Edition Wednesday, December 13, 2017 | International Bali Post

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Wednesday, December 13, 2017

‘Shape of Water’ leads Globes nominees; risk-takers rewarded

LOS ANGELES - Hollywood’s long awards season began to take shape on Monday with Golden Globe nominations that rewarded risktaking and shone a spotlight on veterans and newcomers alike.

Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro’s “The Shape of Water,” a magical drama about a relationship between a strange river creature and a mute cleaner, collected a leading seven nods, including best drama, and director and acting nominations for Sally Hawkins, Octavia Spencer and Richard Jenkins.

“Above all, ‘The Shape of Water’ is about love overcoming fear and embracing the Other,” Del Toro said in a statement.

“The Post,” Steven Spielberg’s pertinent drama about press freedom, followed with six nominations. The other nominees for the top best drama prize are British World War Two tale “Dunkirk,” gay romance “Call Me By Your Name” and the quirky dramedy “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.”

The Golden Globes are chosen by about 90 journalists belonging to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, but they often foreshadow picks for the Oscars, the movie industry’s highest awards.

“The Shape of Water” and “The Post” are also among front-runners for Oscars in March. the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) announces its own nominations on Wednesday.

“Call Me By Your Name” took 10 years to get made.

It also brought first-time Golden Globe nominations for actors Timothee Chalamet, 21, and Armie Hammer, 31. Chalamet also appears in another Golden Globes

contender, “Lady Bird,” though he was not nominated for that role.

The Italian director of “Call Me By Your Name,” Luca Guadagnino, in a statement called it “a great cinematic romance that challenged conventions and proved that love is love.”

Mother-daughter comedy “Lady Bird” got four nods, including for its star, Saiorse Ronan, and Laurie Metcalf, in her supporting role as the title character’s mother.

However, first-time director Greta Gerwig was snubbed in an all-male list for that category.

Other best comedy or musical film nominees included James Franco’s “The Disaster Artist,” about the making of the 2003 box office bomb “The Room; “Get Out,” a satire on modern race relations set within a psychological thriller, the P.T. Barnum musical “The Greatest Showman” and the ice-skating mockumentary “I, Tonya.”

Australian actress and producer Margot Robbie, in her first Golden Globe nod, also was nominated for her starring role in “I, Tonya,” which tells the story of Tonya Harding and the infamous 1994 attack on rival U.S. figure skater Nancy Kerrigan. Allison Janney was nominated for playing Harding’s mother.

“There were a lot of people who said this project was impossible to make. I’m really glad we didn’t listen to them,” Robbie, 27, told Reuters.

Movie studio Twentieth Century Fox and its Fox Searchlight unit for independent film dominated the nominations, sharing a total of 27 nods.

British actor Gary Oldman, 59, said he was “amazed, flattered and very proud” of his first Golden Globe nomination for his role as British wartime leader Winston Churchill in “Darkest Hour.” (rtr)

REUTERS/File Photos

Nominees for the 75th Golden Globe Awards, Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy category, (L-R) Judy Dench, Margot Robbie, Saoirse Ronan, Emma Stone, and Helen Mirren are seen in a combination of file photos.

REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth/File Photo

British publicist Max Clifford gestures as he arrives at Southwark Crown Court after a break for lunch, London, Britain, April 23, 2014.

Former British celebrity publicist Max Clifford dies in prison

LONDON - Britain’s bestknown publicist, Max Clifford, died on Sunday after collapsing in prison, where he was serving an eight-year sentence for indecently assaulting teenage girls in the 1970s and 1980s.

Britain’s justice ministry said he had died in hospital. “As with all deaths in custody there will be an investigation by the independent Prisons and Probation Ombudsman. Our condolences are with Mr. Clifford’s family at this difficult time,” a prison service spokeswoman said in a statement.

The BBC said it understood that the 74-year-old had collapsed in his cell on Thursday while trying

to clean it, then again the following day.

Clifford’s conviction in 2014 was the first from an inquiry into historical sex abuse triggered by reports that the late BBC TV presenter Jimmy Savile had been a prolific sex offender for decades.

Clifford, whose clients had included TV music mogul Simon Powell and U.S. boxer Muhammad Ali, was found guilty of eight counts of indecently assaulting four girls aged 14 to 19 between 1977 and 1984.

He had denied all charges, saying the allegations were “utterly repulsive” lies by fantasists and opportunists. (rtr)

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Wednesday, December 13, 2017

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Antara Foto/Fathulrahman/ via REUTERS

A medical officers vaccinates a child for DPT (Diphtheria, Tetanus and Pertussis or Whooping Cough) in Serang, Banten province, Indonesia December 11, 2017 in this photo taken by Antara Foto

Indonesia races to contain diphtheria outbreak ahead of 2018 Asian Games

JAKARTA - Health authorities in Jakarta kicked off a special immunisation programme on Monday to rein in an “extraordinary” outbreak of diphtheria that has sparked concerns about the Indonesian capital’s readiness to host the Asian Games next June. Diphtheria cases have spiked 42 percent since last year, health officials say, with at least 32 deaths and more than 590 cases recorded across the archipelago, the bulk of them in densely populated Jakarta and neighbouring provinces.

“If we have an extraordinary event like this, it might mean the Asian Games would not be a success and that could become a burden for us in the health department,” Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan told reporters at the

programme launch.

Diphtheria is a bacterial infection that spreads through close physical contact or through the air and can be fatal. Symptoms include fever and a sore throat, and the airway can sometimes become

blocked.

On Monday, dozens of mothers lined up for their toddlers to receive free jabs at a clinic in west Jakarta.

The program will be rolled out to other provinces in coming weeks.

Experts said the vaccination programme was necessary and welltimed because of the risk of the disease spreading out of control at an event like the Asian Games, which is expected to draw hundreds of athletes from dozens of countries.

“Events like that have mass gatherings that make it easy for the disease to spread, so it is important now to provide as much (immu-

nisation) coverage as possible,” said Dr. Vinod Bura, the acting representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Jakarta.

Worrying signs that the disease might spread included rejection of vaccinations by some people and a lack of access to healthcare, health officials and experts said.

“There are those who say (vaccination) is not good, but we must emphasize that this is beneficial,” Health Minister Nila Moeloek said at the launch. “If the benefits outweigh the disadvantages, this is a necessity.”

Rates of diphtheria in Indonesia

are among the world’s highest, along with India and sub-Saharan African countries, even though vaccinations have helped reduce global cases over the past 30 years. The WHO recorded about 7,000 cases around the world last year, down from 100,000 in 1980. (rtr) 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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Bali News

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

BKSDA to build art stage at Toya Bungkah To encourage tourists to linger longer in Kintamani

BANGLI - The Natural Resource Conservation Agency (BKSDA) of Bali is in the process of establishing a stage for cultural performances at the Nature Tourism Park (TWA) near Toya Bumgkah, Kintamani as a way to encourage tourists to linger longer in the area.

With tourists spending longer amounts of time in the region, the people in the surrounding communities can increase their economic welfare.

Head of BKSDA Bali, Suharyono, When met amid the cycling activities on Sunday (Dec. 10) , Head of BKSDA Bali, Suharyono revealed that tourists tend to make short trips to Kintamani – mostly to climb Mount Batur. “All this time, the tourists coming here for mountain climbing commonly arrive at 3 o’clock in the morning at depart at 8 o’clock. We want them to stay longer in Kintamani”, he explained.

The new performing arts stage that will be called ‘the Dewi Danau Batur Art Stage’, will be as the venue for traditional performing arts such as Kintamani’s a cappella singing known as genjek. “These performances will be included in tour packages that will have tourists arrive in the afternoon to watch the show, rather than arriving at night just before climbing the mountain. This way tourists will stay here longer and benefit the local community”, he explained.

According to Suharyono, tourists will want to stay longer in Kintamani if they feel at home. This in turn will benefit the local economy. “ For example if someone is visiting for just a few hours, they may only buy one drink, whereas if they are here longer they may buy more and even become interested in local crafts and such”, said Suharyono.

Meanwhile, Regent of Bangli, I Made Gianyar, when met at Toya Bungkah last Sunday expressed his appreciation for the stage being built by the BKSDA, adding that road access, tourism related facilities and amenities as well as clear tourist attractions are needed for tourism in the area to be able to flourish. The performing arts stage also needs to feature interesting performances if they want to attract more tourists. “If the performances are monotonous tourists will be bored and will not want to return”, said Regent Gianyar.

Regent Gianyar also plans to invite the BKSDA to further discuss the management of tourism in Kintamani. He also expressed his desire to create a governing body for tourism in oder to to the maximis the potential of tourism in the area. (kmb40)

IBP/file

International

Road widening at Jimbaran intersection could be delayed

Due to land aquisiton challenges MANGUPURA - The plan to widen the road at the Jimbaran intersection in South Kuta is threatened which delays as eight land owners have yet to agree on a price for the acquisition of their land by the government. On November 15th, the Badung Punlic Works and Spatial Planning (PPTK)’s Technical Implementation Officers approached the landowners with an offer, however the landowners asked for a week’s time to consider the offer. .

Then, on November 21, the PPTK met again with the landowners who rejected the appraisal of IDR 10 million per square meter (IDR 1b billion per 100 square meters). “The land owners are asking to be compensated the same amount for their land as land owners in Tuban had been”, said. At that time, the landowners rejected the price set by the appraisal team at IDR 10 million per square meter or IDR 1 billion per 100 square meters. “The landowners request the same land price as in Tuban,”, said Dharma.

Surya Dharma however has responded by saying that that the IDR 10 million per square meter is the highest price that the appraisal team has accorded to this land.

Originally they were indeed offered IDR 900 million 100 square meter but the appraisal team them reviewed this price and raised it to 1 billion per 100 square meters. “ We cannot offer a higher price than that is the price assessed to be fair by the appraisal team. We work according ot the rules and prevailing bases by which the

appraisal value is used to quote a price”, said Dhrama.

Because the land owners did not agree to the price offered, they were given another week to discuss the matter. If they agreed the money would have been disbursed immediately. However without agreement, the matter goes to the district court. “Whatever the court decides, the money for the land acquisition will be entrusted to the court to disburse”, he added.

Head of PUPR Badung, I.B. Surya Suamba, confirmed on Sunday (Dec. 10) that the 14 day window for discussion since the first meeting on November 21th had closed and that according to regulations, the lack of agreements means that the matter must be taken to the distict court. Any objections from affected parties should likewise appeal to the court for clarification. “ Th district government of Badung’s Administrative Affairs Office will respond to the letter sent by the affected communities as soon as possible”, concluded Suamba.

The road widening project in Jimbaran is included as part of the same project as the planned underpass at the intersection at the Ngurah Rai Monument in Tuban, However, the determination of land prices for the people whose land would be affected in conducted by a different appraisal team that the one that determined land prices in Tuban. The price for land in Tuban has been appraised at IDR 2 billion per 100 square meters, while at the land Jimbaran has been appraised at IDR 1 billion per 100 square. (kmb23)

Studies on golden triangle port targeted to complete in 2018

SEMARAPURA - The plan to build a golden triangle port in three locations to connect sea transport from Klungkung mainland to Nusa Penida Islands continues to roll out.

Moreover, this has been discussed for several times by district government of Klungkung. Besides, this plan is considered to have received support from the community. In line with that, the implementation of technical review continues to be finalized by district government. Overall, it is targeted to be completed in 2018. Head of the Klungkung Transportation Agency, I Nyoman Sucitra, revealed it on

Monday (Dec. 11).

The construction has been confirmed at Pesinggahan village, Dawan and Sampalan hamlet, Batu Nunggul village, Nusa Penida with respectively spreading across 5,000 square meters. In addition, another port is located at Bias Munjul, Lembongan village, Nusa Penida, with a land area of 5,200 square meters. Among them, only the port at Sampalan has been entering the discussion on the DED finalization, while the others are still in feasibility study. “This also needs environmental management effort (UKL) and environment

monitoring effort (UPL). The entire study is targeted to have completed by 2018. Afterwards, it has led to development,” said Sucitra.

Realization of the development requires a budget of about IDR 155 billion. For district government, it is quite fantastic and difficult to be fulfilled with regional budget (APBD).

“Therefore, we will propose to get assistance to provincial and central government. It is very difficult for the regions,” he explained.

He also stated the plan had received a positive response from the community. It is indicated by the results of questionnaire having been

disseminated. “It received good responses and got support,” he added.

One of the responses was delivered by Chairman of the Indonesia Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) of Klungkung, Wayan Kariana. The development is believed to have an impact on increased tourist arrivals. “If the district government has such a plan, we are very supportive, not just a plan,” he said.

He said when visiting Nusa Penida, tourists are still go up and down through traditional port. This has not been fully supported by adequate facilities. At least, such conditions will affect their com-

fort. “Now, they have to get wet.

At some places, some passengers use porter, but it will cost more,” he explained.

Through the seaport, the data collection of visiting tourists can be made easier. Unlike in the current condition, it is unknown for certain because there are many entrances.

“Honestly, so far we have not owned the data on tourist visit. With the presence of centralized port, the arrival will be more centralized so we can know the condition of visit,” said the newly appointed PHRI chairman on October 23, 2017. (kmb45)

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International

Activities

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

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Italian White Truffles at MÉTIS Bali MÉTIS Bali invites you to savour one of the seasons most anticipated and sought-after indulgences, the Italian White Truffle imported all the way from Alba in Italy. Chef Dove Sudarsana will provide an exquisite take on the rare Italian delicacy for an unforgettable experience at MÉTIS for the festive season. 1 gram of freshly shaved White Truffles will be served with Free Range Organic Poached Egg, Warm Green Asparagus, Organic Grass Fed Beef Carpaccio, Tagliatelle Pasta, Carnaroli Risotto and Hokkaido Scallop Ravioli. Extra shaved White Truffle can be added to your table upon request by the Chef at an additional Rp. 110.000++/ grams. Dining at MÉTIS is always a pleasure, a treat for the senses with a unique ambience that combines the beauty of art and nature, artistry of fine food and drink, and pleasure of jovial company. Jl. Petitenget No.6, Seminyak Bali | Ph: +62 361 847 5472 |www.metisbali.com EVERY MONDAY Movie Monday19:00-21:00 Genius Cafe- Home to the entrepreneur Beach CLub Mertasari Beach (Next to Mercure), Sanur EVERY TUESDAY Ecstatic contact dance: Transformative journey Paradiso Ubud, Jalan Goutama Selatan, Ubud 100k includes dinner EVERY WEDNESDAY DEep Dive Dance Guided improvised movement 19:00-21:00 Paradiso Ubud Jalan Goutama Selatan, Ubud 100k EVERY THURSDAY African Drums with Catur SAng Klang Wijaya 16:00-18:00 Experience the healing power of drumming, all levels welcome

BY DONATION SUNDAY MARKETS 10AM 1PM Sunday Market at Batu Jimbar Jl. Danau Tablingan , Sanur 10AM-4PM The Sands Beach Club and Restaurant Sunday MArket Jl. Danau Tamblingan, No 27, Sanur 9:30AM-1PM Sunday Market @ Warung Sopa Jl. Sugriwas no36, Padang Tegal, Ubud 9AM-2PM Samadi Sunday Market Jalan. Padang Linjong 39, Canggu, 9AM-2PM Wednesday and Sunday Ubud Organik Market Jl. Raya Pengosekan across from Zens Hotel Tebesaya, Ubud 12PM-10PM Sunday Food Festival & Bazaar Byrdhouse Beach Club, Sanur 10AM-6PM, Mercure,last sunday of every month, jl. ,Mertasari, Sanur, fashion food and and kids activities The Coffee Spot, Jalan Peigenet 888X,Seminyak, last Sunday of every month, garage sale clothing, books, and hand-made jewellery

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Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Technology

International

Bali News

International

Phones for urns: Hong Kong turns to virtual reality to honour ancestors

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

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HONG KONG - A lack of space for cemeteries in crowded Hong Kong clashes with the age-old Chinese tradition of reverence for one’s ancestors.

REUTERS/Bobby Yip

Anthony Yuen, CEO of iVeneration.com, demonstrates an augmented reality graveyard at his office in Hong Kong, China.

But one entrepreneur uses virtual reality software to reconcile the two, allowing people to honour Confucian traditions of filial obligation in the territory where it can cost up to $130,000 to store the ashes of loved ones.

Anthony Yuen’s firm, iVeneration.com, offers users the ability to create virtual headstones anywhere in an augmented reality landscape of Hong Kong, including such unlikely places as a downtown park.

Apart from the cost savings, Yuen expects his business model to appeal to more eco-conscious young residents.

“The dead are taking so much more space than those who are still alive, as those buried use that piece of land for many years,” said Yuen, as he manipulated his mobile telephone to correctly position a candle in front of a virtual headstone.

“For those who are still alive, they won’t stay on the same piece of land forever.”

Yuen, who hopes to launch the website to the public in the first quarter of 2018, has already attracted 300 users.

Filial piety, or respect for parents and older people, is a paramount virtue in the Confucian tradition.

“We need to educate the next generation on filial piety, no matter how you show it, as long as it comes from the heart,” Yuen added. “We think the next generation might use these services for their parents.”

Alex Lee, a 46-year-old employee of a technology company, uses iVeneration to pay his respects to his departed grandfather.

“Everyone is aware the lack of land is a problem in Hong Kong and the government has been encouraging green burial,” said Lee, as he leafed through an album of family photographs.

“For me, you don’t have to go to a thing to remember those passed away, it’s all in your heart.” (rtr)

Trump wants to send U.S. astronauts back to moon, someday Mars

WASHINGTON - At a time when China is working on an ambitious lunar program, President Donald Trump vowed on Monday that the United States will remain the leader in space exploration as he began a process to return Americans to the moon.

“We are the leader and we’re going to stay the leader, and we’re going to increase it many fold,” Trump said in signing “Space Policy Directive 1” that establishes a foundation for a mission to the moon with an eye on going to Mars.

“This time, we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint, we will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars,” Trump said. “And perhaps, someday, to many worlds beyond.”

Back in June, China’s space official said the country was making “preliminary” preparations to send a man to the moon, the latest goal in China’s ambitious lunar exploration program.

Trump’s signing ceremony for the directive included former lunar astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Harrison Schmitt and current astronaut Peggy Whitson, whose

665 days in orbit is more time in space than any other American and any other woman worldwide.

The ceremony also featured a moon rock 3.8 billion years old collected by Schmitt’s Apollo 17 mission in 1972.

Trump said he was taking a giant step toward “reclaiming America’s proud destiny in space.”

“And space has so much to do with so many other applications, including a military application,” he said without elaboration.

In approving the new policy, Trump abandoned what had been a goal of his predecessor, Democrat Barack Obama, who in 2010 backed a plan to send humans to a near-earth asteroid.

NASA said initial funding for the new policy would be included in its budget request for fiscal year 2019.

“NASA looks forward to supporting the president’s directive strategically aligning our work to return humans to the moon, travel to Mars and opening the deeper solar system beyond,” said acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot in a statement. (rtr)

Volcanic ashes of Mount Agung eruption caused trees and gardens of residents, especially in disaster-prone area (KRB) III, to wither and molt.

IBP/kmb

In the KRB area, volcanic ashes only leave cassava

AMLAPURA - Volcanic ashes of Mount Agung eruption caused trees and gardens of residents, especially in disaster-prone area (KRB) III, to wither and molt. Virtually there are no crops that can be harvest except the cassava and sweet potatoes. This condition was seen when the village non-commissioned military (Babinsa) and police officer (Babinkambtibmas) of Jungutan village, Bebandem, patrolled several hamlets on Monday (Dec. 11).

Police officer I Made Suda and military officer I Nyoman S patrolled into the hamlets in the danger zone. In addition to encountering some residents that admitted to come home for checking their house condition, the patrol also found some residents harvesting cassava, yam taro and sweet potato.

Unfortunately, they are not the main crops in the area but

only serve as substitute for rice and only pose a byproduct because local community usually cultivates seasonal plants.

A resident of Jungutan, Ida Bagus Made, 45, said the people of upper Jungutan area such as Kubu Pangi, Pangleg and Yeh Kori expect much from their avocado gardens. During the season, farmer can harvest IDR 3 million per tree.

Avocado fruit is usually sold to merchant directly in the trees.

“Most collectors are from Bangli,” he said.

When their gardens were swept away by volcanic ash rain, according to Ida Bagus Made, for a while farmers cannot expect from the avocado garden. Volcanic ashes make avocado leaves even wilted. The only harvestable plantation is tubers. “Currently the residents of Jungutan are evacuating while their livestock have been sold,” he said.

Volcanic ash rain culminating when the eruption occurred on November 25 also affected the reservoir of Yeh Kori.

Village non-commissioned police and military officers at Jungutan also checked the location. “The reservoir of Yeh Kori remains to contain water but mixed with mud and volcanic ashes,” said Ketut Sukrada from 1623 / Karangasem military district.

Responding to the phenomenon of residents of the disaster-prone area III coming home during the day, the Karangasem district military through the military region officer continued to give dissemination. An officer of Selat military region, I Wayan Mustika, visited the evacuation post at Pakel and Sanggem hamlet, Sangkan Gunung village, Sidemen.

Both hamlets are used as refugee post of Sebudi village residents, Selat, totally amounting to 120 families (427 people).

The military officers gave motivation to refugees so as to be patient and not to return home by force during Mount Agung remains in warning alert status. (kmb)

Mixed marriage faces challenges in property ownership

REUTERS

President Donald Trump vowed on Monday that the United States will remain the leader in space exploration as he began a process to return Americans to the moon.

MANGUPURA — The couples of mixed marriage (Perca) between Indonesian and foreign citizen all this time are faced with difficulty in property ownership in Indonesia. It happens because most Indonesians do not have time to make a marital agreement before marriage. Constraints then occur when applying for bank loans or a legal problem with developers when buying property. Similar problem will be encountered when the owner will sold the property. The couples of the Indonesian citizen must degrade the right of property into the right to use as foreigners do.

Coordinator of Bali Mixed Marriage, Ni Putu Marina Eka

Puspasari, said that as civilians she considered the government is not fair because her marriage to a man with a foreign nationality is made difficult to own property.

“Those that do not have a marriage agreement face troubles for years,” she said on Saturday (Dec. 9) at the Year End Gathering of Mixed Marriage Society.

Many couples of mixed marriage have not owned marital agreement yet because the lack of information. Besides, the government rarely provides dissemination when local citizens married to foreigners.

The problem was then filed to the Constitutional Court of the Republic

of Indonesia in 2015 by the advocate and lawyer team of the mixed marriage society, Ike Farida. The court then decided that every couple can make a marital agreement before or during the marriage takes place.

Chairperson of Perca, Juliani W. Luthan, said that currently her party as the organization of Mixed Marriage Society considered the Decision No. MK. 69 / PUU-XIII / 2015 issued in 2016 an important breakthrough. “Our difficulty to own property due to not having a marital agreement can now be overcome,” she said.

Verdict of the Constitutional Court provides flexibility for mixed marriage couples. With this deci-

sion, the marital agreement can be made when the marriage takes place and applies throughout the marriage. “Those that have not owned yet the marital agreement can make it now,” she explained.

Marital agreement is basically meant to separate property of Indonesian citizens and their foreign partner so that there is no mixing of treasure. “Since the agrarian law of the RI upholds the principle of nationality, it prohibits the existence of foreign elements mixed as joint property in marriage, in the property ownership,” she said.

With the presence of agreement separating the property, the treasures will become separated

legally. So, Indonesian citizens can more freely get the right of ownership or right to building use.

However, currently a new challenge emerges namely many third parties (banking and developers) still do not understand about this new provision. “Perca organization will always encourage the dissemination and understanding of the Constitutional Court Decision as well as guard the implementation in the field. Moreover, a Circular was issued in 2017 by the Director General of Population and Civil Registry and the Director General of Islamic Community Guidance to arrange this marital agreement,” added Juliani. (kmb42)

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Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Bali News

Two students drowned in Tembok Barak waterfall when trekking

SINGARAJA — Unlucky fate was experienced by two students of SMK Kesehatan Widharba health vocational school at Sangket hamlet, Sukasada. While trekking to the location of Tembok Barak waterfall, Sambangan village, Sukasada, on Monday (Dec. 11), both students died due to drowning in the plunge pool. Both students are Luh Devi Cahyani, 17, from Sidamiu hamlet, Pegadungan, Sukasada, and Kadek Dwi Asmarani, 17, from Tukad Sumaga village, Gerokgak.

In addition to both dead victims, another male student, Darmayasa, survived after being helped by the trekking companion.

As information compiled at the scene, the accident occurred around 11:00. A total of 25 students and accompanying teachers did the trekking to fill their semester break period and arrived at the waterfall around 09:00 Local Time. At the waterfall, some students had activity around the waterfall. Meanwhile, both female victims and Darmayasa walked on the edge of the waterfall puddles.

Not long after, the three students were found waving hands amid the waterfall puddle known to have an adequately torrent stream. The other students panicked and shouted for help. At that time, the male student only could be rescued, while the other two victims could not be helped and found drowned to death.

The incident made the surrounding residents frenzy.

Moreover, residents from other hamlets thronged the scene.

SAR officers and the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) together with residents directly searched them. Around 11:00 Local Time, both victims were found drowning at a depth of about six meters. Evaluation against the bodies of both victims became a spectacle to residents along the way passed through. When arriving on the road of Sambangan village, residents increasingly crowded to witness the victims’ body when taken into the ambulance of the PMI Buleleng and operating vehicle of BPBD. Many students joining the trekking shouted hysterically to faint after seeing the two victims. The students were immediately rushed to their school by ambulance.

One of the witnesses accompanying the trekking activity, Gusti Ngurah Agus Deni, claimed not to know exactly about the incident. He only saw both dead victims and one survived victim waving hands in the middle of the waterfall puddle.

Seeing the incident, he immediately tried to help. At that time, he only managed to help the male student. Meanwhile, both other victims failed to be helped due to swift flow of water.

Then, he asked the residents to look for two victims.

Around 11:00 Local Time, both victims consisting of Devi and Asmarani were found in dead condition. “Before the incident, I have warned the restriction of swimming and never reach up to one meter. I saw the victims walking in the west of the waterfall. Not long after that, I saw the girls waving hands in the waterfall. I helped and only the man could be survived, while the two girls were not found so then I asked for help to surrounding residents,” he said.

On the other hand, Deni said the trekking to Tembok Barak waterfall was based on the agreement of students.

Prior to carrying out the activities, he had also prayed for salvation. However, Deni did not think if the activities formerly intended to provide entertainment for students had even changed into disaster. “They are accompanied by two teachers. There are totally 21 students and added with the teachers, so they totally amount to 25 people. Selection of the location was already based on student agreement, and the companion teachers had appealed them not to be too close to the waterfall,” he explained.

Headmaster of the SMK Kesehatan Widharma, Gusti Putu Arsila, said the incident afflicted to his students was known after receiving information from the companion teachers. He claimed to have not been notified regarding the trekking activities at the Tembok Barak waterfall.

Moreover, the activity plan to fill the semester break was ever suspended because there were other school activities.

After asking for chronologies to companion teachers, the dead-end trekking was based on the initiative of the first, second and third graded students.

“I have not been notified and the companion teachers informed it is the initiative of the students. Previously, there was indeed a trekking plan but we have postponed because there was busyness. We have made coordination to parents of the victim from Pegadungan while the parents of student from Gerokgak cannot be contacted,” he said.

Until now, police are still investigating the incident by gathering witnesses’ testimonies. In the meantime, the victims’ body had been commended in mortuary of Buleleng Hospital. From the results of external examination, the victims died due to water influx to their lungs ending in the bleeding from nose. Meanwhile, no indications of violence were found on both bodies. (kmb38)

The victims’ body had been commended in mortuary of Buleleng Hospital.

IBP/kmb

International

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

International

Tourists reluctant to come to Bali due to discontinued policies

DENPASAR — The number of foreign tourists visit is predicted to continuously decline although the Ngurah Rai International Airport has resumed its operation after closed for three days due to eruption of Mount Agung. The discontinued policy of the government and related parties is blamed to be the scapegoat.

“Actually the policies of the governor related to provision of free one-night stay by preparing 300 vehicles or buses to get to the nearest airport are good. However, after tourists cannot leave when the airport was closed, it did not exist in reality,” said a member of PDI-P Faction of the Bali House of Representatives, I Nyoman Adnyana, in the work meeting between the governor and the Bali Parliament in the parliamentary hall on Monday (Dec. 11).

Adnyana added there was no free one-night stay at hotel for tourists.

Besides, they had to pay the bus transporting them to the nearest airport. This gave impression if the policies issued by the governor do not connect to the parties concerned.

Another problem is that tourists also seemed to be given incorrect statement by the government. “Particularly in China, there is no tolerance and cancellation of all flights to Bali,” added this Bangli-born politician.

Actually, continued Adnyana, the real action of the government can actually dismiss negative impressions from tourists. On the other hand, he understood the difficulties of the governor where at the time of airport he cannot disburse a disaster budget considering that time has not been set as a state of emergency.

Thus, it makes the executive difficult to help the cost of transportation, hotels, and others.

“I think if it had been done clearly, there will be a more positive response from tourists that Bali provincial government is really serious and takes real action for the people and tourists,” he explained.

A member of Commission II of the Bali House of Representatives, A.A. Ngurah Adhi Ardhana, said that foreign tourist arrivals from September to October dropped by 15 percent. This also affected the decrease in tourist arrivals nationwide by 5 percent. After the eruption during the period from November to December, this decline is predicted to reach almost 60 percent. Nationally, it nearly contributes as much as 25 percent of the decrease in tourist arrival.

Sluggish tourism sector in Bali should be taken seriously by central government. “We hope the governor can pass it to president in order to be present in Bali,” said this PDI-P politician.

Meanwhile, Chairman of Commission IV of Bali House of Repre-

One dead, 18 injured in fire at Austria’s main gas hub

sentatives, Nyoman Parta, said that foreign media should be involved to inform that Bali is safe to be visited.

It also includes foreigners remaining to stay in Bali. It is done to further grow the trust of foreign tourists coming to the Island of the Gods.

“Can they (foreigners in Bali— Ed) not be mobilized to come to around Mount Agung for taking photos or selfie, and so on,” said this PDI-P politician from Gianyar.

Back to farming

Governor of Bali, Made Mangku Pastika, did not want to drift in panic with the decrease in tourist arrivals as the businessmen did although he is aware that Bali is very dependent on tourism sector. It is necessary to prepare social safety net if the eruption of Mount Agung is sustainable.

Particularly, it is meant to anticipate the unemployment arising from the sector.

“Probably, it is a good moment for us to be back to farming. It is time for children that cannot work in tourism sector to go home and cultivate their land or breed chicken or duck,” he added. Pastika has been thinking to facilitate them in pursue farming. For example, they can use empty land owned by provincial government spreading throughout Bali. In Pekutatan area, for instance, it has 1,100 hectares or 600 hectares at Sumberklampok.

“We have a lot of empty land that can be cultivated. Or it can be give particular facilitation,” he explained.

Currently, continued Pastika, foreign tourists coming to Bali are dominated by Chinese tourists.

However, the local government has canceled all flights to Bali until January 31, 2018. “Chinese tourists, I think, have been ranked first, especially before the New Year. If they are still prohibited until 31 January, we’ll go bankrupt,” he explained.

Pastika admitted to be immediately inviting consul general in Bali. Chinese Consul General, in particularly, will be required to annul the cancellation of flights to the Island of the Gods. At least, it can take action like the embassies of other countries which is only issued travel advisory instead of travel ban. What Chinese government taken is now like travel ban.

On the other hand, the circle of tourism industry also asked the government of Badung to delay or waive the hotel and restaurant tax (PHR). “We are also asked to talk to the Financial Service Authority (OJK) on loans. Many small and medium enterprises in the disaster-prone areas pledged their certificates in bank and cannot pay both for loans in the field of tourism and others sectors,” he affirmed. (kmb)

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REUTERS/Tyrone Siu

An armed policeman guards the entrance as a prison car carrying British former banker Rurik Jutting enters High Court to launch his appeal, in Hong Kong, China December 12, 2017.

Former banker’s lawyer argues judge misled jury in Hong Kong double murder trial

HONG KONG - A lawyer for a former British banker who was jailed for life in Hong Kong for the murder of two Indonesian women he tortured and raped said on Tuesday that the judge who presided over the gruesome trial last year had misdirected the jury.

Rurik Jutting, 32, a former Bank of America employee, has applied for leave to appeal against his conviction in the former British colony’s Court of Appeal.

Jutting denied murdering Sumarti Ningsih, 23, and Seneng Mujiasih, 26, in his luxury apartment in 2014 on the grounds of diminished responsibility due to alcohol and drug abuse and sexual disorders.

The Cambridge-educated Jutting pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in a case that gripped the Asian financial hub.

The jury unanimously found him guilty of murder and he was sentenced to life in prison in November last year.

Jutting, dressed in a pale blue shirt, appeared calm and watched as his lawyer Gerard McCoy argued that the judge had “wrongly and prescriptively directed the jury”.

McCoy argued the judge had conflated an abnormality of mind with a psychiatric disorder.

“Abnormality of mind is abso-

lutely not confined to a disorder or a disease. Here the judge locks it down, reinforcing to the jury it is disorder,” he said.

“The ground of appeal is that the judge wrongly directed the jury as to the true meaning of abnormality of the mind,” McCoy said.

Deputy High Court Judge Michael Stuart-Moore said in strongly worded closing remarks at the end of the trial last year that the case was one of the most horrifying the Chinese-ruled territory had known.

He described Jutting as the “archetypal sexual predator” who represented an extreme danger to women, especially in the sex trade, and cautioned that it was possible he would murder again if freed.

Lawyers for Jutting, the grandson of a British policeman in Hong Kong and a Chinese woman, had previously argued that cocaine and alcohol abuse, as well as personality disorders of sexual sadism and narcissism, had impaired his ability to control his behaviour.

The prosecution rejected this, stating Jutting was able to form judgements and exercise self-control before and after the killings, filming his torture of Ningsih on his mobile phone as well as hours of footage in which he discussed the murders, bingeing on cocaine and his graphic sexual fantasies. (rtr)

VIENNA - An explosion and fire that ripped through Austria’s main gas pipeline hub on Tuesday killed one person and injured 18 others, emergency services said, causing Italy to declare a state of emergency due to a lack of gas supplies.

Gas Connect Austria, which operates the Baumgarten site in eastern Austria, said the blaze had been brought under control and police added that the cause was technical in origin.

“There was an explosion around 8:45 a.m. (0745 GMT) and a fire,” a police spokesman said. “A wide area has been sealed off and there are expected to be several injured.”

A spokesman for the fire brigade said one person had been killed and 18 injured, one seriously. A second police spokesman confirmed that 18 people had been injured.

Footage on social and other media showed a column of fire in the distance rising from a flat landscape.

The hub is important for European gas transit, with natural gas transported to Baumgarten via Slovakia and

Germany along several cross-border pipelines.

Gas flows are then delivered throughout Europe via Austria’s transmission network.

Gas Connect Austria said its deliveries to Austria’s southern and southeastern borders were affected by the blast until further notice.

Italy declared a state of emergency regarding energy supplies at the Austrian hub as its industry minister said the country had a “serious” energy supply problem.

Slovakia’s main gas transit route to Austria was suspended after the fire, Slovak pipeline operator Eustream said.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Gazprom Export said it was working on redirecting gas flows and trying to secure uninterrupted supplies to clients.

Gas prices in Europe soared on concerns about supply.

The Italian wholesale day-ahead price surged 97 percent to 47 euros per megawatt-hour, its highest recorded level.

In Britain, Europe’s biggest gas market, gas for immediate delivery soared 35 percent to 92 pence per therm, a level not seen since 2013. (rtr)

REUTERS/Heinz-Peter Bader

Smoke rises from Austria’s largest natural gas import and distribution station after a gas explosion in Baumgarten, Austria December 12, 2017.

12

International

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Bali News

International

WTO losing trade focus, too easy on some developing nations -U.S. status, which provides longer times to implement WTO agreements and more opportunities to boost trade.

Ahead of the meeting, the United States blocked efforts to draft a joint statement emphasizing the “centrality” of the global trade system and the need to aid development. Its opposition has raised concerns that the WTO will not be able to accomplish even modest goals, such as addressing fishing and agricultural subsidies, at the conference.

“We need to have a clear objective in mind,” European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said. “For the European Union, this is clear: to preserve and to strengthen the rules-based multilateral trading system.”

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, who has said he does not want major agreements out of the meeting, voiced concern that the WTO was becoming a litigationcentered organization.

“Too often members seem to believe they can gain concessions through lawsuits that they could never get at the negotiating table,” he said. “We have to ask ourselves whether this is good for the institution and whether the current litigation structure makes sense.”

Too many countries were not following WTO rules, he complained, and too many wealthier members had been given unfair exemptions as developing countries. “We need to clarify our understanding of development within the WTO. We cannot sustain a situation in which new rules can only apply to a few and that others will be given a pass in the name of self-proclaimed development status,” Lighthizer told the conference’s opening session.

He said five of the six richest countries claim developing country status at the WTO, without providing evidence to back up the assertion. A Lighthizer spokeswoman later said he was referring to the six countries with the highest gross domestic product per capita, according to International Monetary Fund measurements.

Five, including Qatar and Singapore, claim developing

SWIPES AT CHINA

Trump has indicated his preference for bilateral deals over the multilateral system embodied by the WTO. The United States has vetoed new judges for trade disputes, pushing the organization into a crisis. Several countries’ delegates criticized that delay on Monday, without mentioning the United States. South Korean Trade Minister Kim Hyunchong, whose resignation as a WTO appellate judge this year created one of the openings, said members should “promptly fill all the vacancies.”

“We need to collectively and expeditiously resolve this impasse,” Indian Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu told the conference. Lighthizer said it was impossible to negotiate new rules when many of the current ones were not being followed, and added that too many members viewed exemptions from WTO rules as a path to faster growth.

In a thinly veiled swipe at China’s trade practices, Lighthizer said the United States was leading negotiations to “correct the sad performance of many members in notification and transparency.” Japan’s Trade and Economy Minister Hiroshige Seko said Japan would support efforts to boost reporting standards.

The United States is backing the EU in its resistance to recognizing China as a market economy, arguing the govern-

ment unfairly intervenes in the economy. The case is before the WTO and a victory for Beijing could dramatically lower tariffs on imports of Chinese goods.

Chinese Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said on Monday that while trade protection was rising, no country would be able to succeed in isolation and that WTO rules were critical to protecting globalization. “Let us join hands and take real action to uphold the authority and efficacy of the WTO,” Zhong said. (rtr)

Wanagiri Tourist Attraction Draws Travelers

REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci

Swiss Economy Minister Johann SchneiderAmmann speaks at the 11th World Trade Organization’s ministerial conference in Buenos Aires, Argentina December 11, 2017.

U.S. yield gap near 8-month high as central bank meetings loom

LONDON - The gap between benchmark German and U.S. 10year bond yields was close to its widest since April on Monday as the fiscal and policy paths of two of the world’s most important

economies diverge. Monetary policy-setters for both countries are due to meet this week and though both economies are on the mend, the paths are expected to deviate as U.S. President Donald Trump

IBP/net

pushes a tax overhaul that could put the world’s largest economy at risk of overheating.

As a result, investors are starting to price in multiple rate hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserve in 2018, after an almost-certain hike this week. While pressure from the divergence is most pronounced at the short end of the yield curve -- the U.S. Treasury curve is close to its flattest in a decade -- longer-dated yields are also being impacted, particularly after the risk of a U.S. government shutdown last weekend was averted.

“Political risks are capping U.S. Treasury yields at the long end but ...three rate hikes (are still) expected next year,” said DZ Bank strategist Rene Albrecht. “The contrary is true for the euro zone.

The tendency is for lower rates

Until 2012, the mangrove forest in Bali spreads across the area of ??2,215.5 hectares located in Denpasar and four other districts.

Distribution of the mangrove forest in Bali can be found inside and outside protected forest areas. The mangrove forest located within the protected forest area has a total of 2,004.5 hectares, while the mangrove forest outside the area has a total of 211 hectares.

and I expect government bonds to consolidate at these levels going into the year end.” The European Central Bank in October extended its asset purchases until September 2018 and left the door open for keeping the taps flowing beyond that date.

Expectations are for the ECB to keep rates at the current low level until well into 2019, possibly until Mario Draghi ends his term at its helm. The gap between U.S. and German 10-year yields reached 208 basis points early on Monday, just off the 209 bps eight-month high hit earlier in December.

Most high-grade euro zone bond yields were flat to a shade lower on Monday, with Tradeweb prices showing 10-year Bund yields, the benchmark for the region, edging below 0.30 percent.

Analysts expect further downward pressure on euro zone yields in the coming weeks, as government bonds become harder to find with recent supply scarce and the ECB continuing to buy debt in large quantities.

“The bond scarcity trade that has been playing out in recent weeks, and caused a slow grind lower of euro zone yields, is set to continue in our view,” Mizuho analysts said in a note. “A (German two-year) Schatz redemption this week, and the early January Bund redemption coming into view are both factors reinforcing our conviction.” The Fed is due to meet Tuesday and Wednesday, with a press conference scheduled, while the ECB and the Bank of England meet on Thursday. U.S. inflation numbers are due on Wednesday. (rtr)

Wanagiri tourist attraction located in Sukasada subdistrict is now becoming an exotic tourist spot. Foreign or local travelers flock the location to relax. There are travelers taking photograph and selfie. Rural panorama like the Wanagiri Hidden Hill with its natural beauty, verdant hills and cool air makes the location feel cozy.

Manager of the Wanagiri Hidden Hill, I Ketut Kartika Yasa, said that this tourist attraction offers a shiplike platform extending to Lake Buyan. Buleleng society and visitors from other districts in Bali also like to visit this new destination.

Moreover, there are a number of people from Java as well as foreign travelers chiming to visit the location. “On holidays, the number of

Perhaps due to having multiple layers (lapis) this cake is named Jaja Lapis. Besides, each layer also has different color that can make it more interesting. This belongs to fresh cake with a very nice flavor. In addition to having sweet taste, this fresh cake also has a very chewy texture. It is very easy to find, especially in traditional markets and pastry shops.

Due to application of different colors, it looks very interesting and

5

Ngurah Rai Mangrove Forest, A Quite Interesting and Iconic Park to Visit

BUSINESS

BUENOS AIRES - U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade chief said on Monday that the World Trade Organization (WTO) is losing its focus on trade negotiations in favor of litigation, and was going too easy on wealthier developing countries such as China. With Trump’s “America First” trade agenda casting a cloud over the WTO’s 11th ministerial meeting in Buenos Aires, representatives of other major members criticized protectionism and advocated a stronger multilateral trading system, while acknowledging the WTO’s shortcomings.

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

IBP/kmb

The mangrove forest located within the protected forest area spreads across three locations, Ngurah Rai Grand Forest Park, dominated by mangrove vegetation with a total area of ??1,373.5 hectares where in Badung district has an area of ??753.5 hectares and Denpasar City has an area of ??620 hectares.

West Bali National Park has mangrove forest as one of the vegetations with an area of 429 hectares in Jembrana district and 212 hectares in Buleleng district.

Then, Nusa Lembongan forest located on Nusa Lembongan Island (Klungkung district) has 202 hectares of mangrove forest area.

Mangrove forest has very important function as the lungs of the city where more rare trees have been replaced by concrete poles and retaining wall against sea waves and prevent abrasion. So, we have an obligation to maintain and preserve it.

In addition to retaining sea waves and preventing abrasion, mangrove forest can also offer beautiful scenery, trekking location by crossing wooden bridges in the middle of the forest, and leisure place somewhere amid the mangrove forest while enjoying green open atmosphere.

Some people also take advantage of this place as a pre-wedding photo shoot because it is quite interesting and iconic. If you are staying in the area of South Bali such as Kuta, Tanjung Benoa, Nusa Dua or Sanur, you can schedule next tour to this mangrove forest.

So far, in the Ngurah Rai Grand Forest Park there are 12 mangrove species and seven species of mangrove association. Dominant species include the Rhizophora apiculata, Rhizophora mucronata, Avicennia marina and Sonneratia alba.

In addition, it has a high biodiversity such as birds, reptiles and amphibians. Overall, there are 66 species of 27 families of bird species found in the Ngurah Rai Grand Forest Park. Bird species in this area are dominated by waterfowl such as little pied cormorant, oriental darter, gray heron, great egret, intermediate egret, javan pond heron, black-crowned night heron, lesser whistling duck, Eurasian curlew and kingfisher.

Other than birds, amphibian and reptile species are often found in this area such as frogs, iguanas, lizards, Asiatic soft shell turtles, mangrove snakes, et cetera. (kmb)

tourist visit can reach 300 people,” he said.

The tourist attraction offering mountain views and panoramic landscape is best favored these days by travelers. It becomes a cool breeze to customary village as the management for being able to generate the economy of surrounding communities. “Tourist visit is quite a lot, especially on holidays,” he said.

To increase tourist visit, explained Kartika Yasa, this attraction still requires an arrangement, especially in the field of landscaping with ornamental flower plants.

“Our park needs to be filled to bring in beautiful impression. Other than at the location, it is also need along the way and the facilities like dust bin,” he hoped. (kmb)

IBP/kmb

Jaja Lapis, a Delicious Fresh Cake is liked best by children. If children want to enjoy this Jaja Lapis, they will take layer by layer and then consume it with joy. Understandably, each layer is very easily removed.

This is not a special kind of cake for offerings. It is commonly made for parties, such as for wedding receptions, tooth filing, mutual assistance or thanksgiving. When farmers in Bali are working in their paddy fields, whether plowing, transplanting rice seedlings or other

activities, this cake is often served.

Aside from being easy to make, this cake also uses eco-friendly ingredients. However, it cannot last long, more than a day. Making this cake does not necessarily require difficult ingredients and does not need to cost a lot.

Ingredients of this jaja lapis (layered cake) include white rice flour, sugar, salt, sago flour, coconut milk, fragrant pandan leaves and food coloring to taste. In the past, people

used use coloring from leaves, so it had a minimal color namely white and green only.

How to prepare it? Firstly, boil coconut milk with fragrant pandan leaves. Then, add with salt to taste and stir finely. At the same time, also prepare one tray and put rice flour, sago flour and mixed sugar into one. After that, pour boiled coconut milk into the flour mixture and then mix them well.

READ Adhi Jaya Sunset Hotel;

Think of Mie, Think Asia To determine the color, it begins by dividing the dough into some portions according to the number of colors desired. After dividing, give color to each portion of dough and then stir to blend well. Preheat wide tray and put a layer of colored dough.

After half-cooked, put the next colors repeatedly until all colors are finished. Once cooked, cut into pieces and the Jaja Lapis cakes are ready to serve on plate. (BTN/015)

6

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

W

RLD

International

International

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

11

Subway bomber wounds self, three victims in New York

NEW YORK - A Bangladeshi man set off a homemade pipe bomb strapped to his body in a crowded New York City commuter hub during the morning rush hour on Monday, officials said, immediately calling it an attempted terrorist attack.

The suspect, Akayed Ullah, 27, was taken to a hospital after suffering burns from the explosive device, which was attached to his body with Velcro and zip ties and did not fully ignite, officials said. Investigators told Reuters they believe the attack in midtown Manhattan was intended to be a suicide bombing.

The blast, which occurred around 7 a.m. (1200 GMT) in a busy underground passageway between the subway station underneath the Port Authority Bus Terminal and the Times Square subway station, sent commuters fleeing for the exits and police officers rushing to the scene, as officials scrambled to reroute trains and shut down streets.

Three people, including a police officer, suffered minor injuries.

The attack came just six weeks after police say an Uzbek man, Sayfullo Saipov, plowed a truck through a crowd of pedestrians along a bike path in lower Manhattan, killing eight in an act for which Islamic State later claimed responsibility. In September 2016, a man injured 31 people when he set off a homemade bomb in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood.

In recent years, numerous people claiming to be inspired

by Islamic State have carried out attacks across Europe, the

Middle East and the United States.

A law enforcement official familiar with the Ullah investi-

gation said investigators have found evidence that he watched Islamic State propaganda on the internet. (rtr)

REUTERS/Andrew Kelly

A member of the FBI enters the crime scene beneath the New York Port Authority Bus Terminal following an attempted detonation during the morning rush hour, in New York City, New York, U.S., December 11, 2017. Picture taken December 11, 2017.

Slaughtered by sex, Zambia’s ‘Sweet Town’ survives ravages of AIDS

MAZABUKA - Sugar brought a rush of people and prosperity to the drab highway stop in southern Zambia they now call “Sweet Town” - and with that trade came AIDS. To mine copper or cut cane, outsiders descended on scruffy, fast-growing towns like Mazabuka, hoping to make a new life and where the men went, a sex industry followed with local women touring bars, inns and truck stops to sell sex to newcomers.

It was a perfect storm for the AIDS epidemic.

“There was a huge mobile population and the district was simply too overwhelmed with men who came without their spouses,” Jabez Kanyanda, an expert on AIDS, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation during a tour of the Southern Province of Zambia where he leads an HIV prevention programme.

Zambia was one of the world’s worst hit countries, part of an African “AIDS belt” that left millions dead, with 70,000 people dying a year in the southern African nation at the height of the epidemic in 2003, according to UNAIDS data.

HIV prevalence along key transport routes was especially high, as men and women moved en masse seeking a better life.

“At the peak of the epidemic, no treatment was available.

We had a lot of orphans, a lot of widows, a lot of widowers,” said Kanyanda.

“The doctors knew, of course, but there was nothing they could do ... Every day, you’d pass the graveyard and see people moaning, wailing - yet another funeral.”

The roadside graveyard adjoins the hospital - a crowded field of makeshift memorials and formal headstones, trees arching over red-earth mounds that mark the many dead.

Hand-scrawled signs point to an agony of lost babies: “beloved daughter Gladsy Mainza” aged two; nearby lies Tia Jonga, who died on Nov. 7, at under four months old.

“In our hospital setup, every bed space was taken by someone with HIV. In the mortuary, every day, two, three dead bodies,” Stephen Shajanika, Mazabuka’s District Health Commissioner, recalled in an interview.

Now the people of Zambia have moved on from the worst and are learning to live with its aftermath, helped by a military-style campaign to spread information, test those most at risk, and prescribe drugs to keep AIDS at bay.

“We are trying to root out every HIV-positive person. We want to find them. We want to test them. We will do our part and then we empower people who take it very seriously,” said Kanyanda.

secure a military-style “Total Control of the Epidemic”.

Conducted one-on-one, door-to-door, this all-out war aims to mobilise individuals to control their own health and, to that end, has reached more than 1.5 million of 16.5 million Zambians.

Field officers, special forces and troop commanders man the front and rally the troops - the language is no accident.

“We were going in for a fight,” said Division Commander Kanyanda.

“We needed to organise ourselves like military and show we are in a serious business, fighting a fight with a clear line of command.” (rtr)

SWEET TOWN

As the centre of the nation’s sugar industry, Mazabuka squats on a busy road in land-locked Zambia, a land of transit criss-crossed by truckers from eight neighbouring countries.

As the cane grew, the people followed - pickers from the west, executives from Mauritius and South Africa, European funders and African lorry drivers. Women had less way to gain.

“I’ve stopped now but it was just the total poverty. You sleep with men to buy food. We just had no money to pay the house rental,” said Beauty, a 34-year-old former sex worker who now sells sausages. “I’m a different women now.”

Beauty is not the only one to change.

Testing for the HIV virus is up, knowledge has increased and, most importantly, drugs are available to control the spread of the virus and stop it developing into AIDS. The United Nations estimates there are still 250 new infections a day in Zambia, but that has dropped 27 percent since 2010 and AIDS-related deaths have fallen 11 percent.

Part of this is due to campaigns like the one run by DAPP, a local NGO that invented a seemingly simple strategy to

Thomson Reuters Foundation / Lyndsay Griffiths

Field officers for the DAPP NGO go hut to hut, village to village, testing locals for the HIV virus, Mazabuka, Zambia, November 27, 2017.

Flooded area in the riverside slum of Muara Angke, northern Jakarta, Indonesia, November 30, 2017.

Thomson Reuters Foundation/Zoe Tabary\n\n

In Jakarta, flood-hit slum residents aim for a higher, drier future

JAKARTA - Whenever floods hit her one-room shack in northern Jakarta, Irma Susanti hangs her most precious furniture – a bed and a table – from the ceiling with a rope. “You can never be too prepared,” says the resident of Muara Angke, a coastal area in Jakarta. In July alone heavy rains flooded her home up to knee level, she said.

“But that wasn’t the worst – once, the water was up to our necks and destroyed all the food, clothes, everything,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation, mimicking the action of waves with her arm. Jakarta, a coastal city built on a swampy plain, faces no end of flood worries, not least because roughly 40 percent of its land sits below sea level.

Increases in sea level and regular floods from heavy rain and monsoons, combined with crumbling infrastructure to cope with excess water, mean the city’s slumdwellers often face the brunt of water problems, experts say. But an effort by the city to rehouse some of the city’s threatened poor in low-cost but flood-resilient buildings is winning converts, not least among flood-battered slumdwellers.

“Residents in informal settlements along the riverbank, like (in) Muara Angke, are most at risk of flooding,” said Nyoman Prayoga, flood resilience programme manager at charity Mercy Corps Indonesia. “Not only are they exposed to sea-level rise, they also have to deal with the drainage system being clogged up with trash, which makes the flooding worse,” he added.

The Indonesian government is trying to address the growing problem by demolishing homes in flood-prone areas like Muara Angke to make way for new, affordable housing, said Muhammed Andri, head of the Penjaringan district in northern Jakarta.

“Four years ago, 90 percent of the district was flooded, and people’s homes and belongings destroyed,” the official said.

“Since then we’ve relocated 1,200 families to new low-cost buildings in the area.” Residents pay the state about 250,000 Indonesian rupiah ($18.50) in rent each month, which includes their water and electricity supply, Andri added.

WAITING FOR HOMES

In the riverside slum of Muara Angke, ramshackle homes made of plastic, tin and cardboard line the muddy streets, with dozens of garbage bags piling up at every corner. Norma, a stern-looking street vendor who sells sweets and plastic toys on a couple of wooden boxes and goes by only one name, has lived here her whole life.

On a good day, she can make up to 50,000 rupiah ($3.70) selling her goods. But heavy rain often “scares customers off and destroys my sweets”, she said, waving her pair of flip-flops in the air to dry them. Now a widow, she hopes to someday move with her six children into one of the “big buildings” built by the government nearby, so she has a place to quickly store her goods when it rains, saving the current 30-minute walk home in the rain.

Susanti thinks her family may be next on the list of can-

didates for affordable housing. “Other residents have told me homes in the area would soon be destroyed to make way for new building work,” she said. “If it means we can move there, then they can destroy everything,” she added, gazing at the grey and yellow buildings across the street.

Andri, the government official, said the rehousing effort has so far proved popular with flood-threatened residents.

“Many were at first hesitant to move as they are used to living on land, not in buildings. But I think they have been won over by the subsidised rent and safety from floods,” he said. The government plans to construct enough apartment buildings to house 5,000 more families in Muara Angke by 2019, he added.

PREVENTION, NOT CORRECTION

The government is also setting up water pumps in the area to try to reduce flooding and is building a large-scale sea wall to keep out the encroaching ocean - though the project has come under fire from fishermen who fear for their catches and homes. Meanwhile, Prayoga said there are more immediate steps those vulnerable to flooding can take to make life more manageable.

“People tend to only change their behaviours once they’ve been hit by a disaster, so we need to push for prevention rather than corrective action,” the Mercy Corps worker explained.

“For example, (we) show them the economic benefit of putting belongings in a safe place ahead of floods, or explain why they shouldn’t throw garbage into the river,” he said. (rtr)

10

Destination

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

International

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

International

Keramas Park

Recreation site with various games and educations

GIANYAR - When having restricted time, but want to enjoy a variety of challenging games, simply come to Keramas Park.

Recreation site at Maspait hamlet, Keramas, Gianyar, offers a variety of interesting games. Children, teenagers and adults can take advantage of them for refreshing after busy studying, working or doing other activities.

Keramas Park provides the opportunities for people to travel because it carries somewhat different concept. It targets medium lower market segment but the sensation is like the upper middle.

By and large, recreational activities with a wide range of games are identical to expensive price, but different from the concept promoted by Keramas Park whose price can be afforded by visitors of all walks of life.

Location of Keramas Park is quite unique because it sits in a valley. Various local plants grow flourishingly that capable of making cool atmosphere. “In the past, this location was used as a motocross arena. It was also often used to jointly watch. After a careful study, an idea emerged to create a recreational park.

It is meant to give people the opportunity to travel,” said Ketut Astawa, Operational Manager of Keramas Park.

Astawa said that children to adults can enjoy the facilities at this recreational site. Especially for the kids, they can play in

the pool equipped with a waterslide. They can also play mini soccer. A special package is offered to children ranging from the introduction to environment, planting trees and watching a movie about environment that can encourage all people to maintain their environment. Children can also play on trampoline and climbing wall.

Foreign travelers and domestic travelers from outside Bali wishing to know about Balinese culture will be invited to mejejahitan (preparing oblation) and making Balinese cakes. Travelers are introduced to local environment, mejejahitan as well as make daksina and canang and various Balinese snacks where two of them are jaja laklak and jaja sirat. Travelers can also learn about the culture as well hydroponic farming.

The admission fee is IDR 29,000 (adult) and IDR 15,000 (child) including lockers and a chance to swim as much. “We want to bring affordable recreational site for middle lower market segment, but the price is middle up market,” added Astawa regarding the concept carried by the owners of the Keramas Park, Budi Gautama and Nyoman Ngurah Rai. Travelers can test their adrenalin by flying fox ride, paint ball

and ATV ride. The rate is ranging from IDR 75,000 including insurance. Although the games are relatively modern, many local people have tried them. “The attraction inaugurated on June 13, 2015 has been visited by residents of Denpasar, Badung, Klungkung, Karangasem and Buleleng,” said Astawa who has a wealth of experience in tourism industry.

The relatively new tourist attraction is cycling. This package explores nature by cycling, starting from Kintamani area and finishes at Keramas Park. With the distance of approximately 25 km, travelers can see various activities of local community. For example, farmers are plowing a field traditionally, and a variety of local animals having been very familiar with farmers. “This cycling package is based on reservation. Therefore, we make cooperation with one of travel agencies,” he said.

Visiting travelers include individuals and groups. They are local community and foreign community. During school holidays, the game arena is very crowded. Most domestic travelers are come from Surabaya, Jakarta, and other cities in Indonesia. “We are also preparing the package of outbound, weddings, and birthdays with a different and cool atmosphere,” he said. (kmb)

Saeed KHAN / AFP

This file photo taken on January 29, 2017 shows Serena Williams of the US posing with the championship trophy after her victory against Venus Williams of the US in the women’s singles final at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne.

Serena hints at return, says ‘be excited’

CALIFORNIA - American Serena Williams dropped a large hint that she could soon be back on court competing when she posted an Instagram photo of a pair of dazzling gold and white tennis shoes.

Williams, who won her 23rd grand slam singles title at last year’s Australian Open before taking time out to have her first

child, has entered next month’s tournament in Melbourne.

“Be excited. Be very excited...” the 36-year-old said in the post which attracted 135,000 likes in the space of an hour.

Williams gave birth to Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. in September and was married to Alexis Ohanian last month.

Few female players have won grand slams after taking

a break to start a family, although Kim Clijsters won the 2009 U.S. Open in her third tournament back after having a daughter.

Australians Evonne Goolagong and Margaret Court also managed it. Court’s 24 grand slam singles titles remains a record although only 11 of them were in the professional era. (rtr)

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MOSCOW - The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) agreed unanimously on Tuesday to support Russian athletes who choose to compete in next year’s Winter Games in South Korea.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) last week banned Russia from the Games, due to take place in Pyeongchang in February, for what it called “unprecedented systematic manipulation” of the anti-doping system. But it left the door open for athletes to compete as neutrals if they have a clean history of not doping.

President Vladimir Putin said last week Russia would not prevent its athletes from competing, dismissing calls by some for a boycott, and an ROC official said on Monday most Russian athletes still wanted to attend.

The Russian committee met to agree its position on Pyeongchang at a meeting on Tuesday attended by sporting figures including the national men’s hockey team, figure skaters, speed skaters and the presidents of winter sports federations.

Announcing the decision, ROC President Alexander Zhukov said: “All participants were of the same opinion - our sportsmen need to go to Korea, need to compete, achieve victory for the glory of Russia, for the glory of our motherland.”

Zhukov said Russia would do its best to support Russian athletes competing under a neutral flag and hold serious talks with the IOC in the near future to discuss the problems and practicalities of the arrangement “Russian sportsmen have stated their readiness to take part in the Olympic Games, despite the difficult conditions and decision of the IOC, which is undoubtedly unfair in many ways,” he said.

In the weeks leading up to the IOC ban, more than 20 Russian athletes who competed at the 2014 Sochi Games were banned for life from the Olympics for allegedly violating anti-doping rules.

Russia has repeatedly said there was no state-sponsored doping system in the country. (rtr)

REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Russian athletes attend a meeting on the country’s participation at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, at the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) in Moscow, Russia December 12, 2017.

8

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Sp rt Real Madrid face formidable PSG test

Holders Real Madrid will have to overcome a sizeable obstacle when the Champions League resumes in February after Monday’s draw pitted the 12-times winners against Paris St Germain. Bidding for a third successive title in Europe’s elite club competition, Real paid a heavy price for not winning their group as they were drawn with the big-spending Parisians who were tipped as many people’s favourites ahead of the draw in Nyon.

Five-times champions Barcelona will face English champions Chelsea, one of five Premier league clubs in the draw. Tottenham Hotspur, who topped their group ahead of Real Madrid thanks to a 3-1 victory at Wembley, will face Serie A champions and last seasons’ runners-up Juventus.

Late goals rescue Cardiff in 2-2 draw at Reading Cardiff City struck twice late on through Lee Tomlin and Joe Bennett to salvage a point as the Championship title challengers recovered from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Reading on Monday.

Second-placed Cardiff have 44 points from 21 games and now trail leaders Wolverhampton Wanderers by four points.

Visiting defender Callum Paterson put the ball into his own net in the 16th minute after misjudging a corner and Jaap Stam’s Reading doubled their lead four minutes before halftime with a deflected Mo Barrow shot from the edge of the area.

Frustrated Cardiff manager Neil Warnock was sent

Manchester City, who clocked up a record 14th successive Premier League victory on Sunday, are now listed as favourites after being handed a last16 clash with Swiss club Basel. Five-times winners Bayern Munich, who finished below PSG in the group, will be happy with a two-legged clash with Turkish outsiders Besiktas.

Europa League champions Manchester United take on Sevilla, Liverpool will meet Porto and AS Roma’s reward for winning their group ahead of Chelsea is a tricky tie against Ukraine’s Shakhtar Donetsk.

The Champions League has proved beyond even the vast riches available to PSG and last season they were stunned in the last 16 by Barcelona, losing the second leg 6-1 after beating the Spanish side 4-0 in the French capital.

A clash with Real is hardly what they would have desired at such an early stage but with Neymar and Edinson Cavani having scored six goals apiece in the group, they will be hopeful - if they can keep Real’s nine-goal Cristiano Ronaldo quiet.

“This could have been the final, given the power of the two clubs. The last 16 is a bit early, we could say. Logically, we are both challengers for the trophy,” Emilio Butragueno, Real’s director of institutional relations, said. “I don’t think it’s a good draw for them either. It will be a thrilling tie.”

PSG and Real have played six times in Europe, most recently in the 2015-16 group stage when the sides drew 0-0 in Paris and the Spanish side edging the return match 1-0.

to the stands after 77 minutes for appearing to complain to the fourth official about decisions going against his side but with defeat looking likely they managed to claw their way into the match.

Bennett halved the deficit with a volley in the 83rd minute before close-season signing Tomlin’s late strike hit the underside of the bar and landed over the line.

The ball had bounced back out of the goal but referee Steve Martin gave it after being informed by goal-line technology. Reading captain Paul McShane almost secured victory for the home side in the dying seconds but his header hit the post. (rtr)

ONLY TROPHY

Chelsea and Barcelona will renew a regular Champions league rivalry that last surfaced in the 2012 semi-final when Chelsea won 3-2 on aggregate before going on to claim the trophy for the only time in their history. Barcelona won the 2009 semi-final on away goals, Andres Iniesta breaking Chelsea’s hearts with a 93rd-minute decider.

“We’ve had some great times at Stamford Bridge, haven’t we?” Barcelona said on Twitter.

Chelsea boss Antonio Conte said past events were of no consequence. “Our reaction must be positive.

The past is the past, the present is another story,” he said. The other English qualifiers fared better, especially Manchester City. While Basel are a formidable side at home and have taken big English scalps in the Champions League before, Pep Guardiola’s side will be firm favourites to progress.

“We have to be careful, they deserve to be here,” City’s technical director Txiki Begiristain said.

Tottenham will face Juventus for the first time while Manchester United and Sevilla have also never met before.

Bayern Munich will face Besiktas for the first time since winning 2-0 home and away in the 199798 group stage. “Bayern are a powerful team but we are not a piece of cake either,” Besiktas president Fikret Orman said.

The first legs, with group winners PSG, Tottenham, Liverpool, Manchester United, Roma, Manchester City, Barcelona and Besiktas away first, take place on Feb. 13-14 and Feb. 20-21 REUTERS/Javier Barbancho Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane reacts as with the returns on March 6-7 and March 1314. (rtr) Marcelo looks on

REUTERS/Ciro De Luca

Fiorentina’s Marco Sportiello in action with Napoli’s Marko Rog

Napoli handed tough draw v Leipzig in Europa League

Italian club Napoli will face German high-flyers RB Leipzig in the pick of the Europa League last-32 ties following the draw on Monday. Both sides are second in their domestic championships having dropped into the Europa League after finishing third in their Champions League groups.

The other sides entering the Europa League at the first knockout stage after failing to make the last 16 of the Champions League are Borussia Dortmund, Atletico Madrid, Spartak Moscow, Celtic, CSKA Moscow and Sporting Lisbon. In another Italian-German tie Atalanta will face Dortmund.

Atletico, twice Champions league runners-up, will take on FC Copenhagen who crept into the knockout stage. Red Star Belgrade’s first post-Christmas European action in 26 years earned then a tie against CSKA Moscow.

Scottish champions Celtic will have their work cut out against Roberto Mancini’s Zenit St Petersburg. Former European champion Steaua Bucharest face Lazio and Olympique Lyonnais play Villarreal. Arsenal, who missed out on the Champions League for the first time in 20 years, continue their Thursday night adventures against Sweden’s Ostersunds. (rtr)

Action Images/Paul Childs

Reading’s Modou Barrow and Jon Dadi Bodvarsson look dejected after the match

FA asks Manchester rivals for observations after fracas reports

LONDON - Manchester United and Manchester City have been asked by the Football Association for their observations after reports that United boss Jose Mourinho had milk and water thrown at him

by City players after Sunday’s derby. British media reported that Mourinho was upset by City’s excessive celebrations after their 2-1 victory at Old Trafford opened up an 11-point lead at the top of the Premier League.

Mikel Arteta, part of City’s coaching team, was also reported to have suffered a cut in the alleged incidents. “The FA has contacted both clubs for their observations following reports of an incident after the Manchester derby yesterday. They have until 13 December to respond,” the governing body said in a statement on Monday.

Referee Michael Oliver did not witness any post-match incidents and made no reference to anything untoward in his match report.

Old Trafford has witnessed bizarre tunnel incidents before, notably in 2004 when former United manager Alex Ferguson was hit by a pizza thrown by an Arsenal player.

City posted photos of their players celebrating in the dressingroom with silver tickertape after Nicolas Otamendi’s second-half winner against United gave them a record 14th consecutive Premier League victory. (rtr)

9

8

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Sp rt Real Madrid face formidable PSG test

Holders Real Madrid will have to overcome a sizeable obstacle when the Champions League resumes in February after Monday’s draw pitted the 12-times winners against Paris St Germain. Bidding for a third successive title in Europe’s elite club competition, Real paid a heavy price for not winning their group as they were drawn with the big-spending Parisians who were tipped as many people’s favourites ahead of the draw in Nyon.

Five-times champions Barcelona will face English champions Chelsea, one of five Premier league clubs in the draw. Tottenham Hotspur, who topped their group ahead of Real Madrid thanks to a 3-1 victory at Wembley, will face Serie A champions and last seasons’ runners-up Juventus.

Late goals rescue Cardiff in 2-2 draw at Reading Cardiff City struck twice late on through Lee Tomlin and Joe Bennett to salvage a point as the Championship title challengers recovered from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Reading on Monday.

Second-placed Cardiff have 44 points from 21 games and now trail leaders Wolverhampton Wanderers by four points.

Visiting defender Callum Paterson put the ball into his own net in the 16th minute after misjudging a corner and Jaap Stam’s Reading doubled their lead four minutes before halftime with a deflected Mo Barrow shot from the edge of the area.

Frustrated Cardiff manager Neil Warnock was sent

Manchester City, who clocked up a record 14th successive Premier League victory on Sunday, are now listed as favourites after being handed a last16 clash with Swiss club Basel. Five-times winners Bayern Munich, who finished below PSG in the group, will be happy with a two-legged clash with Turkish outsiders Besiktas.

Europa League champions Manchester United take on Sevilla, Liverpool will meet Porto and AS Roma’s reward for winning their group ahead of Chelsea is a tricky tie against Ukraine’s Shakhtar Donetsk.

The Champions League has proved beyond even the vast riches available to PSG and last season they were stunned in the last 16 by Barcelona, losing the second leg 6-1 after beating the Spanish side 4-0 in the French capital.

A clash with Real is hardly what they would have desired at such an early stage but with Neymar and Edinson Cavani having scored six goals apiece in the group, they will be hopeful - if they can keep Real’s nine-goal Cristiano Ronaldo quiet.

“This could have been the final, given the power of the two clubs. The last 16 is a bit early, we could say. Logically, we are both challengers for the trophy,” Emilio Butragueno, Real’s director of institutional relations, said. “I don’t think it’s a good draw for them either. It will be a thrilling tie.”

PSG and Real have played six times in Europe, most recently in the 2015-16 group stage when the sides drew 0-0 in Paris and the Spanish side edging the return match 1-0.

to the stands after 77 minutes for appearing to complain to the fourth official about decisions going against his side but with defeat looking likely they managed to claw their way into the match.

Bennett halved the deficit with a volley in the 83rd minute before close-season signing Tomlin’s late strike hit the underside of the bar and landed over the line.

The ball had bounced back out of the goal but referee Steve Martin gave it after being informed by goal-line technology. Reading captain Paul McShane almost secured victory for the home side in the dying seconds but his header hit the post. (rtr)

ONLY TROPHY

Chelsea and Barcelona will renew a regular Champions league rivalry that last surfaced in the 2012 semi-final when Chelsea won 3-2 on aggregate before going on to claim the trophy for the only time in their history. Barcelona won the 2009 semi-final on away goals, Andres Iniesta breaking Chelsea’s hearts with a 93rd-minute decider.

“We’ve had some great times at Stamford Bridge, haven’t we?” Barcelona said on Twitter.

Chelsea boss Antonio Conte said past events were of no consequence. “Our reaction must be positive.

The past is the past, the present is another story,” he said. The other English qualifiers fared better, especially Manchester City. While Basel are a formidable side at home and have taken big English scalps in the Champions League before, Pep Guardiola’s side will be firm favourites to progress.

“We have to be careful, they deserve to be here,” City’s technical director Txiki Begiristain said.

Tottenham will face Juventus for the first time while Manchester United and Sevilla have also never met before.

Bayern Munich will face Besiktas for the first time since winning 2-0 home and away in the 199798 group stage. “Bayern are a powerful team but we are not a piece of cake either,” Besiktas president Fikret Orman said.

The first legs, with group winners PSG, Tottenham, Liverpool, Manchester United, Roma, Manchester City, Barcelona and Besiktas away first, take place on Feb. 13-14 and Feb. 20-21 REUTERS/Javier Barbancho Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane reacts as with the returns on March 6-7 and March 1314. (rtr) Marcelo looks on

REUTERS/Ciro De Luca

Fiorentina’s Marco Sportiello in action with Napoli’s Marko Rog

Napoli handed tough draw v Leipzig in Europa League

Italian club Napoli will face German high-flyers RB Leipzig in the pick of the Europa League last-32 ties following the draw on Monday. Both sides are second in their domestic championships having dropped into the Europa League after finishing third in their Champions League groups.

The other sides entering the Europa League at the first knockout stage after failing to make the last 16 of the Champions League are Borussia Dortmund, Atletico Madrid, Spartak Moscow, Celtic, CSKA Moscow and Sporting Lisbon. In another Italian-German tie Atalanta will face Dortmund.

Atletico, twice Champions league runners-up, will take on FC Copenhagen who crept into the knockout stage. Red Star Belgrade’s first post-Christmas European action in 26 years earned then a tie against CSKA Moscow.

Scottish champions Celtic will have their work cut out against Roberto Mancini’s Zenit St Petersburg. Former European champion Steaua Bucharest face Lazio and Olympique Lyonnais play Villarreal. Arsenal, who missed out on the Champions League for the first time in 20 years, continue their Thursday night adventures against Sweden’s Ostersunds. (rtr)

Action Images/Paul Childs

Reading’s Modou Barrow and Jon Dadi Bodvarsson look dejected after the match

FA asks Manchester rivals for observations after fracas reports

LONDON - Manchester United and Manchester City have been asked by the Football Association for their observations after reports that United boss Jose Mourinho had milk and water thrown at him

by City players after Sunday’s derby. British media reported that Mourinho was upset by City’s excessive celebrations after their 2-1 victory at Old Trafford opened up an 11-point lead at the top of the Premier League.

Mikel Arteta, part of City’s coaching team, was also reported to have suffered a cut in the alleged incidents. “The FA has contacted both clubs for their observations following reports of an incident after the Manchester derby yesterday. They have until 13 December to respond,” the governing body said in a statement on Monday.

Referee Michael Oliver did not witness any post-match incidents and made no reference to anything untoward in his match report.

Old Trafford has witnessed bizarre tunnel incidents before, notably in 2004 when former United manager Alex Ferguson was hit by a pizza thrown by an Arsenal player.

City posted photos of their players celebrating in the dressingroom with silver tickertape after Nicolas Otamendi’s second-half winner against United gave them a record 14th consecutive Premier League victory. (rtr)

9

10

Destination

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

International

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

International

Keramas Park

Recreation site with various games and educations

GIANYAR - When having restricted time, but want to enjoy a variety of challenging games, simply come to Keramas Park.

Recreation site at Maspait hamlet, Keramas, Gianyar, offers a variety of interesting games. Children, teenagers and adults can take advantage of them for refreshing after busy studying, working or doing other activities.

Keramas Park provides the opportunities for people to travel because it carries somewhat different concept. It targets medium lower market segment but the sensation is like the upper middle.

By and large, recreational activities with a wide range of games are identical to expensive price, but different from the concept promoted by Keramas Park whose price can be afforded by visitors of all walks of life.

Location of Keramas Park is quite unique because it sits in a valley. Various local plants grow flourishingly that capable of making cool atmosphere. “In the past, this location was used as a motocross arena. It was also often used to jointly watch. After a careful study, an idea emerged to create a recreational park.

It is meant to give people the opportunity to travel,” said Ketut Astawa, Operational Manager of Keramas Park.

Astawa said that children to adults can enjoy the facilities at this recreational site. Especially for the kids, they can play in

the pool equipped with a waterslide. They can also play mini soccer. A special package is offered to children ranging from the introduction to environment, planting trees and watching a movie about environment that can encourage all people to maintain their environment. Children can also play on trampoline and climbing wall.

Foreign travelers and domestic travelers from outside Bali wishing to know about Balinese culture will be invited to mejejahitan (preparing oblation) and making Balinese cakes. Travelers are introduced to local environment, mejejahitan as well as make daksina and canang and various Balinese snacks where two of them are jaja laklak and jaja sirat. Travelers can also learn about the culture as well hydroponic farming.

The admission fee is IDR 29,000 (adult) and IDR 15,000 (child) including lockers and a chance to swim as much. “We want to bring affordable recreational site for middle lower market segment, but the price is middle up market,” added Astawa regarding the concept carried by the owners of the Keramas Park, Budi Gautama and Nyoman Ngurah Rai. Travelers can test their adrenalin by flying fox ride, paint ball

and ATV ride. The rate is ranging from IDR 75,000 including insurance. Although the games are relatively modern, many local people have tried them. “The attraction inaugurated on June 13, 2015 has been visited by residents of Denpasar, Badung, Klungkung, Karangasem and Buleleng,” said Astawa who has a wealth of experience in tourism industry.

The relatively new tourist attraction is cycling. This package explores nature by cycling, starting from Kintamani area and finishes at Keramas Park. With the distance of approximately 25 km, travelers can see various activities of local community. For example, farmers are plowing a field traditionally, and a variety of local animals having been very familiar with farmers. “This cycling package is based on reservation. Therefore, we make cooperation with one of travel agencies,” he said.

Visiting travelers include individuals and groups. They are local community and foreign community. During school holidays, the game arena is very crowded. Most domestic travelers are come from Surabaya, Jakarta, and other cities in Indonesia. “We are also preparing the package of outbound, weddings, and birthdays with a different and cool atmosphere,” he said. (kmb)

Saeed KHAN / AFP

This file photo taken on January 29, 2017 shows Serena Williams of the US posing with the championship trophy after her victory against Venus Williams of the US in the women’s singles final at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne.

Serena hints at return, says ‘be excited’

CALIFORNIA - American Serena Williams dropped a large hint that she could soon be back on court competing when she posted an Instagram photo of a pair of dazzling gold and white tennis shoes.

Williams, who won her 23rd grand slam singles title at last year’s Australian Open before taking time out to have her first

child, has entered next month’s tournament in Melbourne.

“Be excited. Be very excited...” the 36-year-old said in the post which attracted 135,000 likes in the space of an hour.

Williams gave birth to Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. in September and was married to Alexis Ohanian last month.

Few female players have won grand slams after taking

a break to start a family, although Kim Clijsters won the 2009 U.S. Open in her third tournament back after having a daughter.

Australians Evonne Goolagong and Margaret Court also managed it. Court’s 24 grand slam singles titles remains a record although only 11 of them were in the professional era. (rtr)

Russian Olympic Committee to support Winter Games athletes PT.Bali Paradise Citra Dewata Saat Ini 14 Kapal MSC,memerlukan Kandidat Posisi:Bellboy, Kicthen Utility,Asst.Cook&Cook all postion/Butcher,Pastry,Bakery utk kebrangkatan awal2018 D1,pengalaman1,5th dibidangnya CV:Jl.P.Ayu XIII No.3 T.238513 / E:info@baliparadisecrews.com

B.BP.001.11.17.0001464

Bawang Merah BeachFront is Looking for/Chinese Cook Restaurant Manager,Bartender,Waiter/ess EuropeanCook&Driver Ph7720210E :infobawangmerahrestaurant.com

B.BP.101.11.17.0000414

Drafter,bs.English,Sketchup/Cad E:versaindustries4@gmail.com

B.BP.031.11.17.0001454

Production Staff,Chemical Graduate,Capable English.Apply to:versaindustries4@gmail.com

Reservation for hotel Agent, fresh graduate tourism school send CV:info@rd-tours.com

Driver(SIM:AC+English)Admin (Computer+English)Tlp:08123983573

Urgent Need Villa Attd Experient Text,WA Only 081805449648

Wanted Immediately:Simple Bookkeeping & Admin,M-F,9:305:30.Seminyak Area.EnglishReading/Speaking,Windows 10, Excel Word&Outlook.CV+Photo to valsons@bali-villasukapadi.com

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MOSCOW - The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) agreed unanimously on Tuesday to support Russian athletes who choose to compete in next year’s Winter Games in South Korea.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) last week banned Russia from the Games, due to take place in Pyeongchang in February, for what it called “unprecedented systematic manipulation” of the anti-doping system. But it left the door open for athletes to compete as neutrals if they have a clean history of not doping.

President Vladimir Putin said last week Russia would not prevent its athletes from competing, dismissing calls by some for a boycott, and an ROC official said on Monday most Russian athletes still wanted to attend.

The Russian committee met to agree its position on Pyeongchang at a meeting on Tuesday attended by sporting figures including the national men’s hockey team, figure skaters, speed skaters and the presidents of winter sports federations.

Announcing the decision, ROC President Alexander Zhukov said: “All participants were of the same opinion - our sportsmen need to go to Korea, need to compete, achieve victory for the glory of Russia, for the glory of our motherland.”

Zhukov said Russia would do its best to support Russian athletes competing under a neutral flag and hold serious talks with the IOC in the near future to discuss the problems and practicalities of the arrangement “Russian sportsmen have stated their readiness to take part in the Olympic Games, despite the difficult conditions and decision of the IOC, which is undoubtedly unfair in many ways,” he said.

In the weeks leading up to the IOC ban, more than 20 Russian athletes who competed at the 2014 Sochi Games were banned for life from the Olympics for allegedly violating anti-doping rules.

Russia has repeatedly said there was no state-sponsored doping system in the country. (rtr)

REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Russian athletes attend a meeting on the country’s participation at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, at the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) in Moscow, Russia December 12, 2017.

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Wednesday, December 13, 2017

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International

International

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

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Subway bomber wounds self, three victims in New York

NEW YORK - A Bangladeshi man set off a homemade pipe bomb strapped to his body in a crowded New York City commuter hub during the morning rush hour on Monday, officials said, immediately calling it an attempted terrorist attack.

The suspect, Akayed Ullah, 27, was taken to a hospital after suffering burns from the explosive device, which was attached to his body with Velcro and zip ties and did not fully ignite, officials said. Investigators told Reuters they believe the attack in midtown Manhattan was intended to be a suicide bombing.

The blast, which occurred around 7 a.m. (1200 GMT) in a busy underground passageway between the subway station underneath the Port Authority Bus Terminal and the Times Square subway station, sent commuters fleeing for the exits and police officers rushing to the scene, as officials scrambled to reroute trains and shut down streets.

Three people, including a police officer, suffered minor injuries.

The attack came just six weeks after police say an Uzbek man, Sayfullo Saipov, plowed a truck through a crowd of pedestrians along a bike path in lower Manhattan, killing eight in an act for which Islamic State later claimed responsibility. In September 2016, a man injured 31 people when he set off a homemade bomb in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood.

In recent years, numerous people claiming to be inspired

by Islamic State have carried out attacks across Europe, the

Middle East and the United States.

A law enforcement official familiar with the Ullah investi-

gation said investigators have found evidence that he watched Islamic State propaganda on the internet. (rtr)

REUTERS/Andrew Kelly

A member of the FBI enters the crime scene beneath the New York Port Authority Bus Terminal following an attempted detonation during the morning rush hour, in New York City, New York, U.S., December 11, 2017. Picture taken December 11, 2017.

Slaughtered by sex, Zambia’s ‘Sweet Town’ survives ravages of AIDS

MAZABUKA - Sugar brought a rush of people and prosperity to the drab highway stop in southern Zambia they now call “Sweet Town” - and with that trade came AIDS. To mine copper or cut cane, outsiders descended on scruffy, fast-growing towns like Mazabuka, hoping to make a new life and where the men went, a sex industry followed with local women touring bars, inns and truck stops to sell sex to newcomers.

It was a perfect storm for the AIDS epidemic.

“There was a huge mobile population and the district was simply too overwhelmed with men who came without their spouses,” Jabez Kanyanda, an expert on AIDS, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation during a tour of the Southern Province of Zambia where he leads an HIV prevention programme.

Zambia was one of the world’s worst hit countries, part of an African “AIDS belt” that left millions dead, with 70,000 people dying a year in the southern African nation at the height of the epidemic in 2003, according to UNAIDS data.

HIV prevalence along key transport routes was especially high, as men and women moved en masse seeking a better life.

“At the peak of the epidemic, no treatment was available.

We had a lot of orphans, a lot of widows, a lot of widowers,” said Kanyanda.

“The doctors knew, of course, but there was nothing they could do ... Every day, you’d pass the graveyard and see people moaning, wailing - yet another funeral.”

The roadside graveyard adjoins the hospital - a crowded field of makeshift memorials and formal headstones, trees arching over red-earth mounds that mark the many dead.

Hand-scrawled signs point to an agony of lost babies: “beloved daughter Gladsy Mainza” aged two; nearby lies Tia Jonga, who died on Nov. 7, at under four months old.

“In our hospital setup, every bed space was taken by someone with HIV. In the mortuary, every day, two, three dead bodies,” Stephen Shajanika, Mazabuka’s District Health Commissioner, recalled in an interview.

Now the people of Zambia have moved on from the worst and are learning to live with its aftermath, helped by a military-style campaign to spread information, test those most at risk, and prescribe drugs to keep AIDS at bay.

“We are trying to root out every HIV-positive person. We want to find them. We want to test them. We will do our part and then we empower people who take it very seriously,” said Kanyanda.

secure a military-style “Total Control of the Epidemic”.

Conducted one-on-one, door-to-door, this all-out war aims to mobilise individuals to control their own health and, to that end, has reached more than 1.5 million of 16.5 million Zambians.

Field officers, special forces and troop commanders man the front and rally the troops - the language is no accident.

“We were going in for a fight,” said Division Commander Kanyanda.

“We needed to organise ourselves like military and show we are in a serious business, fighting a fight with a clear line of command.” (rtr)

SWEET TOWN

As the centre of the nation’s sugar industry, Mazabuka squats on a busy road in land-locked Zambia, a land of transit criss-crossed by truckers from eight neighbouring countries.

As the cane grew, the people followed - pickers from the west, executives from Mauritius and South Africa, European funders and African lorry drivers. Women had less way to gain.

“I’ve stopped now but it was just the total poverty. You sleep with men to buy food. We just had no money to pay the house rental,” said Beauty, a 34-year-old former sex worker who now sells sausages. “I’m a different women now.”

Beauty is not the only one to change.

Testing for the HIV virus is up, knowledge has increased and, most importantly, drugs are available to control the spread of the virus and stop it developing into AIDS. The United Nations estimates there are still 250 new infections a day in Zambia, but that has dropped 27 percent since 2010 and AIDS-related deaths have fallen 11 percent.

Part of this is due to campaigns like the one run by DAPP, a local NGO that invented a seemingly simple strategy to

Thomson Reuters Foundation / Lyndsay Griffiths

Field officers for the DAPP NGO go hut to hut, village to village, testing locals for the HIV virus, Mazabuka, Zambia, November 27, 2017.

Flooded area in the riverside slum of Muara Angke, northern Jakarta, Indonesia, November 30, 2017.

Thomson Reuters Foundation/Zoe Tabary\n\n

In Jakarta, flood-hit slum residents aim for a higher, drier future

JAKARTA - Whenever floods hit her one-room shack in northern Jakarta, Irma Susanti hangs her most precious furniture – a bed and a table – from the ceiling with a rope. “You can never be too prepared,” says the resident of Muara Angke, a coastal area in Jakarta. In July alone heavy rains flooded her home up to knee level, she said.

“But that wasn’t the worst – once, the water was up to our necks and destroyed all the food, clothes, everything,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation, mimicking the action of waves with her arm. Jakarta, a coastal city built on a swampy plain, faces no end of flood worries, not least because roughly 40 percent of its land sits below sea level.

Increases in sea level and regular floods from heavy rain and monsoons, combined with crumbling infrastructure to cope with excess water, mean the city’s slumdwellers often face the brunt of water problems, experts say. But an effort by the city to rehouse some of the city’s threatened poor in low-cost but flood-resilient buildings is winning converts, not least among flood-battered slumdwellers.

“Residents in informal settlements along the riverbank, like (in) Muara Angke, are most at risk of flooding,” said Nyoman Prayoga, flood resilience programme manager at charity Mercy Corps Indonesia. “Not only are they exposed to sea-level rise, they also have to deal with the drainage system being clogged up with trash, which makes the flooding worse,” he added.

The Indonesian government is trying to address the growing problem by demolishing homes in flood-prone areas like Muara Angke to make way for new, affordable housing, said Muhammed Andri, head of the Penjaringan district in northern Jakarta.

“Four years ago, 90 percent of the district was flooded, and people’s homes and belongings destroyed,” the official said.

“Since then we’ve relocated 1,200 families to new low-cost buildings in the area.” Residents pay the state about 250,000 Indonesian rupiah ($18.50) in rent each month, which includes their water and electricity supply, Andri added.

WAITING FOR HOMES

In the riverside slum of Muara Angke, ramshackle homes made of plastic, tin and cardboard line the muddy streets, with dozens of garbage bags piling up at every corner. Norma, a stern-looking street vendor who sells sweets and plastic toys on a couple of wooden boxes and goes by only one name, has lived here her whole life.

On a good day, she can make up to 50,000 rupiah ($3.70) selling her goods. But heavy rain often “scares customers off and destroys my sweets”, she said, waving her pair of flip-flops in the air to dry them. Now a widow, she hopes to someday move with her six children into one of the “big buildings” built by the government nearby, so she has a place to quickly store her goods when it rains, saving the current 30-minute walk home in the rain.

Susanti thinks her family may be next on the list of can-

didates for affordable housing. “Other residents have told me homes in the area would soon be destroyed to make way for new building work,” she said. “If it means we can move there, then they can destroy everything,” she added, gazing at the grey and yellow buildings across the street.

Andri, the government official, said the rehousing effort has so far proved popular with flood-threatened residents.

“Many were at first hesitant to move as they are used to living on land, not in buildings. But I think they have been won over by the subsidised rent and safety from floods,” he said. The government plans to construct enough apartment buildings to house 5,000 more families in Muara Angke by 2019, he added.

PREVENTION, NOT CORRECTION

The government is also setting up water pumps in the area to try to reduce flooding and is building a large-scale sea wall to keep out the encroaching ocean - though the project has come under fire from fishermen who fear for their catches and homes. Meanwhile, Prayoga said there are more immediate steps those vulnerable to flooding can take to make life more manageable.

“People tend to only change their behaviours once they’ve been hit by a disaster, so we need to push for prevention rather than corrective action,” the Mercy Corps worker explained.

“For example, (we) show them the economic benefit of putting belongings in a safe place ahead of floods, or explain why they shouldn’t throw garbage into the river,” he said. (rtr)

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International

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Bali News

International

WTO losing trade focus, too easy on some developing nations -U.S. status, which provides longer times to implement WTO agreements and more opportunities to boost trade.

Ahead of the meeting, the United States blocked efforts to draft a joint statement emphasizing the “centrality” of the global trade system and the need to aid development. Its opposition has raised concerns that the WTO will not be able to accomplish even modest goals, such as addressing fishing and agricultural subsidies, at the conference.

“We need to have a clear objective in mind,” European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said. “For the European Union, this is clear: to preserve and to strengthen the rules-based multilateral trading system.”

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, who has said he does not want major agreements out of the meeting, voiced concern that the WTO was becoming a litigationcentered organization.

“Too often members seem to believe they can gain concessions through lawsuits that they could never get at the negotiating table,” he said. “We have to ask ourselves whether this is good for the institution and whether the current litigation structure makes sense.”

Too many countries were not following WTO rules, he complained, and too many wealthier members had been given unfair exemptions as developing countries. “We need to clarify our understanding of development within the WTO. We cannot sustain a situation in which new rules can only apply to a few and that others will be given a pass in the name of self-proclaimed development status,” Lighthizer told the conference’s opening session.

He said five of the six richest countries claim developing country status at the WTO, without providing evidence to back up the assertion. A Lighthizer spokeswoman later said he was referring to the six countries with the highest gross domestic product per capita, according to International Monetary Fund measurements.

Five, including Qatar and Singapore, claim developing

SWIPES AT CHINA

Trump has indicated his preference for bilateral deals over the multilateral system embodied by the WTO. The United States has vetoed new judges for trade disputes, pushing the organization into a crisis. Several countries’ delegates criticized that delay on Monday, without mentioning the United States. South Korean Trade Minister Kim Hyunchong, whose resignation as a WTO appellate judge this year created one of the openings, said members should “promptly fill all the vacancies.”

“We need to collectively and expeditiously resolve this impasse,” Indian Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu told the conference. Lighthizer said it was impossible to negotiate new rules when many of the current ones were not being followed, and added that too many members viewed exemptions from WTO rules as a path to faster growth.

In a thinly veiled swipe at China’s trade practices, Lighthizer said the United States was leading negotiations to “correct the sad performance of many members in notification and transparency.” Japan’s Trade and Economy Minister Hiroshige Seko said Japan would support efforts to boost reporting standards.

The United States is backing the EU in its resistance to recognizing China as a market economy, arguing the govern-

ment unfairly intervenes in the economy. The case is before the WTO and a victory for Beijing could dramatically lower tariffs on imports of Chinese goods.

Chinese Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said on Monday that while trade protection was rising, no country would be able to succeed in isolation and that WTO rules were critical to protecting globalization. “Let us join hands and take real action to uphold the authority and efficacy of the WTO,” Zhong said. (rtr)

Wanagiri Tourist Attraction Draws Travelers

REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci

Swiss Economy Minister Johann SchneiderAmmann speaks at the 11th World Trade Organization’s ministerial conference in Buenos Aires, Argentina December 11, 2017.

U.S. yield gap near 8-month high as central bank meetings loom

LONDON - The gap between benchmark German and U.S. 10year bond yields was close to its widest since April on Monday as the fiscal and policy paths of two of the world’s most important

economies diverge. Monetary policy-setters for both countries are due to meet this week and though both economies are on the mend, the paths are expected to deviate as U.S. President Donald Trump

IBP/net

pushes a tax overhaul that could put the world’s largest economy at risk of overheating.

As a result, investors are starting to price in multiple rate hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserve in 2018, after an almost-certain hike this week. While pressure from the divergence is most pronounced at the short end of the yield curve -- the U.S. Treasury curve is close to its flattest in a decade -- longer-dated yields are also being impacted, particularly after the risk of a U.S. government shutdown last weekend was averted.

“Political risks are capping U.S. Treasury yields at the long end but ...three rate hikes (are still) expected next year,” said DZ Bank strategist Rene Albrecht. “The contrary is true for the euro zone.

The tendency is for lower rates

Until 2012, the mangrove forest in Bali spreads across the area of ??2,215.5 hectares located in Denpasar and four other districts.

Distribution of the mangrove forest in Bali can be found inside and outside protected forest areas. The mangrove forest located within the protected forest area has a total of 2,004.5 hectares, while the mangrove forest outside the area has a total of 211 hectares.

and I expect government bonds to consolidate at these levels going into the year end.” The European Central Bank in October extended its asset purchases until September 2018 and left the door open for keeping the taps flowing beyond that date.

Expectations are for the ECB to keep rates at the current low level until well into 2019, possibly until Mario Draghi ends his term at its helm. The gap between U.S. and German 10-year yields reached 208 basis points early on Monday, just off the 209 bps eight-month high hit earlier in December.

Most high-grade euro zone bond yields were flat to a shade lower on Monday, with Tradeweb prices showing 10-year Bund yields, the benchmark for the region, edging below 0.30 percent.

Analysts expect further downward pressure on euro zone yields in the coming weeks, as government bonds become harder to find with recent supply scarce and the ECB continuing to buy debt in large quantities.

“The bond scarcity trade that has been playing out in recent weeks, and caused a slow grind lower of euro zone yields, is set to continue in our view,” Mizuho analysts said in a note. “A (German two-year) Schatz redemption this week, and the early January Bund redemption coming into view are both factors reinforcing our conviction.” The Fed is due to meet Tuesday and Wednesday, with a press conference scheduled, while the ECB and the Bank of England meet on Thursday. U.S. inflation numbers are due on Wednesday. (rtr)

Wanagiri tourist attraction located in Sukasada subdistrict is now becoming an exotic tourist spot. Foreign or local travelers flock the location to relax. There are travelers taking photograph and selfie. Rural panorama like the Wanagiri Hidden Hill with its natural beauty, verdant hills and cool air makes the location feel cozy.

Manager of the Wanagiri Hidden Hill, I Ketut Kartika Yasa, said that this tourist attraction offers a shiplike platform extending to Lake Buyan. Buleleng society and visitors from other districts in Bali also like to visit this new destination.

Moreover, there are a number of people from Java as well as foreign travelers chiming to visit the location. “On holidays, the number of

Perhaps due to having multiple layers (lapis) this cake is named Jaja Lapis. Besides, each layer also has different color that can make it more interesting. This belongs to fresh cake with a very nice flavor. In addition to having sweet taste, this fresh cake also has a very chewy texture. It is very easy to find, especially in traditional markets and pastry shops.

Due to application of different colors, it looks very interesting and

5

Ngurah Rai Mangrove Forest, A Quite Interesting and Iconic Park to Visit

BUSINESS

BUENOS AIRES - U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade chief said on Monday that the World Trade Organization (WTO) is losing its focus on trade negotiations in favor of litigation, and was going too easy on wealthier developing countries such as China. With Trump’s “America First” trade agenda casting a cloud over the WTO’s 11th ministerial meeting in Buenos Aires, representatives of other major members criticized protectionism and advocated a stronger multilateral trading system, while acknowledging the WTO’s shortcomings.

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

IBP/kmb

The mangrove forest located within the protected forest area spreads across three locations, Ngurah Rai Grand Forest Park, dominated by mangrove vegetation with a total area of ??1,373.5 hectares where in Badung district has an area of ??753.5 hectares and Denpasar City has an area of ??620 hectares.

West Bali National Park has mangrove forest as one of the vegetations with an area of 429 hectares in Jembrana district and 212 hectares in Buleleng district.

Then, Nusa Lembongan forest located on Nusa Lembongan Island (Klungkung district) has 202 hectares of mangrove forest area.

Mangrove forest has very important function as the lungs of the city where more rare trees have been replaced by concrete poles and retaining wall against sea waves and prevent abrasion. So, we have an obligation to maintain and preserve it.

In addition to retaining sea waves and preventing abrasion, mangrove forest can also offer beautiful scenery, trekking location by crossing wooden bridges in the middle of the forest, and leisure place somewhere amid the mangrove forest while enjoying green open atmosphere.

Some people also take advantage of this place as a pre-wedding photo shoot because it is quite interesting and iconic. If you are staying in the area of South Bali such as Kuta, Tanjung Benoa, Nusa Dua or Sanur, you can schedule next tour to this mangrove forest.

So far, in the Ngurah Rai Grand Forest Park there are 12 mangrove species and seven species of mangrove association. Dominant species include the Rhizophora apiculata, Rhizophora mucronata, Avicennia marina and Sonneratia alba.

In addition, it has a high biodiversity such as birds, reptiles and amphibians. Overall, there are 66 species of 27 families of bird species found in the Ngurah Rai Grand Forest Park. Bird species in this area are dominated by waterfowl such as little pied cormorant, oriental darter, gray heron, great egret, intermediate egret, javan pond heron, black-crowned night heron, lesser whistling duck, Eurasian curlew and kingfisher.

Other than birds, amphibian and reptile species are often found in this area such as frogs, iguanas, lizards, Asiatic soft shell turtles, mangrove snakes, et cetera. (kmb)

tourist visit can reach 300 people,” he said.

The tourist attraction offering mountain views and panoramic landscape is best favored these days by travelers. It becomes a cool breeze to customary village as the management for being able to generate the economy of surrounding communities. “Tourist visit is quite a lot, especially on holidays,” he said.

To increase tourist visit, explained Kartika Yasa, this attraction still requires an arrangement, especially in the field of landscaping with ornamental flower plants.

“Our park needs to be filled to bring in beautiful impression. Other than at the location, it is also need along the way and the facilities like dust bin,” he hoped. (kmb)

IBP/kmb

Jaja Lapis, a Delicious Fresh Cake is liked best by children. If children want to enjoy this Jaja Lapis, they will take layer by layer and then consume it with joy. Understandably, each layer is very easily removed.

This is not a special kind of cake for offerings. It is commonly made for parties, such as for wedding receptions, tooth filing, mutual assistance or thanksgiving. When farmers in Bali are working in their paddy fields, whether plowing, transplanting rice seedlings or other

activities, this cake is often served.

Aside from being easy to make, this cake also uses eco-friendly ingredients. However, it cannot last long, more than a day. Making this cake does not necessarily require difficult ingredients and does not need to cost a lot.

Ingredients of this jaja lapis (layered cake) include white rice flour, sugar, salt, sago flour, coconut milk, fragrant pandan leaves and food coloring to taste. In the past, people

used use coloring from leaves, so it had a minimal color namely white and green only.

How to prepare it? Firstly, boil coconut milk with fragrant pandan leaves. Then, add with salt to taste and stir finely. At the same time, also prepare one tray and put rice flour, sago flour and mixed sugar into one. After that, pour boiled coconut milk into the flour mixture and then mix them well.

READ Adhi Jaya Sunset Hotel;

Think of Mie, Think Asia To determine the color, it begins by dividing the dough into some portions according to the number of colors desired. After dividing, give color to each portion of dough and then stir to blend well. Preheat wide tray and put a layer of colored dough.

After half-cooked, put the next colors repeatedly until all colors are finished. Once cooked, cut into pieces and the Jaja Lapis cakes are ready to serve on plate. (BTN/015)

4

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Bali News

Two students drowned in Tembok Barak waterfall when trekking

SINGARAJA — Unlucky fate was experienced by two students of SMK Kesehatan Widharba health vocational school at Sangket hamlet, Sukasada. While trekking to the location of Tembok Barak waterfall, Sambangan village, Sukasada, on Monday (Dec. 11), both students died due to drowning in the plunge pool. Both students are Luh Devi Cahyani, 17, from Sidamiu hamlet, Pegadungan, Sukasada, and Kadek Dwi Asmarani, 17, from Tukad Sumaga village, Gerokgak.

In addition to both dead victims, another male student, Darmayasa, survived after being helped by the trekking companion.

As information compiled at the scene, the accident occurred around 11:00. A total of 25 students and accompanying teachers did the trekking to fill their semester break period and arrived at the waterfall around 09:00 Local Time. At the waterfall, some students had activity around the waterfall. Meanwhile, both female victims and Darmayasa walked on the edge of the waterfall puddles.

Not long after, the three students were found waving hands amid the waterfall puddle known to have an adequately torrent stream. The other students panicked and shouted for help. At that time, the male student only could be rescued, while the other two victims could not be helped and found drowned to death.

The incident made the surrounding residents frenzy.

Moreover, residents from other hamlets thronged the scene.

SAR officers and the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) together with residents directly searched them. Around 11:00 Local Time, both victims were found drowning at a depth of about six meters. Evaluation against the bodies of both victims became a spectacle to residents along the way passed through. When arriving on the road of Sambangan village, residents increasingly crowded to witness the victims’ body when taken into the ambulance of the PMI Buleleng and operating vehicle of BPBD. Many students joining the trekking shouted hysterically to faint after seeing the two victims. The students were immediately rushed to their school by ambulance.

One of the witnesses accompanying the trekking activity, Gusti Ngurah Agus Deni, claimed not to know exactly about the incident. He only saw both dead victims and one survived victim waving hands in the middle of the waterfall puddle.

Seeing the incident, he immediately tried to help. At that time, he only managed to help the male student. Meanwhile, both other victims failed to be helped due to swift flow of water.

Then, he asked the residents to look for two victims.

Around 11:00 Local Time, both victims consisting of Devi and Asmarani were found in dead condition. “Before the incident, I have warned the restriction of swimming and never reach up to one meter. I saw the victims walking in the west of the waterfall. Not long after that, I saw the girls waving hands in the waterfall. I helped and only the man could be survived, while the two girls were not found so then I asked for help to surrounding residents,” he said.

On the other hand, Deni said the trekking to Tembok Barak waterfall was based on the agreement of students.

Prior to carrying out the activities, he had also prayed for salvation. However, Deni did not think if the activities formerly intended to provide entertainment for students had even changed into disaster. “They are accompanied by two teachers. There are totally 21 students and added with the teachers, so they totally amount to 25 people. Selection of the location was already based on student agreement, and the companion teachers had appealed them not to be too close to the waterfall,” he explained.

Headmaster of the SMK Kesehatan Widharma, Gusti Putu Arsila, said the incident afflicted to his students was known after receiving information from the companion teachers. He claimed to have not been notified regarding the trekking activities at the Tembok Barak waterfall.

Moreover, the activity plan to fill the semester break was ever suspended because there were other school activities.

After asking for chronologies to companion teachers, the dead-end trekking was based on the initiative of the first, second and third graded students.

“I have not been notified and the companion teachers informed it is the initiative of the students. Previously, there was indeed a trekking plan but we have postponed because there was busyness. We have made coordination to parents of the victim from Pegadungan while the parents of student from Gerokgak cannot be contacted,” he said.

Until now, police are still investigating the incident by gathering witnesses’ testimonies. In the meantime, the victims’ body had been commended in mortuary of Buleleng Hospital. From the results of external examination, the victims died due to water influx to their lungs ending in the bleeding from nose. Meanwhile, no indications of violence were found on both bodies. (kmb38)

The victims’ body had been commended in mortuary of Buleleng Hospital.

IBP/kmb

International

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

International

Tourists reluctant to come to Bali due to discontinued policies

DENPASAR — The number of foreign tourists visit is predicted to continuously decline although the Ngurah Rai International Airport has resumed its operation after closed for three days due to eruption of Mount Agung. The discontinued policy of the government and related parties is blamed to be the scapegoat.

“Actually the policies of the governor related to provision of free one-night stay by preparing 300 vehicles or buses to get to the nearest airport are good. However, after tourists cannot leave when the airport was closed, it did not exist in reality,” said a member of PDI-P Faction of the Bali House of Representatives, I Nyoman Adnyana, in the work meeting between the governor and the Bali Parliament in the parliamentary hall on Monday (Dec. 11).

Adnyana added there was no free one-night stay at hotel for tourists.

Besides, they had to pay the bus transporting them to the nearest airport. This gave impression if the policies issued by the governor do not connect to the parties concerned.

Another problem is that tourists also seemed to be given incorrect statement by the government. “Particularly in China, there is no tolerance and cancellation of all flights to Bali,” added this Bangli-born politician.

Actually, continued Adnyana, the real action of the government can actually dismiss negative impressions from tourists. On the other hand, he understood the difficulties of the governor where at the time of airport he cannot disburse a disaster budget considering that time has not been set as a state of emergency.

Thus, it makes the executive difficult to help the cost of transportation, hotels, and others.

“I think if it had been done clearly, there will be a more positive response from tourists that Bali provincial government is really serious and takes real action for the people and tourists,” he explained.

A member of Commission II of the Bali House of Representatives, A.A. Ngurah Adhi Ardhana, said that foreign tourist arrivals from September to October dropped by 15 percent. This also affected the decrease in tourist arrivals nationwide by 5 percent. After the eruption during the period from November to December, this decline is predicted to reach almost 60 percent. Nationally, it nearly contributes as much as 25 percent of the decrease in tourist arrival.

Sluggish tourism sector in Bali should be taken seriously by central government. “We hope the governor can pass it to president in order to be present in Bali,” said this PDI-P politician.

Meanwhile, Chairman of Commission IV of Bali House of Repre-

One dead, 18 injured in fire at Austria’s main gas hub

sentatives, Nyoman Parta, said that foreign media should be involved to inform that Bali is safe to be visited.

It also includes foreigners remaining to stay in Bali. It is done to further grow the trust of foreign tourists coming to the Island of the Gods.

“Can they (foreigners in Bali— Ed) not be mobilized to come to around Mount Agung for taking photos or selfie, and so on,” said this PDI-P politician from Gianyar.

Back to farming

Governor of Bali, Made Mangku Pastika, did not want to drift in panic with the decrease in tourist arrivals as the businessmen did although he is aware that Bali is very dependent on tourism sector. It is necessary to prepare social safety net if the eruption of Mount Agung is sustainable.

Particularly, it is meant to anticipate the unemployment arising from the sector.

“Probably, it is a good moment for us to be back to farming. It is time for children that cannot work in tourism sector to go home and cultivate their land or breed chicken or duck,” he added. Pastika has been thinking to facilitate them in pursue farming. For example, they can use empty land owned by provincial government spreading throughout Bali. In Pekutatan area, for instance, it has 1,100 hectares or 600 hectares at Sumberklampok.

“We have a lot of empty land that can be cultivated. Or it can be give particular facilitation,” he explained.

Currently, continued Pastika, foreign tourists coming to Bali are dominated by Chinese tourists.

However, the local government has canceled all flights to Bali until January 31, 2018. “Chinese tourists, I think, have been ranked first, especially before the New Year. If they are still prohibited until 31 January, we’ll go bankrupt,” he explained.

Pastika admitted to be immediately inviting consul general in Bali. Chinese Consul General, in particularly, will be required to annul the cancellation of flights to the Island of the Gods. At least, it can take action like the embassies of other countries which is only issued travel advisory instead of travel ban. What Chinese government taken is now like travel ban.

On the other hand, the circle of tourism industry also asked the government of Badung to delay or waive the hotel and restaurant tax (PHR). “We are also asked to talk to the Financial Service Authority (OJK) on loans. Many small and medium enterprises in the disaster-prone areas pledged their certificates in bank and cannot pay both for loans in the field of tourism and others sectors,” he affirmed. (kmb)

13

REUTERS/Tyrone Siu

An armed policeman guards the entrance as a prison car carrying British former banker Rurik Jutting enters High Court to launch his appeal, in Hong Kong, China December 12, 2017.

Former banker’s lawyer argues judge misled jury in Hong Kong double murder trial

HONG KONG - A lawyer for a former British banker who was jailed for life in Hong Kong for the murder of two Indonesian women he tortured and raped said on Tuesday that the judge who presided over the gruesome trial last year had misdirected the jury.

Rurik Jutting, 32, a former Bank of America employee, has applied for leave to appeal against his conviction in the former British colony’s Court of Appeal.

Jutting denied murdering Sumarti Ningsih, 23, and Seneng Mujiasih, 26, in his luxury apartment in 2014 on the grounds of diminished responsibility due to alcohol and drug abuse and sexual disorders.

The Cambridge-educated Jutting pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in a case that gripped the Asian financial hub.

The jury unanimously found him guilty of murder and he was sentenced to life in prison in November last year.

Jutting, dressed in a pale blue shirt, appeared calm and watched as his lawyer Gerard McCoy argued that the judge had “wrongly and prescriptively directed the jury”.

McCoy argued the judge had conflated an abnormality of mind with a psychiatric disorder.

“Abnormality of mind is abso-

lutely not confined to a disorder or a disease. Here the judge locks it down, reinforcing to the jury it is disorder,” he said.

“The ground of appeal is that the judge wrongly directed the jury as to the true meaning of abnormality of the mind,” McCoy said.

Deputy High Court Judge Michael Stuart-Moore said in strongly worded closing remarks at the end of the trial last year that the case was one of the most horrifying the Chinese-ruled territory had known.

He described Jutting as the “archetypal sexual predator” who represented an extreme danger to women, especially in the sex trade, and cautioned that it was possible he would murder again if freed.

Lawyers for Jutting, the grandson of a British policeman in Hong Kong and a Chinese woman, had previously argued that cocaine and alcohol abuse, as well as personality disorders of sexual sadism and narcissism, had impaired his ability to control his behaviour.

The prosecution rejected this, stating Jutting was able to form judgements and exercise self-control before and after the killings, filming his torture of Ningsih on his mobile phone as well as hours of footage in which he discussed the murders, bingeing on cocaine and his graphic sexual fantasies. (rtr)

VIENNA - An explosion and fire that ripped through Austria’s main gas pipeline hub on Tuesday killed one person and injured 18 others, emergency services said, causing Italy to declare a state of emergency due to a lack of gas supplies.

Gas Connect Austria, which operates the Baumgarten site in eastern Austria, said the blaze had been brought under control and police added that the cause was technical in origin.

“There was an explosion around 8:45 a.m. (0745 GMT) and a fire,” a police spokesman said. “A wide area has been sealed off and there are expected to be several injured.”

A spokesman for the fire brigade said one person had been killed and 18 injured, one seriously. A second police spokesman confirmed that 18 people had been injured.

Footage on social and other media showed a column of fire in the distance rising from a flat landscape.

The hub is important for European gas transit, with natural gas transported to Baumgarten via Slovakia and

Germany along several cross-border pipelines.

Gas flows are then delivered throughout Europe via Austria’s transmission network.

Gas Connect Austria said its deliveries to Austria’s southern and southeastern borders were affected by the blast until further notice.

Italy declared a state of emergency regarding energy supplies at the Austrian hub as its industry minister said the country had a “serious” energy supply problem.

Slovakia’s main gas transit route to Austria was suspended after the fire, Slovak pipeline operator Eustream said.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Gazprom Export said it was working on redirecting gas flows and trying to secure uninterrupted supplies to clients.

Gas prices in Europe soared on concerns about supply.

The Italian wholesale day-ahead price surged 97 percent to 47 euros per megawatt-hour, its highest recorded level.

In Britain, Europe’s biggest gas market, gas for immediate delivery soared 35 percent to 92 pence per therm, a level not seen since 2013. (rtr)

REUTERS/Heinz-Peter Bader

Smoke rises from Austria’s largest natural gas import and distribution station after a gas explosion in Baumgarten, Austria December 12, 2017.

14

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Technology

International

Bali News

International

Phones for urns: Hong Kong turns to virtual reality to honour ancestors

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

3

HONG KONG - A lack of space for cemeteries in crowded Hong Kong clashes with the age-old Chinese tradition of reverence for one’s ancestors.

REUTERS/Bobby Yip

Anthony Yuen, CEO of iVeneration.com, demonstrates an augmented reality graveyard at his office in Hong Kong, China.

But one entrepreneur uses virtual reality software to reconcile the two, allowing people to honour Confucian traditions of filial obligation in the territory where it can cost up to $130,000 to store the ashes of loved ones.

Anthony Yuen’s firm, iVeneration.com, offers users the ability to create virtual headstones anywhere in an augmented reality landscape of Hong Kong, including such unlikely places as a downtown park.

Apart from the cost savings, Yuen expects his business model to appeal to more eco-conscious young residents.

“The dead are taking so much more space than those who are still alive, as those buried use that piece of land for many years,” said Yuen, as he manipulated his mobile telephone to correctly position a candle in front of a virtual headstone.

“For those who are still alive, they won’t stay on the same piece of land forever.”

Yuen, who hopes to launch the website to the public in the first quarter of 2018, has already attracted 300 users.

Filial piety, or respect for parents and older people, is a paramount virtue in the Confucian tradition.

“We need to educate the next generation on filial piety, no matter how you show it, as long as it comes from the heart,” Yuen added. “We think the next generation might use these services for their parents.”

Alex Lee, a 46-year-old employee of a technology company, uses iVeneration to pay his respects to his departed grandfather.

“Everyone is aware the lack of land is a problem in Hong Kong and the government has been encouraging green burial,” said Lee, as he leafed through an album of family photographs.

“For me, you don’t have to go to a thing to remember those passed away, it’s all in your heart.” (rtr)

Trump wants to send U.S. astronauts back to moon, someday Mars

WASHINGTON - At a time when China is working on an ambitious lunar program, President Donald Trump vowed on Monday that the United States will remain the leader in space exploration as he began a process to return Americans to the moon.

“We are the leader and we’re going to stay the leader, and we’re going to increase it many fold,” Trump said in signing “Space Policy Directive 1” that establishes a foundation for a mission to the moon with an eye on going to Mars.

“This time, we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint, we will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars,” Trump said. “And perhaps, someday, to many worlds beyond.”

Back in June, China’s space official said the country was making “preliminary” preparations to send a man to the moon, the latest goal in China’s ambitious lunar exploration program.

Trump’s signing ceremony for the directive included former lunar astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Harrison Schmitt and current astronaut Peggy Whitson, whose

665 days in orbit is more time in space than any other American and any other woman worldwide.

The ceremony also featured a moon rock 3.8 billion years old collected by Schmitt’s Apollo 17 mission in 1972.

Trump said he was taking a giant step toward “reclaiming America’s proud destiny in space.”

“And space has so much to do with so many other applications, including a military application,” he said without elaboration.

In approving the new policy, Trump abandoned what had been a goal of his predecessor, Democrat Barack Obama, who in 2010 backed a plan to send humans to a near-earth asteroid.

NASA said initial funding for the new policy would be included in its budget request for fiscal year 2019.

“NASA looks forward to supporting the president’s directive strategically aligning our work to return humans to the moon, travel to Mars and opening the deeper solar system beyond,” said acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot in a statement. (rtr)

Volcanic ashes of Mount Agung eruption caused trees and gardens of residents, especially in disaster-prone area (KRB) III, to wither and molt.

IBP/kmb

In the KRB area, volcanic ashes only leave cassava

AMLAPURA - Volcanic ashes of Mount Agung eruption caused trees and gardens of residents, especially in disaster-prone area (KRB) III, to wither and molt. Virtually there are no crops that can be harvest except the cassava and sweet potatoes. This condition was seen when the village non-commissioned military (Babinsa) and police officer (Babinkambtibmas) of Jungutan village, Bebandem, patrolled several hamlets on Monday (Dec. 11).

Police officer I Made Suda and military officer I Nyoman S patrolled into the hamlets in the danger zone. In addition to encountering some residents that admitted to come home for checking their house condition, the patrol also found some residents harvesting cassava, yam taro and sweet potato.

Unfortunately, they are not the main crops in the area but

only serve as substitute for rice and only pose a byproduct because local community usually cultivates seasonal plants.

A resident of Jungutan, Ida Bagus Made, 45, said the people of upper Jungutan area such as Kubu Pangi, Pangleg and Yeh Kori expect much from their avocado gardens. During the season, farmer can harvest IDR 3 million per tree.

Avocado fruit is usually sold to merchant directly in the trees.

“Most collectors are from Bangli,” he said.

When their gardens were swept away by volcanic ash rain, according to Ida Bagus Made, for a while farmers cannot expect from the avocado garden. Volcanic ashes make avocado leaves even wilted. The only harvestable plantation is tubers. “Currently the residents of Jungutan are evacuating while their livestock have been sold,” he said.

Volcanic ash rain culminating when the eruption occurred on November 25 also affected the reservoir of Yeh Kori.

Village non-commissioned police and military officers at Jungutan also checked the location. “The reservoir of Yeh Kori remains to contain water but mixed with mud and volcanic ashes,” said Ketut Sukrada from 1623 / Karangasem military district.

Responding to the phenomenon of residents of the disaster-prone area III coming home during the day, the Karangasem district military through the military region officer continued to give dissemination. An officer of Selat military region, I Wayan Mustika, visited the evacuation post at Pakel and Sanggem hamlet, Sangkan Gunung village, Sidemen.

Both hamlets are used as refugee post of Sebudi village residents, Selat, totally amounting to 120 families (427 people).

The military officers gave motivation to refugees so as to be patient and not to return home by force during Mount Agung remains in warning alert status. (kmb)

Mixed marriage faces challenges in property ownership

REUTERS

President Donald Trump vowed on Monday that the United States will remain the leader in space exploration as he began a process to return Americans to the moon.

MANGUPURA — The couples of mixed marriage (Perca) between Indonesian and foreign citizen all this time are faced with difficulty in property ownership in Indonesia. It happens because most Indonesians do not have time to make a marital agreement before marriage. Constraints then occur when applying for bank loans or a legal problem with developers when buying property. Similar problem will be encountered when the owner will sold the property. The couples of the Indonesian citizen must degrade the right of property into the right to use as foreigners do.

Coordinator of Bali Mixed Marriage, Ni Putu Marina Eka

Puspasari, said that as civilians she considered the government is not fair because her marriage to a man with a foreign nationality is made difficult to own property.

“Those that do not have a marriage agreement face troubles for years,” she said on Saturday (Dec. 9) at the Year End Gathering of Mixed Marriage Society.

Many couples of mixed marriage have not owned marital agreement yet because the lack of information. Besides, the government rarely provides dissemination when local citizens married to foreigners.

The problem was then filed to the Constitutional Court of the Republic

of Indonesia in 2015 by the advocate and lawyer team of the mixed marriage society, Ike Farida. The court then decided that every couple can make a marital agreement before or during the marriage takes place.

Chairperson of Perca, Juliani W. Luthan, said that currently her party as the organization of Mixed Marriage Society considered the Decision No. MK. 69 / PUU-XIII / 2015 issued in 2016 an important breakthrough. “Our difficulty to own property due to not having a marital agreement can now be overcome,” she said.

Verdict of the Constitutional Court provides flexibility for mixed marriage couples. With this deci-

sion, the marital agreement can be made when the marriage takes place and applies throughout the marriage. “Those that have not owned yet the marital agreement can make it now,” she explained.

Marital agreement is basically meant to separate property of Indonesian citizens and their foreign partner so that there is no mixing of treasure. “Since the agrarian law of the RI upholds the principle of nationality, it prohibits the existence of foreign elements mixed as joint property in marriage, in the property ownership,” she said.

With the presence of agreement separating the property, the treasures will become separated

legally. So, Indonesian citizens can more freely get the right of ownership or right to building use.

However, currently a new challenge emerges namely many third parties (banking and developers) still do not understand about this new provision. “Perca organization will always encourage the dissemination and understanding of the Constitutional Court Decision as well as guard the implementation in the field. Moreover, a Circular was issued in 2017 by the Director General of Population and Civil Registry and the Director General of Islamic Community Guidance to arrange this marital agreement,” added Juliani. (kmb42)

2

Bali News

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

BKSDA to build art stage at Toya Bungkah To encourage tourists to linger longer in Kintamani

BANGLI - The Natural Resource Conservation Agency (BKSDA) of Bali is in the process of establishing a stage for cultural performances at the Nature Tourism Park (TWA) near Toya Bumgkah, Kintamani as a way to encourage tourists to linger longer in the area.

With tourists spending longer amounts of time in the region, the people in the surrounding communities can increase their economic welfare.

Head of BKSDA Bali, Suharyono, When met amid the cycling activities on Sunday (Dec. 10) , Head of BKSDA Bali, Suharyono revealed that tourists tend to make short trips to Kintamani – mostly to climb Mount Batur. “All this time, the tourists coming here for mountain climbing commonly arrive at 3 o’clock in the morning at depart at 8 o’clock. We want them to stay longer in Kintamani”, he explained.

The new performing arts stage that will be called ‘the Dewi Danau Batur Art Stage’, will be as the venue for traditional performing arts such as Kintamani’s a cappella singing known as genjek. “These performances will be included in tour packages that will have tourists arrive in the afternoon to watch the show, rather than arriving at night just before climbing the mountain. This way tourists will stay here longer and benefit the local community”, he explained.

According to Suharyono, tourists will want to stay longer in Kintamani if they feel at home. This in turn will benefit the local economy. “ For example if someone is visiting for just a few hours, they may only buy one drink, whereas if they are here longer they may buy more and even become interested in local crafts and such”, said Suharyono.

Meanwhile, Regent of Bangli, I Made Gianyar, when met at Toya Bungkah last Sunday expressed his appreciation for the stage being built by the BKSDA, adding that road access, tourism related facilities and amenities as well as clear tourist attractions are needed for tourism in the area to be able to flourish. The performing arts stage also needs to feature interesting performances if they want to attract more tourists. “If the performances are monotonous tourists will be bored and will not want to return”, said Regent Gianyar.

Regent Gianyar also plans to invite the BKSDA to further discuss the management of tourism in Kintamani. He also expressed his desire to create a governing body for tourism in oder to to the maximis the potential of tourism in the area. (kmb40)

IBP/file

International

Road widening at Jimbaran intersection could be delayed

Due to land aquisiton challenges MANGUPURA - The plan to widen the road at the Jimbaran intersection in South Kuta is threatened which delays as eight land owners have yet to agree on a price for the acquisition of their land by the government. On November 15th, the Badung Punlic Works and Spatial Planning (PPTK)’s Technical Implementation Officers approached the landowners with an offer, however the landowners asked for a week’s time to consider the offer. .

Then, on November 21, the PPTK met again with the landowners who rejected the appraisal of IDR 10 million per square meter (IDR 1b billion per 100 square meters). “The land owners are asking to be compensated the same amount for their land as land owners in Tuban had been”, said. At that time, the landowners rejected the price set by the appraisal team at IDR 10 million per square meter or IDR 1 billion per 100 square meters. “The landowners request the same land price as in Tuban,”, said Dharma.

Surya Dharma however has responded by saying that that the IDR 10 million per square meter is the highest price that the appraisal team has accorded to this land.

Originally they were indeed offered IDR 900 million 100 square meter but the appraisal team them reviewed this price and raised it to 1 billion per 100 square meters. “ We cannot offer a higher price than that is the price assessed to be fair by the appraisal team. We work according ot the rules and prevailing bases by which the

appraisal value is used to quote a price”, said Dhrama.

Because the land owners did not agree to the price offered, they were given another week to discuss the matter. If they agreed the money would have been disbursed immediately. However without agreement, the matter goes to the district court. “Whatever the court decides, the money for the land acquisition will be entrusted to the court to disburse”, he added.

Head of PUPR Badung, I.B. Surya Suamba, confirmed on Sunday (Dec. 10) that the 14 day window for discussion since the first meeting on November 21th had closed and that according to regulations, the lack of agreements means that the matter must be taken to the distict court. Any objections from affected parties should likewise appeal to the court for clarification. “ Th district government of Badung’s Administrative Affairs Office will respond to the letter sent by the affected communities as soon as possible”, concluded Suamba.

The road widening project in Jimbaran is included as part of the same project as the planned underpass at the intersection at the Ngurah Rai Monument in Tuban, However, the determination of land prices for the people whose land would be affected in conducted by a different appraisal team that the one that determined land prices in Tuban. The price for land in Tuban has been appraised at IDR 2 billion per 100 square meters, while at the land Jimbaran has been appraised at IDR 1 billion per 100 square. (kmb23)

Studies on golden triangle port targeted to complete in 2018

SEMARAPURA - The plan to build a golden triangle port in three locations to connect sea transport from Klungkung mainland to Nusa Penida Islands continues to roll out.

Moreover, this has been discussed for several times by district government of Klungkung. Besides, this plan is considered to have received support from the community. In line with that, the implementation of technical review continues to be finalized by district government. Overall, it is targeted to be completed in 2018. Head of the Klungkung Transportation Agency, I Nyoman Sucitra, revealed it on

Monday (Dec. 11).

The construction has been confirmed at Pesinggahan village, Dawan and Sampalan hamlet, Batu Nunggul village, Nusa Penida with respectively spreading across 5,000 square meters. In addition, another port is located at Bias Munjul, Lembongan village, Nusa Penida, with a land area of 5,200 square meters. Among them, only the port at Sampalan has been entering the discussion on the DED finalization, while the others are still in feasibility study. “This also needs environmental management effort (UKL) and environment

monitoring effort (UPL). The entire study is targeted to have completed by 2018. Afterwards, it has led to development,” said Sucitra.

Realization of the development requires a budget of about IDR 155 billion. For district government, it is quite fantastic and difficult to be fulfilled with regional budget (APBD).

“Therefore, we will propose to get assistance to provincial and central government. It is very difficult for the regions,” he explained.

He also stated the plan had received a positive response from the community. It is indicated by the results of questionnaire having been

disseminated. “It received good responses and got support,” he added.

One of the responses was delivered by Chairman of the Indonesia Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) of Klungkung, Wayan Kariana. The development is believed to have an impact on increased tourist arrivals. “If the district government has such a plan, we are very supportive, not just a plan,” he said.

He said when visiting Nusa Penida, tourists are still go up and down through traditional port. This has not been fully supported by adequate facilities. At least, such conditions will affect their com-

fort. “Now, they have to get wet.

At some places, some passengers use porter, but it will cost more,” he explained.

Through the seaport, the data collection of visiting tourists can be made easier. Unlike in the current condition, it is unknown for certain because there are many entrances.

“Honestly, so far we have not owned the data on tourist visit. With the presence of centralized port, the arrival will be more centralized so we can know the condition of visit,” said the newly appointed PHRI chairman on October 23, 2017. (kmb45)

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International

Activities

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

15

Italian White Truffles at MÉTIS Bali MÉTIS Bali invites you to savour one of the seasons most anticipated and sought-after indulgences, the Italian White Truffle imported all the way from Alba in Italy. Chef Dove Sudarsana will provide an exquisite take on the rare Italian delicacy for an unforgettable experience at MÉTIS for the festive season. 1 gram of freshly shaved White Truffles will be served with Free Range Organic Poached Egg, Warm Green Asparagus, Organic Grass Fed Beef Carpaccio, Tagliatelle Pasta, Carnaroli Risotto and Hokkaido Scallop Ravioli. Extra shaved White Truffle can be added to your table upon request by the Chef at an additional Rp. 110.000++/ grams. Dining at MÉTIS is always a pleasure, a treat for the senses with a unique ambience that combines the beauty of art and nature, artistry of fine food and drink, and pleasure of jovial company. Jl. Petitenget No.6, Seminyak Bali | Ph: +62 361 847 5472 |www.metisbali.com EVERY MONDAY Movie Monday19:00-21:00 Genius Cafe- Home to the entrepreneur Beach CLub Mertasari Beach (Next to Mercure), Sanur EVERY TUESDAY Ecstatic contact dance: Transformative journey Paradiso Ubud, Jalan Goutama Selatan, Ubud 100k includes dinner EVERY WEDNESDAY DEep Dive Dance Guided improvised movement 19:00-21:00 Paradiso Ubud Jalan Goutama Selatan, Ubud 100k EVERY THURSDAY African Drums with Catur SAng Klang Wijaya 16:00-18:00 Experience the healing power of drumming, all levels welcome

BY DONATION SUNDAY MARKETS 10AM 1PM Sunday Market at Batu Jimbar Jl. Danau Tablingan , Sanur 10AM-4PM The Sands Beach Club and Restaurant Sunday MArket Jl. Danau Tamblingan, No 27, Sanur 9:30AM-1PM Sunday Market @ Warung Sopa Jl. Sugriwas no36, Padang Tegal, Ubud 9AM-2PM Samadi Sunday Market Jalan. Padang Linjong 39, Canggu, 9AM-2PM Wednesday and Sunday Ubud Organik Market Jl. Raya Pengosekan across from Zens Hotel Tebesaya, Ubud 12PM-10PM Sunday Food Festival & Bazaar Byrdhouse Beach Club, Sanur 10AM-6PM, Mercure,last sunday of every month, jl. ,Mertasari, Sanur, fashion food and and kids activities The Coffee Spot, Jalan Peigenet 888X,Seminyak, last Sunday of every month, garage sale clothing, books, and hand-made jewellery

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

16 Pages Number 8 10th year

Price: Rp 3.000,-

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

‘Shape of Water’ leads Globes nominees; risk-takers rewarded

LOS ANGELES - Hollywood’s long awards season began to take shape on Monday with Golden Globe nominations that rewarded risktaking and shone a spotlight on veterans and newcomers alike.

Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro’s “The Shape of Water,” a magical drama about a relationship between a strange river creature and a mute cleaner, collected a leading seven nods, including best drama, and director and acting nominations for Sally Hawkins, Octavia Spencer and Richard Jenkins.

“Above all, ‘The Shape of Water’ is about love overcoming fear and embracing the Other,” Del Toro said in a statement.

“The Post,” Steven Spielberg’s pertinent drama about press freedom, followed with six nominations. The other nominees for the top best drama prize are British World War Two tale “Dunkirk,” gay romance “Call Me By Your Name” and the quirky dramedy “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.”

The Golden Globes are chosen by about 90 journalists belonging to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, but they often foreshadow picks for the Oscars, the movie industry’s highest awards.

“The Shape of Water” and “The Post” are also among front-runners for Oscars in March. the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) announces its own nominations on Wednesday.

“Call Me By Your Name” took 10 years to get made.

It also brought first-time Golden Globe nominations for actors Timothee Chalamet, 21, and Armie Hammer, 31. Chalamet also appears in another Golden Globes

contender, “Lady Bird,” though he was not nominated for that role.

The Italian director of “Call Me By Your Name,” Luca Guadagnino, in a statement called it “a great cinematic romance that challenged conventions and proved that love is love.”

Mother-daughter comedy “Lady Bird” got four nods, including for its star, Saiorse Ronan, and Laurie Metcalf, in her supporting role as the title character’s mother.

However, first-time director Greta Gerwig was snubbed in an all-male list for that category.

Other best comedy or musical film nominees included James Franco’s “The Disaster Artist,” about the making of the 2003 box office bomb “The Room; “Get Out,” a satire on modern race relations set within a psychological thriller, the P.T. Barnum musical “The Greatest Showman” and the ice-skating mockumentary “I, Tonya.”

Australian actress and producer Margot Robbie, in her first Golden Globe nod, also was nominated for her starring role in “I, Tonya,” which tells the story of Tonya Harding and the infamous 1994 attack on rival U.S. figure skater Nancy Kerrigan. Allison Janney was nominated for playing Harding’s mother.

“There were a lot of people who said this project was impossible to make. I’m really glad we didn’t listen to them,” Robbie, 27, told Reuters.

Movie studio Twentieth Century Fox and its Fox Searchlight unit for independent film dominated the nominations, sharing a total of 27 nods.

British actor Gary Oldman, 59, said he was “amazed, flattered and very proud” of his first Golden Globe nomination for his role as British wartime leader Winston Churchill in “Darkest Hour.” (rtr)

REUTERS/File Photos

Nominees for the 75th Golden Globe Awards, Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy category, (L-R) Judy Dench, Margot Robbie, Saoirse Ronan, Emma Stone, and Helen Mirren are seen in a combination of file photos.

REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth/File Photo

British publicist Max Clifford gestures as he arrives at Southwark Crown Court after a break for lunch, London, Britain, April 23, 2014.

Former British celebrity publicist Max Clifford dies in prison

LONDON - Britain’s bestknown publicist, Max Clifford, died on Sunday after collapsing in prison, where he was serving an eight-year sentence for indecently assaulting teenage girls in the 1970s and 1980s.

Britain’s justice ministry said he had died in hospital. “As with all deaths in custody there will be an investigation by the independent Prisons and Probation Ombudsman. Our condolences are with Mr. Clifford’s family at this difficult time,” a prison service spokeswoman said in a statement.

The BBC said it understood that the 74-year-old had collapsed in his cell on Thursday while trying

to clean it, then again the following day.

Clifford’s conviction in 2014 was the first from an inquiry into historical sex abuse triggered by reports that the late BBC TV presenter Jimmy Savile had been a prolific sex offender for decades.

Clifford, whose clients had included TV music mogul Simon Powell and U.S. boxer Muhammad Ali, was found guilty of eight counts of indecently assaulting four girls aged 14 to 19 between 1977 and 1984.

He had denied all charges, saying the allegations were “utterly repulsive” lies by fantasists and opportunists. (rtr)

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Wednesday, December 13, 2017

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Antara Foto/Fathulrahman/ via REUTERS

A medical officers vaccinates a child for DPT (Diphtheria, Tetanus and Pertussis or Whooping Cough) in Serang, Banten province, Indonesia December 11, 2017 in this photo taken by Antara Foto

Indonesia races to contain diphtheria outbreak ahead of 2018 Asian Games

JAKARTA - Health authorities in Jakarta kicked off a special immunisation programme on Monday to rein in an “extraordinary” outbreak of diphtheria that has sparked concerns about the Indonesian capital’s readiness to host the Asian Games next June. Diphtheria cases have spiked 42 percent since last year, health officials say, with at least 32 deaths and more than 590 cases recorded across the archipelago, the bulk of them in densely populated Jakarta and neighbouring provinces.

“If we have an extraordinary event like this, it might mean the Asian Games would not be a success and that could become a burden for us in the health department,” Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan told reporters at the

programme launch.

Diphtheria is a bacterial infection that spreads through close physical contact or through the air and can be fatal. Symptoms include fever and a sore throat, and the airway can sometimes become

blocked.

On Monday, dozens of mothers lined up for their toddlers to receive free jabs at a clinic in west Jakarta.

The program will be rolled out to other provinces in coming weeks.

Experts said the vaccination programme was necessary and welltimed because of the risk of the disease spreading out of control at an event like the Asian Games, which is expected to draw hundreds of athletes from dozens of countries.

“Events like that have mass gatherings that make it easy for the disease to spread, so it is important now to provide as much (immu-

nisation) coverage as possible,” said Dr. Vinod Bura, the acting representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Jakarta.

Worrying signs that the disease might spread included rejection of vaccinations by some people and a lack of access to healthcare, health officials and experts said.

“There are those who say (vaccination) is not good, but we must emphasize that this is beneficial,” Health Minister Nila Moeloek said at the launch. “If the benefits outweigh the disadvantages, this is a necessity.”

Rates of diphtheria in Indonesia

are among the world’s highest, along with India and sub-Saharan African countries, even though vaccinations have helped reduce global cases over the past 30 years. The WHO recorded about 7,000 cases around the world last year, down from 100,000 in 1980. (rtr) 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.