Edisi 03 Februari 2016 | International Bali Post

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16 Pages Number 28 8th year

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Wednesday, February 3, 2016

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Besting Bowie and Adele, Panic! at the Disco hits No. 1

LOS ANGELES — Debuting at No. 1 is certainly an accomplishment, but bumping artists like David Bowie and Adele down the music charts has Panic! at the Disco’s Brendon Urie simply gobsmacked.

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Wednesday, February 3, 2016 Nations discuss how to snuff out Islamic State in Libya Page 6

Foreign tourist, hotel occupancy and investments increase

Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File

Will Smith among NAACP Image Awards attendees and presenters

“That’s insane. I mean, to be in same sentence as anyone like that — I’m not worthy,” Urie said. “I was just floored!”

“Death of a Bachelor,” released last month, topped the Billboard 200 chart and sold 190,000 equivalent albums in its first week, according to Nielsen Music. It’s the fifth album and first No. 1 for Panic!, of which Urie is the only remaining original member after his band mates decided to leave the group over the years.

But the 28-year-old vocalist is loving life as a solo act.

He co-wrote the album’s songs and plays most of the instruments on the pop-rock project.

“It’s amazing because I don’t have to compromise or I don’t have to argue as much,” he said.

In an interview last week with The Associated Press, Urie discussed doing things his way on “Death of a Bachelor,” touring with Weezer and his eclectic inspirations, from Beyoncé to Frank Sinatra. (ap)

CHAIRMAN of the Indonesian Tourism Industry Association (GIPI), Didien Junaedi, recently said that he appreciates the Ministry of Tourism’s performance in 2015 and the increase in tourist arrivals last year that amounted to some 10.4 million people.

“Considering the pressure that that various incidents and natural disasters put on tourism last year, the numbers were quite good. I think that overseas promotions through media outlets has had a big influence as has the deregulation of visitor visas for 90 countries. Also the increase in scheduled and charter flight from countries with large tourist markets such as China,” said GIPI Chairman Junaedi on Monday.

GIPI, who oversees the Association of Indonesia Tour and Travel Agencies (ASITA), the Indonesia Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) and others engaged in the tourism sector, was quite excited because the atmosphere of the tourism sector is quite vibrant as seen by the increasing investments being made in hotel and restaurants.

LOS ANGELES — Will Smith doesn’t plan to be at the Academy Awards, but he’s scheduled to attend the NAACP Image Awards.

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People says the “Concussion” star is among the nominees expected to attend Friday’s ceremony at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Southern California.

Smith is up for the outstanding actor in a motion picture trophy alongside Abraham Attah, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael B. Jordan and Michael Ealy.

Some of Hollywood’s prominent African-Americans, including Smith and wife Jada Pinkett Smith, have said they won’t attend this year’s Oscar ceremony after a second season of all-white acting nominees. Other celebrities expected to attend and present NAACP Image Awards include Jordan, Viola Davis, Kerry Washington, Ice Cube and the cast of “Empire.” “black-ish” star Anthony Anderson is hosting. (ap)

Brendon Urie, of Panic! At The Disco, poses for a portrait on Thursday, Jan. 28, 2016, in Los Angeles to promote his latest album, “Death of a Bachelor,” released on Jan. 16.

Pharrell, Metallica part of Super Bowl concerts lineup

NEW YORK — The Super Bowl takes place a week before the Grammys, but the big game is rivaling the awards shows with a plethora of live concerts and on-site musicians, from the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Metallica to Pharrell and Skrillex.

Alicia Keys, OneRepublic and the Band Perry will perform at concerts on Saturday, Friday

and Thursday, respectively. Dave Matthews Band will take the stage Thursday and as part of the Sports Illustrated Experience, Iggy Azalea will perform on Friday, the same night Nick Jonas will perform at the annual “ESPN The Party.”

Lil Wayne and A$AP Rocky will headline the Maxim Party on Saturday, while Avicii, Elle King

and Travis Scott will perform at a Rolling Stone magazine party the same night.

Though Super Bowl 50 will be held at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, most of the concerts and parties will take place in San Francisco.

Fall Out Boy announced Monday that they will perform Friday during Verizon’s go90 Live free

concert series at The Regency Ballroom. The rock band, which has performed around the Super Bowl in the past, said performing ahead of the big game gives musicians the opportunity to gain new fans.

“People are there and they’re hyped for the Super Bowl, so it’s a chance to win people over, which is awesome,” frontman Pete Wentz said in an interview last week.

Skrillex and country singer Hunter Hayes are also part of the lineup for the go90 Live. Hunter and Skrillex will perform on Thursday and Saturday, respectively.

Metallica will perform at the AT&T Park the night before the big game, where the Carolina Panthers will take on the Denver Broncos and halftime show performers include Beyoncé and Coldplay. (ap)

Travel insurer says sales soar on Zika fears Page 13

5-year-old Afghan boy could get to meet Lionel Messi Page 8

REUTERS/Murdani Usman/Files

A woman selling souvenirs walks through Kuta beach in Bali June 5, 2008. The number of foreign tourist arrivals in Bali reached about four million in 2015, up 6.24 percent from 3.76 million recorded in the previous year.

Continue to page 2 Investment ...

Foreign tourist arrivals up 6.24 percent

DENPASAR - The number of foreign tourist arrivals in Bali reached about four million in 2015, up 6.24 percent from 3.76 million recorded in the previous year.

Most of the foreign tourists used the Ngurah Rai International Airport to enter Bali, Adi Nugroho, head of the Bali Central Bureau of Statistics, stated.

Only 77,886 tourists arrived in Bali through its seaport aboard cruise liners.

In December 2015 alone, Bali recorded 370,640 foreign tourist arrivals, an increase of 6.70 percent from the same period last year, or

an increase of 36.8 percent over the November 2015 figure.

“The target of foreign tourist arrivals in Bali in 2015 has been achieved, but the increase is relatively small,” he noted, adding that last year’s target was four million foreign tourists.

The minimal increase was due to the eruption of Mount Barujari in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, which forced the closure of Ngurah

Rai Airport for several times.

A total of 692 domestic and international flights were canceled due to the airport’s closures.

With regard to domestic flights, 183 arrival flights and 189 departure flights were cancelled.

In terms of international flights, 157 arrival flights and 163 departure flights were cancelled during the three-day shutdown of the Bali airport. The number of tourists from seven countries to Bali increased significantly, but at the same time, there was a decrease in arrivals from three countries.

Some 966,869 tourists arrived from Australia, a drop of 2.53 percent from 991,923 tourists recorded in 2014.

Despite the decrease, Australia remains on the top, constituting 24.16 percent of the total foreign tourist arrivals in Bali.

The number of tourist arrivals from Malaysia decreased by 15.60 percent and Singapore by 18.39 percent.

A rise in foreign tourist arrivals in Bali was recorded from seven countries, with a 17.43 percent increase in tourists from China,

4.96 percent rise in tourists from Japan, 31.95 percent from the United Kingdom, 4.64 percent from South Korea, 19.82 percent from the United States, 2.42 percent from France, and 8.81 percent from Taiwan. (ant) News can also be heard in “Bali Image” at Global Radio FM 96.5 from 9.30 until 10.00 am. Listen to Global Radio FM at http:// globalfmbali.listen2myradio.com or live video streaming at http://radioglobalfmbali.com and http:// ustream.tv/channel/global-fm-bali.

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International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

COVER STORY Investment ...

From page 1

Between 2013-2014 there was a 13. 64 percent increase in investments and in 2014-2015 this number jumped to 53 percent representing about USD 364.18 million.

In 2014-2015 foreign investment rose 43.11 percent to USD 220.65

million and domestic investment rose 82.93 percent to USD 143.53 million.

“Data from the investment coordinating board (BKPM) shows that tourism has significantly drawn the interest of businesses and has not been shaken by political situations. Moreover, projections for the tourism sector are quite progressive although there are still many short-

comings, like tourism infrastructure, sanitation and health as well as the uneven distribution of ICT application,” explained Didien.

For this reason, Didien feels that product development needs to be strengthened and focus needs to be placed on improving the situation so that there is more confidence in deregulation and other plans of action that would make Indonesia

have confidence in its future.

“Room occupancy rates of star hotels in 27 provinces for December 2015 also rose 7.12 points from December 2014 to reach 57.25.

The Ministry of Tourism’s target for 2016 has risen to 20 percent to reach 12 million visitors. The number of hotels that presently exist could still accommodate this figure but should still be increased in an-

ticipation of a boom,” he said.

Didien reminded the Ministry of Tourism of the importance of security and safety as both of these can have a quickly destructive effect and massif impact on tourism. “I just got information from the Travel Fair Conference in Los Angeles, USA where it was made clear that security issues need to be taken seriously,” said Didien. (pts)

Tourism supports proliferation of child ‘predator’

EARLY this year, Bali is shocked by pedophilia cases in which 15 children have just been revealed as the victims and they are averagely ten years old. The perpetrator is Australian citizen with the initials RA, 70.

No doubt, foreign travelers coming to this Island of the Gods do not fully want to squander their money, but some also have different purposes.

This was also recognized by the Chief of Denpasar Police Criminal

Investigation Unit, Reinhard Habonaran Nainggolan. According to him, based on police statistics, chiefly the data in Denpasar Police, he categorized the sexual violence against children and women into two kinds. Firstly, the case involves

the victims, perpetrators and witnesses of Indonesian citizen, while in the second classification all the elements involved are foreigners.

Since Bali is a world tourist destination, then many foreigners also involve in the cases. “During my term in Criminal Investigation Unit (less than a year—Ed) there are more than ten cases involving foreigners. There are foreigners serving as perpetrators, victims and witnesses. The cases in-

clude sexual violence, sexual abuse and neglect of children,” he said.

Similarly, there are foreigners getting married to Indonesian citizen to bear children. After that, their relationship is not clear and the foreigners returned to their home country so that their children are neglected. “In Bali, many women married to foreigners. Sometimes their status is unclear so that it is vulnerable to separate. Ultimately

IBP/File Photo

Pedophilia cases in which 15 children have just been revealed as the victims and they are averagely ten years old. The perpetrator is Australian citizen with the initials RA, 70.

their children become victims,” said Reinhard.

Denpasar Police received the most reports about the cases. His institution has made prevention efforts by providing encouragement and counseling to prevent more child predators in Bali. “In the cases involving Indonesian citizen, the perpetrators or victims are mostly close relatives or neighbors. The most vulnerable is living at boarding house because they are often met. There are also teachers as culprit,” he said.

In dealing with such cases, according to him, his institution has a special unit namely the Women and Children Protection Unit (PPA). If belonging to large cases, it will be backed up by other units. “We are also making coordination with the P2TP2A Denpasar, National Commission on Children, KPAID and other stakeholders. In addition to handling cases professionally, we also want to enforce the rights of the children. If the synergy goes well, the case handling will run smoothly and is according to the rules,” he said.

In the future, he hoped the relevant agencies handling the presence of foreigners in Bali to more intensively monitor and make data collection. At least, their activities are monitored and controlled so that the cases like child abuse and other crimes can be anticipated. While parents, said Reinhard, must also tighten supervision against their children. “Never give children freedom without supervision because it would be bad. Moreover, when they are wrongly associating, it will be hazardous. We do hope all parties concerned with these cases to prevent it together. If all people are concerned, the moving space can be narrowed,” said this former police chief of North Kuta. (rah)

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Activities

International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

15

The Indonesian jewels of Jambuluwuk Hotels and Resorts

JAKARTA - Jambuluwuk Hotels & Resorts tremendously proud to present the jewels of Indonesia. Bursting the local spirit in every corner of its properties, Indonesian fully owned Jambuluwuk Hotels & Resorts continuously promote fortune from each districts.

In 2004 the first ever built Jambuluwuk Homestay, Jakarta was honored to serve the best with its sincere heart and kinship. The brand was popular within Japanese tourists who finally become its regular customers. “We bring only the treasure of our Indonesian heritage which consist of sincerity and kindness,” explains Marchella Purwanaika, Owner.

Carry on with the spirit of Indonesian heritage and kindness, Jambuluwuk Hotels & Resorts spread its wings and built the first resort, Jambuluwuk Ciawi Boutique Re-

sort, West Java. Looking at a picture perfect scenery of Mount Pangrango and Mount Salak, Jambuluwuk Ciawi Boutique Resort stands its service standard to glorify its guests. Located in the best location of Puncak, Ciawi, Tapos, the resort is perfect for family and corporate gatherings. Beautiful jogging track create a massive maze around the resort, beside the swimming pool, basketball and tennis court complementing your healthy lifestyle. Take your kids to the kid’s playground, while you enjoy your reading at the business center or library. And

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.

finally capture the most memorable laughters while you and your love ones enjoy the ride on ATV around the area.

Take your ride to the East Java at Jambuluwuk Batu Village Resort and Convention Hall. Stunning view from the altitude of 1100m above sea level with mountains, forest and hills around the city soothe your busy mind. Perfectly located adjacent to Bukit Agung Nusantara Emas which carries an important role in local tradition, makes our resort a perfect home for curious travelers who want to learn more about our heritage.

Preserving Javanese tradition in a modern way, Jambuluwuk Malioboro Boutique Hotel, Central Java springs an enjoyable stay.

Perfect location nearby sparkling Malioboro streets charmed with traditional street vendors selling knick knacks and traditional souvenirs, amusing traditional food

and beverages, street arts and performances, yet only three minutes from Keraton Yogyakarta capturing the lifestyle of majestic kingdom.

Easy to walk around or take Becak for sightseeing down town and enjoy the enchanting Yogyakarta.

It’s a luxury life on the island of Gili Trawangan! Oceano Resort Jambuluwuk Gili Trawangan, Lombok fascinates travelers with its inside-out beauty – gracious services and glorious island lifestyle.

Located on a secluded area in Gili Trawangan allows you to be back to your peaceful mind, yet you can easily take your bike to ride around and witness dazzling night life with street cafes and bars, cherish seafood, charming spas and massage.

Indulge yourself with the crystal clear ocean and fine white sand on your feet and luxuriate fresh wind blowing on your face.

Our latest home of Jambuluwuk Semiyak Boutique Hotel, Bali is

ready to present an elegance service.

Embracing a cosmopolitan lifestyle within eclectic architecture, designs and taste even makes the treasure in Indonesian beauty stands out.

Prime location in the midst of the most fashionable street in Bali give another charm to travelers with its vibrant nightlife, some best coffee shops, exhilarating massages and spas, yoga atelier, beaches and city life makes a perfect playground on your summer holiday.

Upcoming next in 2016, we are excited to welcome Jambuluwuk Thamrin, Jakarta and Jambuluwuk Dago, Bandung West Java. Through beautiful architecture and designs espouse with kinship and high class service, our properties hold the magnificent heritage of Indonesia.

Our hotels & resorts shall become a home to perpetuate the culture, tradition, art and beauty of nature of our legacy shield by sincere hearts we serve from Indonesia.

IBP/Courtesy of Jambuluwuk Hotels

IBP/Courtesy of Jambuluwuk Hotels

IBP/Courtesy of Jambuluwuk Hotels

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Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Technology

International

Alphabet comes before Apple as world’s most valuable company

SAN FRANCISCO — Alphabet now comes before Apple atop the list of the world’s most valuable companies.

The shift occurred in Monday’s extended trading after Alphabet, Google’s new parent company, released a fourth-quarter earnings report that highlighted the robust growth of the digital ad market.

Apple Inc.’s iPhone, meanwhile, is suffering its first downturn since it debuted eight years ago.

Alphabet Inc. earned $4.9 billion

on revenue of $21.3 billion in the fourth quarter. If not for employee stock expenses and certain other items, Alphabet said it would have earned $8.67 per share. That figure easily topped the average estimate of $8.10 per share among analysts surveyed by FactSet. The report provided the most detailed breakdown yet on the

profits pouring in from Google’s dominant search engine and ad network. (Google reorganized itself under Alphabet last October.)

Investors pushed up Alphabet stock $35.73, or 4.6 percent, to $806.50 in extended trading.

Based on that after-hours bump, Alphabet’s market value stood at $555 billion while Apple’s was at $533 billion, based on the most recent regulatory filings showing the company’s outstanding shares.

AP Photo/Mark Lennihan

Electronic screens post the price of Alphabet stock, Monday, Feb. 1, 2016, at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York. Alphabet, the parent company of Google, reports quarterly earnings Monday.

The rankings could quickly change again in regular trading Tuesday.

Apple’s stock has been sliding amid concerns over slowing iPhone sales. Meanwhile, Alphabet’s stock has surged by 45 percent since the end of 2014 when it was still trading under Google’s name.

The fourth-quarter report marks the first time Alphabet has spelled out the costs of running still-experimental businesses that are trying to do everything from eliminating human drivers to curing cancer.

Until now, Google chose to hide the expense of running those peripheral operations in its financial statement. The company’s opaque accounting made it difficult to know just how much profit Google reaped from its primary business — selling digital ads next to everything from search results to YouTube videos.

In the fourth quarter, Google produced an operating profit of $6.8 billion on revenue of $17.1 billion, after subtracting ad commissions.

That translates into a whopping profit margin of 40 percent. Apple registered an operating profit margin of 32 percent in its most recent quarter.

Meanwhile, Alphabet’s other companies together produced an operating loss of $1.2 billion on revenue of just $151 million. Alphabet labels that category “other bets.” For the full year, Alphabet’s other companies lost $3.6 billion on revenue of $448 million.

The optimism surrounding Alphabet stems in part from hopes that the company is developing more financial discipline as it discloses more earnings details. Google had

become known for its free-spending habits and reluctance to share information with analysts.

The change in sentiment coincided with Google’s hiring of a new chief financial officer, Ruth Porat, last May. Porat, a Wall Street veteran, has consistently signaled her intent to rein in spending.

Under the previous setup at Google, “things had always been a little muddy,” said Edward Jones analyst Josh Olson. “The hope now is that management will continue to show greater cost discipline.”

Porat signaled her resolve again Monday in a conference call with analysts. “Our priority remains revenue growth but that doesn’t give us a pass on a rigorous approach to expense management,” she said.

Google is also counting on advertisers to gradually pay more for marketing messages on smartphones. They still aren’t paying as much for mobile ads as on personal computers because ads on smaller smartphone screens strike many as less valuable. That’s one reason Google’s average ad rates, measured as “cost per click,” have been declining for more than four years.

In the latest quarter, Google’s cost per click fell by 13 percent from the same time in 2014. But Porat cited in increase in mobile search requests as one of biggest reasons that Google’s revenue rose by 18 percent from the previous year. As people increasingly search for information and shop on their phones, the company expects advertisers to ramp up their spending on smartphones, too. (ap)

Bali News

International

vince the social network to change its policies two years ago.

Watts said her group has found numerous cases of felons and minors who were able to buy guns on the site, including two cases in which the buyers used the guns to slay others. Representatives of two gun-owner rights groups, including the National Rifle Association, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Facebook had announced some restrictions on gun sales and advertising in 2014, saying it would block minors from seeing posts that advertised guns. But the social network did not ban private sales at that time.

Licensed firearms retailers can still promote their businesses on Facebook, but they aren’t allowed

to accept orders or make sales on the site.

A Facebook Inc. spokeswoman said the new policy arose from the company’s review of its rules following its recent efforts to encourage new forms of commerce on the site. Facebook expanded its digital payments service last summer, allowing users of its Messenger service to send electronic payments to other individual users.

“Over the last two years, more and more people have been using Facebook to discover products and to buy and sell things to one another,” Monika Bickert, who oversees Facebook product policies, said in a statement. “We are continuing to develop, test, and launch new products to make this experience even better for people and are updating

our regulated goods policies to reflect this evolution.”

Watts, however, said her group had urged Facebook to take stiffer measures, during a series of lowkey contacts.

“They were very, very open to our thoughts on policy and to the research we have been compiling,” Watts said. “I think they definitely saw this was an issue, but an incredibly complicated issue. I think that’s why it’s taken two years.”

Facebook, which is based in Menlo Park, California, cited the need to balance free expression with public safety when it announced the 2014 policy change in a blog post. At the time, some gun-control advocates complained Facebook didn’t go further, while news reports quoted a spokesman for the

National Rifle Association who declared victory over what he called a campaign to stifle constitutionally protected speech.

The latest policy drew praise Friday from Everytown for Gun Safety, a group formed by the merger of Watts’s organization with another group started by former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and from a leader of the Brady Campaign and Center to Prevent Gun Violence.

“It is simply too easy for virtually anyone to buy any gun they want online without a Brady background check,” said the Brady group’s president, Dan Gross.

“Facebook just took an important step in addressing that challenge and we call on others to follow suit.” (ap)

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Foreign visitors directed to Gili Jemeluk tourism despondent

AMLAPURA - During a joint meeting with Commission I and the Transportation and Fire Agency of Karangasem, a few days ago, legislators from the Karangasem House of Representatives urged the executive branch of the House to immediately address the contentious issue of speed boats operating in Jemeluk Bay. Chairman of Commission I, Komang Sudanta, who led the meeting, added that many hoteliers in the region have been complaining about the damage that the speed boats at Jemeluk Beach are causing to marine biota.

Members of the local community have been working hard to preserve the coral reef and globe-shaped mailbox fish that are found in the waters near the beach. Many worry that the speed boats are disturbing and even killing off ornamental fish and other biota.

Legislators Komang Sartika and Nyoman Musna Antara revealed that tourism operators in the region have also been complaining about boat owners directing tourists to visit Lombok and the GIli islands.

Lured by promises of more beautiful scenery and more freedom, many visitors to Jemeluk Beach have been shortening the length of their stay. “In the past, visitors would stay for 4- 7 days, but now the beach is deserted because visitors are directed to the Gili islands,” explained Sartika.

It was also pointed out that such conditions mean that both tourism operators and the government of Kaangasem are loosing out and with boats operating without permission,

supervision, and unclear passenger manifests (registration), their is also the risk of serious problems. Apparently, even the rates for making the crossing are unclear. “In the case of an accident at sea, that involves foreign passengers, the government of Karangasem and our security forces will bare the burden of responsibility,” elucidated Sartika.

Musna and Sudanta emphasized that it is imperative that the fast boats that are presently serving the crossing from beaches in Karangasem to NTB, be properly organized and supervised. The government of Karangasem also needs to intervene for the sake of passenger safety.

Many people working in tourism have proposed that, if need be, a dock should be built at Peselatan Bay and that boats should be directed to operate from there.

Peselatan Bay, which is also known as Bebayu Beach has functioned as a port since long ago as evidenced by the presence of a temple to Ratu Subandar and wells along the waterfront.

Head of the Karangasem Transportation and Fire Agency, Wayan Sutapa, said that in fact there was already a plan to build a dock there with the express purpose of servicing visitors who want to enjoy marine tourism and that the wantilan hall at Jemeluk was to serve as a centre for water based tourism.

However after a new law was issued , the transportation agency no longer has jurisdiction over marine areas, only on land. “Authority over marines spaces has been returned to the central government,” said Sutapa. (013)

Facebook announces stricter policy on firearms sales

SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook says it’s cracking down on online gun sales, announcing Friday a new policy barring private individuals from advertising or selling firearms on the world’s largest social network.

The new policy applies also to Facebook’s photo-sharing service Instagram. It comes after gun control groups have long complained that Facebook and other online sites are frequently used by unlicensed sellers and buyers not legally eligible to buy firearms.

Facebook “was unfortunately and unwittingly serving as an online platform for dangerous people to get guns,” said Shannon Watts of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a group that launched a public campaign to con-

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

IBP/File Photo

Hundreds of Canggu customary villagers marched to Hotel Canggu Intercontinental on Sunday (January 31th) to expressed their grievances about their demands aving not been met by the hotel investor.

Demands still unmet

Hundreds of Canggu residents march to Hotel Intercontinental

CANGGU - Hundreds of Canggu customary villagers marched to Hotel Canggu Intercontinental on Sunday (January 31th) to expressed their grievances about their demands aving not been met by the hotel investor.

Jemeluk Beach

IBP/Budana

Residents began to gather at the wantilan hall of Pura Dalem Canggu at 07:30. After praying together, they marched to the hotel carrying a large banner that read: “Restore my street to its original condition.

Our street was never sold. Our street has been contracted.” the Canggu villagers also unfurled a banner that contained the 5 points of their demands: the dismantling of the breakwater that is too high, giving up part of the coastal land so that there can be a pathway to the temple, a remeasuring of the land boundaries so that ownership can be clarified and the restoration of the

road to its original condition so that the view of the beach is no longer blocked and the dismantling of the culverts that cross the road.

The mass of people, led by Canggu customary village authority Wayan Winaya, arrived at Hotel Canggu Intercontinental around 09:00. Local residents paced back and forth chanting : “”The investors have pledged to meet our demands.

But so far, our demands have not been met”.

Winaya said that the villagers will continue to hold demonstrations until their demands are met, including the rearranging the vil-

lage roads that have been arbitrarily laid down.

The management of the hotel finally received Canggu customary village representatives village Chief Wayan Suamba and North Kuta subdistrict head A.A. Yuyun Hanura Eny. In the meeting, Suamba gave the hotel until March 20th to heed the demands of the villagers.

“If the hotel does not take action to meet our demdns by March 20th, we will organize an even bigger protest. Sorry, if this blocks your road access,” he said.

Representative of the Intercontinental Canggu Hotel, Bagus Heri Purwanto, promised to convey the demands of the villagers to the boards of directors. “Obviously, we will convey this to the directors,” he said simply. (kmb27)

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Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Bali News

Test for 35-ton trucks successful

Decision to open bridge awaits meeting

NEGARA - Dangin Tukadaya Bridge that collapsed last Saturday is currently being repaired and will be traversable later this week.

The bridge already can already sustain one lain of traffic and as witnessed on Sunday (Jan 31), a 35 ton truck was able to cross the bridge without incident.

Chief of Jembrana Police, Djoni Widodo, along with representatives of the Bali Transportation Agency were onsite to review the bridge test on Sunday. A number of trucks, weighing from between 15 to 35 tons, tested the bridge’s ability to bare weigh. “From the trial by tonnage of 20 tons, the deflection reached nine millimeter, far from the maximum tolerance of four centimeters” said Division Head of Land Transportation at Bali Transportation Agency, Stanley Suwandi.

More than 12 cargo trucks weighing 35 tons each, were then tested on the northern side of the bridge and caused deflection of approximately 1 cm and the edges of the bridge were just as strong as the 3.5 meter sections of deck asphalt. Trucks coming from Java tend to be the heaviest as they transport cargo into Bali.

Guide rails for passing trucks were also installed by the The National Road Agency.

Although the test was successful, the bridge cannot be opened until Mondays’ meeting in which relevant parties such as the National Road Agency confirm that everything conforms to the standards. Stanley also added that: “before any truck passes over the bridge, the driver will have to present a receipt from the weighbride to ensure that their loads conform to regulation, regardless of which direct they are going in”.

Chief of the Jembrana Police, Gede Samudra Kerthiawan said that once the bridge is opened, cargo trucks will pass over the bridge one at a time, and other four wheel vehicles will likely be directed to use alternate routes on rural roads (kmb26)

Intense rains

Kintamani threatened by falling tress BANGLI - Following the recent heavy rains, road users are being warned of fallen trees along Kintamani-Singaraja and KintamaniKarangasem road strips. Head of the Bangli Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD), I Wayan Karmawan, said on Saturday (Jan. 30) that the BMKG weather bureau of Kintamani has warned that this region is most vulnerable to rain caused incidents such as falling trees, particularly along the aforementioned strips of road where many trees are already fragile.

“Indeed we must pay serious attention to this road section. Trees around here are very large and some are also fragile and subseptible to heavy rains and strong winds. Thus, motorists must be alert,” he said.

To anticipate the problem of fallings trees, Karmawan explained that the BPBD had coordinated

with the Forestry Agency to have many tress trimmed however the larger trees were left untouched.

Because the BPBD does not have the authority to trim trees, their hands were tied. Luckily, so far there have been no reports of falling tress, however the BPBD is still monitoring the situation.

Apart from fallen trees, landslides are also a threat, and 11 points have been identified as likely areas to experience such disasters.

Karmawan also explained that in order to expedite evacuation in case of disasters, coordination has been between the police, army and village officials. “We have disseminated relevant information to members of the community both orally and in written form and relevant agencies are ready to take action in the case of an incident,” he concluded. (kmb45)

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

International

International

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Travel insurer says sales soar on Zika fears

NEW YORK - Travel insurance sales for trips to Latin America have surged as vacationers consider scrapping their plans to avoid the rapidly spreading Zika virus, one of the top U.S. providers, RoamRight, told Reuters on Monday.

The bus is passing the temporary bridge in Dangin Tukadaya Bridge, Jembrana

IBP/File

Beam-shaped stones found in Tinggar Sari village SINGARAJA - Heritage objects were recently found in an archeological site in the area of Batur Gangsian Temple, Tinggar Sari village, Busungbiu.

Uniquely shaped 2 meter by 50 centimer stone blocks were found neatly arranged in a terraced formation and it is believed that these horizontally and vertically mounted stones have unrevealed historical value for North Bali.

Some of the stones form a neat pile and local residents have placed back and white checkers cloth on their ends. It is not yet known how many of the stone beams lay buried under the grass and soil here. What is known is that many temple and stone sites are used as sanctuaries and symbolize the god of prosperity.

Headman of Tinggar Sari, Ketut Perbawa, explained that so far stone beams have been found on a hilly area of some 4 hectares but that the origin of these stone beams is still unknown as there are no historical sources nor stories related to these findings. Perbawa said that is is unlikely that the stones were thus formed by nature as they seem to have been carefully place in a neat and orderly fashion.

It would appear that they were shaped and placed by human hands long ago. “The stones are stacked like this without any adhesive material and lay just

as they were found by local residents. Apparently the stones were thus arranged by people. We think that it is impossible that all these stone beams could be arranged so neatly by nature alone,” said Perbawa on Monday (Feb. 1).

Stone objects of ancient heritage are believed to belong to their own era of humans. Perbawa suspects that in antiquity there was a civilization that established a community here that far outdates Tinggar Sari village. “It may be that these stones were placed here because people wanted to build a temple or some such building. It seems impossible that so many beam shaped stones occurred naturally,” he said.

In the near future, Perbawa hopes to be able to create a historical record regarding the origin of the stone beams near Batur Gangsian Temple. He hopes that historians or archaeologists can come and inspect this ancient heritage. A brief history would be useful and could link the stones to the development of human civilization. “We hope that some research can be done related to the stone beams that can become a historical record. Many foreign visitors have already come to see these stones and enjoy Tinggar Sari waterfall,” he concluded. (kmb34)

The Maryland-based company, part of insurer Arch Capital Group Ltd, said revenue jumped 81 percent in January from a year ago for its “Cancel For Any Reason” policy covering trips to Zika-impacted areas in the Americas.

The rise provides an early insight into how traveler patterns are changing because of the mosquitoborne virus, even as airlines and hotel chains say it is too soon to tell whether Zika has dented bookings.

The World Health Organization on Monday called the virus, linked to thousands of birth defects in Brazil, an international health emergency that could infect as many as 4 million people in the Americas.

“We see that kind of growth when there is a terrorist attack or some other event that precipitates people thinking about protecting their travel costs,” said Linda Fallon, head of RoamRight and senior vice president of travel for the group’s Arch Insurance Company division.

RoamRight, ranked third by sales in 2015 on travel insurance comparison site Squaremouth, declined comment on how the boost would impact its profitability because it does not know how many customers will claim refunds and

therefore what losses it will incur.

For this reason, it also was too early to consider whether to charge customers more, Fallon added.

Parent Arch Capital does not disclose RoamRight’s total sales but reported group revenue of $932.6 million and net income of $64 million in the third quarter of 2015.

PEACE OF MIND

The “Cancel For Any Reason” policy, whose pricing has not changed in the past year, repays claimants 75 percent of all nonrefundable trip costs, from airfare and hotel to on-site tours and excursions, RoamRight said.

Top U.S. airlines are currently promising refunds for tickets to the region, although American Airlines Group Inc has limited the offer to pregnant travelers and their companions, while other carriers have specified a deadline for invoking the offer.

Fallon said vacationers were turning to insurance, not necessarily scrapping plans altogether, because they were not yet sure how the virus would impact them or how severe outbreaks would be at the time of travel.

“People are just looking to take precaution,” she said. “This gives people the peace of mind.”

REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino

Germana Soares holds her 2 month old son Guilherme Soares Amorim, who was born with microcephaly, near at her house in Ipojuca, Brazil, February 1, 2016. Brazil’s top health official said on Monday that the Zika virus outbreak is proving to be worse than believed because most cases show no symptoms, but improved testing should allow the country to get a better grip on the burgeoning public health crisis.

Since December 2015, RoamRight has seen a nearly 10 percent rise in orders for all its policies covering trips to the more than 20 countries and territories in the Americas impacted by the virus, it said.

Rival Tin Leg said it has not seen a significant increase in sales attributable to Zika but noted that canceling a trip because of concerns of the virus was not covered by its standard policies. It added the virus was “a major topic of

questions we receive from our customers.”

InsureandGo USA, Travel Insured International, AXA Assistance USA and Trip Mate did not immediately respond to requests for comment.(rtr)

Thai elephant gores Scottish tourist to death on trek

BANGKOK — A Scottish tourist has been gored to death by an elephant that he and his 16-year-old stepdaughter were riding on the resort island of Samui, Thai authorities said Tuesday.

Police Lt. Rotjanart Kiewjan said the animal threw Gareth Crowe and Eilidh Hughes to the ground during a trek on Monday. The elephant then gored Crowe with his tusk and stomped on him.

Thai news reports said the elephant became enraged after its trainer, known as a mahout, climbed off to take a picture of the tourists. Police think hot weather may have disturbed the 13-year-old elephant.

AP Photo The mahout, who is from Myanmar, An elephant dubbed Rambo but also called by his nickname Golf is chained to a tree on was also gored and Hughes was injured the resort island of Samui, Surat Thani Province, Thailand, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016. from her fall. Both were hospitalized.

There was speculation that the elephant might have been in a state of musth, when it becomes more aggressive during its mating cycle, but Cherdchai Jaroenwech of the Office of Livestock Development said that was not the case.

Cherdchai, who shot the elephant with a tranquilizer dart Monday evening, said it had been taken back to the corral of its trekking company owners, Island Safari, where it was attended to by its usual caretakers and showered constantly to cool off while remaining chained.

He said the elephant, dubbed Rambo but also called by the nickname Golf, will take a 15-day break from work and then be moved to another branch of the trekking company in either Krabi or Phang Nga.(ap)

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International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

BUSINESS France calls on US to lift economic embargo on Cuba

PARIS — France called on the U.S. to lift the economic embargo against Cuba during a historic state visit Monday by the Caribbean island’s president aimed at boosting economic relations between Havana and Paris.

Raul Castro’s trip comes after a breakthrough deal was reached in the French capital in December to lighten Cuba’s foreign debt.

French President Francois Hollande, the former leader of France’s Socialist party, greeted Castro on Monday with a warm hug in the courtyard of the Elysee presidential palace, and then started the meeting saying “Vive Cuba!” (“Long live

Cuba!”)

Both presidents vowed to develop economic, political and cultural ties during a joint news appearance.

The U.S. announced a normalization of relations with Cuba in December 2014, but it still maintains an economic embargo on the island. Hollande told journalists that “President (Barack) Obama ...

must now follow through and allow this vestige of the Cold War to end.”

France has called for the lifting of the U.S. embargo since 1991.

“We appreciate France’s traditional position in favor of the lifting of the economic, commercial and financial embargo from the United States against Cuba, which is the main obstacle to the development of our country,” Castro said.

Cuba wants “to diversify the bilateral relation with France in all its dimensions: political, economic, business, financial, academic and cultural cooperation,” he said.

The Cuban president was to attend a state dinner in his honor later Monday.

Castro, 84, is on his first state visit to Europe since taking over from his elder brother Fidel in 2006. The Cuban president briefly stopped in Rome last year to meet with Pope Francis.

Hollande was the first French leader to visit Cuba in a half-century when he went in May seeking to boost trade.

In December the Paris Club of creditor countries forgave $8.5 billion of overdue Cuban interest

International

Indonesia Today

Freeport asks Indonesia to cut or postpone $530 smelter bond -Mining Minister

JAKARTA - Freeport McMoRan Inc has asked Indonesia to reduce a $530 million smelter bond the local unit of the U.S. copper mining giant must set aside before receiving an extension of its export permit, Indonesia’s mining minister said on Tuesday.

Freeport’s 6-month copper concentrate export permit expired last week amid a deadlock over the bond, which Indonesia has requested as a guarantee that the

AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana

Indonesians of Chinese descent browse for decorations in preparation for Lunar New Year celebrations at a market in China Town in Jakarta,Indonesia, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016.

Chinese communities in the world’s most populous Muslim country are gearing up to celebrate the start of the year of the monkey which falls on Feb. 8.

Government to complete international aviation safety standards

AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert, file

miner will complete construction of another local smelter.

“They have appealed to ask whether we can postpone it or give them a discount, but we asked them to show

5

their commitment in another equivalent way,” Energy Minister Sudirman Said told reporters, referring to an exchange of letters with the Phoenix, Arizona-based company. (rtr)

Indonesia rejects France`s plan to impose palm oil tax

payments in exchange for Cuba’s promise to pay off $2.6 billion in loans from developed countries over the next year and a half.

France, to which Cuba owed $4 billion in overdue loans, led the creditors’ negotiations.

A new bilateral deal regarding Cuba’s remaining debt to France, which amounts to $390 million (360 million euros), was signed Monday. With this agreement, Paris agrees to convert 212 million euros ($230 million) into a fund that will finance French-Cuban projects on the island. (ap)

ECB’s Draghi: Risks from emerging markets have increased FRANKFURT, Germany — European Central Bank head Mario Draghi has warned that the “downside risks” facing Europe’s economy have increased due to the recent turmoil in emerging markets.

Draghi’s remark Monday to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, comes as the bank is preparing to consider adding to its stimulus efforts at its next meeting on March 10.

He repeated his earlier stance that the bank has found risks high enough “to review and possibly reconsider” the level of its stimulus efforts. Markets have taken that as all but promising some kind of action at March meeting.

He said risks in emerging markets “have increased again amid heightened uncertainty” since Dec. 3, when the bank decided to cut a key interest rate and extend its bond-purchase stimulus program by six months.

Financial markets have been volatile this year over concerns about the slowdown in China, a key trading partner for Europe and one of the engines of the global economy. Additionally, low oil prices are hurting growth prospects in producing countries.

Others face investor flight after the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates in December for the first time in nearly ten years. The prospect of further rate hikes in the U.S. continues to attract cash there and has been one of the main reasons behind the dollar’s advance over the past few months.

Draghi said some emerging-market economies”remain vulnerable to an abrupt shift in risk sentiment” that could lead to tighter credit conditions and deal a further setback to global growth.

He added that inflation shows signs of weakening since the ECB met last — a key factor in deciding on stimulus, since the ECB is falling well short of its goal of an inflation rate of just under 2 percent. In the year to January, inflation stood at 0.4 percent.

“Inflation dynamics are also tangibly weaker than we expected in December,” Draghi said.

Analysts think the bank’s 25-member governing council could add to its 60 billion euros ($65 billion) in monthly bond purchases through March 2017, a step which pumps newly printed money into the economy.

It could also cut the rate on the deposits it takes from commercial banks from its current rate of minus 0.3 percent. The negative rate is aimed at pushing banks to lend money rather than hoarding it. (ap)

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

JAKARTA - The Indonesian government will implement certain safety aspects to meet all aviation safety standards in the first quarter in 2016.

This was said by the Special Envoy of the Minister of Transportation for the election of Members of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Indroyono Soesilo.

Indonesia has passed a test for ICAOs safety standards, namely the Universal Security Audit Programme (USAP), with a score of 94.5, Indroyono said here on Monday.

As for ICAOs aviation safety, namely the Universal Safety Oversight Audit Program (USOAP), Indonesia still has a score of 45.

“It means, we have to get a score

of 20 more to reach 60 and qualify,” he said.

This month, Indonesia will follow the safety test flight by ICAO and in March by the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration).

“God willing, we are confident of qualifying,” Indroyono said.

According to him, being a member of the Council of ICAO for 2016-2019 is very important for Indonesia after four unsuccessful attempts. He said Indonesia plays an important role in world trade, and four of the nine flight information regions (FIRs) are controlled from Cengkareng (Tangerang) and Makassar (South Sulawesi).

In addition, Indonesia has 237 airports, including 27 airports serving international flights.

“The country has 1,142 aircraft

with 17 scheduled airlines and 44 non-scheduled ones. We have the potential to become a member of the council,” he said.

The Director General of Civil Aviation, Ministry of Transportation, Suprasetyo, said the institution has implemented corrective actions as per a plan, covering a number of aspects of flight safety.

“The document in this regard has been submitted, in which we have answered 98 percent of 1,016 questions,” he said.

Suprasetyo is optimistic that Indonesia can qualify the safety standards set by the ICAO, covering licenses, operation, navigation, aircraft, accident investigation, airworthiness, and other regulations.

“We are optimistic to reach a score above 70,” he said. (ant)

JAKARTA - Indonesia has strongly condemned Frances plan to impose progressive tax on all palm oil-based products.

The countrys first deputy for maritime sovereignty, Arif Havas Oegroseno, said in a discussion with journalists here on Monday that the plan to impose such a tax has been included in a bill on bio-diversity passed by the French Senate on January 21.

“The palm oil tax included in the bill will become effective from 2017, and will amount to 300 Euros per ton for 2017, 500 euros per ton for 2018, 700 euros per ton for 2019 and 900 euros per ton for 2020 while the tax being charged now is 103 euros per ton,” he said.

Regarding palm oil used in food products, the bill sets an additional import tax of 3.8 percent while for kernels used for food products, it is 4.6 percent.

After 2020, Havas said the tax would be increased on an annual basis, as per the decision of the French ministry of finance.

“Strangely, the tax does not apply to rapeseed, sun flower, soy bean or vegetable oils produced in France. We consider this as a discriminatory act against Indonesia, which is the biggest producer of palm oil,” he said.

Havas said the French Senates tax policy was ostensibly to help fight deforestation and ecosystem damage.

The tax is also aimed at eradicating dangerous pesticides (parakuat), claimed to have been used in oil palm plantations across the world.

The tax is also in response to health scares such as heart attack and Alzheimer, for which palm oil is considered the culprit.

“We have submitted our objections to the French government through the French ambassador to Indonesia in a meeting this afternoon. We have also discussed the issue with Malaysia, which is also the initiator of the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries,” he said.

Havas said among the reasons for rejecting the French plan was the fact that France, Denmark, Britain, the Netherlands and Germany have signed an Amsterdam agreement stating that the five countries support sustainable

palm oil production practices.

“So on the one hand, they support us, but on the other hand, the French parliament punishes us with a high tax,” he said.

The Indonesian government, Havas said, considered the plan discriminatory because French vegetable oils are not taxed equally.

“This is a violation of the WTO obligations as well as of GATT 1994 agreement and the European Union market rules,” he said.

Havas said Indonesia has already adopted Indonesia Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) standard to encourage sustainable and environmental-friendly palm oil production.

“This tax is illogical because the Indonesian government has already carried out efforts to prevent deforestation. The government has also taken firm action against companies involved in recent forest fires. The CIFOR, a forest monitoring institute, has even stated that only 10 percent of the recent forest fires are related to oil palm plantations,” he said.

Regarding the use of parakuat pesticide, Havas considered the reason as invalid because the use of the pesticide has long been stopped.

About the reasons being cited for health scare, he said the claims are not true because these are not based on the results of a research research

by French institute Credoc.

“What is more ironical is that proceeds from the tax would be transferred to social security funds to subsidize farmers and French community members. It is very ironical because poor oil palm farmers in Indonesia will eventually end up footing the social security bill for the French people,” he said.

In view of that, Havas said the ministries of trade, industry and agriculture will undertake diplomatic efforts against the French government.

Along with Malaysia in CPOPC, Indonesia will also undertake diplomatic efforts to press for the withdrawal of the taxation plan.

“On March 15, the Senate and the Congress will take a decision on the bill. Before that, we still have time to conduct some diplomacy to convey our stance,” he said. (ant)

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Wednesday, February 3, 2016

W

RLD

International

Corrupt practices said to be hurting US biz goals in Africa ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — The president of the Corporate Council on Africa says official corruption is discouraging many U.S businesses from investing in Africa.

Urging African governments to commit to stemming corruption, Stephen Hayes told The Associated Press Tuesday that “the degree of corruption (in Africa) is much higher than everywhere.”

Hayes’ group, a nonprofit that seeks to promote investment between the U.S. and Africa, organized the ongoing U.S.-Africa business summit in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa.

The U.S. assistant secretary of state for African affairs, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, told the summit that when some companies present opportunities to African governments, “you have people inside those governments fighting those opportunities because it gets in the way of their own private business interests.” (ap)

AP Photo/Andrew Medichini

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, right, talks to special presidential envoy to the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group, Brett McGurk, during a 23-nation conference, in Rome, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016. Nations fighting the Islamic State are discussing how to prevent the group from gaining a stranglehold in Libya, though no one is resolved yet to launch a second military intervention in the North African country this decade.

Nations discuss how to snuff out Islamic State in Libya

ROME — Nations fighting the Islamic State discussed Tuesday how to prevent the extremist group from gaining a stranglehold in resource-rich Libya, though no one appeared resolved just yet to launch a second military intervention in the North African country this decade.

Speaking at a 23-nation conference in Rome, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the last thing anyone wants “is a false caliphate with access to billions of dollars in oil revenue.” He said the U.S. and its European and Arab partners should increase security training and help Libya’s military “not just to clear territory, but to create a safe environment for the government to stand up and operate.”

More than four years after a U.S.-led military effort helped topple dictator Moammar Gadhafi, Libya is mired in chaos. Since 2014, it has been split between two rival authorities. A new unity government still doesn’t have parliamentary approval.

Amid the chaos, an Islamic State affiliate has carved out territory in the center of the country and fighters, wearied by coalition air strikes

in Iraq and Syria, are flocking to the new front.

Last week, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter warned that IS militants were trying to “consolidate their own footprint” in Libya by setting up training sites, drawing in foreign recruits and using the levers of economic power to raise money through taxes. The U.S. won’t allow the group to “sink roots” in Libya, he said, but provided no indication of any U.S. military campaign was imminent. European countries, too, are weighing options.

Italy, whose southernmost territory is less than 300 miles from Libya, has indicated it would participate in a U.N.-authorized peacekeeping or stabilization mission. It has moved aircraft to a base in Sicily, but insists that any action first requires a stable Libyan

government and other international assistance. The instability has led to hundreds of thousands of migrants using Libya-based smugglers to reach Italy.

“We cannot imagine spring passing with the situation in Libya still stalled,” Defense Minister Roberta Pinotti told Italy’s Corriere della Sera paper last week. Britain and France also are considering military possibilities, with similar caveats.

A senior U.S. official attending the talks stressed that “when we see a threat to the United States or external plotting, we will not hesitate to act upon that threat.”

He cited a November airstrike that that killed Abu Nabil, a top Islamic State leader in Libya.

But any broader campaign would require talks with coalition partners and the Libyans, said the official, who briefed reporters on the discussions on condition he not be quoted by name. He said President Barack Obama convened a National Security Council meeting last week “focused on the Libya question.” (ap)

Ship hijackings down in 2015, piracy mostly low-left theft KUALA LUMPUR — A global maritime watchdog says ship hijackings declined in 2015 from a year earlier, with sea piracy incidents mostly consisting of low-level theft.

The International Maritime Bureau said in its annual piracy report released Tuesday that 246 piracy incidents were recorded worldwide, one up from 2014. It said pirates hijacked 15 vessels and held 271 hostages, down from 21 ships and 442 hostages in 2014.

It attributed the drop in hijackings to a fall in attacks against small fuel tankers around Southeast Asia’s coasts, the last of which occurred in August.

It said Malaysia and Indonesian authorities took swift action to arrest and prosecute two gangs that hijacked tankers, including the arrest of some alleged masterminds.(ap)

Zika virus forces India’s Tata Motors to change car’s name NEW DELHI — The Zika virus has hit India’s Tata Motors, which has decided to rebrand a soon-to-be launched hatchback vehicle which was to have been called “Zica,” an abbreviation of “Zippy Car.” The car is to be shown for the first time on Wednesday at the Auto Expo 2016 on New Delhi’s outskirts.

Tata Motors said in a statement Tuesday that the car will carry the “Zica” nameplate during the exhibition, but a new name will be announced in a few weeks.

It said the company decided to rebrand the car to empathize with the hardships caused by the outbreak of the Zika virus in many countries.

The World Health Organization has declared the Zika virus a global emergency because of its explosive spread across the Americas. (ap)

International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

BALI DIRECTORY

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Destination

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

International

French Open stands in Djokovic’s path to greatness

LONDON - He is the tennis version of the Terminator and he’ll definitely be back at the French Open in May, but for Novak Djokovic his exploits at the claycourt major could decide his place in the pantheon of greats.

Pulaki Temple

BULELENG - Pulaki Temple or Pura Pulaki is a Hindu shrine located in the hill bank and in front of the beautiful beach in north part of Bali. It is one of the biggest Hindu temples in Bali situated in the coastal side west part of Singaraja town or 1 hour drive to the west from the town. This temple is set on the flat land with stone hill bank as a back drop meanwhile the blue ocean is just in front of the temple.

Pulaki Temple is a famous temple among the Hindu people in Bali located in Singaraja regency, north part of Bali. There are the group of monkeys dwell the hill forest around the temple and it usually standing around the temple in the day time. The beautiful beach with black sand and calm seawater is one of the fascinations to visitor to come to this temple. We can find the beautiful hill bank and beaches along the coastal road.

It is located in Pulaki Village, Seririt Sub District, Singaraja Regency, north part of Bali. It is just 3 hours drive from Bali’s International Airport or 1 hour drive from Singaraja town. It is strategically set in the main road from Singaraja to Gilimanuk with the group of monkeys as the identity for the traveler who wants to visit this temple.

For the second time in his career, Wimbledon, U.S. Open and Australian Open champion Djokovic will arrive at Roland Garros needing seven victories to become the first man in almost 50 years to hold all four grand slam titles at the same time.

It is a feat that is so difficult that it has not been achieved by a man since Australian Rod Laver won the second of his calendar Grand Slams in 1969. Djokovic’s effort to join an exclusive club which boasts only two male members -- Don Budge and Laver -- was thwarted in 2012 by Rafa Nadal in the Paris final.

With nine-times French Open champion Nadal no longer the force he was, Djokovic will arrive in Paris as the overwhelming favourite to lift to the Musketeers’ Cup for the first time at his 12th attempt.

Djokovic, beaten in three Paris finals over the last four years, may never get such a golden opportunity to complete a feat that was tantalisingly just out of reach for tennis greats such as Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Nadal. The biggest obstacle standing in his way may be his own mental belief.

Djokovic may have contested five consecutive grand slam finals, he may have won a record-equalling sixth Australian Open title and he may be ranked number one in the world -- but for all his confidence, he knows that he has had 11 failed attempts to win the ultimate prize in claycourt tennis.

Despite becoming only the second man to beat Nadal at Roland Garros, Djokovic still walked away without the trophy last year as his win over the Spaniard was achieved in the quarter-finals. By the time he got to the final, he had run out of ideas and was powerless to stop Stan Wawrinka from running away with the spoils. “(I’m) very hungry (for Paris),” Djokovic said after beating Andy Murray in the Melbourne Park final on Sunday to win his 11th grand slam title. “Even though I won last four out of five grand slams, I don’t take anything for granted.

“I want to improve as everybody else.

I’m not here because I played the same tennis I played last year. I feel like I’m playing better.”

UNDER SPELL Murray, Federer and Nadal will certainly agree with that assessment as they all fell under his spell in the opening month of the 2016 season.

After humiliating Federer in the opening two sets of his 6-1 6-2 3-6 6-3 semi-final victory in Melbourne, Djokovic said it was “probably the best two sets I’ve played against Roger over my career”. That’s saying something for a decade-long rivalry that spans 45 matches.

Djokovic now has a better head-to-head against all three of his “Big Four” rivals. He

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SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio improved to 26-0 on home court this season by beating Orlando 107-92 on Monday, led by season-high 28 points from LaMarcus Aldridge. The Spurs edged within four games of Golden State in the fight over the top seed in the NBA Western Conference. They also stayed four games ahead of Oklahoma City, which beat Washington thanks to a triple double from Russell Westbrook.

Among other key results, Cleveland was forced to overtime at Indiana but notched a fifth straight win, while Atlanta defeated Dallas to move into a virtual tie with Miami for top spot in the Southeast Division. San Antonio’s Aldridge shot 9 for 13 from the field to pace the Spurs while Australian Patty Mills matched a season-high with 22 points, going 3 for 4 on 3-pointers.

San Antonio found its defensive footing

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leads Federer 23-22, Nadal 24-23 and Murray 22-9. While Federer (17 majors), Nadal (14), Sampras (14) and Australian Roy Emerson (12) still top Djokovic in the list of all-time grand slam title holders, it is not inconceivable that within a few years, the Serb will have left everyone in his wake.

But at the French Open, Djokovic will

have to deal with the pressure of completing his collection of grand slam titles. Should he match Laver’s feat of winning four slams in a row, the 28-year-old will have to find some new superlatives to describe his form.

“No doubt that I’m playing the best tennis of my life in the last 15 months. It’s phenomenal,” said Djokovic.(rtr)

Spurs extend perfect home record with win against Magic

IBP/File Photo

!!!All Jobs available.Send CV mail@concordservices-bali.com Ph769073 Monday-Friday 9am-5pm

REUTERS/Fiona Hamilton

Australian Open men’s singles tennis champion Serbia’s Novak Djokovic plays with some children during a visit to the Melbourne City Mission’s Braybrook Early Learning Centre in this February 1, 2016 handout photo.

AP Photo/Eric Gay

San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard, right, blocks a shot

by Orlando Magic guard Evan Fournier (10) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Feb. 1, 2016, in San Antonio. San Antonio won 107-92.

late in the third quarter to separate from Orlando. The Spurs outscored the Magic 24-8 to overcome a 70-69 deficit with 1 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter. Nikola Vucevic led Orlando with 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Cleveland’s Kyrie Irving scored 25 points as the Cavaliers won 111-106 in overtime at Indiana. LeBron James had 24 points — but only seven after halftime — with 12 rebounds and the Cavaliers extended their lead in the Central Division to nine games and won in Indiana for the first time in six years.

George Hill matched his season-high with 23 points for the Pacers, who missed their chance to win in regulation when Monta Ellis missed a midrange jump shot at the buzzer. Oklahoma City’s Westbrook had his seventh triple-double of the season to lead the Thunder past Washington 114-98.

Westbrook had 17 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists and got the best of his matchup with Washington point guard John Wall. Kevin Durant scored 28 points for the Thunder, which has won 11 of 12.

Bradley Beal came off the bench to score 18 points for the Wizards, who played without coach Randy Wittman following the death

of his brother.

Atlanta’s Jeff Teague scored a seasonhigh 32 points as the Hawks defeated Dallas 112-97. Teague went 12 for 15 from the field with a career-high five 3-pointers.

Kyle Korver added 16 points for the Hawks who had lost five of six to slip out of the Southeast lead.

Chandler Parsons had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Mavericks, who lost Deron Williams to a bruised hip early in the second quarter. Toronto’s 11-game winning streak came to an end with a 112-93 loss at Denver. Nikola Jokic had season highs of 27 points and 14 rebounds, while Will Barton scored 20 points for the Nuggets.

The Raptors led midway through the second quarter but trailed by double digits for most of the second half. DeMar DeRozan led Toronto with 24 points but his All-Star backcourt mate, Kyle Lowry, scored just nine.

Utah’s Gordon Hayward had 27 points and 12 rebounds, including the tying basket in regulation and a succession of key baskets in overtime, to lead the Jazz to a 105-96 win against Chicago. Memphis surged late to clinch a 110-95 win at New Orleans, with Zach Randolph contributing 22 points and 12 rebounds.(ap)

8

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Sp rt A lot going wrong for Gary Neville, but not all his fault

MADRID — Gary Neville knew that coaching at a high level wasn’t going to be easy. He certainly didn’t expect to be struggling so badly so early. Less than two months into his first head-coaching job, the former Manchester United great is already in danger of being fired.

Language problems, injuries, disappointing results, unhappy fans — there’s a lot going wrong for Neville at Valencia.

The Spanish club hasn’t won in eight league games since Neville took over the squad. It dropped to 12th in the standings and is only five points above relegation zone.

The latest setback was a 1-0 home loss to Sporting Gijon, a result that prompted loud jeers from the supporters at the Mestalla Stadium.

Neville has kept the team alive in the Copa del Rey, leading it to the tournament’s semifinals, but even then the luck of

AP Photo/Alberto Saiz, File

FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 3, 2016 file photo, Valencia’s head coach Gary Neville arrives for a Spanish La Liga soccer match against Real Madrid at the Mestalla stadium in Valencia, Spain. Gary Neville knew that coaching at a high level wasn’t going to be easy.

the draw went against Valencia, putting it against Barcelona, Spain’s hottest team.

“We obviously don’t seem to be getting the breaks, the good fortunes in respect of that,” Neville said. “But that’s not a problem either. We cannot complain. We have no excuses.”

A few reasons can help explain Neville’s dismal debut as a head coach, and they are not all his fault.

Valencia started the season well but it was already struggling when the former Manchester United defender replaced coach Nuno Espirito Santo. The team was coming off three winless games when Neville officially took over.

Nearly a dozen players were injured at the time, including Diego Alves, Javi Fuego and Enzo Perez. Only now the squad has been getting back to full strength.

“We missed our experienced core of the team, the players who obviously provide that little bit of comfort for everybody else,” the 40year-old Neville said. “It was the same when I was a young player, I liked the idea of having the experienced players alongside me, to be able to cuddle me in. With the experienced players returning, I feel as though we are in a stronger position that we were five or six weeks ago.”

It’s also unfair to say that Valencia hasn’t always played well under Neville. The team dominated the game against Sporting this weekend, creating most of the scoring chances, but it couldn’t capitalize on them. Forward Alvaro Negredo had two great chances to score but inexplicably missed them both.

“I accept my large part of the blame, a striker is there to put the ball in the net,” Negredo said. “The fans can say what they want, they pay to watch and they have the right. We have to accept our mistakes. We have to pick ourselves back up as soon as possible. We have to continue working and change this dynamic.” (ap)

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

5-year-old Afghan boy could get to meet Lionel Messi

Transfer deadline day: Mid-ranking Everton, Stoke spend $45M

LONDON — The heaviest spending as European football’s transfer window closed on Monday was not by traditional powers but mid-ranking English clubs Stoke and Everton collectively paying around $45 million on two players. Stoke made the biggest outlay of the window with the 18.3 million pound ($26 million) signing of defensive midfielder Giannelli Imbula shortly after Everton spent 13.5 million pounds ($19.5 million) on forward Oumar Niasse.

Their spending sprees on largely unknown players reasserted the financial supremacy of the Premier League — a competition Pep Guardiola will be joining next season.

The announcement that Guardiola would be joining Manchester City was the most eye-catching moment on transfer deadline day, which is usually about clubs frantically making final additions to squads for the rest of the season rather than changes in the dugout.

Guardiola’s hiring had been anticipated since disclosing in December that he would leave

KABUL — A 5-year-old Afghan boy who made a splash on the Internet by wearing a homemade Lionel Messi jersey might get the chance to meet the Barcelona great.

The Afghan Football Federation said it is planning to set up a meeting between Messi and Murtaza Ahmadi, who was pictured wearing an Argentina jersey made from a plastic bag with Messi’s name and number on the back.

Afghan federation spokesman Sayed Ali Kazemi said Tuesday officials hope Messi can come to Afghanistan to visit the boy, but otherwise they will arrange to send him to Spain, where Messi plays with Barcelona, or arrange a meeting in a third country.

Pictures of Murtaza playing soccer near his home in eastern Ghazni province showed him wearing the plastic bag — in blue and white stripes like the Argentina national team shirt — with Messi and 10 written in black marker. Murtaza is reportedly the son of a poor family living in remote Joghori district.

Arif Ahmadi, Murtaza’s father, said he and his family have only solar power and the boy has seen Messi on TV. “He (Murtaza) asked me many times

to buy a Messi shirt,” Arif Ahmadi said. “I couldn’t provide for him. Later, his brother made him this plastic shirt and posted his photo on Facebook.”

Messi has met with children in special circumstances in the past. In 2011, he met and kicked around a ball with a 10-year-old boy who had had both legs amputated because of Laurin-Sandrow syndrome. He did the same a year later with a Brazilian boy who was born without feet.

Murtaza was in Kabul on Tuesday, wearing some Barcelona gear under his homemade shirt while running through some soccer drills at the national stadium.

“The Spanish embassy is ready to issue visas for them,” said Keramuddin Karim, the president of the Afghanistan Football Federation. “We are trying to make contact directly with Barcelona to arrange the meeting, where, when and which date.” (ap)

Bayern Munich at the end of the season. The surprise was the timing.

City rushed out official word of Guardiola’s summer arrival after Pellegrini ended a news conference by revealing he would be leaving the Abu Dhabi-owned club a year early.

At City, Guardiola will be linking up with Barcelona executives Ferran Soriano and Txiki Beguiristain, hoping to replicate the dominance he enjoyed at the Camp Nou: Winning 14 trophies in four years as coach. Guardiola has gone on to win back-to-back league titles at Bayern in the time Pellegrini has only collected the Premier League trophy once at City.

Guardiola will find the Premier League far more competitive than the Spanish and German leagues.

City is currently only second, three points behind a previously unfancied Leicester side which fought relegation last season.

New television deals kicking in next season — expected to generate around $13 billion over three years for the Premier League — are providing more spending power across the league. Now even less illustrious English teams can offer

more lucrative transfer fees than Europe’s long-standing powerhouses.

Bournemouth, Everton, Newcastle and Stoke all spent more than 10 million pounds on players in the winter transfer window — the biggest deal coming as the 2300 GMT transfer cut-off approached. Stoke broke its transfer record to land the 23-year-old Imbula from Porto who has played for the France under-21s but never the senior side.

“He has great power, good ability on the ball and a great range of passing and there’s no doubt he will add to the quality that we already have at the club,” Stoke manager Mark Hughes said.

The 25-year-old Niasse was signed by 12th-place Everton from Lokomotiv Moscow after being voted the Russian Premier League’s top player in 2015. The European heavyweights only conducted limited business on Monday.

German leader Bayern signed former Germany defender Serdar Tasci from Spartak Moscow until the end of the season after losing several players through injury, Barcelona sent right back Martin Montoya to Real Betis on loan for the rest of the season. (ap)

AP Photo/Rahmat Gul

Martaza Ahmadi, a five-year-old Afghan Lionel Messi fan, plays football at the Afghan Football Federation Stadium in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016.

Leicester keeping calm at Premier League peak - Schmeichel

Leicester City’s unexpected surge to the top of the Premier League is not due to a change in mentality but because of the team’s ability to keep a level head no matter where they find themselves in the table, goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel has said.

The Foxes were battling relegation from the top flight last season, but now find themselves leading the race for the title, three points ahead of Manchester City and Arsenal after 23 games.

“At the end of the day it’s football and it’s a league system. The mentality stays the same and the one thing

you can say about this group is that nobody gets carried away,” Schmeichel told the club’s website (www. lcfc.com).

“Everyone is level headed about the situation, like we were when we were in the Championship (secondtier). We carry on and do what we’ve been doing.”

Leicester take on Liverpool in the league at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday night, before trips to Manchester City and Arsenal this month, but far from being intimidated, Schmeichel says the team are looking forward to the tough run of fixtures.

9

“Confidence is high ... The mood was the same when we were bottom of the league to how it is now.

There’s the same amount of focus, belief and desire,” he said.

“This is what you play for, these kind of high pressure games and it’s a period that everyone is just relishing.”

New signing Daniel Amartey will have to wait until the game against Manchester City at the weekend to make his Leicester debut, but striker Shinji Okazaki has recovered from a knock and could feature against the Merseyside club. (rtr)

Reuters / Dylan Martinez

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger

Wenger out to settle a score as Arsenal take on Southampton

Manager Arsene Wenger has urged Arsenal to “put things right” when they take on Southampton on Tuesday by avenging the 4-0 loss they suffered at St Mary’s Stadium on Boxing Day. The Gunners’ hopes for a win have been boosted by the return of forward Alexis Sanchez, who could make his first Premier League start in two months after marking his comeback from a hamstring injury by scoring in the FA Cup on Saturday.

“They (Southampton) gave us a tough game last time and we have to put that right,” Wenger told reporters at his pre-match news conference.

“The message (this time) is that we play at home and we

want to put a strong performance in because the strength we show at home now in the remaining games can be decisive.”

Arsenal, who are third in the Premier League and through to the fifth round of the FA Cup, face Barcelona in the knockout stages of the Champions League, and Wenger said it would take something “exceptional” for his team to keep fighting on three fronts. “It is difficult to compete on three fronts. Exceptionally, it can happen,” he said.

“It is (possible) because some clubs have done it. Bayern (Munich) have done it. But you need not to have any bad injuries and to have a basis of a team who can repeat performances.” (rtr)

MADRID — Neymar is expected to appear before a judge in Madrid to testify in an investigation into alleged irregularities regarding his transfer to Barcelona. Neymar’s father, who acts as his agent, is also scheduled to testify at the National Court on Tuesday.

Barcelona’s current and former club presidents denied any wrongdoing when questioned by the same judge on Monday.

The court is looking into a

complaint made by a Brazilian investment group which claims it was financially harmed when Barcelona and Neymar allegedly withheld the real amount of the player’s transfer fee from Brazilian club Santos in 2013.

Investment group DIS was entitled to 40 percent of Neymar’s transfer from Santos, but claims it received a smaller compensation than it should have because part of the transfer fee was concealed.(ap)

Neymar to appear in court over Barcelona transfer

AP Photo/Claude Paris, file

FILE - In this Tuesday, Sep. 24, 2013 file photo, Marseille’s Giannelli Imbula reacts after scoring against Saint-Etienne, during their League One soccer match, at the Velodrome Stadium, in Marseille, southern France. Stoke broke its transfer record by paying 18.3 million pounds ($26.4 million) to land Giannelli Imbula, a 23-year-old defensive midfielder from Porto on Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. Imbula has played for the France under-21s but never the senior side.

8

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Sp rt A lot going wrong for Gary Neville, but not all his fault

MADRID — Gary Neville knew that coaching at a high level wasn’t going to be easy. He certainly didn’t expect to be struggling so badly so early. Less than two months into his first head-coaching job, the former Manchester United great is already in danger of being fired.

Language problems, injuries, disappointing results, unhappy fans — there’s a lot going wrong for Neville at Valencia.

The Spanish club hasn’t won in eight league games since Neville took over the squad. It dropped to 12th in the standings and is only five points above relegation zone.

The latest setback was a 1-0 home loss to Sporting Gijon, a result that prompted loud jeers from the supporters at the Mestalla Stadium.

Neville has kept the team alive in the Copa del Rey, leading it to the tournament’s semifinals, but even then the luck of

AP Photo/Alberto Saiz, File

FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 3, 2016 file photo, Valencia’s head coach Gary Neville arrives for a Spanish La Liga soccer match against Real Madrid at the Mestalla stadium in Valencia, Spain. Gary Neville knew that coaching at a high level wasn’t going to be easy.

the draw went against Valencia, putting it against Barcelona, Spain’s hottest team.

“We obviously don’t seem to be getting the breaks, the good fortunes in respect of that,” Neville said. “But that’s not a problem either. We cannot complain. We have no excuses.”

A few reasons can help explain Neville’s dismal debut as a head coach, and they are not all his fault.

Valencia started the season well but it was already struggling when the former Manchester United defender replaced coach Nuno Espirito Santo. The team was coming off three winless games when Neville officially took over.

Nearly a dozen players were injured at the time, including Diego Alves, Javi Fuego and Enzo Perez. Only now the squad has been getting back to full strength.

“We missed our experienced core of the team, the players who obviously provide that little bit of comfort for everybody else,” the 40year-old Neville said. “It was the same when I was a young player, I liked the idea of having the experienced players alongside me, to be able to cuddle me in. With the experienced players returning, I feel as though we are in a stronger position that we were five or six weeks ago.”

It’s also unfair to say that Valencia hasn’t always played well under Neville. The team dominated the game against Sporting this weekend, creating most of the scoring chances, but it couldn’t capitalize on them. Forward Alvaro Negredo had two great chances to score but inexplicably missed them both.

“I accept my large part of the blame, a striker is there to put the ball in the net,” Negredo said. “The fans can say what they want, they pay to watch and they have the right. We have to accept our mistakes. We have to pick ourselves back up as soon as possible. We have to continue working and change this dynamic.” (ap)

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

5-year-old Afghan boy could get to meet Lionel Messi

Transfer deadline day: Mid-ranking Everton, Stoke spend $45M

LONDON — The heaviest spending as European football’s transfer window closed on Monday was not by traditional powers but mid-ranking English clubs Stoke and Everton collectively paying around $45 million on two players. Stoke made the biggest outlay of the window with the 18.3 million pound ($26 million) signing of defensive midfielder Giannelli Imbula shortly after Everton spent 13.5 million pounds ($19.5 million) on forward Oumar Niasse.

Their spending sprees on largely unknown players reasserted the financial supremacy of the Premier League — a competition Pep Guardiola will be joining next season.

The announcement that Guardiola would be joining Manchester City was the most eye-catching moment on transfer deadline day, which is usually about clubs frantically making final additions to squads for the rest of the season rather than changes in the dugout.

Guardiola’s hiring had been anticipated since disclosing in December that he would leave

KABUL — A 5-year-old Afghan boy who made a splash on the Internet by wearing a homemade Lionel Messi jersey might get the chance to meet the Barcelona great.

The Afghan Football Federation said it is planning to set up a meeting between Messi and Murtaza Ahmadi, who was pictured wearing an Argentina jersey made from a plastic bag with Messi’s name and number on the back.

Afghan federation spokesman Sayed Ali Kazemi said Tuesday officials hope Messi can come to Afghanistan to visit the boy, but otherwise they will arrange to send him to Spain, where Messi plays with Barcelona, or arrange a meeting in a third country.

Pictures of Murtaza playing soccer near his home in eastern Ghazni province showed him wearing the plastic bag — in blue and white stripes like the Argentina national team shirt — with Messi and 10 written in black marker. Murtaza is reportedly the son of a poor family living in remote Joghori district.

Arif Ahmadi, Murtaza’s father, said he and his family have only solar power and the boy has seen Messi on TV. “He (Murtaza) asked me many times

to buy a Messi shirt,” Arif Ahmadi said. “I couldn’t provide for him. Later, his brother made him this plastic shirt and posted his photo on Facebook.”

Messi has met with children in special circumstances in the past. In 2011, he met and kicked around a ball with a 10-year-old boy who had had both legs amputated because of Laurin-Sandrow syndrome. He did the same a year later with a Brazilian boy who was born without feet.

Murtaza was in Kabul on Tuesday, wearing some Barcelona gear under his homemade shirt while running through some soccer drills at the national stadium.

“The Spanish embassy is ready to issue visas for them,” said Keramuddin Karim, the president of the Afghanistan Football Federation. “We are trying to make contact directly with Barcelona to arrange the meeting, where, when and which date.” (ap)

Bayern Munich at the end of the season. The surprise was the timing.

City rushed out official word of Guardiola’s summer arrival after Pellegrini ended a news conference by revealing he would be leaving the Abu Dhabi-owned club a year early.

At City, Guardiola will be linking up with Barcelona executives Ferran Soriano and Txiki Beguiristain, hoping to replicate the dominance he enjoyed at the Camp Nou: Winning 14 trophies in four years as coach. Guardiola has gone on to win back-to-back league titles at Bayern in the time Pellegrini has only collected the Premier League trophy once at City.

Guardiola will find the Premier League far more competitive than the Spanish and German leagues.

City is currently only second, three points behind a previously unfancied Leicester side which fought relegation last season.

New television deals kicking in next season — expected to generate around $13 billion over three years for the Premier League — are providing more spending power across the league. Now even less illustrious English teams can offer

more lucrative transfer fees than Europe’s long-standing powerhouses.

Bournemouth, Everton, Newcastle and Stoke all spent more than 10 million pounds on players in the winter transfer window — the biggest deal coming as the 2300 GMT transfer cut-off approached. Stoke broke its transfer record to land the 23-year-old Imbula from Porto who has played for the France under-21s but never the senior side.

“He has great power, good ability on the ball and a great range of passing and there’s no doubt he will add to the quality that we already have at the club,” Stoke manager Mark Hughes said.

The 25-year-old Niasse was signed by 12th-place Everton from Lokomotiv Moscow after being voted the Russian Premier League’s top player in 2015. The European heavyweights only conducted limited business on Monday.

German leader Bayern signed former Germany defender Serdar Tasci from Spartak Moscow until the end of the season after losing several players through injury, Barcelona sent right back Martin Montoya to Real Betis on loan for the rest of the season. (ap)

AP Photo/Rahmat Gul

Martaza Ahmadi, a five-year-old Afghan Lionel Messi fan, plays football at the Afghan Football Federation Stadium in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016.

Leicester keeping calm at Premier League peak - Schmeichel

Leicester City’s unexpected surge to the top of the Premier League is not due to a change in mentality but because of the team’s ability to keep a level head no matter where they find themselves in the table, goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel has said.

The Foxes were battling relegation from the top flight last season, but now find themselves leading the race for the title, three points ahead of Manchester City and Arsenal after 23 games.

“At the end of the day it’s football and it’s a league system. The mentality stays the same and the one thing

you can say about this group is that nobody gets carried away,” Schmeichel told the club’s website (www. lcfc.com).

“Everyone is level headed about the situation, like we were when we were in the Championship (secondtier). We carry on and do what we’ve been doing.”

Leicester take on Liverpool in the league at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday night, before trips to Manchester City and Arsenal this month, but far from being intimidated, Schmeichel says the team are looking forward to the tough run of fixtures.

9

“Confidence is high ... The mood was the same when we were bottom of the league to how it is now.

There’s the same amount of focus, belief and desire,” he said.

“This is what you play for, these kind of high pressure games and it’s a period that everyone is just relishing.”

New signing Daniel Amartey will have to wait until the game against Manchester City at the weekend to make his Leicester debut, but striker Shinji Okazaki has recovered from a knock and could feature against the Merseyside club. (rtr)

Reuters / Dylan Martinez

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger

Wenger out to settle a score as Arsenal take on Southampton

Manager Arsene Wenger has urged Arsenal to “put things right” when they take on Southampton on Tuesday by avenging the 4-0 loss they suffered at St Mary’s Stadium on Boxing Day. The Gunners’ hopes for a win have been boosted by the return of forward Alexis Sanchez, who could make his first Premier League start in two months after marking his comeback from a hamstring injury by scoring in the FA Cup on Saturday.

“They (Southampton) gave us a tough game last time and we have to put that right,” Wenger told reporters at his pre-match news conference.

“The message (this time) is that we play at home and we

want to put a strong performance in because the strength we show at home now in the remaining games can be decisive.”

Arsenal, who are third in the Premier League and through to the fifth round of the FA Cup, face Barcelona in the knockout stages of the Champions League, and Wenger said it would take something “exceptional” for his team to keep fighting on three fronts. “It is difficult to compete on three fronts. Exceptionally, it can happen,” he said.

“It is (possible) because some clubs have done it. Bayern (Munich) have done it. But you need not to have any bad injuries and to have a basis of a team who can repeat performances.” (rtr)

MADRID — Neymar is expected to appear before a judge in Madrid to testify in an investigation into alleged irregularities regarding his transfer to Barcelona. Neymar’s father, who acts as his agent, is also scheduled to testify at the National Court on Tuesday.

Barcelona’s current and former club presidents denied any wrongdoing when questioned by the same judge on Monday.

The court is looking into a

complaint made by a Brazilian investment group which claims it was financially harmed when Barcelona and Neymar allegedly withheld the real amount of the player’s transfer fee from Brazilian club Santos in 2013.

Investment group DIS was entitled to 40 percent of Neymar’s transfer from Santos, but claims it received a smaller compensation than it should have because part of the transfer fee was concealed.(ap)

Neymar to appear in court over Barcelona transfer

AP Photo/Claude Paris, file

FILE - In this Tuesday, Sep. 24, 2013 file photo, Marseille’s Giannelli Imbula reacts after scoring against Saint-Etienne, during their League One soccer match, at the Velodrome Stadium, in Marseille, southern France. Stoke broke its transfer record by paying 18.3 million pounds ($26.4 million) to land Giannelli Imbula, a 23-year-old defensive midfielder from Porto on Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. Imbula has played for the France under-21s but never the senior side.

10

Destination

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

International

French Open stands in Djokovic’s path to greatness

LONDON - He is the tennis version of the Terminator and he’ll definitely be back at the French Open in May, but for Novak Djokovic his exploits at the claycourt major could decide his place in the pantheon of greats.

Pulaki Temple

BULELENG - Pulaki Temple or Pura Pulaki is a Hindu shrine located in the hill bank and in front of the beautiful beach in north part of Bali. It is one of the biggest Hindu temples in Bali situated in the coastal side west part of Singaraja town or 1 hour drive to the west from the town. This temple is set on the flat land with stone hill bank as a back drop meanwhile the blue ocean is just in front of the temple.

Pulaki Temple is a famous temple among the Hindu people in Bali located in Singaraja regency, north part of Bali. There are the group of monkeys dwell the hill forest around the temple and it usually standing around the temple in the day time. The beautiful beach with black sand and calm seawater is one of the fascinations to visitor to come to this temple. We can find the beautiful hill bank and beaches along the coastal road.

It is located in Pulaki Village, Seririt Sub District, Singaraja Regency, north part of Bali. It is just 3 hours drive from Bali’s International Airport or 1 hour drive from Singaraja town. It is strategically set in the main road from Singaraja to Gilimanuk with the group of monkeys as the identity for the traveler who wants to visit this temple.

For the second time in his career, Wimbledon, U.S. Open and Australian Open champion Djokovic will arrive at Roland Garros needing seven victories to become the first man in almost 50 years to hold all four grand slam titles at the same time.

It is a feat that is so difficult that it has not been achieved by a man since Australian Rod Laver won the second of his calendar Grand Slams in 1969. Djokovic’s effort to join an exclusive club which boasts only two male members -- Don Budge and Laver -- was thwarted in 2012 by Rafa Nadal in the Paris final.

With nine-times French Open champion Nadal no longer the force he was, Djokovic will arrive in Paris as the overwhelming favourite to lift to the Musketeers’ Cup for the first time at his 12th attempt.

Djokovic, beaten in three Paris finals over the last four years, may never get such a golden opportunity to complete a feat that was tantalisingly just out of reach for tennis greats such as Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Nadal. The biggest obstacle standing in his way may be his own mental belief.

Djokovic may have contested five consecutive grand slam finals, he may have won a record-equalling sixth Australian Open title and he may be ranked number one in the world -- but for all his confidence, he knows that he has had 11 failed attempts to win the ultimate prize in claycourt tennis.

Despite becoming only the second man to beat Nadal at Roland Garros, Djokovic still walked away without the trophy last year as his win over the Spaniard was achieved in the quarter-finals. By the time he got to the final, he had run out of ideas and was powerless to stop Stan Wawrinka from running away with the spoils. “(I’m) very hungry (for Paris),” Djokovic said after beating Andy Murray in the Melbourne Park final on Sunday to win his 11th grand slam title. “Even though I won last four out of five grand slams, I don’t take anything for granted.

“I want to improve as everybody else.

I’m not here because I played the same tennis I played last year. I feel like I’m playing better.”

UNDER SPELL Murray, Federer and Nadal will certainly agree with that assessment as they all fell under his spell in the opening month of the 2016 season.

After humiliating Federer in the opening two sets of his 6-1 6-2 3-6 6-3 semi-final victory in Melbourne, Djokovic said it was “probably the best two sets I’ve played against Roger over my career”. That’s saying something for a decade-long rivalry that spans 45 matches.

Djokovic now has a better head-to-head against all three of his “Big Four” rivals. He

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SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio improved to 26-0 on home court this season by beating Orlando 107-92 on Monday, led by season-high 28 points from LaMarcus Aldridge. The Spurs edged within four games of Golden State in the fight over the top seed in the NBA Western Conference. They also stayed four games ahead of Oklahoma City, which beat Washington thanks to a triple double from Russell Westbrook.

Among other key results, Cleveland was forced to overtime at Indiana but notched a fifth straight win, while Atlanta defeated Dallas to move into a virtual tie with Miami for top spot in the Southeast Division. San Antonio’s Aldridge shot 9 for 13 from the field to pace the Spurs while Australian Patty Mills matched a season-high with 22 points, going 3 for 4 on 3-pointers.

San Antonio found its defensive footing

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leads Federer 23-22, Nadal 24-23 and Murray 22-9. While Federer (17 majors), Nadal (14), Sampras (14) and Australian Roy Emerson (12) still top Djokovic in the list of all-time grand slam title holders, it is not inconceivable that within a few years, the Serb will have left everyone in his wake.

But at the French Open, Djokovic will

have to deal with the pressure of completing his collection of grand slam titles. Should he match Laver’s feat of winning four slams in a row, the 28-year-old will have to find some new superlatives to describe his form.

“No doubt that I’m playing the best tennis of my life in the last 15 months. It’s phenomenal,” said Djokovic.(rtr)

Spurs extend perfect home record with win against Magic

IBP/File Photo

!!!All Jobs available.Send CV mail@concordservices-bali.com Ph769073 Monday-Friday 9am-5pm

REUTERS/Fiona Hamilton

Australian Open men’s singles tennis champion Serbia’s Novak Djokovic plays with some children during a visit to the Melbourne City Mission’s Braybrook Early Learning Centre in this February 1, 2016 handout photo.

AP Photo/Eric Gay

San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard, right, blocks a shot

by Orlando Magic guard Evan Fournier (10) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Feb. 1, 2016, in San Antonio. San Antonio won 107-92.

late in the third quarter to separate from Orlando. The Spurs outscored the Magic 24-8 to overcome a 70-69 deficit with 1 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter. Nikola Vucevic led Orlando with 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Cleveland’s Kyrie Irving scored 25 points as the Cavaliers won 111-106 in overtime at Indiana. LeBron James had 24 points — but only seven after halftime — with 12 rebounds and the Cavaliers extended their lead in the Central Division to nine games and won in Indiana for the first time in six years.

George Hill matched his season-high with 23 points for the Pacers, who missed their chance to win in regulation when Monta Ellis missed a midrange jump shot at the buzzer. Oklahoma City’s Westbrook had his seventh triple-double of the season to lead the Thunder past Washington 114-98.

Westbrook had 17 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists and got the best of his matchup with Washington point guard John Wall. Kevin Durant scored 28 points for the Thunder, which has won 11 of 12.

Bradley Beal came off the bench to score 18 points for the Wizards, who played without coach Randy Wittman following the death

of his brother.

Atlanta’s Jeff Teague scored a seasonhigh 32 points as the Hawks defeated Dallas 112-97. Teague went 12 for 15 from the field with a career-high five 3-pointers.

Kyle Korver added 16 points for the Hawks who had lost five of six to slip out of the Southeast lead.

Chandler Parsons had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Mavericks, who lost Deron Williams to a bruised hip early in the second quarter. Toronto’s 11-game winning streak came to an end with a 112-93 loss at Denver. Nikola Jokic had season highs of 27 points and 14 rebounds, while Will Barton scored 20 points for the Nuggets.

The Raptors led midway through the second quarter but trailed by double digits for most of the second half. DeMar DeRozan led Toronto with 24 points but his All-Star backcourt mate, Kyle Lowry, scored just nine.

Utah’s Gordon Hayward had 27 points and 12 rebounds, including the tying basket in regulation and a succession of key baskets in overtime, to lead the Jazz to a 105-96 win against Chicago. Memphis surged late to clinch a 110-95 win at New Orleans, with Zach Randolph contributing 22 points and 12 rebounds.(ap)

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Wednesday, February 3, 2016

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RLD

International

Corrupt practices said to be hurting US biz goals in Africa ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — The president of the Corporate Council on Africa says official corruption is discouraging many U.S businesses from investing in Africa.

Urging African governments to commit to stemming corruption, Stephen Hayes told The Associated Press Tuesday that “the degree of corruption (in Africa) is much higher than everywhere.”

Hayes’ group, a nonprofit that seeks to promote investment between the U.S. and Africa, organized the ongoing U.S.-Africa business summit in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa.

The U.S. assistant secretary of state for African affairs, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, told the summit that when some companies present opportunities to African governments, “you have people inside those governments fighting those opportunities because it gets in the way of their own private business interests.” (ap)

AP Photo/Andrew Medichini

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, right, talks to special presidential envoy to the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group, Brett McGurk, during a 23-nation conference, in Rome, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016. Nations fighting the Islamic State are discussing how to prevent the group from gaining a stranglehold in Libya, though no one is resolved yet to launch a second military intervention in the North African country this decade.

Nations discuss how to snuff out Islamic State in Libya

ROME — Nations fighting the Islamic State discussed Tuesday how to prevent the extremist group from gaining a stranglehold in resource-rich Libya, though no one appeared resolved just yet to launch a second military intervention in the North African country this decade.

Speaking at a 23-nation conference in Rome, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the last thing anyone wants “is a false caliphate with access to billions of dollars in oil revenue.” He said the U.S. and its European and Arab partners should increase security training and help Libya’s military “not just to clear territory, but to create a safe environment for the government to stand up and operate.”

More than four years after a U.S.-led military effort helped topple dictator Moammar Gadhafi, Libya is mired in chaos. Since 2014, it has been split between two rival authorities. A new unity government still doesn’t have parliamentary approval.

Amid the chaos, an Islamic State affiliate has carved out territory in the center of the country and fighters, wearied by coalition air strikes

in Iraq and Syria, are flocking to the new front.

Last week, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter warned that IS militants were trying to “consolidate their own footprint” in Libya by setting up training sites, drawing in foreign recruits and using the levers of economic power to raise money through taxes. The U.S. won’t allow the group to “sink roots” in Libya, he said, but provided no indication of any U.S. military campaign was imminent. European countries, too, are weighing options.

Italy, whose southernmost territory is less than 300 miles from Libya, has indicated it would participate in a U.N.-authorized peacekeeping or stabilization mission. It has moved aircraft to a base in Sicily, but insists that any action first requires a stable Libyan

government and other international assistance. The instability has led to hundreds of thousands of migrants using Libya-based smugglers to reach Italy.

“We cannot imagine spring passing with the situation in Libya still stalled,” Defense Minister Roberta Pinotti told Italy’s Corriere della Sera paper last week. Britain and France also are considering military possibilities, with similar caveats.

A senior U.S. official attending the talks stressed that “when we see a threat to the United States or external plotting, we will not hesitate to act upon that threat.”

He cited a November airstrike that that killed Abu Nabil, a top Islamic State leader in Libya.

But any broader campaign would require talks with coalition partners and the Libyans, said the official, who briefed reporters on the discussions on condition he not be quoted by name. He said President Barack Obama convened a National Security Council meeting last week “focused on the Libya question.” (ap)

Ship hijackings down in 2015, piracy mostly low-left theft KUALA LUMPUR — A global maritime watchdog says ship hijackings declined in 2015 from a year earlier, with sea piracy incidents mostly consisting of low-level theft.

The International Maritime Bureau said in its annual piracy report released Tuesday that 246 piracy incidents were recorded worldwide, one up from 2014. It said pirates hijacked 15 vessels and held 271 hostages, down from 21 ships and 442 hostages in 2014.

It attributed the drop in hijackings to a fall in attacks against small fuel tankers around Southeast Asia’s coasts, the last of which occurred in August.

It said Malaysia and Indonesian authorities took swift action to arrest and prosecute two gangs that hijacked tankers, including the arrest of some alleged masterminds.(ap)

Zika virus forces India’s Tata Motors to change car’s name NEW DELHI — The Zika virus has hit India’s Tata Motors, which has decided to rebrand a soon-to-be launched hatchback vehicle which was to have been called “Zica,” an abbreviation of “Zippy Car.” The car is to be shown for the first time on Wednesday at the Auto Expo 2016 on New Delhi’s outskirts.

Tata Motors said in a statement Tuesday that the car will carry the “Zica” nameplate during the exhibition, but a new name will be announced in a few weeks.

It said the company decided to rebrand the car to empathize with the hardships caused by the outbreak of the Zika virus in many countries.

The World Health Organization has declared the Zika virus a global emergency because of its explosive spread across the Americas. (ap)

International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

BALI DIRECTORY

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International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

BUSINESS France calls on US to lift economic embargo on Cuba

PARIS — France called on the U.S. to lift the economic embargo against Cuba during a historic state visit Monday by the Caribbean island’s president aimed at boosting economic relations between Havana and Paris.

Raul Castro’s trip comes after a breakthrough deal was reached in the French capital in December to lighten Cuba’s foreign debt.

French President Francois Hollande, the former leader of France’s Socialist party, greeted Castro on Monday with a warm hug in the courtyard of the Elysee presidential palace, and then started the meeting saying “Vive Cuba!” (“Long live

Cuba!”)

Both presidents vowed to develop economic, political and cultural ties during a joint news appearance.

The U.S. announced a normalization of relations with Cuba in December 2014, but it still maintains an economic embargo on the island. Hollande told journalists that “President (Barack) Obama ...

must now follow through and allow this vestige of the Cold War to end.”

France has called for the lifting of the U.S. embargo since 1991.

“We appreciate France’s traditional position in favor of the lifting of the economic, commercial and financial embargo from the United States against Cuba, which is the main obstacle to the development of our country,” Castro said.

Cuba wants “to diversify the bilateral relation with France in all its dimensions: political, economic, business, financial, academic and cultural cooperation,” he said.

The Cuban president was to attend a state dinner in his honor later Monday.

Castro, 84, is on his first state visit to Europe since taking over from his elder brother Fidel in 2006. The Cuban president briefly stopped in Rome last year to meet with Pope Francis.

Hollande was the first French leader to visit Cuba in a half-century when he went in May seeking to boost trade.

In December the Paris Club of creditor countries forgave $8.5 billion of overdue Cuban interest

International

Indonesia Today

Freeport asks Indonesia to cut or postpone $530 smelter bond -Mining Minister

JAKARTA - Freeport McMoRan Inc has asked Indonesia to reduce a $530 million smelter bond the local unit of the U.S. copper mining giant must set aside before receiving an extension of its export permit, Indonesia’s mining minister said on Tuesday.

Freeport’s 6-month copper concentrate export permit expired last week amid a deadlock over the bond, which Indonesia has requested as a guarantee that the

AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana

Indonesians of Chinese descent browse for decorations in preparation for Lunar New Year celebrations at a market in China Town in Jakarta,Indonesia, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016.

Chinese communities in the world’s most populous Muslim country are gearing up to celebrate the start of the year of the monkey which falls on Feb. 8.

Government to complete international aviation safety standards

AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert, file

miner will complete construction of another local smelter.

“They have appealed to ask whether we can postpone it or give them a discount, but we asked them to show

5

their commitment in another equivalent way,” Energy Minister Sudirman Said told reporters, referring to an exchange of letters with the Phoenix, Arizona-based company. (rtr)

Indonesia rejects France`s plan to impose palm oil tax

payments in exchange for Cuba’s promise to pay off $2.6 billion in loans from developed countries over the next year and a half.

France, to which Cuba owed $4 billion in overdue loans, led the creditors’ negotiations.

A new bilateral deal regarding Cuba’s remaining debt to France, which amounts to $390 million (360 million euros), was signed Monday. With this agreement, Paris agrees to convert 212 million euros ($230 million) into a fund that will finance French-Cuban projects on the island. (ap)

ECB’s Draghi: Risks from emerging markets have increased FRANKFURT, Germany — European Central Bank head Mario Draghi has warned that the “downside risks” facing Europe’s economy have increased due to the recent turmoil in emerging markets.

Draghi’s remark Monday to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, comes as the bank is preparing to consider adding to its stimulus efforts at its next meeting on March 10.

He repeated his earlier stance that the bank has found risks high enough “to review and possibly reconsider” the level of its stimulus efforts. Markets have taken that as all but promising some kind of action at March meeting.

He said risks in emerging markets “have increased again amid heightened uncertainty” since Dec. 3, when the bank decided to cut a key interest rate and extend its bond-purchase stimulus program by six months.

Financial markets have been volatile this year over concerns about the slowdown in China, a key trading partner for Europe and one of the engines of the global economy. Additionally, low oil prices are hurting growth prospects in producing countries.

Others face investor flight after the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates in December for the first time in nearly ten years. The prospect of further rate hikes in the U.S. continues to attract cash there and has been one of the main reasons behind the dollar’s advance over the past few months.

Draghi said some emerging-market economies”remain vulnerable to an abrupt shift in risk sentiment” that could lead to tighter credit conditions and deal a further setback to global growth.

He added that inflation shows signs of weakening since the ECB met last — a key factor in deciding on stimulus, since the ECB is falling well short of its goal of an inflation rate of just under 2 percent. In the year to January, inflation stood at 0.4 percent.

“Inflation dynamics are also tangibly weaker than we expected in December,” Draghi said.

Analysts think the bank’s 25-member governing council could add to its 60 billion euros ($65 billion) in monthly bond purchases through March 2017, a step which pumps newly printed money into the economy.

It could also cut the rate on the deposits it takes from commercial banks from its current rate of minus 0.3 percent. The negative rate is aimed at pushing banks to lend money rather than hoarding it. (ap)

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

JAKARTA - The Indonesian government will implement certain safety aspects to meet all aviation safety standards in the first quarter in 2016.

This was said by the Special Envoy of the Minister of Transportation for the election of Members of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Indroyono Soesilo.

Indonesia has passed a test for ICAOs safety standards, namely the Universal Security Audit Programme (USAP), with a score of 94.5, Indroyono said here on Monday.

As for ICAOs aviation safety, namely the Universal Safety Oversight Audit Program (USOAP), Indonesia still has a score of 45.

“It means, we have to get a score

of 20 more to reach 60 and qualify,” he said.

This month, Indonesia will follow the safety test flight by ICAO and in March by the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration).

“God willing, we are confident of qualifying,” Indroyono said.

According to him, being a member of the Council of ICAO for 2016-2019 is very important for Indonesia after four unsuccessful attempts. He said Indonesia plays an important role in world trade, and four of the nine flight information regions (FIRs) are controlled from Cengkareng (Tangerang) and Makassar (South Sulawesi).

In addition, Indonesia has 237 airports, including 27 airports serving international flights.

“The country has 1,142 aircraft

with 17 scheduled airlines and 44 non-scheduled ones. We have the potential to become a member of the council,” he said.

The Director General of Civil Aviation, Ministry of Transportation, Suprasetyo, said the institution has implemented corrective actions as per a plan, covering a number of aspects of flight safety.

“The document in this regard has been submitted, in which we have answered 98 percent of 1,016 questions,” he said.

Suprasetyo is optimistic that Indonesia can qualify the safety standards set by the ICAO, covering licenses, operation, navigation, aircraft, accident investigation, airworthiness, and other regulations.

“We are optimistic to reach a score above 70,” he said. (ant)

JAKARTA - Indonesia has strongly condemned Frances plan to impose progressive tax on all palm oil-based products.

The countrys first deputy for maritime sovereignty, Arif Havas Oegroseno, said in a discussion with journalists here on Monday that the plan to impose such a tax has been included in a bill on bio-diversity passed by the French Senate on January 21.

“The palm oil tax included in the bill will become effective from 2017, and will amount to 300 Euros per ton for 2017, 500 euros per ton for 2018, 700 euros per ton for 2019 and 900 euros per ton for 2020 while the tax being charged now is 103 euros per ton,” he said.

Regarding palm oil used in food products, the bill sets an additional import tax of 3.8 percent while for kernels used for food products, it is 4.6 percent.

After 2020, Havas said the tax would be increased on an annual basis, as per the decision of the French ministry of finance.

“Strangely, the tax does not apply to rapeseed, sun flower, soy bean or vegetable oils produced in France. We consider this as a discriminatory act against Indonesia, which is the biggest producer of palm oil,” he said.

Havas said the French Senates tax policy was ostensibly to help fight deforestation and ecosystem damage.

The tax is also aimed at eradicating dangerous pesticides (parakuat), claimed to have been used in oil palm plantations across the world.

The tax is also in response to health scares such as heart attack and Alzheimer, for which palm oil is considered the culprit.

“We have submitted our objections to the French government through the French ambassador to Indonesia in a meeting this afternoon. We have also discussed the issue with Malaysia, which is also the initiator of the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries,” he said.

Havas said among the reasons for rejecting the French plan was the fact that France, Denmark, Britain, the Netherlands and Germany have signed an Amsterdam agreement stating that the five countries support sustainable

palm oil production practices.

“So on the one hand, they support us, but on the other hand, the French parliament punishes us with a high tax,” he said.

The Indonesian government, Havas said, considered the plan discriminatory because French vegetable oils are not taxed equally.

“This is a violation of the WTO obligations as well as of GATT 1994 agreement and the European Union market rules,” he said.

Havas said Indonesia has already adopted Indonesia Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) standard to encourage sustainable and environmental-friendly palm oil production.

“This tax is illogical because the Indonesian government has already carried out efforts to prevent deforestation. The government has also taken firm action against companies involved in recent forest fires. The CIFOR, a forest monitoring institute, has even stated that only 10 percent of the recent forest fires are related to oil palm plantations,” he said.

Regarding the use of parakuat pesticide, Havas considered the reason as invalid because the use of the pesticide has long been stopped.

About the reasons being cited for health scare, he said the claims are not true because these are not based on the results of a research research

by French institute Credoc.

“What is more ironical is that proceeds from the tax would be transferred to social security funds to subsidize farmers and French community members. It is very ironical because poor oil palm farmers in Indonesia will eventually end up footing the social security bill for the French people,” he said.

In view of that, Havas said the ministries of trade, industry and agriculture will undertake diplomatic efforts against the French government.

Along with Malaysia in CPOPC, Indonesia will also undertake diplomatic efforts to press for the withdrawal of the taxation plan.

“On March 15, the Senate and the Congress will take a decision on the bill. Before that, we still have time to conduct some diplomacy to convey our stance,” he said. (ant)

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Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Bali News

Test for 35-ton trucks successful

Decision to open bridge awaits meeting

NEGARA - Dangin Tukadaya Bridge that collapsed last Saturday is currently being repaired and will be traversable later this week.

The bridge already can already sustain one lain of traffic and as witnessed on Sunday (Jan 31), a 35 ton truck was able to cross the bridge without incident.

Chief of Jembrana Police, Djoni Widodo, along with representatives of the Bali Transportation Agency were onsite to review the bridge test on Sunday. A number of trucks, weighing from between 15 to 35 tons, tested the bridge’s ability to bare weigh. “From the trial by tonnage of 20 tons, the deflection reached nine millimeter, far from the maximum tolerance of four centimeters” said Division Head of Land Transportation at Bali Transportation Agency, Stanley Suwandi.

More than 12 cargo trucks weighing 35 tons each, were then tested on the northern side of the bridge and caused deflection of approximately 1 cm and the edges of the bridge were just as strong as the 3.5 meter sections of deck asphalt. Trucks coming from Java tend to be the heaviest as they transport cargo into Bali.

Guide rails for passing trucks were also installed by the The National Road Agency.

Although the test was successful, the bridge cannot be opened until Mondays’ meeting in which relevant parties such as the National Road Agency confirm that everything conforms to the standards. Stanley also added that: “before any truck passes over the bridge, the driver will have to present a receipt from the weighbride to ensure that their loads conform to regulation, regardless of which direct they are going in”.

Chief of the Jembrana Police, Gede Samudra Kerthiawan said that once the bridge is opened, cargo trucks will pass over the bridge one at a time, and other four wheel vehicles will likely be directed to use alternate routes on rural roads (kmb26)

Intense rains

Kintamani threatened by falling tress BANGLI - Following the recent heavy rains, road users are being warned of fallen trees along Kintamani-Singaraja and KintamaniKarangasem road strips. Head of the Bangli Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD), I Wayan Karmawan, said on Saturday (Jan. 30) that the BMKG weather bureau of Kintamani has warned that this region is most vulnerable to rain caused incidents such as falling trees, particularly along the aforementioned strips of road where many trees are already fragile.

“Indeed we must pay serious attention to this road section. Trees around here are very large and some are also fragile and subseptible to heavy rains and strong winds. Thus, motorists must be alert,” he said.

To anticipate the problem of fallings trees, Karmawan explained that the BPBD had coordinated

with the Forestry Agency to have many tress trimmed however the larger trees were left untouched.

Because the BPBD does not have the authority to trim trees, their hands were tied. Luckily, so far there have been no reports of falling tress, however the BPBD is still monitoring the situation.

Apart from fallen trees, landslides are also a threat, and 11 points have been identified as likely areas to experience such disasters.

Karmawan also explained that in order to expedite evacuation in case of disasters, coordination has been between the police, army and village officials. “We have disseminated relevant information to members of the community both orally and in written form and relevant agencies are ready to take action in the case of an incident,” he concluded. (kmb45)

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

International

International

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Travel insurer says sales soar on Zika fears

NEW YORK - Travel insurance sales for trips to Latin America have surged as vacationers consider scrapping their plans to avoid the rapidly spreading Zika virus, one of the top U.S. providers, RoamRight, told Reuters on Monday.

The bus is passing the temporary bridge in Dangin Tukadaya Bridge, Jembrana

IBP/File

Beam-shaped stones found in Tinggar Sari village SINGARAJA - Heritage objects were recently found in an archeological site in the area of Batur Gangsian Temple, Tinggar Sari village, Busungbiu.

Uniquely shaped 2 meter by 50 centimer stone blocks were found neatly arranged in a terraced formation and it is believed that these horizontally and vertically mounted stones have unrevealed historical value for North Bali.

Some of the stones form a neat pile and local residents have placed back and white checkers cloth on their ends. It is not yet known how many of the stone beams lay buried under the grass and soil here. What is known is that many temple and stone sites are used as sanctuaries and symbolize the god of prosperity.

Headman of Tinggar Sari, Ketut Perbawa, explained that so far stone beams have been found on a hilly area of some 4 hectares but that the origin of these stone beams is still unknown as there are no historical sources nor stories related to these findings. Perbawa said that is is unlikely that the stones were thus formed by nature as they seem to have been carefully place in a neat and orderly fashion.

It would appear that they were shaped and placed by human hands long ago. “The stones are stacked like this without any adhesive material and lay just

as they were found by local residents. Apparently the stones were thus arranged by people. We think that it is impossible that all these stone beams could be arranged so neatly by nature alone,” said Perbawa on Monday (Feb. 1).

Stone objects of ancient heritage are believed to belong to their own era of humans. Perbawa suspects that in antiquity there was a civilization that established a community here that far outdates Tinggar Sari village. “It may be that these stones were placed here because people wanted to build a temple or some such building. It seems impossible that so many beam shaped stones occurred naturally,” he said.

In the near future, Perbawa hopes to be able to create a historical record regarding the origin of the stone beams near Batur Gangsian Temple. He hopes that historians or archaeologists can come and inspect this ancient heritage. A brief history would be useful and could link the stones to the development of human civilization. “We hope that some research can be done related to the stone beams that can become a historical record. Many foreign visitors have already come to see these stones and enjoy Tinggar Sari waterfall,” he concluded. (kmb34)

The Maryland-based company, part of insurer Arch Capital Group Ltd, said revenue jumped 81 percent in January from a year ago for its “Cancel For Any Reason” policy covering trips to Zika-impacted areas in the Americas.

The rise provides an early insight into how traveler patterns are changing because of the mosquitoborne virus, even as airlines and hotel chains say it is too soon to tell whether Zika has dented bookings.

The World Health Organization on Monday called the virus, linked to thousands of birth defects in Brazil, an international health emergency that could infect as many as 4 million people in the Americas.

“We see that kind of growth when there is a terrorist attack or some other event that precipitates people thinking about protecting their travel costs,” said Linda Fallon, head of RoamRight and senior vice president of travel for the group’s Arch Insurance Company division.

RoamRight, ranked third by sales in 2015 on travel insurance comparison site Squaremouth, declined comment on how the boost would impact its profitability because it does not know how many customers will claim refunds and

therefore what losses it will incur.

For this reason, it also was too early to consider whether to charge customers more, Fallon added.

Parent Arch Capital does not disclose RoamRight’s total sales but reported group revenue of $932.6 million and net income of $64 million in the third quarter of 2015.

PEACE OF MIND

The “Cancel For Any Reason” policy, whose pricing has not changed in the past year, repays claimants 75 percent of all nonrefundable trip costs, from airfare and hotel to on-site tours and excursions, RoamRight said.

Top U.S. airlines are currently promising refunds for tickets to the region, although American Airlines Group Inc has limited the offer to pregnant travelers and their companions, while other carriers have specified a deadline for invoking the offer.

Fallon said vacationers were turning to insurance, not necessarily scrapping plans altogether, because they were not yet sure how the virus would impact them or how severe outbreaks would be at the time of travel.

“People are just looking to take precaution,” she said. “This gives people the peace of mind.”

REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino

Germana Soares holds her 2 month old son Guilherme Soares Amorim, who was born with microcephaly, near at her house in Ipojuca, Brazil, February 1, 2016. Brazil’s top health official said on Monday that the Zika virus outbreak is proving to be worse than believed because most cases show no symptoms, but improved testing should allow the country to get a better grip on the burgeoning public health crisis.

Since December 2015, RoamRight has seen a nearly 10 percent rise in orders for all its policies covering trips to the more than 20 countries and territories in the Americas impacted by the virus, it said.

Rival Tin Leg said it has not seen a significant increase in sales attributable to Zika but noted that canceling a trip because of concerns of the virus was not covered by its standard policies. It added the virus was “a major topic of

questions we receive from our customers.”

InsureandGo USA, Travel Insured International, AXA Assistance USA and Trip Mate did not immediately respond to requests for comment.(rtr)

Thai elephant gores Scottish tourist to death on trek

BANGKOK — A Scottish tourist has been gored to death by an elephant that he and his 16-year-old stepdaughter were riding on the resort island of Samui, Thai authorities said Tuesday.

Police Lt. Rotjanart Kiewjan said the animal threw Gareth Crowe and Eilidh Hughes to the ground during a trek on Monday. The elephant then gored Crowe with his tusk and stomped on him.

Thai news reports said the elephant became enraged after its trainer, known as a mahout, climbed off to take a picture of the tourists. Police think hot weather may have disturbed the 13-year-old elephant.

AP Photo The mahout, who is from Myanmar, An elephant dubbed Rambo but also called by his nickname Golf is chained to a tree on was also gored and Hughes was injured the resort island of Samui, Surat Thani Province, Thailand, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016. from her fall. Both were hospitalized.

There was speculation that the elephant might have been in a state of musth, when it becomes more aggressive during its mating cycle, but Cherdchai Jaroenwech of the Office of Livestock Development said that was not the case.

Cherdchai, who shot the elephant with a tranquilizer dart Monday evening, said it had been taken back to the corral of its trekking company owners, Island Safari, where it was attended to by its usual caretakers and showered constantly to cool off while remaining chained.

He said the elephant, dubbed Rambo but also called by the nickname Golf, will take a 15-day break from work and then be moved to another branch of the trekking company in either Krabi or Phang Nga.(ap)

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Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Technology

International

Alphabet comes before Apple as world’s most valuable company

SAN FRANCISCO — Alphabet now comes before Apple atop the list of the world’s most valuable companies.

The shift occurred in Monday’s extended trading after Alphabet, Google’s new parent company, released a fourth-quarter earnings report that highlighted the robust growth of the digital ad market.

Apple Inc.’s iPhone, meanwhile, is suffering its first downturn since it debuted eight years ago.

Alphabet Inc. earned $4.9 billion

on revenue of $21.3 billion in the fourth quarter. If not for employee stock expenses and certain other items, Alphabet said it would have earned $8.67 per share. That figure easily topped the average estimate of $8.10 per share among analysts surveyed by FactSet. The report provided the most detailed breakdown yet on the

profits pouring in from Google’s dominant search engine and ad network. (Google reorganized itself under Alphabet last October.)

Investors pushed up Alphabet stock $35.73, or 4.6 percent, to $806.50 in extended trading.

Based on that after-hours bump, Alphabet’s market value stood at $555 billion while Apple’s was at $533 billion, based on the most recent regulatory filings showing the company’s outstanding shares.

AP Photo/Mark Lennihan

Electronic screens post the price of Alphabet stock, Monday, Feb. 1, 2016, at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York. Alphabet, the parent company of Google, reports quarterly earnings Monday.

The rankings could quickly change again in regular trading Tuesday.

Apple’s stock has been sliding amid concerns over slowing iPhone sales. Meanwhile, Alphabet’s stock has surged by 45 percent since the end of 2014 when it was still trading under Google’s name.

The fourth-quarter report marks the first time Alphabet has spelled out the costs of running still-experimental businesses that are trying to do everything from eliminating human drivers to curing cancer.

Until now, Google chose to hide the expense of running those peripheral operations in its financial statement. The company’s opaque accounting made it difficult to know just how much profit Google reaped from its primary business — selling digital ads next to everything from search results to YouTube videos.

In the fourth quarter, Google produced an operating profit of $6.8 billion on revenue of $17.1 billion, after subtracting ad commissions.

That translates into a whopping profit margin of 40 percent. Apple registered an operating profit margin of 32 percent in its most recent quarter.

Meanwhile, Alphabet’s other companies together produced an operating loss of $1.2 billion on revenue of just $151 million. Alphabet labels that category “other bets.” For the full year, Alphabet’s other companies lost $3.6 billion on revenue of $448 million.

The optimism surrounding Alphabet stems in part from hopes that the company is developing more financial discipline as it discloses more earnings details. Google had

become known for its free-spending habits and reluctance to share information with analysts.

The change in sentiment coincided with Google’s hiring of a new chief financial officer, Ruth Porat, last May. Porat, a Wall Street veteran, has consistently signaled her intent to rein in spending.

Under the previous setup at Google, “things had always been a little muddy,” said Edward Jones analyst Josh Olson. “The hope now is that management will continue to show greater cost discipline.”

Porat signaled her resolve again Monday in a conference call with analysts. “Our priority remains revenue growth but that doesn’t give us a pass on a rigorous approach to expense management,” she said.

Google is also counting on advertisers to gradually pay more for marketing messages on smartphones. They still aren’t paying as much for mobile ads as on personal computers because ads on smaller smartphone screens strike many as less valuable. That’s one reason Google’s average ad rates, measured as “cost per click,” have been declining for more than four years.

In the latest quarter, Google’s cost per click fell by 13 percent from the same time in 2014. But Porat cited in increase in mobile search requests as one of biggest reasons that Google’s revenue rose by 18 percent from the previous year. As people increasingly search for information and shop on their phones, the company expects advertisers to ramp up their spending on smartphones, too. (ap)

Bali News

International

vince the social network to change its policies two years ago.

Watts said her group has found numerous cases of felons and minors who were able to buy guns on the site, including two cases in which the buyers used the guns to slay others. Representatives of two gun-owner rights groups, including the National Rifle Association, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Facebook had announced some restrictions on gun sales and advertising in 2014, saying it would block minors from seeing posts that advertised guns. But the social network did not ban private sales at that time.

Licensed firearms retailers can still promote their businesses on Facebook, but they aren’t allowed

to accept orders or make sales on the site.

A Facebook Inc. spokeswoman said the new policy arose from the company’s review of its rules following its recent efforts to encourage new forms of commerce on the site. Facebook expanded its digital payments service last summer, allowing users of its Messenger service to send electronic payments to other individual users.

“Over the last two years, more and more people have been using Facebook to discover products and to buy and sell things to one another,” Monika Bickert, who oversees Facebook product policies, said in a statement. “We are continuing to develop, test, and launch new products to make this experience even better for people and are updating

our regulated goods policies to reflect this evolution.”

Watts, however, said her group had urged Facebook to take stiffer measures, during a series of lowkey contacts.

“They were very, very open to our thoughts on policy and to the research we have been compiling,” Watts said. “I think they definitely saw this was an issue, but an incredibly complicated issue. I think that’s why it’s taken two years.”

Facebook, which is based in Menlo Park, California, cited the need to balance free expression with public safety when it announced the 2014 policy change in a blog post. At the time, some gun-control advocates complained Facebook didn’t go further, while news reports quoted a spokesman for the

National Rifle Association who declared victory over what he called a campaign to stifle constitutionally protected speech.

The latest policy drew praise Friday from Everytown for Gun Safety, a group formed by the merger of Watts’s organization with another group started by former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and from a leader of the Brady Campaign and Center to Prevent Gun Violence.

“It is simply too easy for virtually anyone to buy any gun they want online without a Brady background check,” said the Brady group’s president, Dan Gross.

“Facebook just took an important step in addressing that challenge and we call on others to follow suit.” (ap)

3

Foreign visitors directed to Gili Jemeluk tourism despondent

AMLAPURA - During a joint meeting with Commission I and the Transportation and Fire Agency of Karangasem, a few days ago, legislators from the Karangasem House of Representatives urged the executive branch of the House to immediately address the contentious issue of speed boats operating in Jemeluk Bay. Chairman of Commission I, Komang Sudanta, who led the meeting, added that many hoteliers in the region have been complaining about the damage that the speed boats at Jemeluk Beach are causing to marine biota.

Members of the local community have been working hard to preserve the coral reef and globe-shaped mailbox fish that are found in the waters near the beach. Many worry that the speed boats are disturbing and even killing off ornamental fish and other biota.

Legislators Komang Sartika and Nyoman Musna Antara revealed that tourism operators in the region have also been complaining about boat owners directing tourists to visit Lombok and the GIli islands.

Lured by promises of more beautiful scenery and more freedom, many visitors to Jemeluk Beach have been shortening the length of their stay. “In the past, visitors would stay for 4- 7 days, but now the beach is deserted because visitors are directed to the Gili islands,” explained Sartika.

It was also pointed out that such conditions mean that both tourism operators and the government of Kaangasem are loosing out and with boats operating without permission,

supervision, and unclear passenger manifests (registration), their is also the risk of serious problems. Apparently, even the rates for making the crossing are unclear. “In the case of an accident at sea, that involves foreign passengers, the government of Karangasem and our security forces will bare the burden of responsibility,” elucidated Sartika.

Musna and Sudanta emphasized that it is imperative that the fast boats that are presently serving the crossing from beaches in Karangasem to NTB, be properly organized and supervised. The government of Karangasem also needs to intervene for the sake of passenger safety.

Many people working in tourism have proposed that, if need be, a dock should be built at Peselatan Bay and that boats should be directed to operate from there.

Peselatan Bay, which is also known as Bebayu Beach has functioned as a port since long ago as evidenced by the presence of a temple to Ratu Subandar and wells along the waterfront.

Head of the Karangasem Transportation and Fire Agency, Wayan Sutapa, said that in fact there was already a plan to build a dock there with the express purpose of servicing visitors who want to enjoy marine tourism and that the wantilan hall at Jemeluk was to serve as a centre for water based tourism.

However after a new law was issued , the transportation agency no longer has jurisdiction over marine areas, only on land. “Authority over marines spaces has been returned to the central government,” said Sutapa. (013)

Facebook announces stricter policy on firearms sales

SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook says it’s cracking down on online gun sales, announcing Friday a new policy barring private individuals from advertising or selling firearms on the world’s largest social network.

The new policy applies also to Facebook’s photo-sharing service Instagram. It comes after gun control groups have long complained that Facebook and other online sites are frequently used by unlicensed sellers and buyers not legally eligible to buy firearms.

Facebook “was unfortunately and unwittingly serving as an online platform for dangerous people to get guns,” said Shannon Watts of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a group that launched a public campaign to con-

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

IBP/File Photo

Hundreds of Canggu customary villagers marched to Hotel Canggu Intercontinental on Sunday (January 31th) to expressed their grievances about their demands aving not been met by the hotel investor.

Demands still unmet

Hundreds of Canggu residents march to Hotel Intercontinental

CANGGU - Hundreds of Canggu customary villagers marched to Hotel Canggu Intercontinental on Sunday (January 31th) to expressed their grievances about their demands aving not been met by the hotel investor.

Jemeluk Beach

IBP/Budana

Residents began to gather at the wantilan hall of Pura Dalem Canggu at 07:30. After praying together, they marched to the hotel carrying a large banner that read: “Restore my street to its original condition.

Our street was never sold. Our street has been contracted.” the Canggu villagers also unfurled a banner that contained the 5 points of their demands: the dismantling of the breakwater that is too high, giving up part of the coastal land so that there can be a pathway to the temple, a remeasuring of the land boundaries so that ownership can be clarified and the restoration of the

road to its original condition so that the view of the beach is no longer blocked and the dismantling of the culverts that cross the road.

The mass of people, led by Canggu customary village authority Wayan Winaya, arrived at Hotel Canggu Intercontinental around 09:00. Local residents paced back and forth chanting : “”The investors have pledged to meet our demands.

But so far, our demands have not been met”.

Winaya said that the villagers will continue to hold demonstrations until their demands are met, including the rearranging the vil-

lage roads that have been arbitrarily laid down.

The management of the hotel finally received Canggu customary village representatives village Chief Wayan Suamba and North Kuta subdistrict head A.A. Yuyun Hanura Eny. In the meeting, Suamba gave the hotel until March 20th to heed the demands of the villagers.

“If the hotel does not take action to meet our demdns by March 20th, we will organize an even bigger protest. Sorry, if this blocks your road access,” he said.

Representative of the Intercontinental Canggu Hotel, Bagus Heri Purwanto, promised to convey the demands of the villagers to the boards of directors. “Obviously, we will convey this to the directors,” he said simply. (kmb27)

2

International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

COVER STORY Investment ...

From page 1

Between 2013-2014 there was a 13. 64 percent increase in investments and in 2014-2015 this number jumped to 53 percent representing about USD 364.18 million.

In 2014-2015 foreign investment rose 43.11 percent to USD 220.65

million and domestic investment rose 82.93 percent to USD 143.53 million.

“Data from the investment coordinating board (BKPM) shows that tourism has significantly drawn the interest of businesses and has not been shaken by political situations. Moreover, projections for the tourism sector are quite progressive although there are still many short-

comings, like tourism infrastructure, sanitation and health as well as the uneven distribution of ICT application,” explained Didien.

For this reason, Didien feels that product development needs to be strengthened and focus needs to be placed on improving the situation so that there is more confidence in deregulation and other plans of action that would make Indonesia

have confidence in its future.

“Room occupancy rates of star hotels in 27 provinces for December 2015 also rose 7.12 points from December 2014 to reach 57.25.

The Ministry of Tourism’s target for 2016 has risen to 20 percent to reach 12 million visitors. The number of hotels that presently exist could still accommodate this figure but should still be increased in an-

ticipation of a boom,” he said.

Didien reminded the Ministry of Tourism of the importance of security and safety as both of these can have a quickly destructive effect and massif impact on tourism. “I just got information from the Travel Fair Conference in Los Angeles, USA where it was made clear that security issues need to be taken seriously,” said Didien. (pts)

Tourism supports proliferation of child ‘predator’

EARLY this year, Bali is shocked by pedophilia cases in which 15 children have just been revealed as the victims and they are averagely ten years old. The perpetrator is Australian citizen with the initials RA, 70.

No doubt, foreign travelers coming to this Island of the Gods do not fully want to squander their money, but some also have different purposes.

This was also recognized by the Chief of Denpasar Police Criminal

Investigation Unit, Reinhard Habonaran Nainggolan. According to him, based on police statistics, chiefly the data in Denpasar Police, he categorized the sexual violence against children and women into two kinds. Firstly, the case involves

the victims, perpetrators and witnesses of Indonesian citizen, while in the second classification all the elements involved are foreigners.

Since Bali is a world tourist destination, then many foreigners also involve in the cases. “During my term in Criminal Investigation Unit (less than a year—Ed) there are more than ten cases involving foreigners. There are foreigners serving as perpetrators, victims and witnesses. The cases in-

clude sexual violence, sexual abuse and neglect of children,” he said.

Similarly, there are foreigners getting married to Indonesian citizen to bear children. After that, their relationship is not clear and the foreigners returned to their home country so that their children are neglected. “In Bali, many women married to foreigners. Sometimes their status is unclear so that it is vulnerable to separate. Ultimately

IBP/File Photo

Pedophilia cases in which 15 children have just been revealed as the victims and they are averagely ten years old. The perpetrator is Australian citizen with the initials RA, 70.

their children become victims,” said Reinhard.

Denpasar Police received the most reports about the cases. His institution has made prevention efforts by providing encouragement and counseling to prevent more child predators in Bali. “In the cases involving Indonesian citizen, the perpetrators or victims are mostly close relatives or neighbors. The most vulnerable is living at boarding house because they are often met. There are also teachers as culprit,” he said.

In dealing with such cases, according to him, his institution has a special unit namely the Women and Children Protection Unit (PPA). If belonging to large cases, it will be backed up by other units. “We are also making coordination with the P2TP2A Denpasar, National Commission on Children, KPAID and other stakeholders. In addition to handling cases professionally, we also want to enforce the rights of the children. If the synergy goes well, the case handling will run smoothly and is according to the rules,” he said.

In the future, he hoped the relevant agencies handling the presence of foreigners in Bali to more intensively monitor and make data collection. At least, their activities are monitored and controlled so that the cases like child abuse and other crimes can be anticipated. While parents, said Reinhard, must also tighten supervision against their children. “Never give children freedom without supervision because it would be bad. Moreover, when they are wrongly associating, it will be hazardous. We do hope all parties concerned with these cases to prevent it together. If all people are concerned, the moving space can be narrowed,” said this former police chief of North Kuta. (rah)

 Founder : K.Nadha,  General Manager :Palgunadi Chief Editor: Diah Dewi Juniarti  Editors: Gugiek Savindra, Daniel Fajry, Mawa, Sueca, Sugiartha, Yudi Winanto Denpasar: Dira Arsana, Giriana Saputra, Subrata, Sumatika, Asmara Putra. Bangli: Suasrina, Buleleng: Dewa kusuma, Gianyar: Manik Astajaya, Karangasem: Budana, Klungkung: Dewa Farendra. Jakarta: Nikson, Hardianto, Ade Irawan. NTB: Agus Talino, Izzul Khairi, Raka Akriyani. Surabaya: Bambang Wilianto.  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: 021-5357605 Jakarta Pusat. NTB: Jalam Bangau No. 15 Cakranegara Telp. (0370) 639543, Facsimile: (0370) 628257. Publisher: PT Bali Post

Activities

International

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

15

The Indonesian jewels of Jambuluwuk Hotels and Resorts

JAKARTA - Jambuluwuk Hotels & Resorts tremendously proud to present the jewels of Indonesia. Bursting the local spirit in every corner of its properties, Indonesian fully owned Jambuluwuk Hotels & Resorts continuously promote fortune from each districts.

In 2004 the first ever built Jambuluwuk Homestay, Jakarta was honored to serve the best with its sincere heart and kinship. The brand was popular within Japanese tourists who finally become its regular customers. “We bring only the treasure of our Indonesian heritage which consist of sincerity and kindness,” explains Marchella Purwanaika, Owner.

Carry on with the spirit of Indonesian heritage and kindness, Jambuluwuk Hotels & Resorts spread its wings and built the first resort, Jambuluwuk Ciawi Boutique Re-

sort, West Java. Looking at a picture perfect scenery of Mount Pangrango and Mount Salak, Jambuluwuk Ciawi Boutique Resort stands its service standard to glorify its guests. Located in the best location of Puncak, Ciawi, Tapos, the resort is perfect for family and corporate gatherings. Beautiful jogging track create a massive maze around the resort, beside the swimming pool, basketball and tennis court complementing your healthy lifestyle. Take your kids to the kid’s playground, while you enjoy your reading at the business center or library. And

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.

finally capture the most memorable laughters while you and your love ones enjoy the ride on ATV around the area.

Take your ride to the East Java at Jambuluwuk Batu Village Resort and Convention Hall. Stunning view from the altitude of 1100m above sea level with mountains, forest and hills around the city soothe your busy mind. Perfectly located adjacent to Bukit Agung Nusantara Emas which carries an important role in local tradition, makes our resort a perfect home for curious travelers who want to learn more about our heritage.

Preserving Javanese tradition in a modern way, Jambuluwuk Malioboro Boutique Hotel, Central Java springs an enjoyable stay.

Perfect location nearby sparkling Malioboro streets charmed with traditional street vendors selling knick knacks and traditional souvenirs, amusing traditional food

and beverages, street arts and performances, yet only three minutes from Keraton Yogyakarta capturing the lifestyle of majestic kingdom.

Easy to walk around or take Becak for sightseeing down town and enjoy the enchanting Yogyakarta.

It’s a luxury life on the island of Gili Trawangan! Oceano Resort Jambuluwuk Gili Trawangan, Lombok fascinates travelers with its inside-out beauty – gracious services and glorious island lifestyle.

Located on a secluded area in Gili Trawangan allows you to be back to your peaceful mind, yet you can easily take your bike to ride around and witness dazzling night life with street cafes and bars, cherish seafood, charming spas and massage.

Indulge yourself with the crystal clear ocean and fine white sand on your feet and luxuriate fresh wind blowing on your face.

Our latest home of Jambuluwuk Semiyak Boutique Hotel, Bali is

ready to present an elegance service.

Embracing a cosmopolitan lifestyle within eclectic architecture, designs and taste even makes the treasure in Indonesian beauty stands out.

Prime location in the midst of the most fashionable street in Bali give another charm to travelers with its vibrant nightlife, some best coffee shops, exhilarating massages and spas, yoga atelier, beaches and city life makes a perfect playground on your summer holiday.

Upcoming next in 2016, we are excited to welcome Jambuluwuk Thamrin, Jakarta and Jambuluwuk Dago, Bandung West Java. Through beautiful architecture and designs espouse with kinship and high class service, our properties hold the magnificent heritage of Indonesia.

Our hotels & resorts shall become a home to perpetuate the culture, tradition, art and beauty of nature of our legacy shield by sincere hearts we serve from Indonesia.

IBP/Courtesy of Jambuluwuk Hotels

IBP/Courtesy of Jambuluwuk Hotels

IBP/Courtesy of Jambuluwuk Hotels

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

16 Pages Number 28 8th year

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

Price: Rp 3.000,-

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

WEATHER FORECAST 23 - 32 Dps

Besting Bowie and Adele, Panic! at the Disco hits No. 1

LOS ANGELES — Debuting at No. 1 is certainly an accomplishment, but bumping artists like David Bowie and Adele down the music charts has Panic! at the Disco’s Brendon Urie simply gobsmacked.

e-mail: info_ibp@balipost.co.id online: http://www.internationalbalipost.com. http://epaper.internationalbalipost.com.

Wednesday, February 3, 2016 Nations discuss how to snuff out Islamic State in Libya Page 6

Foreign tourist, hotel occupancy and investments increase

Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File

Will Smith among NAACP Image Awards attendees and presenters

“That’s insane. I mean, to be in same sentence as anyone like that — I’m not worthy,” Urie said. “I was just floored!”

“Death of a Bachelor,” released last month, topped the Billboard 200 chart and sold 190,000 equivalent albums in its first week, according to Nielsen Music. It’s the fifth album and first No. 1 for Panic!, of which Urie is the only remaining original member after his band mates decided to leave the group over the years.

But the 28-year-old vocalist is loving life as a solo act.

He co-wrote the album’s songs and plays most of the instruments on the pop-rock project.

“It’s amazing because I don’t have to compromise or I don’t have to argue as much,” he said.

In an interview last week with The Associated Press, Urie discussed doing things his way on “Death of a Bachelor,” touring with Weezer and his eclectic inspirations, from Beyoncé to Frank Sinatra. (ap)

CHAIRMAN of the Indonesian Tourism Industry Association (GIPI), Didien Junaedi, recently said that he appreciates the Ministry of Tourism’s performance in 2015 and the increase in tourist arrivals last year that amounted to some 10.4 million people.

“Considering the pressure that that various incidents and natural disasters put on tourism last year, the numbers were quite good. I think that overseas promotions through media outlets has had a big influence as has the deregulation of visitor visas for 90 countries. Also the increase in scheduled and charter flight from countries with large tourist markets such as China,” said GIPI Chairman Junaedi on Monday.

GIPI, who oversees the Association of Indonesia Tour and Travel Agencies (ASITA), the Indonesia Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) and others engaged in the tourism sector, was quite excited because the atmosphere of the tourism sector is quite vibrant as seen by the increasing investments being made in hotel and restaurants.

LOS ANGELES — Will Smith doesn’t plan to be at the Academy Awards, but he’s scheduled to attend the NAACP Image Awards.

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People says the “Concussion” star is among the nominees expected to attend Friday’s ceremony at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Southern California.

Smith is up for the outstanding actor in a motion picture trophy alongside Abraham Attah, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael B. Jordan and Michael Ealy.

Some of Hollywood’s prominent African-Americans, including Smith and wife Jada Pinkett Smith, have said they won’t attend this year’s Oscar ceremony after a second season of all-white acting nominees. Other celebrities expected to attend and present NAACP Image Awards include Jordan, Viola Davis, Kerry Washington, Ice Cube and the cast of “Empire.” “black-ish” star Anthony Anderson is hosting. (ap)

Brendon Urie, of Panic! At The Disco, poses for a portrait on Thursday, Jan. 28, 2016, in Los Angeles to promote his latest album, “Death of a Bachelor,” released on Jan. 16.

Pharrell, Metallica part of Super Bowl concerts lineup

NEW YORK — The Super Bowl takes place a week before the Grammys, but the big game is rivaling the awards shows with a plethora of live concerts and on-site musicians, from the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Metallica to Pharrell and Skrillex.

Alicia Keys, OneRepublic and the Band Perry will perform at concerts on Saturday, Friday

and Thursday, respectively. Dave Matthews Band will take the stage Thursday and as part of the Sports Illustrated Experience, Iggy Azalea will perform on Friday, the same night Nick Jonas will perform at the annual “ESPN The Party.”

Lil Wayne and A$AP Rocky will headline the Maxim Party on Saturday, while Avicii, Elle King

and Travis Scott will perform at a Rolling Stone magazine party the same night.

Though Super Bowl 50 will be held at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, most of the concerts and parties will take place in San Francisco.

Fall Out Boy announced Monday that they will perform Friday during Verizon’s go90 Live free

concert series at The Regency Ballroom. The rock band, which has performed around the Super Bowl in the past, said performing ahead of the big game gives musicians the opportunity to gain new fans.

“People are there and they’re hyped for the Super Bowl, so it’s a chance to win people over, which is awesome,” frontman Pete Wentz said in an interview last week.

Skrillex and country singer Hunter Hayes are also part of the lineup for the go90 Live. Hunter and Skrillex will perform on Thursday and Saturday, respectively.

Metallica will perform at the AT&T Park the night before the big game, where the Carolina Panthers will take on the Denver Broncos and halftime show performers include Beyoncé and Coldplay. (ap)

Travel insurer says sales soar on Zika fears Page 13

5-year-old Afghan boy could get to meet Lionel Messi Page 8

REUTERS/Murdani Usman/Files

A woman selling souvenirs walks through Kuta beach in Bali June 5, 2008. The number of foreign tourist arrivals in Bali reached about four million in 2015, up 6.24 percent from 3.76 million recorded in the previous year.

Continue to page 2 Investment ...

Foreign tourist arrivals up 6.24 percent

DENPASAR - The number of foreign tourist arrivals in Bali reached about four million in 2015, up 6.24 percent from 3.76 million recorded in the previous year.

Most of the foreign tourists used the Ngurah Rai International Airport to enter Bali, Adi Nugroho, head of the Bali Central Bureau of Statistics, stated.

Only 77,886 tourists arrived in Bali through its seaport aboard cruise liners.

In December 2015 alone, Bali recorded 370,640 foreign tourist arrivals, an increase of 6.70 percent from the same period last year, or

an increase of 36.8 percent over the November 2015 figure.

“The target of foreign tourist arrivals in Bali in 2015 has been achieved, but the increase is relatively small,” he noted, adding that last year’s target was four million foreign tourists.

The minimal increase was due to the eruption of Mount Barujari in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, which forced the closure of Ngurah

Rai Airport for several times.

A total of 692 domestic and international flights were canceled due to the airport’s closures.

With regard to domestic flights, 183 arrival flights and 189 departure flights were cancelled.

In terms of international flights, 157 arrival flights and 163 departure flights were cancelled during the three-day shutdown of the Bali airport. The number of tourists from seven countries to Bali increased significantly, but at the same time, there was a decrease in arrivals from three countries.

Some 966,869 tourists arrived from Australia, a drop of 2.53 percent from 991,923 tourists recorded in 2014.

Despite the decrease, Australia remains on the top, constituting 24.16 percent of the total foreign tourist arrivals in Bali.

The number of tourist arrivals from Malaysia decreased by 15.60 percent and Singapore by 18.39 percent.

A rise in foreign tourist arrivals in Bali was recorded from seven countries, with a 17.43 percent increase in tourists from China,

4.96 percent rise in tourists from Japan, 31.95 percent from the United Kingdom, 4.64 percent from South Korea, 19.82 percent from the United States, 2.42 percent from France, and 8.81 percent from Taiwan. (ant) News can also be heard in “Bali Image” at Global Radio FM 96.5 from 9.30 until 10.00 am. Listen to Global Radio FM at http:// globalfmbali.listen2myradio.com or live video streaming at http://radioglobalfmbali.com and http:// ustream.tv/channel/global-fm-bali.