Edisi 01 September 2011 | International Bali Post

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Tumpek Krulut: Ritual for Harmony through Music

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Thursday, September 1, 2011

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16 Pages Number 180 3st Year Price: Rp 3.000,-

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PAGE 8

ABC hopes ‘The Chew’ can win over daytime viewers PAGE 12

AFP PHOTO/SONNY TUMBELAKA

Indonesia muslim women take part in a special morning prayer celebrating the start of the three-day Eid al-Fitr festival at Bali’s Bajra Sandhi monument and park in Denpasar on August 30, 2011. The world’s most populated Muslim nation, Indonesia, started Eid-al-Fitr celebrations marking the end of Muslim’s holy fasting month of Ramadan.

Rights concerns shadow US alliance with Indonesia WEATHER FORECAST CITY

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Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has embraced Indonesia as a crucial U.S. ally in Southeast Asia, but rights groups and critics in Congress say the administration is too eager to trumpet Jakarta as a democratic success story.

Ahead of Obama’s trip later this year to Indonesia, the second of his presidency, they want the U.S. to press Indonesia harder over its weak response to recent sectarian attacks

by Islamic hard-liners and abuses by the military in remote West Papua.

Those demands clash, however, with U.S. strategic interests in the moderate Muslim nation of 240 million people that has assumed growing importance for Washington as it deepens its engagement in the Asia-Pacific region. In November, Indonesia will host a summit of East Asian leaders, the first attended by a U.S. president.

“It seems now the

administration’s policy is to be nice to Indonesia for fear it would come under the umbrella of China. ...

That’s the sense of where we are headed,” said Eni Faleomavaega, ranking Democrat on the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Asia-Pacific subcommittee. The Samoan delegate is a longtime advocate for Papuan rights.

Indonesia, where Obama lived four years as a child, has come a long way since the 1998 overthrow of longtime dictator Suharto and the bloody military crackdown in East Timor in 1999 that led the U.S. to sever military ties for several years.

Continued on page 6

AP Photo/Charles Dharapak

In this Nov. 9, 2010, file photo President Barack Obama and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono toast during a state dinner in Jakarta, Indonesia.

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International

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Bali News

Stock Shortage, Fish Price Gone Up Denpasar (Bali Post) –

The price of fish in traditional markets has increased quite high compared to general days before Eid Mubarak. From observation done last Monday (29/8) by Bali Post, the usual fish sellers seemed to have gone in Badung Market. Jro Melati, one of the fish sellers stated the high price was due to not many fishermen have gone fishing lately due to they have gone to their homes in Java for Eid causing shortage of stocks, also the price from one seller to the other has big difference. “If the stock in the freezer has all sold, I can’t sell anymore,” Melati explained.

According to Melati, kakap fish have increased from IDR 25,000 to IDR 30,000 per kg while other kind of seafood like squid gone up from IDR 34,000 to IDR 38,000 per kg.

IBP/File

The fish seller is serving a customer in a traditional market in Bali

Melati predicted the fish stock will be fulfilled again after the fishermen came back 7 days after Eid. Meanwhile chicken and beef meats are bought a lot a day before Eid where Muslims who stayed in Bali bought it for the celebration which also caused an increase IDR 25,000 per kg for chicken and IDR 60,000 - 70,000 per kg. (bit)

Over 5,500 people leave Bali through Padangbai Amlapura (Bali Post)—

During the current homecoming flows from seven days prior to holiday through Monday (Aug 29), more than 5,500 passengers left Bali through Padangbai Harbor for Lembar, NTB and NTT. In relation to that, Chairman of Karangasem House, I Gede Dana, said that strict population control should be performed to migrants entering Bali, including through the Padangbai Harbor.

He said the tightening was not intended to protect Bali against regional migrants. Most importantly, it was to keep the inhabitants of Bali really good socially and in terms of civil administration. Each person who would go or stay in Bali had to bring along valid identity document. Identity was important, so if there were problems such as traffic accident, the officer would know the identity of victim, including the address of family that could be contacted.

Additionally, people coming to Bali should already have a definite place of residence, purpose of visit and occupation. The Balinese would be concerned if they see those migrants in Bali were even living unworthily.

He said, together with the Karangasem leadership council his party already paid a visit to Padangbai few days ago. At that time, the local officers (SKPD) in charge such as the civil registry office and public order officers (Satpol PP) were instructed to

continue their identity examination to migrants coming through Padangbai Harbor. The team also involved the elements of the Armed Forces, National Police and the Office of National Unity of Community Protection (Kesbanglinmas) of Karangasem.

Some time ago, a neighboring resident on the bank of Janga River, Amlapura, complained about newcomers who lived on a small shed. Despite a modest home, it was inhabited

by dozens of people. During the day, they were out of the shed to sell balloons and other goods downtown Amlapura and even went out of the town. Meanwhile, they remained to do their activities until midnight.

On the other hand, related to homecoming flows of Idul Fitri through Padangbai Harbor, Chief of Padangbai Sea Area Police, Dewa Nila Chandra, revealed last Tuesday that situation of the cross-

ing service to Lembar, NTB remained to run well. The crossing traffic flows had far reduced from the previous days.

He said from seven days prior to holiday until last Tuesday, more than 5,500 people left Bali for Lembar Harbor. Other than the surge in passengers, it was also followed by over 1,593 motorcycles, while vehicles and buses reached more than 582 units.

He added that his party was still alerted to be on duty both for the sake of security and service. There were two posts at Padangbai namely security and service post. All officers were on duty in two working shifts, namely day and night.

Aside from police, the task was also supported by the elements of Armed Forces, public order officers and the Office of National Unity of Community Protection. (013)

Holiday Season, Trans Sarbagita Attracted Public Denpasar (Bali Post)

Almost two weeks after inaugurated by the Bali Governor, Made Mangku Pastika, Trans Sarbagita have operated from Batubulan – Nusa Dua. The 40 seats blue bus have started to be used by several public members especially this holiday. According to Aditya, Supervisor of Trans Sarbagita Batubulan, last Monday (29/8) there has been an increase every week where last Sunday (28/8) primary school pupils in Denpasar with their scout uniform went for holiday at Nusa Dua. Not only that, the public itself started to try the mass transportation to fulfill their curiosity, go to Nusa Dua and back again without getting off. “They are al-

lowed to go in and off on the bus stops provided wherever they go,” Aditya explained.

Head of Trans Sarbagita, Ida Bagus Parsa, stated this time the bus is on its introduction phase. It was said there are two things that is given to the public which is a contribution from the users to lessen traffic and get a better, comfortable and not pricy transportation service. “I don’t really like saying guarantees but please do try. Even to know the service standard our daily team has noted every day details as an evaluation these past three months,” Parsa stated.

Consultant of Trans Sarbatiga, Putu Alit Suthanaya, ST, M.EngSc, PhD, when contacted

IBP/File

The Trans Sarbagita bus, a new model of transportation in Bali. stated the concept of the transportation has 17 priority tracks which will connect each other yet only one operated for now. “I think it is suit-

able if the passengers are still minim as the connection hasn’t been implemented fully yet,” Suthanaya admitted. (bit)

z Founder : K.Nadha, z General Manager :Palgunadi Chief Editor: Diah Dewi Juniarti z Editors: Gugiek Savindra,Alit Susrini, Alit Sumertha, Daniel Fajry, Mawa, Sri Hartini, Suana, Sueca, Sugiartha, Wirya, Yudi Winanto zDenpasar: Dira Arsana, Giriana Saputra, Subagiadnya, Subrata, Suentra, Sumatika, Asmara Putra. Bangli: Pujawan, Buleleng: Adnyana, Gianyar: Agung Dharmada, Karangasem: Budana, Klungkung: Bali Putra Ariawan. Jakarta: Nikson, Hardianto, Ade Irawan. NTB: Agus Talino, Syamsudin Karim, Izzul Khairi, Raka Akriyani. Surabaya: Bambang Wilianto. z Development: Alit Purnata, Mas Ruscitadewi. z Office: Jalan Kepundung 67 A Denpasar 80232. Telephone (0361)225764, Facsimile: 227418, P.O.Box: 3010 Denpasar 80001. Bali Post Jakarta, Advertizing: Jl.Palmerah Barat 21F. Telp 021-5357602, Facsimile: 0215357605 Jakarta Pusat. NTB: Jalam Bangau No. 15 Cakranegara Telp. (0370) 639543, Facsimile: (0370) 628257. Publisher: PT Bali Post

Bali News

International

Thursday, September 1, 2011

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Badung Market overwhelmed by seasonal ketupat sellers Denpasar (Bali Post)—

Other than identical to various cake servings, Idul Fitri is also closely associated with ketupat (rice bag made of coconut leaf) served with a variety of delicious menus. Of course, such condition can be very well understood by traders and some make their time to prepare the shell of ketupat every Idul Fitri season. Moreover, not all Moslems in Bali are going home to celebrate Idul Fitri with their family. Most of them are from Bali and have been settled in Bali since long time ago. This good opportunity is certainly not wasted by a number of seasonal ketupat sellers who only sell it ahead of Idul Fitri.

A day ahead of Idul Fitri, precisely Monday (Aug 29), the ketupat sellers looked to have overwhelmed every corner of Badung Market. Most of them were grocery and vegetable sellers who offered the ketupat shells among their main goods. However, some vendors were specially selling the shell of ketupat.

The ketupat shells on offer were quite varied ranging from small, medium to large size. Ni Wayan Tami, one of the ketupat shell sellers, said the price of ketupat shell also varied depending on the sellers. Some sold 10 packs at IDR 5,000 while the others sold 10 packs at IDR 3,000. “Yes, it is just to add the results of our selling,” she said while tidying up her

remaining ketupat shells after selected by buyers.

Meanwhile, one of the buyers of ketupat shell, Siti Khoiriyah, said she was very helpful with the presence of seasonal ketupat shell retailers.

“Frankly speaking, I am unable to make such kind of ketupat shells. So, it is more practical if I purchase them as they are widely available in the market,” she said.

Aside from vendors of ketupat shells, the vendors of snacks also acquired their fortune. They even had to add their stocks since the past 10 days before Idul Fitri. “Yes, it’s quite busy.

By and large, it is only selling well two and one day before Idul Fitri,” said Kadek, a seller of Idul Fitri cake. (bit)

IBP/File

Ketupat seller filled Badung Market.

PHRI Bali questions stance of Bali Idul Fitri at Pegayaman Ngejot tradition remains Govt to stop cow import to be preserved Denpasar (Bali Post)—

The Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants Association (PHRI) of Bali Chapter questioned the stance of Bali Government that rejected the import of Australian cow to Indonesia. In reality, the policy would have a negative impact on the Bali tourism like the import termination of alcoholic drink.

“We support the stance of government to stop the cow import, but can government guarantee that quality of local cow is better than the imported one? So far, the quality is still far from standard. Alcoholic drink was also like that so many tourists complained,” said Secretary of PHRI Bali, Ferry Markus, in Denpasar on Monday (Aug 29).

Ferry Markus also denied the allegation of government if the star hotels were reluctant to make use of local products such as local beef, local fruits, agricultural products and so forth. He said that 40 percent of the hotel consumption posed local product purchased through a supplier.

“We cannot absolutely use the local products because the character of tourists is different and so is

their demand. On that account, it must be balanced with the imported products,” he observed.

According to him, the quality of local beef was tougher and more fibrous than imported beef because farmers overseas like Australia treated their beef cattle specifically.

For instance, their cattle were given quality feed and massage so they could produce good quality beef. It was in inverse ratio to local cattle.

“Local beef is usually only given grass without additional feed and used to plow their rice fields. As consequence, the quality of their flesh is tougher,” he explained.

He stated that government had to think seriously about the impact of policy stopping the import of beef cattle. “We agreed to use local beef, but give us assurance of quality, quantity, continuity of local beef cattle,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Head of Bali Livestock Agency, I Putu Sumantra, previously stated that Bali was the most objected to the policy of importing 180,000 beef cattle from Australia in October 2011 because it could affect the price of cattle at the breeder level.

He said the cattle population in Indonesia amounted to some 14.4 million whose existence spread across the archipelago. The number was actually adequate to meet the domestic demand and its development should be carried out sustainably.

Government should lead to the empowerment of local potential in each region as well as utilized the existing real sector. If such amount was inadequate, it could be supplied by import. Prior to discontinuing the cow import from Australia, the price of live cattle was only around IDR16, 000—IDR 17,000 per kilogram in Bali. Now, the price of live cattle rose to IDR 22,000 – IDR 23,000 per kilogram.

Sumantra asserted that stock issue had no problem. So far, many of Bali cattle were sold via interisland trades, especially to Jakarta and West Java, in order to meet the market demand for the city. “If imports from Australia will be realized again in next October, the hope of breeders on the Island of the Gods will vanish. So far, averagely 65,000 cows are sold to Java Island every year,” he said. (par)

MOSLEM residents of Pegayaman Village, Sukasada Subdistrict, seem to still maintain well the distinctive tradition of local village inherited from their ancestors since many years ago.

While celebrating Idul Fitri, for instance, the Moslems still get accustomed to perform ngejot or deliver cakes or other food to neighboring Balinese Hindu.

Even, before Idul Fitri, they also have some momentous days related to feast day such as the making of fermented rice three days prior to holiday (H-3), penyajaan (the making of snack on H-2), penampahan (slaughtering animal on H-1), and manis Idul Fitri (H+1) as in the celebration of Galungan and Kuningan.

Similarly, they were applied to the days prior to Idul Fitri on Syawal 1, 1432 H falling on Tuesday (Aug 30). Since few days ago, Pegayaman residents had welcomed it with various activities. For example, on penyajaan, two days before Idul

Fitri, people prepared some foods like cookies and chips with a variety of forms. Meanwhile, on penampahan, falling on Monday (Aug 29), the Pegayaman residents slaughtered a cow together with their neighbors. It was just like on the Penampahan Galungan where the Hindus slaughtered pigs. But, the difference only lay in the animal slaughtered, while the rest was the same.

Secretary of Pegayaman Village, Nengah Panji Islam, said that another tradition remaining to be well preserved was the tradition of ngejot to Balinese neighbors (Hindu residents of Pegayaman). Some of the food and cakes made for Idul Fitri were delivered to Balinese residents. Ngejot was usually performed coinciding with the takbiran night before Idul Fitri.

“Other than to Balinese residents, the ngejot activity is also made to local village leaders, such as the teacher of the Koran,” said Nengah Panji.(ole)

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News

Thursday, September 1, 2011

International

Japan elects new PM, may be ruling party’s last chance Reuters

TOKYO - Japan’s parliament voted in a new prime minister on Tuesday, perhaps the last, best chance for the ruling Democratic Party to begin pulling the country out of decades of stagnation.

AP Photo/Koji Sasahara

Yoshihiko Noda, new leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan, stands after Japan’s lower house elected Noda as the country’s new prime minister, at the parliament in Tokyo Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2011.

WikiLeaks site comes under attack Associated Press Writer

LONDON — The WikiLeaks website crashed Tuesday in an apparent cyberattack after the accelerated publication of tens of thousands of once-secret State Department cables by the anti-secrecy organization raised new concerns about the exposure of confidential U.S. embassy sources.

“WikiLeaks.org is presently under attack,” the group said on Twitter late Tuesday. One hour later, the site and the cables posted there were inaccessible.

WikiLeaks updated its Twitter account to say that it was “still under a cyberattack” and directed followers to search for cables on a mirror site or a separate search system, cablegatesearch.net.

The apparent cyberattack comes after current and former American officials said the recently released cables — and concerns over the protection of sources — are creating a fresh source of diplomatic setbacks and embarrassment for the Obama administration. It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack.

The Associated Press reviewed more than 2,000 of the cables recently released by WikiLeaks. They contained the identities of more than

90 sources who had sought protection and whose names the cable authors had asked to protect.

Officials said the disclosure in the past week of more than 125,000 sensitive documents by WikiLeaks, far more than it had earlier published, further endangered informants and jeopardized U.S. foreign policy goals. The officials would not comment on the authenticity of the leaked documents but said the rate and method of the new releases, including about 50,000 in one day alone, presented new complications.

“The United States strongly condemns any illegal disclosure of classified information,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. “In addition to damaging our diplomatic efforts, it puts individuals’ security at risk, threatens our national security and undermines our effort to work with countries to solve shared problems. We remain concerned about these illegal disclosures and about concerns and risks to individuals.

“We continue to carefully monitor what becomes public and to take steps to mitigate the damage to national security and to assist those who may be harmed b\y these illegal disclosures to the extent that we can,” she told reporters.

Yoshihiko Noda, a 54-year-old former finance minister who wants to curb Japan’s huge public debt, becomes the country’s sixth prime minister in five years.

While tackling myriad ills dogging the world’s third-biggest economy, he must unify warring factions in his own party and win over the opposition, which can block bills in parliament.

The hurdles to governing are high and the policy problems legion, but some optimists suggest that the lowkey Noda might succeed where his combative predecessor Naoto Kan failed.

“In Japanese tradition, the less lustrous politicians have tended to be more effective,” said Andrew Horvat, director of the Stanford Japan Center in Kyoto, comparing Noda to the late Keizo Obuchi, who was dubbed “cold pizza” when he took office in 1998

but used his “Everyman” image to win voter support.

“This is not a time for big talk and inappropriate action.”

Noda’s unassuming image contrasts with that of the famously irascible Kan, while his humble origins — his parents were both from poor farming families — set him off from the Democrats’ first prime minister, the aristocratic Yukio Hatoyama.

But other analysts warn that the compromises Noda needs to win over opponents in the party — he was one of five candidates for PM — could dilute his fiscal reform agenda. He placed second in the first round of party voting and only won in the run-off.

The novice Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) swept to power just two years ago promising to change how Japan is governed but quickly

faltered due to diplomatic missteps, policy flip flops, internal bickering — and the sheer scale of Japan’s problems.

Now, as its third prime minister takes power, the DPJ’s support rates lag behind those of its main rival, the long-dominant Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). If Noda fails, his party would probably lose the next general election, which must be held by late 2013.

Noda faces a mountain of challenges: coping with a strong yen that threatens to hit exports, forging a new energy policy while ending a radiation crisis at a crippled nuclear plant, rebuilding Japan’s tsunami-devastated northeast and finding funds to pay for that and vast social security costs of the aging society.

He acknowledged on Tuesday that the economy faces risks, but repeated his call for “prudent fiscal management.” Media said he was considering appointing DPJ Secretary General Katsuya Okada or ex-chief cabinet secretary Yoshito Sengoku, both fiscal conservatives, as finance minister.

NY, NJ need faster federal aid after Hurricane Irene Reuters

NEW YORK - Both New York and New Jersey have formally asked the federal government for an “expedited major disaster declaration” to cope with the widespread damage caused by Hurricane Irene, officials said on Tuesday.

The neighboring Northeastern states are still coping with possible hazards, from flooding rivers to power outages, which are keeping first responders busy and delaying damage estimates.

Some roads and bridges are still closed in both states. In New York, much of the worst damage occurred upstate and in its suburbs where schools, wells and sewage systems were damaged.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday said at least 26 counties are still devastated. Several dams are being monitored as waters rise and two of them — the Gilboa part of the Catskills water system and the Vischers Ferry Dam in Saratoga County — were previously considered close to failure.

At several of the state’s farms, the large number of dead livestock could become a health hazard if not dealt with. Cattle, horses, pigs

and other animals might die if many farms are not resupplied.

Wall Street, a regional economic engine, got off lightly when compared with some flood-stricken states, especially Vermont.

New Jersey’s Republican Governor Chris Christie said nearly 16,000 people in the state were forced to seek shelter in 16 counties there, while more than 700,000 residents were hit with power outages.

“Hurricane Irene was a catastrophe of enormous severity and magnitude, Christie said, adding: “Torrential rains have caused significant flooding in areas across the state, impacting residences, major and local roads, and necessitating highway closures and a suspension of rail services.”

At least 74,000 in New Jersey are “still impacted,” according to a statement from utility Public Service Electric & Gas.

AP Photo/Times Herald-Record, Dominick Fiorille

JR Caiafa, rear, and Ryan Nehus , of Pine Island, N.Y., paddle through flooded County Route 26 in Pine Island on Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 30, 2011.

Activities

International

Thursday, September 1, 2011

5

Ambiente Spa at Amadea Resort IBP

Ambiente Spa is Amadea Resort’s rooftop wellness facility with four private treatment rooms designed for personal indulgence.

It is professionally managed by Ambiente International, a reputable operator that handles spa outlets for a number of star-rated hotels on the island of Bali.

Relax this September at Ambiente Spa with our ‘Triple Pleasure’ promotion. We have three exclusive spa offers that will recharge your energy levels and leave you feeling fresh for the remainder of your holiday.

Unwind with a Stone Massage for the special promotional price of just Rp.275.000 nett per person.

This 60 minutes healing ritual uses a collection of different sized warm stones to gently massage the body.

Heat penetrates the skin to eliminate travel weariness and muscular tension.

Balinese Heritage & Tradition is a 90 minutes journey to enliven the senses for the special price of just Rp.350.000 nett per person. It involves a Balinese body massage followed by a traditional scrub using a blend of local herbs and spices to naturally exfoliate the skin. A complimentary session of foot reflexology brings this nurturing ritual to a soothing conclusion.

Take advantage of our Spa VOA (voucher on arrival) and save! Purchase your voucher as soon as you check in at Amadea Resort & Villas and be entitled a 60 minutes Traditional Balinese Massage for the sensational price of Rp.185.000 nett per person.

This special value offer will save you up to 45% off the normal price and is valid once only during your stay.

Temple Ceremony Calendar Event for August 7 through August 30, 2011 7 Aug Redite Paing Pahang Pasek Toh Jiwa Kekeran - Mengwi -Badung Pasek Sadra Peguyangan - Badung

15 Aug Soma Keliwon Krulut Pasel Gelgel Kekeran Temple Mngwi Badung Merajan Pasek Subadra Temple Kramas-Gianyar

9 Aug Anggara Wage Pahang Batu Madeg (Meru Tumpang Sanga) Besakih Hyang Tibha Batuan Sakah

20 Aug Tumpek Krurut Pasek Gelgel Temple Br Tengah Buleleng Dalem Pemuteran Temple Jelantik Tojan - Klungkung Pedarmaan Bhujangga W. Temple Besakih Taman Sari Temple Gunungsari Penebel - Tabanan Dalem Tarukan Temple Bebalang Bangli Benua Kangin Temple Besakih Merajan Kanginan Temple Besakih

10 aug Buda Keliwon Pahang Luhur Puncak Padang Dawa Baturiti Tabanan Silayukti Temple Padangbai-Karangasem Aer Jeruk Sukawati Dangin Pasar Batuan-Sukawati Penataran Temple Batuyang-Batubulan Desa Lembeng Ketewel-Sukawati Pasek Bendesa Dukuh-Kediri-Tabanan Kawitan Dalem Sukawati Gianyar Kresek Banyuning-Buleleng Puseh Temple Bebandem-Karangasem Merajan Pasek Kubayan-Gaji Merajan pasek Gelgel Jeroan Abang-Songan Merajan Pasek Subrata Temaga Merajan Pasek Gelgel Bungbungan Sad Kahyangan Batu Medahu. S Nusa Penida Buda Kliwon Penatih-Denpasar Penataran Dukuh Nagasari Bebandem Karangasem Pasek Bendesa Temple Tagtag Paguyangan Pulasari Temple Sibang Gede Abiansemal Batur Sari Temple Ubud Penataran Agung Temple Sukawati 13 Aug Purnama Karo Gelap Temple Besakih Dangkahyangan Temple Pengukur-ukur Pejeng Merajan Gerya Temple Kebon Tabanan Candi Goro Temple Tianyar-Kubu Karangasem Ponjok Batu Temple Tejakula-Buleleng

21 Aug Redite Umanis Merakih Parangan Tengah Temple Ceningan Kangin - Lembongan Dalem Temple Celuk Sukawati - Gianyar 24 Aug Buda Wage Merakih Bendesa Mas Kepisah Temple Pedungan - Denpasar Selatan Natih Temple Banjar Kalah - Batubulan Puseh. Temple Silakarang - Singapadu dalem Petitenget Temple Kerobokan - Kuta Dalem Pulasari Temple Samplangan - Gianyar Kubayan - Kepisah Temple Pedungan - Denpasar - Selatan Pasek gelgel Temple Banjar Tanahpegat - Tabanan Paibon Banjar Bengkel Sumerta - Denpasar Pasek Temple Lumintang - Denpasar Panti Penyarikan Medahan Sanding - Tampaksiring Pasar Agung Temple Kaba-kaba - Tabanan 30 Aug Anggar Kasih Tambir Dalem Puri Batuan Temple Sukawati Dalem Kediri Temple Silakarang - Singapadu Dalem Temple Sukawati Dalem Temple Singakerta - Ubud dalem Lembeng Temple Ketewel - Sukawati Paibon Pasek Tangkas Temple Peliatan - Ubud

Balinese Temple Ceremony EVERY Temple and Shrine has a special date for it annual Ceremony, or “ Odalan “, every 210 days according to Balinese calendar, including the smaller ancestral shrine which each family possesses. Because of this practically every few days a ceremony of festival of some kind takes place in some Village in Bali.

There are also times when the entire island celebrated the same Holiday, such as at Galungan, Kuningan, Nyepi day, Saraswati day, Tumpek Landep day, Pagerwesi day, Tumpek Wayang day etc.

The dedication or inauguration day of a Temple is considered its birth day and celebration always takes place on the same day if the wuku or 210 day calendar is used. When new moon is used then the celebration always happens on new moon or full moon. The day of course can differ the religious celebration of a temple lasts at least one full day with some temple celebrating for three days while the celebration of Besakih temple, the Mother Temple, is never less than 7 days and most of the time it lasts for 11 days, depending on the importance of the occasion.

The celebration is very colorful. The shrine are dressed with pieces of cloths and sometimes with brocade, sailings, decorations of carved wood and sometimes painted with gold and Chinese coins, very beautifully arranged, are hung in the four corners of the shrine. In front of shrine are placed red, white or black umbrellas depending which Gods are worshipped in the shrines.

In front of important shrine one sees, besides these umbrellas soars, tridents and other weapons, the “umbulumbul”, long flags, all these are prerogatives or attributes of Holiness. In front of the Temple gate put up “Penjor”, long bamboo poles, decorated beautifully ornaments of young coconut leaves, rice and other products of the land.

Most beautiful to see are the girls in their colorful attire, carrying offerings, arrangements of all kinds fruits and colored cakes, to the Temple. Every visitor admires the grace with which the carry their load on their heads.

6

Thursday, September 1, 2011

News Rights...

From page 1

AP Photo/Robert Mecea

Dominique Strauss-Kahn arrives at his home in New York, Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2011, after appearing in Manhattan Criminal Court where sexual assault charges against him were dismissed.

Strauss-Kahn back in France within days: Socialist leader Aubry Reuters

PARIS - Dominique Strauss-Kahn is expected to return to France within days, Socialist Party leader Martine Aubry said on Tuesday, after the end of a criminal case against the former IMF chief left him free to leave the United States.

“He is coming back in the next few days,” Aubry, also a Socialist candidate in France’s upcoming presidential election, told Canal+ television when asked about StraussKahn’s plan.

Strauss-Kahn, who was greeted by applause at the IMF’s Washington D.C. headquarters on Tuesday, is free to return home after the chief prosecutor of Manhattan dropped charges of attempted rape against him, ending months of house arrest.

Many in France are against a return to politics for the former IMF

director, who was arrested in May in New York over accusations that he tried to rape a Guinean maid in a luxury hotel room.

While some political allies in France applauded Strauss-Kahn’s liberation, others have raised questions about his ability to restart a political career and retain an influence in French public life.

In an interview with Canal+ television, Former Socialist prime minister Michel Rocard said that Strauss-Kahn suffered from a “mental illness” and had trouble control-

ling his impulses.

Rocard’s blunt appraisal of Strauss-Kahn sparked a rapid riposte on Tuesday from two veteran Socialists.

“Mr. Rocard has some difficulty himself controlling his urges these days,” Jack Lang, a former minister, said on LCI TV. “I wasn’t aware that Mr. Rocard was a medical expert of international stature,” Laurent Fabius — who like Rocard was a prime minister under France’s last Socialist president, Francois Mitterrand — quipped on i.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has consolidated a decade of democratic reform while other countries in the region, like Thailand, have suffered political instability.

Indonesia’s international standing has climbed, as a counterterrorism partner and regional leader. Under Indonesia’s chairmanship this year, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has mediated in a violent Thai-Cambodia border dispute and advanced efforts for a code of conduct in the volatile South China Sea. Still, Yudhoyono has a patchy record on religious freedom, failing to prevent attacks on the minority Muslim Ahmadiyah sect that have worsened since a 2008 government decree that the sect’s practitioners can face up to five years in prison. A victim of a recent mob attack received a stiffer sentence than some of his assailants.

Also, Indonesian troops have received only monthslong sentences for torture and murder in Papua, where the military retains a heavy presence because of a long-running separatist movement.

“If they were serious about accountability, these kinds of crimes would be severely punished,” said Tim Rieser, senior policy adviser to Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy. Legislation that Leahy sponsored bars the U.S. from providing training and other assistance to foreign military units that have committed human rights violations and not been brought to justice.

Rieser said evidence and witnesses have been ignored, charges reduced to the level of misdemeanors, and short sentences handed down that are an insult to the victims. In fact, few in the military have been punished for atrocities dating back to the early 1990s, he said.

Despite that, the United States last year lifted the remaining Defense Department restrictions on military ties, resuming cooperation with Indonesian army special forces after Jakarta committed to military reforms.

U.S. officials say the fact that there is a judicial process to try soldiers for the recent

abuses is a sign of progress, and they emphasize the democratic advances Indonesia has made in the past decade.

“The steps we have seen from Indonesia are far beyond what anybody imagined a few years ago,” said Robert Scher, deputy assistant defense secretary for South and Southeast Asia.

The U.S. was disappointed, however, by the sentences against soldiers tried for abuses in Papua, he said. “We will make clear to the government of Indonesia that how they deal with these soldiers will be a reflection of how they deal with these issues (of military reform),” Scher said.

“Tut-tutting only gets you so far in this world,” responds Sophie Richardson, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch. “Across most fronts in the bilateral relationship, Indonesia continues to get what they want regardless of how some actors have behaved.”

Edmund McWilliams, former political counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta and now a rights activist, contends Kopassus special forces in Papua remain unaccountable and act against civilians in ways “unacceptable in any democratic society.”

He pointed to the recent release of purported Indonesian military documents, publicized

by Human Rights Watch. Dating from 2006 to 2009, they detail not just the ragtag Papuan insurgency, with its meager arsenal of 131 guns and four grenades, but military surveillance of peaceful activists, politicians and clergy, and the region’s few foreign visitors.

Another document from 2011 indicates the surveillance continues.

Indonesia presidential spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said the government cannot be blamed for past rights abuses and has taken firm action on its watch, dismissing from the military those involved in abuses in Papua. If sentences handed down appear lenient, it is not the government’s fault, as the judiciary is independent, he said.

“We’ve changed,” Faizasyah said. If there are cases of abuse, it’s not based on policy or instruction from above.”

International

Indonesia Today

Thursday, September 1, 2011

7

Indonesian Muslim youths keep faith amid reform Agence France-Presse

AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

Indonesian Muslim children carry torches during a parade celebrating Eid al Fitr holiday that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2011.

Different dates of Idul Fitri no matter for debate Antara

JAKARTA - The exact date of Ramadan, the ninth month in the Muslim calendar, and the first day of Syawal for the observance of Idul Fitri or Lebaran vary from year to year.

But there is no need to question the differences in determining the date of Ramadan and Lebaran because it is based on the sighting of the new moon that lead the government to announce the eve of Ramadan and the first day of Syawal.

Every year different Muslim communities begin and end the fasting month of Ramadan on different dates, but Muhammadiyah Muslim Organization Chairman Din Syamsudin said in Yogyakarta on Tuesday there was no point in debating the differences.

“The differences should be addressed with tolerance and mutual respect because the decision on the first day of Syawal is based on the religious beliefs of the respective Muslim communities,” Din Syamsuddin said after performing Idul Fitri prayers in Yogyakarta.

For Muhammadiyah, this year‘s Lebaran festivity falls on Tuesday, August 30, 2011 but for the government it falls on the next day, namely Wednesday, August 31.

Therefore many Indonesian Muslims of Muhammadiyah Organization across the country conducted Idul Fitri prayers to mark the end of the fasting month on Tuesday.

At the the Al Azhar Mosque in

South Jakarta, thousands including national figures such as Deputy Chairman of the People‘s Consultative Assembly Hajrianto Tohari, former minister of religious affairs Tarmizi Taher, former chief of the National Mandate Party Sutrisno Bachir and former legislators Suripto and Ali Mochtar Ngabalin were seen attending the prayer service.

Preacher KH Hidayat Nur Wahid, former chairman of the People‘s Consultative Assembly (MPR), said he had to take a motorcycle taxi in order to come on time due to a long line of traffic to the venue.

In his sermon Hidayat called on all Muslims in the country to be grateful to God for all the blessings he had given to us including the country‘s independence.

Meanwhile some other countries despite their independence, had failed to consummate the independence due to continuing national conflicts, he said.

The executive board of Muhammadiyah Islamic organization had set the date for Idul Fitri on August 30.

Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali on behalf of the government on Monday declared August 31 as the date for Idul Fitri following a meeting with represen-

tatives of Islamic organizations in the country and reports of failure to make a sighting of the new moon.

When making the announcement the minister called on the people to respect the difference in the date of Idul Fitri.

According to Din, the Muhammadiyah chairman, the differences in Islam were acknowledged so long they were based on strong and accountable religious arguments; and therefore it should not be debated and exaggerated.

“Muhammadiyah`s decision that the first day of Syawal falls on Tuesday, August 30, 2011, is not fabricated but based on religious beliefs that ijtima or the solar, lunar, and earth astral conjugation happened on the day before,” Din said.

In spite of the differences, Din said Muslims in Indonesia should maintain brotherhood and step up our hospitality because the different dates of Idul Fitri happened not only this year but also in the years before.

Din in his Idul Fitri sermon said the Muslims in Indonesia should take a middle position in maintaining balance and fairness in their lives as members of their respective families, societies, nations and as citizens of their country.

He said that according to scholars such as Imam al-Ghazali, Islam was a creed of the middle Way that maintains balance between worldly life and ukhrowi or eschatological matters regarding the ultimate destiny of mankind and the world, and between individual and social lives.

JAKARTA - As a pious young Muslim in Indonesia, Didit Sukmana prays five times a day, recites the Koran daily and fasts during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

That’s not all. The 23-year-old student and Jakarta resident refuses to shake hands with women, will not marry a non-Muslim and approves of such Islamic Hudud sanctions as cutting off the hands of thieves and stoning adulterers to death.

“I wholeheartedly agree that sharia law should be implemented in Indonesia. If beheading and hand-chopping put people off crimes which then results in a more orderly society, why not?” he told AFP. It’s not the image the outside world usually associates with Indonesia’s urban youth, who are more often described as enthusiastic adopters of new technologies like Facebook than supporters of strict Islamic law.

But according to a recent survey by Germany’s Goethe-Institut, the bulk of youths in the world’s largest Muslim-majority country share remarkably traditional values about faith and family, despite a decade of social and political change since the fall of the Suharto dictatorship.

More than half of nearly 1,500 Indonesian Muslims aged 15 to 25 years polled from October to November last year supported the eye-for-an-eye Hudud punishments for crimes such as theft, adultery and apostasy.

Fully 66 percent agreed with capital punishment for murder and 68 percent favoured whipping for alcohol consumption.

Conservative beliefs were stronger in relation to family matters, with nine in 10 respondents disagreeing with interfaith marriage. Of those willing to marry non-Muslims, most expected their spouses to convert to Islam.

Nearly half identified themselves as Muslims first and Indonesians second, pointing to the weakness of the Indonesian state in an archipelago of 240 million people, 80 percent of whom are Muslims, spread over 17,000 islands.

The study noted the importance of Islam as a “source of strength and positive energy to cope with Indonesian urban life, which is becoming tougher and more competitive”.

“There’s no strong institution in the country we can depend on,” 23-year-old teacher Fikriyah Rasyidi said.

“We feel that nobody, not the

government, is looking after us.

Many people are jobless, costs of education are high. So in times of stress, religion becomes a balm for the soul.

“Governments change but God and religion are indestructible,” she added.

Most of Indonesia’s 200 million Muslims are moderates, but the country has struggled to deal with a radical fringe of extremists who have carried out numerous attacks including the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people.

In a recent Independence Day speech, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono defended the country’s reputation for pluralism and tolerance in the face of growing alarm among civil society groups about rising extremism.

“Even though there are challenges and threats to pluralism, tolerance and social harmony, we cannot move from our belief that Indonesia is a nation that is able to live in pluralism,” he said in a televised address.

Critics accuse the ex-general of pandering to the religious right by failing to crack down on violent hate groups, such as those behind the brutal mob slaying of three members of the Ahmadiyah minority sect in February.

The attack was caught on film and occurred in front of police, but the culprits got off with jail sentences of between three and six months.

Meanwhile an Ahmadiyah survivor of the attack was jailed for six months for trying to defend himself.

“I worry that Islamic radicals will exploit religious conservatism and influence youths to take their side and push their interests. This may give rise to religious conflicts,” Islamic studies lecturer Jajat Burhanudin said.

But while religion may be important in their personal lives, Indonesians are not turning to political Islam to solve the country’s problems, Burhanudin said, citing “happy indications” that Muslim parties fare poorly in elections.

Sharia punishments such as whippings for adultery and gambling have been introduced in some areas, notably conservative and semi-autonomous Aceh province, but there is no push to incorporate them into national law.

“To me, religion is a less superficial concept than the state, but I consider myself to be secular,” said 25-year-old youth activist Mahardhika Sadjad.

Achmad, a 17-year-old student, added: “It’s not as if I live in the dark ages. I support democracy and progress... But God always comes first.”

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International

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Bali Today Tumpek Krulut:

Ritual for Harmony through Music Hindu community in Bali always appreciates the nature and environment by holding a ritual.

A month after Tumpek Kuningan, namely Saturday, the Hindu community in Bali celebrates Tumpek Krulut. This feast day comes every 6 months (210 days), falling on Saturday, Kliwon, Wuku Krulut. For Hindu society, the celebration of Tumpek Krulut is not only limited as a routine ceremony, but also as an expression of gratitude to God in his manifestation as Lord Ishvara. Tumpek Krulut is also the temple anniversary of Pucak Apuan Temple and almost all Hindu devotees in Bali also perform prayers in the temple.

IBP/Net

A lecturer of the Hindu Dharma Institute of Denpasar (IHDN), Wiana Ketut, said that Tumpek Krulut was a day of love. Such compassion was embodied into the form of beauty, in this case the sound of gamelan music.

On Tumpek Krulut, people venerated the Supreme God in his manifestation as Goddess Semara Ratih. On that account, devotees offered the oblation named sesayut lulut asih.

Similar opinion was revealed by the Dean of Faculty of Dharma Duta, IHDN, IGN Sudiana. Tumpek Krulut was derived from the Balinese vocabulary lulut meaning the heart fused with beauty (Sundaram), so that the mind turned peaceful. In that context, we really required an art and entertainment to balance the live.

Meanwhile, a lecturer of Faculty of Letters, Udayana University, IB Jelantik, said that on Tumpek Krulut people believed that God in his manifestation as Shivanataraja came down to earth to dance to 36 tattvas in order to prosper the macrocosm and microcosm. To accompany the dance, devotees were playing gamelan music. In Denpasar, since a few years ago, there had been some processions to interpret the Tumpek Krulut by displaying a variety of arts, dance and gamelan composition. On Tumpek Krulut, the

entire gamelan instruments were played to create santha rasa or the sense of peace. The sense of peace was expected to create prosperity physically and spiritually.

Then, a cultural and religious observer, Ida Bagus Agastia, said that in Bali the concept of voice was truly important, so there was a term wija aksara suci (sacred syllable). It inspired the birth of sound civilization known as holy bell, sunari (bamboo flutes that catches the wind), windmill, kulkul (wooden split bell) and various types of gamelan made of bronze, iron or bamboo. Aside from the sound civilization, in Bali was also known a civilization of colors and flavors. Meanwhile, the ritual of Tumpek Krulut had close relation to sound civilization, in this regard with gamelan instrument.

With regard to the sound, the sound of bumblebee also drew the attention of ancient literati where in the Sasih Kapat (around October) they had Ngapat tradition. Full moon of this month was a good opportunity for organizing literary activities, writing and discussing about beautiful works.

Literati usually went to the beach and mountains to capture the beauty of nature, listened to the singing of birds, sound of waves, watched the beauty of flower petals and heard the loud

hum of bumblebees and so on. They were all captured and then expressed into the form of literature.

Meanwhile, the temple priest of Dalem Temple of Sekalan, Marga, I Ketut Artana, said that gamelan troupe and community celebrated the Tumpek Krulut by saying prayers in temples. According to him, the meaning of worship on Tumpek Krulut was exploring profoundly the spirit giving birth to peacefulness and strength.

The tones and the sound had an extraordinarily supernatural power and even they were believed to be the main strength. In the context of worship of natural harmony, it could be achieved by raising the power of Shiva in order to move. Movement creation of Shiva happened because of the tone strains known as Shivanataraja. Philosophically, the worship of sounds on Tumpek Krulut implied the control of Tri Gunas (sattvam, rajas and tamas) and Tri Marga namely dharma, artha and kama.

When understood further strains of the tones is a natural process towards harmonization. In order to achieve harmonization of this nature needs to be done contemplation and praying to God in its manifestation as Shiva. (BTN/015)

Mayadanawa: Feeling Superiority Results in Destruction When penjors paraphernalia are erected throughout the island, they epitomize that Galungan festivity has come. Every single devotee is in blooming heart welcoming it with joy.

This six monthly celebration in Balinese calendar encourages people to make earnest preparation whole day and night. It’s time to glorify God and ancestors.

Based on the mythology, Galungan delineates the triumph of dharma (truth) against adharma (untruth). According to Tatwa Mayadanawa transliterated by Made Gambar said that Bedaulu kingdom in Bali was once ruled by Mayadanawa. He was very powerful and proud of his power and feels to have more sovereign power than that of gods.

This arrogance until forbids all subjects to worship God together with the celebration to glorify all God’s manifestations. The non-existence of freedom to worship and other religious activities caused many subjects greatly suffered where diseases spread and harvests failed. Seeing this condition, Lord Mahadeva in heaven feels disappointed. Having organized an assembly session with other gods, it is decided to attack Mayadanawa. Under the leadership of Lord Indra, the target can be timely destroyed. In short, the troops of the gods won the battle.

This does not only stand for the triumph of the gods, but also of the whole mankind on earth.

Afterwards, Galungan then can be re-celebrated after the triumph of

Indra. Many subjects felt to regain their enlightenment as they were able to practice their religious life. This festivity lasts for ten days and ends in the day called Kuningan. Aside from paying homage at village temple, it is also intended to appreciate the ancestors at family shrine. Similarly, devotees thank for the prosperity bestowed and maintain the relationship with their ancestors. Though they have left for the beyond, hopefully they could illuminate their descendants.

Another version about Galungan is mentioned by the manuscript Jaya Kasunu. It is said that the king Jaya Kasunu (AD 1204), meditated (held dewa sraya) to invoke guidance. His problem was that not one of his predecessors could rule longer. Through

his solemn meditation he was inspired that he should re-organize religious activities, such as Galungan.

No matter what the version is, the essence of these mythologies implies that a devotee or creation should maintain their persistent contact to his Creator. The âtman dwelling within the human self should maintain his contact to Brahman, the Creator. By doing so, humans can continuously obtain the illumination to walk in the path of dharma.

As manifestation of gratitude, devotees express it through worship at temples, garden, rice field and so forth. Everything that has given prosperity is also offered an oblation, including the means of transportation.

If you happen to take an excursion on

that day you of course will rub up against many cars affixed with young coconut paraphernalia.

Hopefully, the festivity does not come to an end at the vibrant fiesta marked with grandiose oblation, assorted delicious food or luxurious paraphernalia. All the times it should help the spiritual development. Anything achieved in this life either tangible or intangible entities, should not make us arrogant. Sometimes, when having abundance of wealth or higher educational background, a human feels superior or more powerful than others. Even, it is not employed as a milestone to improve his devotion to God. It’s here where the achievement drags human to sluggish condition or gorge of destruction. (BTN/punia)

International

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Balinese Culture Wajik

(Rice Flour Cake with Palm Sugar) Overview: There are a couple of variations on this popular cake, which can be stored in the refrigerator for several days.

It is normally served at room temperature, but can also be served warm topped with coconut milk. Another variations are to add ripe diced jackfruits (or substitute with sultanas) after the rice is partially cooked.

Ingredients: 1 cup glutinous white rice 1 cup water 1 pandan leaf ½ cup palm sugar syrup ¼ cup thick coconut milk Pinch of salt Preparation: Rinse rice very well under running water for 2 minutes and soak for 4 hours. Rinse again until water becomes clear. Place rice, 1 cup of water and pandan leaf in rice cooker or steamer and cook for approx 20 minutes, or until liquid has evaporated.

Add palm sugar syrup, coconut milk and salt, and steam for 15 minutes. Spread rice evenly 2.5 cm thick on tray and allow to cool to room temperature. Wet a sharp knife with warm and cut into even squares to serve.

Helpful hint: to speed up the soaking process, pour boiling water over the rice and let stand for 1 hour. Drain, then add another lot of boiling water and soak for another 30 minutes. If you are using a steamer to cook the rice, line the bottom with a wet cloth to prevent the rice grains from falling through. (www.baliguide.com/ balifood)

Sate Lilit FOTO ANTARA/Nyoman Budhiana

Domestic tourist shopping Balinese clothes in Sukawati Art Market during the celebration of Idul Fitri on Wednesday, August 31. Several objects in Bali crowded with domestic tourists that spend their holiday in Bali during the Idul Fitri holiday season.

(Minced Seafood Satay) Overview: This probably the most delicious satay you will ever encounter. The delicate flavors of the shrimp and fish are greatly improved if you can find spears of fresh lemongrass to use as skewers, and if you can cook them over a fire of coconut husks rather than charcoal.

Nonetheless, even with wooden skewers and a standard charcoal grill, you will have people coming back more.

Ingredients: 600 gr skinned boneless snapper fillet 1 cup freshly grated coconut or 1½ cups moistened desiccated coconut ½ cup seafood spice paste 5 fragrant lime leaves, chopped 1 tsp black peppercorns, finely crushed 1 tsp salt 3-5 bird’s eye chilies, very finely chopped 2 tbsp palm sugar Lemon grass or satay skewers Preparation: 1. Mince fish fillet very finely in a food processor or with a chopper.

2. Add all other ingredients & mix well.

3. Mould a heaped tablespoon full of this mixture around a wooden skewer or over trimmed stalks of lemon grass and grill over charcoal until golden brown.

Note: This recipe won’t work with frozen fish. (www.baliguide.com/balifood)

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Destinations Bedugul Botanical Garden 10

International

Thursday, September 1, 2011

IBP

For those of you who like to see and know more about plantation, especially the tropical types, you can visit Bedugul Botanical Garden which located in Bedugul, plateau area in Bali. The garden is situated in the cool atmosphere with rain forest and hill surrounds.

This botanical garden is opened on 1959 and owns 154.5 ha land located Tabanan regency, northwest part of Bali. It is close to the beautiful lake which is called Beratan Lake and Ulun Danu Temple. It has inhabitants more than 1187 plant types and multifarious of floras. In this area, there is orchid garden with the collection of 320 orchid types from Bali, Java, Nusa Tenggara Timur, Sulawesi and also Irian Jaya. We can also meet the rose garden with the collection of various rose from rust colored until green chromatic.

Bedugul Botanical Garden or

Kebun Raya Eka Karya is also completed by 524 birches which are still in its original forest. In this place we can meet the collection from America, South America, China, Japan, Australia, Africa and also Netherlands. Cyathea Garden is one of the specific gardens owning the various collections of Paku-pakuan (tropical vegetable) which can be eaten as vegetable by Balinese and some of them are used for decoration.

The tree from this nail Cyatheas are often exploited as growth media of various orchid types. Cactus collections are consisted of 104 types. This cactus is obtained from Africa, America, Germany, Switzerland and also Indonesia. The crop season at botanical garden is taken 94 types plants that are the collection from the exploitation for Balinese life ceremony, temple ceremony, devoting/offering and others purpose. It also owns the collection of drug crop with 84 types/

species.

Beside of the crop collections, Bedugul Botanical Garden or Kebun Raya Eka Karya also owns the traditional Balinese houses and it function as guest house for scientist who is doing observation. It is also opened for public including tourists and to be one of favorite tourist destinations in Bali especially for domestic tourists Starting from the idea of Prof. Ir. Kusnoto Setyodiwiryo as director of nature study center who want a branch establishment of botanic gardens outside Java especially Bali as a nature conservancy area for the plant, then in 15 July 1959 Eka Karya Botanical Garden was officially established. The name of Eka Karya means the first botanical garden which is the result of hard work after an independent of Indonesia.

The 154 hectares of garden on the lower slopes of Mount Pohen, boasts an extensive collection of trees and flowers. Right after the

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entrance, you’ll come upon a vast green grass area, where people usually spread-out their mats and unwrap their picnic baskets. Bali Tree Top, an adventurous experience for the whole family, is located on the

left side of the gardens, just after the entrance and the information centre. Here you can get a booklet which provides all the botanical names of all the plants and flowers in Bedugul Botanical Garden.

... gets maximum benefits with minimum charge Denpasar : +62 361 22-5764 Jakarta : +62 21 535-6271

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Thursday, September 1, 2011

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BUSINESS In this Jan. 6, 2011 file photo, a buyer tests Motorola’s Droid Bionic 4G phone at the Consumer Electronics Show, in Las Vegas.

AP Photo/Julie Jacobson, File

Weak electronics shortcircuit Asian growth Reuters

SINGAPORE - Japan and South Korea reported surprisingly weak July factory output on Wednesday as global electronics demand faded, exposing Asia’s vulnerability to a worsening U.S. and European economic slowdown.

Industrial output rose just 0.6 percent in Japan, less than half the rate economists polled by Reuters had predicted. South Korea’s declined 0.4 percent, defying expectations for a 0.6 percent rise.

“I think it is time to lower our expectations on exports,” said Kim HyoJin, an economist at Dongbu Securities in South Korea, pointing to financial market volatility and mounting concerns that the United States and Europe could slip back into recession.

As disappointing as the data was, the next set of readings may look even worse. Consumer and business confidence cratered across most advanced economies in August, when the U.S. debt downgrade and deepening European debt crisis cast doubt on growth prospects.

A series of factory surveys due on Thursday will shed more light on how China, Taiwan and South Korea fared in August. Japan offered a sneak peak on Wednesday: its Purchasing Managers Index dipped to 51.9, the first decline in two months.

Slumping demand for computers, televisions and other electronics has put tech-centric countries including Japan and South Korea on the frontline of the global slowdown.

Unless you make iPads, it’s not a

great time to be in the technology sector. Taiwanese PC maker Acer Inc reported its first ever quarterly loss last week. Flat-screen maker LG Display plans to cut 2012 capital spending by a quarter because of poor demand.

Tech is especially sensitive to business cycle swings. Companies can put off buying new computers when demand fades. Likewise, consumers might make do with an old television set a bit longer if they are worried about their finances.

Bank of America-Merrill Lynch said its own electronics leading index turned down in August, reflecting weak orders from the United States, Europe and elsewhere.

“The index was holding up fairly well but suddenly in August it turned sharply lower, which suggests the numbers could turn uglier,” said Hak Bin Chua, a BofA-Merrill economist based in Singapore.

In Japan, Wednesday’s data showed production of electronic components and devices fell 3.4 percent in July, one of the biggest drags on the industrial output index. The figures may deteriorate in the coming months.

Naohiko Baba, an economist who tracks Japan for Goldman Sachs, said supply constraints from the March earthquake and tsunami “have largely

been eliminated.”

That means the initial quake recovery boost may have passed, leaving Japan even more vulnerable to weak global demand. A strong yen puts its exporters at a disadvantage.

For South Korea, where electronics account for more than one-third of exports, data from the finance ministry showed exports rose 22.9 percent from a year earlier for the August 1-29 period, a slightly slower pace than in July. A preliminary reading on the full month’s figures is due on Thursday.

Judging from the mood in the United States and Europe, demand prospects look gloomy. In Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, both the ZEW and the Ifo sentiment surveys showed sharp declines in August.

U.S. consumer confidence crumbled to a two-year low, according to the Conference Board. Although retail sales held up surprisingly well in July, flagging confidence suggests demand may soon slip.

Businesses seem to be worried about that. Non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, which is a closely watched proxy for business spending, fell 1.5 percent in July, indicating companies are cutting back.

Sony, Toshiba, Hitachi to merge LCD operations Reuters

TOKYO - Japan’s Sony Corp, Toshiba Corp and Hitachi Ltd will merge their liquid-crystal display operations using $2.6 billion of government-backed funds to fend off growing competition from rivals in South Korea and Taiwan.

The merger will create the world’s largest maker of small panels used in smartphones and tablet PCs, leapfrogging global leaders Sharp Corp of Japan and Samsung Electronics of South Korea.

The move would help the firms focus on their main operations. However, the 90-percent government-owned fund could come under fire for using public money to prop up a volatile business in its biggest investment to date.

The Innovation Network Corp of Japan (INCJ) will invest about 200 billion yen ($2.6 billion) in the merged unit, taking a 70 percent stake. Sony, Toshiba and Hitachi will each take a 10 percent stake, the three firms said on Wednesday.

They aim to complete the merger by the spring of 2012. A shakeup has been long overdue because falling panel prices and advances in technology have placed ever increasing demands on producers.

The three firms together controlled 21.5 percent of the market for small and medium-sized displays last year, larger than Sharp with 14.8 percent or Samsung Mobile with 11.9 percent, research firm DisplaySearch estimates.

All three had hesitated about investing in a new line to compete against Sharp, which is due to receive a $1 billion investment from Apple Inc, or South Korean rivals LG Display and Samsung Mobile Display, which have supply agreements with key clients.

Sony has been weighed down by chronic losses in its TVs, Toshiba is speeding up plans to shrink its chip business, while Hitachi has been looking to distance itself from the volatile panel business to focus on infrastructure operations.

“Sharp is especially aggressive, and those who don’t have a strong customer base may struggle, given that only a handful of smartphone and tablet makers are doing well,” said Nam Dae-jong, an analyst at HI Investment & Securities.

With more panel makers shifting focus to small-sized markets to meet demand from smartphone and tablet PC makers, he and other analysts predicted the industry would be oversupplied next year.

“It’s not a business that will likely provide stable profits in the mid- to long term,” said Shigeo Sugawara, a senior investment manager at Sompo Japan NipponKoa Asset Management.

The INCJ is supervised by Japan’s trade ministry, which had been criticized for not supporting Japan’s chip and display industries in the early 1990s, a failure critics say allowed U.S. and South Korean firms to take the lead.

“The decision reflects a growing sense of crisis in Japan in light of its falling market share in the global chip and display markets,” said a South Korean government official, who declined to be named.

How the three firms, which use two different types of display technology, will merge operations is unclear. The announcement did not include details of how they intended to deal with business overlaps either.

“The parent companies have found a most convenient buyer for their factories and staff,” said Yoshihisa Toyosaki, head of Japanese research firm and consultancy Architect Grand Design.

“The assets of the merged entity will be huge. Without restructuring, there is no way that this company will win against Sharp, or rivals from South Korea, Taiwan, and eventually China.”

Past investments by the INCJ, which can invest up to 900 billion yen with mostly government-guaranteed funds, includes a 40 percent stake in Swiss meter maker Landis+Gyr to support Toshiba’s $2.3 billion acquisition.

The new display company will focus on developing next-generation displays, including thinner organic light-emitting diode displays with higher resolution, the three firms said.

Hitachi has been in separate talks with Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry, better known as Foxconn Electronics Inc, about a joint venture in LCD panels, sources have said.

Talks with the parent of Chimei Innolux Corp broke down when Hitachi failed to grab a key contract with Apple, an industry source said.

Ahead of the announcement, well-flagged by media, shares in Sony closed down 1.8 percent, Toshiba fell 2.4 percent and Hitachi rose 0.5 percent. The market benchmark Nikkei average ended flat.

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Thursday, September 1, 2011

Entertainment

International

ABC hopes ‘The Chew’ can win over daytime viewers Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK — Gnaw on this: Can some of food and style TV’s biggest stars, Mario Batali and Clinton Kelly among them, help ABC soap fans get over cancellation of their favorite stories? The network’s counting on it for “The Chew.” Iron Chef or Martha Stewart this isn’t. Nor will the five cohosts take on top news of the day like their cousins over at “The View” once the show premieres live on Sept. 26 in place of “All My Children” and “One Life to Live.”

What you’ll see is simple, fun tips for cheap and easy living. During a recent practice run, the everadorable Iron Chef Michael Symon salted skirt steak as he shared about his Greek-Sicilian mother and made it clear: Vinaigrette is two parts fat to one part acid.

Kelly, co-host of TLC’s “What Not to Wear,” urged parents to bring their kids back to the dinner table by letting them draw on butcher block paper for placemats. Got some shriveled citrus?

Don’t let it go to waste.

Slice it up and float it in a vase topped by a cheery hydrangea blossom.

If it sounds like stuff the more sophis-

ticated Stewart might have thought up in kindergarten, you’re right, but that’s OK with Chew’s executive producer, Gordon Elliott. He’s going for “easily digestible, pardon the pun.” Besides, the food porn’s good with lots of delectable close-ups.

Elliott explains: “People don’t have time to sit for an hour and watch a story.

ABC came to me and said we’ve had great success with ‘The View’ but we’d like to get into food. I thought ‘The View,’ food, ‘The Chew.’

We do more than just chop and chat. Our cohosts are relatable.”

True, they are. It’s also true that people may not sit in the middle of the day. But that’s why DVRs were invented, so folk like the soap faithful can relax after dinner with their decades-old shows. Will they be firing them up for “The Chew,” or tuning out altogether to chase down their soaps online?

“I really don’t believe that disgruntled refugees from ‘All My Children’ and ‘One Life to Live’ will swallow ‘The Chew,’” said TV analyst Shari Anne Brill. “This is about how it’s become more expensive to produce scripted content. The audience has shifted.”

AP Photo/Tina Fineberg

This Friday, Aug. 26, 2011 photo shows co-hosts Carla Hall, left, and Daphne Oz as they prepare a dish during a rehearsal for ABC’s “The Chew” in New York.

Justin Bieber, his Ferrari fine after minor crash Associated Press Writers

LOS ANGELES — Justin Bieber and his Ferrari are both fine after a fender-bender in Los Angeles. Los Angeles Police Officer Gregory Baek says the 17-year-old singer was involved in “a very minor collision” Tuesday afternoon in LA’s Studio City.

The officer said no one was injured or cited and no police report was taken. There was no visible damage to Bieber’s car or the Honda Civic involved in the crash.

Bieber recently appeared at MTV’s Video Music Awards, where he won best male video for his song “U Smile.”

Daryl Hannah arrested in White House oil protest Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON — Actress Daryl Hannah has been arrested in front of the White House along with other environmental protesters who oppose a planned oil pipeline from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast. The sit-in Tuesday involved dozens protesting TransCanada Corp.’s Keystone XL pipeline. It would go through Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas to refineries in Houston and Port Arthur, Texas.

Before she was arrested, Hannah told The Associated Press the protesters want to be free from dependence on fossil fuels. The group calls for clean energy investments instead.

Hannah says they hope President Barack Obama will not bow to oil lobbyists.

Hannah sat down on the sidewalk near the White House and refused orders from U.S. Park Police to move. She has been arrested in the past for environmental causes.

James Franco drops out of making Broadway debut Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK — James Franco can’t make time for Broadway. Publicist Robin Baum confirmed Tuesday that the workaholic actor has dropped out of a planned production of the steamy Tennessee Williams play “Sweet Bird of Youth.”

It was to mark Franco’s Broadway debut and would have created one of the hottest tickets of the season because he was to be paired with Nicole Kidman, who is still on board.

The play tells the story of an aging actress and the gigolo paramour who uses her as he tries to help her get back into movies. David Cromer is scheduled to direct.

Franco, last seen in “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” and “Your Highness,” is shooting the film “Oz,” appearing on “General Hospital” and earning a doctorate in English at Yale.

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Actress Daryl Hannah is arrested by U.S. Park Police in front of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2011, during a protest against the Keystone oil pipeline.

Science

International

Thursday, September 1, 2011

13

Sony shows wearable 3-D personal theater Associated Press Writer

IBP/afp

This NASA image obtained in May 2011 shows the International Space Station’s starboard truss.

NASA warns ‘risk of losing’ space station rising Agence France Presse

The risk of an unprecedented evacuation of the International Space Station will spike if Russian craft cannot resume their missions and return by November, a senior NASA official has warned. “There is a greater risk of losing the ISS when it’s unmanned than if it were manned,” Michael Suffredini, the ISS program manager for the US space agency, said in a conference call with Russian officials.

“The risk increase is not insignificant,” he added. Russia on Monday delayed its next manned mission to the ISS by at least a month after an unmanned cargo vessel crashed into Siberia instead of reaching orbit on August 24. The head of Russia’s manned spaceflight programme also warned that a significantly longer delay would force the six people on board the station to abandon the orbiter due

to fatigue and supply problems.

The station crew normally consists of six — currently three Russians, two Americans and one Japanese — working six-month rotations. Staff safety and the “very big investment” that the Russian and US governments have made in the ISS would guide future decisions, Suffredini said during the call on Monday.

“We prefer not to operate in that condition without crew on board for

an extended period of time just to make sure we end up in that situation.

“But assuming the systems keep operating we can command the station from the ground and operate it on orbit indefinitely,” Suffredini added. The ISS, which orbits 350 kilometers (220 miles) above Earth, is a platform for scientific experiments bringing together space agencies from Russia, the United States, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Launched in 1998, it was initially expected to remain in space for 15 years until an agreement was reached to keep it operating through 2020. An evacuation of the ISS was planned after the Columbia shuttle disaster which killed seven astronauts in 2003, but NASA later decided to keep staff on board the station at all times.

TOKYO — Sony says it will start selling a head mounted display that provides a 3-D theater of music videos, movies and games, targeting people who prefer solitary entertainment rather than sitting in front of a TV with family or friends. Sony Corp. said Wednesday that the 60,000 yen ($800) “HMZ personal 3-D viewer” is set to go on sale Nov. 11 in Japan, and is planned for the U.S. and Europe, perhaps in time for Christmas, although dates have not yet been set.

Resembling a futuristic visor, HMZ, which stands for “head mounted display,” is worn like chunky goggles-and-earphones in one. The footage before the viewer — a music video of a Japanese singer in the demonstration for reporters in Tokyo — is crystal-clear and feels like peering into a dolls house in which a real-life tiny singer is moving.

It seems unlikely that most people — or even technology enthusiasts — will want to buy a

product that involves sitting alone and wearing a little helmet. The HMZ might not be Sony’s long awaited answer to Apple’s iPod or iPad but just another quirky device packed with cutting-edge technology that is headed for a limited niche following.

A 3-D wearable gaming machine Virtual Boy from Nintendo Co., which went on sale in the 1990s, bombed, partly because of the bulky headgear required as well as the image being all red.

Sony’s latest product is far more sophisticated. Sony officials said the gadget delivers the immersive experience of a home-theater, or the equivalent of sitting in one of the best seats of a movie theater.

The machine, which hooks up to Blu-ray disc players and game machines, is targeting people who want to enjoy movies or games alone.

It is not recommended for people 15 years old and younger because some experts believe overly stimulating imagery is not good for teenagers whose brains are still developing, according to Shigeru Kato, a Sony vice president.

AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye

A model wears a 60,000 yen ($800) HMZ personal 3-D viewer during a news conference at Sony headquarters in Tokyo Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2011.

Mexico to give HPV vaccine to all girls from 2012 Agence France Presse

Mexico plans to administer the vaccine against human papillomavirus (HPV), which can cause cervical cancer, to all girls beginning next year, the country’s health ministry said Tuesday. Beginning in 2012, the HPV vaccine will be part of the normal course of shots given to all girls at the age of nine, Health Minister Jose Angel

Cordova said.

Cervical cancer kills about 4,200 women in Mexico each year. The minister said while deaths from cervical cancer had fallen 47 percent in the country over the past two decades, there was still 13.4 cases for every 100,000 women last year.

Mexican health authorities hope that by making the HPV vaccine universal, they can cut the mortality rate from this type of cancer by 50 percent

for women over the age of 25. HPV is sexually transmitted and most of the time the body can clear it on its own. However, in some cases the infection remains and can eventually lead to cervical cancer.

HPV types 16 and 18 account for 70 percent of cervical cancer cases worldwide, which number about 500,000 per year, according to the UN Population Fund (UNFPA).

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Sport

Thursday, September 1, 2011

International

Rooney wants Walcott at his best against Bulgaria Agence France Presse

Wayne Rooney said he hopes Theo Walcott will put the memory of Manchester United’s 8-2 rout of Arsenal behind him to focus on England’s upcoming Euro 2012 qualifier away to Bulgaria. Rooney scored a hat-trick for United at Old Trafford on Sunday as Arsenal, for whom Walcott netted one of two goals, shipped eight for the first time in over a century.

But the two players now find themselves on the same side as members of an England squad that play Bulgaria in Sofia on Friday before the Group G leaders face Wales in another Euro 2012 qualifier at Wembley a week on Tuesday. “We’re here to concentrate on England,” Rooney told a news conference at the squad’s hotel on Tuesday.

“We want Theo at his best so don’t really want him to remember that result.” However, United striker Rooney was certainly buoyed by his own performance last weekend.

“It’s always great to be in good form and scoring goals. “I’m looking forward to getting back playing for England, playing well, and helping us get the points we need.”

As for the upcoming England fix-

tures, Rooney said: “I think it’ll be a really tough game, Bulgaria away.

“I’m sure it’ll be a good atmosphere and a difficult game to come away with three points from.

“Wales are a good team but I’d like to think we’ve got enough to beat them at home. “So hopefully we can come away from those two games with six points.”

Rooney has started to link up well with new United team-mate Ashley Young, a pre-season arrival from Aston Villa and the pair could prove equally effective at international level.

“In the last few games for England he’s done really well,” Rooney said of Young. “He works really hard for the team. A lot of people don’t realise how hard he works. “If he gets the chance to start he’ll take it with two hands.

AP Photo/Jon Super

Manchester United’s Patrice Evra, left, vies for ball against Arsenal’s Theo Walcott during their English Premier League soccer match at Old Trafford, Manchester, England, Sunday Aug. 28, 2011.

City pair excited by prospect Japan’s Honda, Nakamura miss qualifiers of Hargreaves transfer Agence France Presse

Agence France Presse

Japan have suffered a double injury blow with Keisuke Honda

and Kengo Nakamura ruled out of World Cup qualifiers against North Korea and Uzbekistan, the Japan Football Association said

IBP/afp

Japan have suffered a double injury blow with Keisuke Honda, seen here in January 2011, and Kengo Nakamura ruled out of World Cup qualifiers against North Korea and Uzbekistan,

Wednesday. CSKA Moscow star Honda missed training on Tuesday after hurting his right knee in a league match against Spartak Moscow on Sunday while Kawasaki Frontale midfielder Nakamura misses out after breaking a toe, the JFA said.

Honda, 25, played a star role for the Blue Samurai in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, scoring against Cameroon and Denmark in the group stages and picking up man-of-the-match awards in both games.

Nakamura, 30, had been called up for the first time since October last year, with national coach Alberto Zaccheroni saying the midfielder deserved a place in the squad after making a return to form in the J-League. The JFA has not yet decided on replacements for the injured men.

Japan will play North Korea at the Saitama stadium on Friday and then Uzbekistan away on September 6 in the third Asian qualifying round for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Manchester City duo Joleon Lescott and Joe Hart believe Owen Hargreaves will fit right in should he join Roberto Mancini’s already formidable squad. The England midfielder signed for Manchester United for £17 million from Bayern Munich in 2007, but made just 39 appearances for Sir Alex Ferguson’s side over four seasons as he battled persistent knee problems.

Eventually, United lost patience and released Hargreaves, who took to posting a video on the YouTube site to demonstrate his fitness, having travelled the world to receive treatment on his knee. Lescott and Hart are both currently with the England squad as they prepare for Friday’s Euro 2012 qualifier away to Bulgaria.

But the pair, speaking on the eve of the closure of the transfer window, were excited by the prospect of Hargreaves joining them at Eastlands. “Owen is an experienced player, he has played in the Champions League, is an international,” Lescott told reporters at England’s

hotel on Tuesday. “It is only going to be good for the City squad if he signs.

“I’ve worked with Owen at England level and he is a great professional. “People ask if it represents a gamble but the club know what they are doing, Owen knows what he is doing. He is still a good player.

“He hasn’t played as much as he would have liked over the last couple of seasons but the medical team we have is very good and very strong. “If we can get him fit, I’m sure it won’t be very long before he is back to his best. He will be a player with a point to prove after his injuries.”

England goalkeeper Hart added: “It would be a good signing. Obviously, Owen Hargreaves has done great for Bayern Munich. “He has struggled a bit since he came to Manchester United but that is not down to ability, just his fitness.

“If he can get himself fit and does sign for Manchester City, it can only be a positive. “He was a very important England player. If he can get back to that form, obviously he would be an asset.”

Sport

International

Thursday, September 1, 2011

15

Lahm denies gay rumours in new book Agence France Presse

The captain of Germany’s national football team Philipp Lahm said he is not gay, in excerpts of his new book released Monday, but he cautioned footballers against coming out. “First, I am not a homosexual. I am not married to my wife Claudia for appearances and I do not have a friend in Cologne with whom I really live,” Lahm wrote in the book entitled “A Subtle Difference.”

“This speculation doesn’t matter to me,” he said referring to rumours about a male companion in Cologne. “I have nothing against homosexuals and I find that there is nothing wrong with homosexuality.”

“But it never ceases to amaze me that these isolated types, who tell these stories, can have a lot of influence on public opinion. ‘Philipp Lahm homosexual’ (...) do you not have anything more important to talk about?” he said. He however advised professional footballers against coming out, referring specifically to Justin Fashanu, the first professional player in Britain to publicly reveal his homosexuality.

Fashanu, who, after his disclosure, spoke about deep-seated anti-gay prejudice in professional football, killed himself in 1998. “A Subtle Difference,” on sale in book stores Monday, is the Bayern Munich star’s first book.

AP Photo/Charles Krupa

Rafael Nadal, of Spain, pumps his fist after beating Andrey Golubev, of Kazakhstan, 6-3, 76 (1),7-5 during the first round of the U.S. Open tennis tournament in New York, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2011.

Nadal, Serena Williams advance at US Open Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK — Time will tell if Rafael Nadal’s struggles in the first round were simply a case of opening-night jitters or something more serious. Either way, his first match as defending U.S. Open champion had plenty of rough edges. The second-seeded Nadal found himself in a tougherthan-expected tussle Tuesday night, needing 11 minutes short of three hours to finish off 98thranked Andrey Golubev of Kazakhstan, 6-3, 7-6 (1), 7-5.

“It’s normal to start the tournament like this with some nerves,” Nadal said. “And what happened today, he didn’t help because he played very fast all the time.”

Far less dramatic was Serena Williams’ return to Flushing Meadows. She defeated Bojana Jovanovski 6-1, 6-1 in a no-muss, no-fuss appearance at Arthur Ashe Stadium — her first singles match there since her profanity-laced outburst at a line judge after a footfault call in the 2009 semifinals.

“I feel fine,” she said when asked how she felt walking onto the court. “Even last time I played here, I went out with a bang. I came in with a bang tonight. So it’s all good.”

Even though she’s seeded 28th and coming into the tournament after a season full of injuries, Williams is looking more and more like a favorite every day.

Before she took the court Tuesday, reigning French Open cham-

pion Li Na of China fell in her first-round match. That, combined with Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova’s ouster on Monday and Aussie champion Kim Clijsters’ withdrawal with a stomach injury, makes this the first U.S. Open since 1971 that none of the year’s major champions reached the second round. Does that make Williams a favorite?

“I don’t think that,” she said.

“I’m just here to play. Everyone’s been playing all year. I’ve played, like, five tournaments this year. I don’t think that’s usually a favorite going into another Grand Slam.”

While the women’s draw is as open as ever, many believe Nadal has only two main challengers.

There’s top-seeded Novak Djokovic, who is 5-0 against Nadal this year and was leading 6-0, 5-1 over Conor Niland on Tuesday when Niland retired with food poisoning. And there’s third-

seeded Roger Federer, a five-time champion here, who won his first match easily Monday.

Nadal hardly breezed through his. He said he was happy to get through such a tough test, that no player wants to be in top form at the beginning. Still, the stats were hard to ignore. He had to fight off seven set points in the second and needed to rally from two breaks down in the third.

He lost his serve six times. This for a player who lost serve a total of five times in his run to the championship in 2010. But Nadal said it’s his groundstrokes, not his serve, that will determine his fate over the next two weeks.

“The people forget a lot of things, but last year my first match was really bad,” he said of his 7-6 (4), 7-6 (4), 6-3 win over Teymuraz Gabashvili. “That’s the truth, even if I didn’t lose my serve. I played bad against a similar opponent as today. He played very fast.”

Kaniskina wins 20km walk, breaks ‘cover curse’ Reuters

DAEGU, South Korea - Russia’s Olga Kaniskina grimaced her way through downtown Daegu to win the women’s 20 kilometres walk title at the world championships for a record third time. China’s Liu Hong took the silver medal ahead of another Russian, Anisya Kirdyapkina, in third.

Kaniskina, who eclipsed compatriot Olimpiada Ivanova’s mark with her third title, crossed the line in a time of 1:29.42, eight seconds ahead of Liu. Kaniskina’s win also put an end to Daegu’s “curse of the covers”, where the official programme’s cover stars on each of the previous four days suffered ignominious exits.

Defending pole vault champion Steve Hooker exited without completing a successful jump, Usain Bolt was disqualified from the 100m final, Cuba’s Dayron Robles was stripped of gold for bumping in the 110m hurdles and on Tuesday pole vault queen Yelena Isinbayeva failed to clear 4.80.

“Thankfully no one told me about this before the race, they only told me after,” Kaniskina laughed at a news conference. “I didn’t know about it, but it was a good decision to put me on the cover.” World record holder Vera Sokolova had looked strong at the head of the field but at the hour mark started to suffer and dropped back to finish in 12th place.

With her tortured face slowly relaxing into relief, Kaniskina thrust her arms into the air to celebrate a third consecutive title as legs like bendy straws dragged her over the line. Kaniskina, also the gold medallist from the 2008 Beijing Olympics, said the conditions were tough in South Korea.

“Compared to Osaka and Berlin this race was very difficult. We were prepared for the hot and humid weather but not for the sun,” she added.

AP Photo/Kin Cheung

Russia’s Olga Kaniskina, center, competes on her way to winning the gold medal, ahead of Liu Hong of China, left, Anisya Kirdyapkina of Russia in the Women’s 20km race walk at the World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2011. Liu took silver and Kirdyapkina, bronze.

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

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Button ready for new McLaren deal Jenson Button says he is now just waiting for McLaren to take up his option for next year, with him fully expecting to be at the team next year. The 31-year-old Briton has yet to confirm his drive for next year, but the team is understood to be working on a new, more expansive longterm contract that ties Button to McLaren beyond 2012 - rather than simply picking up its one-year option that it holds on his services.

Asked during the Belgian Grand Prix weekend what his chances of staying with McLaren were, Button replied: “Well, hopefully good. I want to stay here next year, so hopefully I’ll be here next year. “I’m just waiting for the team to pick up the option,” he added.

Button refused to talk about specifics, or when the option deadline expired - believed to be within the next month - but indicated that he would have an input in any future deal agreed with McLaren.

Speaking at McLaren’s demo run in Manchester on Monday, Button insisted: “If Martin Whitmarsh takes up the option... All he has to do is say ‘yes’ and I will say ‘yes’ because I want to be here next year. “It’s up to the team as to when they approach me, but for me I’m the happiest I’ve been with the car. The car I really like and the direction we’ve taken with the car.”

Button’s career already spans eleven and a half seasons, but the Briton - who has won twice this season already and lies fourth in the drivers’ standings, three points ahead of his team-mate Lewis Hamilton – has not put a limit on how long he expects to keep racing at the highest level.

“I don’t know,” he said, when asked how long

he thought he would race for. “I mean, I’m sure Michael [Schumacher] and Rubens [Barrichello] 10 years ago would probably have said ‘no chance’.

But they’ve done it, so it’s a strange one. We’re very lucky in what we do. “There are negatives with positives, but it’s difficult to find something else that really you get that excited about. I have things I wanna do after racing...

“It is tough. I was speaking to Jessie my girlfirend about [the travel],” he added. “Basically it’s very difficult to find somewhere that you call home because you’re always travelling. So that’s probably the most difficult thing of the job, you know, you never feel you’re in one place for a long time.

“So that’s why it’s nice when we go to Japan, we’’ve got a bit of home there because it does feel like home, live in one place. For the whole time we rent an apartment. Yeah I think that’s one thing that you miss, but then there are so many positives to go with it as well. You know, we travel to so many great countries, so many different cultures, we’re very lucky to be doing what we do. Positives and negatives there always are.” Button also hinted that when he has finished racing in F1, he would like to compete in other forms of motorsport.

Britain’s McLaren Formula One driver Jenson Button drives his car during a sponsor’s event in Manchester, northern England August 29, 2011.

Pedrosa aiming to repeat triumph at Misano DANI Pedrosa says repeating his 2010 triumph will be the main target as MotoGP heads to Misano, San Marino, for the 13th round of the season. Pedrosa took a dominant sweep of pole position, fastest lap and race victory at the 4.2 mile circuit last year, earning Honda their first win at the track since Mick Doohan triumphed in 1991.

Having finished second last weekend at Indianapolis, Pedrosa says the goal is to take ‘another step forward’ and claim victory at Misano for a second straight year. “After Indy, we arrive at Misano in a very positive mood,” Pedrosa said. “Last year we had a very good race there, and we will try and repeat this.

“Misano is a track where you need good acceleration and hard braking, so this will be our priority - we must also be a little stronger on Saturday and prepare for the race as best we can. “After success in America, it’s good to head directly to Misano and I hope we can take another step forward.”

Pedrosa was led home by team-mate and championship leader Casey Stoner last weekend, and the Australian reckons the Spaniard could prove his main competition again in Misano - although he also tipped Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo to feature strongly. “I know Dani and Jorge will be very fast there,” he reflected, “but I’m coming off the back of three wins and in a strong position in the championship.

“In 2007 and 2008 we were fast there, then I missed 2009 and last year we struggled a little so we’ve had a mixed bag of results.

“We’ll see what we can do, I’m confident we can get a good result.”

Honda’s third works driver Andrea Dovizioso said he was also eyeing a strong result in a bid to ‘turn the page’ on a disappointing weekend in the US, where he finished fifth.

“We arrive in Misano after a disappointing result in Indianapolis but we are determined to turn the page and return on the podium,” the Italian said.

“We will continue fighting and we will give our best every race weekend, because we believe that second position in the World Championship is not impossible.”

AP Photo/Sam Riche

Casey Stoner, of Australia, rides duirng the final lap of the Indianapolis MotoGP motorcycle race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Saturday, Aug. 27, 2011.

REUTERS/Darren Staples