Edition Wednesday, May 29, 2019 | International Bali Post

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Wednesday, May 29, 2019

‘Inconsiderate’ Moby apologises to Natalie Portman after claiming they dated

LOS ANGELES - Moby has publicly apologised to Natalie Portman days after she claimed he had been “creepy” with her when she was younger.

The dance musician, 53, alleged he dated the Hollywood actress when she was 20 in his memoir Then It Fell Apart.

Portman remembered their relationship differently, telling Harper’s Bazaar UK that “there are many factual errors and inventions” in his writing.

The 37-year-old actress told the magazine: “I was surprised to hear that he characterised the very short time that I knew him as dating because my recollection is a much older man being creepy with me when I just had graduated high school. He said I was 20; I definitely wasn’t. I was a teenager. I had just turned 18.”

Moby initially fired back saying that he was “confused” at her denial over a relationship with him, insisting that they did date.

But he has since issued an apology on Instagram saying that all criticisms of him in recent days are “very valid”.

Moby also said that he should have “acted more responsibly and respectfully when Natalie and I first met almost 20 years ago” given their “almost 14 year age difference”.

He wrote earlier in the post: “I also fully recognize (sic) that it was truly inconsiderate of me to not let her know about her inclusion in the book beforehand, and equally inconsiderate for me to not fully respect her reaction.

“I have a lot of admiration for Natalie, for her intelligence, creativity, and animal rights activism, and I hate that I might have caused her and her family distress.”

The post continues: “I tried to treat everyone I included in Then It Fell Apart with dignity and respect, but nonetheless it was truly inconsiderate for me to not let them know before the book was released.

“So for that I apologize, to Natalie, as well as the other people I wrote about in Then It Fell Apart without telling them beforehand.” (net)

IBP/net

Natalie Portman has said she thought Moby was ‘creepy’

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

Wednesday, May 29, 2019 Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott attend the premiere of Disney’s “Aladdin” on May 21, 2019 in Los Angeles, California.

Disney’s live-action ‘Aladdin’ casts a box-office spell

LOS ANGELES - “Aladdin” apparently still has the old magic, as the new Disney film took in an estimated $86.1 million in the Friday-to-Sunday period in North America to lead all boxoffice offerings, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported.

The film, released on the US’s four-day Memorial Day weekend, is expected to earn $105 million when Monday’s ticket sales are included, well beyond earlier estimates of around $80 million, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The live-action movie, directed

by Guy Ritchie, stars Will Smith as the genie and the Egyptian-born Canadian actor Mena Massoud as the wily charmer who pretends to be a prince to catch the attention of the lovely Jasmine (Naomi Scott).

The new version is an adaptation of Disney’s 1992 “Aladdin,” which featured the unforgettable voice of Robin Williams as the fast-talking genie (and the less well-known actor Scott Weinger as Aladdin).

Last week’s box-office leader, Lionsgate’s “John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum,” slipped to second, taking in $24.4 million for three days ($30.5 million for four).

Keanu Reaves again stars as retired hitman John Wick, this time being chased by an army of killers after a contract is put on his head. Also starring are Halle Berry, Laurence Fishburne, Ian McShane and Anjelica Huston.

In third was Disney blockbuster “Avengers: Endgame,” taking in an estimated $16.8 million for three days ($21.9 million for four).

“Avengers,” with an all-star cast including Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Bradley Cooper, Scarlett

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Johansson and Josh Brolin, has broken domestic records but, with a worldwide take of $2.68 billion, is still shy of the $2.79 billion earned by all-time leader “Avatar” in 2009.

Fourth place went to Warner Bros.’

“Pokemon: Detective Pikachu,” at $13.3 million ($17 million). Its animated title character (voiced by Ryan Reynolds) teams up with a young boy (Justice Smith, in a live-action role) to seek the boy’s missing father.

And in fifth was new Sony horror thriller “Brightburn,” at $7.5 million ($9 million). Elizabeth Banks, David Denman and Jackson A. Dunn star in the story of an alien tot who arrives on Earth and realizes, as he grows up on a Kansas farm, that he has superpowers. (afp)

AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

Police officers fix razor wire barricade damaged during the Wednesday’s clash with supporters of Indonesian presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, May 23, 2019.

Indonesia police allege plot to kill top officials

JAKARTA - Four top Indonesian officials, including two Cabinet ministers and the national spy chief, were targeted for assassination as part of a plot possibly linked to last week’s election riots, police said Tuesday.

National police chief Tito Karnavian told reporters that details of the plot were obtained from interrogations of six arrested individuals.

Seven people died in two nights of rioting last week in Jakarta after official election results confirmed that President Joko Widodo had won a second term. Police say the riots, which broke out during peaceful protests by supporters of the losing candidate Prabowo Subianto, were planned.

The rioting followed an election that highlighted Muslim-majority Indonesia’s religious divides.

Subianto, who allied himself with groups that want Islamic law to

replace secular government, won heavily in conservative provinces but was defeated nationally by Widodo’s coalition of moderate and minority voters.

Karnavian said the officials targeted for assassination included top security minister Wiranto, who uses a single name, and his predecessor, Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, who is currently maritime minister and seen as close to Widodo.

The two others were National Intelligence Agency chief Budi Gunawan and the head of the presidential special staff for intelligence and security, Gories Mere. A fifth person,

the head of an opinion polling company, was also a target, Karnavian said, without naming the person.

“We have arrested all the perpetrators who were ordered to carry out the executions, we have also confiscated four weapons, and we are developing the mastermind who gave the order to them who will be legally processed shortly,” Karnavian said at a joint news conference with Wiranto.

The security minister said the assassination plot aimed to instill fear in the officials and weaken the government.

Subianto, a former special forces general linked to past human rights abuses in Indonesia, has refused to accept results of the April 17 election. He has alleged massive fraud but provided no convincing evidence. His campaign team filed

a legal challenge to the result at the Constitutional Court on Friday.

Separately, local media reported that an American man who is a longtime resident of Indonesia has been arrested for spreading hoaxes online. In a YouTube video, the man says he’s a Subianto supporter and claims communists are infiltrating Indonesian society, a frequent allegation of hard-line Widodo critics.

On Monday, national police spokesman Muhammad Iqbal said police had seized two bullet-proof vests with “Police” written on them, imitating official police gear, a rifle modified to hold a scope, along with two guns similar to those issued by the Indonesian military.

Iqbal said the six suspects are from a different group than the alleged militants arrested earlier in the month.

Before election results were announced on May 21, counterterrorism police arrested more than 30 suspected militants from Jamaah Ansharut Daulah, an Indonesian extremist group affiliated with the Islamic State group.

Iqbal said one of the six suspects was arrested at a hotel in Jakarta after participating in the riots, another was arrested at Jakarta’s airport and others in locations around Jakarta and nearby Bogor. (ap) 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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Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Bali News

International

Tom Holland and Hemsworth brothers visit Bali

International

Activities

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

15

Actors Tom Holland and the Hemsworth brothers, Chris and Liam, visited Bali in Bali. Prior to arriving in Bali, Tom, the actor who plays Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, posted a short video on his Twitter on Saturday, informing his fans that he was heading to the Island of the Gods.

“So we’re officially on our way to Bali [...],” he said in the video.

Meanwhile, the Hemsworth brothers were seen in several social media posts.Chris, who portrayed the hammer-wielding god Thor, was seen wearing a blue t-shirt and a cap.

The same Twitter account also posted photos on Monday, showing Liam, the actor who played Gale Hawthorne in The Hunger Games, having breakfast with his family and friends at the five-star hotel The Ritz-Carlton, Bali.

At the time of writing, there was no official statement regarding the actors’ purpose for the visit.

Some reports said that Tom would be attending Sony Pictures film screenings and workshops on May 27 and 28 to promote his upcoming film Spider-Man: Far From Home, which is slated to be released in July.

Meanwhile, Chris reportedly Anthony Kwan/Getty Images for Sony Pictures Entertainment/AFP will attend similar events to promote his upcoming movie Men in Tom Holland takes selfie with fans during the Spider-Man: Far From Home Pan-Asian Media Summit Bali event on May 27, 2019 Black: International. (afp) in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia.

Environmental Agency asked to design TOSS Center

SEMARAPURA - Local Waste Processing Sites (TOSS) initiated in Klungkung adequately drew the attention of other local governments in innovating waste processing. However, the Klungkung district government has not been satisfied with the achievement because many other villages still have not yet established TOSS. To echo this TOSS at all villages, the Klungkung Environment and Land Agency is asked to make a new plan, so that Klungkung becomes a TOSS Center.

This was emphasized by the Regent of Klungkung, Nyoman

Suwirta, when receiving the arrival of PT Indonesia Power with the General Manager IGAN Wardiana Yasa and Warmadewa University represented by Chancellor Prof.

Dewa Putu Widjana, in the Widya Mandala Meeting Room of the Klungkung district government on Monday (May 27). All the three made binding cooperation, so that they play an active and synergetic role.

The mutual cooperation is in the effort to develop TOSS. “I asked the Environment and Land Agency to repack the TOSS, as a development effort to become a TOSS

Center,” he explained.

Collaboration with Indonesia Power and Warmadewa University is to develop TOSS throughout the village and increase the utilization of TOSS products in the Renewable Energy (EBT) sector.

Division Head of the Klungkung Administration Section, I Gusti Gede Gunarta, added that Indonesia Power is expected to encourage more TOSS products to be absorbed into the EBT sector. Meanwhile, Warmadewa University can improve efficiency, effectiveness, innovation, and quality of the implementation of

regional development programs in the field of education, research and community service. At the same time, it can help the development of resource potential of the Klungkung area.

Warmadewa University is expected to be able to implement its knowledge and to harmonize between the work programs of Warmadewa University and Klungkung district government. “With our academic colleagues, we are also designing educational programs for young generation of Klungkung as well as the entrepreneurial program going to village,”

he said.

Head of the Environment and Land Agency, Anak Agung Ngurah Kirana, said the efforts to develop TOSS have continued. To follow up Klungkung as a TOSS Center, he targets that all the villages want to proactively manage their own waste. This year, four new villages are being worked on so as to be able to implement TOSS at their villages. Thus, the final target of 2019 can realize 22 units of TOSS having worked optimally at each village. Next, we just need to work on other villages. (kmb36)

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Bangli: Swasrina, Buleleng: Mudiarta, Gianyar: Manik Astajaya, Karangasem: Eka Parananda, Klungkung: Bagiarta. Jakarta: Nikson, Hardianto, Ade Irawan. NTB: Agus Talino, Izzul Khairi, Raka Akriyani. Surabaya: Bambang Wilianto.  Office: Jalan Kepundung 67 A Denpasar 80232. Telephone (0361)225764, Facsimile: 227418, P.O.Box: 3010 Denpasar 80001. Bali Post Jakarta, Advertizing: Jl.Palmerah Barat 21F. Telp 021-5357602, Facsimile: 021-5357605 Jakarta Pusat. NTB: Jalam Bangau No. 15 Cakranegara Telp. (0370) 639543, Facsimile: (0370) 628257. Publisher: PT Bali Post

Sunny Dahye, Korean Beauty Vlogger visited the Nusa Dua Beach Hotel & Spa, Bali Sunny Dahye, Beauty and Lifestyle YouTuber, visited the Nusa Dua Beach Hotel & Spa, Bali. Sunny Dahye is known for her eponymous “SunnyDahye” channel that has its foundation around beauty topics and make-up tutorials.

Sunny Dahye was born in South Korea and raised in Bali, Indonesia. She has lived in Indonesia since she was 4 years old and completed her schooling here in Bali. She attended law school in Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta. After completing her education, Sunny Dahye decided to return to her home country and to work at the national television station to become a successful YouTuber in South Korea.

Sunny Dahye traveled to Bali to spend holidays with her friends - Joan Kim, Dabit Kim and Park Hyoyoung.

They explored the resort and spent time relaxing in the many swimming pools, dining in restaurants and soaking up the sun. They also shared their activities and posted some wonderful memories about the resort through their social media accounts.

The Nusa Dua Beach Hotel & Spa is the pioneer of luxury accommodation within the Nusa Dua area. This 5-star diamond resort, has been welcoming kings, queens, presidents and other dignitaries since its grand opening.

Nestled within beautifully landscaped gardens, the resort, with its 382 guestrooms and suites, features all the elegance of a Balinese palace, while offering modern amenities. The Nusa Dua Spa is designed to highlight its rich Balinese tradition with a variety of indigenous treatments.

Dining at Nusa Dua Hotel & Spa is an epicurean journey with a choice of five restaurants and four bars under the close watch of an award-winning culinary team. For more information, please visit www.nusaduahotel.com.

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Technology

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

Bali News

International

Close encounters?

SpaceX satellites spark Dutch UFO frenzy

THE HAGUE - A Dutch website set up to record UFO sightings was flooded early Saturday with reports after a “train of stars” was spotted crossing the Netherlands’ skies, sparking fears of an alien invasion.

But what some thought to be a close encounter of the third kind turned out to be a string of some 60 satellites launched by US-based SpaceX hours earlier as part of its “Starlink” constellation.

The row of satellites which are part of a plan by billionaire Elon Musk’s firm to provide internet from space, glided across Dutch skies around 1:00 am (2300 GMT).

Shortly afterwards, Dutch website www.ufomeldpunt.nl was inundated with more than 150 sighting reports, with astonished spotters describing a “bizarre train of stars or lights moving across the skies at constant speed”.

“There’s a long line of lights.

Faster than a plane. Huh?” one spotter reported, while another called it a “star caravan” and one saying “I have it on film”.

One spotter simply texted: “WTF?” “I didn’t know what to make of it,” an unnamed witness later told the NOS public broadcaster.

“Is it Russia attacking the US? Are they UFOs? Seriously, I didn’t know,” the witness said.

One of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets blasted off without incident from Cape Canaveral in Florida at around 0230 GMT on Friday.

An hour after liftoff, the rocket began to release the satellites at an altitude of 280 miles (450 kilometres). The satellites then had to separate and use their thrusters to take up their positions in a relatively low orbit of 340 miles (550 kilometres).

Each of the satellites weighs 227 kilograms (500 pounds) and was built in-house in Redmond, near Seattle.

Starlink will become operational once 800 satellites have been activated, which will require a dozen more launches.

One Dutchman who remained unfazed was satellite spotter Marco Langbroek, who knew what the mysterious lights were -- and had his camera on hand.

“I cheered them on, the moment they appeared,” he told the NOS. (afp)

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

3

Admission ticket to Waterblow waits for completion of cooperation agreement

Officers are visiting a rabid dog bite victim at Tuwed village, Melaya subdistrict.

IBP/wit

Rabies causes people restless

Huawei smartphones are seen in a Huawei store in Shanghai on May 26, 2019.

HECTOR RETAMAL / AFP

‘Don’t be too optimistic’: Huawei employees fret at US ban

BEIJING - While Huawei’s founder brushes aside a US ban against his company, the telecom giant’s employees have been less sanguine, confessing fears for their future in online chat rooms.

Huawei CEO Ren Zhengfei declared this week the company has a hoard of microchips and the ability to make its own in order to withstand a potentially crippling US ban on using American components and software in its products.

“If you really want to know what’s going on with us, you can visit our Xinsheng Community,” Ren told Chinese media, alluding to Huawei’s internal forum partially open to viewers outside the company. But a peek into Xinsheng shows his words have not reassured everyone within the Shenzhenbased company.

“During difficult times, what should we do as individuals?” posted an employee under the handle Xiao Feng on Thursday.

“At home reduce your debts and maintain enough cash,” Xiao

Feng wrote.

“Make a plan for your financial assets and don’t be overly optimistic about your remuneration and income.”

This week Google, whose Android operating system powers most of the world’s smartphones, said it would cut ties with Huawei as a result of the ban.

Another critical partner, ARM Holdings -- a British designer of semiconductors owned by Japanese group Softbank -- said it was complying with the US restrictions.

“On its own Huawei can’t resolve this problem, we need to seek support from government policy,” one unnamed employee wrote last week, in a post that received dozens of likes and replies.

The employee outlined a plan for China to block off its smartphone

market from all American components much in the same way Beijing fostered its internet tech giants behind a “Great Firewall” that keeps out Google, Facebook, Twitter and dozens of other foreign companies.

“Our domestic market is big enough, we can use this opportunity to build up domestic suppliers and our ecosystem,” the employee wrote.

- ‘Advance with our company’ For his part, Ren advocated the opposite response in his interview with Chinese media.

“We should not promote populism; populism is detrimental to the country,” he said, noting that his family uses Apple products.

Other employees strategized ways to circumvent the US ban.

One advocated turning to Alibaba’s e-commerce platform Taobao to buy the needed components.

Another dangled the prospect of setting up dozens of new companies to make purchases from US

suppliers. Many denounced the US and proposed China ban McDonald’s, Coca-Cola and all-American movies and TV shows.

“First time posting under my real name: we must do our jobs well, advance and retreat with our company,” said an employee named Xu Jin. The tech ban caps months of US effort to isolate Huawei, whose equipment Washington fears could be used as a Trojan horse by Chinese intelligence services.

Still, last week Trump indicated he was willing to include a fix for Huawei in a trade deal that the two economic giants have struggled to seal and US officials issued a 90day reprieve on the ban.

In Xinsheng, an employee with the handle Youxin lamented: “I want to advance and retreat alongside the company, but then my boss told me to pack up and go”, followed by two sad-face emoticons. (afp)

Again, three people are bitten by dogs

NEGARA - Until now, the officers still have not found resident from Banyubiru village, Negara subdistrict, having been bitten by rabid puppies. In the middle of the search, at Tuwed village, Melaya, three people experienced bites from rabid dogs.

Head of the Jembrana Health Agency, Putu Suasta, stated on Sunday (May 26) the rabies positive dog bite occurred at Puseh hamlet, Tuwed, Melaya.

However, the residents bitten by the dog did not report to local public health center so the officers finally came down and provided treatment. Suasta said when underestimating dog bites and not reporting to public health center, it is very dangerous. “Indeed, we have dealt with three residents and tested positive for rabies,” affirmed Suasta.

He said the bite case of rabies positive animal occurred on Sunday (May 19) against a grandmother, namely Ni Nyoman Dendi, 73, a resident of Puseh hamlet, Tuwed, who was bitten by a dog without being provoked. The bites by the dog belonging to Kade Mastra happened to left foot area.

Then on Monday (May 20) a boy, Dewa Made Santika, 12, was also known to have a bite wound on his left hand. The case happening to both victims are the same (dogs were not provoked). Of the two cases above, finally the Jembrana Health Agency intervened and gave anti-rabies vaccine (VAR) to the victims at the Melaya Public Health Center 1 on Monday (May 20).

According to Suasta, the dog died on Friday (May 24) and its

brain sample was taken by the Animal Health and Veterinary Public Health. On Saturday, the results of the sample test by BBVET Denpasar showed that the samples from Tuwed are positive for rabies.

After knowing the positive results, the Melaya Public Health Center I officers then did Epidemiological Investigation (PE) to the bite location and dog owner. After doing it, they got information if the resident becoming victim of the dog’s bite, Desak Ketut Arnyani, 48, was bitten on the finger.

His agency educated the community that it is important to report to the officer after bitten by a dog.

Initially, the victim at Tuwed did not come to public health center because he felt abrasions. “We do the handling by giving VAR because it is dangerous for the victims themselves,” he said.

To handle rabies victim after being bitten by dog, he said, the wound must be washed with running water for 15 minutes. Then, come to the public health center or hospital to ask for VAR. Rabies itself has a wound like getting punctured by nail or rib of coconut leaf. The wound is small, deep and closed, so that tetanus germs living in the environment with the absence of oxygen will even develop.

According to Suasta, the lifethreatening is the tetanus germ, not

the wound. He still continued to search for the victim rumored to be in the Banyubiru area. Until now, various efforts have been coordinated with local village officials.

Then, his agency came down to the field by roving vehicle but getting no results. “We continuously try.

Hopefully, we can meet her soon or someone will find the mother,” he said.

The cases of rabid dog bites from 2018 to 2019 are known to have killed 14 positive rabies people. Pursuant to the data compiled from Veterinary Public Health at the Agriculture and Food Agency, in 2018 there were 12 people infected with rabies because of dog bites.

Until the end of February 2019, there were 2 people affected by dog bites, and positive for rabies. As for the case of dog bites themselves, there were around 2,841 in 2018 (12 were positive). Then, in 2019 the bites amounted to 434 cases until February, with two positive cases until February. Again, five more positive cases increased with the cases happening some time ago.

Then, there are three additional cases at Tuwed village.

“Let’s share information so that there are more victims of rabies in humans, do not underestimate any slightest bite and even the smallest biting dog,” he said. (120)

MANGUPURA - After testing the enforcement of admission ticket to Waterblow area on Peninsula Island in Nusa Dua, the Indonesia Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) is still waiting for completion of the cooperation agreement with the Badung district government. At present, communication with customary village for the contributions is also being carried out. Likewise, similar cooperation is made with local headman and relevant LPM. According to Managing Director of The Nusa Dua, IGN Ardita, until now the visit to the Waterblow area remains to exist. Moreover, his management as the operator still continues to improve infrastructure.

Before the enforcement of admission ticket, the visit to Waterblow during the ticket testing did not show any decrease, namely in the range of 500-800 per day. “Now to enter the Waterblow is still free.

Previously the implementation of the trial ticket was to test the market, whether the ticket value is fair or not,” he said when met on Friday (May 25) after giving information regarding the implementation of the Nusa Dua Light Festival and Bali Blues Festival.

Meanwhile, in order to increase the number of visits to the Peninsula Island, the Indonesia Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) for the fourth time organizes the Nusa Dua Light Festival (NDLF).

This is the largest and the only

lantern festival in Bali located on Peninsula Island, The Nusa Dua. This event will take place on May 30 - July 14 2019, with the theme of The Mountain View that will feature a series of mountainous lanterns.

NDLF 2019 will also be collaborated with the implementation of the Bali Blues Festival (BBF) on July 13-14, 2019, as well as the festival closing event. In addition to thousands of lanterns in various themes and designs, this year’s NDLF also provides a variety of additional attractions including Kids Playground equipped with Mini Helicopter games, Euro Bungee, Mini Train, Trampoline, Rabbit House & Balloon House that are not available in previous years. Meanwhile, the Bali Blues Festival 2019 will present national artists such as Gugun Blues Shelter featuring Emmy Tobing, Endah n Rhesa, Balawan, Gus Teja and other supporting artists.

During the 46 days of implementation, the NDLF 2019 is opened to visitors at 16:00 – 22:00 local time every day, with two groups of admission ticket prices. The ticket price for domestic tourists is IDR 30,000 (daily or weekdays tickets) and IDR 35,000 - (Saturday - Sunday or weekend, and national holidays). In the meantime, the price of admission ticket for foreign tourists is IDR 75,000 (weekdays) - and IDR 100,000 (weekends and national holidays). (kmb23)

IBP/kmb

Before the enforcement of admission ticket, the visit to Waterblow during the ticket testing did not show any decrease.

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Bali News

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

Online taxi cannot be closed

Three killed in Ramadan violence in restive Thai south

Governor obliges drivers to have Bali ID card and use Bali license plate

DENPASAR - Online application-based taxis cannot just be closed haphazardly. However, Governor of Bali, Wayan Koster, reiterated his commitment to maintaining the existence of conventional taxis considering the conventional taxis have been around for a long time in serving tourism in Bali and are well organized. Therefore, zoning or operating area between conventional taxis and online taxis will be regulated in the Governor Regulation.

“Now, a taxi suddenly appears with application. We do not know the driver’s identity, where else the ID card comes from and not all of them have Bali license plates. Meanwhile, their base is not clear, and various other procedures are not actually met in appropriate with the context of tourism services,” said Koster when meeting the masses of Bali Transport United (BTB) in the office yard of the governor of Bali on Monday (May 27).

Before meeting the masses, Koster had called a number of BTB representatives to discuss in his room. He said if indeed there are necessities to govern the implementation of transportation in accordance with the standardization of tourism services, he will make the Governor Regulation to govern tourism areas becoming the conventional taxi bases, and later on they may not be entered by online taxis. On the other hand, conventional taxis will also be arranged as well as possible so that they can become an icon of transportation for Bali tourism services.

“So, for example, by degrees the vehicles will be rejuvenated with the capital from BPD with the lowest interest below 5 percent. In addition, the drivers will be made costumes or uniforms with good design,” he explained.

Next, continued Koster, conventional taxis will also be registered and made special applications with closed systems. In this case, the members are

only conventional taxi drivers. One of the goals is to widen their market access so that they do not just hang out but can take passengers anywhere.

Meanwhile, online taxi drivers will have to be arranged where the drivers must have Bali identity card, use a DK license-plated vehicle, and join a single organization. The vehicle used must have a DK license plate because they make a living by taking a tour in Bali. In addition, online taxis may not go wild because they are vulnerable to disrupting tourists and ultimately tarnish the image of tourism.

“Don’t doubt my commitment.

Surely, I take side with the conventional. I will assign the newly appointed head of Transportation Agency to draft Governor Regulation in the shortest possible time. The costumes are regulated in the amended budget 2019,” he explained.

When asked whether this policy will not conflict with the Regulation of Minister of Transportation, Koster explicitly mentioned that Bali is not like other regions. Bali is a special area because it is a world tourist destination although the Regulation of Minister of Transportation applies throughout Indonesia. If it is not suitable in the area, it can follow the rules in the regions that are in accordance with the conditions of the region.

“What we handle is tourism, so that it must be with special services. The drivers must be able to speak English

like that. Don’t let them get the wrong way,” he explained.

Head of the Bali Transportation Agency, I Gde Wayan Samsi Gunarta, said the Governor Regulation will be accomplished within two weeks. His party is still reviewing technically related to the location limitation. “The locations which have clearly had the transport management like transport management and we will then try to limit them. Online taxis can only drop, while they cannot take passengers,” he gave an example.

According to Samsi, many options can still be discussed and not all of them can be agreed. On the other hand, there is restriction of the authority possessed by the governor. It needs to be synchronized so the problem does not recur. In the Regulation of Minister of Transportation, the governor has the authority to determine the upper and lower limit rates, determine quotas, and issue supervisory cards.

For the implementation of the region, it can still be considered to what extent it can be applied. “Indeed, there are such things, especially related to regional transportation arrangements,” he concluded.

Chairman of BTB, Nyoman Suendra, said to have been quite satisfied even though online taxis cannot be closed completely. At least, there has been a bright spot from the struggle of conventional taxi drivers so far. The governor’s commitment, including

Governor of Bali, Wayan Koster the solution offered in the form of Governor Regulation issuance, will continue to be escorted. His members will also be involved in the drafting of the Governor Regulation.

“Do not let be lies among us anymore. For example, there will be no different understanding ??later on. To be honest, all our colleagues are satisfied. The governor is extraordinary in addressing and has been on our side as well,” said the man who is familiarly addressed as Jero Jhon.

Before reaching an agreement, BTB, among others, demanded that online taxis should have identity as conventional taxis do. Then, online

IBP/kmb

taxis may not enter into the tourism area which has been the operating area for conventional taxis. Online taxi quota must also be clear so as not to be chaotic like they do. Not to mention, most online taxis use vehicles with license plates from outside Bali and the drivers only put on shorts or a T-shirt.

“In Bali, there is a norm, we in the conventional taxis must queue at hotels by wearing neat uniform and we clearly can speak English. They (online taxi—Ed) take passengers (tourists) wishing to go to hospital but are taken to supermarket. Well, this communication doesn’t connect,” he concluded. (kmb32)

Activities of Mount Agung increases DENPASAR - Since the past two weeks, Mount Agung has showed increased activities. However, the Bali Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) assured the community that until now there are no indications of eruption with large capacity. This is in accordance with the monitoring results of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources through PVMBG at Rendang Monitoring Post, Karangasem.

“Monitoring of the seismographs carried out routinely for 24 hours in Rendang Monitoring Post has not showed any vibrations or increased capacity of Mount Agung eruption,” said Head of Bali Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency

No indications of large eruptions (BPBD), I Made Rentin, when confirmed on Monday (May 27).

According to Rentin, preparedness must still be improved in anticipating every possible eruption.

However, people are encouraged not to worry. Moreover, his party together with all components of officers such as the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) and volunteers always echoed the tagline ‘Get to know the danger, prepare the strategy and we are ready to be safe.” Besides, it is also provided with education and dissemination efforts for Balinese people, especially in Karangasem.

“This means that we know the intensity, and then the eruption pattern, let’s say, it routinely happens

on 12, 18, 24, or once every six days (eruption of Mount Agung—Ed). But with a context like this, we as Balinese and Karangasem people in particular become accustomed,” he added.

Having been accustomed to be here, Rentin continued, it does not necessarily mean to underestimate every eruption that may occur. But with such thing in mind, all parties become better prepared and know when an eruption occurs in large capacity especially regarding the movements in the evacuation process. BPBD Bali together with BPBD Karangasem assisted by 28 circumference villages in Mount Agung or Pasebaya is now trying to complete an evacuation plan with two big things. At the very least,

the movement plan can be completed within next 2 to 2.5 months.

“The hamlets in the affected villages have a 4-km radius, we map them out with real data by name, by address and where they move,” he explained.

Rentin added that evacuation will be carried out with two options, namely guided evacuation commanded by headman and or hamlet chief as well as independent evacuation. For independent evacuation, the community at affected villages can go to their closest family, both those remaining in Karangasem and those who left the district. When later on the regions or villages and buffer villages outside the affected villages have been deter-

13

Vanessa Kerton / AFP

People gather next to a road blocked off by police which leads to Parliament house in Port Moresby on May 28, 2019. Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O’Neill stalled his announced resignation and took legal action to prevent a vote of no confidence on May 28, deepening the country’s political crisis.

Papua New Guinea in crisis as PM stalls resignation

PATTANI - Two people, including a 14-year-old boy, were killed in a market place bombing in Thailand’s Muslim-majority south, a military spokesman said Tuesday -- an apparent retaliatory attack for the killing of a wanted rebel leader.

Thailand’s three southernmost provinces, Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat, have since 2004 been plagued with conflict between ethnic Malay-Muslim rebels and the Buddhist-majority Thai state, which annexed the region around a century ago.

Around 7,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in violence that rarely makes international headlines despite taking place a few hours south of some of Thailand’s tourist hotspots.

On Monday afternoon, the insurgents detonated a motorcycle bomb at a crowded market place in Nong Chik, Pattani province, killing two civilians.

“A 14-year-old boy and a 38-year-old woman died,” Colonel Thanawee Suwannathat, spokesman for the southern army, told AFP. Four military rangers were wounded in the blast.

The bombing appeared to be in “retaliation” for the death of a fugitive suspected rebel leader in neighbouring Yala province earlier in the day, who was shot dead as authorities surrounded his house,

Thanawee told AFP. The 37-year-old suspect, named as Abdulloh Lateh, was “head of operations” in the Yaha district.

The highly secretive rebels, who are pushing for autonomy from Thailand, operate in small village cells, with their senior leaders based overseas far from the reach of Thai authorities.

The grinding conflict is characterised by tit-for-tat attacks that usually target symbols of the Thai state and its security forces but civilians from both Muslim and Buddhist communities often get caught in the crossfire.

The region usually sees an uptick in violence during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which ends next week.

Monday’s violence came a day after another bomb attack in Songkhla province killed a police officer at a checkpoint, wounding three others.

Video footage of Sunday’s attack showed a plume of thick smoke as the blast went off, leaving a police officer’s body lying in the middle of the road.

Thailand’s junta leader Prayut Chan-O-Cha -- who is expected to return as a civilian prime minister in the coming days -- condemned the latest attacks as “inhuman”.

Peace talks have been inconclusive despite an intensification of army operations in the border zone with Malaysia. (afp)

PORT MORESBY - Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O’Neill stalled his announced resignation and took legal action to prevent a vote of no confidence Tuesday, deepening the country’s political crisis. mined, they will immediately prepare all infrastructures, facilities, logistics and equipment related to the needs of refugees such as public kitchens, tents for beds and toilets complying with refugee management standards.

“When people shift to evacuate from affected villages to buffer zones or other locations, it will become fatal if the locations are not ready,” he explained.

Regarding the claim of health costs for Mount Agung refugees, Rentin said the final meeting will be held on May 29. In view of the previous coordination meeting in Karangasem, BPKP of Bali Representatives was not invited to attend. (kmb32)

The veteran leader launched what appeared to be a last-gasp bid to cling on to power, pressing the Supreme Court to thwart a planned parliamentary vote to remove him from office.

Facing mounting criticism, O’Neill on Sunday announced that he would step down, but has so far avoided formally submitting his resignation to the country’s governor general.

O’Neill -- who has been in power since 2011 -- has been battling for his political life after a string of cabinet resignations sparked by his signing a multi-billion-dollar liquefied natural gas (LNG) deal with France’s Total and US firm

ExxonMobil earlier this year.

Local communities had complained bitterly about not benefiting from similar deals in the past.

O’Neill’s government narrowly avoided a vote of no confidence after the signing by adjourning parliament for almost a month.

On Monday, on the eve of lawmakers’ return and with a new confidence vote planned for June 6, O’Neill lodged an appeal with the Supreme Court. In a lengthy filing, O’Neill said he wanted to “ensure clarity of constitutional and legal processes”.

The court on Tuesday refused to hear the case urgently and set proceedings for Friday, according to opposition lawmaker Brian

Kramer.

O’Neill’s opponents believe they have the votes to oust him and elected member of parliament and National Alliance Party leader Patrick Pruaitch as their alternative prime minister.

Parliament descended into chaos on Tuesday afternoon, with heated debate between the opposition and the house speaker leading to insults and threats on the floor.

When the dust settled the opposition attempted to introduce a motion to have the house speaker removed. But he refused, saying there was no provisions in the constitution for removing the speaker. (afp)

TUWAEDANIYA MERINGING / AFP

A policeman inspects a site of a motorcycle bomb blast in a flea market in the southern Thai province of Pattani on May 27, 2019.

12

International

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

BUSINESS

Pro-Bolsonaro demos in Brazil show gov’t risks

Bali News

International

AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo

A man wearing a Jesus T-shirt shouts slogans during a rally in favor of Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, May 26, 2019. The pro-Bolsonaro rally follows anti-government protests against cuts in the education budget as the president also battles an uncooperative Congress, a family corruption scandal and falling approval ratings after five months in office. video of a man peeing on the head of another to warn about debauchery during Carnival, posted fake stories about reporters, declared Brazil should not be allowed to become “a gay paradise” and frequently insulted other politicians, even supposed allies. He has also done little to stop social media attacks by his politician sons on military leaders, including Vice President Hamilton Mourão, a former general.

The infighting and theatrics prompted Janaina Paschoal, a state lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s Social Liberal Party, who he considered for vice president, to openly campaign against Sunday’s rallies. “Wake up! If the streets are empty on the 26th, Bolsonaro will realize that he will have to stop causing drama and get to work,” she said on Twitter.

Bolsonaro has received similar admonishments from Rodrigo Maia, whose role as speaker of Congress’ lower house makes him a key player in whether the president’s agenda can move forward. In March, Maia

said if Bolsonaro didn’t do the work to persuade legislators to approve a controversial pension overhaul, it wasn’t going to happen, sending shivers through the markets.

In a series of extraordinary public barbs, Maia admonished Bolsonaro for spending so much time on Twitter and so little time in Congress. Bolsonaro brushed Maia off.

Bolsonaro and many of his hardcore supporters argue that the administration is struggling because he refuses to engage in business as usual, such as trading government projects or positions for votes on key legislation. Sunday’s demonstrations were “a message” to “those who stay with the old ways,” Bolsonaro said after participating in a religious service in Rio de Janeiro.

Still, Bolsonaro’s popularity is sagging.

Several polls say his approval rating is down about 15 points since taking office, currently hovering around 34%. The Brazilian real has declined sharply against the U.S. dollar in recent months on worries that major eco-

nomic changes are at risk, the unemployment rate has edged up to under 13%, and Paulo Guedes, the University of Chicago-trained finance minister who was key to Bolsonaro’s election victory, has said he won’t stick around if pension reform isn’t passed.

None of that is insurmountable. The divisive impeachment process against Rousseff, followed by the scandal-prone administration of Temer, the least popular president in modern Brazilian history, and the jailing da Silva, has all left many Brazilians tired of the fighting. Regardless of political stripes, they want the economy improve, to feel safer on the streets and to live under a functioning government.

Bolsonaro will have to bring together disparate groups in one of the world’s most diverse countries, including those who are clearly out to get him. The question is whether he can do that, or will he continue to be consumed by schoolyard fights and the settling of scores. (ap)

5

Ngrebeg Has Three Meanings, What Are They?

Ngerebeg tradition or better known as makotek held every Tumpek Kuningan (ten days after Galungan) at Munggu customary village, Mengwi, Badung, has the meaning as a tribute to the heroes, repellent of negative things and a means to unite the citizens. This was confirmed by chief of Munggu customary village, I Made Rai Sujana, amid the ngerebeg procession at the local Desa and Puseh Temple of local village, Saturday (Jan. 5).

RIO DE JANEIRO - Not even five months into his four-year term, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is struggling so much to push forward with his agenda despite a big election victory that many of the far-right leader’s staunchest supporters felt the need to get out into the streets to give him a boost.

Sunday’s demonstrations in over 100 cities sought to counter large protests on May 15 against Bolsonaro’s plan for deep cuts in spending on public education, an area he thinks is politicized and poorly run.

With pressure mounting to deal with the government’s huge budget deficit and poor performance by Latin America’s biggest economy, the dueling rallies underscore Bolsonaro’s problems: sagging approval ratings, a crashing currency, infighting within his administration and sniping even from conservatives.

There is no immediate threat to his hold on power, yet Brazilian politics in recent years hold warning signs for the president.

Fury over the largest corruption scandal in the history of Latin America, angst about an economy that has yet to fully recover from recession and a litany of other complaints have made Brazil a hostile environment for politicians. Consider the fate of the last three presidents: In 2016, Dilma Rousseff was impeached and ousted for illegally managing the federal budget. Last year, her predecessor, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, began serving a 12-year sentence for a corruption conviction.

And this year, the man succeeded by Bolsonaro, Michel Temer, has twice been arrested and is facing several graft allegations.

All three situations are different, of course, and Bolsonaro is not facing corruption allegations himself, although his son, a federal senator, is. Rather, the common thread is that in today’s Brazil nobody is untouchable.

That Bolsonaro’s administration is wounded is largely his own fault. He campaigned on the need to curtail the country’s overburdened pension system and to combat rising violence and crime, yet instead of building coalitions to push for major reforms, he has used much of his early political capital on cultural wars, bashing the press and expanding gun rights, the latter of which polls say is opposed by a majority of Brazilians. Instead of working with Congress in the capital of Brasilia, the former legislator has made trips to Chile, Israel and Switzerland and gone to the United States twice.

Bolsonaro’s list of provocative and unnecessary moves is already long: He tweeted a

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Let’s Enjoy Warm Water of Geger Beach

Geger Beach is one of the beaches located in Nusa Dua area. It is slightly hidden and away from the center of crowds so that people choose other beaches as their tourist destination.

However, for those wishing to find a beach with quiet atmosphere, this beach is the most appropriate destination in Southern Badung.

In terms of location, Geger Beach in Nusa Dua is located in the area of ??Peminge customary village, Sawangan. To get to the Geger Beach, you can pass through Hotel Nikko located on the southern coast of the Island of Bali. You will find the location of the beach by crossing Jalan Pura Puget located right before Hotel Nikko Bali.

Geger Beach has white sand and remains very natural and untouched by nosy hands wishing to destroy the beauty of the beach. Clean white sand and calm seawater are perfect for those that like sunbathing with tranquil atmosphere. No wonder, many couples will be found on this beach spending their honeymoon.

They usually sunbathe, bathe or just sit down by the beach.

Warm seawater throughout the day is also beneficial for those who like fishing. Usually in the afternoon, many surrounding people come to the location for fishing. Unfortunately, around the beach is rarely found any food and beverage merchants because this beach is not as crowded as Kuta Beach. However, there is a cafe offering seafood, international cuisine and Italian specialties such as pizza, pasta and grilled food.

Some parts of this coastal area is managed by Hotel Nikko. The hotel offers camel ride packages, traveling along the beach at varying prices. So, you do not have to come all the way to Arab to enjoy a camel ride. This beach is very clean because it is managed by the hotel. Every day there will be a janitor cleaning up this beach. The admission ticket to Geger Beach is very affordable. It is also equipped with parking lot of motorcycle and car for visitors. (kmb)

He explained the meanings of the procession starting from the Mengwi kingdom headquartered at Munggu with the king named Ida Cokorda Nyoman Sakti Munggu.

When defending his territory in Blambangan, East Java, before the Mengwi troops named goak selem or black crow troops left the kingdom, right on the Tumpek Kuningan Day, the king of Mengwi performed a meditation at Dalem Kahyangan Wisesa Temple, Munggu. The king got a revelation from his meditation.

The return of his troops with victory or success in the war was then commemorated with the tradition of ngerebeg. “Therefore, on Tumpek Kuningan, the tradition of ngerebeg continues to be commemorated at Munggu customary village as a tribute to the victory of Mengwi’s royal war, as the respect for the heroes,” he explained.

Related to the tradition as disaster repellent, he told that it was initially carried out with a spear.

Then, during the Dutch colonial period the tradition was banned because it was thought to be a rebellion. As a result, this tradition had not been organized for several times. Then, outbreaks of disease or plague attacked villagers, even many people died.

This condition made some customary and religious leaders negotiate with the Dutch administration and finally the tradition was allowed to be held again. However, the facilities used are not spears, but replaced with pulet wooden stick. “Since then, the tradition of ngerebeg formerly used spears was replaced with a pulet wooden stick, with the length of 3.5 meters. Based on such belief, the ngerebeg tradition serves as catastrophe repellent or keeps away from negative things,” he explained.

The third meaning of the tradition is as a means to unite citizens.

This tradition is followed by almost all men aged 14 years and over from 12 hamlets at Munggu customary village. They mutually mingle while carrying wooden sticks and walking around the village area. When they arrive in several places such as road intersection they gather and unite the end of the stick to form the pyramid.

Once in a while, a young man will climb up the pile of the sticks.

“So, this tradition is to unite young people from 12 hamlets across the Munggu customary village. By carrying out the ngerebeg tradition, they will definitely do positive things and strengthen the sense of unity among the youth,” he concluded. (kmb)

6

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

W

International

International

RLD

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

11

Malaysia to ship back hundreds of tonnes of plastic waste

PORT KLANG - Hundreds of tonnes of imported plastic waste will be shipped back to where it came from, Malaysia said Tuesday, insisting the country did not want to be a global dumping ground.

Around 300 million tonnes of plastic are produced every year, according to the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), with much of it ending up in landfill or polluting the seas, in what is becoming a growing international crisis.

China had previously taken a large amount of waste for recycling, but abruptly stopped last year, saying it wanted to improve its own environment.

Now Southeast Asian countries that stepped in to plug this gap say they have had enough.

“We urge developed countries to stop shipping garbage to our country,” said Yeo Bee Yin, Malaysia’s minister of energy, technology, science, environment and climate change, adding it was “unfair and uncivilised”.

“We will return it back to the country of origin without any mercy,” she said, after an inspection of several waste-filled containers at Port Klang, the country’s busiest port.

Plastic imports to Malaysia have tripled since 2016, to 870,000 tonnes last year, official data showed.

The influx has sparked a rapid increase in the number of recy-

cling plants, many of them operating without a licence and with little regard for environmental standards.

Yeo vowed a crackdown on illegal imports and recycling facilities and called Malaysians involved in importing the scraps “traitors”.

“Malaysia will not be a dumping ground to the world,” she declared.

“We cannot be bullied by the developed countries.”

The ministry said 450 tonnes of contaminated plastic waste in 10 containers -- from Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, Japan, Saudi Arabia and the United States -- will be shipped back.

Port officials said their contents were misdeclared, but did not give a date for the shipment.

“These containers are filled with contaminated, non-homogenous, low-quality, non-recyclable plastic waste, and are routed to processing facilities which do not have the technology to recycle in an environmentally sound manner,” the ministry said.

Malaysia last month sent back five containers filled with plastic waste to Spain.

Inspections are being carried out on more than 50 other containers

Mohd RASFAN / AFP

A member of the media takes pictures of containers filled with plastic waste before shipping back to the country of origin in Port Klang, west of Kuala Lumpur on May 28, 2019. brought in illegally.

Yeo said it will take until the end of the year to fully deal with the problem.

She said 150 illegal waste recy-

cling plants had been shut down.

As little as nine percent of plastic produced between 1950 and 2015 has been recycled.

Pictures of coral reefs smothered

in plastic bags and river systems choked with PET bottles have sparked a growing worldwide awareness of the need to deal with the problem. (afp)

Sydney imposes first water restrictions in decade

IBP/net

The New South Wales government has said the greater Sydney region water catchments were experiencing some of the lowest flows since the 1940s.

SYDNEY - Sydney on Tuesday announced its first major water restrictions in a decade, putting limits on homes and businesses amid a record-breaking drought.

The New South Wales government said the greater Sydney region water catchments were experiencing some of the lowest flows since the 1940s, and that the restrictions would be enforced from next week.

“Regional NSW has been experiencing a record drought,” the southeastern state’s minister for water Melinda Pavey said in a statement.

“Water restrictions in Sydney mean that households across NSW are doing their bit to conserve water.

People in Sydney can be fined up to Aus$220 (US$150) or businesses up to Aus$550 for leaving a hose running or using a sprinkler system

to water their gardens.

Australia sweated through its hottest-ever summer from last December to February.

The country’s water management was a hot-button issue in the recent election following mass fish kills in the Murray-Darling River system, which authorities blamed on low water flow and oxygen levels.

Scientists said the severe drought plaguing inland eastern Australia had contributed to the deaths.

Australia is no stranger to extreme weather patterns, with bushfires, floods and drought often occurring during the summer months.

Sydney last had water restrictions in place in 2009, when all major cities imposed usage caps amid a severe drought, which had lasted for more than a decade in some parts of the country. (afp)

Police investigated 10 hoax cases since rally on May 22

JAKARTA - Indonesian Police’s Crime Investigation Department (Bareskrim) and Jakarta Police investigated 10 hoax cases since May 21 when demonstrators clashed with police at a rally rejecting the General Election Commission’s (KPU’s) 2019 presidential election results.

“I notify that from May 21 to May 28, a total of 10 cases of hoaxes were investigated by the Cyber Directorate of Bareskrim and Jakarta Police,” Brigadir General Dedi Prasetyo, spokesman of the Indonesian Police, remarked here on Tuesday.

On May 23, a man, identified by his initials as SDA, was arrested by the police for disseminating fake news that foreign police officers had joined

hands with the Indonesian police to handle the May 21-22 rally.

On May 26, another man, identified by his initials as ASR, was arrested for the spread of fake information that the police had roughly handled a habaib, or a descendent of the Prophet.

Moreover, on the same day, the police took HU into custody for spreading provocative information that had the potential to fuel hostility based on

race, religion, tribe and group (SARA) sentiments.

On May 27, the police had arrested RR over his threat posted on Facebook to kill a prominent national figure. Moreover, the Central Java Police took M into detention for spreading information to incite hatred based on SARA sentiments.

On the same day, the South Sulawesi Police also detained MS for his

post on social media of an image of a national prominent figure being hung with a text that read: “Hopefully, this barbaric man dies.”

On May 27, the police arrested DS in West Java for disseminating a hoax regarding a 14-year-old teen, who died after undergoing torture.

Furthermore, MA was taken into police custody in Sorong, West Papua, on May 27, for circulating a negative video photo captioned “Assassination targeting one of the national prominent figures.”

On May 28, the police arrested

MNA for spreading negative information on electoral frauds, a persecution, and police torturing a teen near Al Huda Mosque at the Tanah Abang area, Jakarta. The Bareskrim also took into custody H on May 28 at dawn for spreading information on a threat targeting a national prominent figure and hate speech.

The police reported that the arrests were made as a final resort while concurrently adopting persuasive approaches and reminding the public to be wise while using social media. (ant)

Four dead in post-election riot in Indonesia’s Papua

A 16-year-old boy was one of at least four people shot dead by police during a riot triggered by dissatisfaction over the election result in the restive province of Papua, an official said. More than 300 supporters of a legislative candidate who claimed he should have won the seat in the local council attacked a district office in Asmat district.

The candidate, who was not identified, claimed based on the votes he should have won a seat in

the city council but his name was replaced with another candidate’s name. The protesters, armed with sharp weapons, damaged the district office, local military spokesman Muhammad Aidi said.

Four soldiers guarding a nearby military post tried to control the protesters but were outnumbered, and one of the officers tried to control the mob by opening fire into the air, Aidi said.

“The mob became even more

brutal and attacked the officer, in a such threatening situation another officer was forced to open fire and retreat to the post to save themselves,” Aidi said in a statement Monday.

Four people, including the teenager, were shot dead while one more was injured and has been treated at a local hospital.

The military, local police and the human rights commission have formed a team to investigate the

case, Aidi said.

Indonesia’s presidential and legislative election also triggered a riot in the capital Jakarta.

Supporters of presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto have been protesting since the election result was announced last week in favour of incumbent president Joko Widodo. Subianto’s supporters claim the election was marred by rampant electoral fraud.

Since the rioting, more than 400

demonstrators have been arrested, according to police, who blamed the violence on “provocateurs” they claimed mixed with the crowd to stir up trouble. Police said seven demonstrators have died but offered few details on how they died or who was responsible, though earlier said some had gunshot and blunt force wounds.

About 900 people were injured in the riots, according to the Jakarta Health Agency. (afp)

10

Destination

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

‘Being Serena, it’s a lot to carry’: Williams struggles to 800th victory

Manan VATSYAYANA / AFP

This photograph taken on April 24, 2019 shows snowboarder Nguyen Thai Binh walking atop a sand dunes in the southern Vietnamese town of Mui Ne.

Gili Selang

AMLAPURA - A small island lying off Bali’s eastern point which, like all exposed sites, at times has ripping currents. We therefore restrict this to expert divers only. It takes a fast boat from Padangbai, and you can either dive once at Gili Selang and then go on to Amed, or dive within Padangbai and then on to Gili Selang (although that is a long return journey). The interesting and rich sand slope to the north of the island has some stands of hard branching corals and occasional bommies, the deeper areas of the slope are more protected and therefore home to sea fans, soft corals, barrel sponges and coral bushes.

Along this sand slope you may well see white tip reef shark and Bumphead Parrotfish. Sitting at around 18M, moving southwards with the current, around the east side of Gili Selang, can provide you

with great visibility. Here however, the slope becomes rockier, much steeper and loses any significant coral cover. Tucking into the south side of the island and coming in towards Bali, you’ll get out of the

current, and encounter another area of low but healthy reef with many moray eels and schooling fish including trevally. Dotted around are bommies and leather corals.

(IBP/net)

Sandman: The Vietnamese snowboarder training on dunes

MUI NE - Sun-kissed and shaggy-haired, Nguyen Thai Binh swaps his flip flops for bulky boots ahead of snowboarding practice on the sand dunes of southern Vietnam -- the unlikely training ground for the country’s fledgling winter athletes with mountain-sized ambitions.

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Binh is one of Vietnam’s top snowboarders, pioneering a push to boost winter sports in Southeast Asia where snowfall is virtually unheard of.

But it’s been an uphill battle for athletes like him facing funding shortfalls, lack of public interest and few training facilities, namely snowy mountains.

“This sport is so new for Vietnamese, and we don’t have any snow to practise on,” said 29-year-old Binh, looking California cool in a Quicksilver cap and bright boardshorts.

Though Vietnam’s northern Sapa mountains see the occasional dusting in winter months, there are no snow slopes for aspiring skiers and snowboarders in the tropical country.

Instead, Binh boards on the undulating sand dunes of Mui Ne, better known for picture-perfect vistas and breakneck ATV rides on offer for tourists in the sunny southern province of Binh Thuan.

Binh made his international debut at the Asian Winter Games in Sapporo, Japan in 2017, joining Vietnam’s first-ever team to compete in the tournament long-dominated by

Japan, South Korea and China.

It was a lifelong dream for Binh who fell in love with sports as a scrawny kid, so skinny that he was taunted by classmates for looking like a drug addict.

Committed to bulking up, he tried his hand at martial arts, then kitesurfing and longboarding before he started sandsurfing in 2007.

Like most of his teammates, the Asian Winter Games in Sapporo was his first time seeing snow. The skiers too had only ever trained on sand using tree branches as slalom poles on the sandy slopes of Mui Ne. “I was hesitant, I’d been practising on the sand dunes for a while so I had the technique, but the snow was so slippery,” Binh told AFP. - Broken limbs, frozen toes It was an eventful week for the seven athletes who competed for Vietnam.

Many didn’t have proper winter gear and froze if they stayed outside for too long. Skier Pham Tien Dat tumbled during slalom training, broke his shoulder and couldn’t compete. The Vietnamese journalists

covering the games got sick and were hospitalised.

As for sports junkie Binh, his other hobbies served him well in Sapporo.

“Binh was a fast learner because of his longboarding and surfing skills,” said Le Quan, the Vietnam team coach.

Vietnam walked away with no medals, but plenty of pride.

“We went to Sapporo not aiming for a high ranking but to challenge ourselves,” Quan told AFP. There were eight Southeast Asian teams at the 2017 games, the highest number since 1986 when the Philippines became the first country from the region to compete.

The director general of the Olympic Council of Asia Husain Al Musallam said winter sports have developed among Southeast Asian athletes “in a very good way” and expects the number of participants to jump for the next games in 2021.

Many athletes so far have been skaters, thanks to an increasing number of ice rinks in malls and sports centres across the region, including Vietnam. (afp)

PARIS - Serena Williams admitted the ‘mother, champion, queen, goddess’ logo which adorned her Roland Garros outfit on Monday was “a lot to carry, but so is being Serena”.

The 37-year-old American survived a first-set scare before defeating Russia’s Vitalia Diatchenko 2-6, 6-1, 6-0 to reach the second round.

But as she struggled to impose herself on her 83rd-ranked opponent, it looked like her dazzling choice of costume for the occasion might come back to haunt her.

The legend of ‘mother, champion, queen, goddess’ was written in French in a nod to her hosts.

Once the cape was removed, Williams revealed a black and white zebra-stripe print dress, split at one thigh.

Last year, Williams fell foul of Roland Garros with her one-piece Black Panther outfit which was subsequently banned.

“It was just to remind everyone that they can be champions and are queens. So I love that about it,” she said of her 2019 dress and cape.

“Yeah. It is a lot to carry, but so is being Serena Williams.”

The American, who is attempting to equal Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 Grand Slam titles, racked up her 800th career main draw win with her victory in front of a half-full Court Philippe Chatrier.

After dropping the first set, she was in danger of suffering just the second opening round defeat of her Grand Slam tournament career.

But normal service was quickly resumed as she racked up 12 of the

last 13 games.

“You know, I have been dealing with a lot, and then I just got nervous out there and I stopped moving my feet.

“There were like concrete blocks on my feet. I was, like, ‘You gotta do something’.”

Williams, the 2002, 2013 and 2015 champion in Paris, will face either Japan’s Kurumi Nara or Dalila Jakupovic of Slovenia for a place in the last 32, after their match was suspended at one-set-all overnight.

Williams won her most recent major at the Australian Open in 2017 while pregnant.

She returned to Grand Slam tennis after giving birth to her daughter at Roland Garros in 2018, making the last 16 where she had been set to resume her bitter rivalry with Maria Sharapova.

An arm injury torpedoed that meeting and stalled her assault on a fourth title in Paris.

Defeat in the 2018 Wimbledon final and US Open championship match, where her now-infamous meltdown overshadowed Naomi Osaka’s title triumph, followed her Paris heartbreak.

Her Australian Open campaign in January ended in a quarter-final loss to Karolina Pliskova despite having led 5-1 in the final set and holding four match points.

Since Melbourne, Williams had been unable to finish the three tournaments she had entered -- retiring in the third round of Indian Wells and withdrawing after winning a round in Miami, and after winning one round in Rome due to a right knee injury. (afp)

Thomas SAMSON / AFP

Serena Williams of the US plays a forehand return to Russia’s Vitalia Diatchenko during their women’s singles first round match on day two of The Roland Garros 2019 French Open tennis tournament in Paris on May 27, 2019.

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Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Beckham scores as United faces Bayern 20 years after CL win

Mexico’s famed Azteca Stadium to restore turf field

MANCHESTER — Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wound back the years as the Manchester United manager came off the bench to score for Alex Ferguson’s side against a Bayern Munich team in the “Treble Reunion” match — 20 years to the day after United won the 1999 Champions League final.

Manchester United Legend’s David Beckham celebrates scoring his side’s fifth goal of the game during the legends match between Manchester United Legends and Bayern Munich Legens at Old Trafford, Manchester, England, Sunday, May 26, 2019.

Dani Alves to replace Neymar as Brazil team captain at Copa America: federation

Fans young and old descended on Old Trafford on Sunday to see some of the club’s greatest players — including David Beckham — as Manchester United Legends beat Bayern Munich Legends 5-0.

Solskjaer again started on the bench but made an impact far quicker than that night at the Nou Camp in Barcelona, where his goal deep in stoppage time sealed a 2-1 victory over Bayern and the treble for United on May 26, 1999.

United also won the FA Cup and the Premier League that season.

This time Solskjaer came on for Andy Cole shortly after kickoff and produced a smart finish inside four minutes to put United Legends on course for a comprehensive win.

Dwight Yorke gave the hosts a two-goal cushion at the break, before man-of-the-match Nicky Butt, substitute Louis Saha and returning favorite Beckham completed a rout in front of 61,175 fans at Old Trafford, raising 1.5 million pounds ($1.9 million) for the Manchester United Foundation.

With the teams led out by Ferguson, supporters were treated to the familiar sight of Beckham firing cross-field balls, Jaap Stam showing no mercy at the back and Paul Scholes bossing the midfield.

After a difficult season — with United finishing sixth in the Premier League — Sunday’s match brought a feel-good factor back to Old Trafford.

“I’ve got to thank the supporters again for supporting us and the money will be well spent,” Solskjaer told MUTV. “I think everyone knows how much it means to play for Manchester United and this match, for everyone, means so much more than just turning up because it was such a big part of our lives.

“We have a big job getting back to these moments. We want to have moments to celebrate and that’s what we’re trying to do.” (ap) Dani Alves will replace Neymar as the captain of the Brazilian national team in the Copa America, the country’s football federation (CBF) announced Monday.

“The decision was communicated to Neymar by (coach) Tite on Saturday,” CBF said in a statement about the striker, who was handed a three-match suspension for lashing out at a spectator following Paris Saint-Germain’s shock defeat by Rennes in the French Cup final earlier this month. Eight-time winners

Brazil face Bolivia, Venezuela and Peru in the group stage, which starts on June 14, after two friendlies against Qatar and Honduras.

Neymar, 27, missed the humiliating 7-1 World Cup semi-final defeat by Germany in 2014 due to injury after fracturing his back in the previous round.

A year earlier, he was named player of the tournament at the Confederations Cup as Brazil won the competition for a record fourth time. (afp)

9

AP Photo/Christian Palma, File

In this Nov. 13, 2018 file photo, Mexico’s Azteca Stadium is seen from above in Mexico City. Officials at the Stadium said Monday, May 27, 2019, that they will convert the field back to natural turf after a failed attempt at a hybrid playing surface led to the cancellation of a scheduled NFL game there last year.

MEXICO CITY — Officials at Mexico’s famed Azteca Stadium say they will convert the field back to natural turf after a failed attempt at a hybrid playing surface led to the cancellation of a scheduled NFL game there last year.

In May 2018, the stadium switched to a field combining synthetic and natural grass, which has been used successfully in some of Europe’s biggest soccer venues.

But it didn’t take at Azteca and was ragged after a heavy schedule of events in November leading up to the planned NFL game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Rams. NFL officials decided to move the game back to the U.S. Stadium officials announced Monday they will use a break in Mexican soccer league play to put back in natural grass.(ap)

I hope Hazard comes this year: Perez says Madrid want Chelsea star Real Madrid president Florentino Perez confirmed on Monday the club are keen to sign Eden Hazard this summer and claimed Sergio Ramos has an offer to move to China.

Hazard could play his last match for Chelsea in the Europa League final against Arsenal on Wednesday, with the Belgian’s contract expiring next year.

“I have a lot of interest in him coming to Madrid, I’m not going to lie, and I hope this year he can play here,” Perez told Spanish radio station Onda Cero on Monday night.

“We have wanted to sign Hazard for several years and I hope he will come this year. Until now we have not achieved it, but this time his contract ends next year.”

After a disappointing season, Madrid are expected to overhaul their squad this summer and Perez suggested the club’s captain Ramos is considering a move.

Ramos and Perez argued after Madrid’s Champions League defeat to Ajax in March, with Ramos reportedly telling Perez the team’s failings were down to a failure to replace Cristiano Ronaldo.

Perez claimed on Tuesday that Ramos had been offered a move to China but said he had blocked the defender’s departure.

“We met in my office and he told me

he had a very good offer from a Chinese team but a rule there means they cannot pay for the transfer,” Perez said.

“It was no more than that, it was a conversation that has no interest. It is impossible for Real Madrid to let their captain go for free. I told him it’s impossible, nothing more.”

Perez was also asked about the possibility of Madrid signing Kylian Mbappe or Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain.

“I have not spoken with Zinedine Zidane about either Mbappe or Neymar,” said Perez, insisting he wants to maintain a good relationship with PSG. “If we want a player of PSG, we will call the club’s president.”

Gareth Bale’s future remains uncertain but Perez said “we have not received any offers for any players of Real Madrid”. He also condemned the recent criticism of players like Bale, that has come from Madrid’s fans and sections of the Spanish press. “We have made it seem like winning the Champions League is normal and it isn’t. We have deceived people,” said Perez.

“Some of these players have been insulted, they have been whistled, players who are going to go into the history of the club. It’s not right.” (afp)

Ben STANSALL / AFP

Chelsea’s Belgian midfielder Eden Hazard attends a training session at Chelsea Training Ground, in Cobham, Surrey on May 22, 2019, ahead of their Europa League final football match against Arsenal on May 29.

8

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Beckham scores as United faces Bayern 20 years after CL win

Mexico’s famed Azteca Stadium to restore turf field

MANCHESTER — Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wound back the years as the Manchester United manager came off the bench to score for Alex Ferguson’s side against a Bayern Munich team in the “Treble Reunion” match — 20 years to the day after United won the 1999 Champions League final.

Manchester United Legend’s David Beckham celebrates scoring his side’s fifth goal of the game during the legends match between Manchester United Legends and Bayern Munich Legens at Old Trafford, Manchester, England, Sunday, May 26, 2019.

Dani Alves to replace Neymar as Brazil team captain at Copa America: federation

Fans young and old descended on Old Trafford on Sunday to see some of the club’s greatest players — including David Beckham — as Manchester United Legends beat Bayern Munich Legends 5-0.

Solskjaer again started on the bench but made an impact far quicker than that night at the Nou Camp in Barcelona, where his goal deep in stoppage time sealed a 2-1 victory over Bayern and the treble for United on May 26, 1999.

United also won the FA Cup and the Premier League that season.

This time Solskjaer came on for Andy Cole shortly after kickoff and produced a smart finish inside four minutes to put United Legends on course for a comprehensive win.

Dwight Yorke gave the hosts a two-goal cushion at the break, before man-of-the-match Nicky Butt, substitute Louis Saha and returning favorite Beckham completed a rout in front of 61,175 fans at Old Trafford, raising 1.5 million pounds ($1.9 million) for the Manchester United Foundation.

With the teams led out by Ferguson, supporters were treated to the familiar sight of Beckham firing cross-field balls, Jaap Stam showing no mercy at the back and Paul Scholes bossing the midfield.

After a difficult season — with United finishing sixth in the Premier League — Sunday’s match brought a feel-good factor back to Old Trafford.

“I’ve got to thank the supporters again for supporting us and the money will be well spent,” Solskjaer told MUTV. “I think everyone knows how much it means to play for Manchester United and this match, for everyone, means so much more than just turning up because it was such a big part of our lives.

“We have a big job getting back to these moments. We want to have moments to celebrate and that’s what we’re trying to do.” (ap) Dani Alves will replace Neymar as the captain of the Brazilian national team in the Copa America, the country’s football federation (CBF) announced Monday.

“The decision was communicated to Neymar by (coach) Tite on Saturday,” CBF said in a statement about the striker, who was handed a three-match suspension for lashing out at a spectator following Paris Saint-Germain’s shock defeat by Rennes in the French Cup final earlier this month. Eight-time winners

Brazil face Bolivia, Venezuela and Peru in the group stage, which starts on June 14, after two friendlies against Qatar and Honduras.

Neymar, 27, missed the humiliating 7-1 World Cup semi-final defeat by Germany in 2014 due to injury after fracturing his back in the previous round.

A year earlier, he was named player of the tournament at the Confederations Cup as Brazil won the competition for a record fourth time. (afp)

9

AP Photo/Christian Palma, File

In this Nov. 13, 2018 file photo, Mexico’s Azteca Stadium is seen from above in Mexico City. Officials at the Stadium said Monday, May 27, 2019, that they will convert the field back to natural turf after a failed attempt at a hybrid playing surface led to the cancellation of a scheduled NFL game there last year.

MEXICO CITY — Officials at Mexico’s famed Azteca Stadium say they will convert the field back to natural turf after a failed attempt at a hybrid playing surface led to the cancellation of a scheduled NFL game there last year.

In May 2018, the stadium switched to a field combining synthetic and natural grass, which has been used successfully in some of Europe’s biggest soccer venues.

But it didn’t take at Azteca and was ragged after a heavy schedule of events in November leading up to the planned NFL game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Rams. NFL officials decided to move the game back to the U.S. Stadium officials announced Monday they will use a break in Mexican soccer league play to put back in natural grass.(ap)

I hope Hazard comes this year: Perez says Madrid want Chelsea star Real Madrid president Florentino Perez confirmed on Monday the club are keen to sign Eden Hazard this summer and claimed Sergio Ramos has an offer to move to China.

Hazard could play his last match for Chelsea in the Europa League final against Arsenal on Wednesday, with the Belgian’s contract expiring next year.

“I have a lot of interest in him coming to Madrid, I’m not going to lie, and I hope this year he can play here,” Perez told Spanish radio station Onda Cero on Monday night.

“We have wanted to sign Hazard for several years and I hope he will come this year. Until now we have not achieved it, but this time his contract ends next year.”

After a disappointing season, Madrid are expected to overhaul their squad this summer and Perez suggested the club’s captain Ramos is considering a move.

Ramos and Perez argued after Madrid’s Champions League defeat to Ajax in March, with Ramos reportedly telling Perez the team’s failings were down to a failure to replace Cristiano Ronaldo.

Perez claimed on Tuesday that Ramos had been offered a move to China but said he had blocked the defender’s departure.

“We met in my office and he told me

he had a very good offer from a Chinese team but a rule there means they cannot pay for the transfer,” Perez said.

“It was no more than that, it was a conversation that has no interest. It is impossible for Real Madrid to let their captain go for free. I told him it’s impossible, nothing more.”

Perez was also asked about the possibility of Madrid signing Kylian Mbappe or Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain.

“I have not spoken with Zinedine Zidane about either Mbappe or Neymar,” said Perez, insisting he wants to maintain a good relationship with PSG. “If we want a player of PSG, we will call the club’s president.”

Gareth Bale’s future remains uncertain but Perez said “we have not received any offers for any players of Real Madrid”. He also condemned the recent criticism of players like Bale, that has come from Madrid’s fans and sections of the Spanish press. “We have made it seem like winning the Champions League is normal and it isn’t. We have deceived people,” said Perez.

“Some of these players have been insulted, they have been whistled, players who are going to go into the history of the club. It’s not right.” (afp)

Ben STANSALL / AFP

Chelsea’s Belgian midfielder Eden Hazard attends a training session at Chelsea Training Ground, in Cobham, Surrey on May 22, 2019, ahead of their Europa League final football match against Arsenal on May 29.

10

Destination

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

‘Being Serena, it’s a lot to carry’: Williams struggles to 800th victory

Manan VATSYAYANA / AFP

This photograph taken on April 24, 2019 shows snowboarder Nguyen Thai Binh walking atop a sand dunes in the southern Vietnamese town of Mui Ne.

Gili Selang

AMLAPURA - A small island lying off Bali’s eastern point which, like all exposed sites, at times has ripping currents. We therefore restrict this to expert divers only. It takes a fast boat from Padangbai, and you can either dive once at Gili Selang and then go on to Amed, or dive within Padangbai and then on to Gili Selang (although that is a long return journey). The interesting and rich sand slope to the north of the island has some stands of hard branching corals and occasional bommies, the deeper areas of the slope are more protected and therefore home to sea fans, soft corals, barrel sponges and coral bushes.

Along this sand slope you may well see white tip reef shark and Bumphead Parrotfish. Sitting at around 18M, moving southwards with the current, around the east side of Gili Selang, can provide you

with great visibility. Here however, the slope becomes rockier, much steeper and loses any significant coral cover. Tucking into the south side of the island and coming in towards Bali, you’ll get out of the

current, and encounter another area of low but healthy reef with many moray eels and schooling fish including trevally. Dotted around are bommies and leather corals.

(IBP/net)

Sandman: The Vietnamese snowboarder training on dunes

MUI NE - Sun-kissed and shaggy-haired, Nguyen Thai Binh swaps his flip flops for bulky boots ahead of snowboarding practice on the sand dunes of southern Vietnam -- the unlikely training ground for the country’s fledgling winter athletes with mountain-sized ambitions.

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Binh is one of Vietnam’s top snowboarders, pioneering a push to boost winter sports in Southeast Asia where snowfall is virtually unheard of.

But it’s been an uphill battle for athletes like him facing funding shortfalls, lack of public interest and few training facilities, namely snowy mountains.

“This sport is so new for Vietnamese, and we don’t have any snow to practise on,” said 29-year-old Binh, looking California cool in a Quicksilver cap and bright boardshorts.

Though Vietnam’s northern Sapa mountains see the occasional dusting in winter months, there are no snow slopes for aspiring skiers and snowboarders in the tropical country.

Instead, Binh boards on the undulating sand dunes of Mui Ne, better known for picture-perfect vistas and breakneck ATV rides on offer for tourists in the sunny southern province of Binh Thuan.

Binh made his international debut at the Asian Winter Games in Sapporo, Japan in 2017, joining Vietnam’s first-ever team to compete in the tournament long-dominated by

Japan, South Korea and China.

It was a lifelong dream for Binh who fell in love with sports as a scrawny kid, so skinny that he was taunted by classmates for looking like a drug addict.

Committed to bulking up, he tried his hand at martial arts, then kitesurfing and longboarding before he started sandsurfing in 2007.

Like most of his teammates, the Asian Winter Games in Sapporo was his first time seeing snow. The skiers too had only ever trained on sand using tree branches as slalom poles on the sandy slopes of Mui Ne. “I was hesitant, I’d been practising on the sand dunes for a while so I had the technique, but the snow was so slippery,” Binh told AFP. - Broken limbs, frozen toes It was an eventful week for the seven athletes who competed for Vietnam.

Many didn’t have proper winter gear and froze if they stayed outside for too long. Skier Pham Tien Dat tumbled during slalom training, broke his shoulder and couldn’t compete. The Vietnamese journalists

covering the games got sick and were hospitalised.

As for sports junkie Binh, his other hobbies served him well in Sapporo.

“Binh was a fast learner because of his longboarding and surfing skills,” said Le Quan, the Vietnam team coach.

Vietnam walked away with no medals, but plenty of pride.

“We went to Sapporo not aiming for a high ranking but to challenge ourselves,” Quan told AFP. There were eight Southeast Asian teams at the 2017 games, the highest number since 1986 when the Philippines became the first country from the region to compete.

The director general of the Olympic Council of Asia Husain Al Musallam said winter sports have developed among Southeast Asian athletes “in a very good way” and expects the number of participants to jump for the next games in 2021.

Many athletes so far have been skaters, thanks to an increasing number of ice rinks in malls and sports centres across the region, including Vietnam. (afp)

PARIS - Serena Williams admitted the ‘mother, champion, queen, goddess’ logo which adorned her Roland Garros outfit on Monday was “a lot to carry, but so is being Serena”.

The 37-year-old American survived a first-set scare before defeating Russia’s Vitalia Diatchenko 2-6, 6-1, 6-0 to reach the second round.

But as she struggled to impose herself on her 83rd-ranked opponent, it looked like her dazzling choice of costume for the occasion might come back to haunt her.

The legend of ‘mother, champion, queen, goddess’ was written in French in a nod to her hosts.

Once the cape was removed, Williams revealed a black and white zebra-stripe print dress, split at one thigh.

Last year, Williams fell foul of Roland Garros with her one-piece Black Panther outfit which was subsequently banned.

“It was just to remind everyone that they can be champions and are queens. So I love that about it,” she said of her 2019 dress and cape.

“Yeah. It is a lot to carry, but so is being Serena Williams.”

The American, who is attempting to equal Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 Grand Slam titles, racked up her 800th career main draw win with her victory in front of a half-full Court Philippe Chatrier.

After dropping the first set, she was in danger of suffering just the second opening round defeat of her Grand Slam tournament career.

But normal service was quickly resumed as she racked up 12 of the

last 13 games.

“You know, I have been dealing with a lot, and then I just got nervous out there and I stopped moving my feet.

“There were like concrete blocks on my feet. I was, like, ‘You gotta do something’.”

Williams, the 2002, 2013 and 2015 champion in Paris, will face either Japan’s Kurumi Nara or Dalila Jakupovic of Slovenia for a place in the last 32, after their match was suspended at one-set-all overnight.

Williams won her most recent major at the Australian Open in 2017 while pregnant.

She returned to Grand Slam tennis after giving birth to her daughter at Roland Garros in 2018, making the last 16 where she had been set to resume her bitter rivalry with Maria Sharapova.

An arm injury torpedoed that meeting and stalled her assault on a fourth title in Paris.

Defeat in the 2018 Wimbledon final and US Open championship match, where her now-infamous meltdown overshadowed Naomi Osaka’s title triumph, followed her Paris heartbreak.

Her Australian Open campaign in January ended in a quarter-final loss to Karolina Pliskova despite having led 5-1 in the final set and holding four match points.

Since Melbourne, Williams had been unable to finish the three tournaments she had entered -- retiring in the third round of Indian Wells and withdrawing after winning a round in Miami, and after winning one round in Rome due to a right knee injury. (afp)

Thomas SAMSON / AFP

Serena Williams of the US plays a forehand return to Russia’s Vitalia Diatchenko during their women’s singles first round match on day two of The Roland Garros 2019 French Open tennis tournament in Paris on May 27, 2019.

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Wednesday, May 29, 2019

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International

International

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Wednesday, May 29, 2019

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Malaysia to ship back hundreds of tonnes of plastic waste

PORT KLANG - Hundreds of tonnes of imported plastic waste will be shipped back to where it came from, Malaysia said Tuesday, insisting the country did not want to be a global dumping ground.

Around 300 million tonnes of plastic are produced every year, according to the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), with much of it ending up in landfill or polluting the seas, in what is becoming a growing international crisis.

China had previously taken a large amount of waste for recycling, but abruptly stopped last year, saying it wanted to improve its own environment.

Now Southeast Asian countries that stepped in to plug this gap say they have had enough.

“We urge developed countries to stop shipping garbage to our country,” said Yeo Bee Yin, Malaysia’s minister of energy, technology, science, environment and climate change, adding it was “unfair and uncivilised”.

“We will return it back to the country of origin without any mercy,” she said, after an inspection of several waste-filled containers at Port Klang, the country’s busiest port.

Plastic imports to Malaysia have tripled since 2016, to 870,000 tonnes last year, official data showed.

The influx has sparked a rapid increase in the number of recy-

cling plants, many of them operating without a licence and with little regard for environmental standards.

Yeo vowed a crackdown on illegal imports and recycling facilities and called Malaysians involved in importing the scraps “traitors”.

“Malaysia will not be a dumping ground to the world,” she declared.

“We cannot be bullied by the developed countries.”

The ministry said 450 tonnes of contaminated plastic waste in 10 containers -- from Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, Japan, Saudi Arabia and the United States -- will be shipped back.

Port officials said their contents were misdeclared, but did not give a date for the shipment.

“These containers are filled with contaminated, non-homogenous, low-quality, non-recyclable plastic waste, and are routed to processing facilities which do not have the technology to recycle in an environmentally sound manner,” the ministry said.

Malaysia last month sent back five containers filled with plastic waste to Spain.

Inspections are being carried out on more than 50 other containers

Mohd RASFAN / AFP

A member of the media takes pictures of containers filled with plastic waste before shipping back to the country of origin in Port Klang, west of Kuala Lumpur on May 28, 2019. brought in illegally.

Yeo said it will take until the end of the year to fully deal with the problem.

She said 150 illegal waste recy-

cling plants had been shut down.

As little as nine percent of plastic produced between 1950 and 2015 has been recycled.

Pictures of coral reefs smothered

in plastic bags and river systems choked with PET bottles have sparked a growing worldwide awareness of the need to deal with the problem. (afp)

Sydney imposes first water restrictions in decade

IBP/net

The New South Wales government has said the greater Sydney region water catchments were experiencing some of the lowest flows since the 1940s.

SYDNEY - Sydney on Tuesday announced its first major water restrictions in a decade, putting limits on homes and businesses amid a record-breaking drought.

The New South Wales government said the greater Sydney region water catchments were experiencing some of the lowest flows since the 1940s, and that the restrictions would be enforced from next week.

“Regional NSW has been experiencing a record drought,” the southeastern state’s minister for water Melinda Pavey said in a statement.

“Water restrictions in Sydney mean that households across NSW are doing their bit to conserve water.

People in Sydney can be fined up to Aus$220 (US$150) or businesses up to Aus$550 for leaving a hose running or using a sprinkler system

to water their gardens.

Australia sweated through its hottest-ever summer from last December to February.

The country’s water management was a hot-button issue in the recent election following mass fish kills in the Murray-Darling River system, which authorities blamed on low water flow and oxygen levels.

Scientists said the severe drought plaguing inland eastern Australia had contributed to the deaths.

Australia is no stranger to extreme weather patterns, with bushfires, floods and drought often occurring during the summer months.

Sydney last had water restrictions in place in 2009, when all major cities imposed usage caps amid a severe drought, which had lasted for more than a decade in some parts of the country. (afp)

Police investigated 10 hoax cases since rally on May 22

JAKARTA - Indonesian Police’s Crime Investigation Department (Bareskrim) and Jakarta Police investigated 10 hoax cases since May 21 when demonstrators clashed with police at a rally rejecting the General Election Commission’s (KPU’s) 2019 presidential election results.

“I notify that from May 21 to May 28, a total of 10 cases of hoaxes were investigated by the Cyber Directorate of Bareskrim and Jakarta Police,” Brigadir General Dedi Prasetyo, spokesman of the Indonesian Police, remarked here on Tuesday.

On May 23, a man, identified by his initials as SDA, was arrested by the police for disseminating fake news that foreign police officers had joined

hands with the Indonesian police to handle the May 21-22 rally.

On May 26, another man, identified by his initials as ASR, was arrested for the spread of fake information that the police had roughly handled a habaib, or a descendent of the Prophet.

Moreover, on the same day, the police took HU into custody for spreading provocative information that had the potential to fuel hostility based on

race, religion, tribe and group (SARA) sentiments.

On May 27, the police had arrested RR over his threat posted on Facebook to kill a prominent national figure. Moreover, the Central Java Police took M into detention for spreading information to incite hatred based on SARA sentiments.

On the same day, the South Sulawesi Police also detained MS for his

post on social media of an image of a national prominent figure being hung with a text that read: “Hopefully, this barbaric man dies.”

On May 27, the police arrested DS in West Java for disseminating a hoax regarding a 14-year-old teen, who died after undergoing torture.

Furthermore, MA was taken into police custody in Sorong, West Papua, on May 27, for circulating a negative video photo captioned “Assassination targeting one of the national prominent figures.”

On May 28, the police arrested

MNA for spreading negative information on electoral frauds, a persecution, and police torturing a teen near Al Huda Mosque at the Tanah Abang area, Jakarta. The Bareskrim also took into custody H on May 28 at dawn for spreading information on a threat targeting a national prominent figure and hate speech.

The police reported that the arrests were made as a final resort while concurrently adopting persuasive approaches and reminding the public to be wise while using social media. (ant)

Four dead in post-election riot in Indonesia’s Papua

A 16-year-old boy was one of at least four people shot dead by police during a riot triggered by dissatisfaction over the election result in the restive province of Papua, an official said. More than 300 supporters of a legislative candidate who claimed he should have won the seat in the local council attacked a district office in Asmat district.

The candidate, who was not identified, claimed based on the votes he should have won a seat in

the city council but his name was replaced with another candidate’s name. The protesters, armed with sharp weapons, damaged the district office, local military spokesman Muhammad Aidi said.

Four soldiers guarding a nearby military post tried to control the protesters but were outnumbered, and one of the officers tried to control the mob by opening fire into the air, Aidi said.

“The mob became even more

brutal and attacked the officer, in a such threatening situation another officer was forced to open fire and retreat to the post to save themselves,” Aidi said in a statement Monday.

Four people, including the teenager, were shot dead while one more was injured and has been treated at a local hospital.

The military, local police and the human rights commission have formed a team to investigate the

case, Aidi said.

Indonesia’s presidential and legislative election also triggered a riot in the capital Jakarta.

Supporters of presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto have been protesting since the election result was announced last week in favour of incumbent president Joko Widodo. Subianto’s supporters claim the election was marred by rampant electoral fraud.

Since the rioting, more than 400

demonstrators have been arrested, according to police, who blamed the violence on “provocateurs” they claimed mixed with the crowd to stir up trouble. Police said seven demonstrators have died but offered few details on how they died or who was responsible, though earlier said some had gunshot and blunt force wounds.

About 900 people were injured in the riots, according to the Jakarta Health Agency. (afp)

12

International

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

BUSINESS

Pro-Bolsonaro demos in Brazil show gov’t risks

Bali News

International

AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo

A man wearing a Jesus T-shirt shouts slogans during a rally in favor of Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, May 26, 2019. The pro-Bolsonaro rally follows anti-government protests against cuts in the education budget as the president also battles an uncooperative Congress, a family corruption scandal and falling approval ratings after five months in office. video of a man peeing on the head of another to warn about debauchery during Carnival, posted fake stories about reporters, declared Brazil should not be allowed to become “a gay paradise” and frequently insulted other politicians, even supposed allies. He has also done little to stop social media attacks by his politician sons on military leaders, including Vice President Hamilton Mourão, a former general.

The infighting and theatrics prompted Janaina Paschoal, a state lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s Social Liberal Party, who he considered for vice president, to openly campaign against Sunday’s rallies. “Wake up! If the streets are empty on the 26th, Bolsonaro will realize that he will have to stop causing drama and get to work,” she said on Twitter.

Bolsonaro has received similar admonishments from Rodrigo Maia, whose role as speaker of Congress’ lower house makes him a key player in whether the president’s agenda can move forward. In March, Maia

said if Bolsonaro didn’t do the work to persuade legislators to approve a controversial pension overhaul, it wasn’t going to happen, sending shivers through the markets.

In a series of extraordinary public barbs, Maia admonished Bolsonaro for spending so much time on Twitter and so little time in Congress. Bolsonaro brushed Maia off.

Bolsonaro and many of his hardcore supporters argue that the administration is struggling because he refuses to engage in business as usual, such as trading government projects or positions for votes on key legislation. Sunday’s demonstrations were “a message” to “those who stay with the old ways,” Bolsonaro said after participating in a religious service in Rio de Janeiro.

Still, Bolsonaro’s popularity is sagging.

Several polls say his approval rating is down about 15 points since taking office, currently hovering around 34%. The Brazilian real has declined sharply against the U.S. dollar in recent months on worries that major eco-

nomic changes are at risk, the unemployment rate has edged up to under 13%, and Paulo Guedes, the University of Chicago-trained finance minister who was key to Bolsonaro’s election victory, has said he won’t stick around if pension reform isn’t passed.

None of that is insurmountable. The divisive impeachment process against Rousseff, followed by the scandal-prone administration of Temer, the least popular president in modern Brazilian history, and the jailing da Silva, has all left many Brazilians tired of the fighting. Regardless of political stripes, they want the economy improve, to feel safer on the streets and to live under a functioning government.

Bolsonaro will have to bring together disparate groups in one of the world’s most diverse countries, including those who are clearly out to get him. The question is whether he can do that, or will he continue to be consumed by schoolyard fights and the settling of scores. (ap)

5

Ngrebeg Has Three Meanings, What Are They?

Ngerebeg tradition or better known as makotek held every Tumpek Kuningan (ten days after Galungan) at Munggu customary village, Mengwi, Badung, has the meaning as a tribute to the heroes, repellent of negative things and a means to unite the citizens. This was confirmed by chief of Munggu customary village, I Made Rai Sujana, amid the ngerebeg procession at the local Desa and Puseh Temple of local village, Saturday (Jan. 5).

RIO DE JANEIRO - Not even five months into his four-year term, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is struggling so much to push forward with his agenda despite a big election victory that many of the far-right leader’s staunchest supporters felt the need to get out into the streets to give him a boost.

Sunday’s demonstrations in over 100 cities sought to counter large protests on May 15 against Bolsonaro’s plan for deep cuts in spending on public education, an area he thinks is politicized and poorly run.

With pressure mounting to deal with the government’s huge budget deficit and poor performance by Latin America’s biggest economy, the dueling rallies underscore Bolsonaro’s problems: sagging approval ratings, a crashing currency, infighting within his administration and sniping even from conservatives.

There is no immediate threat to his hold on power, yet Brazilian politics in recent years hold warning signs for the president.

Fury over the largest corruption scandal in the history of Latin America, angst about an economy that has yet to fully recover from recession and a litany of other complaints have made Brazil a hostile environment for politicians. Consider the fate of the last three presidents: In 2016, Dilma Rousseff was impeached and ousted for illegally managing the federal budget. Last year, her predecessor, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, began serving a 12-year sentence for a corruption conviction.

And this year, the man succeeded by Bolsonaro, Michel Temer, has twice been arrested and is facing several graft allegations.

All three situations are different, of course, and Bolsonaro is not facing corruption allegations himself, although his son, a federal senator, is. Rather, the common thread is that in today’s Brazil nobody is untouchable.

That Bolsonaro’s administration is wounded is largely his own fault. He campaigned on the need to curtail the country’s overburdened pension system and to combat rising violence and crime, yet instead of building coalitions to push for major reforms, he has used much of his early political capital on cultural wars, bashing the press and expanding gun rights, the latter of which polls say is opposed by a majority of Brazilians. Instead of working with Congress in the capital of Brasilia, the former legislator has made trips to Chile, Israel and Switzerland and gone to the United States twice.

Bolsonaro’s list of provocative and unnecessary moves is already long: He tweeted a

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Let’s Enjoy Warm Water of Geger Beach

Geger Beach is one of the beaches located in Nusa Dua area. It is slightly hidden and away from the center of crowds so that people choose other beaches as their tourist destination.

However, for those wishing to find a beach with quiet atmosphere, this beach is the most appropriate destination in Southern Badung.

In terms of location, Geger Beach in Nusa Dua is located in the area of ??Peminge customary village, Sawangan. To get to the Geger Beach, you can pass through Hotel Nikko located on the southern coast of the Island of Bali. You will find the location of the beach by crossing Jalan Pura Puget located right before Hotel Nikko Bali.

Geger Beach has white sand and remains very natural and untouched by nosy hands wishing to destroy the beauty of the beach. Clean white sand and calm seawater are perfect for those that like sunbathing with tranquil atmosphere. No wonder, many couples will be found on this beach spending their honeymoon.

They usually sunbathe, bathe or just sit down by the beach.

Warm seawater throughout the day is also beneficial for those who like fishing. Usually in the afternoon, many surrounding people come to the location for fishing. Unfortunately, around the beach is rarely found any food and beverage merchants because this beach is not as crowded as Kuta Beach. However, there is a cafe offering seafood, international cuisine and Italian specialties such as pizza, pasta and grilled food.

Some parts of this coastal area is managed by Hotel Nikko. The hotel offers camel ride packages, traveling along the beach at varying prices. So, you do not have to come all the way to Arab to enjoy a camel ride. This beach is very clean because it is managed by the hotel. Every day there will be a janitor cleaning up this beach. The admission ticket to Geger Beach is very affordable. It is also equipped with parking lot of motorcycle and car for visitors. (kmb)

He explained the meanings of the procession starting from the Mengwi kingdom headquartered at Munggu with the king named Ida Cokorda Nyoman Sakti Munggu.

When defending his territory in Blambangan, East Java, before the Mengwi troops named goak selem or black crow troops left the kingdom, right on the Tumpek Kuningan Day, the king of Mengwi performed a meditation at Dalem Kahyangan Wisesa Temple, Munggu. The king got a revelation from his meditation.

The return of his troops with victory or success in the war was then commemorated with the tradition of ngerebeg. “Therefore, on Tumpek Kuningan, the tradition of ngerebeg continues to be commemorated at Munggu customary village as a tribute to the victory of Mengwi’s royal war, as the respect for the heroes,” he explained.

Related to the tradition as disaster repellent, he told that it was initially carried out with a spear.

Then, during the Dutch colonial period the tradition was banned because it was thought to be a rebellion. As a result, this tradition had not been organized for several times. Then, outbreaks of disease or plague attacked villagers, even many people died.

This condition made some customary and religious leaders negotiate with the Dutch administration and finally the tradition was allowed to be held again. However, the facilities used are not spears, but replaced with pulet wooden stick. “Since then, the tradition of ngerebeg formerly used spears was replaced with a pulet wooden stick, with the length of 3.5 meters. Based on such belief, the ngerebeg tradition serves as catastrophe repellent or keeps away from negative things,” he explained.

The third meaning of the tradition is as a means to unite citizens.

This tradition is followed by almost all men aged 14 years and over from 12 hamlets at Munggu customary village. They mutually mingle while carrying wooden sticks and walking around the village area. When they arrive in several places such as road intersection they gather and unite the end of the stick to form the pyramid.

Once in a while, a young man will climb up the pile of the sticks.

“So, this tradition is to unite young people from 12 hamlets across the Munggu customary village. By carrying out the ngerebeg tradition, they will definitely do positive things and strengthen the sense of unity among the youth,” he concluded. (kmb)

4

Bali News

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

Online taxi cannot be closed

Three killed in Ramadan violence in restive Thai south

Governor obliges drivers to have Bali ID card and use Bali license plate

DENPASAR - Online application-based taxis cannot just be closed haphazardly. However, Governor of Bali, Wayan Koster, reiterated his commitment to maintaining the existence of conventional taxis considering the conventional taxis have been around for a long time in serving tourism in Bali and are well organized. Therefore, zoning or operating area between conventional taxis and online taxis will be regulated in the Governor Regulation.

“Now, a taxi suddenly appears with application. We do not know the driver’s identity, where else the ID card comes from and not all of them have Bali license plates. Meanwhile, their base is not clear, and various other procedures are not actually met in appropriate with the context of tourism services,” said Koster when meeting the masses of Bali Transport United (BTB) in the office yard of the governor of Bali on Monday (May 27).

Before meeting the masses, Koster had called a number of BTB representatives to discuss in his room. He said if indeed there are necessities to govern the implementation of transportation in accordance with the standardization of tourism services, he will make the Governor Regulation to govern tourism areas becoming the conventional taxi bases, and later on they may not be entered by online taxis. On the other hand, conventional taxis will also be arranged as well as possible so that they can become an icon of transportation for Bali tourism services.

“So, for example, by degrees the vehicles will be rejuvenated with the capital from BPD with the lowest interest below 5 percent. In addition, the drivers will be made costumes or uniforms with good design,” he explained.

Next, continued Koster, conventional taxis will also be registered and made special applications with closed systems. In this case, the members are

only conventional taxi drivers. One of the goals is to widen their market access so that they do not just hang out but can take passengers anywhere.

Meanwhile, online taxi drivers will have to be arranged where the drivers must have Bali identity card, use a DK license-plated vehicle, and join a single organization. The vehicle used must have a DK license plate because they make a living by taking a tour in Bali. In addition, online taxis may not go wild because they are vulnerable to disrupting tourists and ultimately tarnish the image of tourism.

“Don’t doubt my commitment.

Surely, I take side with the conventional. I will assign the newly appointed head of Transportation Agency to draft Governor Regulation in the shortest possible time. The costumes are regulated in the amended budget 2019,” he explained.

When asked whether this policy will not conflict with the Regulation of Minister of Transportation, Koster explicitly mentioned that Bali is not like other regions. Bali is a special area because it is a world tourist destination although the Regulation of Minister of Transportation applies throughout Indonesia. If it is not suitable in the area, it can follow the rules in the regions that are in accordance with the conditions of the region.

“What we handle is tourism, so that it must be with special services. The drivers must be able to speak English

like that. Don’t let them get the wrong way,” he explained.

Head of the Bali Transportation Agency, I Gde Wayan Samsi Gunarta, said the Governor Regulation will be accomplished within two weeks. His party is still reviewing technically related to the location limitation. “The locations which have clearly had the transport management like transport management and we will then try to limit them. Online taxis can only drop, while they cannot take passengers,” he gave an example.

According to Samsi, many options can still be discussed and not all of them can be agreed. On the other hand, there is restriction of the authority possessed by the governor. It needs to be synchronized so the problem does not recur. In the Regulation of Minister of Transportation, the governor has the authority to determine the upper and lower limit rates, determine quotas, and issue supervisory cards.

For the implementation of the region, it can still be considered to what extent it can be applied. “Indeed, there are such things, especially related to regional transportation arrangements,” he concluded.

Chairman of BTB, Nyoman Suendra, said to have been quite satisfied even though online taxis cannot be closed completely. At least, there has been a bright spot from the struggle of conventional taxi drivers so far. The governor’s commitment, including

Governor of Bali, Wayan Koster the solution offered in the form of Governor Regulation issuance, will continue to be escorted. His members will also be involved in the drafting of the Governor Regulation.

“Do not let be lies among us anymore. For example, there will be no different understanding ??later on. To be honest, all our colleagues are satisfied. The governor is extraordinary in addressing and has been on our side as well,” said the man who is familiarly addressed as Jero Jhon.

Before reaching an agreement, BTB, among others, demanded that online taxis should have identity as conventional taxis do. Then, online

IBP/kmb

taxis may not enter into the tourism area which has been the operating area for conventional taxis. Online taxi quota must also be clear so as not to be chaotic like they do. Not to mention, most online taxis use vehicles with license plates from outside Bali and the drivers only put on shorts or a T-shirt.

“In Bali, there is a norm, we in the conventional taxis must queue at hotels by wearing neat uniform and we clearly can speak English. They (online taxi—Ed) take passengers (tourists) wishing to go to hospital but are taken to supermarket. Well, this communication doesn’t connect,” he concluded. (kmb32)

Activities of Mount Agung increases DENPASAR - Since the past two weeks, Mount Agung has showed increased activities. However, the Bali Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) assured the community that until now there are no indications of eruption with large capacity. This is in accordance with the monitoring results of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources through PVMBG at Rendang Monitoring Post, Karangasem.

“Monitoring of the seismographs carried out routinely for 24 hours in Rendang Monitoring Post has not showed any vibrations or increased capacity of Mount Agung eruption,” said Head of Bali Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency

No indications of large eruptions (BPBD), I Made Rentin, when confirmed on Monday (May 27).

According to Rentin, preparedness must still be improved in anticipating every possible eruption.

However, people are encouraged not to worry. Moreover, his party together with all components of officers such as the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) and volunteers always echoed the tagline ‘Get to know the danger, prepare the strategy and we are ready to be safe.” Besides, it is also provided with education and dissemination efforts for Balinese people, especially in Karangasem.

“This means that we know the intensity, and then the eruption pattern, let’s say, it routinely happens

on 12, 18, 24, or once every six days (eruption of Mount Agung—Ed). But with a context like this, we as Balinese and Karangasem people in particular become accustomed,” he added.

Having been accustomed to be here, Rentin continued, it does not necessarily mean to underestimate every eruption that may occur. But with such thing in mind, all parties become better prepared and know when an eruption occurs in large capacity especially regarding the movements in the evacuation process. BPBD Bali together with BPBD Karangasem assisted by 28 circumference villages in Mount Agung or Pasebaya is now trying to complete an evacuation plan with two big things. At the very least,

the movement plan can be completed within next 2 to 2.5 months.

“The hamlets in the affected villages have a 4-km radius, we map them out with real data by name, by address and where they move,” he explained.

Rentin added that evacuation will be carried out with two options, namely guided evacuation commanded by headman and or hamlet chief as well as independent evacuation. For independent evacuation, the community at affected villages can go to their closest family, both those remaining in Karangasem and those who left the district. When later on the regions or villages and buffer villages outside the affected villages have been deter-

13

Vanessa Kerton / AFP

People gather next to a road blocked off by police which leads to Parliament house in Port Moresby on May 28, 2019. Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O’Neill stalled his announced resignation and took legal action to prevent a vote of no confidence on May 28, deepening the country’s political crisis.

Papua New Guinea in crisis as PM stalls resignation

PATTANI - Two people, including a 14-year-old boy, were killed in a market place bombing in Thailand’s Muslim-majority south, a military spokesman said Tuesday -- an apparent retaliatory attack for the killing of a wanted rebel leader.

Thailand’s three southernmost provinces, Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat, have since 2004 been plagued with conflict between ethnic Malay-Muslim rebels and the Buddhist-majority Thai state, which annexed the region around a century ago.

Around 7,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in violence that rarely makes international headlines despite taking place a few hours south of some of Thailand’s tourist hotspots.

On Monday afternoon, the insurgents detonated a motorcycle bomb at a crowded market place in Nong Chik, Pattani province, killing two civilians.

“A 14-year-old boy and a 38-year-old woman died,” Colonel Thanawee Suwannathat, spokesman for the southern army, told AFP. Four military rangers were wounded in the blast.

The bombing appeared to be in “retaliation” for the death of a fugitive suspected rebel leader in neighbouring Yala province earlier in the day, who was shot dead as authorities surrounded his house,

Thanawee told AFP. The 37-year-old suspect, named as Abdulloh Lateh, was “head of operations” in the Yaha district.

The highly secretive rebels, who are pushing for autonomy from Thailand, operate in small village cells, with their senior leaders based overseas far from the reach of Thai authorities.

The grinding conflict is characterised by tit-for-tat attacks that usually target symbols of the Thai state and its security forces but civilians from both Muslim and Buddhist communities often get caught in the crossfire.

The region usually sees an uptick in violence during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which ends next week.

Monday’s violence came a day after another bomb attack in Songkhla province killed a police officer at a checkpoint, wounding three others.

Video footage of Sunday’s attack showed a plume of thick smoke as the blast went off, leaving a police officer’s body lying in the middle of the road.

Thailand’s junta leader Prayut Chan-O-Cha -- who is expected to return as a civilian prime minister in the coming days -- condemned the latest attacks as “inhuman”.

Peace talks have been inconclusive despite an intensification of army operations in the border zone with Malaysia. (afp)

PORT MORESBY - Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O’Neill stalled his announced resignation and took legal action to prevent a vote of no confidence Tuesday, deepening the country’s political crisis. mined, they will immediately prepare all infrastructures, facilities, logistics and equipment related to the needs of refugees such as public kitchens, tents for beds and toilets complying with refugee management standards.

“When people shift to evacuate from affected villages to buffer zones or other locations, it will become fatal if the locations are not ready,” he explained.

Regarding the claim of health costs for Mount Agung refugees, Rentin said the final meeting will be held on May 29. In view of the previous coordination meeting in Karangasem, BPKP of Bali Representatives was not invited to attend. (kmb32)

The veteran leader launched what appeared to be a last-gasp bid to cling on to power, pressing the Supreme Court to thwart a planned parliamentary vote to remove him from office.

Facing mounting criticism, O’Neill on Sunday announced that he would step down, but has so far avoided formally submitting his resignation to the country’s governor general.

O’Neill -- who has been in power since 2011 -- has been battling for his political life after a string of cabinet resignations sparked by his signing a multi-billion-dollar liquefied natural gas (LNG) deal with France’s Total and US firm

ExxonMobil earlier this year.

Local communities had complained bitterly about not benefiting from similar deals in the past.

O’Neill’s government narrowly avoided a vote of no confidence after the signing by adjourning parliament for almost a month.

On Monday, on the eve of lawmakers’ return and with a new confidence vote planned for June 6, O’Neill lodged an appeal with the Supreme Court. In a lengthy filing, O’Neill said he wanted to “ensure clarity of constitutional and legal processes”.

The court on Tuesday refused to hear the case urgently and set proceedings for Friday, according to opposition lawmaker Brian

Kramer.

O’Neill’s opponents believe they have the votes to oust him and elected member of parliament and National Alliance Party leader Patrick Pruaitch as their alternative prime minister.

Parliament descended into chaos on Tuesday afternoon, with heated debate between the opposition and the house speaker leading to insults and threats on the floor.

When the dust settled the opposition attempted to introduce a motion to have the house speaker removed. But he refused, saying there was no provisions in the constitution for removing the speaker. (afp)

TUWAEDANIYA MERINGING / AFP

A policeman inspects a site of a motorcycle bomb blast in a flea market in the southern Thai province of Pattani on May 27, 2019.

14

Technology

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

International

Bali News

International

Close encounters?

SpaceX satellites spark Dutch UFO frenzy

THE HAGUE - A Dutch website set up to record UFO sightings was flooded early Saturday with reports after a “train of stars” was spotted crossing the Netherlands’ skies, sparking fears of an alien invasion.

But what some thought to be a close encounter of the third kind turned out to be a string of some 60 satellites launched by US-based SpaceX hours earlier as part of its “Starlink” constellation.

The row of satellites which are part of a plan by billionaire Elon Musk’s firm to provide internet from space, glided across Dutch skies around 1:00 am (2300 GMT).

Shortly afterwards, Dutch website www.ufomeldpunt.nl was inundated with more than 150 sighting reports, with astonished spotters describing a “bizarre train of stars or lights moving across the skies at constant speed”.

“There’s a long line of lights.

Faster than a plane. Huh?” one spotter reported, while another called it a “star caravan” and one saying “I have it on film”.

One spotter simply texted: “WTF?” “I didn’t know what to make of it,” an unnamed witness later told the NOS public broadcaster.

“Is it Russia attacking the US? Are they UFOs? Seriously, I didn’t know,” the witness said.

One of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets blasted off without incident from Cape Canaveral in Florida at around 0230 GMT on Friday.

An hour after liftoff, the rocket began to release the satellites at an altitude of 280 miles (450 kilometres). The satellites then had to separate and use their thrusters to take up their positions in a relatively low orbit of 340 miles (550 kilometres).

Each of the satellites weighs 227 kilograms (500 pounds) and was built in-house in Redmond, near Seattle.

Starlink will become operational once 800 satellites have been activated, which will require a dozen more launches.

One Dutchman who remained unfazed was satellite spotter Marco Langbroek, who knew what the mysterious lights were -- and had his camera on hand.

“I cheered them on, the moment they appeared,” he told the NOS. (afp)

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

3

Admission ticket to Waterblow waits for completion of cooperation agreement

Officers are visiting a rabid dog bite victim at Tuwed village, Melaya subdistrict.

IBP/wit

Rabies causes people restless

Huawei smartphones are seen in a Huawei store in Shanghai on May 26, 2019.

HECTOR RETAMAL / AFP

‘Don’t be too optimistic’: Huawei employees fret at US ban

BEIJING - While Huawei’s founder brushes aside a US ban against his company, the telecom giant’s employees have been less sanguine, confessing fears for their future in online chat rooms.

Huawei CEO Ren Zhengfei declared this week the company has a hoard of microchips and the ability to make its own in order to withstand a potentially crippling US ban on using American components and software in its products.

“If you really want to know what’s going on with us, you can visit our Xinsheng Community,” Ren told Chinese media, alluding to Huawei’s internal forum partially open to viewers outside the company. But a peek into Xinsheng shows his words have not reassured everyone within the Shenzhenbased company.

“During difficult times, what should we do as individuals?” posted an employee under the handle Xiao Feng on Thursday.

“At home reduce your debts and maintain enough cash,” Xiao

Feng wrote.

“Make a plan for your financial assets and don’t be overly optimistic about your remuneration and income.”

This week Google, whose Android operating system powers most of the world’s smartphones, said it would cut ties with Huawei as a result of the ban.

Another critical partner, ARM Holdings -- a British designer of semiconductors owned by Japanese group Softbank -- said it was complying with the US restrictions.

“On its own Huawei can’t resolve this problem, we need to seek support from government policy,” one unnamed employee wrote last week, in a post that received dozens of likes and replies.

The employee outlined a plan for China to block off its smartphone

market from all American components much in the same way Beijing fostered its internet tech giants behind a “Great Firewall” that keeps out Google, Facebook, Twitter and dozens of other foreign companies.

“Our domestic market is big enough, we can use this opportunity to build up domestic suppliers and our ecosystem,” the employee wrote.

- ‘Advance with our company’ For his part, Ren advocated the opposite response in his interview with Chinese media.

“We should not promote populism; populism is detrimental to the country,” he said, noting that his family uses Apple products.

Other employees strategized ways to circumvent the US ban.

One advocated turning to Alibaba’s e-commerce platform Taobao to buy the needed components.

Another dangled the prospect of setting up dozens of new companies to make purchases from US

suppliers. Many denounced the US and proposed China ban McDonald’s, Coca-Cola and all-American movies and TV shows.

“First time posting under my real name: we must do our jobs well, advance and retreat with our company,” said an employee named Xu Jin. The tech ban caps months of US effort to isolate Huawei, whose equipment Washington fears could be used as a Trojan horse by Chinese intelligence services.

Still, last week Trump indicated he was willing to include a fix for Huawei in a trade deal that the two economic giants have struggled to seal and US officials issued a 90day reprieve on the ban.

In Xinsheng, an employee with the handle Youxin lamented: “I want to advance and retreat alongside the company, but then my boss told me to pack up and go”, followed by two sad-face emoticons. (afp)

Again, three people are bitten by dogs

NEGARA - Until now, the officers still have not found resident from Banyubiru village, Negara subdistrict, having been bitten by rabid puppies. In the middle of the search, at Tuwed village, Melaya, three people experienced bites from rabid dogs.

Head of the Jembrana Health Agency, Putu Suasta, stated on Sunday (May 26) the rabies positive dog bite occurred at Puseh hamlet, Tuwed, Melaya.

However, the residents bitten by the dog did not report to local public health center so the officers finally came down and provided treatment. Suasta said when underestimating dog bites and not reporting to public health center, it is very dangerous. “Indeed, we have dealt with three residents and tested positive for rabies,” affirmed Suasta.

He said the bite case of rabies positive animal occurred on Sunday (May 19) against a grandmother, namely Ni Nyoman Dendi, 73, a resident of Puseh hamlet, Tuwed, who was bitten by a dog without being provoked. The bites by the dog belonging to Kade Mastra happened to left foot area.

Then on Monday (May 20) a boy, Dewa Made Santika, 12, was also known to have a bite wound on his left hand. The case happening to both victims are the same (dogs were not provoked). Of the two cases above, finally the Jembrana Health Agency intervened and gave anti-rabies vaccine (VAR) to the victims at the Melaya Public Health Center 1 on Monday (May 20).

According to Suasta, the dog died on Friday (May 24) and its

brain sample was taken by the Animal Health and Veterinary Public Health. On Saturday, the results of the sample test by BBVET Denpasar showed that the samples from Tuwed are positive for rabies.

After knowing the positive results, the Melaya Public Health Center I officers then did Epidemiological Investigation (PE) to the bite location and dog owner. After doing it, they got information if the resident becoming victim of the dog’s bite, Desak Ketut Arnyani, 48, was bitten on the finger.

His agency educated the community that it is important to report to the officer after bitten by a dog.

Initially, the victim at Tuwed did not come to public health center because he felt abrasions. “We do the handling by giving VAR because it is dangerous for the victims themselves,” he said.

To handle rabies victim after being bitten by dog, he said, the wound must be washed with running water for 15 minutes. Then, come to the public health center or hospital to ask for VAR. Rabies itself has a wound like getting punctured by nail or rib of coconut leaf. The wound is small, deep and closed, so that tetanus germs living in the environment with the absence of oxygen will even develop.

According to Suasta, the lifethreatening is the tetanus germ, not

the wound. He still continued to search for the victim rumored to be in the Banyubiru area. Until now, various efforts have been coordinated with local village officials.

Then, his agency came down to the field by roving vehicle but getting no results. “We continuously try.

Hopefully, we can meet her soon or someone will find the mother,” he said.

The cases of rabid dog bites from 2018 to 2019 are known to have killed 14 positive rabies people. Pursuant to the data compiled from Veterinary Public Health at the Agriculture and Food Agency, in 2018 there were 12 people infected with rabies because of dog bites.

Until the end of February 2019, there were 2 people affected by dog bites, and positive for rabies. As for the case of dog bites themselves, there were around 2,841 in 2018 (12 were positive). Then, in 2019 the bites amounted to 434 cases until February, with two positive cases until February. Again, five more positive cases increased with the cases happening some time ago.

Then, there are three additional cases at Tuwed village.

“Let’s share information so that there are more victims of rabies in humans, do not underestimate any slightest bite and even the smallest biting dog,” he said. (120)

MANGUPURA - After testing the enforcement of admission ticket to Waterblow area on Peninsula Island in Nusa Dua, the Indonesia Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) is still waiting for completion of the cooperation agreement with the Badung district government. At present, communication with customary village for the contributions is also being carried out. Likewise, similar cooperation is made with local headman and relevant LPM. According to Managing Director of The Nusa Dua, IGN Ardita, until now the visit to the Waterblow area remains to exist. Moreover, his management as the operator still continues to improve infrastructure.

Before the enforcement of admission ticket, the visit to Waterblow during the ticket testing did not show any decrease, namely in the range of 500-800 per day. “Now to enter the Waterblow is still free.

Previously the implementation of the trial ticket was to test the market, whether the ticket value is fair or not,” he said when met on Friday (May 25) after giving information regarding the implementation of the Nusa Dua Light Festival and Bali Blues Festival.

Meanwhile, in order to increase the number of visits to the Peninsula Island, the Indonesia Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) for the fourth time organizes the Nusa Dua Light Festival (NDLF).

This is the largest and the only

lantern festival in Bali located on Peninsula Island, The Nusa Dua. This event will take place on May 30 - July 14 2019, with the theme of The Mountain View that will feature a series of mountainous lanterns.

NDLF 2019 will also be collaborated with the implementation of the Bali Blues Festival (BBF) on July 13-14, 2019, as well as the festival closing event. In addition to thousands of lanterns in various themes and designs, this year’s NDLF also provides a variety of additional attractions including Kids Playground equipped with Mini Helicopter games, Euro Bungee, Mini Train, Trampoline, Rabbit House & Balloon House that are not available in previous years. Meanwhile, the Bali Blues Festival 2019 will present national artists such as Gugun Blues Shelter featuring Emmy Tobing, Endah n Rhesa, Balawan, Gus Teja and other supporting artists.

During the 46 days of implementation, the NDLF 2019 is opened to visitors at 16:00 – 22:00 local time every day, with two groups of admission ticket prices. The ticket price for domestic tourists is IDR 30,000 (daily or weekdays tickets) and IDR 35,000 - (Saturday - Sunday or weekend, and national holidays). In the meantime, the price of admission ticket for foreign tourists is IDR 75,000 (weekdays) - and IDR 100,000 (weekends and national holidays). (kmb23)

IBP/kmb

Before the enforcement of admission ticket, the visit to Waterblow during the ticket testing did not show any decrease.

2

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Bali News

International

Tom Holland and Hemsworth brothers visit Bali

International

Activities

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

15

Actors Tom Holland and the Hemsworth brothers, Chris and Liam, visited Bali in Bali. Prior to arriving in Bali, Tom, the actor who plays Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, posted a short video on his Twitter on Saturday, informing his fans that he was heading to the Island of the Gods.

“So we’re officially on our way to Bali [...],” he said in the video.

Meanwhile, the Hemsworth brothers were seen in several social media posts.Chris, who portrayed the hammer-wielding god Thor, was seen wearing a blue t-shirt and a cap.

The same Twitter account also posted photos on Monday, showing Liam, the actor who played Gale Hawthorne in The Hunger Games, having breakfast with his family and friends at the five-star hotel The Ritz-Carlton, Bali.

At the time of writing, there was no official statement regarding the actors’ purpose for the visit.

Some reports said that Tom would be attending Sony Pictures film screenings and workshops on May 27 and 28 to promote his upcoming film Spider-Man: Far From Home, which is slated to be released in July.

Meanwhile, Chris reportedly Anthony Kwan/Getty Images for Sony Pictures Entertainment/AFP will attend similar events to promote his upcoming movie Men in Tom Holland takes selfie with fans during the Spider-Man: Far From Home Pan-Asian Media Summit Bali event on May 27, 2019 Black: International. (afp) in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia.

Environmental Agency asked to design TOSS Center

SEMARAPURA - Local Waste Processing Sites (TOSS) initiated in Klungkung adequately drew the attention of other local governments in innovating waste processing. However, the Klungkung district government has not been satisfied with the achievement because many other villages still have not yet established TOSS. To echo this TOSS at all villages, the Klungkung Environment and Land Agency is asked to make a new plan, so that Klungkung becomes a TOSS Center.

This was emphasized by the Regent of Klungkung, Nyoman

Suwirta, when receiving the arrival of PT Indonesia Power with the General Manager IGAN Wardiana Yasa and Warmadewa University represented by Chancellor Prof.

Dewa Putu Widjana, in the Widya Mandala Meeting Room of the Klungkung district government on Monday (May 27). All the three made binding cooperation, so that they play an active and synergetic role.

The mutual cooperation is in the effort to develop TOSS. “I asked the Environment and Land Agency to repack the TOSS, as a development effort to become a TOSS

Center,” he explained.

Collaboration with Indonesia Power and Warmadewa University is to develop TOSS throughout the village and increase the utilization of TOSS products in the Renewable Energy (EBT) sector.

Division Head of the Klungkung Administration Section, I Gusti Gede Gunarta, added that Indonesia Power is expected to encourage more TOSS products to be absorbed into the EBT sector. Meanwhile, Warmadewa University can improve efficiency, effectiveness, innovation, and quality of the implementation of

regional development programs in the field of education, research and community service. At the same time, it can help the development of resource potential of the Klungkung area.

Warmadewa University is expected to be able to implement its knowledge and to harmonize between the work programs of Warmadewa University and Klungkung district government. “With our academic colleagues, we are also designing educational programs for young generation of Klungkung as well as the entrepreneurial program going to village,”

he said.

Head of the Environment and Land Agency, Anak Agung Ngurah Kirana, said the efforts to develop TOSS have continued. To follow up Klungkung as a TOSS Center, he targets that all the villages want to proactively manage their own waste. This year, four new villages are being worked on so as to be able to implement TOSS at their villages. Thus, the final target of 2019 can realize 22 units of TOSS having worked optimally at each village. Next, we just need to work on other villages. (kmb36)

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Bangli: Swasrina, Buleleng: Mudiarta, Gianyar: Manik Astajaya, Karangasem: Eka Parananda, Klungkung: Bagiarta. Jakarta: Nikson, Hardianto, Ade Irawan. NTB: Agus Talino, Izzul Khairi, Raka Akriyani. Surabaya: Bambang Wilianto.  Office: Jalan Kepundung 67 A Denpasar 80232. Telephone (0361)225764, Facsimile: 227418, P.O.Box: 3010 Denpasar 80001. Bali Post Jakarta, Advertizing: Jl.Palmerah Barat 21F. Telp 021-5357602, Facsimile: 021-5357605 Jakarta Pusat. NTB: Jalam Bangau No. 15 Cakranegara Telp. (0370) 639543, Facsimile: (0370) 628257. Publisher: PT Bali Post

Sunny Dahye, Korean Beauty Vlogger visited the Nusa Dua Beach Hotel & Spa, Bali Sunny Dahye, Beauty and Lifestyle YouTuber, visited the Nusa Dua Beach Hotel & Spa, Bali. Sunny Dahye is known for her eponymous “SunnyDahye” channel that has its foundation around beauty topics and make-up tutorials.

Sunny Dahye was born in South Korea and raised in Bali, Indonesia. She has lived in Indonesia since she was 4 years old and completed her schooling here in Bali. She attended law school in Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta. After completing her education, Sunny Dahye decided to return to her home country and to work at the national television station to become a successful YouTuber in South Korea.

Sunny Dahye traveled to Bali to spend holidays with her friends - Joan Kim, Dabit Kim and Park Hyoyoung.

They explored the resort and spent time relaxing in the many swimming pools, dining in restaurants and soaking up the sun. They also shared their activities and posted some wonderful memories about the resort through their social media accounts.

The Nusa Dua Beach Hotel & Spa is the pioneer of luxury accommodation within the Nusa Dua area. This 5-star diamond resort, has been welcoming kings, queens, presidents and other dignitaries since its grand opening.

Nestled within beautifully landscaped gardens, the resort, with its 382 guestrooms and suites, features all the elegance of a Balinese palace, while offering modern amenities. The Nusa Dua Spa is designed to highlight its rich Balinese tradition with a variety of indigenous treatments.

Dining at Nusa Dua Hotel & Spa is an epicurean journey with a choice of five restaurants and four bars under the close watch of an award-winning culinary team. For more information, please visit www.nusaduahotel.com.

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

16 Pages Number 106 11th year

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

Price: Rp 3.000,-

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

‘Inconsiderate’ Moby apologises to Natalie Portman after claiming they dated

LOS ANGELES - Moby has publicly apologised to Natalie Portman days after she claimed he had been “creepy” with her when she was younger.

The dance musician, 53, alleged he dated the Hollywood actress when she was 20 in his memoir Then It Fell Apart.

Portman remembered their relationship differently, telling Harper’s Bazaar UK that “there are many factual errors and inventions” in his writing.

The 37-year-old actress told the magazine: “I was surprised to hear that he characterised the very short time that I knew him as dating because my recollection is a much older man being creepy with me when I just had graduated high school. He said I was 20; I definitely wasn’t. I was a teenager. I had just turned 18.”

Moby initially fired back saying that he was “confused” at her denial over a relationship with him, insisting that they did date.

But he has since issued an apology on Instagram saying that all criticisms of him in recent days are “very valid”.

Moby also said that he should have “acted more responsibly and respectfully when Natalie and I first met almost 20 years ago” given their “almost 14 year age difference”.

He wrote earlier in the post: “I also fully recognize (sic) that it was truly inconsiderate of me to not let her know about her inclusion in the book beforehand, and equally inconsiderate for me to not fully respect her reaction.

“I have a lot of admiration for Natalie, for her intelligence, creativity, and animal rights activism, and I hate that I might have caused her and her family distress.”

The post continues: “I tried to treat everyone I included in Then It Fell Apart with dignity and respect, but nonetheless it was truly inconsiderate for me to not let them know before the book was released.

“So for that I apologize, to Natalie, as well as the other people I wrote about in Then It Fell Apart without telling them beforehand.” (net)

IBP/net

Natalie Portman has said she thought Moby was ‘creepy’

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

Wednesday, May 29, 2019 Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott attend the premiere of Disney’s “Aladdin” on May 21, 2019 in Los Angeles, California.

Disney’s live-action ‘Aladdin’ casts a box-office spell

LOS ANGELES - “Aladdin” apparently still has the old magic, as the new Disney film took in an estimated $86.1 million in the Friday-to-Sunday period in North America to lead all boxoffice offerings, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported.

The film, released on the US’s four-day Memorial Day weekend, is expected to earn $105 million when Monday’s ticket sales are included, well beyond earlier estimates of around $80 million, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The live-action movie, directed

by Guy Ritchie, stars Will Smith as the genie and the Egyptian-born Canadian actor Mena Massoud as the wily charmer who pretends to be a prince to catch the attention of the lovely Jasmine (Naomi Scott).

The new version is an adaptation of Disney’s 1992 “Aladdin,” which featured the unforgettable voice of Robin Williams as the fast-talking genie (and the less well-known actor Scott Weinger as Aladdin).

Last week’s box-office leader, Lionsgate’s “John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum,” slipped to second, taking in $24.4 million for three days ($30.5 million for four).

Keanu Reaves again stars as retired hitman John Wick, this time being chased by an army of killers after a contract is put on his head. Also starring are Halle Berry, Laurence Fishburne, Ian McShane and Anjelica Huston.

In third was Disney blockbuster “Avengers: Endgame,” taking in an estimated $16.8 million for three days ($21.9 million for four).

“Avengers,” with an all-star cast including Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Bradley Cooper, Scarlett

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Johansson and Josh Brolin, has broken domestic records but, with a worldwide take of $2.68 billion, is still shy of the $2.79 billion earned by all-time leader “Avatar” in 2009.

Fourth place went to Warner Bros.’

“Pokemon: Detective Pikachu,” at $13.3 million ($17 million). Its animated title character (voiced by Ryan Reynolds) teams up with a young boy (Justice Smith, in a live-action role) to seek the boy’s missing father.

And in fifth was new Sony horror thriller “Brightburn,” at $7.5 million ($9 million). Elizabeth Banks, David Denman and Jackson A. Dunn star in the story of an alien tot who arrives on Earth and realizes, as he grows up on a Kansas farm, that he has superpowers. (afp)

AP Photo/Dita Alangkara

Police officers fix razor wire barricade damaged during the Wednesday’s clash with supporters of Indonesian presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, May 23, 2019.

Indonesia police allege plot to kill top officials

JAKARTA - Four top Indonesian officials, including two Cabinet ministers and the national spy chief, were targeted for assassination as part of a plot possibly linked to last week’s election riots, police said Tuesday.

National police chief Tito Karnavian told reporters that details of the plot were obtained from interrogations of six arrested individuals.

Seven people died in two nights of rioting last week in Jakarta after official election results confirmed that President Joko Widodo had won a second term. Police say the riots, which broke out during peaceful protests by supporters of the losing candidate Prabowo Subianto, were planned.

The rioting followed an election that highlighted Muslim-majority Indonesia’s religious divides.

Subianto, who allied himself with groups that want Islamic law to

replace secular government, won heavily in conservative provinces but was defeated nationally by Widodo’s coalition of moderate and minority voters.

Karnavian said the officials targeted for assassination included top security minister Wiranto, who uses a single name, and his predecessor, Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, who is currently maritime minister and seen as close to Widodo.

The two others were National Intelligence Agency chief Budi Gunawan and the head of the presidential special staff for intelligence and security, Gories Mere. A fifth person,

the head of an opinion polling company, was also a target, Karnavian said, without naming the person.

“We have arrested all the perpetrators who were ordered to carry out the executions, we have also confiscated four weapons, and we are developing the mastermind who gave the order to them who will be legally processed shortly,” Karnavian said at a joint news conference with Wiranto.

The security minister said the assassination plot aimed to instill fear in the officials and weaken the government.

Subianto, a former special forces general linked to past human rights abuses in Indonesia, has refused to accept results of the April 17 election. He has alleged massive fraud but provided no convincing evidence. His campaign team filed

a legal challenge to the result at the Constitutional Court on Friday.

Separately, local media reported that an American man who is a longtime resident of Indonesia has been arrested for spreading hoaxes online. In a YouTube video, the man says he’s a Subianto supporter and claims communists are infiltrating Indonesian society, a frequent allegation of hard-line Widodo critics.

On Monday, national police spokesman Muhammad Iqbal said police had seized two bullet-proof vests with “Police” written on them, imitating official police gear, a rifle modified to hold a scope, along with two guns similar to those issued by the Indonesian military.

Iqbal said the six suspects are from a different group than the alleged militants arrested earlier in the month.

Before election results were announced on May 21, counterterrorism police arrested more than 30 suspected militants from Jamaah Ansharut Daulah, an Indonesian extremist group affiliated with the Islamic State group.

Iqbal said one of the six suspects was arrested at a hotel in Jakarta after participating in the riots, another was arrested at Jakarta’s airport and others in locations around Jakarta and nearby Bogor. (ap) 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.