, First Vice-Chairman and later Chairman of the National Defence Commission before being re-appointed in April 1993. 18 On Oct. 8, 1997, Kim Jong-il was elected General Secretary of the WPK. 19 Kim Jong Il was given the honorary title “Hero of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea” in 1975 and then again seven years later. 20 In April 1992, he was given the title of Marshal of the DPRK. He has also received the Kim Il-sung Order three times and many other awards and honours. 21 After the death of his father Kim Il-sung in July 1994, it took three years for Kim to consolidate his power and finally take the title of General Secretary of the Workers’ Party. 22 Because, at his death, his father was named “Eternal President,” Kim never officially became president of North Korea. 23 Since October 1980, he has been a member of the Presidium of the Po-

litburo and secretary of the Central Committee of the WPK and the Central Military Commission. 24 Between 1982 and 1998, he was deputy to every Supreme People’s Assembly. 25 His private train journeys were as luxurious as befitted a leader of North Korea, despite the millions left behind starving due to famine: one Russian emissary who travelled across Russia by train with Kim described how live lobsters were airlifted daily to his train. 26 He started working for the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) in 1964. 27 At university it was claimed in his biography that he wrote no fewer than 1,500 books in three years 28 His all time favourites including Rambo, Friday the 13th, Godzilla and “The Eternal Bosom of Hot Love”. 29 He was said to be a particular fan of Elizabeth Taylor, the late Hollywood actress. 30 Kim ordered the kidnapping of Shin Sang-ok,

the South Korean film director, and his actress wife, Choi Eun-hee, in 1978 in order to build up North Korea’s film industry. They made seven films before escaping to the West in 1986. 31 Kim apparently produced a patriotic 100-part documentary series on the history of his North Korean homeland as well as writing a book titled On the Art of Cinema. 32 Kim also apparently composed six operas and enjoyed staging musicals. 33 He was the main villain in Hollywood film, Team America. 34 He is said to have owned at least 17 opulent mansions 35 He reportedly spread the myth across North Korea that he could control the weather with his moods, as if by magic. 36 Kim had female staff inspect each grain of rice to check it adhered to standards of length, weight and colour. 37 He forced waitresses at restaurants frequented by foreigners in Pyongyang to have cosmetic surgery in order to appear more “western”. 38 He reportedly drank £450,000 of cognac each year in a country where average income was about £580. 39 A recent new list of luxury imports now also reveals a penchant for Chinese dolphins, French poodles, and African aphrodisiacs and is said to have developed a palate for Donkey meat as well lobster and expensive French wine. 40 A personality evaluation report on him, compiled by psychiatrists suggested that the “big six” group of personality disorders - sadistic, paranoid, antisocial, narcissistic, schizoid and schizotypal - which were shared by dictators Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin and Saddam Hussein were also dominant in the late North Korean leader. 41 Minju Joson, a North Korean newspaper, reported once that Kim

invented a product described as “double bread with meat” and created factories to produce them in order to feed his students and teachers. Some observers noted it was very similar to an American-hamburger. 42 Satellite imagery recently showed that he had installed a series of loopy waterslides. 43 The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is considered one of the most secretive countries in the world. 44 It is said to have acquired its nuclear programme from the Soviet Union in the 1980s 45 Estimates of the size of its nuclear weapons stockpile range from low single digits to just more than a dozen but there is no certainty the country has built a working bomb. 46 North Korea has faced a tightening international sanctions regime since 2009 after it conducted a series of illegal nuclear and ballistic missile tests, allegedly torpedoed a South Korea corvette and shelled a South Korean Island. 47 Its economy is reeling under the impact of UN sanctions and a series of natural disasters, according to data published South Korea’s central bank. 48 Statistics showed North Korea’s economy contracted for a second consecutive year in 2010 despite the North’s leadership promising to deliver their country to the “gateway of a mighty and prosperous nation” by next year. 49 The 23.9 million North Korean citizens are not able to freely use mobile phones or the Internet (with the internet domain .kp) although Kim considers himself to be a communications expert. 50 It is a mainly atheist or non-religious country with traditional beliefs with the UN estimating that men live on average 76 years and women 83 years.

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INTERNATIONAL

Syria releases 755 protestors Syrian state TV says the authorities have released 755 people detained during the nine-monthold uprising against President Bashar alAssad. The prisoners had been involved “in recent incidents” but their “hands were not stained with blood”, a report said. The UN says more than 14,000 people are in detention and 5,000 have been killed as a result of the state’s crackdown. Arab League monitors are continuing to deploy as they oversee a peace plan but there are reports of fresh violence. At least seven people have been killed so far on Wednesday in a number of towns and cities, activists said. The head of the observer mission has described what he has seen so

far as “reassuring” and “nothing frightening”, dismaying some activists and Western observers. The state TV news flash announcing the prisoner release on Wednesday said only that those affected “did not have Syrian blood on their hands”. It did not mention where the protesters were arrested or detained. In one part of Homs, in a video posted on the internet by activists, a crowd of angry mourners gathers around the bonnet of a white vehicle, which has the insignia of the Arab League emblazoned on it and appears to belong to the observers. They lay the lifeless body of a small boy on the bonnet - the commentator shouts that it belongs to five-yearold Ahmad. “These are

Syrian state TV says the authorities have released 755 people detained during the nine-month-old uprising against President Bashar al-Assad. our martyrs,” he shouts to the Arab League, “and they’re being killed in front of your observers.” Activists say the violence has continued despite the presence of the

US Navy warn Iran on closing Strait of Hormuz The US military has warned that it will not tolerate any attempt by Iran to close the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow sea lane on which the world’s oil supply depends. “The free flow of goods and services through the Strait of Hormuz is vital to regional and global prosperity,” said a spokeswoman for the US Navy’s Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet. “Anyone who threatens to disrupt freedom of navigation in an international strait is clearly outside the community of nations; any disruption will not be tolerated.” The unusually blunt statement came in response to threats by Iran to shut the channel if the West pressed ahead with sanctions on the country’s oil industry. Mohammed Reza Rahimi, Iran’s vicepresident, told state media on Tuesday: “ “If

sanctions are adopted against Iranian oil, not a drop of oil will pass through the Strait of Hormuz. [Our] enemies will only abandon their plots when we give them a strong lesson.” Admiral Habibollah Sayari, commander of the Iranian navy, said that closing the Strait, and effectively strangling the global oil supply, would “be easier than drinking a glass of water”. His comments came as the Iranian fleet continued a 10-day naval drill in international waters near the Strait involving ships, helicopters, submarines and hovercraft. The show of strength is designed to demonstrate how quickly Iran could close the 34-mile wide channel, which connects the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea and through which 15 million barrels

of oil, around a third of all supplies shipped by water, pass every day. In recent years, Iranian sailors have taken to driving their speedboats provocatively close to the ships of the American Fifth Fleet, which is based in Manama, only around 100 miles from Iran’s coast line. The Fleet consists of more than 20 warships, including an aircraft carrier strike group, as well as attack aircraft and a small number of ground troops. It is likely to serve as the spearhead of any American military action against Iran. Tensions between the Islamic Republic and the West have been ratcheted up in recent weeks after the EU decided to tighten sanctions on the country’s crude export industry and floated the idea of a full embargo on Iranian oil.

observers. But despite the reservations of many activists about the Arab mission, and some glitches on the ground, the observers do seem to have got through,

unaccompanied by Syrian official security escorts, to some of the worst-affected quarters of Homs. In November, the government announced

that it had freed 1,180 prisoners, citing similar conditions. But earlier this month, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said tens of thousands of people had been arrested and more than 14,000 were reported to be in detention as a result of the crackdown. Human rights activists believe as many as 40,000 people are being held. Ms Pillay also said she had evidence that Syrian security forces had committed crimes against humanity against the civilian population, including acts of killings, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence, imprisonment, or other forms of severe deprivation of liberty and enforced disappearances.

Russia’s Putin rejects calls to talk with protest leaders Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Wednesday rejected calls to hold talks with opposition leaders who have brought tens of thousands of Russians into the streets to demand an end to his 12-year rule, saying he doesn’t know what the demonstrators want or who he would talk to. Putin has belittled the opposition even as his government has rolled out a set of proposed reforms in response to outrage over the Dec. 4 election for parliament, in which only Kremlinapproved parties were allowed to run and observers reported widespread vote-rigging. Putin hopes to return to the presidency in a March vote. The opposition leaders “should formulate some kind of common platform and common position, so that it’s possible to understand what people

want,” a smiling Putin told a group of Russian reporters. “Is there a common platform? No. Who is there to talk to?” The organizers of the two vast Moscow rallies this month included many prominent public figures and opposition leaders. Although some differ widely in their political views, they have passed joint resolutions with a list of concrete demands, including a rerun of the parliamentary election, the resignation of the Central Election Commission chief and the removal of barriers that have prevented opposition parties from taking part in elections. The protests, unprecedented in postSoviet Russia, have undermined Putin’s image as the inevitable winner of the March vote. He previously served as president in 2000-2008. Putin has promised to

ease rules for opposition candidates and make the voting process more transparent, but he has firmly rejected the demand that the parliamentary election be rerun. Putin’s former finance minister, Alexei Kudrin, has offered to help mediate between the opposition and the government. Leaders of the opposition said Wednesday that they welcomed Kudrin’s offer and would present their principles and conditions for talks by the end of the week. Asked Wednesday about his refusal to take part in campaign debates, Putin said it would make no sense since the opposition leaders are “not burdened with real work” and “always demand the impossible.” His contention is that opposition candidates can promise voters anything.

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TECHNOLOGY

ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

25$ PC gets ready to launch The eagerly anticipated Raspberry Pi home computer is about to go into production. The $25 (£16) machine is being created in the hope that it will inspire a new generation of technology whizz kids. The Pi uses an Arm chip similar to that found in mobile phones and is intended to run a version of the Linux open source operating system. Test versions of finished devices are being checked and if all is well volume production will start in January. The idea for Raspberry Pi came from video game veteran David Braben who was searching for

a way to inspire young people to start a career in technology. Mr Braben got his start in games thanks to the BBC Micro on which he, and school friend Ian Bell, created pioneering computer game Elite. Raspberry Pi is being developed in Cambridgeshire and every update has been watched closely by those keen to get working with the gadget. Raspberry Pi took to its blog on 23 December to report that the first finished circuit boards had arrived. The batch of bare bones circuit boards are the first to be populated with all the components making

Ms Upton said if the tests go well the first batch of 10 boards will be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Raspberry Pi initially intended to finish its machine by the end of 2011. However, it said, delays in development meant it was now about three weeks behind schedule. Despite this, it anticipates that people will be able Many developers are keen to get their hands on the bare bones Raspberry Pi computer. to place orders for the gadgets in early January. No pre-orders have up the finished device. this test run is fine, we’ll will be sold in two been taken because the The batch is undergoing be pushing the button configurations. A organisation said it did electrical, software and immediately on full-scale Model A for $25 (£16) not want to take anyone’s hardware testing to manufacture in more which lacks a network ensure all is well in the than one factory,” wrote connector and a Model B cash without having production process. Liz Upton on the blog. for $35 (£22) which does something to hand over in “Once we’re happy that The finished device have an Ethernet socket. return.

China bullet train crash ‘caused by design flaws’ China’s cabinet has received the official report into the crash

A bullet train crash which killed 40 people in China in July was caused by design flaws and sloppy management, the Chinese government says. Almost 200 people were injured in the crash near the south-eastern city of Wenzhou. “Missteps” by 54 officials led to the disaster, the long-awaited official report says. The crash led many Chinese to accuse the government of putting development and profit before safety. It also triggered a wave of popular anger against officials who were accused of trying to cover up the seriousness, and causes, of the crash. Lightning strike After receiving the report, China’s cabinet criticised the railways

ministry for lax safety standards and poor handling of the crash, according to Reuters. Premier Wen Jiabao was presented with the official investigation’s conclusions at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday. The accident occurred after one train stalled following a lightning strike, and then a second high-speed train ran into it. Four carriages were thrown off a viaduct. The report found that serious design flaws in control equipment and improper handling of the lightning strike led to the crash. More serious penalties could follow for some of the 54 officials criticised in the report. Among the officials singled out was the former railways minister, Liu Zhijun, who was

sacked before the crash, accused of corruption. Liu “has the main leadership responsibility for the accident,” the report says. Following the accident, the authorities called a temporary halt to new high-speed rail projects and placed speed restrictions on trains. High-speed ambitions China had planned to lay 16,000km (10,000 miles) of high-speed track by 2015, which would make it the biggest high-speed rail network in the world. It had hoped to make its rapidly developing railway technology an export success: Chinese train companies were aspiring to compete with Germany’s Siemens and Canada’s Bombardier by selling their technologies to foreign companies.

Samsung buys Sony’s entire stake in LCD joint venture Samsung Electronics has agreed to buy out Sony’s entire stake in their liquid crystal display (LCD) joint venture. The Korean electronics maker said it will pay Sony 1.08tn won ($939m; £600m) in cash for its stake. The move comes as Sony has been restructuring its TV business, which has been making a loss for the past seven years. Samsung, meanwhile, has gone on to become the world’s largest maker of TVs and flat screen panels. “Under the agreement, Samsung will acquire all of Sony’s shares of S-LCD Corporation, the two companies’ LCD panel manufacturing joint venture, making S-LCD a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung,” Samsung Electronics said in a statement. Tough times The joint venture between two companies was established in 2004, when a boom in the global economy saw a surge in demand for consumer electronics. However, things have take a dramatic turn in the last three years.

“In terms of direction it is positive. But if they are making a loss on the sale, one could ask why they didn’t make this decision sooner” Keita Wakabayashi Mito Securities Triggered by the financial crisis in 2008, the subsequent global economic uncertainty has resulted in a slowdown in consumer demand. At the same time, falling prices of LCD panels and flat screens have also hurt profit margins. “In order to respond to such challenging conditions and to strengthen their respective market competitiveness, the two companies have agreed to shift to a new LCD panel business alliance,” Samsung said.

Sony will continue to get LCD panels from Samsung based on prevailing market prices, without having to operate a manufacturing facility. For its part, Samsung said the full ownership of the venture will give it “heightened flexibility, speed and efficiency in both panel production and business operations”. Analysts said the deal was the right move, especially for Sony. “In terms of direction it is positive,” said Keita Wakabayashi, an analyst at Mito Securities in Tokyo. “But if they are making a loss on the sale, one could ask why they didn’t make this decision sooner.”

Sony’s TV business has been hurt by slowing global demand and a strong Japanese currency

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ENVIRONMENT

ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

Canada withdraws from Kyoto Protocol Air travellers have been warned they face possible delays as eastern Canadians brace for the first big storm of the season Tuesday. Environment Canada has issued a series of snowfall warnings stretching from Ottawa to Montreal and continuing across most of southeastern Quebec. Canada’s weather office is predicting anywhere from 10 to 40 centimetres, depending on the region. A rainfall warning associated with the same storm was also issued for Halifax, where over 30 millimetres of rain could fall in six hours on Wednesday afternoon and evening, possibly causing localized flooding that could snarl the Wednesday evening commute, according to Environment Canada. For travellers flying during one of the busiest air travel times of the year, airlines issued advisories on Tuesday asking passengers to check the status of their flights before leaving for the airport. Porter Airlines and Air Canada both warned travellers in Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal that the storm may cause delays or cancellations of some flights. Environment Canada An Environment Canada radar image showing the weather conditions forecast for Tuesday evening. Environment Canada meteorologist Steve Knott called the impending wintry blast “a reasonable-sized storm.” “It’s not quite a weather bomb, but it’s pretty close to a weather bomb,” Knott said. The snow will likely switch to rain just north of New Brunswick, Knott said. Environment Canada also issued a flash freeze warning on Tuesday for North Bay, Ont., about 350 kilometres northwest of Ottawa, and Sudbury, Ont., about 500 kilometres northwest of Ottawa. Arctic air is expected to sweep into Ontario behind the storm, causing temperatures to drop and some of the fresh

precipitation to freeze, Knott said. While the sidewalks may get a little slippery, the snow will stop eastern Ontario from experiencing a flash freeze. In its snowfall warning, Environment Canada says: “The heavy snow, the strong winds and the blowing snow which accompany this system will reach several regions of Central and Eastern Quebec beginning tonight, leaving a more than significant amount of snow.” The storm has been developing in the United States and producing rain over the northeastern states, Knott said. For Ottawa and the surrounding areas, the storm is predicted to bring rain Tuesday afternoon, according to Environment Canada. The rain will switch to snow Tuesday evening, with up to 15 centimetres expected to fall by the time the snow stops Wednesday morning. Montreal can also expect about 15 to 20 centimetres of snow starting Tuesday evening, Environment Canada forecasters predicted. Some parts of central and southeastern Quebec, including Quebec City, could receive up to 40 centimetres of snow, with strong winds adding to the poor weather conditions. Forecasters expected the storm to continue Wednesday in Quebec and throughout Maritimes, adding that some areas of southeastern Quebec will still experience bad weather on Thursday. While no warnings were issued for southern Ontario, Environment Canada released a special weather statement Tuesday advising all of southern Ontario to expect mixed precipitation, likely consisting of rain and wet snow, starting Tuesday morning and continuing into the afternoon. Light rain began falling in Toronto at around noon on Tuesday, according to Environment Canada. The morning commute Wednesday will likely be messy in eastern Ontario and western Quebec, almost a

“new experience” for drivers considering how mild this winter has been so far, Knott said. The storm is also predicted to move into Newfoundland and Labrador on Wednesday evening, leaving behind more than 20 centimetres of snow by Thursday, according to Environment Canada. While no snowfall warnings have been released, Environment Canada issued a wind warning on Tuesday afternoon for the southwestern tip of

Newfoundland, with wind gusts associated with the storm expected to reach 130 km/h on Wednesday evening. The morning commute Wednesday will likely be messy in eastern

Ontario and western Quebec, almost a “new experience” for drivers considering how mild this winter has been so far, Knott said.

New facility in Abu Dhabi speeds up waste disposal A new operations facility for waste management in Abu Dhabi has helped speed up waste disposal in the city and its outskirts. The new facility in Musaffah has helped recycle thousands of litres of water at its truck-washing station over the past three weeks, besides improving waste disposal operations, a spokesperson for Averda International, the waste management company that operates the facility, told Gulf News The facility has several eco-friendly systems including the truckwashing station which recycles 60 per cent of the water it uses for washing about 200 trucks daily, the company spokesperson said. Averda is one of the companies that have been assigned the responsibility of managing wastes in the emirate by the Centre of Waste Management — Abu Dhabi (CWM). Range of services Sukkar said Averda was

working with CWM to help the UAE leadership achieve their vision of making Abu Dhabi one of the world’s five cleanest cities within the next few years. The company spokesperson said an electronic weighing system in the new facility has also helped speed up the weighing of wastes. The new operations facility in Musaffah houses Averda’s entire Abu Dhabi fleet, offering 24-hour operations. Located in the facility is Averda’s full range of environmental solutions, including an operations depot with parking, dispatch, fleet maintenance workshop and warehouse facilities, as well as offices for Averda’s management, commercial, operations, support and back office functions. Averda International was awarded the five-year contract through CWM in the middle of this year. It is a prominent environmental solutions provider in the Middle East and North Africa, specialising in integrated waste and resource management services. It operates in Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, the UK, France, Morocco and Iraq. Zero waste at landfills

Abu Dhabi generates more than 10 million tonnes of municipal wastes annually, according to the Centre of Waste Management - Abu Dhabi (CWM). The emirate generates 33,000 tonnes of wastes per day. Per capita waste generation is 1.8 to 2kg per day. Since the emirate has already lost 1,800 hectares of land to landfills, the centre aims to dump zero waste in landfills in the future. It aims to divert 90 per cent of the waste from landfills by 2018. The centre expects 25 per cent reduction in waste generation by next year — thanks to the initiatives under the Nadafa Programme. It is a comprehensive programme to minimise waste generation and promote sustainable waste management practices. A tariff regime for the businesses under this initiative drives home the message “Generate less waste and pay less fee!” CWM was established in January 2008 as the lead agency responsible for controlling and coordinating waste management operations throughout Abu Dhabi.

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HEALTH

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HEALTH

Top Health Tips for 2012 With January comes the same old promise—this year I’ll get in shape! While some of us succeed in living healthier, most of us make the attempt for a few weeks and slowly slide into our old habits. As childhood obesity becomes a world-wide epidemic, it’s more important than ever to take our health seriously. Our children are watching us, and what they see could have serious effects on their health. Maximum Effect for Minimum Effort Let’s face it, setting goals and keeping them is hard. That’s why so many of us are miserably bad at doing it. Fortunately, there are some small steps that anyone can take that have big benefits. Choose a few of the following health tips, and you’ll be

well on your way to making a serious change for the better in 2012. • Cut out Soda: Soda, flavored coffees and fruit juice are full of empty calories. By switching to water or unsweetened tea, you’ll drop about five pounds in a year. The weight loss can be even more dramatic in some cases. If you can’t live without a little caffeine, choose diet drinks and take your coffee black. • Switch to Whole Grains: It’s no secret that whole grains are healthy. The fiber, trace minerals, iron and complex carbohydrates found in whole grains fuel the body and help you feel full longer. While most of us have no problem eating whole grain bread, we need to think about other grains we eat as

well. Make the switch to whole grain breakfast cereal, pasta and rice. Also, try incorporating new grains into your diet including bulgur, quinoa and barley. • Exercise in Spurts: Not everyone can find an hour a day to exercise, but finding 15 minutes may be easier. While the body will benefit most from 45 minutes to an hour of solid, vigorous exercise, similar benefits can come from smaller workouts spread throughout the day. By taking four 15 minute exercise breaks throughout the day you can get a full workout in without any major adjustments to your schedule. • Lose a Few Pounds: If you are seriously overweight, the task of loosing dozens of

pounds may seem insurmountable. The fact is, even losing a few pounds can have enormous and immediate health benefits. A good goal to shoot for is to lose 5% of your current body weight. By starting out small, you’re more likely to feel encouraged and keep going. • Eat Your Veggies: Vegetables are the missing ingredient from far too many diets. Part of the reason is that they aren’t as convenient as processed snack foods that are so readily available. Even if you don’t need to lose weight, eating more fruits and vegetables is important because they are a natural source of diseasefighting nutrition. Make a goal to eat a serving of fruits or vegetables with every meal in addition to the ones you

When to Use Cold Medicine

It’s easy to reach for cold medicine when you aren’t feeling well, and, generally speaking, there isn’t any reason why a healthy adult shouldn’t. However, there are some medicines that should only be used for a short time and others that are not appropriate for certain people. Cold Medicine 101 There has been a lot of press about cold medicine over the past few years. Some doctors have come out saying that cold medicine is not only unhelpful, it can even be harmful. However, the majority of medical professionals still feel that the right medications can be helpful in treating cold symptoms. In general, problems with cold medicines come in two areas: accidental overdose and

previous health conditions. Many people choose combination cold medicines because they are convenient and treat a wide array of symptoms. However, combinations medicines can be dangerous because people often don’t realize what drugs the medicines contain and may double dose themselves by taking more than one type of medicine. Another common problem associated with cold medicines occurs when a person has a previous medical condition and takes a cold medication that aggravates that condition. People with asthma, certain allergies, high blood pressure, heart disease or who are pregnant or take certain prescription medications should be especially careful when taking cold

medicines. If you suffer from any pre-existing medical condition, ask your doctor for a list of safe medications. In general, the following tips can help in the proper use of over the counter cold medicines. If you have any doubts about whether or not a medication is right for you, consult your doctor or a pharmacist. • Treat only the symptoms that are present. If you have congestion but no cough, don’t take a combination runny nose/cough medicine. • Carefully follow the dosage instructions on a medication and know what is in it. • People with asthma should avoid medications that contain antihistamines because they thicken mucous

secretions and can cause difficulty breathing. • People with uncontrolled high blood pressure should avoid decongestants or take medications designed specifically for those with high blood pressure. • Nasal sprays can actually increase congestion if used for more than three consecutive days. Non-medicated saline sprays are a good alternative. • Many doctors feel cough medicines are ineffective and should be avoided. If you have a serious cough, contact your doctor for a medical opinion. Cold Medicine for Kids In 2007, the FDA released a statement recommending that cold medicines not be used in children under the age of 6. The age has recently

already eat. For most people, this is as simple as grabbing an apple at breakfast, some carrot sticks for lunch, and adding a salad to dinner. Implement any one of these tips and you’ll see a dramatic improvement in your health. Try them all and you’ll have made a very serious commitment towards life. Best of all, when your children see the healthy choices you’re making, they’ll want to make changes too

Hand, foot, mouth disease kills 156 in Vietnam Vietnam says an outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease has killed 156 people, mostly chilbeen reduced to 4, but dren, and sickened more it’s best to consult a pedi- than 96,000 through late atrician before adminNovember. istering cold medicine An official at the Ministry to young children. As of Health says the averwith adults, many of the age number of weekly problems with children’s cases dropped from cold medicine arose about 3,000 in Septembecause of combination ber to 2,460 in Novemmedicines. Parents often ber. The U.S. Centers for didn’t realize that a cold Disease Control and Premedicine contained a vention issued a travel fever reducer like acetaalert Monday urging minophen or ibuprofen people visiting Vietnam and gave their children to protect themselves a second dose of those from the disease by pracmedicines. These overticing “healthy personal doses resulted in danger- hygiene.” ous medical complicaThis year’s outbreak is a tions and even deaths. sharp uptick from recent While it is tempting to years. Since 2008, about give cold medicine to an 10,000 to 15,000 cases uncomfortable child, you were reported per year should always consult a with about 20 to 30 chilpediatrician first. Often, dren dying annually. a doctor will okay the use The common childhood of medication but may illness typically causes have specific guidelines little more than a fever or suggestions for your and rash, and most rechild cover quickly.

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World’s oldest bed discovered in South Africa

Chinese Carpenter Swallows Nail Three Times For some things, one would suppose, the need to do them once should be enough, whether for the sake of breaking world records or for one’s personal gratification. Jumping off mountains, swimming with sharks, walking through fire, swallowing swords and other such endeavors are not things most people would expect to do more than once in a lifetime. For others, once would prove to be one time too many. Swallowing a nail once certainly falls into this category, and yet consider this tale of a hapless carpenter in China who swallowed the same six-inch nail three separate times! Currently recovering in Wuhan University Hospital, Li Xiangyang, 48, of Huangshi, Hubei Province, was holding the nail between his teeth when he suddenly coughed and swallowed it. An x-ray revealed the nail had

DID YOU KNOW

ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

lodged in his right lung, as illustrated by the above image. Doctors reacted immediately to the enormity of the danger and fed a fiber-optic bronchoscope down Li’s throat to pull the nail out. They almost had the nail out when Li coughed again and sucked it back down his throat. For variety’s sake, this time the nail landed in his left

lung. Undaunted, doctors tried again, and at the last minute, Li involuntarily swallowed again and the nail disappeared. This third time doctors had trouble locating the nail. It was not in either lung and had made its perilous way into the man’s stomach, where it was finally extricated via a gastroscope clamp.

Archaeology. Professor Lyn Wadley of Wits University has discovered world’s oldest bed at a site South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal Province. The world’s oldest bed, which dates back to 77,000 years ago, has been discovered in a cave in South Africa, a newspaper report said on Friday. The bed, made of bundles of sedge and wild quince leaves, was found by Professor Lyn Wadley of Wits University, while excavating a site at Sibudu in KwaZulu-Natal Province, Cape Argus reported on its website. The site is a rock shelter on a cliff face on the banks of the Thongathi River, 40 kilometers north of Durban, where Wadley has been working as an archaeologist since 1998. At the site, Wadley made the discovery of the bed (about 1x2m in size) which had been buried more than three meters deep in sediments. What was special about the bed was that it was covered with a layer of aromatic leaves from a plant called the river wild quince.

No other tree leaves were found on the bedding, so the leaves were not there as a result of random leaf fall, the report said. The leaves of the river wild quince have insect-repellent properties, especially against mosquitoes, so these bed makers clearly had a good knowledge of herbal medicine, said the report. There is also evidence at the site that bedding was occasionally burnt, presumably to get rid of residual bugs. The bed makers were Middle Stone Age humans, who were skilled in making stone tools, including spearheads, knives and scrapers, as well as perforatedshell jewellery. They also made bone tools and mixed ochre, which might have been used as an insect repellent or as paint. Before this extraordinary discovery, the earliest known beds were about 25, 000 years old, and the earliest known use of herbal medicine about 5,000 years ago, according to the report.

Bridge in India Could Collapse Due to Human Spit

n the Indian city of Kolkata lies a bridge that is in danger, although not from vandals, weather or natural erosion, or even age. No, the culprit is spit. The Howrah Bridge is a cantilever suspension bridge that crosses the Hooghly River. Over the years, residents have been purchasing and chewing a mix of betel leaf, areca nut, and slaked lime, then spitting the mixture at the base of the bridge. The mixture, known as paan, is a mild stimulant and, if you

take a look at the weakened steel hangars of the bridge, pretty darned corrosive. The hangars, which were once 6 millimeters thick, are now a mere 3 mm, prompting authorities to come up with news ways to prevent any future damage. One such way is to cover the bridge’s steel with a fiberglass casing. But given the corrosive spit, as well as past vehicular accidents and corrosive bid droppings, this incredibly busy bridge is in dire need of a makeover before anyone gets seriously injured.

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SPORTS

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President: Corinthians will make another approach for Manchester City’s Carlos Tevez With the Argentine still frozen out in Manchester, new chief Andrade will follow the lead of his predecessor and make a move for the 27-year-old Corinthians president-elect Roberto Andrade has affirmed that the Brazilians will make a new approach for Carlos Tevez at the start of 2012, but admitted it still would not be easy to tempt Manchester City into a sale. Andrade will take over the presidency from Andres Sanchez in January, after the incumbent chose not to run for a second term. And after Sanchez saw his efforts at signing the controversial Argentine rebuffed on several occasions throughout the previous year, the new head revealed that he shared his predecessor’s admiration for the striker.

“He is a great player. At the start of the year we will start up talks again, but it will be a difficult negotiation,” the chief told Estadao on Tuesday. “His value is extremely high, but Corinthians will work hard on this.” Since Corinthians’ interest cooled, Milan has emerged as the favourites to sign the forward, although a concrete offer is yet to be tabled from Italy. Tevez appeared in Corinthians after leaving first club Boca Juniors, and spent two years in Brazil before moving to West Ham alongside teammate Javier Mascherano. He has not appeared for City since September, when he was disciplined for refusing to enter the field during a Champions League defeat at the hands of Bayern Munich.

Daniel Agger concerned by Liverpool’s failure to score The Dane has been part of the tightest defense in the league but he believes all members of the team need to start chipping in at the other end of the pitch. Daniel Agger has admitted he is at a loss to explain why Liverpool has struggled to score all season but said the players have to keep trying harder to make up for the lack of goals. Liverpool’s tally of 21 strikes in 18 games is a surprisingly low total for a side that finished last season strongly in front of goal and that can call upon the likes of Luis Suarez, Andy Carroll, Dirk Kuyt and Craig Bellamy. The club’s struggles in the final third have seen it win just three out of nine home games, with the others ending as draws. The last slip-up came against bottom side Blackburn Rovers at Anfield where the team was held to a 1-1 draw despite having a host of chances to win the game. Speaking after the loss, Agger could not explain the team’s failure to score more goals but

said that they would keep practicing in training in an attempt to pick up their reward on the pitch. “When you don’t take your chances, you don’t win football games,” he told reporters. “It’s a worry, but what can you do? The only way to solve it is to create more chances. I really think for 80 percent or 90 percent of the time we are playing well. That’s the strange thing, as normally when you play well you get a bit more luck. But somehow we are missing that final touch. We need to find that. Normally when you try harder, you get the luck and that’s what we must keep doing.” Liverpool has the best defensive record with just 14 goals conceded in the first half of the season, but Agger added that despite the solidity at the back, the defense had to chip in with goals alongside the rest of the team. “It’s not just the strikers. It’s not just one or two players. It’s all of us. We all have chances

and don’t score,” he added. “It’s like when we defend - it’s not just the defenders who defend. We all need to be chipping in with goals.” However, the Dane denied that

the team was complacent having also dropped points against Wigan Athletic, Swansea and Norwich this season. “It wasn’t down to complacency,” he said. “We all know

that every game in the Premier League is difficult. When you play for Liverpool Football Club and play at Anfield you have to go out and win games, especially ones like this.

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SPORTS

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Barcelona beat Santos 4-0 to lift Club world cup trophy The 40-year-old was over the moon with the Blaugrana’s win and had nothing but praise for his players Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola

has expressed his satisfaction with the 4-0 Club World Cup final win over Santos in Yokohama on Sunday. The Blaugrana cruised to a

comfortable victory at the Nissan Stadium and Guardiola felt his players performed like ‘great artists’ against the Brazilians.

Wenger - We’re out of the race The 1-0 loss leaves the Gunners 12 points behind the leaders in fifth place in the Premier League. Wenger had hoped to use the game to close the gap at the top and look to overhaul the sides above Arsenal in the second half of the season. But he was quoted as saying by his club’s official website: “Unfortunately for us it was a game that we couldn’t afford to lose because it puts us too much [behind City]. “If we had won the game we would have Arsenal manager says defeat by City leaves come back to six points and with playthem too far behind Arsene Wenger conceded his Arsenal side ers coming back like are now out of the title race after defeat by our full-backs and [Jack] Wilshere and Manchester City.

[Abou] Diaby - we will have a better squad in the second half of the season. “At the moment we are too far behind. “I think it was a game that could have gone both ways. It was very intense with both teams going for it and I feel as well that we were a bit unlucky.“Their goalkeeper had a good game and we were a bit unlucky with the fact that we had to reshuffle completely at the back in a position where we are already short - we paid too much for that. “Overall I did feel at half-time that we would win the game if we stayed stable at the back. “We lacked a bit of accuracy with our final ball in the final third as well because we had a few opportunities where we didn’t pass the ball well. “But overall we had a very positive performance, great spirit, quality, but we lacked a little bit of what is vital in the big games.”

“The first half was excellent. We played like great artists. My players could do what they envisioned, and the result showed it. Leo [Messi] was

perfect,” Guardiola said during the post-match press conference. “Still we must improve and get even better. We return to Catalunya and we’ll try to win more. Right now all we are focusing upon are the next titles. I am very happy to coach these guys and I am honoured to coach these great players. “We are confident for the future. It will be a surprise for me if my team now give up. They want to keep going, move on forward. We want to continue to play good football and want to show we are top level.” Guardiola then went on to say that he is not sure if his current side is the best Barcelona outfit ever and compared his team to the Netherlands squad that impressed in the 1970s with its ‘total football’. “I don’t know if this is the best Barcelona ever. During the process of coming this far the former generation worked very hard, so it is an accumulation of history. The next generation might exceed our results, but this might be the task for somebody else. “I don’t know if our total football is better than that of Holland, there is a gap. Sometimes we’re compared to Ajax and we’re honoured. They won a lot and are a legendary team.” Barcelona’s next match is in the Copa del Rey against L’Hospitalet on December 22.

Ghazal wins Governor’s Cup The Ghazal United Football Club has beaten Akuac United 1-0 to win the Governor’s Cup in Lakes State. Ghazal striker Liec Maker Mawut scored the lone goal of the highly contested final in the 70th minute. Ghazal becomes the first champions of the Governor’s tournament. Addressing the spectators, footballers and officials after the match, Lakes State Governor, Chol Tong Mayay appealed to parents to allow their daughters to also participate in sporting activities in the state. “Sports discourage tribalism, sports create unity among the youth and that is what we desire as government. Sports also

lessen crimes in the society,” Mayay said. According to the Mayay, active involvement in sporting activities reduces the chances of contracting HIV. The Minister of Culture, Youth & Sports Cherino Hiteng pledged the government’s commitment in promoting sports in all the ten states of the country. “We are focusing on three things: building cultural centers, a national theatre and vocational institutions in all the states for the youth,” Hiteng said. The Minister urged the youth to take sports as a fundamental tool to promote peace and unity in the country.

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ACTIVE NATION 9th - 15th JANUARY 2012

2011 best and worst Player of the year

here are key elements which contribute to a player being considered a ‘great’. First and foremost, any man must, obviously, have the talent to justify a reputation. But there is also a need for a bit of glitz. For want of a better phrase, there needs to be an essential ‘X Factor’, which excites, generates debate and attracts attention. Some players have the undoubted ability and are masters of their art, but do not have that edge or little bit of headlinegrabbing razzle-dazzle, which is often the case for defenders or goalkeepers, to get audiences on the edge of their seats. Barcelona’s brilliant No.10, Lionel Messi, combines all elements with pure pedigree and in 2011 he continued his

stranglehold over the world footballing conscious. While the likes of Arsenal’s Robin van Persie, Manchester City’s David Silva, Liverpool’s Copa America winner, Luis Suarez, Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Barcelona teammate Xavi impressed, there is little argument. FIVE MORE CONTENDERS • Robin van Persie • David Silva • Luis Suarez • Xavi • Cristiano Ronaldo In the Argentine city of Rosario, where Messi was born, the forward is referred to as ‘Gardel’. It is slang and refers to 20th Century singer Carlos Gardel. Roughly translated it means ‘legend’. At the tender age of just 24, the Argentina international more than justifies his nickname

and it is a staggering to think he could still play for at least another 10 years and is, in theory, nowhere near his peak. The 2010 FIFA Ballon d’Or is a near certainty to retain his title as the world’s best player for a third successive year after another awe-inspiring 12 months which have included helping Barcelona to the Primera Liga title and the UEFA Champions League crown. Messi’s contribution has included two stunning goals against Arsenal in the last 16 of the European Cup, before netting another pair in the semifinal first-leg win over El Clasico rivals Real Madrid, and then scoring one in the final defeat of Manchester United. At domestic level, he has broken scoring records for Barcelona in 2011 courtesy of hat-tricks galore and at the beginning

of the current campaign he scored three times in the two-legged Spanish Supercup success against Real, while also hitting the target to defeat Porto in the UEFA Super Cup. In the calendar year of 2011, at the time of writing, Messi had scored a staggering 43 goals in 47 appearances in La Liga and the Champions League combined. He had also assisted 21 goals and made 3335 passes with a stunning completion rate of 86 per cent. He has the South American heart for flair and a European head for pragmatism. Messi’s humble attitude and refusal to become embroiled in the histrionics of many modern footballers further enhances his reputation and it is all of these factors combined which make him unquestionably the best player of 2011.

christiano Ronaldo

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