18th Oct

CR IP TI ON BS SU

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

Australia, India take first steps on nuclear deal

New planet found in Earth’s backyard

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NO: 15602

150 FILS

11 40 PAGES

THUL HIJJAH 2, 1433 AH

Novelist Mantel makes history with second Booker prize

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www.kuwaittimes.net

Armstrong dropped by Nike after leaving Livestrong

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Deadly toxic gas spreads across Kuwait after leak Firemen manage to contain escaping hydrogen sulfide

Max 38º Min 21º High Tide 00:37 & 14:07 Low Tide 07:23 & 19:12

By Hanan Al-Saadoun

ACD tackled common issues: Amir KUWAIT: HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah said yesterday the ACD summit was an opportunity to discuss a variety of issues. The accomplishments of this summit over “our common issues” will certainly contribute to improving cooperation and coordination between the Asian countries, Sheikh Sabah said in a statement at the closing session of the ACD Summit. “The understanding that was achieved in this summit concerning our joint causes will undoubtedly contribute to the upgrading of the level of coordination and cooperation between us in the upcoming phases of our work,” said Sheikh Sabah.

“Our meetings over the past two days have reflected the magnitude of the enormous responsibilities we bear, as well as an accurate diagnosis of the problems that stand in the way of the progress of our countries and our continent,” he said, noting common

SEE PAGE 2 willingness to promote the continent to meet “our aspirations for the good of our countries and in the interest of our peoples”.

Developing our mechanism of joint work, has become an urgent need, said the Amir, in order for it to keep pace with “our expectations, as well as to reflect our determination to activate our will, so that our relations can reach to higher levels, and our cooperation leads to our integration”. “We are determined to continue and follow-up on the ideas and recommendations of our meeting, and work together to implement them on the ground,” he asserted. Sheikh Sabah thanked Thailand for hosting the 2nd ACD summit in Bangkok as well as its endeavors over the last 10 years.

Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, in her speech in the final session of the ACD summit, thanked HH the Amir and Kuwait for hosting the first ACD summit. She also thanked the ACD members for their contributions. Shinawatra thanked Kuwait’s contribution of $300 million to develop projects in underdeveloped countries in Asia. She said the ACD was a catalyst for pushing the continent for further cooperation. The Thai PM emphasized that Asian unity and Continued on Page 13

KUWAIT: HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah meets Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad yesterday as HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah look on. (Inset) HH the Amir meets Pakistani Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf. — KUNA

Kuwait, Pakistan leaders discuss visa facilitations Ahmadinejad backs Syria ceasefire KUWAIT: More visa facilitations for Pakistani nationals to work in Kuwait were discussed during Pakistani Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf’s meeting with HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah yesterday, as the Amir “graciously” donated a land plot for a new embassy building, Ashraf said. “I congratulated HH the Amir on organizing the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) summit on the level of leaders in such an immaculate manner,” Ashraf told KUNA, adding “the meeting with the Amir went very well.

He is a man of wisdom and a very considerate person”.

“Some 120,000 Pakistanis live and work in Kuwait,”

MoI denies it failed to control riots, security Ex-MPs decry ‘police atrocities’ KUWAIT: The Interior Ministry denied yesterday rumors about the refusal of some members of the special forces to participate in breaking up the riots and stop violence the demonstrators in the square opposite the National Assembly on Monday. The Security Media Department said in a press statement that such reports circulated through social networking sites were “rumors and misleading lies that come in the context of biased campaigns in accordance with the scheme prepared and implemented by instigators to stir up public opinion”. It considered these rumors and lies “false allegations that aim to give non-realistic picture of the role of the security agencies in dealing with

such cases of riots”. The ministry said that all security men, including the special security forces, comply with the orders and carry out their duties in order to preserve the security of the nation, its interests and the safety of citizens and their property.

But 13 former opposition MPs

SEE PAGE 3 sought help yesterday from international human rights bodies over the alleged police atrocities against peaceful protesters. In an unprecedented move, the former lawmakers filed a complaint with the Kuwait Society for Human Rights that will raise the issue with international rights groups, said one of them, MP

Musallam Al-Barrak. The independent but officially recognised body will transfer the complaint to Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, Barrak said.

The complaint claims that riot police unnecessarily used batons to beat up young activists who were protesting against an alleged plan by the government to change the electoral system to manipulate results. Barrak told reporters “riot police commander Ali Madi issued direct orders to his men to beat up activists” without being provoked.

He said the force also arrested four activists and lodged complaints against them at the police station, claiming they assaulted policemen. — Agencies

Obama outpunches Romney

HEMPSTEAD, New York: Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and US President Barack Obama spar during the second presidential debate at Hofstra University Tuesday. — AP

MOUNT VERNON, Iowa: US President Barack Obama swung straight back onto the campaign trail yesterday after out-maneuvering his White House rival Mitt Romney in a comeback debate and re-energizing his faltering re-election bid. Most observers, backed by anecdotal instant polls, gave Obama victory in Tuesday’s second election showdown between the pair. But both candidates were determined to maintain their momentum with less than three weeks until polling day.

An assertive Obama was barely off stage before he took his campaign circus out to Iowa, the swing state where he launched his extraordinary rise to power in the 2008 Democratic primary, and which both men hope to win on Nov 6. Romney, the Republican nominee, headed south for two Continued on Page 13

he noted, adding, “Pakistanis have a special love for Kuwait. They consider it their second home. Pakistan and Kuwait enjoy very cordial and excellent relations and we have a common history, culture and religion,” he noted. On the ACD summit, Ashraf said the ACD had delivered a very good message for Asian people and the world at large. “Pakistan has its own strategic situation in the region and its own importance in the Asian community, so it would definitely benefit from focus points of the ACD, especially the ones on development, infrastructure and energy.” Ashraf told KUNA. Continued on Page 13

KUWAIT: A gas leak took place while drilling an oil well yesterday at the Al-Rawdhatain oilfield, Kuwait Oil Company and security sources said, as that the pungent and repulsive smell of hydrogen sulfide reached as far as Kuwaiti City as reported by many residents. The sources said Abdali firemen and KOC emergency teams later contained the leak by burning out the escaping gas to prevent it from spreading far. Notably, inhaling sulfur gas may cause dizziness, vomiting and diarrhea, stressed security and health sources, noting that residents within a 4-km diameter around the oilfield were evacuated.

Hydrogen sulfide is a colorless, very poisonous, flammable gas with the characteristic foul odor of rotten eggs. The Health Ministry reported KUWAIT: An oilwell burns in an increase in patients Rawdhatain yesterday. suffering from ailments after inhaling the gas, adding four of them were under observation. The Ministry of Education meanwhile denied rumours that schools and colleges will be closed today.

KOC’s deputy managing director for exploration Khalid Al-Sumaiti had earlier stressed that all needed efforts were being exerted to control the leak either by stopping it or by burning it out. He added that despite reports that the gas had reached as far as 100 km, the gas density in the air had not reached dangerous levels.

Chairman of the environmental Green Line Group Khaled Al-Hajri criticised the statements made by Sumaiti in which he focused on resuming oil production rather than the environmental effect of the gas and its possible effect on people’s health. He also warned that this type of gas has dangerous effects on respiratory systems and kidneys, and advised the public to stay indoors and tightly close windows. If the gas has already entered the house, it needs to be ventilated to avoid the gas’ toxic effects. KOC officials said its teams had fanned across the state to measure the concentration of gas in the air, adding that it had not reached toxic levels.

Prosecution finds no crime in illegal deposits, shuts case Oppn furious, to reveal probe details

By B Izzak KUWAIT: The public prosecution said yesterday it found no evidence of any crime in the case alleging that 13 former MPs received tens of millions of dinars of illegal deposits and decided to “shelve” the case. The prosecution said that investigations it conducted based on reports and testimonies provided no proof of any crime like bribery, graft, money laundering or others and accordingly it decided to end the investigation. The case came to light in August last year when Al-Qabas newspaper reported that the bank accounts of the former lawmakers illegally received millions of dinars. The decision could escalate political tensions in the state where opposition supporters have been staging street protests.

The opposition had alleged that the deposits amounted to around KD 100 million and claimed that they were in the form of political bribes paid by the former government to win the lawmakers’ votes on crucial issues. The government had denied the claims.

The public prosecution launched an investigation into

the case and interrogated 13 former MPs, freeing them on KD 5,000 bail each. The 2012 Assembly, which was scrapped by a court ruling, had formed a special investigation panel which held many meetings and questioned senior officials regarding the major corruption case.

Former opposition MPs and leading activists strongly blasted the decision and vowed that they will continue to pursue the case until those who received the bribes will be brought to justice. Former MP Jamaan Al-Harbash said after an emergency meeting of the opposition that members of the parliamentary investigation panel will hold a press conference today to announce whatever details they have gathered about the case. Harbash said that the opposition was “shocked over the shelving of the illegal deposits case after it was proved that the bank accounts of the former MPs received illegal funds”. The lawmaker also said that the opposition will form a crisis team to handle reports that the government was going to interrogate hundreds of tweeters for tweets deemed offensive to the head of the state.

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

LOCAL

ACD members urged to pledge to $2bn fund Move to help under-developed Asian countries

KUWAIT: Representatives of the Asia Cooperation Dialogue member countries attend the ACD summit in Kuwait yesterday.

KUWAIT: Kuwait Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled AlHamad Al-Sabah said that Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) members were called upon to complete a $2 billion fund established by Kuwait, which it had pledged $300 million to.

The Kuwaiti minister made the remarks, announcing the closing of the ACD Summit yesterday, in a joint press conference along with the Foreign Minister of Thailand Surapong Tovichakchaikul, in his country’s capacity as the ACD’s general coordinator.

“The fund for non-Arab nations of Asia, which will be overseen by the Asia Development Bank, will help under-developed Asian countries support smaller to midsized projects,” he said.

“The fund embodies Kuwait’s pledge to see the growth of Asia and for its people to live in a generous lifestyle, while bilateral and multiprojects in their countries can thrive,” he added.

Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled went on to highlight HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah’s initiative’s aims which focus on a number of factors.

These include firstly, Asia’s cultural diversity, reaching development goals - which is a fundemental part of Kuwait’s continous endeavours throughout 50 years under the umbrella of the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development - after Kuwait’s $100 million donation for relief efforts and a USD

500 million for smaler to mid-sized projects in the Arab world.

Reaching mutual agreement between the nations of Asia, that Thailand host the next summit in 2015 and the third summit in Iran in 2018 - which he regarded a sign of the continuity of the forum.

Kuwait’s offer to turn the grouping into “some kind of organisational structure” or body that can be able to administer its own activities and the role of the youth in this gathering and the future of the continent, the minister stressed.

The Kuwaiti minister went on to recall the communique which urged cooperation in the continent on the economy and finance, vital fields like education and healthcare, the development fund aimed at aiding underdeveloped nations, means to adress climate change on the national and regional and continental levels.

Asked which countries would be pledging to the fund, the Kuwaiti minister said that the “fund is only one day old and that it needed time, after member nations announced their acceptance and agreement on it.”

Asked about its specific mechanism and its details, the minister said this would be discussed after the sum was completed.

On Iraq’s recently announced desire to join the ACD, he said “we will meet and discuss Iraq’s membership in the ACD ministerial meeting,” but did not specify which one.

Asked if the continent would be able to cooperate with its African neighbour, he said this would be discussed in next year’s ArabAfrican Summit.

For his part, Thai foreign minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul said that the summit had come up with four main outcomes.

These include “Middle East pledges to increase investment in the Far East through agreements, coming up with mechanisms aimed at keeping energy prices stable and research in renewable energies like solar power and hydroelectric energy, addressing food security by making sure food is available, as Asia is the world’s largest producer of food commodities.

“Last but not least, the Kuwaiti side’s offer to establish a secretariat, which Thailand and Tajikistan both agreed to assist in,” he said.

He concluded by noting to the summit’s increasing importance, noting to its threeyear consecutive holding in Thailand, next, and Iran, after.

Asked if nuclear energy was discussed, the Thai minister said the forum would only aim to discuss means to improve the livelihood of countries in the continent.

“The purpose of the ACD is to establish understanding among these diverse nations, not things that could lead to war and conflict,” he said.

Twelve heads of state attended the ACD Summit out of 32 members. — KUNA

Asian leaders call for further collaboration KUWAIT: Bahrain’s Deputy Premier Sheikh Mohammad bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa said yesterday that Manama looked forward that this Summit would enhance dialogue among the Asian countries. Addressing the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) summit here, Sheikh Mohammad wished the Summit would achieve its objectives for the best interest of “our people.” Sheikh Mohammad said economic security and prosperity of the Asian people “should be our high priority and prime challenge which should be addressed. We are optimistic that we can address these challenges.”

The Bahraini senior official said the Asian continent enjoyed rich natural resources, as well as housing the largest population of the world, so it was quite natural that the continent lead the world economic especially during the economic and financial crisis. “We should boost cooperation and facilitate trade exchange and energy cooperation, exploring more projects and infrastructure ventures,” he added.

Sheikh Mohammad praised His Highness the Amir of Kuwait’s initiative to allocate $2 billion to support development projects in non-arab Asian countries, as well as Kuwait’s $ 300 million contribution to this mechanism. Sheikh

Mohammad said human resources are the real source of development. “Therefore, we should pay more attention to the development of human being.”

He said bolstering international cooperation and exploring new horizons of joint investment would create more jobs thus boost each country’s income.

Sheikh Mohammad said that the Asian countries should also remember that collective cooperation among regional blocs was essential. The representative of Cambodia thanked Kuwait for its hosting of the first ACD Summit and valued Thailand’s efforts over 10 years. He also welcomed the newest member to the Asian grouping, Afghanistan. The cultural diverse continent, since its inception, has encouraged cooperation, he noted.

He said Cambodia welcomed the future countries who had offered to host future summits and activities for the forum including Pakistan, Iran, China, Thailand and Bahrain.

Cambodia succeeded in development over several areas, tackling challenges like energy prices, food security and human injustice. Asia needs to cooperate and work together for worldwide peace and stability. According to UN

Development Program (UNDP) figures, food prices will rise 20 percent due to the increasing dependency on energy used to generate this food, making it difficult to achieve our millennium goals.

He thanked Kuwait for its initiative that called Asian countries to allocate USD two billion to help development in nonArab Asian countries, as well as its USD 300 million contribution to this new tool.

“There is a link between agriculture and energy production. We need to increase efforts to face climate change, which has affected agriculture, especially in Cambodia,” he added. The international community is divided on facing this, he said, adding it failed on the last occasions. Asia can help come with solutions on this, raising its recommendations to the UN. On this, he proposed a crisis management body to be established by ACD. Similarly, the ASEAN had set up a body for humanitarian assistance to support its communities.

He also pledged his country’s assistance to tourism in Asian countries, saying his country would aid other countries in the continent start their own tourism sector to be as successful as his own as it had with Bangladesh. “We also have a num-

ber of plans on tackling poverty whereby we urge to support farmers and agriculture.”

The Vietnamese representative said the ACD Summit was a turning point in cooperation between the Asian countries.

He said dialogue placed common grounds for cooperation and development, however keeping in place the value of each country. He said Asia was facing great challenges although it occupied 63 percent of global GDP. Asia, he added, was one of the sensitive areas affected by the natural resources, so ACD should have a clear vision to facing common challenges as well as benefiting from expertise of advanced countries. “We should develop infrastructure to boost food production in the Asian countries because the growing population is increasing consumption of food despite economic growth,” he said. He said the Asian countries should improve joint communication to ultimately improve services for the people. For his part, the representative of Myanmar hoped the ACD Summit would contribute to better cooperation between the Asian countries in order to achieve prosperity of the Asian people.

He said food and energy security were the major concern of many countries, thus cooperation was the best way to tackle these challenges. He said meetings between the private sector in the Asian countries should be further encouraged. “We also look forward for more interactive between the chambers of commerce,” he added.

The official said the reoccurrence of natural disasters emphasized need of having special mechanism to improve crisis management. The Kyrgyz representative stressed the need to focus on producing clean sustainable energy.

“We need to increase agricultural cooperation on other sectors like culture, education and the environment,” she added. Lastly, “we thank Kuwait’s hosting of the gathering and congratulate our neighbor Tajikistan on its hosting of the next summit.” The Filipino representative said that a bank had been established in the south of his country to accommodate the needs of the Muslim minority living there.

The Phillippines encourages sustained development and energy. It has plans on the enrgy sector, climate change and strengthening agriculture to serve the people and ensure food security.—KUNA

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

local

Fadhl apologizes for ‘misunderstanding’

By A Saleh KUWAIT: Former MP Nabeel Al-Fadhl released an apology yesterday for statements he made the night before, which were found offensive by tribesmen who gathered outside a TV station’s building the same night in protest.

“I apologize for any misunderstanding or unintentional remark,” Al-Fadhl said about the statements he made during a live interview with Al-Shahed TV. Members from the Salbah tribe gathered outside the station’s building shortly after Al-Fadhl made statements they found offensive to their tribe. “I have no differences with any member of the Salbah tribe,” he said, adding that he was talking about people who “instigate tribesmen to serve their own agendas.” Police reportedly stopped the gathered crowd from entering the building before an agreement was reached to end the protest after a meeting between their representatives and the channel’s directors.

They announced in a statement afterwards that they agreed to leave “out of respect for HH the Amir who is currently chairing [the Asia Cooperation Dialogue] summit being attended by Asian leaders.”

GCC Railway The total cost for establishing a railway

system connecting the Gulf Cooperation Council countries can be reduced from $26 billion to $15 billion if Bahrain is connected to mainland with a bridge built parallel to the King Fahad causeway, a top GCC official said yesterday.

World Bank advisor in the GCC secretariat Dr. Ramiz Al-Assar indicated in a statement that studies for the project are expected to conclude next year, and the project would become operational by 2018. The railway will run between Kuwait and Muscat and will pass through Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, with each country bearing the cost for the part built on its land.

The passenger train runs on diesel fuel at a maximum speed of 200 km/h, down from an initial 350 km/h which was proposed, thus helping in cutting costs to the extent of $20 billion.

Protocol of cooperation A protocol of cooperation between the government of Afghanistan and the Revival of Islamic Heritage Society has been reached. The understanding was reached during a visit of the Advisor to the Afghani President for Religious and Cultural Affairs, Nematullah Shahrani, to the Kuwaiti charitable organization.

Kuwait supports women’s rights UNITED NATIONS: Kuwait reiterated its ongoing support for the various United Nations bodies that concern women, especially that of the Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW), Member of the Kuwaiti delegation participating attending the 67th UN General Assembly discussion session.

At the meeting of the Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Affairs Committee, known as the Third Committee, Abdullah Al-Mashaan addressed the assembly by stressing the importance of solving obstacles hampering the development of women.

He also called on the international community to implement the recommendations of the UN Secretary General in setting national plans and policies to counter violence against women; these plans should be regularly evaluated to guarantee a coordinated performance amongst concerned bodies, he affirmed.

The State of Kuwait approved a number of agreements and international protocols related to the protection of women against dis-

crimination and the preservation of their rights, he said. The gulf country has adopted in its development plan the establishment of family courts, in accordance with the country’s legislative system, Al-Mashaan said.

The Kuwait’s plan towards the development of women and youth affairs in the country touches on the protection of their social and political rights, empowering them within their community and encouraging them to be part of the decision-making process, he pointed out.

He further noted that honoring Kuwaiti woman in the international arenas reflects the active role they play in boosting development in their country at all levels.

Allowing women to be appointed as public prosecutors is the best example of social justice, and comes in accordance with the country’s constitution, he stressed. This year, Kuwait has offered a donation of USD 100,000 to the UN Developmental Fund for Women (UNIFEM), in support of their civil, political, economic, and social rights. —KUNA

KUWAIT: Ministry of Interior personnel keeping a watchful eye on demonstrators this week.

Top priority to Kuwait security, stability Interior clarifies stand KUWAIT: The Ministry of Interior’s chiefs, personnel and apparatuses maintain an equal distance with all political trends, groups and citizens of the Kuwaiti society, the MoI affirmed yesterday. Such a policy is coupled with the ministry’s commitment to the national security, respect of the laws and the legitimacy, namely the higher interests of the country’s security, the ministry official statement stressed.

The ministry policy is transparent, ensures freedom of peaceful gatherings and expression of opinion, the freshly-released statement by the ministry affirmed. However, it warned that the ministry would deal, immediately and firmly, with any breach of the laws, infringement on the image of the security apparatuses, for such acts are tantamount to “an assault on the State image and status.”

The Ministry of Interior, as a national institution, fully abides by the laws, seeks to bolster security of the country, respect of the laws and legitimacy in a manner that serves the security of the homeland and safeguards security, safety and interests of the citizens.

It regretted the casualties that had been inflicted among the security personnel, by the protestors, and other agitators, namely some young men, who breached the law, tarnished the image of the security men, who dealt with them with utmost neutrality and calm, at a location far from the square opposite the National Assembly (Parliament), where some of the protestors launched the attacks.

Explaining further circumstances of the

recent incident in the beachfront region in downtown Kuwait, the MoI statement said the demonstrators marched from several axes, crossing the square toward the locations where the security men were positioned. They carried on, provoking the security men and hurling stones, water bottles and barricades on them.

The activists escalated further their action targeting the security forces, according to a pre-devised scheme, bursting into formations of the security personnel, hurling themselves onto them, while pictures were snatched for these actions and posted on the electronic social networking sites, with the illicit intention of portraying distorted image of what happened and claiming that it was the security forces that launched the attacks and arrested protestors. “Such allegations were baseless and they fell into the trap they set,” it added.

The ministry statement indicated that the unjustified, premeditated escalation by rioters and agitators and rally of crowds to break into the lines of the security forces, thus blocking nearby roads and causing traffic jam, in addition to the casualties inflicted among the policemen as well as some protestors who had to be treated-some of serious injuries.

Any bid to embroil the Ministry of Interior, its apparatuses, chiefs and personnel would certainly end up in failure, and any attempt to violate the legitimacy will be met with utter firmness. It expressed hope that those activists would take into consideration the higher interests of Kuwait, and place them

higher than personal ones.

Some young men have been incited to carry out riots and violence and promote such acts on the social networking sites with the aim of portraying an inaccurate image abroad about conditions in the country. It warned these young activists that they would find them alone facing justice, while their supporters would back off.

Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry denied rumors about the refusal of some members of the special forces to participate in breaking up the riots and stop violence caused by the demonstrators in the square opposite of the National Assembly.

The Security Media Department said in a press statement that reports circulated through social networking sites over the refusal of some members of the special forces to participate in breaking up the riots were “rumors and misleading lies that come in the context of tendentious campaigns in accordance with the scheme prepared and implemented by the instigators to stir up public opinion.”

It considered these rumors and lies “false allegations that aim to give non-realistic picture of the role of the security agencies in dealing with such cases of riots.”

The ministry said that all security men, including the special security forces, comply with the orders and carry out their duties in order to preserve the security of the nation, its interests and the safety of citizens and their property.— KUNA

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

LOCAL kuwait digest

in my view

Just a simple promise!

The Power of media

By Hassan Al-Essa f the leadership makes a simple promise that it will not amend the voting system, it would immediately end the atmosphere of political uncertainty that we have been passing through because of the rallies and demonstrations at the Iradah Square and the gatherings at many diwaniyas. All it has to do is to just promise that, unlike its earlier record of monopolizing the decision-making process, the leadership will, for once, respect the constitution. This would end the current state of political tension and shut the doors on political brinkmanship as many of those jostling for political power venture too far in their speeches at political rallies. Such a promise would save the people from listening to the same stuff being repeated and recycled even as they wonder whether to believe the ‘silent authority’ or the opposition that has been talking endlessly about the government’s intention to amend the voting system to usher in a more pliable parliament to office.

Such a parliament, claims the opposition, would act like a rubber stamp in the hands of decision makers. Just a simple promise from the leadership that it will not single-handedly decide upon changing the voting system would bestow much more credibility on it. The question is, what does the leadership really want? Does it wish to create even more opponents or will it wisely avoid doing so at a critical juncture when it should rather get even more supporters to rally around it since the country is facing so many local and foreign challenges? There is no point in being surrounded by supporters who are hypocrites and opportunists since they are incapable of proffering any sincere advice.

Such tricky supporters do little except fan the egoism of their leaders and back their totalitarian tendencies to an extent where they stop caring about what happens to the state. They help turn rulers into selfcentered narcissists.

Just a simple promise from the leadership would today itself end this political chaos that has been paralyzing the state economically and politically.

Such a simple promise would send us the message that we are living in a true nation state, not in a puppet country where a handful of people hiding behind the curtains pull all the strings, forcing us to continue watching a silly routine that frankly gets boring because there are no heroes in it and the plot, too, is meaningless A simple promise is all that people need to reassure themselves that they are real human beings, not mere puppets.— Aljarida

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kuwait digest

Take advantage of mistakes

By Abdullatif Al-Duaij e do not know which side is actually responsible for starting the clash between the demonstrators and the police officers last Monday, but what we do know is the fact that people have the right to assemble and demonstrate. The job of the security forces is to maintain security and safety of the demonstrators while they do not have the authority to stop a people’s gathering. Irrespective of the level of provocation against the police forces, the latter still remain responsible for maintaining peace and following the law objectively. The oppositionists have lost their temper and are slowly revealing their true colors.

They have ulterior goals and nurse an incomprehensible level of animosity towards the government. But temper is not the only thing that they have lost lately. A petition they floated during Ramadan saw little success and, out of shame, they

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By Fouad Al-Obaid

fouad@kuwaittimes.net Twitter: @Fouadalobaid

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kuwait digest

It happens only in Kuwait

By Dr Shamlan Y Al-Essa he Muslim Brotherhood Party that has a pres- participating in various governments and dominating ence now in most Arab countries is considered more than one ministry. The Brotherhood benefited one of the most hypocritical and false political from such good relations with the government, as it movements that has cheated the Arab people. Hence, gave the movement the financial muscle and facilitatit is not strange for Kuwait’s own Brotherhood, known ed hundreds of charity societies and Islamic compaas the Islamic Constitutional Movement (ICM), to take nies, all of which cannot even be listed here.

What we would like to emphasize is that the two contradictory stands at the same time.

The Kuwaiti media has written that the Muslim Muslim Brotherhood, represented by the ICM, is the Brotherhood in Kuwait is divided over its stance one that benefited the most and stole the most from towards the government, as the president of the public funds, because its leaders, through the Awqaf social reform society, Humoud Al-Roumi, has called Ministry and the centrist committee have accumulatfor not involving HH the Amir in any controversy and ed millions of dinars.

They have done so through their domination of to keep the language dignified while MP and ECM representative of the Majority Bloc in the annulled trade unions, teachers’ and students’ associations which are the strongest 2012 assembly, Dr Jamaan organizations in the counAl-Harbash, has responded What we would like to emphatry. They have huge wealth, by saying that “the statement and will not give up all of the Reform Society does size is that the Muslim these financial and other not represent me.” Also, the Brotherhood, represented by advantages.

Muslim Brotherhood memSo, why is the extreme the ICM, is the one that benefitbers who are close to the faction led by Al-Harbash Majority Bloc have attacked ed the most and stole the most taking an anti-government this rather moderate statefrom public funds, because its stand, and leading the ment on Twitter. opposition against the govAre differences and cracks leaders, through the Awqaf ernment in getting at the emerging within the Muslim Ministry and the centrist comruling family and its symBrotherhood movement, repbols? The answer is simple: resented on one side by the mittee have accumulated milthe government and the rulcivilian wing called the lions of dinars. ing family have gotten us “Reform Society” that is led accustomed to respect and

by Kuwaiti members and the members from the tribes on the other side who actu- fear those who shriek the loudest in the opposition. ally form the back bone of the youthful Muslim So, as long as the government remains naive and stupid without comprehending the harm that Kuwait Brotherhood Movement?

Is it a real break-up or is it merely an exchange of Brotherhood is doing to the ruling establishment, roles that suits the interest of the party? The civilian there is no point in criticizing or praising the ruling part is the true founder of the Muslim Brotherhood in family. The interests of the Brotherhood were not, and Kuwait since 1948 under the leadership of the late will not be, affected despite its opposition to the govAbdulaziz Al-Ali Al-Mutawa. After Abdulaziz Al-Ali ernment. The Kuwaitis are not asking, and the specialwithdrew from the movement, the late Abdullah Al- ists in policy do not know, what is going on in our Mutawa assumed leadership and remained country. Is it realistic for a political movement to lead ensconced in that role till his death a few years ago. the opposition in Kuwait and still enjoy the governAbdullah Al-Ali was able to nurture the movement ment’s approval and blessings? It happens only in and maintain good relations with the government by Kuwait.—Al-Watan

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kuwait digest

A model of Democracy

By Fahad Al-Handal

The oppositionists have lost their temper and are slowly revealing their true colors. They have ulterior goals and nurse an incomprehensible level of animosity towards the government. But temper is not the only thing that they have lost lately. A petition they floated during Ramadan saw little success and, out of shame, they could not even announce how many signatures they had managed to get. could not even announce how many signatures they had managed to get. Their seminars have been registering increasingly little attendance while their speeches have become repetitive and bizarre as they try to heap accusations without proof and make demands based on rumors.

As a result, it has become normal for the opposition to keep scaling up its demand.

However, the government is required to deal with the opposition as per law and their constitutional rights. The opposition never had a solid case before, and it still does not have one today.

Therefore, the government is well advised against giving them importance more than they actually deserve. So far, people are in sympathy with the government as opposed to the opposition’s unprecedented approach and behavior that are clearly in violation of the law. The government should take advantage of the mistakes that the opposition is making. — Al-Qabas

here is a popular saying that goes by “Seeing is believing”, in the 21st Century media-centric world “not published is akin to non-existent”!

Billions of stories daily are competing for attention, and only those deemed to suite the global narrative are given priority on the most prestigious news mediums. Shashi Tharoor an Indian MP wisely stated, “It is the country with the best story that wins.”

If we were to judge the success of the first Asian Cooperation Dialogue summit that was held the past few days in Kuwait by Shashi Tharoor standard; if we were to question the narrative that we offered, and it’s coverage. If we were to question the results we received, I for one am rather pessimistic as to over all outcome. The reason being, our ‘Story’ simply did not make it to the wider global audience, and by Audience, I mean the Western developed world!

If the exercise was to bring major Asian countries together, the lack of first-tier representatives from the major Asian countries is rather troubling-perhaps the recently held IMF annual meeting in Japan (a major Asian country) could be blamed for timing overlap. If the aim of the exercise was to showcase Kuwait to the world, the most interesting and important news that Kuwait exported during the summit was the gathering of 5,000 protesters, and nothing else. If the exercise was one of prestige diplomacy, the countries that sent high-level delegation are either neighbors or client states. In the case of the

n an attempt to evaluate Kuwait’s democracy, the liament building is currently before the court but it is late Dr Ahmad Al-Rabie said that “the most danger- an example of an event that was seen by each party ous thing that Kuwait is facing today is the fact that from its own perspective in which the action itself was the government is yet to resolve the issue of democra- ignored and focus is more on reactions. Different intercy. Their hesitation at this kind of circumstance will pretations were cited as being the motive behind it, definitely not be to our advantage.” The former parlia- and little importance was given to the importance of mentarian and minister made these statements during maintaining order and respecting the law.

When I criticize those who broke into the parliaa seminar more than eight years ago, but even today, ment building, I am only conthe country is reeling under demning an action in which an intense political conflict the law was violated. And that is the result of a oneThe divide is serious and easisince we have to maintain sided reading of any political ly explains the extremely intolobjectivity if we want our development. democratic experience to Each par ty looks at the erant speeches made recently. improve, we must have the events from its own standThe incident in which some peocourage to say that somepoint, regardless of the colple tried to break into the parthing is wrong when we see lective interest of the society it. Break ing into a public as a whole. This has led to an liament building is currently building and physically estrangement among politibefore the court but it is an assaulting the workers there cal par ties, and between is no different or less serious them and the society. example of an event that was than raiding schools and The controversy that is seen by each party from its own attacking teachers, or breakraging currently about the perspective in which the action ing into hospitals and attacknumber of votes that a ing the medical staff.

Kuwaiti voter is entitled to is itself was ignored and focus is Therefore, the public in complete contrast to the more on reactions. today needs to have the abilipolitical agreement that had ty to evaluate the democratic marked the reduction in the number of constituencies from 25 to 5 in 2006. That experience shorn of all pragmatic theorizing and narwas a period marked by an unprecedented harmony row perspectives. In order to establish active public between the parliament and the cabinet. The conflicts control, people should be given reasons to trust the that one sees today are because of the fact that each democratic process.

While political groups were in agreement on the political group weighs in on the constitutionality of amending the electoral law outside the parliament issue of amending the number of constituencies to from its own perspective, while in reality, it could be five, they later expressed conflicting views on the trying to find ways to increase its own popularity enforcement of political rights for Kuwaiti women. This reflects a level of understanding that shows lack of ahead of the elections.

The divide is serious and easily explains the awareness about the importance of pushing democraextremely intolerant speeches made recently. The inci- cy towards a comprehensive model in which the basis dent in which some people tried to break into the par- of equality and justice are fully protected. — Al-Rai

I

If the exercise was to bring major Asian countries together, the lack of first-tier representatives from the major Asian countries is rather troubling-perhaps the recently held IMF annual meeting in Japan (a major Asian country) could be blamed for timing overlap. latter it was clear on their agenda that they were here for support, more than to support.

In all cases I am not attempting to belittle the recently concluded Summit, far from it, for I believe that Kuwait does have a major diplomatic role to play in the wider region as stated time and again in previous editorials.

Nevertheless, it is necessary to assess and review events once they have lapsed, and to judge honestly the merit that they had in promoting a national agenda within clearly stated objectives.

Perhaps our narrative-the Kuwaiti one, is not as strong as it ought to be. Several reasons could be stated for the lack of resonance that Kuwait has, and has had for several years now. If we were to compare to regional peers that have hosted, and regularly host major global meetings with A-list international dignitaries, we would understand that our national narrative has taken a severe beating by none-other than our very selves! Our House is not in order, and has not been for quite sometime now. Our political system is defunct, and the trust in our decision makers is at an all time low.

The predicament that we are facing is a paradox; flushed with cash we seem unable to create meaningful industries. We keep talking about becoming a regional and global financial center when getting business licenses takes eons, and where investors are not much welcomed in the bureaucratic mess that we have created. The much-touted concept of becoming a key global player reminds me of another valid notion, “talk is cheap; and actions speaks louder than words”!

It is about time that we start cleaning the house of the complied dirt - both; literal and metaphorical - that has clogged our roads, and distorted our vision. Kuwait is indeed a pearl, one albeit that has lost its shine in a world that has changed. Pearls are still sought; they compliment the necks of superbly dressed women, yet pearls are so last century.

Today, it is all about technology. It is about efficiency. It is about the overall experience. No longer is building roads, bridges, and ports seen as a major milestone - though still very relevant and important - nations are judged by their quality of life; by their socio-economic appeal; and by the brand image that they resonate to the wider digital world. If we continue to neglect our national narrative; if we maintain the current negative status quo; if we become content and allow ourselves to be fooled by the negative image we are projecting, deciding to view our image through a twisted mirror a positive rather than its rather bleak reality, we would be fooling ourselves, and will end up to be the laughing stock of the world.

History will not forgive us if we continue on our current path, “trick me once, shame on you; trick me twice, shame on me”! Let us learn from our past mistakes. Let us build together a solid society and a viable system of governance. Let us create a transparent and clear system void of bureaucracy that would encourage the creation of enterprises, and spur economic development. Let us work to enhance the overall quality of life. Together as a society we need to create, develop and maintain an new honest national image that will create a story that is worth telling over, and over, and over again... and let us do it now, for the time is ripe.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

LOCAL

Kuwait condemns terrorism, urges roots be eradicated World power achieved through human development UNITED NATIONS: The State of Kuwait condemned all forms and manifestations of terrorism around the world and urged the international community to refrain from associating terrorism with any particular faith, nationality, culture, or ethnic group and to place effective measures to curb the phenomenon and its spread. This came in the address before the legal committee of the United Nation’s 67th General Assembly, given on behalf of the Kuwaiti delegation by the Second Secretary at the Kuwaiti mission at the UN Mohammad Abdullah Al-Ateeqi. The discussions were focusing on measures put in place to counter international terrorism.

The Kuwaiti diplomat stressed this goal could only be sought side by side with the goals of eradication of poverty and hunger, achievement of sustainable development, bolstering rule of law, promoting sound governance, promoting peaceful co-existence, and maintaining regard for Human Rights.

He added the instigating of hatred and discrimination and promotion of abuse of religions we see in the media nowadays is in fact a form of terrorism based in extremism and one which

breeds violence and destabilization of global peace and security.

Al-Aeeqi stressed all faiths must be respected with all their symbols and sanctities, and there should be constant effort to foster and sustain good relations among peoples and to promote a culture of tolerance and moderation. He expressed the state’s support of calls for an international declaration to this effect based on a General Assembly resolution.

The State of Kuwait is careful to implement Security Council resolutions on terrorism and urged the penalties committees to work with all due objectivity and transparency on listing individuals and states or other bodies who cross the lines. The Kuwaiti speaker, meanwhile, praised the efforts of the Ombudsman, Kimberly Prost, to consider dropping names from the unified list.

When it comes to financing of terror, he stressed Kuwaiti charities were most careful and meticulous when delivering aid funds to needy communities lest the sums end up in the wrong hands. He recalled a Kuwaiti charity was selected

by Forbes Magazine as the most transparency in the Arab World this year, topping a list of 61 char-

KUWAIT: Naser Mohamed Al Sayer - Chairman, Al Sayer Group (second left), Faisal Bader Al Sayer - Vice Chairman Al Sayer Group (left) and Mubarak Naser Al Sayer CEO Al Sayer Group (right) with Indian Ambassador Satish C Mehta (second right) and India’s Minister of State for External Affairs and Human Resource Development E Ahamed (center) during an Indian Embassy reception at the India House on Monday.

— Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Al-Saqr responds to Al-Barrak’s offensive remarks K U WA I T: R e s p o n d i n g t o h a r d - l i n e oppositionist Musallam Al-Barrak’s allegations made during last Monday n i g h t ’s d e m o n s t r a t i o n , fo r m e r M P Mohammad Al-Saqr said Al-Barrak felt upset because he “saw my ability and the ability of many others to take an oppositionist position without making accusations, offensive remarks or angry statements.”

Al-Barrak had reportedly accused AlSaqr of secretly supporting an alleged governmental plot to reduce the number of votes per voter from four to two by amending the electoral law through an emergency decree before the next parliament is elected.

“When Al-Barrak and Abbas Al-Shaabi (Al-Barrak’s long time secretary) were

vo i c i n g t h e i r re j e c t i o n o f a ny co u r t order if it gone against their wishes, I was declaring my confidence in the impartiality of our legal system,” Al-Saqr s a i d . H e w a s r e fe r r i n g t o t h e Constitutional Court ruling last month which upheld the electoral law after rejecting the government’s challenge to its constitutionality. The opposition had argued at the time that the government was seeking a legal alibi to amend the electoral law. Al-Saqr also claimed that Al-Barrak’s attack was prompted by a wish to “serve his leader in the battle for bagging [parliament ’s] speakership”.

This was clearly a reference to Ahmad Al-Saadoun, who had won the position in the annulled 2012 parliament after competing with Al-Saqr.

Fifth Sheikh Mubarak Al-Sabah’s journalism award contest kicks off KUWAIT: Nominations are open for Sheikh Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah’s Journalism Excellence Awards in Kuwait, under the patronage of His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak AlHamad Al-Sabah.

“The nominations for the annual award will be open till Jan 17, 2013,” Head of the Sheikh Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah Journalism Excellence Award Higher Committee Ayman Al-Ali said in a press conference held at Kuwait News Agency headquarters yesterday.

He noted that significant changes have been made to strengthen the competition, now in its fifth year.

“The changes to the contest include expanding the number of award categories, increasing the prize amounts,” Al-Ali told reporters. The most noticeable change to this year’s contest is the expansion of young journalists’ award categories.

The contest will be divided into two main sections one general, for all Kuwait and non-Kuwaiti journalists of all age cate-

gories working any Kuwaiti media outlet, and the youth section for young Kuwaiti journalists, under 27 years-old.

Both sections will have awards for best news report, best investigative report, best interview and best news photo. In addition, the prize amounts have increased. Each general category will feature a KD 800 first prize, a KD 600 second prize and a KD 400 third prize while the youth category will feature a KD 750 first prize, a KD 500 second prize and a KD 300 third prize.

The articles or photographs must not have been published prior to January 1, 2011. It is also stipulated that the stories must be written in Arabic and be no less than 7,000 words, or 500 words for KUNA editors. To maintain fairness and objectivity, no contest entrant can be related to anyone on the committee selecting this year’s prizes. Also, articles submitted as nominations cannot have been entered in any other competition inside or outside Kuwait. —KUNA

itable societies from the region. The State of Kuwait is signatory to the vast majority of international agreements and conventions related to the fight against terror, the speaker further remarked. It is signatory of an array of regional agreements, which have the weight of national legislation. The state is also a strong supporter of consideration and final approval of the draft comprehensive convention on international terrorism, provided it is approved with a clear and comprehensive definition of the term “terrorism”.

The diplomat reiterated the Kuwaiti position that the definition should end confusion of legitimate self-defense and peoples’ legitimate right to determine their own fate and status with terrorism, and also clearly indicate what constitutes state terrorism.

When it comes to disputes, the state believes in peaceful settlement within the framework of international law and international Human Rights. The Syrian conflict is daily killing and massacre of civilians and destruction of infrastructure and is, therefore, a stark violation of international law and conventions, Al-Ateeqi stressed. In the interest of bolstering rule of law,

the international community has a responsibility to guarantee perpetrators of these crimes are held accountable for their abuses, he reiterated.

Meanwhile, the State of Kuwait is concern with halting the manufacturing and the proliferation of weapons of all sorts, out of a belief that world power is a result of the development of human resources through man’s survival, not his demise, Second Secretary at Kuwait’s Permanent Mission to the UN, Abdullaziz Al-Ajmi, noted late Tuesday. In his speech at the United Nations Disarmament Commission (UNDC) during the 67th UN General Assembly discussion session, Al-Ajmi said that Kuwait’s choice to sign nonproliferation weapons agreements and pacts is to achieve a weapon-free world, especially from weapons of mass destruction. Instead, the gulf country has channeled its financial resources toward economic, political, social development.

The Kuwaiti diplomat pointed out that the Middle East region has been suffering serious challenges and a lack of trust in peace in the region because of Israel’s possession of weapons of mass destruction and its refusal to join the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear

Weapons. This lack of trust has put off future visions for an overall development in the region.

Furthermore, Al-Ajmi welcomed the initial steps toward holding a conference that aims at setting up weapons of mass destruction-freezone in the Middle East as implementations to decisions made in the 2010 convention of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

He expressed aspirations that the foreseeable conference would result in positive outcome and effective implementation mechanisms which would pave the way to set up the suggested weapons-free-zone within a specific timeframe.

On Iran’s nuclear program, the Kuwaiti official said that Kuwait has always supported peaceful approaches to solve the Iranian nuclear issue in a way that preserve the right for the Middle East countries to possess nuclear programs for peaceful purposes under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). In conclusion, he called on Iran to cooperation with the UN security related-resolutions to end this crisis and to achieve stability and peace in the surrounding region. —KUNA

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

LOCAL

Two women killed in Shuwaikh car crash Controversy behind detainee’s injury KUWAIT: Two women were killed and a man sustained serious injuries in a car crash reported recently in Shuwaikh. Paramedics and police had rushed to the accident site at the Hospital Road where a collision between two cars was reported. A female citizen and an Asian housemaid were pronounced dead on the scene while their Asian driver was rushed to Sabah Hospital in a critical condition. An investigation is underway to determine the circumstances behind the accident.

Gunshot wound Investigations are on in a case involving a man who sustained a gunshot wound during arrest as detectives look into the conflicting accounts given by the man and the officer who arrested him. The incident took place in AlSulaibikhat after a patrol officer chased a driver who ignored orders to pull over. The officer and his partner were able to force him to stop but then got into a scuffle with the suspect when they caught him because he tried to escape. During the scuffle, a shot was fired from the policeman’s gun

and hit the man on his leg. After the man was hospitalized, he told detectives that the officer shot him deliberately to prevent his escape.

Meanwhile, the officer argued that the gun went off accidentally when the suspect was trying to snatch his weapon. The case was referred to the Public Prosecution.

Attempted murder Search is on for three male suspects who attacked the driver employed by a man they were looking for in Garnada. The driver, who works for a member of the ruling family, was hospitalized with stab wounds which he sustained when he tried to prevent the attackers from entering the house.

The driver had answered the door but had refused to cooperate with the callers when they asked about his employer. After the attack, the trio fled from the scene, leaving the driver behind who was taken to the hospital by his employer.

The ‘sheikh’ later approached the local police to press charges of an attempt to murder against the suspects. Preliminary investigations indicated that the suspects were trying to rob the sheikh, a bid that

was thwarted by the driver.

Man stabbed A man was hospitalized in a critical condition following an assault by four men who sexually harassed his brother. The Pakistani man was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of the Mubarak Hospital with multiple stab wounds that he sustained when he was assaulted by four young men whom he had confronted for harassing his little brother. A case was filed for investigations and search was on for the suspects.

Search for rapist The Farwaniya police are looking for a taxi driver who attempted to rape a woman whom he had driven to a remote location instead of her house. The Asian woman managed to escape as soon as the driver stopped at an open space in Farwaniya and tried to assault her.

She headed directly to the area’s police station and reported the case.

Grand theft auto A man responsible for multiple car thefts reported in Farwaniya

and Hawally claimed he got the idea for the crime from a video game. The Arab man was arrested in Salmiya where he was caught driving a car that was reported as stolen at a police station in the Farwaniya governorate. During investigations, the man said that he started stealing cars because he wanted to copy the main character in the Grand Theft Auto whose main objective in the game is to steal cars by breaking in. He was referred to the Public Prosecution to face charges.

Angry Ethiopian A man missed his flight when he let his frustration out on an officer who carried out a personal check. The Ethiopian man became angry when the security alarm at the final gate before boarding the plane kept ringing even after taking all metal objects out of his pockets. He was placed under arrest after he assaulted the officer who had asked him to take off his shoes as part of the routine personal check. While the plane took off, the man was taken to the Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh police station to face charges.

Kuwaitis urged to demand return of Gitmo detainees KUWAIT: On Oct 16, 2012 the United States Court of Appeals, District of Columbia , ruled that Material Support of Terror (MST ) and Criminal Conspiracy (CC) are NOT war crimes.

First, there is no history for the crimes of MST and CC in a war crimes context. Therefore, the US cannot retroactively seek to pass laws in 2006 in response to actions that occurred prior to 2001 as such, the conviction of Osama Bin Laden’s driver, SalimHamdan is reversed.

Fayiz Al-Kandari and Fawzi Al-Odah have maintained from the beginning that they were in Afghanistan doing charitable work in Islam’s poorest nation, Afghanistan. Once sold to US forces both endured inhuman and demoralizing treatment at the hands of their captors in Afghanistan.

Both were then shipped to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (GTMO) along with every other Arab kidnapped in Afghanistan. Without going into the well documented treatment at GTMO, both sons of Kuwait have been detained in animal cages ever since.

In 2008 the US government charged Fayiz with MST/CC while never charging Fawzi any crime. As you are aware, we have argued that the boys should not be kept for over a decade without trial to which the US would counter with allegations of MST/CC in the case of Fayiz. Today the most conservative court in the United States, The District of Columbia Circuit, famous for limiting the habeas rights of those imprisoned in GTMO, joins us in our assessment that there exists no rational for the continued imprisonmenteven

assuming everything the United States has alleged to date is true. There certainly has never been a more clear justification for not only rejecting GTMO, the harsh treatment, the complete lack of justice, we now add to that the alleged crimes put forward by the US are in fact not war crimes at all.

There currently exist NO rational for the continued imprisonment of Fayiz and Fawzi in Guantanamo Bay Cuba.

We call on all of Kuwaitis to rise to the occasion and demand the return of its sons albeit out of a sense of religious conviction, humanitarian rights, or legal necessity.We can never undo the eleven years each boy has lost, but it’s not too late salvage the national dignity that Kuwait deserves as close and trusted ally of the United States.

KUWAIT: Immediately after receiving a report about a boat that had caught fire at Al-Bidaa Berth, firemen from the Salmiya fire center rushed to the site. They successfully brought the fire under control in less than 20 minutes without any casualties or letting it spread to the other boats. Deputy fire director Brig Khalid Al-Mikkad underlined the importance of allocating a separate docking berth for each boat instead of tying one boat to another. — By Hanan Al-Saadoun

Kuwait relief group concludes refugee camps tour HATAY: A Kuwaiti team grouping representatives of six charitable societies and a daily newspaper concluded a visit to Turkey yesterday, after visiting a number of refugee camps to see the situation of those in need of relief first hand.

The team had also supervised delivery and distribution of goods donated by the six charities on the border and delivery of aid to the needy still within Syrian territory.

Head of the team, dubbed Al-Khair Team, and Deputy Editor in Chief of AlAnbaa daily Adnan Al-Rashed said shortly before departure that everything he saw during the visit confirmed that Kuwaitis are in the lead in this field of humanitarian action. Though aid is being received from many Arab and other quarters, it falls short of what is required to address disastrous state of affairs and dire need, he stressed.

“There is a great need for way more supplies of food, blankets, sheltering material, clothing, and medicines, and the need is more and more pressing with the approach of winter.”

The journalist also cautioned that in the event of border scuffles between Syrian and Turkish forces, as some fear is an actual possibility, the suffering of thousands of refugees would increase many-fold. “This is on top of the fact that thousands are still pouring into camps.”

The Kuwaiti charity team member praised the facilities provided by the Turkish authorities for the refugee camps and the facilities provided to help entry

of those seeking shelter and provision of all services necessary.

Representative of the Islamic International Charitable Organization Salah Al-Jarallah said those fleeing AlAssad forces within Syrian territory are suffering scarcity of food items and medical supplies and are in worse condition than those in camps, lacking shelter and fearing to return to their homes. These victims are the current top priority.

The field visits during this six-day tour program provided a clearer assessment of the situation and type of support needed and the charities realized the scope of the human suffering and return to the country with renewed drive to get the message across and urge people to pitch in.

The Kuwaiti charitable delegation, AlKhair Team, consisted of representatives of six charity bodies along with the Anbaa paper’s reporters. Their visit primarily aims to open channels of cooperation with Turkish charities and officials.

The societies are the Islamic International Charitable Organization, the Islamic Heritage Revival Society, Al-Najat Charitable Society, Social Reform Society’s Al-Rahmah Society, and Abdullah Al-Nouri Charitable Society, along with Patient Relief Fund.

In addition to the field visits to refugee camps, the team held meetings with relief officials and societies from both Turkey and Syria. They also visited some of the Syrians receiving medical care in Turkish hospitals. — KUNA

WARSAW: Kuwait Energy CEO Sara Akbar with top female leaders at the Congress of Women, Warsaw.

Kuwaiti female leadership experience highlighted KUWAIT: Kuwait Energy’s Chief Executive Officer Sara Akbar joined top female leaders at the 4th Congress of Women in Warsaw, Poland, which meets annually to highlight the achievements of women in various aspects of society. The Congress was attended by several prominent figures including Danuta Walesa wife of the former President of the Republic of Poland, Henryka Bochniarz the President of the Polish Confederation of Private Employers Lewiatan, and Danuta H¸bner a former European Union Commissioner and current member of European Parliament.

Akbar was invited to participate in a roundtable discussion organized by the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs titled “Building the position of the country through entrepreneurship of women.” During her discussion, Akbar shed light on her experience as a female professional and entrepreneur in the male-dominated oil and gas sector in the Middle East.

First held in 2009, the Congress of Women gathers thousands of female leaders from around the world every year to focus on women’s contributions to social, civic and economic transformations within their societies, with an emphasis on the role of women in building modern Poland. This year’s congress gathered more than 10,000 women from various countries worldwide including Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan.

Akbar said: “I am very proud to see the number of women leaders growing year by year and overcoming the obstacles that stand in their way. I am extremely happy for my participation in the 4th Congress of Women, and

to be representing Arab women here today.

We came a long way and we have to keep going forward.”

In 2005, Akbar co-founded Kuwait Energy and took the helm as the CEO, becoming the only woman CEO and board member of an oil and gas company in the Middle East. Kuwait Energy is one of the fastest growing Middle Eastern independent oil and gas exploration

and production companies, and has operations in eight countries, namely Egypt, Iraq, Yemen, Oman, Ukraine, Latvia, Russia and Pakistan.

Akbar has over 25 years of experience in upstream oil and gas operations. She started her career in Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) and then joined Kuwait Petroleum Exploration Company

Mohammed wins KD 10,000 prize from Wataniya Telecom KUWAIT: Wataniya Telecom has announced the winner of the eighth weekly draw as part of a series of draws for prepaid customers.

Mohammed Abdulraheem Mohammed was announced as the winner this week for a cash prize of KD 10,000. The draw was held in the presence of the company representatives and under the supervision of an officer from the Consumer Protection Department at the Ministry of Trade and Industry Abdulaziz Ashkanani.

Wataniya launched this exclusive campaign last August which includes weekly draws for a chance to win KD 10,000 at each draw. To enter the draw, customers need to recharge their Wataniya prepaid lines for a minimum of KD 1 using any recharge method, such as vouchers, wataniya.com, recharge kiosk machines or Wcharger. They will get one chance to enter the draw for every fils; therefore 1000 chances for every KD 1. On the occasion, Wataniya Telecom congratulated its customer and stated “Winners are so thrilled and

delighted whenever they are informed that they are the winners of this amazing prize every week. We would like to congratulate Mohammed Abdulraheemwinning the prize of KD 10,000 this week, and we wish all our prepaid customers the very best for the upcoming draws.” Wataniya added “The series of draws will continue for few upcoming weeks. This exclusive draw is considered to be the first of its kind in Kuwait offering valuable cash prizes to customers. Wataniya looks forward to engaging its customers with many more exciting campaigns and surprises in the near future.”

All prepaid customers are eligible to enter the draw and win KD 10,000 by simply recharging their lines starting at KD 1 only. The more they recharge their line, the more chances they can get in the draws.

Furthermore the chances collected by the customer are valid for all the remaining draws and the customer can check the total chances by dialing *555#

KUWAIT: Deputy Director of Fire Department Brig Khalid Al Zaid inspected the 21-storey Al-Saif Hospital, the highest in Kuwait yesterday. Al Zaid inspected safety and security arrangements like water faucets, fire extinguishers and warning signs. Dr Yousuf Abu Dhahr received the firemen and explained the layout of various floors and emergency evacuation plans. He also explained how people, particularly those injured in a fire accident, can be evacuated from the rooftop by helicopters. — By Hanan Al-Saadoun

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

US scurries to soothe Japan rape claim anger

Russia launches fraud probe into oppn vote Page 10

Page 12

PHNOM PENH: The coffin of late former king Norodom Sihanouk is transported on a golden float as it passes in front of the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh yesterday. Tens of thousands of mourners lined the streets of the Cambodian capital yesterday to pay their last respects to revered former king Norodom Sihanouk on his final journey home from China. —AFP

Cambodians mourn revered king Ex-king returns home to sea of mourners PHNOM PENH: Tens of thousands of mourners lined the streets of the Cambodian capital yesterday to pay their last respec ts to revered former k ing Norodom Sihanouk on his final journey home. The body of the mercurial exmonarch, who steered his countr y through turbulent decades of war, genocide and finally peace, returned on a special flight from Beijing, where he died of a heart attack on Monday aged 89.

Draped with flowers and a royal blue flag, his coffin was borne through the streets of Phnom Penh on a golden float shaped like a mythological bird with robed monks seated in front and behind.

Sihanouk’s widow Queen Monique, son King Norodom Sihamoni and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen accompanied the casket in a slow-moving convoy.

Cambodians of all ages-wearing white

shirts and black ribbons-clasped their hands together in prayer as the procession passed. Many wept at the sight of Sihanouk’s coffin passing en route to the royal palace. “I t ’s a sad day for the Cambodian people. The King-Father loved his children very much,” said Theng Nary, 67, tears rolling down her cheeks.

The government estimated that more than 100,000 people turned out to witness the homecoming of the charismatic former monarch, who remained popular even after standing down in favour of his son in 2004 citing old age and ill health.

His body will lie in state at the palace for three months before an elaborate funeral for the towering political figure, who abdicated twice, served variously as premier and head of state and spent years in exile.

The homecoming marked the start of a

week-long mourning period during which the government has ordered radio and television stations not to broadcast joyful programmes.

It has also cancelled the festivities for next month’s Water Festival, an annual celebration that usually draws millions of visitors to the capital to enjoy dragon boat races, fireworks and concerts.

Mourners have flocked to the palace in recent days to pay tribute to Sihanouk with lotus flowers, candles and incense sticks, many of them sobbing as they knelt in prayer.

“His death is a great loss for Cambodia,” said 66-year- old Thong Bunsy, who described the former monarch as “a hero” who protected Cambodian territory and “chased the French away”.

Sihanouk was just 18 when placed on the throne in 1941 by French colonial

authorities, but quickly defied his patron’s expectations of a pliant king. Many elderly Cambodians fondly recall the 1950s and 1960s as a golden era, when Sihanouk led the country to independence from France and a rare period of political stability.

A self-confessed “naughty boy” who married six times and fathered 14 children, the former king was also a prolific amateur filmmaker and shrewd political survivor who repeatedly backed different regimes.

In his most controversial decision, Sihanouk aligned himself with the communist Khmer Rouge after being ousted

by US-backed general Lon Nol in 1970.

After seizing power, the Khmer Rouge put Sihanouk under house arrest in the royal palace. Their 1975-79 reign of terror killed up to two million people, including five of Sihanouk’s own children.

Syria conflict could set region ablaze: Brahimi DAMASCUS: Rebels downed a helicopter in fierce fighting yesterday with troops seeking to retake a key Syrian town, a watchdog said, as peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi warned the conflict risks setting the region ablaze.

The battle for the Damascus-Aleppo highway raged around the northwestern town of Maaret al-Numan even as Brahimi appeared to have won tentative support for a ceasefire plan. The UN and Arab League envoy warned of the conflict spreading as he visited neighbouring Lebanon, the latest leg of a Middle East tour aimed at ending more than 19 months of bloodshed. “This crisis cannot remain confined within Syrian territory,” the veteran troubleshooter told reporters in Beirut. “Either it is solved, or it gets worse... and sets (the region) ablaze. A truce for (the Muslim holiday of ) Eid al-Adha would be a microscopic step on the road to solving the Syria crisis.”

Brahimi called this week for a temporary ceasefire during the four-day Eid holiday starting on October 26. “The Syrian people, on both sides, are burying some 100 people a day,” he said on Wednesday.

“Can we not ask that this toll falls for this holiday? This will not be a happy holiday for the

Syrians, but we should at least strive to make it less sad. “If the Syrian government accepts, and I understand there is hope, and if the opposition accepts,” a truce would be a step “towards a more global ceasefire”.

Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi, who met Brahimi on Tuesday, backed the proposal. He urged “the Syrian government and armed Syrian opposition to respond to calls for a truce and stop violence and military action during the days of Eid,” also asking for international support. The conflict began in March 2011 with pro-reform protests inspired by the Arab Spring uprisings. It has since become a civil war pitting mainly Sunni rebels against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime dominated by his minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam.

At times it has also spilled over into neighbouring countries, including Lebanon and Turkey.

Tensions have soared between Turkey and Syria with Ankara taking an increasingly strident line towards its southern neighbour since a shell fired from inside Syria killed five Turks on October 3.

Brahimi’s spokesman Ahmad Fawzi told AFP the envoy would “soon go to Damascus.” His tour has already taken him to Sunni-ruled Egypt, Turkey

and Saudi Arabia, as well as Shiite-led Iran and Iraq. Damascus says it is prepared to discuss the truce proposal with Brahimi while the exiled opposition says it would welcome any ceasefire but insists the ball is in the government’s court to halt its daily bombardments. “The Syrian side is interested in exploring this option and we are looking forward to talking to Mr Brahimi,” Syrian foreign ministry spokesman Jihad Maqdisi told AFP. The opposition Syrian National Council said it expected the rebel Free Syrian Army to reciprocate any halt to the violence but the government had to act first.

“We would welcome any halt to the killings but we think the appeal needs to be addressed first to the Syrian regime, which has not stopped bombarding Syrian towns and villages,” SNC leader Abdel Basset Sayda told AFP. On the battlefront, rebels shot down a helicopter gunship in the northwest as the army fought to recapture the strategic town of Maaret al-Numan, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Warplanes targeted a rebel blockade of a highway in Idlib province which has halted the regime’s efforts to reinforce Aleppo, theatre of intense fighting for three months.—AFP

Before the Vietnamese invaded and toppled the Khmer Rouge, Sihanouk took exile in China. He continued to push for peace, which eventually came in the 1990s. Sihanouk triumphantly regained the throne in 1993 but his influence diminished as strongman premier Hun Sen extended his grip on power.

In recent years, Sihanouk-who battled illnesses including cancer, diabetes and heart problems-spent long periods of time in China undergoing medical treatment, with his devoted six th wife Monique always at his side.

Before his departure from the country he described as his “second homeland”, Sihanouk ’s coffin was transpor ted through Beijing in a bus decorated with yellow ribbons and flowers, as flags flew at half-mast on Tiananmen Square in his honour. —AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

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

Deadly Baghdad blast leaves survivors struggling BAGHDAD: The car bomb ripped through a row of shopfronts on a square in central Baghdad, shattering windows, setting cars ablaze and sending heavy sheets of dark grey smoke billowing into the air.

The immediate aftermath of the blast at Al-Andalus Square was captured in a shaky mobile phone video, while another from a few days later showed piles of rubble strewn in the street and a black banner bearing the name Hassan Jawwad Zaghayir hanging in front of the wrecked shop where he was mortally wounded.

The explosion was one of a pair of car bombs that killed at least 12 people in central Baghdad on July 31 — just some of the more than 100 attacks that month.

Stores that were smashed by the blast have now been repaired and shiny new plate glass windows installed. The bustling, newly-refinished shops at the site of the attack-some of them staffed by people present on the day of the explosion-indicate both the ability of Iraqis to rebuild after attacks, and that

most people in Iraq have no option but to get on with their lives, despite the danger.

But while the shops are fixed and the scorched building that houses them painted over, the damage to people impacted by the bombing is harder to repair, especially when another attack could occur at any time.

“We are more afraid now,” Hikmet, one of Hassan’s brothers, said at a table in his family’s falafel shop at the square.

“Now, if a car stops here, I am suspicious of it.” Shrapnel from the bombing tore into Hassan just in front of the shop, which was wrecked by the explosion but has since been repaired.

Hikmet was inside the shop when the bomb exploded, but was behind a counter that shielded him from the blast. Another brother, Alaa, said he called Hassan to tell him to leave on the day of the attack, after a bomb went off elsewhere in Baghdad. But it was too late-there was another explosion, and the line cut.

“Whenever I go anywhere, I feel fear and worry that an explosion may hap-

pen,” said Alaa, who was at home not far from the shop when the bomb exploded. Hassan, 28, was a kind man who empathised with others, Alaa said, noting that he brought flowers to Our Lady of Salvation church and lit a candle there after militants killed 44 worshippers, two priests and seven security forces members at the church in 2010.

Hassan’s death has had a devastating impact on the family, especially his parents, who have been hard-hit by the loss and are frequently in tears, Alaa said.

Family jewellery had to be sold to pay for Hassan’s funeral and repairs to the shop, which was reopened not long after he was killed due to financial necessity. Violence in Iraq is down significantly from its peak in 2006 and 2007, when waves of bombings and death squad killings often left well over 1,000 people dead per month.

The raging violence was brought under a semblance of control after Sunni tribesmen turned against insurgents and the United States sent a “surge” of thousands of additional troops, but attacks still kill hundreds of

people per month, and the level of violence is not falling.

Roadside bombs, car bombs and small magnetic “sticky bombs” that are surreptitiously attached to cars explode in cities and towns around Iraq, and militants strike with weapons ranging from knives to rocket-propelled grenades.

Officials including high-ranking officers are gunned down in the streets, bombs tear through markets, and even heavily-guarded sites such as military bases, police stations and prisons are attacked. This is the world in which many Iraqis live. But people go on living their lives despite the danger-they go to work, to shops and mosques, relax in restaurants and cafes and pack Baghdad’s streets with cars, sometimes on the same day an attack occurs.

For the majority of Iraqis, who cannot leave the country, there is no other choice. Salah Kamil Obaisan, who was working in a different shop at AlAndalus Square on the day of the blast, said Hassan was suspicious of the car that later killed him, and tried to clear

people out of the area. He tried to help Hassan, who was badly wounded by shrapnel from the car bomb and also burned, but he died of his wounds after being taken to a hospital. Salah, who saw other wounded and dead people at the scene of the attack as well as a number of burning vehicles, said he decided not to work in the area because the place reminded him of his friend Hassan.

But financial need drew the married father-of-three back. He now works in the shop owned by Hassan’s family, making just 15,000 Iraqi dinars (about $12.5) per day-not much, but more than he said he would earn in Babil province, where his family lives.

Salah is acutely aware of the possibility of another attack: “The first thing in the morning, I say, this day, I won’t live.

Why won’t I live? Because I’m in dangermaybe a car will come and I will die.”

“I feel the danger, but I want to take care of my family,” he said. “I worry about them more than I worry about myself; the soul is there and the body is here.” — AFP

Libya militias ‘executed’ scores of Gaddafi loyalists Misratans took revenge against prisoners

ARSAL: In this Tuesday, Oct 2, 2012 photo, Bassel Hojeiri, 37, principal of the local middle school, with his wife, Hanan, and their son Muhammed, speak at his house during an interview with The Associated Press, in Arsal, a Sunni Muslim town eastern Lebanon near the Syrian border. This Lebanese border town has become a safe haven for war-weary Syrian rebels, a way station for wounded fighters and home to hundreds of frightened Syrian refugee families. — AP

Syrian conflict deepens sectarian rifts in Lebanon ARSAL: This Lebanese border town has become a safe haven for war-weary Syrian rebels, a way station for wounded fighters and home to hundreds of frightened Syrian refugee families.

Residents of Arsal, a Sunni Muslim town of 40,000, say they have strong motives to help those trying to topple Syria’s regime: they themselves were harassed and abused by it during three decades of de facto Syrian control of Lebanon.

But in siding with the rebels, many of them fellow Sunnis, Arsal is also deepening rifts with its Shiite Muslim neighbors in the Bekaa Valley that runs along Lebanon’s eastern border with Syria. Large areas of the scenic valley are controlled by Hezbollah, the powerful Shiite militia that is supporting and - according to the US and the Syrian opposition - also fighting alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces.

For now, Lebanon’s rival political and religious groups have largely tried to keep a lid on domestic tensions stoked by the conflict next door, with collective memories here still scarred by Lebanon’s own 15year civil war that ended in 1990. But any major escalation in Syria or miscalculation by the combatants’ Lebanese supporters could ignite Lebanon’s explosive sectarian mix. Unlike some parts of Lebanon, the Bekaa has not been hit so far by sectarian violence linked to the bloodshed in Syria, although a drive along the valley’s bustling main thoroughfare and the string of towns that line it, shows where the region’s Shiite and Sunni loyalties lie.

In predominantly Shiite Baalbek, one of the Bekaa’s larger towns, a downtown billboard shows Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah next to Assad, who is decked out in a military uniform and aviator glasses.

“They will not weaken our resolve,” reads a defiant caption.

The presence of Iran, the region’s Shiite power and a patron of both Hezbollah and Assad, is also visible: A poster of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, with the slogan, “We can,” hangs from roadside poles along a four-lane highway that signs boast was partially funded by Tehran. A turn off the highway and down a winding uphill road, leads east toward the Syrian border and Arsal.

Homes here are bare-bones, made of raw gray cinderblock, without stone facades. A spray painted Syrian rebel flag green, white and black horizontal stripes and three red stars on the white - decorates one of the walls in the center of town.

Bassel Hojeiri, principal of the local middle school, said people in Arsal back the rebels as fellow Sunnis fighting a regime controlled by Alawites, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, but also because of deep-seated hatred of Syria’s rulers.

As a border town, Arsal suffered under a particularly oppressive Syrian military presence when Damascus held sway in

Lebanon from 1976 to 2005. Syrian troops at checkpoints near Arsal would sometimes beat area residents, arrest them without reason, demand cash or even seize cars, said Hojeiri, 37, a former mayor of Arsal.

“People hated them,” Hojeiri said of the Syrian occupiers. “Now hopefully their time is ending.” The town has stood by the rebels from the start, and now is deeply involved in the conflict. Last month, Syrian warplanes in pursuit of rebels fired missiles that struck near Arsal. Lebanese media have also suggested weapons smuggled from Lebanon to the rebels go through Arsal; residents acknowledge there’s a rich tradition of smuggling in Arsal, but say they don’t know anything about arms smuggling.

Volunteers from Islamic charities have sneaked scores of wounded rebels into Lebanon, driving them from there to hospitals in Tripoli, a Sunni stronghold in northern Lebanon, and bypassing clinics in Hezbollah-run areas in the valley, said Mohammed Hojeiri, a local activist. Arsal has also taken in hundreds of Syrian refugee families, most from villages in Homs province, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) to the northeast. Some of the refugees rent apartments, while others live with Arsal families or in a small camp on the outskirts of town, where tents are being replaced by cinderblock shacks to prepare for the harsh mountain winter.

Rebel fighters have also used Arsal as a temporary haven to rest from the fighting across the border.

Peach farmer-turned-fighter Mohammed Yousef left his village of Zara in Homs province late last month after airstrikes destroyed his home and many others in the village. He reached Arsal after a seven-hour cross-border trek across mountainous terrain, he said, adding that several dozen of his fellow rebels do the same from time to time.

“Arsal is the ... mother of the revolution,” the 25-year-old said affectionately of his Lebanese hosts who have sheltered his extended family of 10 in an empty building. Yousef dismissed Syrian troops as largely ineffective, saying most can be bribed, but swore to exact revenge from Hezbollah, which he blamed for the destruction in his village. “We want to slaughter Hassan Nasrallah, the dog,” Yousef said of the Hezbollah leader. “He shelled us, he destroyed our houses, and killed our children.”

Hezbollah denies that it is fighting alongside regime forces, and a spokesman declined further comment Monday.

Lebanese security officials have said a number of Hezbollah activists recently buried in the Bekaa Valley had been killed in fighting in Syria, while Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the United Nations, told the UN Security Council on Monday that “Nasrallah’s fighters are now part of Assad’s killing machine.” — AP

CAIRO: Libyan rebels appear to have “summarily executed” scores of fighters loyal to Moammar Gaddafi, and probably the dictator himself, when they overran his hometown a year ago, a human rights group said yesterday.

The report by Human Rights Watch on alleged rebel abuses that followed the October 2011 capture of the city of Sirte in the final major battle of the eight-month civil war is one of the most detailed descriptions of what the group says were war crimes committed by the militias that toppled Gaddafi, and which still play a major role in Libyan politics today.

The 50-page report, titled “Death of a Dictator: Bloody Vengeance in Sirte,” details the last hours of Gadhafi’s life on Oct. 20, 2011, when he tried to flee the besieged city.

The longtime leader’s convoy was struck by NATO aircraft as it tried to escape and the survivors were attacked by militias from the city of Misrata, who captured and disarmed the dictator and his entourage.

Misrata was subjected to a brutal weekslong siege by Gaddafi’s forces that killed hundreds of residents, and fighters from the city became among the regime’s most implacable foes. HRW says it seems the Misratans took revenge against their prisoners in Sirte.

“The evidence suggests that opposition militias summarily executed at least 66 captured members of Gaddafi’s convoy in Sirte,” said Peter Bouckaert, emergencies director at Human Rights Watch.

The New York-based group’s report says that new evidence unearthed in its investigation includes a mobile phone video clip taken by militiamen showing a large number of prisoners from Gaddafi’s convoy being cursed and abused by rebels.

The remains of least 17 of the detainees in the phone video were later identified in a group of 50 bodies found at Sirte’s Mahari hotel, some still with their hands tied behind their back. Human Rights Watch said it used hospital morgue photos to confirm the victims’ identities.

The dictator himself was seen alive in a widely-circulated video made public shortly after the battle. “Video footage shows that Moammar Gadhafi was captured alive but bleeding heavily from a head wound,” the HRW report says. But footage showed that he was “severely beaten by opposition forces, stabbed with bayonet in his buttocks, causing more injuries, and bleeding. By the time he is filmed being loaded into an ambulance halfnaked, he appears lifeless.”

Bouckaert said the group’s “findings call into question the assertion by Libyan authori-

ties that Moammar Gaddafi was killed in crossfire and not after his capture.” Gaddafi’s son Muatassim was also videotaped alive and in captivity, only to have his body turn up at a morgue in Misrata alongside his father’s.

“In case after case we investigated, the individuals had been videotaped alive by the

But HRW said that “under the laws of war, the killing of captured combatants is a war crime, and Libyan civilian and military authorities have an obligation to investigate war crimes and other violations of international humanitarian law.”

The group released its report days before

SIRTE: A picture taken on October 20, 2011, shows a Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC) fighter looking through a large concrete pipe where ousted Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was allegedly captured, with a dead loyalist gunman in the foreground, in the coastal Libyan city of Sirte. — AFP opposition fighters who held them and then Libya celebrates “liberation day,” the anniverfound dead hours later,” Bouckaert said. “Our sary of Sirte’s fall on Oct. 23. Since then, the strongest evidence for these executions country’s new leaders have heavily depended comes from the footage filmed by the opposi- on former rebel militias to secure cities and tion forces and the physical evidence at the protect borders in the absence of a strong Mahari hotel where the 66 bodies were national army or other government security forces. found.”

Calls for militias to be brought under the Another victim cited by HRW as an example was 29-year-old Ahmed al-Gharyani, a control of the defense or interior ministries navy recruit from the town of Tawergha. He have met resistance from some fighters. was seen alive in the phone video as rebels Meanwhile, some groups have been implicatbeat him. His body was later found in the ed in revenge attacks and communal strife, while members of one Islamist militia have hotel and eventually identified by his family.

His hometown, Tawergha, was used as a been accused of taking part in the attack on staging ground by Gaddafi’s forces to launch the US Consulate in the eastern city Benghazi attacks on Misrata, but after rebels broke the on Sept. 11 that killed four Americans, includsiege on Misrata and overran Tawergha, the ing US Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens.

In the aftermath of Stevens’ death, popular town’s residents fled or were driven out by resentment surged and thousands took to the vengeful rebels.

Suleiman al-Fortia, a member of the dis- streets of Benghazi demanding the dismansolved National Transitional Council from tlement of the militias. The government has Misrata, denied that Gaddhafi or his loyalists taken over some militia headquarters and were executed. “We hoped to arrest Gaddafi appointed military officers to run the groups, alive (to try him). All the killings took place in and designated some “outlawed” and others “tolerated.” — AP a crossfire,” he said.

Egypt, Jordan envoys take up Israel posts JERUSALEM: New ambassadors from Egypt and Jordan, the only two Arab countries to have a peace treaty with Israel, formally took up their posts yesterday, both highlighting a desire for good relations.

Egypt’s Atef Salem presented his credentials to President Shimon Peres, bringing a message of reassurance from the government of President Mohamed Morsi, whose roots are in the Muslim Brotherhood.

“I came with a message of peace and I came to confirm that we are really working for mutual trust and transparency and we are committed to all the agreements we signed with Israel,” he said. Peres told him: “We consider Egypt historically and politically as the leading country of the Arab world. We have the highest respect for your people and for your history.

“Please convey to President Morsi my very best wishes for his success, for the success of Egypt and for the success of the Middle East.”

Jordan’s new envoy, career diplomat Walid Obeidat, also presented his credentials to Peres, filling a position that had been vacant since mid-2010.

“Our foremost priority in our foreign policy still remains the peace process and achieving peace between all neighbouring countries, including the establishment of an independent

sovereign Palestinian state,” Obeidat said in remarks broadcast on Israel public radio.

Previous ambassador Ali al-Ayed became information minister in mid-2010 and has not been replaced until now, despite pressure from Washington. Amman was reluctant to act

because of what officials said was the Jewish state’s policies towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Obeidat was named last month in a move that angered his tribe, one of the largest in Jordan, as well as the Muslim Brotherhood, the country’s main opposition group. — AFP

JERUSALEM: Jordan’s newly appointed ambassador to Israel Walid Obeidat (L) toasts with Israeli President Shimon Peres upon presenting his credentials yesterday, at the presidential compound in Jerusalem. — AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

i n t e r n at i o n a l

Thousands mourn Colorado girl, police seek help Crimes like this shock entire communities

ARVADA: Friends and family gather at the altar just before the start of a memorial service for 10-year-old Jessica Ridgeway at Faith Bible Chapel in Arvada on Tuesday. More than 2,000 friends, family and community members gathered Tuesday to remember Ridgeway. — AP

Quake in Maine rattles New England states PORTLAND: Patrons of a pizza parlor near the epicenter of an earthquake in southern Maine may not have known what was happening. But the shaking building was enough to send all 20 of them skedaddling outside. “It was loudest bang you ever heard in your life. We actually thought it was an explosion of some type,” said Jessica Hill, owner of Waterboro House of Pizza.

“The back door and door to the basement blew open,” she said.

The earthquake that hit southern Maine Tuesday night and was felt in New England states as far away as Connecticut caused no apparent damage or injuries, but it rattled residents throughout the region.

The US Geological Survey said the 4.0 magnitude quake hit around 7:12 p.m. and its epicenter, about 3 miles west of Hollis Center, Maine, was about 3 miles deep. That location is about 20 miles west of Portland.

The quake was first estimated to be 4.6 magnitude but was later downgraded.

In Saco, Sue Hadiaris said, “The whole house shook. ...It was very unnerving because you could feel the floor shaking.

There was a queasy feeling.” Afterward, Hadiaris called her 15-year-old niece in Falmouth to make sure she was safe. “She said, ‘We can cross that off our bucket list.

We’ve lived through an earthquake,’” Hadiaris said. Earthquakes are rare in New England but they’re not unheard of. In 2006

there was a series of earthquakes around Maine’s Acadia National Park. The strongest earthquake recorded in Maine occurred in 1904 in the Eastport area, near the state’s eastern border with Canada according to the Weston Observatory at Boston College.

It had an estimated magnitude of 5.7 to 5.9.

The Seabrook Station nuclear plant, about 63 miles away in New Hampshire, declared an unusual event - the lowest of four emergency classifications - but said it was not affected. The plant has been offline for refueling.

“There has been no impact at all to the plant from the earthquake and our refueling maintenance activities have not been affected,” said Alan Griffith, spokesman for Next EnergyEra Seabrook Station.

Jim Van Dongen, public information officer for the New Hampshire Department of Safety said New Hampshire 911 got about 1,000 calls in the first hour after the quake, but they later dropped off. He said no major damage was reported.

Brief, but noticeable shaking was felt in downtown Boston and the surrounding area.Edward Conti, who lives in a four-story apartment building in Cambridge, Mass., he was watching television when “it sounded like a car crash.

Then there was another boom-boom. It was no small thing.” Conti said there was no damage. — AP

ARVADA: More than 2,000 family members, friends, neighbors and others remembered a 10year-old girl who was abducted on her way to school in a Denver suburb and killed.

As the public memorial for Jessica Ridgeway was held Tuesday night, the search for her killer continued, with multiple agencies checking leads and asking for more tips.

Westminster Police Chief Lee Birk said at the evening service that investigators are working the case “tirelessly, diligently, and we are committed until we achieve justice for Jessica.” Earlier, police said they had received more than 350 more phone tips Tuesday.

The ceremony at Faith Bible Chapel in Arvada opened with a slideshow of pictures set to Jessica’s favorite songs, including “Call Me Maybe” by Carly Rae Jepsen. Many attendees wore the fifth-grader’s favorite color, purple.

Pastor Rick Long of Grace Church in Arvada said Jessica had two fish, two frogs and a dog, and that she loved Disney films. She enjoyed wearing green and blue makeup as part of her peewee cheerleading squad at a nearby high school, and she was looking forward to dressing up as a zombie lifeguard for Halloween.

Long added that community support has been helping Jessica’s family. Gov. John Hickenlooper, whose son is Jessica’s age, told those gathered that the Ridgeways are in Coloradans’ thoughts.

“Every single person in this state is with the Ridgeways in every single way that we may be,” Hickenlooper said.

Cases like this - in which a child apparently is abducted and killed by a stranger - are “the ones that shock entire communities and scare us all,” said Robert Lowery, senior executive director of the missing children’s division at the National Center For Missing and Exploited Children.

Michelle King, who lives in the neighborhood where Jessica disappeared, said she brought her 10-year-old daughter to the memorial partly as

closure. “It’s a thing we have to talk to our children about,” King said. “We’ve gotten a little relaxed about this.”

Authorities have been tight-lipped about the investigation since they announced Friday that a body found on the edge of town belonged to Jessica. The girl was last seen alive walking down a quiet street in her modest Westminster neighborhood Oct. 5. Her school backpack was found three days later in Superior, another Denver suburb about seven miles northwest of her home.

Jessica’s body was found Oct. 10, the same day authorities ruled out her parents as suspects in her disappearance. Her body was found along a remote road that locals say few knew about.

Authorities usually are reserved in what they say to the public, out of concern for causing unnecessary alarm. But they issued a statement last week advising residents to be suspicious of their bosses, friends and family members.

Authorities asked the public to keep an eye out for people exhibiting unusual behavior - like leaving town unexpectedly, missing appointments, consuming unusual amounts of alcohol or changing their appearance. The idea was that the killer would not be able to act normally after committing the crime. “They may have no suspects,” said Kenneth Lanning, a retired FBI behavior analyst in Fredericksburg, Va., who is now a consultant specializing in crimes against children. “But likely at this point, they have so many suspects and now they’re trying to sort through them.”

Lanning is not involved in the Colorado case but described such investigations as multi-track efforts, with volunteers and deputies searching homes, bushes, drainages and open space near the child’s house while investigators develop a criminal case. Police likely are pouring through hours of surveillance video taken at banks, gas stations, government buildings and elsewhere, Lanning said.

In Cody, Wyo., where an 11-year-old girl was

abducted and sexually assaulted Oct. 8, police were able to get a license plate number from surveillance video at Yellowstone National Park that led them to a suspect in Montana. The girl was released hours after her abduction.

Investigators also have statistical data based on past crimes of this type that could provide a general profile of who may have committed the crime, Lanning and FBI profiler Clinton Van Zandt said.

Neither Lanning nor Van Zandt would provide an opinion on the Colorado case, saying each case is unique. However, a 2006 report funded by the U.S. Department of Justice and compiled by Washington state Attorney General Rob McKenna determined the majority of suspects in such cases are single and between 18 and 30 years old.

The study looked at more than 800 cases from 1968 to 2002, the latest figures available. It found nearly half the suspects were unemployed, and those who did have jobs worked in unskilled or semi-skilled labor occupations.

The report also said 21 percent of victims were 10 to 12 years old and initially encountered their abductor within a quarter-mile of their home.

Jessica was 10 and last seen within two blocks of her house. Lanning and Van Zandt noted investigators will build their own suspect profile using the evidence. They’ll consider where Jessica was last seen alive and where her body was found, along with the condition of her body, which police have said was “not intact.” There’s also the girl’s backpack, which might contain clues.

“Behavior can be expressed in a crime scene,” Lanning said. “We’re greatly hoping that in addition to behavioral clues, how about he left his DNA?” Lowery, of the National Center For Missing and Exploited Children, added that fewer children have been abducted and killed in recent years because of greater awareness and the Amber Alert system established nationwide in 2003. He said several abductors have released children after seeing or hearing such an alert. — AP

Daughter offers no clues on Mexican drug lord SAN DIEGO: The daughter of one of the world’s most sought-after drug lords didn’t share information that might lead to her father’s capture after she was detained on an immigration violation, a US official said Tuesday.

Alejandrina Gisselle Guzman Salazar, 31, was charged Monday with fraud and misuse of visas, three days after authorities arrested her at San Diego’s San Ysidro port of entry, the nation’s busiest border crossing. The official said Guzman Salazar has been “a dead end” in the search for Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, the elusive leader of Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an investigation that has not been made public.

Border inspectors interviewed Guzman Salazar for about a half-hour, during which time she volunteered that Guzman was her father and that she was six months pregnant, the official said. She didn’t say why she offered the information but the official speculated that she may have bet been betting authorities would be reluctant to bear the additional costs of holding someone with special medical needs. Guzman Salazar’s mother is Maria Alejandrina Hernandez Salazar, the official said. The US Treasury Department described Hernandez Salazar as Joaquin Guzman’s wife when it imposed financial sanctions on her in June. The complaint said Guzman Salazar attempted to enter the country on foot

Friday, impersonating someone with a non-immigrant visa contained in a Mexican passport. It said a fingerprint scan indicated she is in a US government database of previous immigration violators but was not more specific. Guzman Salazar told authorities intended to go to Los Angeles to give birth to her child, according to the complaint. A typical sentence for such a violation is two to six months in custody, Guadalupe Valencia, one of her attorneys, said Tuesday. He said his client is a medical doctor from Guadalajara and is seven months pregnant. Guzman Salazar hired Valencia and Jan Ronis, attorneys with histories of representing clients accused of links to organized crime. A bail hearing is scheduled Oct. 25.— AP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

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

Pope commits Church to highly delicate mission in Syria VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI has engaged the Catholic Church in pushing for peace in Syria by dispatching a high-profile delegation to a country where Christians are divided on support for the rebels.

Vatican Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone, the pope’s right-hand man, announced Benedict’s move on Tuesday to a synod of bishops saying: “We cannot be mere spectators of a tragedy such as the one that is unfolding in Syria.”

Bertone said the delegation would express the Church’s “encouragement to all those involved in seeking an agreement that respects the rights and duties of all, with particular attention to the demands of humanitarian law.” It said its members would also voice “fraternal solidarity with the entire population” and “spiritual closeness to our Christian brothers and sisters.” The delegation is made up of top Vatican officials like Cardinal JeanLouis Tauran, head of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue, as well as prelates from two countries with experience of conflict: Colombia and Vietnam.

Bertone said that “the only possible solution to the crisis is a political solu-

tion” and that the mission would likely take place some time next week.

Syrian Catholics have traditionally been strongly in favour of President Bashar al-Assad’s secular regime, which defended their minority’s rights.

After the uprising against him began last year, Christians were split between some who lent their support to the opposition and others who appeared to stay closer to the regime out of fear of a seizure of power by Islamists. Lebanon’s Maronite patriarch Bechara Rai told AFP earlier that this did not mean Christians were supporting Assad. “To the Westerners who say Christians are supporting the Syrian regime, I say that Christians are with the state, not with the regime,” he said. “ They want the stability of the country, not of the regime,” he said.

The Vatican’s position for a long time seemed overly cautious to many observers as repression by the regime increased. Vatican envoy Mario Zenari has stuck to a balanced position, telling Vatican radio that “all sides in the conflict” should respect international humanitarian law which was falling apart “due to the fault of both warring sides.”

“We are shocked and profoundly

pained and worried for the future,” he said in the August interview, adding that Christians in Syria should act as “bridge builders”. Around 7.5 percent of Syria’s 20 million inhabitants are Christian.

Many Christians are concerned about an Iraq-style scenario in which they could come under threat if the regime of Assad collapses. During his visit to neighbouring Lebanon last year, the pope hailed the courage of young Syrians and called on Arab countries “to propose viable solutions” to the conflict but did not explicitly condemn the regime.

He also called for a stop in arms supplies to the warring sides in Syria.

George Sabra, a Christian and spokesman for the Syrian National Council exiled opposition group, met with the pope last month and thanked him. “His visit was a support for the cause of freedom. Christians do not need anyone to protect them,” he said in an interview with Vatican Insider.

Jesuit priest Paolo Dall’Oglio, who lived in Syria for many years to try to promote Christian-Muslim dialogue and was expelled for condemning the regime, said he was satisfied with this “act of solidarity” but was still cautious.

VATICAN: Pope Benedict XVI readies for his weekly general audience yesterday at St Peter’s Square at The Vatican. The Vatican said on the day before that Pope Benedict XVI will send a delegation to Damascus to express his solidarity with the Syrian people, as violence escalated with deadly air attacks unleashed by the regime on rebel positions. — AFP “In Damascus they will only be able to meet with officials who are all more or less with the regime,” he said, adding that the prelates should meet refugees in Jordan and Turkey to show solidarity “with all Syrians”.

“The message could be exploited

by Assad,” he warned. Syrian dissidents meeting in Rome earlier this year at talks hosted by the Catholic charity Sant’Egidio, which has ties to the Vatican, appealed for a political solution, a ceasefire, the release of detainees and reconciliation. — AFP

Russia launches fraud probe into oppn vote Latest step in Kremlin crackdown on dissent

PARIS: (L to R) France’s President Francois Hollande, Mexican President-elect’s wife Mexican telenovela actress Angelica Rivera, France’s President’s companion Valerie Trierweiler and Mexican President-elect Enrique Pena Nieto pose following a working lunch at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris yesterday. — AFP

Crime-fighting ally a boon for Hollande PARIS: While economic gloom drives President Francois Hollande’s own poll ratings into the doldrums, his interior minister’s tough line on crime is making him France’s most popular politician.

Images of the tough-talking Manuel Valls racing around the country to round up radical Islamist cells or nab corrupt cops contrast with the failing efforts of Hollande’s government to halt a spate of industrial lay-offs.

As long as Valls does not appear as a rival to Hollande, his popularity is proving vital political ballast to a young left-wing government which conservative and far-right rivals would prefer to paint as soft on crime.

“If people feel the person tasked with embodying security and public order is what they are looking for, then so much the better,” Valls said in the southern port city of Marseille last week after dismantling a police unit where 15 officers are being held on suspicion of drugs trafficking and extortion. Three separate opinion polls in the past two weeks rate Valls as France’s most popular politician and rising, as his no-nonsense manner plays well among voters on the right and left who are feeling disempowered, angry or broke.

His approval ratings have risen as high as 57 percent, while Hollande’s have slumped to as little as 41 percent. His role is all the more crucial given that delinquency has shot up the list of French concerns to third place after health and jobs. One French news magazine dubbed Valls “vice president” - a position that does not exist in France. Others cite him as a possible future prime minister.

Valls, 50, has even drawn comparisons with Hollande’s conservative predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy, who used the high-profile interior minister job to sideline cabinet rivals

and ultimately succeed Jacques Chirac as president. But for now his popularity is an advantage to Hollande as his crime-fighting goals are supported by both the left and the right, said analyst Francois Miquet-Marty at pollster Viavoice.

“It gives him (Hollande) political weight,” said Miquet-Marty. “When Valls talks, he’s watched, he’s listened to, he becomes one of the strong men of the government, a possible prime minister for tomorrow if Hollande needs that.”

“It would be a handicap if he were politically competitive but he’s not,” he added, noting Valls’ repeated insistence in his speeches that he is doing the bidding of Hollande.

Fed up with tit-for-tat crime gang violence that has grown so bad a local mayor wants the army brought in, residents in Marseille have welcomed Valls like a hero.

Promising police reinforcements, the telegenic dark-haired minister has posed for photographs with locals, shaken hands with shop owners and spoken up for honest cops. “He won’t fix Marseille’s security problem by himself but at least he’s moving. He gives the impression that he wants to do something,” said Francoise Albert, a Marseille school nurse.

Born in Spain and later naturalized French, Valls learned the importance of a tough cop image as ex-prime minister Lionel Jospin’s spokesman a decade ago.

Jospin’s 2002 presidential election defeat was partly blamed on his being seen as soft on crime.

Valls then spent more than ten years as mayor of a racially mixed Paris suburb before trying his luck to be the Socialist Party’s candidate for the 2012 presidential election.— Reuters

Policeman, two attackers killed in Kenya grenade blast MOMBASA: A Kenyan police officer was killed and nine others wounded yesterday when suspected Islamists hurled a grenade at them during a house raid in a clash that left two assailants dead, police said.

The violence was the latest in a string of clashes and police raids on Kenyaís coast, a popular tourist region where Islamists and a separatist movement have increasingly battled with security forces. Regional police chief Aggrey Adoli told AFP several officers ìwere seriously injured,î saying the attackers may be Kenyan supporters of neighbouring Somaliaís Shebab, an Al-Qaeda linked insurgent group. ìOne of the officers died in hospital...eight others are still in hospital,î Adoli said. One officer was discharged. ìWe have intensified the search for more suspects, we want to ensure the area is safe,î he added.

Adoli said police had shot dead one of the attackers, while the other was killed by one of his own grenades. The raid was carried out after a tip-off in the coastal Likoni region, just south of Kenyaís main port Mombasa, and

police recovered two firearms, two live grenades and ammunition, he said.

Kenyan police have in recent days launched a crackdown on members of the Mombasa Republican Council, a separatist group. On Monday two people were killed as police arrested MRC leader Omar Mwamnuadzi.

The latest violence has raised fears that political unrest could mar elections which are due to take place in March, five years after deadly post-poll killings shattered Kenyaís image as a beacon of regional stability.

The MRC claims that the predominantly Muslim coastal region is not part of Kenya and says it has been neglected by the central government. However Adoli initially ruled out any link between Wednesdayís incident and the MRC. Suspected supporters of the Shebabóincluding Kenyaís Muslim Youth Centre (MYC) — have carried out attacks over the past year in Coast province, with bars and churches among their targets.—AFP

MOSCOW: In a new sign of a widening Kremlin crackdown on the opposition, investigators yesterday opened a criminal probe against leftist leader Sergei Udaltsov and several other activists for allegedly planning mass riots.

Russia’s top investigative agency said it also will investigate claims made in a recent documentary aired by a Kremlin-friendly TV channel that opposition leaders worked with Georgian officials to prepare terrorist attacks across Russia.

Udaltsov, 35, a leather-clad, shaven-headed leader of the Left Front opposition movement, has denied the charges stemming from the documentary, which he said was a sham. The agency did not say whether Udaltsov and others had actually carried out any of their alleged plans.

The criminal case comes as the opposition is bracing up for an online election of its coordination council this weekend, in which Udaltsov is running. Udaltsov, who wore a Stalin T-shirt for his wedding, has led anti-Putin protests for several years, focusing on unsanctioned marches and rallies.

A great-grandson of a Bolshevik revolutionary, he has been arrested more than 100 times during his political career and spent months in prison. He has launched many hunger strikes while in custody.

Investigators, backed by armed men wearing ski masks, searched Udaltsov’s apartment in south Moscow for more than five hours on Wednesday. The home of his parents was also searched, said Violetta Volkova, Udaltsov’s lawyer. “I’m going to hold on until the end, and I won’t be quiet,” Udaltsov said as he left his home for questioning escorted by masked armed police. “It’s a wave of new repression.” In addition to Udaltsov, the criminal investigation is targeting two other leftist activists, one of whom, Konstantin Lebedev, was detained for 48 hours following brief questioning, Volkova said.

After several hours of questioning, Udaltsov was ordered not to leave Moscow pending the probe.

The documentary aired last week on

MOSCOW: Russian opposition leader Sergei Udaltsov, center, gestures as he is taken by police officers for questioning in Moscow, yesterday. In a new sign of a widening crackdown on Russia’s opposition, investigators yesterday opened a criminal probe against leftist leader Sergei Udaltsov and several other activists for allegedly plotting mass riots. — AP NTV, a channel seen as a propaganda arm of the Kremlin, showed what it says was footage of the Left Front leader meeting with officials from neighboring Georgia to discuss raising funds for protests against President Vladimir Putin, and plans for organizing mass riots.

In late 2011 and early this year, a series of massive peaceful demonstrations against Putin were held in Moscow that drew more than 100,000 people in the largest show of discontent against the Kremlin since the 1991 Soviet collapse.

The Investigative Committee said that it would pursue criminal cases against not only Russians but also citizens of Georgia and other unspecified countries. “Once their involvement in the preparation of criminal acts is established, they will be subject to criminal liability under Russian law and the norms of international law, and will be issued with

international arrest warrants,” the committee said.

Officials in Georgia have refrained from commenting on allegations of Georgia’s involvement with the Russian opposition. Givi Targamadze, a senior Georgian lawmaker who was featured in the NTV program as the mastermind of Georgian support, was not available for comment on Wednesday.

However, he told Georgian media last week he had never met Udaltsov.

Relations between Russia and Georgia have remained frozen since a brief 2008 war. Udaltsov said he has met “a great number of people” recently to discuss fundraising, but all of his efforts and intentions are legal.

He has insisted the footage presented in the documentary has been doctored. The Investigative Committee said yesterday that it had carefully studied the footage and concluded

it was not tampered with.

Renowned human rights activist Lev Ponomarev told the Interfax news agency on Wednesday that a “broad crackdown on the opposition is very dangerous for this country” and said that early morning searches reminded him of secret police tactics in the 1930s in the Soviet Union.

The Russian Communist Party, which forms the largest opposition faction in parliament, has supported Udaltsov, dismissing allegations against him as nonsense. Party leader Gennady Zyuganov said Udaltsov is being persecuted for his views. “ The main goal is to nip the protests in the bud,” he told Interfax.

Nataliya Vasilyeva and Mikhail Metzel from Moscow, Misha Dzhindzhikhashvili from Tbilisi, Georgia, and Peter Leonard from Almaty, Kazakhstan, contributed to this report. — AP

Six Russians, Estonian kidnapped off Nigeria LAGOS: Kidnappers have boarded a ship off Nigeria and abducted seven crew members, including six Russians and one Estonian, in the latest such incident in the region, French company Bourbon said yesterday.

“Bourbon confirms that seven crew members, six Russians and one Estonian, were kidnapped during the boarding of the Bourbon Liberty 249, which occurred on October 15, 2012 in Nigeria,” a statement from the oil industry servicing firm said. “The other nine crew members are still onboard the vessel which is heading for the Port of Onne. They are safe and sound, and in good health.”

The statement did not give the location of the kidnapping, but Onne is located in the Niger Delta, the country’s oil-producing region. The Bourbon Liberty 249 is an anchor handling vessel, the kind used to tow anchors for oil rigs or mobile drilling rigs.

According to private security consultants Drum Cussac, the incident occurred some 40 nautical miles off Brass along Nigeria’s southern coast.

Scores of kidnappings for ransom have occurred in the Niger Delta, though a 2009 amnesty deal greatly reduced unrest there. Sporadic incidents continue to occur despite the amnesty.

Most of the hostages have been freed after payment of a ransom. The company said it had set up an emergency unit aimed at the hostages’ “rapid liberation.” “Bourbon is in contact with the

crewmembers’ families, supporting them, and keeping them regularly informed,” it said.

“Bourbon will continue to disclose any new information when available and verified and will not make any comment which could adversely affect the liberation of the hostages.”

A Nigerian military spokesman in the region said he was not aware of the kidnapping, while a navy spokesman could not be immediately reached for comment. In August, four foreign oil workers-Indonesian, Iranian, Malaysian and Thai nationals-were kidnapped when unknown gunmen attacked their vessel in the Gulf of Guinea off Nigeria.

In the early hours of August 4, suspected sea pirates stormed a barge and opened fire, killing two Nigerian sailors and injuring two others. The foreigners were freed some three weeks after the kidnapping, though their employer Sea Trucks Group declined to provide details of their release.

Years of unrest in the Delta had curbed crude production in Nigeria, Africa’s top oil producer, but output has recovered since the 2009 amnesty and has been at more than two million barrels per day. The unrest prior to the amnesty saw criminal gangs and militants claiming to be fighting for a greater share of oil revenue carry out attacks on oil facilities, including blowing up pipelines. While the unrest has been reduced, criminality remains widespread and oil theft in the region continues to be a major problem.

Shell, the biggest producer in Nigeria, has said there have been estimates that 150,000 barrels of oil and condensate are stolen in the country each day. Hijackings of tankers in the Gulf of Guinea off West Africa has also seen gangs board ships with the aim of siphoning off fuel cargo for sale on the lucrative black market.

Meanwhile, heavy explosions and gunfire rocked the northeast Nigerian town of Potiskum yesterday, residents said, after violence this week left at least 24 people dead in the city of Maiduguri.

Blasts and shootings shook residents of Potiskum, previously hit hard by violence blamed on Islamist extremist group Boko Haram, residents said. The police commissioner for Yobe state, where Potiskum is located, said there had been a bomb explosion and security forces afterward cordoned off the area and began house-tohouse searches.

He did not say whether there had been any casualties. “There was a bomb explosion this morning and the Joint Task Force has already cordoned off the area for the safety of residents,” Patrick Egbuniwe said, referring to a military and police task force. “Right now, there is a house-tohouse search by JTF to fish out the perpetrators of the terror attack.” Residents said the unrest began just before 6 am. “It started with a huge explosion followed by successive blasts and gunfire,” one resident told AFP. —AFP

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international

Afghans deny killer of 2 US troops was intel agent KABUL: Afghanistan’s security service denied claims that a suicide bomber who killed two American troops and four Afghans in a weekend attack was a member of the country’s intelligence agency.

The remarks Tuesday contradict statements by US and local officials who had described the assault as an insider attack and the first of its kind by a member of Afghanistan’s elite intelligence service. The growing number of insider attacks has raised doubts whether Afghan forces will be able to effectively control security in their country after foreign troops depart in 2014.

In the attack Saturday, the bomber blew himself up as a group of Americans and Afghan officials were arriving to deliver new office furniture to the intelligence headquarters in Kandahar’s Maruf district. Two American troops and four Afghan intelligence agents died in the blast.

The NATO military coalition and local officials said the bomber was a member of Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security, or NDS. “The attacker was wearing an NDS uniform, and was an NDS employee,” coalition spokesman Maj. Adam Wojack said in an email.

But Shafiqullah Tahiri, spokesman for the intelligence agency, said Tuesday that the attacker had worn an Afghan uniform to gain access to the building in Kandahar. “The suicide bomber was never on the staff of the NDS,” he said. “Unfortunately, the local media reported this. It created concern among the people of Afghanistan.”

Afghan authorities are increasingly sensitive to the spate of insider attacks on foreign troops and members of the Afghan army and police.

The government has sought to play down the significance of these attacks, which have raised concerns

about the level of Taliban infiltration in Afghanistan’s security forces.

So far this year, more than 50 US and NATO troops have died at the hands of their would-be Afghan partners. But Saturday’s bombing was the first reported insider attack by an Afghan intelligence agent, according to logs kept by The Associated Press and the international military coalition.

This would raise the scope of insider attacks to a new level since members of the security agency are much more closely vetted than the Afghan army or police.

Although the coalition maintains that Taliban insurgents are responsible for only a minority of the insider attacks, it is already clear that the tactic - virtually unknown in previous guerrilla wars - has seriously undermined the confidence of Western nations in the Afghan government’s ability to control the security situa-

tion after 2014.

It has also increased calls in allied nations for a possible speeded up withdrawal of forces. Earlier this week, the British government said thousands of its 9,500 troops will leave Afghanistan next year, a major reduction in the UK forces in the country.

During a visit Tuesday, the British foreign service officer for Afghanistan, Sayeeda Warsi, stressed that her country is not abandoning its Afghan ally but would remain one of Kabul’s “biggest supporters” after the pullout.

“Our relationship with Afghanistan is not limited to combat troops,” Warsi said. “ Therefore, when our combat troops leave at the end of 2014, that relationship will continue on a whole series of levels which include support in terms of training for security forces.”

In other guerrilla wars, insurgents have been known to plant agents

among security forces mainly to glean intelligence on their plans and, to a lesser extent, obtain weapons, ammunition, medical and other supplies.

Historians say insider attacks were virtually unheard of during the U.S. involvement in Vietnam, the French war in Algeria, or the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s.

Meanwhile, NATO acknowledged that its forces may have accidentally killed three Afghan children on Sunday in Helmand province while targeting suspected insurgents laying roadside bombs.

The coalition expressed regret for the deaths and said its representatives would meet with family members to express condolences. Afghan media has reported that besides the three children, several insurgents were also killed in a NATO airstrike.

But a NATO statement denied that close air support was involved in the incident. —AP

Suicide bomber wounds 45 Afghanistan soldiers Joint NATO-Afghan army base attacked

SRINAGAR: A Kashmiri Muslim woman confronts Indian police officers during a protest in Srinagar, India, yesterday. Dozens of residents blocked traffic and protested against the government decision to hike electricity bills and for capping the number of subsidized cooking gas cylinders at six a year. —AP

KABUL: A suicide truck bomb attack on a joint NATO-Afghan army base in eastern Afghanistan yesterday caused several casualties to Afghan forces, the International Security Assistance Force said.

Reports by Afghan officials of the number of soldiers wounded in the attack claimed by Taleban insurgents-varied from 10 to 45, but there were no reports of any deaths. “This morning a joint ISAFANSF (Afghan National Security Forces) combat outpost in Zurmat district in Paktiya province was attacked by insurgents using a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device and indirect fire,” an ISAF spokesman told AFP. “Early reports say the attack resulted in several ANSF casualties, but there is currently no reporting

Australia, India take steps on nuke deal NEW DELHI: Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard yesterday agreed to open negotiations to export uranium nuclear fuel to energy-hungry India after meeting her counterpart Manmohan Singh in New Delhi. The deal, which will provide a boost for India’s civilian nuclear ambitions, comes after Australia reversed its policy of refusing to sell uranium to India as it has not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. “Prime

requisite for uranium sales to other countries,” it added.

Gillard overcame opposition within her own Labor party to reverse the ban last year, arguing that the deal was necessary to improve ties with one of Asia’s biggest economies. The two countries will now kick off formal discussions, but have warned that negotiations are likely to last up to two years. New Delhi backed by the US - won a special

NEW DELHI: Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, left, shakes hands with India’s Congress party president Sonia Gandhi, at the latter’s residence before a meeting in New Delhi, India, yesterday. India and Australia began talks yesterday to strengthen economic and strategic ties and explore cooperation in civilian nuclear energy. —AP Minister Manmohan Singh welcomed the decision of the Australian government on uranium sales to India, noting that nuclear energy will play an important role in India’s future energy needs,” a joint statement said. “India and Australia (will) commence negotiations on a bilateral civil nuclear cooperation agreement which, for Australia, is a pre-

exemption in 2008 from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), which governs global nuclear trade, to allow it to buy reactors and fuel from overseas.

India, which has fractious relations with its nuclear-armed neighbour Pakistan, had been subject to a global embargo since 1974 when it first conducted a nuclear weapons test. Singh

hailed yesterday’s announcement as recognition of India’s “record and credentials” on civil nuclear power and expressed his appreciation to Australia.

Gillard said the proposed sale of uranium was “personally important” to her as she had led the campaign for a change in Australian policy - attracting fierce criticism from some environmentalists and anti-nuclear groups.

Gillard earlier said that negotiations would guarantee that the uranium would be used only for peaceful purposes and in safe conditions, and that the deal would be overseen by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). New Delhi has sought to forge close ties with a host of countries with deposits of uranium, including Mongolia, Namibia and Tajikistan alongside Kazakhstan and Canada.

India is heavily dependent on coal and produces less than three percent of its energy from its existing atomic plants.

The government hopes to raise the figure to 25 percent by 2050.

Although Australia does not use nuclear power itself, it is the world’s third-ranking uranium producer and holds an estimated 23 percent of the world’s reserves. It already ships the nuclear fuel to China, Japan, Taiwan and the United States. Countries are normally required to have signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and open their reactors to international scrutiny before they can buy atomic technology and uranium. Yesterday morning, Gillard attracted widespread press attention when she fell to the ground in front of TV cameras after the heel of her shoe became stuck in grass at a memorial park to Mahatma Gandhi. She was unhurt and laughed off the incident. — AFP

Pakistan floods kill 455 ISLAMABAD: Monsoon floods in Pakistan have killed 455 people over the past five weeks and affected more than five million, according to the latest figures from the government’s disaster relief agency.

Pakistan suffered devastating floods in the past two years, including the worst in its history in 2010 when catastrophic inundations across the

country killed almost 1,800 people and affected 21 million.

As in the previous two years, most of those hit by the latest floods were in Sindh province, where the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said more than three million have been affected, with 890,000 in Punjab and nearly a million in

Baluchistan. More than 260,000 people around the country have sought shelter in relief camps since early September, though this figure is down from the 290,000 reported

by NDMA two and a half weeks ago.

The data published by NDMA on Monday said more than 1.1 million acres (450,000 hectares) of crops were affected by the floods.

on ISAF casualties,” he said. Deputy provincial governor Abdul Rahman Mangal told AFP: “Around 45 army soldiers have been slightly wounded, mostly by broken glass, by the huge blast caused by a truck bomb at the gate.” The Taleban said their fighters had infiltrated the base after the suicide attack and fighting was continuing-claims denied by ISAF and Afghan officials.

“Our mujahideen armed with rockets, machine-guns, handgrenades and suicide vests successfully infiltrated an American forces base in Zurmat district following a suicide car bomb attack,” Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid told AFP. Afghan forces are taking on an increasing role in the war against

the Taliban as NATO draws down its forces ahead of a pull-out of all combat troops at the end of 2014.

So far this year the Afghan army and police have suffered an average of 535 casualties-killed and wounded-each month, ISAF said in a breakdown of the status of the 337,000-strong ANSF this week.

In contrast, a total of 358 ISAF troops have been killed this year, according to the icasualties.com website. The ability of Afghan forces to take full responsibility for the fight against the Taleban is a key plank of NATO’s exit strategy from the 11-year war and commanders regularly talk up the growing effectiveness of local troops. But many observers point to reports of indiscipline and lack of motivation among the Afghan

forces as warning signs of problems ahead after they lose the military and logistical support of the huge NATO operation.

While the Taleban’s favourite tactic remains planting homemade bombs that kill indiscriminately, they have recently launched a number of direct attacks on military forces.

On October 1, a suicide bomber attacked an Afghan-NATO foot patrol in the eastern city of Khost, killing at least 20 people, including three foreign troops and six Afghan police.

And last month, Taleban insurgents launched a major attack on ISAF’s Camp Bastion in Helmand province, destroying millions of dollars’ worth of aircraft and killing two US marines. —AFP

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international

Philippines accused of mistaking guard for rebel MANILA: Relatives of a security guard and a human rights group accused Philippine government troops yesterday of mistaking the man for a communist rebel leader and torturing him earlier this month.

But regional military spokesman Col. Generoso Bolina said the man was Benjamin Mendoza and was using the name of security guard Rolly Panesa as an alias. Bolina said the military has at least four witnesses, including former

New People’s Army guerrillas, who have identified Mendoza and will testify in murder and kidnapping charges against him.

Panesa’s employer, Megaforce Security Services Corp., and his sister Josie Panesa said he has been working as a security guard for the same company since 1995. They also said that he is only 48 years old while the real Mendoza is 61.

A medical report from the Health

Action for Human Rights, whose staff examined Panesa at a police jail near Manila three days after he was arrested Oct. 6, said he suffered numerous bruises, his face was puffy from the beatings and that he had injuries to an eye and an ear, and one tooth was chipped. Bolina said the military will punish those found responsible if the torture allegations are true He earlier reported that troops had captured Mendoza in suburban Quezon city

along with three other suspected insurgents. The human rights group Karapatan said the three were Panesa’s common-law wife, her daughter and her daughter’s husband, who were all released a day later.

Bolina said Mendoza received military training in Libya in the 1980s, and was a member of the central committee of the Communist Party of the Philippines which has been leading the Maoist insurgency in the country

for more than 43 years. Peace talks brokered by Norway to end one of Asia’s longest-running insurgency have been stalled over disagreements between government and rebel negotiators seeking the release of about a dozen senior party leaders held in detention. The government has also been battling a separate Muslim rebellion in the south whose end seems to be in sight after negotiators this week signed a preliminary peace pact. —AP

US scurries to soothe Japan rape claim anger US servicemen arrested in Okinawa TOKYO: The US envoy to Japan vowed “complete and unequivocal cooperation” yesterday over the alleged rape of a local woman by two servicemen on an island fed up with the large American military presence.

Ambassador John Roos sought swiftly to reassure people on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa that he shared their anger over an incident that has the potential to act

reported incident.” He said he wanted the Japanese people to know that he shared that anger. “Not only me as a United States ambassador, but the entire United States government including our military will continue to work our hearts out to earn the trust of the Okinawan people and the people of Japan,” he said.

Okinawa governor Hirokazu Nakaima, a

OKINAWA: Some 50 civic group members hold banners to protest over the alleged rape of a local woman by two US servicemen in Okinawa, in front of the prime minister’s official residence in Tokyo yesterday. The US envoy to Japan vowed “complete and unequivocal cooperation” over the alleged rape of a local woman by two servicemen on an island fed up with the large American military presence. —AFP as a lightning rod for growing anti-US feeling.

Roos said the US government and military would “provide full, complete and unequivocal cooperation to the Japanese authorities in their investigation”. After a meeting with Vice Foreign Minister Shuji Kira, who is standing in while Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba is in Europe, Roos said: “I do understand the anger that many people feel with respect to this

vocal critic of the size of the vast US presence on the island, met Defence Minister Satoshi Morimoto and expressed his fury, describing the alleged crime as “insane”.

Citing another case of sexual offence allegedly by a US soldier in August, the governor told reporters: “This is nothing but abhorrent. “We cannot accept this, no matter how much (the US military presence) is claimed to

be necessary for national security,” he said.

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda also chimed in, saying the alleged crime was “intolerable”. The arrest of the two men on Tuesday is a potential flashpoint in relations between the US military and their reluctant Okinawan hosts.

Previous criminal incidents have sparked angry, large-scale demonstrations, with participants demanding a trimming of the US footprint. Around half of the 47,000 military personnel Washington has in Japan are based in Okinawa.

Relations at the moment are especially prickly, with locals resentful of the deployment of 12 tilt-rotor Osprey aircraft. Ostensibly, the objections centre on the Osprey’s perceived poor safety record, but commentators say it is a proxy issue for islanders fed up with what they see as an unequal burden. They call for mainland Japan to step up and take its share.

In September tens of thousands of people rallied against deployment of the Osprey, which can take off and land like a helicopter, but flies like a plane. Despite the groundswell of opinion, the strategic importance of the Okinawan archipelago, which is strung out from the Japanese mainland to Taiwan, makes it a vital bulwark against the rising might of China.

Neither Washington nor Tokyo, which depends on its ally for defence, is able to countenance a sizeable US drawdown from the area. In Tokyo, around 50 people rallied outside Noda’s office on Wednesday evening, holding banners and placards reading: “Get rid of bases and US troops’ sexual violence and crimes,” and “Don’t trample on Okinawa”.

Okinawa police said they arrested Christopher Browning and Skyler Dozier Walker, both 23, on charges of raping and injuring the woman on Tuesday, hours before they had reportedly planned to leave the island. The local woman, whose identity was not revealed, suffered injuries to the neck, police said.

The leading Mainichi Shimbun daily, citing police sources, said the two servicemen, who had flown to Okinawa on Sunday, had allegedly approached the woman on the street and sexually assaulted her. A police spokesman said the men had been handed over to prosecutors, who would decide on the formal indictment. —AFP

Myanmar to excavate WWII fighter planes YANGON: Myanmar has signed a deal with a British aviation enthusiast to allow the excavation of a World War II treasure: Dozens of Spitfire fighter planes buried by the British almost 70 years ago. Aviation enthusiast David J. Cundall discovered the locations of the aircraft after years of searching.

The planes are believed to be in good condition, since they were reportedly packed in crates and hidden by British forces to keep them out of the hands of invading Japanese.

The British Embassy said Wednesday

that the agreement was reached after discussions between President Thein Sein and British Prime Minister David Cameron during his visit to Myanmar earlier this year.

The excavation of the rare planes is slated to begin by the end of October. The Myanma Ahlin daily reported that the excavation agreement was signed Tuesday by Director General of Civil Aviation Tin Naing Tun, Cundall on behalf of his British company DJC, and Htoo Htoo, managing director of Cundall’s

JAKARTA: Journalists hold placard readings “stop violence on journalists” during a rally in front of the Defence Ministry offices in Jakarta yesterday to protest alleged attacks by Indonesian Air Force officers on journalists who were working at the site of a crashed British Aerospace Hawk 200 fighter jet in Pekan Baru, Riau province.

At least six journalists were allegedly attacked by soldiers while trying to cover the aftermath of the crash of the military fighter jet, according to media reports. —AFP

Myanmar partner, the Shwe Taung Paw company.

“It took 16 years for Mr. David Cundall to locate the planes buried in crates. We estimate that there are at least 60 Spitfires buried and they are in good condition,” Htoo Htoo Zaw said. “This will be the largest number of Spitfires in the world,” he said. “We want to let people see those historic fighters, and the excavation of these fighter planes will further strengthen relations between Myanmar and Britain.”

The British Embassy described the agreement as a chance to work with Myanmar’s new reformist government “in uncovering, restoring, displaying these fighter planes.” “We hope that many of them will be gracing the skies of Britain and as discussed, some will be displayed here in Burma,” said an embassy spokesman, using the old name for Myanmar.

Myanmar has since last the past year turned away from many of the repressive policies of the previous military government and patched up relations with Western nations that had previously shunned it.

Myanma Ahlin cited Transport Minister Nyan Tun Aung saying the agreement was a milestone strengthening the friendly relationship between Myanmar and Britain and amounts to the British government’s recognition of the democratic reforms of President Thein Sein’s new government.

Cundall has said his quest to find the planes involved 12 trips to Myanmar and the expenditure of more than 130,000 pounds ($210,000). —AP

MANILA: Philippine President Benigno Aquino (L) gestures as he answers questions while Budget Secretary Florencio Abad (R) listens during a press conference with the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) in Manila yesterday. Aquino said he hoped “ultra-nationalist” sentiment in China would ease after a leadership change next month and thereby help to resolve a maritime row in the South China Sea. —AFP

Philippines’ Aquino seeks improved ties with China MANILA: Philippine President Benigno Aquino III said yesterday he hopes the new leaders who take over China next month can improve bilateral ties that were strained following a standoff last year at a disputed shoal in the South China Sea. Relations have slightly improved due to recent talks, Aquino said, and since Philippine ships pulled out of the Scarborough Shoal. He said Chinese vessels have been in and out but there is freedom of navigation.

But the core issue - who has sovereign rights over the tiny, uninhabited rocks off the northern Philippine island of Luzon has not been resolved and overshadows relations. The Philippines wants international arbitration, which Beijing has ruled out. Manila also wants a broader agreement between China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations to tackle the disputes, while China prefers to negotiate individually with each claimant.

Aquino said he is hopeful that after the transition to a new leadership - when top leaders of the ruling Communist Party take over next month - Chinese domestic pressures will ease and “there will be more room to negotiate on a more reasonable term and less ultranationalist tones.”

The Chinese public was vocal in challenging Manila over the shoal, canceling vacations to the Philippines and urging

the government to stand firm. Various longstanding disputes involving China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei straddle busy shipping lanes in the South China Sea that are believed to be rich in oil and gas deposits. Many fear the disputes could spark bigger conflicts.

Aquino said China recently initiated discussions to resolve the issue and both parties were adhering to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. “There is some degree of change in terms of a little bettering of the situation - I have to emphasize a little bettering - of the situation compared to where it was at the height of the tensions,” Aquino told international media in Manila. “But we’re still a long way off from really getting back to where it was.”

He expressed hope a solution can be found that satisfies multilateral concerns.

Aquino said the Philippines is trying to ease tensions, saying the government asked a petroleum company that was awarded a contract to explore oil deposits in another contested area to coordinate its activities with authorities to avoid causing any conflicts.

The area, Reed Bank, is where two Chinese ships tried to drive away a Philippine oil exploration vessel in March last year. —AP

Japan’s opposition chief visits war shrine TOKYO: Opposition leader Shinzo Abe, a man well-placed to become Japan’s next prime minister, visited a Tokyo war shrine yesterday, in a move that risks causing further friction with neighbouring countries.

Clad in formal evening dress, Abe, a one-time prime minister who was elected president of the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) last month, said he was at Yasukuni Shrine in an official capacity.

“As the autumn festival has started, I visited as the president of the Liberal Democratic Party so as to express my respect to the heroic spirits who sacrificed their lives for the country,” he told reporters.

The Shinto shrine in central Tokyo honours 2.5 million war dead, including 14 leading war criminals from World War II. Visits to the shrine by government ministers and high-profile figures spark outrage in China and on the Korean peninsula, where many feel Japan has failed to atone for its brutal aggression in the first half of the 20th Century.

The visit comes as Japan’s relations with China and South Korea remain strained over two separate territorial disputes. Chinese state media criticised the visit, saying it would “further poison bilateral ties”.

“At such a delicate moment, Abe’s visit... has added insult to injury and dealt another blow to the already fragile Sino-Japanese relations,” the Xinhua news agency said.

“Provocative and short-sighted actions would harm the interests of Japan and its people,” it said, noting that already the “strained political ties have produced serious econom-

ic fallout for both sides”.

Abe, known for his conservative views on history, has frequently visited Yasukuni, including this year on August 15 — the anniversary of the end of World War II-but stayed away in 2007 during his short-lived premiership.

But asked what he would do if he won the election, he equivocated.

“I’d better not say if I will visit or not as prime minister, considering current relations with China today,” he said. “It is the same for South Korea, too.”

Incumbent Prime Minister Yoshihiko

TOKYO: Shinzo Abe (C), leader of the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), puts on his shoes to leave after a visit to controversial Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo yesterday. Abe, a man wellplaced to become Japan’s next prime minister, visited the Tokyo war shrine in a move that risks causing further friction with neighbouring countries. —AFP Stepping down a year later, he said not visiting the shrine during his tenure was “extremely painful”.

His victory last month in the LDP leadership race positions him well for re-taking office in general elections that must be held within the next year.

Noda has not visited the shrine, although two of his ministers went in August. His predecessor Junichiro Koizumi prayed annually at Yasukuni, including a visit on August 15 in 2006, infuriating China and South Korea, which refused to hold summits with him. —AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

NEWS Obama outpunches Romney Continued from Page 1 campaign rallies in Virginia, a key battleground that looked to be leaning towards Obama until the first debate on Oct 3, which the incumbent lost badly.

Meanwhile, the political class was still digesting the repercussions of the latest bitterly contested head-to-head, a socalled “town hall” with questions from members of the public.

Neither man did much to conceal their mutual dislike as they stalked the stage, sometimes just a yard (meter) from each other as they traded accusations of dishonesty. Both landed blows but, after his poor earlier showing, a resurgent Obama carried the day.

Romney running mate Paul Ryan stood by his man yesterday, declaring on NBC News that his boss won because he “offered people a very concrete vision about how he’s got the experience, the knowledge to get people back to work to grow the economy”. But ad hoc polls from major broadcasters gave the Democrat the edge, and his jubilant supporters took to social media to twist the knife. Analysts agreed that the Romney surge had hit a speed bump, leaving the race closely matched. “The Republicans will be disappointed that Romney didn’t put him away, and the Democrats will be reassured that the president is in full press now,” said Linda Fowler, a government professor at Dartmouth College.

Conservative commentator George Will, a longtime presidential observer, said Obama came out ahead in one of the most spirited US debates ever. Both men “tip-toed right up to the point of rudeness, but stepped back. It was a very good fight,” Will told ABC News. “I have seen every presidential debate in American history since the floor of Nixon and Kennedy in 1960. This was immeasurably the best.”

Bouncing back after being pilloried even by his own side for appearing passive and listless during their first encounter in Denver, Obama was a different character on stage at New York’s Hofstra University. In one spellbinding exchange, Obama glared at Romney and rebuked him over his criticism

of the White House’s handling of an attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya on Sept 11, which killed four Americans. “The suggestion that anybody on my team... would play politics or mislead when we’ve lost four of our own, governor, is offensive,” Obama said, wagging his finger at Romney across the stage. “That’s not what we do. That’s not what I do as president, not what I do as commander-in-chief,” Obama said, in the most memorable clash of one of the most ill-tempered and contentious White House debates ever.

Seeking to recover, Romney instead stumbled, accusing the president of taking days to recognize that the attack, which killed US ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens, was terrorism and not a protest that got out of hand. Obama snapped back that he had referred to the assault as an “act of terror” a day after the attack, telling Romney: “check the transcript” before fixing his rival with a withering stare and saying: “Please proceed governor.”

As anger crackled in the debate hall, the candidates were freed from podiums and roamed the floor, often encroaching on each other’s personal space, trading charge and countercharge over the economy and foreign policy. Romney’s strongest moments came when he delivered stinging indictments of the Obama economy, charging the president with failing to rein in stubbornly high unemployment or cut ballooning deficits. “The president wants to do well, I understand,” Romney said, adopting a sorrowful tone of voice. “But the policies he put in place have not let this economy take off as it could have.

“If the president were re-elected, we’d go to almost $20 trillion of national debt. This puts us on a road to Greece,” he said, before also vowing to stand up to China over its alleged trade and currency abuses. Obama countered that Romney had invested in companies in China that were pioneers of outsourcing US jobs, saying: “Governor, you’re the last person who’s going to get tough on China.” The stakes could hardly be higher, both as national polls and the key races in battleground states tighten into a dead heat. — AFP

Kuwait, Pakistan leaders discuss visa...

Continued from Page 1 Pakistan is a member of the ACD since its inception in 2002. These kind of forums will absolutely contribute to the improvement of relations between Pakistan and India, which are already on the right track, he said. “There is great improvement in relations. India is our neighbor and we want good relations with all our neighbors,” he said. Ashraf indicated that Pakistan has always been of the opinion of having a conducive environment in Asia, which would ensure its prosperity and progress. “We have always tried to strengthen our relations with regional countries, a matter that is important for all the good reasons,” the Pakistani premier added.

Separately, Iran backs the idea of a ceasefire in Syria during the Eid holiday next week and believes free elections are the right way to help resolve the 19-month-old conflict, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said according to Iran’s state news agency. Lakhdar Brahimi, the international mediator on Syria, has proposed that both Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s forces and rebel fighters seeking his overthrow stop fighting during the Eid alAdha festival, which starts next week. Brahimi has appealed to leaders in Iran - Assad’s strongest regional ally - to support the idea.

Ahmadinejad said yesterday he had made the same proposal during talks this week with Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, IRNA reported. “Of course war cannot be a suitable solution and any group that derives

power through war and means to continue war has no future,” Ahmadinejad told reporters after the ACD summit, IRNA reported. “Anyone who is the friend of the Syrian people should try to form the basis for free elections in the country. The ceasefire and negotiations on free elections in my view is the correct road to resolution.”

Turkey, one of Assad’s staunchest opponents, said it also supported the ceasefire proposal. “The Arab League, Turkey and Iran have declared their support for this proposal,” Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told a news conference in Ankara, saying he had spoken to his Iranian counterpart on the matter. Brahimi, the UN-Arab League envoy, said yesterday that Syria’s civil war risks spilling across borders to engulf the Middle East.

Ahmadinejad said all governments should help to resolve the Syria conflict so that issues are resolved at the negotiating table, rather than in fighting. “A national consensus is needed and it must bring unity for the future of Syria and based on the ceasefire. It is the people who should decide the future of Syria and whatever they vote for should be followed,” he said. He added that relations between Iran and regional countries including Kuwait were “intimate and brotherly,” according to IRNA, saying that those who tried to paint Iran as a regional threat were wrong. “It is not right because the Islamic Republic of Iran considers the regional security as its own security.

Security has only been affected when foreign forces have been in the region,” he said. — Agencies

An artist’s impression shows a newly-discovered planet orbiting the star Alpha Centauri B, a member of the triple star system that is the closest to Earth. Alpha Centauri B is the most brilliant object in the sky and the other dazzling object is Alpha Centauri A. Our own Sun is visible to the upper right. — AFP

Planet found in Earth’s backyard LONDON/CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida: Astronomers have found a new planet, the closest yet outside our solar system and just an astronomical stone’s throw away at four light years, raising the chances of finding a habitable planet in Earth’s neighbourhood. Researchers say the new planet is too close to its sun to support known forms of life, with a surface temperature estimated at 1,200 degrees Celsius. But previous studies suggest that when one planet is discovered orbiting a sun, there are usually others in the same system.

The new Earth-sized planet, announced in science journal Nature by Stephane Udry and Xavier Dumusque at the Geneva Observatory, orbits one of the suns in Alpha Centauri, roughly 25 trillion miles away. “It’s a landmark discovery because it’s very low mass and it’s our closest neighbour,” said Udry. “Its orbit is very close to its star and it must be much too hot for life as we know it but it may well be just one planet in a system of several.” Commenting on the find, University of California astronomer Greg Laughlin said: “This is our back yard, so to find out that planet formation occurred there is just extraordinary.”

Since the discovery of the first exoplanets - those out-

side our solar system - in the early 1990s, more than 800 have been found but this one is the closest to Earth.

Getting there is extremely unlikely in the forseeable future. Laughlin estimates it would take about 40,000 years to travel to the new planet with current propulsion technology. It was detected using the HARPS instrument on a telescope at the European Southern Observatory’s La Silla site in Chile. The device is able to pick up tiny changes in the colour of the light coming from a host star as it wobbles under the gravitational influence of orbiting planets.

The gravitational effect in this case is minute, causing it to move back and forth by no more than 51 cm per second. Alpha Centauri is a three-star system consisting of two stars similar to our sun and a faint red star called Proxima Centauri. The planet orbits Alpha Centauri B. Astronomers have speculated about planets orbiting these suns since the 19th century but small planets like this are hard to find and instruments have only recently become sensitive enough to detect them. “Our observations extended over more than four years using the HARPS instrument” said Dumusque. — Reuters

ACD tackled common issues: Amir Continued from Page 1 cooperation would have tangible results that would ultimately honor aspirations of the Asian countries and people. Sheikh Sabah appreciated Yingluck’s speech and her contributions as the ACD coordinator. He said the Thai premier was behind the ACD summit’s success.

In the final declaration, Kuwait called on Asian countries to strengthen mutual collaboration in different fields, including economy, energy, healthcare and education, and to honor aspirations of the Asian people. In the Kuwait Declaration, approved by the leaders of the ACD at the end of the summit yesterday, Kuwait called for allocation of $2 billion for the development of nonArab poor Asian countries and announced contribution of $300 million to this program. The declaration noted that this would help achieve UN’s millennium development goals (MDGs), and hoped ACD members would contribute to the program.

The declaration called for proper use of natural resources, create suitable atmospheres for investment

and encourage cooperation between Asian countries. It called for further collaboration in economic, trade, financial, cultural, scientific, technology, environment, health and housing domains. Kuwait also called for preserving of oil stocks, encourage scientific research and achieve sustainable energy. It emphasized that communication between peoples required exploration of collaboration in culture, arts, literature, science and technology.

The declaration also emphasized importance of fighting diseases and epidemics encourage pharmaceutical industry in order to realize disease-free societies. Education and spread of knowledge was also asserted by the Kuwait Declaration, in addition to highlighting importance of environment protection, addressing natural disasters and climate change. The Kuwait Declaration underscored respect of human rights as key to free and descent life. “Cooperation and integration are the only means to achieve sustainable development in our continent to honor hopes and aspirations,” it said. — KUNA

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Issues

Lost in debate: The reality of US-China ties

By Charles Hutzler n the narrative of US presidential politics, China is a Hollywood villain, a monetary cheat that is stealing American jobs. But the one-dimensional caricature offered up by President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney obscures the crucial reality of US-China relations: For all the talk about getting tough on Beijing, the US and China are deeply entwined, defying easy solutions to the friction and troubles that beset their relations. The two countries are the first and second largest economies in the world, doing nearly a half-trillion dollars in trade which in turn buoys the global economy. Their governments are in constant contact on North Korea’s and Iran’s nuclear programs and Syria’s civil war and are trying to work out rules of the road for their huge militaries and such 21st century problems as cyberwarfare.

Few relationships are as critical to the world today.

Managing the competition for global influence between the world’s superpower and its still-rising rival so that it does not become outright confrontation will be a priority for whoever wins next month’s presidential election. Little of the enormity and importance of US-China ties found its way into Tuesday night’s debate between Obama and Romney. Instead, the candidates used it as a convenient foil for their campaign positions about revitalizing the US economy and getting Americans back to work.

Both candidates sought to portray China as vacuuming up American jobs. Their arguments contained half-truths and flaws. Romney said excessive regulation and misguided policies during Obama’s first term drained away American jobs, turning China into “the largest manufacturer in the world.” Obama said Romney, through his work for private equity and investment firm Bain Capital, bore responsibility by investing in companies that moved jobs to China.

The title of No. 1 manufacturer is a matter of dispute. The research firm IHS Global Insight said last year that China overtook the United States in 2010, with total output of $1.995 trillion, compared with $1.952 trillion for the US. The National Association of Manufacturers disputed that, saying the United States still was in the lead and IHS Global Insight’s figures were distorted by changes in exchange rates and other factors. Left unsaid by both candidates: That if lowcost manufacturing jobs don’t go to China, they’ll go somewhere else. Think Mexico.

Obama, for his part, said his focus on doubling US exports is “creating tens of thousands of jobs all across the country.” But one concrete example he cited in getting tough on China - slapping levies on imports of low-priced Chinese-made tyres that he said saved 1,000 jobs - had mixed results. Economists at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington have said that some 1,200 jobs might have been preserved, but that the cost amounted to $1.1 billion in higher prices paid by American consumers - or $900,000 per job. Whether the outcome was good or bad for Americans is a matter of perspective. Nor did they point out that in an era of globalized business, an Apple iPhone created in America and assembled in China helps both, as well as component suppliers in Japan, Germany and South Korea.

True, China has used its mix of free-market, statedirected economic policies to support Chinese business to the disadvantage of foreign competitors.

Romney came closest to hitting that mark, ticking off China’s rampant theft of intellectual property and other trade secrets as well as policies that help hold down the value of its currency, the yuan, thereby keeping low the price of Chinese exports. Yet Romney’s campaign promise - repeated in the debate - that he would brand China a currency manipulator on his first day in office may merely be symbolic. The act does not require immediate punitive measures, and while economists estimate the yuan is still undervalued, it has appreciated markedly, as Obama said. And applying that label may be counterproductive if Beijing retaliates. On cue, China’s government news agency, Xinhua, soon after the debate warned that China “perhaps would be forced to fight back,” sparking a global trade war. One Romney supporter in the business community, former American International Group Inc. chairman Maurice Greenberg, told Bloomberg Television last week that the candidate is unlikely to follow through with the promise if elected.—AP

I

All articles appearing on these pages are the personal opinion of the writers. Kuwait Times takes no responsibility for views expressed therein. Kuwait Times invites readers to voice their opinions. Please send submissions via email to: opinion@kuwaittimes.net or via snail mail to PO Box 1301 Safat, Kuwait. The editor reserves the right to edit any submission as necessary.

In blistering form, Obama rebounds

By Ben Feller ighting for his political life, US President Barack Obama re-emerged in blistering form in an interruption-filled debate rematch, trying to diminish Mitt Romney’s rising stature by accusing him of dishonesty and extremism. In a confrontational showdown, Romney did well against his suddenly higher expectations and an incumbent who decided to show up with passion this time.

Portraying himself as a plausible alternative for struggling Americans, Romney declared: “We don’t have to live like this.” What millions of voters got was an almost desperate competition of ideas and claims between two men who badly want the job and want to beat each other. It felt almost nothing like the first, fairly drab debate that Romney won. Both guys were bouncing off their stools. Obama’s nervous supporters will surely get a boost from his fiercely competitive showing, which in turn could drive up enthusiasm in the get-out-the-vote effort that could decide the election. Playing for undecided voters and women in particular, Obama turned the most straightforward questions from voters into a chance to contrast himself with Romney. Almost lost, at times, were the town-hall participants who

F

were supposed to play a major role in asking questions.

The candidates got in each other’s space and spoke over each other’s lines in a reflection of the race itself at this point - an intense, deadlocked contest for the future of the nation. “You’ll get your chance. I’m still speaking,” Romney said during one exchange as the audience in the arena gasped. “I’m the president,” Obama said when asked about the deadly attack on Americans in Libya. He pointed at Romney and said that suggestion that anyone on his team “would play politics or mislead when we’ve lost four of our own, governor, is offensive. That’s not what we do.”

As if to put a bookend on his second debate performance, Obama chose his last minutes to mention what he never did last time, Romney’s caught-on-tape statement that nearly half the people of the nation “believe that they are victims”. “Think about who he was talking about,” the president said in an appeal to the middle-class voters at the center of the entire campaign.

Obama’s strategy failed in the first debate on a Denver stage because, as the frontrunner, he had tried to sell his agenda without engaging Romney much. This time he tied Romney to Republicans in Congress and

sought to make him look extreme compared with President George W Bush.

Obama the aggressor showed up because debates are high-stakes reality television, where style can leave just as much impression as substance. The president gave more attention to how his answers would play on TV, knowing some viewers last time wondered whether he cared. That’s why Obama, more than once, said he was looking forward to the next question. Riding high but still facing a harder state-by-state electoral path to victory, Romney sought to prove he could relate well to voters in a town-hall setting against an incumbent who bests him on likability. When one woman questioned Romney about his tax plan, she lost her train of thought midway through a list of the deductions that are popular with the middle class. The president jumped in: “You’re doing great!”

The burden, the anticipation, the opportunity - it all focused on Romney in the first debate because he was trailing and needing a breakthrough. This time, undecided voters needed to hear from Obama why they will be better off if they rehire him. That’s exactly what one of the questioners, Michael Jones, asked Obama after saying he had voted for him last time. Obama recited all he has done

- helping the auto industry, cutting taxes, tracking down Osama bin Laden - and then pivoted to his next economic plan.

Romney’s response to Jones: “I think you know better. I think you know that these last four years haven’t been so good as the president just described and that you don’t feel like you’re confident that the next four years are going to be much better, either.”

It spoke to Romney’s approach this time: Stay aggressive but pull everything back to the theme that Obama has been a disappointment in the way that matters most to people, their economic security. Romney wanted voters to come away thinking he is a fix-it guy for the economy. The first debate reset the race to its current place: deadlocked nationally and extremely close in the states that will decide it. Romney still has the more difficult path to victory because of the math of the map.

On the path to 270 Electoral College votes, Obama is presumed to start with 237 compared with Romney’s 191 based on the political leanings of individual states. So Romney must win more of the nine states still up for grabs, particularly Ohio. In the US system, presidents are chosen not by the nationwide popular vote but in state-bystate contests.— AP

Romney, Obama ask voters: Trust me

By Charles Babington President Barack Obama and

US

Republican Mitt Romney teed up the last three weeks of the presidential election as a question of which man voters can trust to improve the economy. If the undecided voters who questioned the two men in Tuesday’s fast-paced debate are an indication, then the Nov 6 contest may turn on whether like -minded Americans decide to stick with a disappointing-butprogressing president, or gamble on a challenger who swears he knows how to create jobs, but provides few details to shore up the claim.

Obama, vastly more animated than in his first debate, accused Romney of misleading voters about his record on China, the US auto industry and US energy production. “What Governor Romney said just isn’t true,” Obama said in one of several exchanges in which he practically called his opponent a liar. He was referring to Romney’s description of the 2009 bailout of General Motors and Chrysler, when Romney opposed the heavy infusion of federal funds to help the companies survive bankruptcy.

Obama used similar language to describe Romney’s assessment of US oil production, and the president’s immigration policies. Romney took his own whacks at the president’s trustworthiness. But Romney was at his best when he kept things simple and forward-looking. He said Obama’s four-year record is the best indicator of what a second term would bring. “If you were to elect President Obama, you know what you’re going to get,” Romney said. “You’re going to get a repeat of the last four years. We just can’t afford four more years like the last four years. We don’t have to settle for what we’re going through,” Romney said, urging Americans to fire a president they generally like, according to polls. “We don’t have to settle for unemployment at a chronically high level. We

don’t have to settle for 47 million people on food stamps.”

Given that unemployment just recently fell below 8 percent for the first time since he took office, Obama cannot make rosy promises without looking foolish or insincere. He acknowledged that Americans are struggling. But he urged them to stick with policies showing slow but steady improvement.

Obama said, would involve sharply increasing the deficit or finding new ways to tax the middle class - or both.

Slyly complimenting his opponent as “a very successful investor”, Obama said that if someone approached Romney “with a plan that said, ‘Here, I want to spend 7 or 8 trillion dollars, and then we’re going to pay for it, but we can’t tell you until maybe after the election how

US President Barack Obama (left) and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney are seen at the second presidential debate on Tuesday at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. — AFP “We’ve created 5 million jobs, and gone from 800,000 jobs a month being lost, and we are making progress,” the president said. “We saved an auto industry that was on the brink of collapse.”

Obama was most animated when claiming that Romney is trying to sell voters a bill of goods. He said Romney outlines feel-good plans for lower tax rates and higher military spending that would cost $8 trillion over 10 years. The only possible ways to absorb such costs,

we’re going to do it,’ you wouldn’t take such a sketchy deal. And neither should you, the American people, because the math doesn’t add up.” Romney indignantly said he can fulfill his promises. He would limit tax deductions for the wealthy, among other things, he said.

But independent analysts say Romney’s plan would have to embrace more painful tax hikes or painful spending cuts to make the numbers work.

Rather than offer such details, Romney

repeatedly asked Americans to trust his skills and intentions. “As president, I’ll get America working again,” he said. “I will get us on track to a balanced budget. The president hasn’t.” Romney hit the “trust me” theme time and again. “I was someone who ran businesses for 25 years, and balanced the budget,” he said.

“I ran the Olympics and balanced the budget.”

Don’t believe it, Obama kept saying.

Look at details of Romney’s past, not his vague summaries, he said. “When he talks about getting tough on China, keep in mind that Governor Romney invested in companies that were pioneers of outsourcing to China,” the president said. He was alluding to Romney’s time as head of Bain Capital, a private equity firm. Tuesday’s debate brought huge relief to Democrats despondent over Obama’s flat performance in the Oct 3 forum.

“Whatever bounce Romney got from the first debate was stopped in its tracks,” said Democratic strategist Doug Hattaway. “President Obama relentlessly drove the narrative that Romney can’t be trusted, and put him on the defense much of the time.”

Republicans said Romney’s performance was far from shabby, but not quite as sharp as the president’s. “Obama was SO much better that he has to get the win,” GOP consultant Rich Galen said in an email. “He was well-prepped to have at least one fact about Romney (true or not) that he could use in every question.

I thought Romney looked as strong as he did in the first one, but because Obama was so much better, it may not look that way.”

The two men have one more debate, on foreign policy, next Monday.

Between now and Nov. 6, the economy is unlikely to make a dramatic move one way or another. Voters have lots of facts, figures, disappointments and hopes lying before them. In the end, they’ll have to decide whom they trust. - AP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

sp orts AFC boss slams ‘intimidation’

Oracle capsizes in training

TOKYO: The Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) acting chief Zhang Jilong has criticised sidelined president Mohamed Bin Hammam for attempting to derail an investigation into alleged financial wrongdoing by the Qatari through the use of “intimidation”.

Responding to a letter dated Oct. 8, Zhang said Hammam was trying to “intimidate and create technical legal issues and objections in the hope that the more serious allegations of secret commissions, bribery, corruption and other wrongdoings are never exposed to the light of day.”

The AFC, which Bin Hammam headed for nearly 10 years, provisionally suspended him for 30 days on July 16 and then invoked a clause which allows them to extend the ban by 20 days. Zhang wrote to the AFC’s member associations to deny any “conflict of interest in the ongoing AFC Disciplinary Committee action against Bin Hammam” or that he had “personally benefited from his support”. — Reuters

SAN FRANCISCO: Oracle’s preparations for defending the America’s Cup suffered a setback on Tuesday when their AC72 class catamaran capsized on San Francisco Bay and incurred substantial damage. It was only the eighth time Oracle had taken the massive catamaran - the class of yacht to be used for the Louis Vuitton challengers regatta and America’s Cup - on to water for training since it was launched in August.

Official website www.americascup.com said the boat was still upside down, having floated under the iconic Golden Gate Bridge, with its wing (mast and rigid sail) “damaged nearly beyond recognition”. None of the crew were hurt in the capsize, but the team were having trouble getting the catamaran back to base.

Tactician Tom Slingsby said the boat had been preparing to bear away (turn away from the wind) when it capsized stern over bow (pitchpoled). “We didn’t know what was going to happen with the new boat,” Slingsby told Oracle’s website (www.oracle-teamusa.americascup.com). “When the nose went down, the wing hit and a few guys went in the water. “We were unsure if the wing would snap, so we all climbed off the boat. “Luckily, everyone is accounted for and no one was hurt. The wing is pretty badly damaged, and we are working to get the boat back in position to return to (the team base at) Pier 80.”—Reuters

Woods, McIlroy to play in Abu Dhabi PARIS: Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods have both confirmed they will return to Abu Dhabi in January to open their 2013 season. The top-ranking players in the world played in the emirate in January this year, although neither won the European PGA tournament which went to England’s Robert Rock.

But both said they had been impressed by the Abu Dhabi Golf Club course and the facilities that were provided, convincing them to return for next year with a $2.7 million prize fund on offer from January 17-20. “I really enjoyed my time in Abu Dhabi and I wanted to return, particularly as I played well and came so close last year,” said Woods.

“I’d love nothing more than to win in January and start the season in the best possible way.”

McIlroy, who won his first pro tournament in nearby Dubai in 2009, took over the world No.1 spot earlier this year and went on to win his second major tournament at the USPGA in August. — AFP

Armstrong dropped by Nike after leaving Livestrong

ELLICOTT: In this Oct. 7, 2012, file photo, Lance Armstrong competes wearing Nike gear in the Rev3 Half Full triathalon in Ellicott City. —AP

AUSTIN: Lance Armstrong stepped down as chairman of his Livestrong cancer charity yesterday as Nike broke all ties with the disgraced cycling star over “seemingly insurmountable evidence” of doping.

Both developments came as the International Cycling Union (UCI) faced growing pressure to reveal how the 41-year-old American, a seven-time Tour de France champion, had been able to escape detection for doping for so long.

“To spare the foundation any negative effects as a result of controversy surrounding my cycling career, I will conclude my chairmanship,” Armstrong said in a statement posted on the Livestrong website.

Armstrong had been an inspirational figure for millions after recovering from testicular cancer that had spread to his brain and lungs and then winning the world’s most celebrated cycling event seven times in a row.

Those victories were stripped from Armstrong in August by the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and Armstrong was banned from cycling for life once he chose not to fight the doping accusations against him,

Dufner aims to forget shock Ryder Cup defeat PERTH: American Jason Dufner tees off in the Perth International today aiming to put the United States’ shock loss to Europe in last month’s Ryder Cup behind him.

The world number 10 said it would be the longest two years in his career before he will have the chance to banish the painful memories of Europe’s fabled come-from-behind win over the USA at Chicago’s Medinah Country Club.

“I often catch myself thinking about it,” Dufner lamented on the eve of his first tournament since Medinah, the Aus$2 million ($2.04 million) Perth International at Lake Karrinyup, north of Perth.

With a seemingly unassailable 10-4 lead going into the final day of singles matches, the USA team were reeled in by the Europeans going down 14-1/2 to 131/2. Even though he won three of a possible four points and was one of the bestperformed US players on his Ryder Cup debut, Dufner continues to beat himself up. “I think about what could I have done better? Where could I maybe have picked up another half a point?” Dufner said yesterday. “How could I have helped my team-mates more? We were pretty close to winning that.

“It’s been a tough couple of weeks since the Ryder Cup and the toughest thing about it is you’ve got to wait two years again until you can play again.

That’s a long time for us.”

Dufner says the best thing he can do in the meantime is “play golf again, get over it and move past it a little bit”.

With this uppermost in his mind and the debt feels he owes the game and

himself to become a “global player”, he has travelled to Perth for the tournament co-sanctioned by the European and Australasian PGA tours.

Dufner joins 2011 US Masters champion, South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel (ranked No.31), American Bo Van Pelt (No.24) and England’s No.46 Paul Casey as the main overseas drawcards for the Perth event.

Schwartzel, who holds a helicopter pilot’s licence, took to the skies as a passenger in a helicopter this week to get an aerial perspective of Perth and the Lake Karrinyup course.

He defeated world No.1 Rory McIlroy before losing to Lee Westwood in the semi-final of the World Golf Final in Turkey last week, and he feels he is coming back into form after a difficult season.

“I built some good confidence last week playing against them (McIlroy and Tiger Woods) and I just showed that the game is still there somewhere,” Schwartzel said.

“So I’ve got some good confidence last week and I’m really excited for this week.” West Australian Greg Chalmers has the advantage over the visitors because he understands the subtleties of the 6,531-metre par 72 Lake Karrinyup layout. Left-hander Chalmers is ranked No.58 in the world and made a late decision to play in front of his home Perth crowd in a bid to get in the top 50 by the end of the year. “If I can get inside the top 50, it will set up my 2013 schedule a lot better around the majors,” said Chalmers, who won last year’s Australian Open and the Australian PGA Championship. —AFP

Kapur eyes Indian Open NEW DELHI: India’s Shiv Kapur is determined to end a seven-year title drought at the Hero Indian Open, which he hails as a ‘fifth Major’, ahead of the tournament teeing off today.

“As a kid growing up my dream was always to win my national open. Every golfer wants to win their national open as it is a fifth Major for them,” said Kapur,

Shiv Kapur

whose sole Asian Tour victory was in Thailand in 2005. The 30-year-old, who finished fifth at the Macau Open last week, is currently ranked 10th on the Order of Merit.

“I think my consistency is better and I’m getting closer to winning. I’m disappointed I’m not able to win more. That plays on my mind but you realise you have to be patient,” he said.

“I’ll be sticking to what I’ve been doing and keep knocking on the door and hopefully it will open soon,” added Kapur, who had three top-five finishes on the Asian Tour this season.

However he will face stern challenges from the likes of an in-form Gaganjeet Bhullar, who won his fourth Asian Tour title last week, defending champion David Gleeson of Australia and Peter Hanson of Sweden, ranked 25th in the world.

The $1.25 million tournament will be played for the first time in the southern state of Karnataka. Kapur lauded the decision to move his national open to a new venue.

“I think it is good for the growth of the game. The sport is growing all over India.

It is good for the national open to move around,” said Kapur. —AFP

claims outlined in a report unveiled last week and presented to UCI. More than 1,000 pages of evidence, including testimony against Armstrong from 11 former teammates and 26 witnesses in all, proved too much for sportswear giant Nike to continue to stand by Armstrong as it had for months. “Due to the seemingly insurmountable evidence that Lance Armstrong participated in doping and misled Nike for more than a decade, it is with great sadness that we have terminated our contract with him,” Nike’s statement said.

“Nike plans to continue support of the Livestrong initiatives created to unite, inspire and empower people affected by cancer.”

Livestrong’s iconic yellow wristband was launched in 2004 in collaboration with Nike.

More than 80 million Livestrong wristbands have been sold, donations that were in part inspired by Armstrong’s now-tainted cancer comeback.

Livestrong is one of the best-known cancer charities in the United States, having raised nearly $500 million since it was founded by Armstrong in 1997. Armstrong’s

farewell from the charity he founded comes two days before a 15th anniversary gala for Livestrong at which Armstrong is expected to speak in his hometown of Austin, Texas.

“It has been a great privilege to help grow it from a dream into an organization that today has served 2.5 million people and helped spur a cultural shift in how the world views cancer survivors,” Armstrong said.

Armstrong has always maintained he did not take banned substances, but said in August he would not challenge USADA’s allegations, saying years of accusations had left him weary and the fight would be too stressful and expensive. USADA revealed its case against Armstrong last week, with USADA chief executive Travis T. Tygart saying Armstrong was at the heart of the biggest doping conspiracy in sports history.

“The evidence of the US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team-run scheme is overwhelming,” Tygart said. “The evidence shows beyond any doubt that the US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team ran the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen.” Evidence included

an expert’s finding that Armstrong blood changes indicated doping and documents showing a payment to doping-linked doctor, Michele Ferrari. Other riders said Armstrong prodded them into doping to be supportive teammates.

“Lance Armstrong did not merely use performance-enhancing drugs. He supplied them to his teammates,” the report said. “He was not just a part of the doping culture on his team. He enforced and re-enforced it.”

Nike’s distancing from Armstrong and claims of being deceived come from a firm that has a history of staying with embattled sports stars, having continued to sponsor golf star Tiger Woods after his infamous sex scandal.

The firm also renewed ties with American football star Michael Vick after his prison stay for his role in a dogfight gambling ring, saying Vick had made positive changes in his life. Although fingers have pointed at Armstrong for years, the UCI, cycling’s governing body, has never sanctioned him and it has since been suggested that some officials looked the other way. — AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

sp orts

Tigers triumph over Yanks

DETROIT: Tigers’ Quintin Berry steals second as New York Yankees’ Robinson Cano takes the throw during Game 3 of the American League championship series.—AP

Time to put A-Rod on auction block NEW YORK: Alex Rodriguez is as good as gone. He was the most feared hitter of his generation once. Now he’s an afterthought. Yankees manager Joe Girardi said as much in the aftermath of Tuesday night’s AL championship series Game 3 loss to the Tigers.

What may turn out to have been New York’s last chance to change the course of the series came in the ninth inning with two on and two out and left-handed reliever Phil Coke on the mound. Instead of bringing the righthanded Rodriguez in to pinch-hit, or even as a decoy to force his Detroit counterpart, Jim Leyland, to turn to right-handed reliever Joaquin Benoit, Girardi elected to roll the dice once more with the Raul Ibanez.

Unlike when Girardi played a similar hunch last week against Baltimore, letting Ibanez pinch-hit for Rodriguez, the left-handed veteran struck out to end the game.

“Joe, did you consider hitting Alex or a right(-handed) hitter?” a reporter asked. “What went through your mind there when Ibanez came up?”

“Well,” Girardi replied, “they were going to bring in Benoit.” “So you liked that first matchup better than the other one?” “Ibanez has been one of our best hitters down the stretch here,” Girardi said matter-of-factly.

Thanks to that thicket of statistics Girardi has within arm’s reach in the dugout, he knew the percentages the Yankees were up against. On the one hand, Benoit has yielded seven home runs against right-handed batters this season; on the other, Rodriguez was .158 in his career off Benoit, with one home run, slightly better than the 0for-17 - with 12 strikeouts - he’s posted against right-handers this postseason. Anyone who doubts Girardi has effectively given up on A-Rod simply had to look at who was in the on-deck circle when Ibanez struck out - the similarly struggling, but left-handed hitting Nick Swisher.

And though Girardi hasn’t said as much, he hasn’t lost sleep over whether his decision to bench Rodriguez has damaged their relationship. “Of course that’s something that you have to worry about,” Girardi said recently. “But I don’t think you can worry about it today. Relationships go through their ups and downs, no matter who they are, and you have a chance to rebuild them.” Or end them.

Rodriguez has never been a comfortable fit with the Yankees. He’s a target for the tabloids, even when he’s not in the game, a reminder of which came with a report in the New York Post that he spent some of his time on the bench Saturday night flirting with two fans two rows behind the New

York dugout. And at 37, with his skills in decline, he still has five years and $114 million guaranteed to run on his contract, plus the power to veto a trade. But that doesn’t mean it can’t happen.

In the National League, Atlanta could use a name to replace Chipper Jones at third. Rodriguez also would be a fit at third for Miami, where he grew up and owns a home that he’s trying to unload for $38 million. The Dodgers’ new ownership hasn’t been shy about accumulating high-priced talent and current third baseman Luis Cruz isn’t going to help sell tickets.

But A-Rod to the American League seems like a better deal all around. His current contract contains a number of bonuses for career milestones - all home runs - and his best chance to eventually reach those is as a designated hitter.

Based on his performance this season, Rodriguez would be an immediate upgrade at third over the platoon of Maicer Izturis and Alberto Callaspo the Los Angeles Angels deployed this season and he’d be popular with the team’s Latino fan base as long as he remained productive.

Even the Chicago White Sox might be an option, since the club has made a habit of taking on fading stars in recent years, so long as the price is right. Best of all, though, might be the Houston Astros, who have money to throw around as a result of an agreement with Major League Baseball to move to the AL next season, and desperately could use the buzz.

That said, not one of those clubs is likely to consider Rodriguez at the full retail price. But the Yankees have a history of unloading high-priced talent by continuing to pay part of the bill and estimates the team would have to fork over somewhere between 50 and 75 percent of his salary for the next five years aren’t necessarily a dealbreaker. Not after this postseason.

Recently, Yankees President Randy Levine was asked whether he thought A-Rod would still be wearing pinstripes when his current deal ended in 2017. He told ESPN Radio in New York, “That’s like one of those questions: Where’s the stock market going to be in 2017, who’s going to be president on Nov. 15? “If I had crystal ball to predict all of that stuff, I’d be a lot smarter than I am,” he added. “I’m not going to go there.”

Not yet, anyway, and not before this season comes to a merciful conclusion. But Rodriguez lost the fans long ago, and from the sound of things Girardi and general manager Brian Cashman might not be too far behind.—AP

NEW YORK: Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez (left) talks to manager Joe Girardi in this file photo.—AP

DETROIT: Justin Verlander was done for the night, and for the first time all game, the New York Yankees looked threatening at the plate.

Mark Teixeira singled, then Robinson Cano followed suit for his first hit in 30 at-bats. Up stepped Raul Ibanez, who had already rescued New York a couple times this postseason with dramatic home runs in the late innings.

“Usually when I am out of the game like that, I head to the locker room and go through my normal routine, but obviously I wanted to stay for the last out there,” Verlander said. “Made it a little nerve wracking, so I sprinted up to the locker room and went through my routine as fast as I possibly could. Obviously I am superstitious a little bit. So I watched the last out from up top on the TV.” Reliever Phil Coke struck out Ibanez and the Detroit Tigers held on for a tense 2-1 victory over the Yankees on Tuesday night, taking a 3-0 lead in the AL championship series. After halting New York’s rally in the ninth inning, the Tigers are a win away from their second pennant in seven years.

Detroit is in this position because of a stellar starting rotation that hasn’t needed much help from the bullpen or the offense.

“You see somebody go out there and have a good game, and you want to one-up that guy.

He is your friend, I know, but it still gives you the urge to go out there and do better,” Verlander said. “I think that’s a great thing when you can get your entire rotation doing that, and I think we’re starting to click at the right time.”

Seeking their first World Series title since 1984, the Tigers were on a historic pitching run even before their ace took the mound Tuesday.

With the exception of a four-run ninth inning against Detroit closer Jose Valverde in Game 1, New York had been shut out for the entire series.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi benched Alex Rodriguez and Nick Swisher for Game 3, but it was no use. Verlander allowed only a pair of singles by Ichiro Suzuki and a leadoff homer by Eduardo Nunez in the ninth. Delmon Young hit a solo home run for the Tigers, and Miguel Cabrera had an RBI double.

Nunez’s homer snapped a scoreless streak by Detroit starters of 30 1-3 innings. That’s a record for a single postseason, according to STATS LLC. The previous mark of 29 innings was set by Oakland in 1974.

“You don’t want to be in this situation, but this is the game of baseball,” Cano said. “All you can do is not put our head down and just prepare ourselves for (Wednesday). It’s not over yet.”

New York sends CC Sabathia (15-6) to the mound in Game 4 and Detroit counters with Max Scherzer (16-7). Verlander fell just short of a second straight shutout after stopping the Athletics in the decisive fifth game of the division series. He struck out only three, but kept New York off the scoreboard until the homer to left field by Nunez, the first run allowed by the powerful right-hander since he gave up a leadoff homer to Coco Crisp in Game 1 of the ALDS.

Nunez was at shortstop because Derek Jeter broke his ankle in Game 1 and will miss the rest of the season. “He put together a heck of an atbat, was locked in,” Verlander said. “Probably would have been a different result if I executed it better, but you never know with a guy up there that was battling like he was.”

Verlander got Brett Gardner on a tapper before he was lifted after 132 pitches, one shy of the career high he set in Game 5 of last year’s ALCS against Texas. “Normally I guess you don’t take Secretariat out in the final furlong, but that was pretty much it for him,” Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. Coke came in and retired Suzuki before allowing two-out hits to Teixeira and Cano. Ibanez, who hit tying and winning homers in the same game in the ALDS against Baltimore and tied Game 1 of this series with a homer in the ninth, struck out swinging at a breaking ball to end it. “Raul has come up in a lot of big situations,” Girardi said. “You know, you go back to September 1 and he has come through for us, and I felt great about him up there.”

Yankees starter Phil Hughes was lifted in the fourth because of a stiff back, but right now it’s the Yankees’ hitting that has them on the brink of elimination. New York is batting .182 for the series and .200 during the postseason.

Rodriguez also was benched for Game 5 against Baltimore after being pulled for pinchhitters in the previous two games. A-Rod is 3 for 23 (.130) without an RBI or extra-base hit this postseason, his latest October flop. The numbers are especially ugly against right-handers: 0 for 18 with 12 strikeouts.

The three-time AL MVP was not available to reporters before or after the game. Hughes matched Verlander in a scoreless duel until Young led off the Detroit fourth with a line drive over the wall in left field. It was his seventh homer in the last two postseasons - he’s already the Tigers’ career leader in that department.

Andy Dirks followed with a walk, and Hughes was pulled with an 0-2 count on Jhonny Peralta.

David Phelps came on and got out of the inning, but the Yankees now have a pitching injury to go along with all their hitting problems.

The Yankees kept it close, dodging several Detroit rallies. The Tigers added an unearned run in the fifth when Eric Chavez - Rodriguez’s replacement at third - misplayed a grounder for an error. Cabrera, the AL Triple Crown winner, followed with an RBI double. Cabrera has a 16game hitting streak in LCS play, breaking a tie for that record with Manny Ramirez and Pete Rose, according to STATS.—AP

DETROIT: New York Yankees’ Eduardo Nunez hits a home run in the ninth inning during Game 3 of the American League championship series against the Detroit Tigers.—AP

Bochy rejects retaliation talk heading into Game 3 ST. LOUIS: Giants manager Bruce Bochy expects Marco Scutaro to be in his lineup card for Game 3 of the NL championship series, two days after St. Louis slugger Matt Holliday plowed into the San Francisco second baseman. “I think so. It feels much better,” Scutaro said Tuesday night after participating in a workout at Busch Stadium. “I thought it was going to be worse. Normally, the next day is when you feel it the most.” Neither seemed too interested in any talk of retaliation.

“What’s on our mind is to go out and play our best ball,” Bochy said Tuesday night, a day before the best-of-seven series resumes at Busch Stadium with the Giants and St. Louis Cardinals tied at one game apiece. “That’s over. You have to move on.”

Scutaro said a shutout from Matt Cain would be perfect and knew nothing about get-even plans. If Matt Holliday approached him before the game, he joked that the Cardinals slugger would be in for a fight. The recollection of the play was vivid. “All of a sudden, I just saw this train coming,” he said. “I didn’t have time to do pretty much anything. I don’t even know how I threw the ball to first, but I think I did, huh?” He added that if Holliday had slid any farther, “probably you’re going to make it to shortstop.” Results of an MRI exam showed Scutaro has a strained left hip after Holliday’s late slide while busting up a double play. Bochy said Scutaro also had a sore left knee, and the manager had planned on holding him out of practice after the team flight arrived from the West Coast.

“We’re being hopeful he can go,” Bochy said. “I will say he’s more optimistic about where he’s at right now than when it first happened.”

Cain, who will face fellow 16game winner Kyle Lohse, said little about any possible animosity. Cain added that he wouldn’t be afraid to throw inside against Holliday.

“You’ve got to go out there and pitch your game,” Cain said. “If something gets away from me inside, that’s kind of part of the game. You can’t have a fear of doing that.”

The 36-year-old Scutaro was an unexpected find for the Giants, batting .362 with 40 runs and 44 RBIs in 61 games after being acquired in

late July from the Rockies for a minor league infielder. He’s batting .250 with three RBIs in the playoffs, but has stepped it up in the NLCS, going 4 for 8 with two RBIs. “He’s driven in a lot of two-out runs and gotten rallies going for us as well,” Cain said. “He’s been really, really big for us.”

Bochy reiterated his opinion that Holliday had made an “illegal slide,” but said he hadn’t talked with St. Louis manager Mike Matheny or anyone else on the Cardinals.

“I don’t think there was intent, to be honest, hurting somebody,” Bochy said. “But it was late. Marco was behind the bag, he really didn’t hit dirt until he got behind the

Midwest. The exception was a 49pitch simulated game by Jake Westbrook, who is recovering from a strained right oblique and is hopeful of rejoining the staff if St. Louis makes it to the World Series.

After Game 2, Holliday said he relayed an apology of sorts to Giants catcher Busty Posey before his next at-bat.

“I told Buster to tell Marco I wish I had started my slide a step earlier,” Holliday said. “I wanted him to know I wasn’t trying to hurt him.

When a guy has to leave the game, I feel bad.” Holliday also defended his hard-nosed approach. “ When I’m at first and see a grounder to short, I’m just trying to

ST. LOUIS: San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Cain throws during practice. Cain is scheduled to start when the Giants play the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 3 of baseball’s National League championship series.—AP base. “And the second baseman, he’s in a position there where there can be some damage done, as we saw. He came out of this plenty good considering how hard he got hit.” Added Scutaro: “I don’t know too much about sliding rules, but I think it was a little late. I don’t think he was intentionally doing it.”

Scutaro came out of Game 2 in the fifth inning because he was having trouble running, particularly side to side. He said his leg had gone numb, too.

Pain in the left knee developed on Tuesday, and Scutaro said both the hip and knee were stiff during the workout. If he can’t start, Ryan Theriot would play second.

St. Louis didn’t work out Tuesday after a late-night return flight to the

make sure they can’t turn the double play,” Holliday said. “He was right on second base. I hope he’s OK. He’s a good guy.”

Back at home, where Holliday will get cheers instead of boos, Matheny said what happened is just part of the game. “To me, what I see is a guy who I’ve never seen one act of trying to hurt anybody,” Matheny said. “And I would never believe that’s what he was trying to do. I know what Matt’s intentions were and he was thinking about his team at the time.”

Lohse hopes to end a string of early exits for Cardinals starters in Game 3. He’s all about efficiency, avoiding extended at-bats and letting hitters get themselves out.

St. Louis has gone three straight

games without a starter getting an out in the fifth inning. Matheny said travel days during the postseason lessen the burden and keep pitchers fresh. Still, he’d rather not keep making those early trips to the mound. “You have strong starting pitching, you have an opportunity to be successful,” Matheny said.

“Otherwise, you’re fighting an uphill battle all the time and it seems like you’re constantly coming back.” Lohse needed just 87 pitches to complete a strong seveninning outing his last time out. He did not get a decision in a 2-1 loss to the Nationals in Game 4 of the NL division series. Lohse worked six innings or longer and threw fewer than 100 pitches 11 times during the regular season.

“It’s not really a secret: I rely on getting first-pitch strikes, getting ahead of the guys and making them hit my pitch,” Lohse said.

“That’s my version of pitching to contact. I’m not out there trying to strike guys out. I want them out in three or four pitches and move on.”

He’ll try not to carry any extra burden into this start. “We’ve had our ups and downs as the rotation goes,” Lohse said. “You can’t put more pressure on yourself to go out there and do more. I can’t go out there and tr y to throw seven innings all at once.”

Cain was ex-Cardinals manager Tony La Russa’s choice as the NL AllStar game starter in July. The righthander hasn’t gone deep in either of his postseason starts, giving up six runs over 10 2-3 innings.

Cain struggled against the Cardinals this year, going 1-1 with a 6.94 ERA in two starts, and is 2-3 with a 4.94 ERA overall in eight starts. Cain recalled a start in 2006 or ‘07 when Albert Pujols “took me to Big Mac Land.”

“I haven’t had a ton of starts in this ballpark,” Cain said. “I think the biggest thing is just making good pitches, and at times I didn’t make good pitches against these guys.”

The Giants’ probable pitchers for Games 4 and 5 remain “TBA” for now according to Bochy, who said he’d reveal his choices after Game 3 depending on who he used in that game. “I have not named a starter, really, because I don’t have to right now,” Bochy said. “That’s my biggest reason. And we’ll see what happens tomorrow.”—AP

17

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

SPORTS

Wolff drives F1 car with De Villota on her mind SILVERSTONE: Williams development driver Susie Wolff paid tribute to seriously injured Marussia tester Maria De Villota after having her first drive in a Formula One car at a damp Silverstone circuit yesterday. Spaniard De Villota, the last woman behind the wheel of a Formula One car, lost her right eye and fractured her skull in a horrific accident at a straight-line test at Duxford airfield in eastern England last July.

“She is an incredible lady. Before you even talk about her as a racing driver, she is an incredible person, an inspiration,”

Wolff told reporters after her first session in last year’s unsuccessful Williams FW33.

“We were in contact a couple of weeks ago and she told me to drive for the both of us now, that I would be out there representing us both.

“I had Maria’s star on my helmet, it’s with pride I have that, and without a doubt I was driving for the two of us,” added the 29-year-old Scottish-born driver.

Wolff, whose Austrian husband Toto is a Williams shareholder and director, normally races in the German Touring Car

(DTM) championship and was thrilled to be achieving a lifetime’s ambition. Only a handful of women have driven Formula One cars in the last decade and none has come near to racing one.

Before De Villota, who also tested a Renault in 2011, Britain’s Katherine Legge drove a Minardi at Italy’s Vallelunga circuit in 2005 and American Sarah Fisher carried out a demonstration run in a McLaren at Indianapolis at the 2002 U.S. Grand Prix.

The last woman to start a Formula One race was Italian Lella Lombardi in

1976. “Never at any point was I worried about what was happening out there.

Everything was under control and it was really good fun,” said Wolff.

“It was incredible. I’ve waited a long time for this day, I’ve dreamed about this day for a long time, with the first lap something special.

“I’ve done a lot of days in the simulator so I knew what to expect but of course it is tremendously different when you are out there and going at those speeds.”

Williams’s regular race drivers Pastor

Maldonado of Venezuela and Brazilian Bruno Senna, who were at Silverstone to drive two title-winning cars - Keke Rosberg’s 1982 FW08 and Damon Hill’s 1996 FW18 - and meet guests and sponsors, were watching the run.

“She’s doing quite good...so confident with the car. I have been with her in a DTM two-seater and I have to say she has a great control of the car,” said Maldonado, who drove Hill’s car. “The first time in a Formula One car as everyone knows is a special day. She is good.” —Reuters

Bulls charge past Bucks

YEONGAM: The new principal for the Sauber Formula One team Monisha Kaltenborn and the outgoing team principal Peter Sauber pose outside the team’s pit lane garage at the Korean International Circuit. —AP

Kaltenborn happy to return home for Indian Grand Prix NEW DELHI: The first woman to lead a Formula One team has another reason to look forward to the Indian Grand Prix next week - it’s in her country of birth.

The 41-year-old Monisha Kaltenborn was promoted from Sauber’s chief executive to its team principal last week, and she said her main focus now is on ensuring the Switzerland-based team improves on its four podium finishes this season.

“The Indian GP is a race like any other, with the same meticulous preparations and the same aspiration to achieve the best possible result,” Kaltenborn said in a Sauber statement. “From a personal point of view, it’s rather different.

Obviously, I’m particularly looking forward to this race in my home country.”

Sauber is sixth in the F1 constructors’ standings on 116 points, 251 behind leader Red Bull, and Kaltenborn believes the team can rise at least one spot with four races left in the season.

“Our ambitious goal remains to finish fifth in the constructors’ world championship,” she said. “And I have the utmost confidence, both in our team at Hinwil and in the crew at the track along with our two drivers, Kamui Kobayashi and

Sergio Perez. “Of course, there have been races where things didn’t go to plan and we forfeited valuable points.” Perez is 10th and Kobayashi 11th in the drivers’ standings.

Kaltenborn moved from India to Austria when she was 8. She later earned a Masters law degree before joining Sauber in 1999, winning promotion as CEO in 2010 and becoming a 33 percent partner in the team five months ago.

Peter Sauber’s retirement last week gave Kaltenborn her new role. Kaltenborn said F1 can do well in India despite cricket being the country’s main sporting obsession.

“Basically, it’s difficult for any sport to find a place in India next to cricket. But I do think that the interest in Formula One has risen significantly since its debut last year,” Kaltenborn said. “At least the media interest we are experiencing as a team would strongly indicate that.

“It seems right that India, as an upwardly mobile nation, a huge marketplace and a high-tech location, has found a place in the Formula One calendar with its excellently trained engineers.

Both Formula One and the country can benefit from it.” —AP

CHICAGO: Nate Robinson scored 24 points and Richard Hamilton added 23 to lead the Chicago Bulls in a 10094 preseason victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night.

Joakim Noah scored 16 points for the Bulls (2-2). Robinson started in place of Kirk Hinrich, who sat out with a sore right thumb.

Brandon Jennings, Samuel Dalembert and Mike Dunleavy each scored 13 points for the Bucks (2-1), who shot 41.9 percent from the field.

Rookie John Henson exited with a left knee injury and did not return. The Bucks pulled to 94-91 after a 14-4 run capped by Beno Udrih’s two free throws with 3:02 left. Robinson responded with a jumper, and Hamilton and Carlos Boozer each hit two free throws to put the game away.

Milwaukee pulled within six in the third quarter, but the Bulls answered with a 13-3 run for a 79-63 lead. The Bulls last trailed 30-29 late in the first quarter, but Robinson hit a 35-footer before the buzzer to give Chicago the lead for good.

Nazr Mohammed scored eight points during the Bulls’ 17-2 run to open the second quarter, extending Chicago’s lead to 49-32.

In Oklahoma City, Andy Rautins scored 20 points, Serge Ibaka added 16 points and 10 rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Charlotte Bobcats 120-98 in a preseason game on Tuesday night.

The Thunder played at the Chesapeake Energy Arena for the first time since losing in the NBA Finals, but did so without starters Kendrick Perkins (left wrist surgery) and Thabo Sefolosha (left quad contusion) or Sixth Man of the Year James Harden (strained left groin).

Kevin Durant scored 13 points in his most extensive playing time of the preseason, going 2 for 8 in the first half before hitting his first three shots after halftime. He and Westbrook scored all the points during an 11-2 run midway through the third quarter that stretched Oklahoma City’s lead to 72-59 and put the Thunder in control. Ben

CHICAGO: Bulls guard Richard Hamilton (32) shoots over Milwaukee Bucks guard Monta Ellis during the second half of an NBA preseason basketball game. —AP Gordon led the Bobcats with 21 points and Ramon Sessions scored 18. In Boston, Mirza Teletovic made a foul shot with 4.1 seconds left and the Brooklyn Nets reserves rallied

from a 12-point deficit to beat the Boston Celtics 97-96 in a preseason game Tuesday night.

Brooklyn’s Stephen Dennis drew a foul with 5 seconds left to play and

the game tied at 96-all, but he missed both free throws. Teletovic was there for the offensive rebound and was fouled by Rob Kurz. Teletovic made the first foul shot, then missed the second and Boston called a timeout with 3.6 seconds left. Boston got two more shots off, but missed both.

Andray Blatche led Brooklyn with 23 points and nine rebounds and Reggie Evans pulled down 10 boards.

The Nets were coming off a 98-88 win over Washington on Monday night in their Brooklyn debut and played without starters Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, Brook Lopez, Kris Humphries and Gerald Wallace.

Paul Pierce scored 29 points, Rajon Rondo had 11 assists and Kevin Garnett blocked three shots for Boston, which scored 10 straight points during a 20-4 run in the third quarter.

Pierce and Garnett sat out the fourth quarter and the Brooklyn reserves made a run on Boston’s, taking a 96-95 lead on Tornike Shengalia’s three-point play with 41 seconds left. The Celtics and Nets play a preseason rematch tonight in Brooklyn.

In Auburn Hills, Rodney Stuckey scored 19 points and Greg Monroe added 15 points and four rebounds to lead the Detroit Pistons to a 112-86 preseason victory over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night.

Rookie DeQuan Jones had 22 points to pace Orlando (0-4). After leading by three points at the end of the first quarter, the Pistons (2-2) outscored the Magic 35-14 in the second quarter to take a 62-38 lead heading into the break.

Detroit gave a glimpse of the future in a 23-second span that featured two alley-oop dunks, one from rookie Andre Drummond off a pass from Monroe and another off a perfect lob from second-year guard Brandon Knight to Stuckey.

Orlando was without five players, including Arron Afflalo (strained left hamstring) and Al Harrington (right knee rehabilitation). Rookie Chris Johnson also left the game in the fourth quarter with a leg injury. —AP

Fever are ‘here for real’ with 1-0 lead on Lynx

MOSCOW: France’s Marion Bartoli returns a ball to Sweden’s Sofia Arvidsson during their Kremlin Cup tennis tournament match. —AFP

Arvidsson sends Bartoli packing MOSCOW: Sofia Arvidsson of Sweden advanced to the quarterfinals of the Kremlin Cup by beating Marion Bartoli of France 6-3, 6-0 yesterday.

Arvidsson broke Bartoli three times and dropped serve twice in the first set of the second-round match. The Frenchwoman had six double-faults in the second set.

Arvidsson, who won her second career title in Memphis earlier this year, will face either seventh-seeded Maria Kirilenko or Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan.

“I am very happy to win this match to reach the quarterfinals,” Arvidsson said.

“Marion is a great competitor, a top-10 player, and I knew I would have to be at my best. My strategy was to focus on the way I wanted to play and move her around the court.” The result means the 10th-ranked Bartoli can’t overtake No. 9 Samantha Stosur and will remain the second alternate at the season-ending WTA

Championships next week in Istanbul.

“It would have been better for me to come to Istanbul as the first substitute, but it’s always very rewarding for me to get a chance to go there,” Bartoli said. “Today my body just refused to execute what my mind was telling it to do. The surface here is very slow and it didn’t fit my play well.”

Klara Zakopalova advanced to the final eight by defeating eighth-seeded Lucie Safarova 6-4, 6-4 in all-Czech match, while Valeria Solovieva of Russia moved into the second round by downing Elina Svitolina of Ukraine 6-4, 6-2. In first-round action, Kirilenko topped fellow Russian Elena Vesnina 7-5, 6-1.

In men’s second-round play, eighthseeded Tatsuma Ito of Japan defeated Russian qualifier Konstantin Kravchuk7-6 (7), 2-6, 6-3, while Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic rallied past fifth-seeded Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. —AP

MINNEAPOLIS: Midway through the fourth quarter of Game 1 of the WNBA Finals, Minnesota power forward Rebekkah Brunson rose in the lane toward the basket with her team trying to mount a comeback.

Brunson was knocked to the floor as her shot was swatted, and Minnesota’s chance to win the series opener essentially fell down with her. The Lynx were trailing 65-62 with about five minutes left, but they never came closer. The Fever quickly tacked on a layup on the other end and cruised to a 76-70 victory. “It was what I call a thunder block,” Fever coach Lin Dunn said. “She is rising up and she just slides that ball, and it just kind of set the tone: ‘Hey, we’re here for real, and we are ready to play.’” The Lynx, looking to become the league’s first repeat champion in 10 years, are at full attention. “We want to make sure that we’re not a team that gets out-hungered. That is really important,” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said, adding: “We’ve got a lot to overcome, and we’ll see if we’re able to.”

Game 2 is Wednesday night at Target Center, before the best-of-five series shifts to Indiana for Game 3 on Friday night.

“We’ve got a lot of competitors on our team that really hate to lose, so I guess in Game 2 you’ll see the difference,” Lynx shooting guard Seimone Augustus said. “You’ll see us come out and be a little bit more aggressive from start to finish. We’re going to play and give it all that we have.”

The Fever spent Monday getting massages at a spa before reconvening for practice on Tuesday.

The two-day layoff between games probably wasn’t enough for veteran shooting guard Katie Douglas, though. After spraining her left ankle in the last game of the Eastern Conference finals, Douglas was missing from Game 1. Dunn said she’s improving but unlikely to play late yesterday. “Hopeful for tomorrow,” Dunn said.

So the Fever will continue to lean on their tallest ladies, with Erlana Larkins and Tamika Catchings inside. They combined for 36 points, 21 rebounds and five blocks in Game 1 and held Lynx post players Brunson and Taj McWilliamsFranklin to a total of 16 points and 14 rebounds.

“We had a great week of practice. We went over everything we could have possibly gone over, but they came out and they were ready to win,” Brunson said. “They played great.”

Catchings is still chasing her first WNBA championship at age 33. Larkins was out of the league the last two years before joining the Fever this

games in 2009. So they’re not comfortable by simply taking the home-court advantage.

“We know that they’re going to come out Wednesday, and they’re going to be a much different team and much better,” Catchings said.

“And for us, we have to continue to get better too.”

MINNEAPOLIS : Minnesota Lynx forward Rebekkah Brunson (32) fights for a rebound against Indiana Fever forward Tamika Catchings (24) in the first half of Game 1 of the WNBA basketball Finals. —AP season. No matter the perspective or the experience, the motivation is the same.

“When you’ve never won a title you approach it a little bit different than trying to defend a title,” Dunn said. “We’ve got players that had a taste of the finals in 2009, and they know what it was like and how close they came. It was almost like they had their hands on the trophy and it got snatched away.”

The Fever lost to the Phoenix Mercury in five

Added point guard Erin Phillips: “They’re going to come in so hungry, so aggressive. They’re the defending champions, and they’re here for the second time for a reason. They’re a great team. ...

We can’t just sit around and be satisfied that we won Game 1 and give ourselves a pat on the back, and that’s it. It’s going to be a much harder game.”

The Lynx pride themselves on their bounceback ability, so they’re expecting the same: a more aggressive performance. —AP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

sp orts

Are reporters to blame for Armstrong myth?

PARIS: The memory from the 2003 Tour de France remains fresh - because it was among the more astounding things I’ve seen as a journalist.

His collarbone fractured in two places from a crash the previous day, Tyler Hamilton oh-so-gingerly eased himself down from his team bus, step by wincing step, and painfully climbed onto his bike. He rode all that day, in pain so vivid he later described it as a color - electric green. And the next day, and the next 17 stages after that - thousands of kilometers to Paris.

Now, Hamilton confesses that his body was awash with banned drugs and blood transfusions, that the “feat” of his fourth place that year behind first-place Lance Armstrong wasn’t the story of pure, teeth-grinding determination it seemed when I reported it. What a dope. I mean me, not just him. It feels like a punch to the stomach to learn that Hamilton and other former teammates of Armstrong were for years systematically doping - and say that he was, too - because it happened under our very noses, we reporters who waited daily outside the team buses at the Tour, doing our job.

I and others didn’t see that Armstrong’s team was running what the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency now tells us was “the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen.” Why? I’m not the only journalist who has been asking themselves that question since USADA published damning testimonies from former U.S. Postal Service riders last week, to explain why it banned Armstrong for life and erased his seven Tour titles.

“We were all good actors. We all had two faces - the face for the public and for the journalists, and the face behind closed doors,” says Hamilton, who rode the 1999-2001 Tours at Postal with Armstrong but was with Team CSC in 2003.

“You’re almost like a robot,” he says. “My answers when I spoke to journalists, especially when it got to the doping kind of questions, they all became kind of standard.” So that was a big part of it: Co-conspirators in the Postal fraud were capable not only of deceiving themselves that doping was necessary but of looking people in the eye and saying, “Me? Drugs? Never!” Look again at video of Armstrong saying words to that effect ad nauseam over the years. There’s nothing, to my eye, in his

body language, his unblinking stare, to suggest even now that he wasn’t telling the truth. I always figured that there’d have to be, that grotesque lies can’t be told and retold without there being some telltale twitch or furtive expression. Naive? I’ve been asking myself that question this past week, too.

Was I negligent, even willfully blind? I’d like to think not. I heard the mounting drumbeat of suspicion that surrounded Armstrong’s ever-longer string of wins and mentioned it in reports from the Tour, which I covered from 2003-2006. But, in light of USADA’s findings, I now wish that I had reported the doubts more prominently.

Hindsight is very illuminating.

I also read the work of colleagues - David Walsh, Pierre Ballester, Damien Ressiot and others - who defied Armstrong’s myth-making, power and lawyers, dug deeply, and produced books and reports alleging or suggesting he doped. They’re among the few who emerge from all this with enhanced reputations.

But to me and other reporters at the Tour, there wasn’t the critical mass to be able say flat-out that Armstrong was a cheat. His story - cancer survivor wins toughest bike race - was so extraordinary that I agreed when he said in 2004 that proof of doping needed to be extraordinary, too. Until last week, we didn’t have the smoking gun that USADA’s extraordinary proof, with testimony from 11 former teammates, appears to be.

“It’s just so easy to say, ‘Yeah, the journalists should have dug deeper.’ Well, my God, Walsh and Ballester dug as deep as you could dig and, you know, they didn’t get anywhere. They really did not get anywhere,” says Samuel Abt, who reported from 32 Tours, writing for The New York Times and other publications.

“I’ve gone back, in fact, and looked at some of the things that I wrote at the time and I didn’t find any of it embarrassing. Now, of course, I find it uninformed. But, like you, there was nothing else to do. We just didn’t know anything and suspecting is not the way to go on this.” “I had terrific access to him because I had known him for so long,” Abt adds of Armstrong. “In ‘99, at Alpe d’Huez, he gave me an interview and I asked him, straight out. I said, ‘Are you doping?’ And he said, ‘No way!’ I don’t remember the exact quote now. He said, ‘Absolutely not.’ He said, ‘There’s no reason I would,’ and

he went on and on and he flatly denied. And it was all a lie. Yeah, he was a terrific liar.” Betsy Andreu thinks some of us didn’t look hard enough, didn’t want to know, and “would just buy Lance’s lie hook, line and sinker.” Her husband, former Armstrong teammate Frankie Andreu, testified to USADA. They both also previously testified that they heard Armstrong admit doping, which led to a long feud between them. Armstrong strongly denies doping, but in August gave up fighting USADA’s findings. “You heard these stories, you saw these incidents and I’m saying you, collectively - but yet very few, if any, did anything about it,” Betsy Andreu says. “I understand if no one is going to go on the record. I get that. But with Lance, you just had so many incidents. There were red flags all along. Just because the hand isn’t caught in the cookie jar doesn’t mean there’s nothing there.”

But deceit was carefully organized. Armstrong’s team froze out cycling reporters who grew suspicious and critical, like Jeremy Whittle.

“It was his body language, and I just realized there was something very seriously wrong going on, and I wrote a piece in 2001, which I think is when I was blacklisted,” Whittle told the BBC this week. “After that there was no access.”

One morning at the 2004 Tour, Armstrong invited my Associated Press colleague Jerome Pugmire onto his bus and then berated him for an article he and I wrote that referred to some of the doping suspicions surrounding him. In hindsight, and to Jerome at the time, that was part of the apparent pattern by Armstrong over the years to intimidate and try to silence critics, journalists and other riders.

Hamilton says they were told at Postal to avoid certain reporters. “The bus had the tinted windows so you guys could not see inside but we could look out, and sometimes they’d point to a certain journalist and say, ‘Don’t talk to that guy, don’t talk to this guy, don’t talk to that lady.’ And if you did talk to them you’d get in trouble,” he says. “We had our favorite journalists. They had the inside scoop to the team because they asked the right kind of questions. Once the journalist burned us one time, then that was it.”

Daily, outside the Postal bus was an unruly scrum.

Fans waving things to autograph, people affected by

cancer, journalists, plainclothes policemen, heaving against barriers, elbowing and yelling “Lance!” His two bodyguards kept people back. When he spoke, if he spoke, Armstrong typically answered a few questions, mostly about the race and often to Frankie Andreu, his former teammate working in television and then still keeping quiet about his own doping as a pro. Other reporters tried as best they could to grab Armstrong quotes. It was frequently intense, frustrating and not conducive to getting to the bottom of things.

“The strongest dope was the narrative of Lance as a fighter, as a cancer survivor, as the strongest endurance athlete in the world,” says Daniel Coyle, co-author of a new tell-all book with Hamilton, “The Secret Race.” “They understood the importance of access to that narrative.”

Perversely, the drug tests supposedly meant to catch cheats were perhaps Armstrong’s biggest shield. Urine, blood, hundreds of them. They kept coming back negative. Armstrong brandished that over and over at us.

Only now, from USADA’s 1,000-page file and from Hamilton’s book, do we have a fuller understanding of how Postal riders danced around the controls while doping - by using undetectable transfusions, saline drips to normalize their blood readings, and doctors who helped them dose the blood-booster EPO and other drugs without triggering positives.

“I’m not going to blame the journalists here. I’m going to blame the system,” Coyle says. “If you can’t trust the people whose job it is to police the sport, you can’t report on that sport. You can’t expect to get into closed rooms, you can’t expect to get into these guys’ luggage, you can’t expect to find the motorcycle courier who is delivering EPO. It’s too much. “A lot of people knew something was up but as a journalist you could only go where the light is. You can look into the shadows, but until you’ve got someone to take your arm and say, ‘OK, I’m walking you into the shadows,’ what’s there to write?

People tried to stake out Lance’s hotel room, but when they say, ‘No, I’m clean,’ you’re kind of obligated by the rules of the profession to report that quote and not report on your hunches. My press badge did not say, ‘Guy with hunch.’”Mine, neither. We tell what we know.

We tell stories. Armstrong’s is as big as stories come.

Now? I only wish I could have told it better. — AP

Serbia, England charged over ugly ‘racism’ clash

Andre Villas-Boas

Spurs’ Villas-Boas looking to avenge Chelsea exit LONDON: Andre Villas-Boas can become the first opposition coach to plot Chelsea’s downfall in a Premier League match this season when his old club play his in-form Tottenham Hotspur side at White Hart Lane on Saturday (1145).

The 34-year-old Portuguese is gradually rebuilding his reputation at Spurs after enduring a traumatic nine-month spell that lasted for just 27 league matches at Stamford Bridge before his dismissal in March.

The London derby is the oustanding game of the weekend and offers him the chance of some personal revenge with extra spice added to the mix.

Chelsea finished sixth last season, two places behind Spurs, but they took Spurs’ place in the Champions League after winning the final itself in Munich, consigning Spurs to the Europa League despite finishing in the top four.

Chelsea became European champions under Roberto Di Matteo who went to Chelsea as Villas-Boas’s deputy in the summer of 2011 and took over as boss when he left.

Chelsea go to Spurs as leaders on 19 points after winning six and drawing one of their seven games while Spurs have climbed to fifth on 14 points after winning their last four league games including their 3-2 success at Manchester United, their first win at Old Trafford for 23 years. If Spurs were to halt Chelsea’s progress, Manchester United, champions Manchester City and Everton would all be looking to capitalise. United, second on 15 points, are at home to mid-table Stoke City, Manchester City third on 15, visit sixth-placed West Bromwich Albion and fourth-placed Everton face bottom-of-the-table Queens Park Rangers.

All eyes though will be focused on White Hart Lane on Saturday lunchtime where Spurs are seeking to extend their unbeaten run to 10 matches in all competitions since an opening day defeat at Newcastle United in August.

Their last victory came two weeks ago before the international break when they beat Aston Villa 2-0 at home, a result that delighted “AVB”. “This gives us the opportunity to play the league leaders at home, undefeated for a while and with a good chance to go nearer the top,” Villas-Boas said.

“It is obviously going to be a difficult game but we are showing a good level of competence.” Chelsea have not won at White Hart Lane in their last six Premier League visits but did beat them 5-1 in their last meeting, an FA Cup semi-final at Wembley last season. Villas-Boas is optimistic.

“They have a lot of very young, dynamic players but so do we, and we are playing very well right now. This is a very good moment for us to play them.”

With many players away on international World Cup duty over the past week, coaches will be waiting with baited breath to see who comes back fit and healthy, but Chelsea already have doubts about Frank Lampard (shin) and Ryan Bertrand (illness).

Manchester United are still suffering a long injury list, but there is a chance that Ashley Young (knee) and Chris Smalling (foot) could be nearing a return.

Manchester City travel to The Hawthorns without David Silva, who is still struggling with a muscle injury and Jack Rodwell, who has a hamstring problem.

They should have Mario Balotelli back and raring to go after he scored for Italy in their 3-1 win over Denmark on Tuesday and then said he was enjoying life at City, despite the club’s sporting director Brian Marwood criticising his attitude and behaviour.

Balotelli told Italian TV station Rai: “I’m fine at Manchester City even though there are a people who like to talk to the newspapers rather than say things to my face. I don’t give a damn. “All is well with (coach) Roberto Mancini and we have a good relationship. We love each other.”—Reuters

LONDON: Serbia and England will face disciplinary action over their stormy European Under-21 match which sparked claims of racism and ended with players, fans and coaches embroiled in ugly scuffles, UEFA said yesterday.

England won the match 1-0 in Krusevac on Tuesday for a 2-0 aggregate triumph but English defender Danny Rose was sent off for kicking the ball away in response to what he claimed was monkey chanting and physical provocation.

The Serbian Football Federation denied that any racist abuse was hurled at England’s players and slammed Rose for “vulgar” behavior.

“Regarding alleged racist chanting, UEFA will instigate proceedings against the Serbian Football Federation (FSS) over the misconduct of their supporters during and at the end of the match,” said a UEFA statement.

“Proceedings will also be instigated against the FSS for the improper conduct of the Serbia players at the end of the game. “UEFA will also commence proceedings against the English FA for the improper conduct of the England players at the end of the match.”

UEFA said the cases will be discussed on November 22. Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron earlier led calls for UEFA to take a tough line against Serbia.

The British leader was said to have been “appalled” at the scenes from the match and wanted “tough sanctions” against Serbian football if racism is proven, his official spokesman told reporters.

But the FSS hit back at allegations of racism. “ The Serbian FF resolutely rejects and denies that there was any racist incident in the Krusevac stadium, before and during the match,” it said in a statement. It went on to criticise any attempt to tie claims of racist abuse by English players to scuffles that broke out after the match as “malicious”.

The Serbian federation blamed Rose for the events accusing him of “extremely inappropriate, unsportsmanlike and vulgar behaviour towards spectators in the stadium, which is why he got a red card”. “It will come out that, unfortunately, that was when the incident developed,” it said.

Rose, who also said stones were thrown at his head, called for Serbia to be banned from European competition.

“I remember getting slapped twice and then I got ushered away. That’s when I kicked the ball-and the referee sent me off. I don’t understand, the game had finished by then but he still sent me off for kicking the ball,” he said.

“As I went off again there was monkey chanting, but the monkey chanting started long before I got sent off,” Rose, who is on loan from Tottenham to Sunderland, told Sky Sports News television.

“After 60 minutes my head wasn’t really on the game. They (Serbia) have to be banned. I don’t understand how else they can learn from it, they have to

be banned.”

Sepp Blatter, the president of football’s world governing body FIFA, gave an indirect reaction to the incident in a message on his official Twitter account.

“Saddened every time I hear about racist incidents in football,” he wrote.

“We must keep fighting to eradicate discrimination from our sport. Kick racism out of football.” Rose said the problems started early in the evening.

“It started when we went out for the warm-up,” he said. “They started the monkey chanting straight away. I asked the lads if they could hear it and they said they could hear it.

“In the first half I went down to get the ball for a throw-in and the fans started again with the monkey chants but the first half was nowhere near as bad as the second half.

“In the second half I had two stones hit me on the head when I went to get the ball for a throw-in. Every time I touched the ball there was monkey chanting again.”— AFP

KRUSEVAC: Serbian player Milos Ninkovic (left) and England’s Danny Rose (right) and Craig Dawson (center) clash during their European Under-21 Championship play-off, second leg match. — AP

Brothels rescue struggling cash-strapped soccer club LARISSA: A cash-strapped Greek soccer team has found a new way to pay the bills, with help from the world’s oldest profession. Players are wearing bright pink practice jerseys emblazoned with the logos of the Villa Erotica and Soula’s House of History, a pair of pastel-colored bordellos recruited to sponsor the team after drastic government spending cuts left the country’s sports organizations facing ruin.

One team took on a deal with a local funeral home and others have wooed kebab shops, a jam factory, and producers of Greece’s trademark feta cheese. But the small amateur Voukefalas club - which includes students, a bartender, waiters and pizza delivery drivers - is getting the most attention for its flamboyant sponsors.

“Unfortunately, amateur football has been abandoned by almost everyone,” said Yiannis Batziolas, the club’s youthful chairman, who runs a travel agency and is the team’s reserve goalkeeper. “It’s a question of survival.”

Prostitution is legal and operates under strict guidelines.

Though garish neon signs advertising “studios” are tolerated in Greece, the sponsorship has ruffled some feathers in the soccer-mad central city of Larissa. League organizers have banned the jerseys during games, saying the deal violates “the sporting ideal” and is inappropriate for underage supporters.

Batziolas acknowledges his team was taken by surprise.

“They didn’t believe it in the beginning,” he said. “But when they saw the shirts printed, they thought it was funny.”

Near-bankrupt Greece is struggling to meet creditors’ relentless demands to slash expenses and keep the euro as its currency. As Greece heads toward a sixth year of recession, drastic budget cutbacks have hammered many ordinary people: Retirees are left to cover their own medical expenses, children are losing their school bus services - and sports teams are scrambling for sponsors as businesses close under the burden of emergency taxes.

Soula Alevridou, the brothel owner and the team’s new benefactor, has already paid more than €1,000 ($1,312) for players to wear her jerseys. The team is appealing the game ban, but it’s no big worry for the 67-year-old grandmother and businesswoman, who says she’s only in it for the love of the game. “It’s not the kind of business that needs promotion. It’s a word-of-mouth thing,” she said, dressed in white

from head to toe and flanked by two young women in dark leggings, at a recent morning game. Her businesses, plushly decorated bungalows where 14 women are employed, are weathering the country’s financial disaster far better than most, and she readily acknowledges her success.

“If we don’t help our scientists and athletes, where will we be?,” she asked. “Greece has educated people, cultured people and good athletes. It’s better to help them than take our money to Switzerland.”

Alevridou watched in disappointment as her team lost 10, a fourth straight match without victory, despite her promise to players of “a special time” at her businesses if they won the game.

“There’s lots still missing. We have no midfield,” said Alevridou, who is slightly built and husky-voiced. “Many of our boys have jobs that keep them working at night. And if we have a game the following morning, they can’t have a real presence on the pitch ... They need more help.”

They aren’t the only team suffering. Greece’s Amateur Athletics Federation suspended all its activities for several weeks earlier this year to protest funding cuts. And even the major football clubs sent most of their star players abroad this summer to cope with financial trouble and poor attendance, with fans no longer able to afford tickets.

Government cuts have hurt most of the teams in the local amateur league - including the majestically named Olympus, Hercules, Fearless, and Sagittarius, as well as Voukefalas, named after Alexander the Great’s horse.

The impact of the crisis on sports is of major concern in Larissa. The town of 200,000 provided the only professional club to ever break Greece’s big-city domination of the league, winning the national championship in 1988. In 2007, Larissa FC also rebounded from bankruptcy for victory in the prestigious Greek Cup. Voukefalas says it needs about €10,000 a year. Their sponsor promises there may be more money forthcoming.

“Here is where it all begins, with amateur sport. It’s where the talent is bred,” Alevridou noted. “I am a Greek woman, and I love my country.” She watched quietly, holding a cigarette and wearing a straw fedora with a leopard print band, as her team struggled. “The team will get better,” she said. “I’m certain of it.”— AP

19

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

SPORTS

Postiga rescues Portugal

BERLIN: Germany’s Mesut Oezil and Sweden’s Kim Kaellstroem (bottom) challenge for the ball during the World Cup 2014 Group C qualifying soccer match in this file photo. —AP

Germans hope to learn their lesson after Sweden fiasco BERLIN: Germany must learn their lesson from squandering a four-goal lead against Sweden in their 2014 World Cup qualifier on Tuesday if they are to take the next step towards becoming a championship-winning team.

Germany coach Joachim Loew was left speechless after his team allowed Sweden to score four times in the second half for a 4-4 draw in Berlin.

The hosts, who saw their 13-games winning streak in Euro and World Cup qualifiers come to an end, were like two entirely different teams in each half.

A dazzling display of attacking football in the opening 45 minutes ripped Sweden to shreds, with the Germans scoring seemingly at will. The power, pace and skill on display offered no indication of the implosion that was to follow.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic launched the fightback in the 62nd minute and Mikael Lustig added another goal two minutes later. Johan Elmander cut Germany’s lead to 4-3 in the 76th minute and Rasmus Elm grabbed an unlikely equaliser just before the final whistle.

With his team under fire since losing in the Euro 2012 semi-finals and then putting in two lacklustre performances in their opening Group C qualifiers, Loew had wanted to seal a solid World Cup qualifying start with a win.

He has been accused of being too soft on his players who, according to critics, show none of the team spirit of veteran German squads that made up

for their lack of technique and skill with power and determination. Those teams had the kind of spirit that had helped Germany fight back from deficits in the past and the 70,000 fans in Berlin’s Olympic stadium were stunned into silence as they saw Sweden turning the tables on the home side.

“I am in a state of shock,” Loew told reporters. “For us this should be a life lesson. A lesson in how one should finish off a game. I simply have no explanation for what happened.”

Germany’s 6-1 demolition of Ireland last week had made it three wins from three 2014 World Cup qualifiers and went some way to silencing the critics but Tuesday’s catastrophe will surely reignite debate about whether this team can end their 16-year title drought.

“I never expected to see my team thrown off rhythm like that,” said Loew.

“It was something that had to do with their head and we are all bitterly disappointed.

“But we will not be thrown off track.

This may be a game where you can learn something for life.” This was not the first time in recent years that Germany allowed rivals to come back from a seemingly one-sided game but it was certainly the most spectacular.

Team manager Oliver Bierhoff said Germany must not simply sweep the result under the carpet. “It is important that we do not return to our daily routines but that we analyse this game in the cold light of day,” he said.—Reuters

OPORTO: A late Helder Postiga goal saved Portugal from an embarrassing defeat on the night Cristiano Ronaldo won his 100th cap as they were held to a 1-1 home draw by Northern Ireland in World Cup Group F qualifying on Tuesday.

Aberdeen winger Niall McGinn gave the Irish a shock lead in Oporto when he made the most of a fast counter attack in the 30th minute.

Postiga then grabbed the equaliser with 11 minutes to go on a rain-soaked pitch at the Dragao Stadium. Portugal are now third in the group, level on seven points from four games with second-placed Israel but five adrift of group leaders Russia. The Irish have two points from three matches and are third from bottom.

“This was a bad result, we were poor in the first half and wasteful in the second. They punished us from a counter attack and the goal brought anxiety,” Portugal coach Paulo Bento told local television.

“I still believe we will make the 2014 finals in Brazil. It depends solely on us to get there via the playoffs if we can only get second place in the group.”

Before the kickoff a grinning Ronaldo raised his thumb in approval as the 27-year-old became the third youngest European to reach a century of international appearances behind German Lukas Podolski and Kristen Viikmae of Estonia.

PORTO: Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo (center) is challenged by Northern Ireland’s Aaron Hughes during their World Cup Group F qualifying soccer match. —AP The Real Madrid striker’s smile was shortlived though as Portugal, beaten 1-0 in Russia on Friday, lacked imagination and creativity against a combative Irish side.

“They had a lot of players in the defensive area which made it really difficult for us,” said Postiga. The home team gave a

miserable first-half performance and went behind when McGinn’s quick run up field caught right back Joao Pereira off guard.

The Irish then had a double scare when centre back Craig Cathcart miskicked a clearance against his own woodwork and Aaron Hughes went close to

Menezes closes in on ideal Brazil team

Canada’s hopes die in rout, joy for Jamaica MIAMI: Canada’s hopes of reaching the 2014 World Cup finals ended in abject humiliation on Tuesday after they were destroyed 8-1 by Honduras while the United States, Jamaica and Costa Rica progressed to the next round.

Six nations will compete next year for three automatic spots at the finals, with Mexico, who had already booked their place, also joined by Honduras and Panama after Tuesday’s games.

Guatemala, who lost 3-1 to the United States, and El Salvador, who fell 2-0 in Mexico, were eliminated but it was the Canadians who suffered the most in the final round of games.

Victory in Honduras would have secured a place in the final qualifying round for Stephen Hart’s Canadian side but instead they headed home after one of the darkest night’s in their soccer history.

Canada, who last appeared at the World Cup finals in 1986, were 4-0 down by the 32nd minute and the final score was almost as bad as their 8-0 loss to Mexico in 1993.

Honduran strikers Jerry Bengston and Carlos Costly each claimed hat-tricks in the rout in San Pedro Sula. “You are supposed to go down all guns blazing. We were horrible,” Hart, whose job is now in doubt, told reporters.

Bengston opened the scoring in the seventh minute after racing on to a Costly header, and doubled the lead with a tap-in after Canada keeper Lars Hirschfeld had parried a Mario Martinez effort.

Bengston then returned the favour to Costly, heading into his path for a closerange diving header in the 28th minute as the home side ran amok.

Martinez put the result beyond doubt just before half-time and it took only three minutes from the restart for the home side to reach 5-0 with Costly converting from a Martinez cross.

After another from Martinez, Iain Hume’s goal for Canada from a free-kick in the 76th minute could hardly be considered “consolation” given the circumstances.

Bengston and Costly rounded off a remarkable night for Honduras, who reached the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa, by completing their hattricks in the final 10 minutes.

Panama left it late to secure the point they needed to be sure of a place among the last six teams with Nelson Barahona equalising in the 77th minute.

Alberto Gomez put Cuba in front in the 38th minute with the team’s only goal in their six third-round qualifying games.

Two goals from Clint Dempsey helped the United States secure top spot in Group A despite suffering an early scare against Guatemala in Kansas City.

Carlos Ruiz put the visitors ahead in the fifth minute, breaking free of the U.S. defence and confidently slotting home, but five minutes later Carlos Bocanegra scored from a corner to level the score.

Dempsey’s double strike gave the United States a comfortable cushion for the second half and their Central American opponents struggled to get the goals back that could have seen them go through. Jamaica’s 4-1 victory over Antigua and Barbuda in Kingston meant they moved ahead of Guatemala into second place and into the next round.

Two goals in the final 12 minutes from Jamaican winger Dane Richards made sure of progress by goal difference over Guatemala.

First half goals from Demar Phillips and Nyron Nosworthy had been met with a 61st minute response from Antigua and Barbuda’s Quinton Griffith, which threatened the Reggae Boyz’ chances of progress before Richards’ double strike.

Mexico finished with the maximum 18 points in Group B, rounding their campaign off with a 2-0 win over El Salvador with second half goals from Oribe Peralta and Javier Hernandez.

Costa Rica made sure of second spot in the group with a 7-0 crushing of Guyana - Randall Brenes and Alvaro Saborio both scoring twice. Guyana had defender Walter Moore sent off in the 50th minute.—Reuters

putting a header through his net. Visiting keeper Roy Carroll also had to produce a fine reflex save to deny former Manchester United team mate Ronaldo.

Paulo Bento brought on Eder in the 74th minute and Postiga pounced on a header from the tall Braga striker to earn his side a point. —Reuters

MADRID: Spain’s Sergio Ramos (centre left) in action in this file photo with France’s Mamadou Sakho (centre right) during the World Cup Group I qualifying soccer match. —AP

Spain lose their way in Paris MADRID: Spain’s trip to Paris in World Cup soccer qualifying next March looked a little more daunting after they showed a rare vulnerability by losing control of possession and the game to draw 1-1 at home to France on Tuesday.

Sergio Ramos gave a dominant Spain a firsthalf lead at the Calderon in Madrid but after Cesc Fabregas missed a penalty France grew in confidence until a home-side error led to Olivier Giroud nodding in a stoppage-time equaliser.

The world and European champions stayed top of Group I with seven points from three games, ahead of France on goal difference, with only one team assured of direct qualification from the group for Brazil 2014. “To win in Paris,” was the front-page headline of sports daily AS yesterday.

“After Ramos’s goal (Spain) gradually lost possession, their structure, their touch, their inspiration and finally their luck,” the newspaper’s match report said. A headline in daily El Mundo said: “Without the ball problems arrive.”

Much of the focus was on coach Vicente del Bosque’s decision to play Sergio Busquets at centre back rather than in his habitual role alongside Xabi Alonso in a holding midfield duo. Instead of closing down the game, Spain became ragged in the second half as France intercepted passes and broke into large spaces in midfield, a problem which Del Bosque acknowledged.

“We controlled the game well in the first half,” he told the post-match news conference.

“Afterwards we opened up, I don’t know if it was because we were tired. When it became an end-to-end game it was bad for us. “I did miss the balance in midfield a little bit.”

Del Bosque’s choices off the substitutes’ bench were limited after muscle injuries early in each half for David Silva and Alvaro Arbeloa forced his hand.

“We haven’t had a single muscle injury in four years and today we had two,” he said. “The disruption did not allow us to manage the changes as we would have liked.”

While his first two were like-for-like substitutions with Santi Cazorla replacing Silva and Juanfran, who gave away possession that led to the French equaliser, coming on for Arbeloa, the decision to throw on Fernando Torres at the end was questioned.

The Chelsea striker was brought on for midfielder Andres Iniesta with 15 minutes to go, running out at the stadium where he started his career with Atletico Madrid.

“It was the third change and we weren’t sure whether to reinforce the defence or to look for a second, and we went with Fernando,” Del Bosque added. “You are always going to have this debate.”

With a 24-match winning streak in major championship qualifiers ended, goalscorer Ramos said the result would be a wake-up call to the team.

“This draw brings us back down to earth a little but we are winners and a draw is not a result we accept easily.”—Reuters

BERNE: Brazil coach Mano Menezes is finally close to finding his ideal team, two years after disbanding predecessor Dunga’s unpopular counter-attacking outfit and starting from scratch.

Brazil’s 6-0 thumping of Iraq followed

by Tuesday’s 4-0 win over Japan have convinced Menezes that he is on the right track as he builds a side capable of not only winning the 2014 World Cup but doing so in a style home fans are demanding.

“We have been working towards finding the ideal national team,” he told reporters after the 2014 hosts outclassed Japan in the Polish city of Wroclaw.

“We’ve hit a few obstacles on the way, but now are getting closer to what we have been hoping for. “It’s obvious that scoring 10 goals in two games is a lot, something out of the ordinary, but the important thing is what the team did to produce those goals.

“Those results are to the credit of the team which is taking shape.” Menezes took over at a point where Brazil’s production line of world class players appeared to have dried up.

A shortage of creative midfielders had forced Dunga to depend on Kaka at the 2010 World Cup, even though he was not fully fit after a series of injuries.

Menezes initially placed his hopes on playmaker Paulo Henrique Ganso but he was overhyped by the media, plagued by injuries and then fell out with his club Santos Although Brazil have won most of their games under Menezes, they were knocked out of last year’s Copa America at the quarter-final stage, failed to win an Olympic gold and have lost high-profile friendlies to Mexico, Germany and Argentina.

However, the emergence of Chelsea midfielder Oscar and the return of Kaka, who scored against Iraq and Japan on his first Brazil appearances since 2010, have given Menezes plenty of cause for optimism. Another key has been the recent introduction of Paulinho alongside Ramires which has given Brazil two defensive midfielders with the ambition and ability to attack, a contrast to the purely destructive pairings employed in the past.

Menezes even believes that he can now play without a conventional centre forward, something he had discarded only three months ago.

“We have been working on this idea of leaving the team without a reference point for a long time. It hadn’t really worked out but now we have midfielders who allow this,” he said.

Menezes said that the presence of Hulk alongside Neymar in attack also gave Brazil a physical presence. “We have three attacking technical players (Oscar, Kaka, Neymar), but you can’t make a team just with players with those characteristics,” he said.

“Hulk has physical power, he produces a different kind of threat and he compliments the other three.”—Reuters

Postiga rescues Portugal

Arvidsson sends Bartoli packing

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Are reporters to blame for Armstrong myth?

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SANTIAGO: Chile’s (from left) Gary Medel, Marcelo Diaz and Gonzalo Jara run after Argentina’s Lionel Messi as he controls the ball during a World Cup 2014 qualifying soccer match. —AP

Classy Argentina see off Chile BUENOS AIRES: Argentina’s world class forwards were instrumental in a 21 away win over Chile on Tuesday that gave the visitors a three-point lead in the standings as the South American World Cup qualifying campaign takes a break until March.

Lionel Messi and Gonzalo Higuain struck within minutes of each other half an hour into the match, taking their personal tallies to seven, with Chile pulling one back through substitute Felipe Gutierrez in added time at the end of the game.

Argentina have 20 points from nine matches, three more than Ecuador, who drew 1-1 away at Venezuela, and four ahead of Colombia, who have a game in hand.

They rode their luck in the opening half hour when Chile created several chances, then showed superior finishing to settle the match.

“We have forwards of huge standing who normally never forgive (mistakes). Argentina were sharper with their finishing,” Argentina coach Alejandro Sabella told reporters. “We knew Chile would take the ball from us a lot and we had to be very concentrated in defence.”

Travelling is a risky business in the tight nine-nation South American group, so Argentina have taken out good insurance with Tuesday’s win because anything can happen in the remaining seven rounds of matches next year.

Uruguay, the top South American team at the 2010 finals in South Africa where they finished fourth, lost 4-1 to Bolivia in La Paz, where striker Carlos Saucedo bagged a hat-trick.

The Uruguayans, renowned for their strong defence, have conceded 11 goals in their last three away matches

and taken one point out of a possible 12, yet are in fifth place.

Fifth is good enough for a playoff, just like three years ago when they needed to beat Costa Rica over two legs to pick up the last berth for South Africa.

“We still have chances (of qualifying). If Bolivia, who had five points, thought about going to the World Cup and will continue thinking that with this victory, why can’t we with 12 points?” coach Oscar Tabarez said.

“We made mistakes that make us think we’re not well, but we also did things that make us realise we’re not bad,” he told reporters after his team struggled in the thin air of La Paz. Fourth-placed Venezuela, looking to reach the finals for the first time, and bottom team Paraguay are separated by a mere five points, underlining how little it takes for a side to appear to

have slipped in or out of contention.

Venezuela returned to action after a bye on Friday and were held to a 1-1 draw by Ecuador in Puerto La Cruz but the point was enough to enter the top four who qualify directly for the 2014 finals in Brazil.

Playmaker Juan Arango gave Venezuela an early lead with a magnificent shot from outside the box but similar stunning efforts from the home captain were saved and one hit the bar.

Ecuador, who have a perfect home record of five wins but have picked up only two points in their four away matches so far, equalised through Segundo Castillo in the 24th minute.

Paraguay, having lost three matches under new coach Gerardo Pelusso, beat Peru 1-0 in Asuncion with a headed goal from central defender Pablo Aguilar to regain their hopes of reaching their fifth finals in a row.—Reuters

England held by Poland in rescheduled qualifier WARSAW: England were held to a 1-1 draw by Poland yesterday in a Group H qualifier that went ahead a day late after Tuesday’s scheduled kick-off was called off due to a waterlogged pitch.

Wayne Rooney sent the Poles’ morale sinking fifteen minutes from half-time, heading in a corner from captain Steven Gerrard for his 30th goal in an England shirt.

Poland’s answer came in the 70th minute, thanks to Torino defender Kamil Glik, courtesy of another header from a corner.

“It wasn’t one of our best performances,” admitted England manager Roy Hodgson, whose side still lead Group H by one point from Montenegro. “But there were factors-the pitch was difficult, soggy and the ball was not moving well. It was more suited to a long ball game rather than passing.

“We weren’t good in possession but got a result and we showed the necessary character. We are still unbeaten and it’s good to get something out of a game when we didn’t play well.”

Gerrard admitted it had not been one of the team’s best nights. “It’s a decent point but we are disappointed,” said Gerrard. “We know we can play better. We should have seen the game out but I still believe this will be a good point at the end of the day.”

England goalkeeper Joe Hart took responsibility for the goal, having flapped as he tried to clear the corner.

“It was my fault and it cost us three points. They were knocking on the door but it was never going to open unless there was a mistake,” he said.

Conscious of their underdog image

- they stand 54th in the FIFA rankings to England’s fifth - Poland took the game to their rivals from kick off.

The game had been billed as a personal battle between Poland’s Borussia Dortmund striker Robert Lewandowski and England’s Manchester City keeper Joe Hart, who recently did battle in the Champions League.

But with Lewandowski failing to shine in the half, it was midfielder Kamil Grosicki who first sent home fans’ pulses racing in the 58,000-capacity Kazimierz Gorski Stadium in the eighth minute, though poor control stymied his effort.

England took their chance after 15 minutes but James Milner’s lateral pass failed to find a team-mate before Polish goalkeeper Przemyslaw Tyton smothered the ball.

Working hand-in-hand with fellow midfielder, French-born Ludovic Obraniak, Sivasspor’s Grosicki continued to seek weak links in the England defence, to no avail.

Manchester City’s Milner fed Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe up front in the 26th minute, only for the latter to lose the battle with Poland captain Marcin Wasilewski, standing in for the injured Kuba Blaszczykowski.

Two minutes later, Poland powered back, with Grosicki finding Lewandowski in the box, only for newcomer Pawel Wszolek to fail to latch onto the pass.

A minute after Rooney’s goal put England up, Grosicki again came up empty. For the remainder of the half, both teams failed to capitalise on corners and free kicks, while strikes from

WARSAW: England’s Kyle Walker (right) is challenged by Poland’s Kamil Grosicki (left) during their World Cup Group H qualifying soccer match.—AP Glen Johnson and Grosicki went wide minutes from the whistle.

After the interval, Poland upped the pace in a drive to close the deficit, with corner-taking stalwart Obraniak firing over the bar in the 49th minute, followed by Lewandowski 10 minutes later. A lone run by substitute Danny Welbeck then found Tyton floundering, but Rooney failed to make it two.

Poland’s traditionally unforgiving fans began to harangue their team, but were suddenly silenced when a 70thminute Obraniak corner found Glik, who earned his second Poland goal, as Hart came for the ball and was left

stranded.

Ten minutes later, they were inches away from pulling ahead, as yet another Obraniak corner found Glik. Three minutes from time, Milner found himself free, only for Tyton to beat him, before Obraniak pounded at Hart twice, the second time forcing the England keeper into a lunging save.

The Poles had been aware that history was against then having been England just once-in the race to qualify for the 1974 World Cup, when they deprived the English of a berth at the finals-and drawn six times in a total of 17 previous meetings.—AFP

South American World Cup qualifying results/standings BUENOS AIRES: South American 2014 World Cup qualifying results and standings after Tuesday’s matches: Venezuela 1, Ecuador 1; Bolivia 4, Uruguay 1; Paraguay 1, Peru 0; Chile 1, Argentina 2.

P 9 9 8 9 9 9 9 9 9

Argentina Ecuador Colombia Venezuela Uruguay Chile Bolivia Peru Paraguay

W 6 5 5 3 3 4 2 2 2

D 2 2 1 3 3 0 2 2 1

L 1 2 2 3 3 5 5 5 6

F 20 12 14 8 16 14 12 10 6

A 7 9 6 9 18 18 14 15 16

Pts 20 17 16 12 12 12 8 8 7

Note: The top four teams will advance to the 2014 finals in Brazil while the fifth-placed side will face Asia’s fifth-ranked qualifier in a two-legged playoff for a spot in the tournament.

Next matches March 22, 2013 Argentina v Venezuela; Uruguay v Paraguay; Peru v Chile; Colombia v Bolivia.

World Cup European qualifying zone tables PARIS: 2014 World Cup European qualifying zone tables after yesterday’s rescheduled Group H match between Poland and England (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points): Group A Belgium Croatia Macedonia Serbia Wales Scotland

4 4 4 4 4 4

3 3 1 1 1 0

1 1 1 1 0 2

0 0 2 2 3 2

8 6 3 6 3 2

1 2 4 5 11 5

10 10 4 4 3 2

Group B Italy Bulgaria Czech Republic Armenia Denmark Malta

4 4 3 3 3 3

3 1 1 1 0 0

1 3 2 0 2 0

0 0 0 2 1 3

10 4 3 2 2 1

4 3 1 4 4 6

10 6 5 3 2 0

Group C Germany Sweden Ireland Austria Kazakhstan Faroes

4 3 3 3 4 3

3 2 2 1 0 0

1 1 0 1 1 0

0 0 1 1 3 3

15 8 7 5 1 2

6 5 8 2 8 9

10 7 6 4 1 0

Group D Netherlands Hungary Romania Turkey Estonia Andorra

4 4 4 4 4 4

4 3 3 1 1 0

0 0 0 0 0 0

0 1 1 3 3 4

13 10 8 4 1 0

2 5 4 6 6 13

12 9 9 3 3 0

Group E Switzerland Norway Iceland

4 4 4

3 2 2

1 0 7 1 1 6 0 2 4

1 10 5 7 4 6

Albania Slovenia Cyprus

4 4 4

2 1 1

0 2 0 3 0 3

5 3 4

5 6 6 3 8 3

Group F Russia Israel Portugal N Ireland Azerbaijan Luxembourg

4 4 4 3 3 4

4 2 2 0 0 0

0 1 1 2 1 1

0 1 1 1 2 3

8 10 6 2 1 2

0 5 3 4 5 12

12 7 7 2 1 1

Group G Bosnia Greece Slovakia Lithuania Latvia Liechtenstein

4 4 4 4 4 4

3 3 2 1 1 0

1 1 1 1 0 0

0 0 1 2 3 4

15 5 5 3 5 1

2 1 3 6 8 14

10 10 7 4 3 0

Group H England Montenegro Poland Moldova Ukraine San Marino

4 3 3 4 3 3

2 2 1 1 0 0

2 1 2 1 2 0

0 0 0 2 1 3

12 9 5 2 1 0

2 2 3 7 2 13

8 7 5 4 2 0

Group I Spain 3 2 1 0 6 1 7 France 3 2 1 0 5 2 7 Georgia 4 1 1 2 2 4 4 Belarus 4 1 0 3 3 8 3 Finland 2 0 1 1 1 2 1 Note: nine group winners qualify directly, with eight best runners-up qualifying for play-offs.

EU leaders battle deepening recession, unrest, divisions Page 23

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US housing starts surge in positive sign for economy Page 25

BARCELONA: Students protest during a demonstration against education cuts in Barcelona yesterday. Rising speculation that Spain will soon ask for outside help to keep a lid on its borrowing costs has helped ease the pressure on the country in financial markets. There was also some relief in the markets that Moody’s did not cut its credit rating on the country as had been widely-feared. Instead, Moody’s on Tuesday maintained its ‘Baa3’ rating on Spain, its lowest investment-grade rung.— AP

Citi’s long run of stumbles, near-death After Pandit, smaller Citi could get smaller yet NEW YORK: The bank Michael Corbat will take over made its first mark helping the US government repay its debts after the War of 1812. Two centuries later, when the 2008 financial crisis struck, the bank needed a federal rescue from its own debts. In between its founding and its near-death, the company now called Citigroup has played a central role in US financial history.

It helped finance the Civil War, railroads and the Panama Canal. It was among the first banks to expand aggressively overseas, and, when allowed, to open retail branches nationwide.

It changed how we bank: It installed the first, rudimentary automatic teller machine in 1939. And it introduced “The Everything Card,” the first general credit card, in 1967.

On Tuesday, Corbat was named Citi’s new CEO after the abrupt departure of Vikram Pandit, who had led the company through the financial crisis and its aftermath. Corbat has witnessed much of Citi’s recent turbulent history: He has been with the bank since 1983. The Citi he’ll lead is no longer fighting for survival. It announced strong financial results just a day before Pandit stepped down. And it remains the thirdlargest US bank as measured by assets, behind JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America.

Its assets total $1.9 trillion. But it has yet to regain the stature or status it once enjoyed as the largest and most prominent US bank, one that expanded into a global financial services conglomerate. “Now is the worst period in its history by far,” says John Steele Gordon, a business and economic historian. Citigroup was formed in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, a vehicle to help New York City businesses compete with those in Philadelphia and Boston.

After the bank supported the US war effort by subscribing to war bonds and lending the federal government $200,000 to help it meet debt payments, it became a government depository. And it began to grow.

In the process, though, it stumbled many times. The first was when it nearly failed in the Panic of 1837 before being rescued by the magnate John Jacob Astor.

Astor installed Moses Taylor as director.

Taylor invested in mines and railroads, solidified and expanded the bank and became one of the richest men of the 19th

century. He lent the Union money to fight the Civil War and turned the company into a national bank in 1965. Taylor’s successor, James Stillman, expanded overseas and pushed the company into investment banking. This accelerated its growth: Under Stillman, the bank was the first in the United States to amass $1 billion in assets.

But its aggressive expansion also threatened the company in later years - when for-

Michael Corbat eign loans soured and when the securities business collapsed in the stock market crash of 1929. By then, the company was led by Charles Mitchell. Nicknamed “Sunshine Charlie,” Mitchell helped fuel a dramatic increase in the sale of financial securities, including bank shares that would sink in the 1929 crash. In congressional hearings afterward, US Senator Carter Glass assigned most of the blame to Mitchell: “Mitchell, more than any 50 men, is responsible for this stock crash,” Glass asserted, according to an account in Time magazine.

Legislation that was passed after the crash, called the Glass-Steagall Act, barred commercial banks from a range of investment banking and securities services.

Decades later, Citi’s merger with the financial services company Travelers Group helped speed the repeal of Glass-Steagall in 1999. Through the 1930s and 40s, Citi by then called National City Bank - survived as a typical bank with mostly domestic assets. It grew with occasional acquisitions.

After World War II, though, the company returned to faster growth under James Stillman Rockefeller, George Moore and Walter Wriston.

Wriston was credited with many of the company’s most far-reaching innovations and changes. He expanded the bank’s overseas operations, issued the first credit cards, invented financial products such as negotiable certificates of deposit and introduced ATMs. The first version of an ATM, called a Bankograph, was installed in 1939.

It was removed after a few months because consumers disliked it. It accepted deposits.

But it didn’t dispense cash. Not until the 1960s and 70s, when the machines were connected to financial networks - and could distribute cash - did they begin to catch on.

Beyond his substantive moves - he helped save New York City from bankruptcy in the 1970s Wriston brought stylistic changes. He banished the “y” from the company’s names: He renamed the bank Citibank and the corporation Citicorp.

“Walter Wriston was the archetype of the modern American banker in the 1970s and 1980s,” Gordon says. At the same time, Wriston’s vast ambition was its own weakness. The company became so big and burrowed into so many separate businesses that it became hard to manage. Its size and breadth would grow further in the years leading to its near-death in the 2008 crisis.

“It was a big, shaggy, powerful and complex animal that was roaming over the landscape,” says David Beim, who was an executive at Banker’s Trust at the time and now teaches at Columbia Business School.

“It wanted to dominate everything.” The giant portfolio of loans in Latin America that Wriston left went bad and threatened the bank’s solvency in the late 1980s. The company was steered through that crisis by John Reed, Wriston’s successor. Reed, a retail banking visionary, had turned the company’s branches and credit card operations into perhaps the best in the country.

He did so, in part, through the aggressive rollout of ATMs that began under Wriston. The strength of the retail banking operations gave the company the stability to survive its Latin American losses. But Reed had his own ambitions. In 1998, he agreed to merge the company with Travelers Group, a conglomerate run by Sanford Weill. Travelers included an insurance company, the investment bank Solomon Brothers and the stock brokerage

Smith Barney. A key factor behind the decision to merge was anticipation that the Glass-Stegall act would soon be repealed. A year later, it was. At first, Reed and Weill served as co-CEOs and co-chairmen. The arrangement didn’t last. Reed was ousted in 2000.

Charles Prince replaced Weill as CEO in 2003. Weill remained as chairman. And the company basked in its status as the world’s biggest and most ambitious bank. Four years later, Prince was deposed as losses from mortgage-related securities mounted.

It was the start of Citi’s darkest period.

When Pandit took over in 2007, he tried to keep the bank afloat as its health quickly deteriorated. In the fall of 2008, the company had to be rescued with $45 billion in taxpayer aid. The government later converted $25 billion of the aid into an ownership stake. The capital infusion stabilized the bank. And Pandit was credited with slimming the bank down, fixing its balance sheet and quickly repaying the government.

GETTING SMALLER The incredible shrinking bank may have to shrink more. In the hours after surprise announcement that Pandit was stepping down, speculation was rife, and facts scant, about what lay ahead for the third-largest US bank. But one possibility given high odds by financial analysts: More cost-cutting, more shrinking and more focus on boring, traditional banking, like making loans. “It’s going to get a lot smaller,” said Gerard Cassidy, a long-time banking analyst at RBC Capital Markets. “You’ve got to shrink to make big money.”

In the nearly five years since Pandit took over as CEO, he shed businesses and cut jobs. Staff fell from 375,000 when he took over to 262,000. Once the largest US bank, Citi is now the third-largest, with $1.9 trillion in assets. It trails JPMorgan Chase, with $2.3 trillion, and Bank of America, with $2.1 trillion. Citi’s new CEO is Michael Corbat, 52.

He had been the CEO of Citigroup’s Europe, Middle East and Africa division. He also ran Citi Holdings, which contains assets that Citi wants to sell. Because Corbat isn’t widely known, analysts Tuesday were not sure how he might change the direction of the company.—Agencies

Spain avoids junk-bond fate MADRID: Spain has won breathing space but nothing more, analysts said yesterday, after it escaped feared downgrade of its debt to junk-bond status. Even if Madrid secures a rescue in which the European Central Bank buys its bonds so as to lower borrowing costs, Spain will be left with deep-seated economic problems unresolved, economists said. Markets rallied after Moody’s Investors Service announced Tuesday it was leaving the Spanish sovereign credit rating at Baa3, just one notch above junk-bond status, with a negative outlook. The interest rate, or yield, on Spanish 10-year government bonds fell to 5.588 percent on the open market from 5.805 percent late the previous day ahead of the Moody’s decision.

Stock markets around the world gained ground and the euro jumped by half a US cent after the Moody’s decision as a feared downgrade to junk-bond status was averted. Moody’s cited expectations of a sovereign rescue, noting the ECB’s willingness to buy Spanish bonds as well as Madrid’s commitment to fiscal and structural reforms to repair its finances. M oody ’s also credited M adrid ’s effor ts to restructure the Spanish banking sector. “In summary, Moody’s believes that the combination of euro area and ECB support and the Spanish government’s own efforts should allow the government to maintain capital market access at reasonable rates, providing it with the time it

needs to stabilize public debt over the next few years.”

ECB president Mario Draghi bought Spain some “temporary breathing space” in its battle with the rating agencies, said Edward Hugh, economist based in the northeastern Catalonia region. Both Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s now rate Spanish long-term debt as being one level above speculative, or junk-bond, status, he noted. Expectations are mounting that Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s conservative government will soon seek a bailout. The ECB has said it could buy a stricken euro-zone state’s bonds to curb its borrowing costs but only after the state applies for help from the euro-zone bailout fund and submits to strict conditions.— AFP

News

in brief

‘New poverty’ in Italy ROME: Italy’s crisis is pushing growing numbers of pensioners and housewives into poverty, a Catholic charity said in a report yesterday that warned the state welfare system was failing to cope. “The crisis is reinforcing traditional poverty and leading to the emergence of new poverty,” said Francesco Soddu, director of Caritas Italy.

The report said: “The current welfare system is clearly incapable of handling the new forms of poverty, the new social emergencies that have arisen due to the economic and financial crisis.” The report said that in the first six months of this year Caritas charity interventions were 44.4 percent higher than in the same period in 2011, with growing numbers asking for handouts and help in finding a home or a job. It also found the number of housewives coming for help was 177.8 percent higher than in 2009 and the number of pensioners was up 65.6 percent.

24-hour shopping DUBAI: In a city where shopping and spending is a favorite pastime, Dubai’s malls will open round-the-clock for three consecutive weekends from today as part of the upcoming Eis holiday. The extended hours will apply to all shops and most food and entertainment outlets within the city’s malls and cater for an expected influx of tourists over the Eid Al-Adha festivities starting October 26, officials said. Twenty-four hour shopping and other events planned by the tourism, retail and hospitality sectors in the city will “reinforce Dubai as the leading destination,” the Dubai government said in a statement. The United Arab Emirates, and more specifically Dubai, is the region’s shopping and entertainment capital, attracting millions of tourists and conference-goers every year. With other popular destinations in the Middle East, like Syria, Egypt and Lebanon, still reeling from violence and political turmoil, Arabs are increasingly favoring Dubai as their destination for the annual Muslim holiday.

262,000 Fiestas recalled MICHIGAN: Ford Motor Co said it is recalling 262,000 Fiesta subcompacts from model years 2011-2013 to reprogram the passenger side curtain air bags. The vehicles originally were programmed so the passenger side curtain air bags would not deploy in certain crashes if the front passenger seat were empty, Ford said. That information is not explained in the vehicle owner’s manual, according to the official recall notice posted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The recall includes 154,604 Fiestas in the United States, with the rest in Canada, Mexico and South America.

Angola’s sovereign fund LUANDA: Africa’s second oil producer Angola yesterday launched a $5 billion sovereign wealth fund to invest some of its vast oil earnings, following in the footsteps of oil-rich Arab nations. The Angola Sovereign Fund, known by its Portuguese acronym FSDEA, will channel investments into the infrastructure and hospitality sectors, both at home and abroad, the fund’s board said in a statement.

The fund was first mooted four years ago and parliament last year enacted a law for its creation. “Projected to grow from sales of oil and through the performance of its investments, the FSDEA’s strategy is to create attractive long term risk-adjusted returns by investing in a wide range of asset classes - both in Angola and internationally,” it said. It will also invest in financial securities at home.

22

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

BUSINESS

Gold extends gains Euro-zone worries ease SINGAPORE: Gold inched up yesterday, rising for a second day with the support of a stronger euro as concerns about the bloc’s debt crisis eased after Moody’s affirmed Spain’s rating and German business sentiment improved.

The euro hit a one-month high and the dollar index dropped to its lowest in nearly two weeks, reflecting a pick-up in risk appetite after Moody’s Investors Service affirmed Spain’s investment grade. A weaker greenback makes dollar-priced commodities more attractive for buyers holding other currencies.

In the United States, the latest data showed the world’s largest economy still faces challenges, suggesting to investors that economic growth was not strong enough for the Federal Reserve to curtail its stimulus measures.

“Things are improving a little bit, but we are heading towards significant headwinds in the global economy,” said Jeremy Friesen, commodity strategist at Societe Generale in Hong Kong. Spot gold added 0.3 percent to $1,752.49 an ounce by 0632 GMT, extending a

0.7 percent rise the previous session. US gold gained nearly half a percent to $1,754.20.

Friesen said risks ahead include the looming “fiscal cliff” in the United States with about $500 billion worth of tax increases and more than $100 billion in government spending cuts due to kick in on Jan 2.

But gold is likely to go through a period of consolidation after a recent run to nearly $1,800, waiting for more stimulus measures from central banks around the world, which will benefit bullion as a hedge against inflation that some investors fear may result from rampant cash printing, he added.

On the technical charts, Fibonacci retracement analysis suggested that spot gold is expected to rebound into a range of $1,762 to $1,770 an ounce, Reuters market analyst Wang Tao said.

Investors will be watching for more economic numbers due later this week, including US housing market data as well as China’s third-quarter gross domestic product figure.

Weak data would be considered likely to point to stimulative policies that could be support-

ive for gold. The euro-zone debt crisis remains in focus. Although Spain appears out of danger for now, Greece’s talks with its international lenders on austerity measures were suspended briefly over thorny labor issues. The outlook for more monetary easing around the world and uncertainty over the global economic outlook have kept investor interest buoyant towards gold.

In Asia’s physical market, buying slowed as prices rebounded from a one-month low below $1,730 and buyers were reluctant to beef up their purchases as the world economy remains shrouded in uncertainty.

“The world economy is not performing well, and in this region, demand from China will be limited before the leadership transition and policy actions to stir growth,” he said.

China’s ruling Communist Party is preparing for a once-in-a-decade leadership transition next month.

Holdings of gold-backed exchange-traded funds crawled up to 74.793 million ounces by Oct 16, not far off a record high of 75.03 million ounces hit last week. — Reuters

Japan premier’s vague call for stimulus could backfire TOKYO: Japan’s prime minister ordered a new round of stimulus to try to revive economic growth but offered so few details about the size and contents of the package that it is unlikely to ease worries about the faltering economy.

Having promised a national election “soon”, Yoshihiko Noda is under pressure to lift the world’s thirdbiggest economy after growth stalled in recent months, raising concerns it could slide into a recession. Noda asked his cabinet to compile the package by next month, but the government has not made a decision on how much it will spend, Finance Minister Koriki Jojima said. The government lacks the strength to push through a new spending bill in the divided parliament, so the stimulus will not involve new bond issuance. It could tap budget reserves to fund the new plan as that does not require opposition votes.

“Considering what the government and the central bank are forecasting, I doubt we can simply stand by and let the economy continue as it is,” Jojima told reporters.

“From here on, we’ll decide what the details of the stimulus package will be.” Japan’s economy is forecast to grow 0.4 percent in the JanuaryMarch quarter of next year and 1.7 percent for the full fiscal year to the end of March, a Reuters poll on Oct 11 showed. Japanese media reported earlier yesterday that the new measures will include spending on renewable energy, healthcare and

agriculture and will total about 1 trillion yen ($12.7 billion), which economists said is too small to have a lasting impact.

Noda’s attempt to draw up a spending plan comes as most industrialized nations are tightening budgets to rein in debt built up during the global financial crisis.

“The government’s first motivation is that the economy is close to a recession, “said Masamichi Adachi, senior economist at JP Morgan.

“The second motivation is that an election is close, so the party in charge is expected to show its competence. There’s not enough details on the size and specifics of this proposal. It’s difficult for anyone to think this will be effective.”

The package, borrowing from the government’s growth strategy, will include measures to help companies take advantage of a strong yen, Japanese Economics Minister Seiji Maehara said.

Japanese policy making has ground to a halt since the end of the regular parliament session last month as the opposition tries to use its ability to block legislation to force an election. Noda promised to hold a national vote “soon” in exchange for opposition support in August to pass a sales tax hike, a major step to reduce the country’s public debt burden that amounts to twice the size of the $5 trillion economy. Since then, Noda has been coy on the timing of the vote as public opinion polls show his Democratic Party would suffer a

heavy defeat in an election.

The polls show that the public has grown frustrated with a series of missteps by the ruling party on foreign and energy policy and the recovery efforts from last year’s earthquake and nuclear disaster.

Analysts said the spending plan will leave Noda open to criticism that his fiscal policy is falling into disarray because he would be tapping reserves in a budget that is not completely funded yet. Japan is seven months into the fiscal year that started in April and the gov-

ernment has yet to pass a bill needed to sell bonds to fund almost half of the budget because of a standoff with the opposition.

Unless the bill is passed, the government could run out of money by the end of November, which has drawn close scrutiny from ratings agencies Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s. For urgent needs, the government could dip into reserves this month, said Jojima, who was unclear about which policies the government considers “urgent.” — Reuters

Saudi SABIC Q3 profit drops 23% DUBAI: Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC), the world’s biggest petrochemicals group by market value, posted a 23 percent slump in third-quarter net profit yesterday, citing lower product pricing for the decline. The chemicals, metals and fertilizers conglomerate earned net income of 6.3 billion riyals ($1.68 billion) in the three months ended Sept 30, compared with a record profit of 8.2 billion riyals a year ago, it said in a bourse statement.

Despite the decline, the performance beat analysts’ forecasts.

Nine analysts polled by Reuters had forecast on average that Saudi Arabia’s largest listed company would earn 6.01 billion riyals in the quarter. Several SABIC units had already reported their quarterly results, with Saudi Arabian Fertilizer Co (Safco) saying its net profit dipped 5.1 percent, and Yanbu National Petrochemical Co (Yansab) reporting a halving of income. In 2011, SABIC enjoyed a bumper year of record profits and growth as new production lines started up and world chemical prices were buoyed by demand in Asia.

But as weak global economic conditions this year weighed on demand, product prices fell. SABIC also had temporary operational shutdowns at some plants. — Reuters

TOKYO: A man walks in a shop of Japan’s cellphone company Softbank Corp in Tokyo. — AP

Softbank-Sprint deal latest in Japan Inc shopping spree TOKYO: Softbank’s $20 billion takeover of mobile carrier Sprint Nextel is the latest big-ticket buy in Japan Inc’s overseas shopping bonanza, a boom driven by a strong yen and a flaccid market at home.

Japanese companies, which earned a reputation as takeover titans during the 1980s, are again notching up eye-popping deals in everything from pharmaceuticals to advertising, and are on track to breach last year’s record tally of $84 billion in overseas deals.

Japan’s slowing economy and rapidly ageing population, sagging exports to debt-battered Europe, and a strong yen which hit record highs around 75 to the dollar late last year, are all helping to push the trend. While the continuing strength of the Japanese currency has triggered anguish among exporters who face the erosion of repatriated profits and cost pressures in producing at home, it has also given firms muscle to buy overseas targets.

Currency traders have increasingly turned to the yen as a safe haven amid the lingering European sovereign debt crisis and an uncertain US recovery. “The strong yen, the maturity of the domestic economy and low interest rates are the three key factors behind the recent launches by Japanese firms overseas,” said Naoki Fujiwara at Shinkin Asset Management in Tokyo. “This trend is likely to continue... Food companies and retailers are the next possible sectors looking to go abroad,” he added.

Softbank’s announcement Monday that it will buy 70 percent of the thirdbiggest US mobile carrier was Japan’s biggest-ever overseas deal after Japan Tobacco’s $19 billion purchase of Britain’s Gallaher Group Plc in 2007. Japan Inc has notched up about $66 billion in overseas acquisitions so far this year, not including the Softbank takeover, putting it on track to blow past last year’s record of $84 billion, according to data provider Dealogic.

That compares with a total of about $36 billion in 2010 and $24 billion in 2007, according to its figures.

Headline-grabbing deals in the past

couple of years have included Takeda Pharmaceutical’s 9.6 billion euro ($12.5 billion) purchase of Swiss drugmaker Nycomed and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial’s deal to buy the Royal Bank of Scotland’s aircraft leasing arm for about $7.3 billion. Trading house Mitsubishi Corp. earlier this year announced a $6.1 billion multi-year investment in Canadian shale gas assets, while advertising giant Dentsu said it would buy Britain-based Aegis for about $5.0 billion. But the ramped-up shopping spree also carries a more desperate tone, with the move a key to survival for some Japanese firms amid dwindling exports and little room for big gains at home.

“Japanese firms have to go abroad to survive in the global market,” said Toshihiro Nagahama, chief economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute. “Mergers and acquisitions are a good tool to expand businesses quickly in rapidly growing foreign markets. Japanese firms have been slower in this area compared to other” rich nations, he added. The buying has echoes of the late 1980s boom years, when Japanese firms scooped up familiar assets ranging from the Rockefeller Center and other prime New York properties to Universal Studios and Columbia Records. Many of the acquisitions ended badly and Japan came to be seen as a financial predator.

However last year’s quake-tsunami disaster, which pounded Japan’s economy and forced many manufacturers to temporarily shutter their operations, may have changed the mindset of Japanese executives.

And few think the yen will keep up its blistering pace in the long-term. “Not a small number of Japanese firms are seriously considering diversifying their business base to spread risks,” said Takahiro Sekido, strategist at the Bank of TokyoMitsubishi UFJ. “For them, going abroad is a realistic option. Also, since there is speculation that the current levels of the dollar-yen are near the bottom, companies and investors are rushing to take action now.” — AFP

EXCHANGE RATES Commercial Bank of Kuwait US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian Dollar Australian DLR Indian rupees Sri Lanka Rupee UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi riyals Omani riyals Egyptian pounds

.2740000 .4480000 .3640000 .3000000 .2810000 .2860000 .0040000 .0020000 .0761220 .7416310 .3870000 .0720000 .7270370 .0430000

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES US Dollar/KD .2798500 GB Pound/KD .4511320 Euro .3662960 Swiss francs .3027040 Canadian dollars .2835360 Danish Kroner .0491080 Swedish Kroner .0423910 Australian dlr .2885110 Hong Kong dlr .0361000 Singapore dlr .2295260 Japanese yen .0035570 Indian Rs/KD .0000000 Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 Pakistan rupee .0000000 Bangladesh taka .0000000 UAE dirhams .0762220 Bahraini dinars .7426030 Jordanian dinar .0000000 Saudi Riyal/KD .0746470 Omani riyals .7271660 Philippine Peso .0000000

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. ASIAN COUNTRIES

Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht Malaysian Ringgit

3.605 5.321 2.950 2.194 3.341 229.950 36.397 3.439 6.784 9.181 91.682

.2860000 .4610000 .3720000 .3070000 .2940000 .2980000 .0058500 .0035000 .0768870 .7490850 .4100000 .0780000 .7343440 .0510000 .2819500 .4545170 .3690440 .3049760 .2856640 .0494760 .0427090 .2906760 .0363710 .2312490 .0035840 .0053720 .0021990 .0029690 .0034830 .0767940 .7481760 .3987980 .0752070 .7326230 .0068910

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham

GCC COUNTRIES 75.270 77.556 733.140 749.700 76.859

ARAB COUNTRIES Egyptian Pound - Cash 47.900 Egyptian Pound - Transfer 46.284 Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.317 Tunisian Dinar 179.940 Jordanian Dinar 398.150 Lebanese Lira/for 1000 1.894 Syrian Lier 4.924 Morocco Dirham 33.391 EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 282.150 Euro 364.540 Sterling Pound 452.570 Canadian dollar 289.210 Turkish lire 154.720 Swiss Franc 300.580 US Dollar Buying 280.950 GOLD 332.000 168.000 86.000

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

Australian dollar Bahraini dinar Bangladeshi taka Canadian dollar Cyprus pound Czek koruna Danish krone Deutsche Mark Egyptian pound Euro Cash Hongkong dollar Indian rupees Indonesia Iranian tuman Iraqi dinar Japanese yen Jordanian dinar Lebanese pound Malaysian ringgit Morocco dirham Nepalese Rupees New Zealand dollar Nigeria

SELL CASH

293.300 747.570 3.660 298.600 552.100 45.800 50.300 167.800 48.160 372.400 36.950 5.470 0.032 0.161 0.246 3.660 398.360 0.190 95.450 45.200 4.320 233.600 1.821

50.900 730.170 3.070 7.000 77.760 75.050 232.030 36.300 2.678 457.100 43.600 307.500 4.100 9.520 198.263 76.640 281.500 1.350

10 Tola

GOLD 1,854.250

Sterling Pound US Dollar

729.990 2.963 6.810 77.330 75.050 232.030 36.300 2.185 455.100 306.000 4.100 9.380 76.540 281.100

COUNTRY

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 455.100 281.100

SELL DRAFT

291.800 747.570 3.441 287.100

232.000 46.050 370.900 36.800 5.319 0.031

SELL DRAFT

Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro US Dollar Sterling Pound Japanese Yen Bangladesh Taka Indian Rupee Sri Lankan Rupee Nepali Rupee Pakistani Rupee UAE Dirhams Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Jordanian Dinar Omani Riyal Qatari Riyal Saudi Riyal

SELL CASH

292.61 292.31 306.67 368.30 281.35 455.51 3.66 3.463 5.320 2.193 3.323 2.955 76.67 749.14 46.19 400.83 732.24 77.69 75.24

294.500 292.000 307.000 366.000 282.450 455.000 3.690 3.600 5.500 2.320 3.600 3.150 77.350 749.500 47.800 399.000 735.000 78.000 75.750

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd 396.320 0.189 95.450 3.350 232.100

Rate for Transfer

US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro

Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

304.345 743.935 76.485 77.130 74.895 396.110 46.025 2.179 5.325 2.944 3.434 6.796 689.290 4.567 9.265 4.360 3.425 91.935

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co.

UAE Exchange Centre WLL

Bahrain Exchange Company COUNTRY

Norwegian krone Omani Riyal Pakistani rupees Philippine peso Qatari riyal Saudi riyal Singapore dollar South Africa Sri Lankan rupees Sterling pound Swedish krona Swiss franc Syrian pound Thai bhat Tunisian dollar UAE dirham U.S. dollars Yemeni Riyal

Selling Rate

281.000 285.195 453.810 368.175

Currency

Rate per 1000 (Tran)

US Dollar Pak Rupees Indian Rupees Sri Lankan Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso UAE Dirhams Saudi Riyals Bahraini Dinars Egyptian Pounds Pound Sterling Indonesian Rupiah Yemeni Riyal Euro Canadian Dollars Nepali rupee

281.000 2.957 5.340 2.195 3.449 6.855 76.610 75.090 747.000 46.050 458.500 2.990 1.550 373.500 290.900 3.395

Al Mulla Exchange Currency

Transfer Rate (Per 1000)

US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

281.250 367.200 454.050 289.200 3.625 5.339 46.124 2.191 3.447 6.783 2.955 749.200 76.650 75.150

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

business

Greece, troika talks hit snag on labor reforms On-off talks marred by tension, disagreement ATHENS: Greece’s labor minister and international lenders briefly suspended talks on austerity cuts on Tuesday to confer with their leaders on the thorny issue of labor reforms, which have prompted objections from government coalition partners. After weeks of tense negotiations on 11.5 billion euros ($15 billion) of budget cuts in 2013-2014, the talks hit a fresh snag on the issues of scrapping automatic wage increases and reducing severance payments, part of labor market measures the lenders say are needed to make Greece more competitive. “The troika demands feed recession and galloping unemployment,” Fotis Kouvelis, leader of the small Democratic Left party, said after a meeting among the parties of the conservative -led government of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras.

The on-off talks on the austerity package, needed so Greece can secure a tranche from a 130-billion-euro bailout keeping it afloat, have been frequently marred by tension and disagreement on

issues ranging from wage cuts to public sector reforms. Officials acknowledge the two sides remain at loggerheads over many issues but played down speculation that talks between the labor minister and the so-called troika of lenders from the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund had broken down. “It’s not a breakdown,” a labor ministry official said earlier on Tuesday. “The prime minister as well as the other political leaders must be briefed on the progress of the negotiations.”

After the leaders’ met, talks with the troika resumed. Chief negotiators said they expected pending issues to be wrapped up. “We made progress,” the IMF’s Greece mission chief, Poul Thomsen, told reporters late on Tuesday. “We have reached agreement on most policy issues.

The few ones that remain we expect to cover soon.” Greece needs to clinch an agreement on the cuts as well a long list of reforms before it can unlock aid.

Samaras has said the country has money until the end of November. “This package must be the last one,” said Evangelos Venizelos, leader of the socialist PASOK, the other junior partner in the ruling coalition. “We must conclude the talks but not haphazardly and not at any cost.”

The government wants two more years to meet its fiscal targets to soften the impact of the austerity measures it is about to take and IMF chief Christine Lagarde has backed giving Greece more time. A senior Greek finance ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Greece’s talks with the troika were already taking place under the assumption that a two-year extension would be granted. “The issue of the extension has been put on the table. The troika is working based on this,” the official said, adding that without the two-year extension, Greece would need to take measures worth 18 billion euros. “The measures will be worth 13.5 billion euros, full stop,” the official said.—Reuters

ATHENS: People eat after they received food donated by the Greek Church in central Athens yesterday. The Athens municipality and church distribute free food to poor and homeless people three times every day. — AFP

EU leaders battle deepening recession, unrest, divisions Summit mulls euro-zone redesign

BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel (center) speaks with German Labor Minister Ursula von der Leyen (left) as German Economy Minister and Vice-Chancellor Philipp Roesler (right) and German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle look on at the beginning of a cabinet’s meeting yesterday. —AFP

Germany upgrades 2012, slashes growth forecasts BERLIN: The German government fractionally upgraded its growth forecast for the current year, but slashed its prognosis for next year, Economy Minister Philipp Roesler announced yesterday.

The government is penciling in growth of 0.8 percent for 2012, marginally more than an earlier forecast for 0.7 percent.

But Europe’s top economy will grow by only 1.0 percent next year, instead of the 1.6 percent Berlin had previously been hoping for, Roesler said. “The good news is that the German economy is holding up and still on a growth path, despite all the global economic turbulence,” Roesler told a news conference here. Germany’s economic performance in the first six months of this year had turned out better than thought, the minister said.

“But with the European sovereign debt crisis and the economic weakening in developing countries in Asia and Latin America, Germany is in stormy economic waters,” he cautioned. Companies were holding back on planned investments and the majority of sentiment indicators pointed to a weakening of growth.

“We’re therefore expecting a lessening of economic momentum in the winter halfyear. But there can be no talk of a collapse in growth,” Roesler insisted. “The German economy remains robust and stands on a structurally sound basis.

There is every indication that the global economy can regain momentum and

that means growth will pick up in Germany, too,” Roesler said.

Last week, Germany’s leading economic think tanks pared back their forecast for this year to 0.8 percent and slashed the prediction for next year in half to 1.0 percent, warning there was a “great danger” that Europe’s top economy could fall into recession. Chancellor Angela Merkel, too, acknowledged that after two “very good” years of growth, this year would be “weaker.” German gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 4.2 percent in 2010 and by 3.0 percent in 2011. Roesler said the outlook for the German market remains “very favorable, even if it is losing momentum.”

Employment in Germany was already at record levels and was expected to rise further next year when some 41.6 million people were projected to have a job. At the same time, the annual average jobless total was expected to fall to 2.9 million this year and remain at that level next year, Roesler said. With purchasing power set to rise as inflation remains at around 2.0 percent this year and 1.9 percent next year, household spending “will remain the main driver of growth,” the minister continued. Export growth, traditionally the motor of the German economy, has slowed sharply since last year owing to the global economic weakening, but remains relatively robust, Roesler said.— AFP

C Suisse’s top Mideast banker Yammine quits DUBAI: Bassam Yammine, Credit Suisse’s top Middle East investment banker and the co-chief executive for the bank’s operations in the region, has resigned to pursue personal business interests, the Swiss lender said yesterday. Yammine, who joined Credit Suisse 2007 and is among the senior most banking figures in the region, will stay until the end of 2012 to assist in the handover process, Credit Suisse said in an emailed statement.

Big US and European banks are cutting investment banking jobs in the Middle East as the promise of emerging markets is eclipsed by a need to cut costs and a dearth of deal activity. Deutsche Bank, Bank of America and Japan’s Nomura Holdings have all cut jobs in their investment banking teams in the region. Globally, Credit Suisse is in the middle of a program to cut costs by the end of 2013. Yammine ran the bank’s operations in the Middle East along with Bruno Daher, who is also the head of private banking for the Middle East and Indian sub-continent.

Under Yammine, who headed its investment banking and asset manage-

ment businesses in the region, Credit Suisse has been strengthening its ties with Gulf Cooperation Council countries, mainly Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. The bank advised sovereign wealth fund Qatar Holding on several deals including high-profile purchases of stakes in German auto maker Porsche and the acquisition of London’s famed Harrods department store. Qatar is the top shareholder in Credit Suisse with a 6.2 percent stake, followed by Saudi Arabia’s Olayan Group. Both Gulf groups took part in a 2012 capital raising.

Credit Suisse has a strong investment banking presence in Qatar run by Aladdin Hangari, who was appointed under Yammine. Saad Bennani, based in Dubai, was named the co-head of the Middle East investment bank along with Yammine last year. Credit Suisse is planning to trim its investment banking team in Dubai and relocate some junior analysts to neighboring Qatar as part of its efforts to cut costs. Earlier, Reuters reported Yammine’s departure citing two sources familiar with the matter, with one of them adding the bank was yet to announce a replacement.— Reuters

BRUSSELS: EU leaders will go into a brainstorming session today in the first of three summits being held before Christmas in the hope of ending the year with a deal on a stronger economic and monetary union. Although pressure on the euro has eased in recent weeks, European Union leaders gathering from 5:45 pm today have to contend with a deepening recession and social unrest as well as divisions between Europe’s major powers on how to ensure the euro single currency can survive the debt crisis.

One of the hot-button issues is the plan for a single European bank regulator, the first step towards allowing the new euro-zone rescue fund, the European Stability Mechanism, to directly help ailing lenders. The 17 euro-zone states largely support the proposal, although serious differences over timing remain, but their non-euro peers are uneasy that their banks operating in the bloc might face new regulation without their say-so.

Berlin has made clear that an idea for a single bank supervisor, agreed at a breakthrough June summit, needs to go slower and be less ambitious than some, including France, would like. Britain in turn opposes any measure that could harm the interests of the City of London, one of the world’s biggest financial markets. Meanwhile, there is little expectation of a breakthrough on Greece’s long drawn-out bailout at the two-day summit, where Spain’s financial and political woes will be high in leaders’ minds. Many investors and analysts eventually expect a request for some form of bailout from the fourth biggest economy in the euro-zone, but the issue appears undecided with Madrid reluctant to go down that road. In a positive resummit sign from the EU’s economic powerhouse and paymaster Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel praised both Athens and Madrid for agreeing to painful austerity measures and reforms. Merkel, whose electorate remains reluctant to bail out any more ailing EU economies, said progress in southern European states had been “slower than we might have liked” but that nonetheless “something has changed in their way of thinking.”

During the talks, the 27 European leaders will also review relations with China, and discuss hotspots Syria, Iran and Mali. But as ever, Europe’s battered economy will take precedence. The leaders will discuss proposals to reinforce economic and

monetary union drawn up by EU president Herman Van Rompuy, with input from European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi, Eurogroup head JeanClaude Juncker and European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso.

Van Rompuy has suggested that reforms might include the pooling of debt, by strong and the week alike, so that the risk is shared by all eurozone members when they issue common bonds to raise funds. France and Germany were quickly into the fray, trading barbs. “You can phrase it any way you like-’Treasury bills, debt redemption funds or eurobonds,’ this type of debt issuance will not fly with our government,” said German Europe Minister Michael Link. His French counterpart Bernard Cazeneuve said: “For us, it is ‘yes,’ just as clearly.” The possible use of such ‘eurobonds’ is fraught, with Germany fearing this would give

weaker euro-zone states a free ride in the markets at its expense.

With the same aim of a stronger union, Germany on the other hand wants rapid changes to the base EU treaty to strengthen the role of the Economic and Monetary Affairs commissioner, currently Olli Rehn. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said Merkel will present a plan at the summit, arguing that a “more mutual fiscal policy automatically means a limit on national budgetary sovereignty.” After a November summit which will address the divisive issue of the next 2014-20 EU budget-another highly sensitive issueit is hoped a December meeting will produce final answers on a way ahead and whether this will require difficult changes to the EU treaty, or rulebook. “We want a quick adaptation of the treaty,” Schaeuble said.— AFP

LONDON: People walk along a street in central London yesterday. The number of unemployed people in recession-hit Britain fell by 50,000 to 2.53 million in the quarter to August from the total in the previous quarter, official data showed. — AFP

UAE’s Union National Bank Q3 net rises 7% ABU DHABI: Abu Dhabi’s Union National Bank posted a 7-percent rise in third-quarter net profit yesterday, beating analysts’ expectations, as the lender reversed losses from financial instruments during the quarter. UNB made a net profit of 528.2 million dirhams ($143.8 million) for the quarter ended September 2012, compared with 493.8 million dirhams

in the prior-year period, it said in a statement on the Abu Dhabi bourse.

The earnings beat average analysts’ forecast of 446.9 million dirhams for the quarter. The quarterly earnings were largely boosted by reversal of losses in the trading and non-trading financial instruments, the company’s financial statements showed.

Gain from non-trading financial instruments was 36.6 million dirhams compared with a loss of 1.6 million dirhams in the prioryear period. Impairment losses on financial assets during the quarter were 86 million dirhams, a slight increase from the 81.2 million dirhams reported a year-ago. Net interest income for the third-quarter rose to 564 million dirhams

compared with 562 million dirhams for the year-ago period.

UNB said fee and commission income for the nine month period ending September 30, reduced to 325 million dirhams from 364 million dirhams due to changed lending guidelines by the country’s central bank. Shares of UNB have gained 6.2 percent this year on the Abu Dhabi bourse.— Reuters

Kingfisher talks fail to re-start flights MUMBAI: Talks yesterday between striking staff and the management of India’s troubled Kingfisher Airlines failed to reach an agreement to re-start flights, the chief executive said. A crippling strike

by employees who have not received salaries for seven months has forced the airline, which is teetering on the brink of financial collapse, to ground all its planes since October 1. Kingfisher’s top man-

MUMBAI: Striking employees of India’s Kingfisher Airlines hold a placard during a protest march at the domestic airport in Mumbai. —AFP

agers met some striking employees yesterday to persuade them to call off their agitation and return to work.

The meeting “made good progress” but more talks will have to be held, Sanjay Aggarwal told reporters. Another meeting is likely next Monday, he said. A striking staffer, who attended the meeting but declined to be named, told AFP that the talks were “positive” but added the strike would continue until salaries are paid in full. Employees have been offered one month’s pay to return to work, but they refused. Kingfisher said last week that operations would be suspended until October 20. India’s civil aviation regulator has issued a notice asking why its license should not be cancelled, fuelling more doubts about the airline’s future.

The airline, named after the biggest beer brand of its extrovert owner Vijay Mallya, owes billions of dollars in taxes, airport fees and to staff. Mallya has been desperately scouting for a foreign airline to pump in fresh capital to keep it flying but analysts are doubtful any carrier will want to take an equity stake. The company was India’s second-largest airline until a year ago but now it has a market share of just 3.2 percent, the smallest of the country’s carriers. The airline has drastically reduced its operations in the past year, shutting down international flights completely.— AFP

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Brent slips; Global economy worry persists LONDON: Brent crude oil fell yesterday as lingering worry about the global economy overshadowed relief that Spain avoided a ratings downgrade and optimism prompted by firm US corporate results. Brent fell 11 cents to $113.89 a barrel by 1000 GMT. The November contract, which expired on Tuesday, closed 73 cents lower at $115.07, while December settled 40 cents lower at $114.00. US oil gained 11 cents to $92.20.

Brent gained in early trade after Moody’s Investors Service affirmed its investment grade rating on Spain helping ease investor worries that the crisis in the region is worsening. Investors were reluctant to buy into oil as concern about the demand

outlook remained in focus, and crude stayed towards the lower side of its trading range. “The battle continues between the negativity from the slowing of the global economy compared to what global stimulus programs might do to the economy going forward while geopolitics has continued to remain an issue for market participants,” said Dominick Chirichella of New York’s Energy Management Institute. Oil was supported by supply concerns, as the European Union slapped fresh sanctions on Iran. European Union governments imposed sanctions against major Iranian state companies in the oil and gas industry and strengthened restrictions on the cen-

TEXAS: Julia Trigg Crawford stands on a road in front of a neighboring property to her family farm where work by TransCanada continues on an oil pipeline in Sumner, Texas.— AP

tral bank. The United States and the European Union are putting pressure on Iran to stop its disputed nuclear program, while Tehran says it needs the technology to generate electricity.

STOCKPILES BUILD Prices were also under pressure from data showing US crude inventories rose more than expected last week, while distillate stockpiles showed a surprise build, data from the American Petroleum Institute showed. Crude inventories rose by 3.7 million barrels in the week to Oct 12, against a build of 1.7 million forecast in a Reuters poll. Participants await a report later in the day by the US Energy Information Administration for details of the stockpile. Market expectations for another “build in US crude stockpiles highlight bearish market sentiment over excess US oil supplies and these concerns could be magnified after this morning’s American Petroleum Industry report showed an even higher build of 3.7 million barrels,” analysts at ANZ said. “(The) EIA report will be a key price driver, but in the meantime there could be a downward bias.” Adding to the improved supply picture, Saudi Arabia pumped around 9.77 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil in September, an industry source said. The kingdom appears to be keeping its pledge to ensure global markets are well supplied with oil, as a Reuters analysis of US import data shows sales to the world’s top consumer have dipped less than 10 percent from a fouryear high hit this year.— Reuters

LISBON: Brokers work in a trading room of a Portuguese bank in Lisbon.— AP

Europe hopes lift the Asian markets Investors remain cautious as Spain dodges downgrade HONG KONG: Asian markets were boosted yesterday on increased confidence in the euro-zone after Moody’s held off cutting Spain’s credit rating, while Madrid looked to move closer to asking for a bailout. A successful bond auction for Greece added to the sense of optimism, while the euro maintained its gains seen in late trade Tuesday as investors sought out riskier assets. Tokyo jumped 1.21 percent, or 105.24 points, to 8,806.55, Sydney added 0.82 percent, or 36.7 points, to 4,528.2 and Seoul was 0.70 percent higher, adding 13.61 points to 1,955.15.

Hong Kong rose 0.99 percent, or 209.57 points, to 21,416.64 and Shanghai was up 0.32 percent, or 6.81 points, at 2,105.62. Moody’s gave debtaddled Spain some much-needed room on Tuesday when it held the country’s rating at Baa3, one notch above “junk ”, citing the European Central Bank’s willingness to buy government bonds to stabilize its borrowing rate. It also pointed to Madrid’s commitment to implementing fiscal and structural reforms necessary to improve its finances as well as efforts to restructure the banking sector and strengthen the banks. However, the agency kept it on a “negative outlook”.

Also, a senior Spanish official has said that Madrid was considering a request for a line of credit from Europe’s European Stability Mechanism (ESM) rescue fund, the Wall Street Journal repor ted. The comments soothed investors fears over Spain as Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has so far refused to ask for help, despite the parlous state of the economy, saying he wanted to study the terms of a rescue. “ The latest headlines from Madrid imply that a formal request for aid is inevitable,” said Ashraf Laidi, chief global strategist at City Index.

Greece managed to complete a successful short-term bond auction at lower rates as hopes rise that it will be given a little more breathing space to carry out much needed reforms to get its economy back on track. And in Germany, Europe’s key economic driver, the closely-watched ZEW institute’s calculator of investor confidence rose for the second month in a row in October, in line with a slight easing in regional debt concerns. The news out of Europe sent the euro surging against the yen and dollar. And in early European trade the single currency bought $1.3103 and 103.17 yen, compared with $1.3096 and 103.31 yen in

New York late Tuesday. The dollar was at 78.73 yen compared with 78.89 yen.

Wall Street provided a healthy lead thanks to impressive earnings reports from Mattel, Coca-Cola and Johnson & Johnson. The Dow climbed 0.95 percent, the S&P 500 rose 1.03 percent and the Nasdaq added 1.21 percent. But the main focus this week is on China, where third quarter growth figures are due to be released on Thursday, with investors hoping for improved figures and the beginning of a pickup after a slowdown for most of the year. Oil prices were mixed.

New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in November, rose 21 cents to $92.30 in the afternoon while Brent North Sea crude for December delivery shed six cents to $113.94.

EURO HITS 1-MONTH HIGH The euro touched a one -month high against the dollar and Spanish government bond yields fell sharply yesterday after Spain clung on to its investment-grade debt rating. The decision by ratings agency Moody’s came as expectations grow that Spain is close to formally requesting aid from its European Union partners, potentially allowing the region’s central bank to begin buying its bonds.

The euro was up 0.3 percent at $1.31, having earlier hit $1.3125, its highest level since Sept 17, while Spanish government 10-year bond yields dropped 24 basis points to 5.57 percent. “It is a major surprise. I think the market was positioned for a downgrade. The only question for markets was (would it be) one notch or more,” said Piet Lammens, strategist at KBC Bank. But investors remain cautious ahead of a meeting of European leaders in Brussels today and tomorrow, where there is always the potential for public disagreement over the next steps to resolve the region’s three-year old debt crisis.

The two-day summit, the fourth among the 27 EU leaders this year, is meant to focus on efforts to establish a single supervisor for the euro-zone’s banks, as well as longer-term plans for closer integration of the currency union. However, a push by Germany for a new super-commissioner to oversee fiscal policy and the potential Spanish aid request mean there is even a chance of a separate summit of the 17 euro-zone leaders after the main meeting, officials said. “Our expectation is ... that the European summit yet again will be a disappointment, and then it

(the euro) will go back down,” said Callum Henderson, global head of FX research for Standard Chartered Bank.

GROWTH EYED Equity markets reacted more cautiously to the Spanish news, with investors bracing for the release of Chinese growth data today, which will shed fresh light on the slowdown in the world’s second largest economy.

Stock markets around the world have gained steadily this week on signs the global economy is slowly recovering in the wake of central bank efforts to boost activity, but investors are seeking reassurance from the Chinese numbers.

The consensus forecast in a Reuters poll is for year-on-year Chinese growth to slow slightly to 7.4 percent in the third quarter, which would be its slowest rate for three years. MSCI’s world equity index was up 0.3 percent at 336.68 points, extending Tuesday’s 1.2 percent gain.

In Europe the FTSE Eurofirst 300 index of top shares was flat in early trade at 1,112.91 points. Most of the region’s markets showed little movement, except for Spain and Italy, where relief over Moody’s decision to keep Spain’s bonds at Baa3, albeit with a negative outlook, lifted the IBEX index in Madrid by 1.2 percent to 8,037 points. Italy’s FTSE MIB index gained 0.4 percent.

DOLLAR DIPS Meanwhile, the euro’s gains sent the dollar to its lowest level in a month against a basket of major currencies, with little reaction seen to the latest televised election debate between US President Barack Obama and his Republican opponent Mitt Romney.

Obama aggressively challenged Romney’s views on jobs, energy and Libya in their second debate on Tuesday as the Democrat tried to reclaim the momentum in a tight White House race.

The weaker greenback, which makes dollar-priced commodities more attractive for buyers holding other currencies, supported precious metals, with spot gold rising 0.3 percent to $1,752.49 an ounce. But Brent crude oil fell on lingering worry about the global economy ahead of the data from China, a major source of demand. Brent futures were down 33 cents at $113.67 a barrel, while the November contract, which expired on Tuesday, closed 73 cents lower at $115.07.—Agencies

ADNOC to offer cleaner diesel fuel SINGAPORE: State - owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) plans to offer cleaner diesel fuel for export through its 2013 term contract, a delay of about a year from its initial target, industry sources said yesterday. The move would make ADNOC the first Middle Eastern producer to export ultra-low sulphur diesel outside the region on a term basis, with most of the shipments expected to go to Europe. It will also help position the Middle East as a viable competitor to India, which is now the main supplier of diesel to Europe from Asia. ADNOC’S plan for regular shipments comes as Europe faces a growing shortfall of diesel and jet fuel, thanks to lower refinery use rates. The company plans to offer diesel cargoes with 10 parts-per-million (ppm) sulphur to export cus-

tomers for term contracts for next year, traders said. It has been offering the cleaner diesel fuel for exports in the spot market since late June.

ADNOC had term contracts to export about 600,000 tons of gasoil a year with a higher sulphur content of 5,000 ppm until the end of last year.

This year, it skipped term exports of gasoil as it was trying to meet specifications required in new markets, especially in Europe, but faced some unspecified difficulties. Diesel exports to Europe have to meet very stringent criteria, among them the cold weather properties of the fuel used as heating oil in winter. While ADNOC is only able to meet the summer specifications of diesel in Europe now, it aims to meet winter specifications by the middle of next year, a source close to the matter said.

This will make ADNOC’s diesel cargoes more attractive for traders targeting the European market.

Volumes available for term exports have not been firmed up yet, the source added. The company might continue to supply 500 ppm sulphur diesel to domestic refiners ENOC and Emarat, due to the uncertainty in a fuel regulation shift within the United Arab Emirates (UAE), traders said.

Abu Dhabi, the main crude producer in OPEC member the United Arab Emirates, planned to switch its diesel supply solely to the ultra lowsulphur variety by 2012, under a strategic plan running until 2013, in line with a global shift towards cleaner fuel. But this is still awaiting government approval and is likely to be delayed to next year, the traders added.— Reuters

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US housing starts surge in positive sign for economy WASHINGTON: Groundbreaking on new US homes surged in September to its fastest pace in more than four years, a sign the housing sector’s budding recovery is gaining traction and supporting the wider economic recovery. Housing starts increased 15 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 872,000 units, the Commerce Department said yesterday. That was the quickest pace since July 2008, though data on starts is volatile and subject to substantial revisions.

The US economy has shown signs of faster growth in recent months as the jobless rate has fallen and retail sales data has pointed to stronger consumer spending. The data showed housing, which was battered by the 2007-09 recession, is increasingly one of the brighter spots in the economy and could add to growth this year for the first time since 2005. “One of the big headwinds for the economy has been the weak housing market and this indicates that headwind has dissipated,” said Gary Thayer, an economic strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors in St

Louis, Missouri. The brighter economic signal is likely to be welcomed at the White House, where a sluggish economy is weighing on President Barack Obama’s chances of re-election next month. Economists estimate that for every new house built, at least three new jobs are created. More home building could help compensate for some of the weakness recently in factory output, which is seen as due to sluggish export demand and cooling investment in capital goods.

NOT YET NORMAL US stock index futures added to gains after the data, while the US 30year bond price w as down over 1 point. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast residential construction rising to a 770,000-unit rate. August’s starts were revised to show a 758,000unit pace instead of the previously reported 750,000. Housing remains hampered by an glut of unsold homes, and the ho using starts r ate is s till about 60 percent below its January 2006 peak. September groundbreaking for single -family homes, the

largest segment of the market, rose 11 percent to a 603,000-unit pace - the highest level since August 2008. Starts for multi-family homes climbed 25.1 percent.

“Things are lining up for housing and housing is likely to contribute to GDP growth this year,” said John C anally, an economist at LPL Financial in Boston. “It’s another step in the right direction, but you still have a long, long way to get back to ‘normal’ in housing.”

Building permits grew by 11.6 percent to a 894,000-unit pace in September. August’s permits were unrevised at 801,000 units. Economists had expected permits to rise to a 810,000-unit pace last month. US home sales have been creeping up and the steep decline in prices since 2006 appears to have bottomed. That has helped home-builder sentiment, which this month rose to a fresh sixyear high.

In a bid to help the economy by encouraging people to buy homes, the Fed said last month it would buy $40 billion in mortgage-backed securi-

OKLAHOMA: New homes are constructed in Edmond, Okla. US builders started construction on single-family homes and apartments last month at the fastest rate since July 2008, a further indication that the housing recovery is strengthening. — AP ties every month until the jobs outlook percent, the Mortgage Bankers Association said. Applications for US improves substantially.

The Fed’s efforts to lower borrow- home mortgages fell last week, but ing costs have pushed interest rates demand for purchase loans, a leading on 30-year mortgages to all-time lows. indicator of home sales, reached the Last week, fixed 30-year mortgage highest level since June, the associarates rose 1 basis point to average 3.57 tion said. —Reuters

TeliaSonera to cut thousands of jobs Telecoms group aims for 2 billion crowns in cost savings

MIAMI: Photo shows a Bank of America branch in downtown Miami. Bank of America said yesterday it narrowly turned a profit from July through September, good enough to beat Wall Street expectations. — AP

Futures tick up on BofA as Nasdaq down on tech NEW YORK: The Dow and S&P 500 index futures edged higher yesterday as Bank of America rose after reporting a quarterly profit, but the Nasdaq composite index slipped on weak tech company results. Bank of America Corp shares rose 1.8 percent to $9.63 in premarket trading after reporting $340 million in net earnings, or nil per share. Analysts estimates were for a per-share loss.

Citigroup and Goldman Sachs posted strong results this week, also indicating improvement in the financial sector. But JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo disappointed investors. Tech shares were pressured a day after both Intel Corp and IBM reported disappointing quarterly results, sending the stocks sharply down before the opening bell. “There was a lot of pessimism going into earnings season, but overall I’m happy with what I’m seeing.

Things seem to be improving for banks,” said Scott Schermerhorn, chief investment officer at Granite Investment Advisors in Concord, New Hampshire.

“IBM and Intel were weak, but it isn’t surprising to see such globally exposed companies hit by weakness in Europe and emerging markets.”

S&P 500 futures rose 3.1 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 10 points while Nasdaq 100 futures fell 1.75 points.

Equities are coming off their best twoday advance in a month, a rise of 1.8 per-

cent. Those gains came as some disappointments early in the earnings season were offset by strong results from such bellwethers as Johnson & Johnson.

Still, the first report cards from companies in the tech sector suggested reasons for caution. Late Tuesday, Intel gave a weak fourth-quarter revenue outlook while IBM posted third-quarter revenue that came in under expectations. The tech sector is closely monitored because it is one measures of business spending.

Intel fell 4 percent to $21.45 in premarket while IBM lost 4.1 percent to $202.45.

Both firms are Dow components.

Earnings for S&P 500 components are seen falling 2.3 percent from a year ago, with the main culprite the slowing global economy. But the latest forecast does mark a slight improvement from estimates last week, according to Thomson Reuters data.

PepsiCo reported a drop in thirdquarter earnings, hurt by a stronger US dollar, while Textron’s earnings missed expectations, though it raised its fullyear profit view. ASML agreed to buy Cymer, its key supplier of a light-based technology crucial to making a new generation of much smaller chips, for $2.5 billion. The stock surged 65 percent to $79 before the bell. While earnings have been the primar y driver for shares, Europe’s debt crisis continues to remain in focus. Shares in Europe rose 0.3 percent. US stocks closed 1 percent higher on Tuesday, lifted by strong results from J&J and Goldman. — Reuters

Burgan Bank announces its iPad 3, Galaxy SIII winners KUWAIT: Burgan Bank announced yesterday the names of the winners of the bank cardholder’s monthly draw to win an iPad3 and Samsung Galaxy SIII on it cards campaign. The lucky winners of the iPad3 and Samsung Galaxy SIII were Mazen Essam Hawa and Abdulrahman Mohammed Abdullah.

The winners’ announcement comes as part of Burgan Bank’s cards promotion that was launched earlier, in which every 10 KD spent in Kuwait online or in stores using Burgan Bank’s cards, cardholders will be granted 1 chance to enter the draw.

Customers using their cards outside Kuwait, will double their chances to entering the monthly draws. Two winners will be announced on a monthly basis, with a total of 12.

There are 8 more remaining winners that will also benefit from this draw in the coming five months.

Burgan Bank’s latest promotion is inline with its overall commitment to provide its customers with exclusive benefits

that go beyond their banking needs. To find out more about Burgan Bank’s services as well as its latest promotions, customers are required to visit their nearest Burgan Bank branch or contact the call center on 1804080. For more information, customers can log on to the bank’s website on www.burgan.com.

STOCKHOLM: Telecoms group TeliaSonera AB is shedding thousands of jobs as part of a costcutting plan and has warned of industry stagnation until companies find a way to profit from surging smartphone and tablet data traffic. TeliaSonera, part-owned by the Swedish and Finnish states, has seen revenue flatline since 2008, despite rapid expansion in central Asia, as voice revenues across the industry are squeezed by competition, regulatory pressure and a global economic downturn. The company said yesterday it would cut around 2,000 employees, or 7 percent of the total, as part of a quest for 2 billion crowns ($300 million) in cost savings over the next two years. It did not say where the jobs would be cut.

The group warned of industry stagnation until companies find a way to profit from surging smartphone and tablet computer use, with consumers proving reluctant to pay and favoring contracts giving unlimited data use for a fixed fee. “We have an issue of not enough growth,” CEO Lars Nyberg said during a results conference call yesterday. “ This is not a TeliaSonera issue, this is an industry issue.”

Nyberg said voice revenue was declining and operators were still unable to turn the surge in video streaming and social networking on smartphones into increased income. “We will see a flat kind of industry for a couple of years until we are able, in a better way, to monetize the growth in data traffic,” Nyberg said.

Nyberg said the company’s cost-saving plan revolved around simplifying its ways of working, but gave no details beyond the staff reduction. “When the industry has no growth and your costs go up by 3 percent a year, you

have to do something,” Nyberg said. Telia is not the only company announcing cost saving measures and Nordic rival Telenor ASA, which has also aggressively expanded in emerging markets, recently launched a plan to reduce annual operating expenses by 5 billion crowns ($881 million).

STOCKHOLM: TeliaSonera AB President and CEO Lars Nyberg pauses during a news conference in Stockholm yesterday. —AP

BoE leave door open to more UK stimulus LONDON: Bank of England policymakers were split earlier this month over pumping more cash into the recession-hit British economy, minutes from their latest meeting showed yesterday. Minutes from the central bank’s policy gathering on October 3-4 revealed that all nine policymakers voted to keep the key lending rate at 0.50 percent, where it has stood since March 2009.

The bank’s nine -strong Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) also were also united in maintaining the size of the bank’s asset purchasing program, or quantitative easing (QE) stimulus, at £375 billion ($597 billion, 473 billion euros). However, there were “differences” of opinion over the central bank’s future monetary policy stance.

“There were some differences of view between members about the outlook and the likelihood that further easing in policy would be required,” the minutes read. “But there was agreement that there was little to be gained at this meeting in changing the current program of asset purchases.

“The committee would have the opportunity to gauge the impact of past and prospective policy actions at home and abroad over the next month.”

The BoE’s most recent QE cash injection of £50 billion, announced in July, is due to be completed in November.

Vicky Redwood, chief UK economist at Capital Economics research group, said it was a “close call” whether the majority of MPC members would vote for more stimulus cash next month. “Although the vote to leave policy unchanged this month was unanimous, there were ‘differences of view’ regarding the need for more QE further ahead,” she said.

“Some thought there was still considerable scope for QE to provide further stimulus, whilst others were less convinced and emphasized the limits to what monetary policy could achieve.” Under QE, the central bank creates new cash which is used to purchase assets such as government and corporate bonds in a bid to increase lending by retail banks and boost economic activity.

Many analysts expect Britain to have emerged from recession in the third quarter or three months to September. — AFP

MARGIN OUTLOOK “It is something all the players in the space are doing and I am not surprised to see it (at Telia),” said Thomas Nielsen, analyst at brokerage Pareto. Telia’s third-quarter earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), excluding one-off items, dipped 6.3 percent to 9.3 billion crowns versus an average forecast of 9.5 billion in a Reuters poll. “The weakness is concentrated in the European mobile division, which missed our forecast by 9 percent,” Espirito Santo Investment Bank said in a research note. “The full-year outlook is unchanged, but from the CEO’s comments it is clear that the group is becoming more concerned about the margin outlook over the next few years.” Teli’s EBITDA margin declined in all its main business areas: Eurasia, Mobility and Broadband. Telia shares were down 1.5 percent at 45.42 crowns at 0914 GMT, underperforming the blue-chip Stockholm market and the STOXX Europe 600 telecoms index.

Telia gave no new information about a preliminary probe launched last month by Swedish prosecutors into alleged bribery and money-laundering related to the company’s purchase of a 3G license in Uzbekistan. The company has denied it did anything wrong in buying the license from an offshore company based in Gibraltar and has appointed external investigators to look at the 2.3 billion crown transaction. “TeliaSonera did not bribe anyone. TeliaSonera did not participate in money laundering,” Nyberg said. “There is zero tolerance of corruption and briber y at TeliaSonera.” — Reuters

News Corp board reelected LOS ANGELES: Rupert Murdoch survived yet another attempt to oust him as chairman of his News Corp media empire on Tuesday, the second straight year he has defeated critics who say his family wields too much control over the company.

Shareholders re-elected Murdoch, his two sons, Lachlan and James, and the rest of the company’s returning board members during a 75-minute meeting in Los Angeles. They also voted against proposals that would have separated the chairman and CEO roles held by Murdoch and eliminated News Corp’s dual class stock structure, which gives the Murdoch family voting control of the company.

Only 5 percent of investors voted against re-electing Murdoch during this year’s meeting. James, who was seated in the front row, received a 17 percent against reelection vote, while 21 percent of shareholders voted against reelecting Lachlan, who did not attend the event. A year ago, about 16 percent of investors voted against Murdoch. James and Lachlan fared worse, with about 35 percent of shareholders voting against their re-election to the board. But the Murdochs were still reelected because they control 40 percent of the voting rights.

As he did last year, Murdoch, 81, began Tuesday’s annual meeting by trying to make amends for “some wrongdoings at some publications in the UK,” a reference to the telephone-hacking scandal that prompted the closing of the News of the World tabloid. That was about the only similarity with last year’s meeting, which came at the height of the scandal and featured about 100 protesters who attracted television cameras with signs that read: “Murdoch isn’t above the law” and “Big Media, Big Money, Get Out.” Tom Watson, a British member of parliament, also flew in to voice complaints about the hacking scandal. By contrast, the atmosphere at Tuesday’s meeting was extremely subdued. Only about 80 people, including reporters, were in attendance at the

Zanuck Theater on the 20th Century Fox lot in Los Angeles. Standing at a podium emblazoned with the News Corp logo, Murdoch looked out into a sea of velvet chairs that were three-fourths empty.

Rarely was he confronted, and when he was, he simply smiled and answered politely.

Prior to the meeting, two investors, Christian Brothers Investment Services and Local Authority Pension Fund Forum, put forth a resolution to elect an independent chairman for News Corp.

California’s two largest public pension funds - the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (Calpers) and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (Calstrs) supported the move to split the jobs.

“Having a CEO serve as chair presents a conflict of interest and is an impediment to a strong independent board,” Julie Tanner, assistant director of socially responsible investing for CBIS, said at the meeting. “The lack of internal controls at the company has had real and lasting repercussions.”

But that resolution was overwhelmingly rejected, with 70 percent of investors voting against the measure.

Another speaker, Laura Campos of the Nathan Cummings Foundation, urged an end to News Corp’s dual class structure, a proposal that also was defeated. “There is no good reason for you to hold voting power that is so wildly out of proportion with your economic interest,” she told Murdoch. Murdoch responded that this family’s interests “are the same as all shareholders - to build a great company.”

Prominent proxy firm Glass Lewis recommended before the meeting that clients vote against six directors, including James and Lachlan Murdoch. The firm cited concerns over having too many members of the Murdoch family on the board and pointed to the large amount of shareholders who voted against Murdoch’s sons last year. Calpers and Calstrs also opposed some or all directors. — Reuters

26

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

business

Intel sees weak Q4, little Windows 8 bounce NEW YORK: Intel Corp, the world’s largest chipmaker, expects cold winds to blow this fall, as consumers shift their spending toward tablets and a weak global economy curbs corporate spending on computers. When it reported third-quarter results Tuesday, Intel said the usual bounce in sales due to the holiday season is likely to be cut in half this year -even though Microsoft is launching a new operating system that it says will get consumers excited about PCs again. In the quarter that just ended, Intel’s revenue from PC chips fell 8 percent from a year ago, in line with reports from research firms IDC and Gartner that said worldwide PC sales fell more than 8 percent.

The shift away from PCs and toward tablets is a threat to Intel because most tablets don’t use Intel processors. Instead, they use cheaper chips similar

to the ones found in smartphones. Intel wants to get its chips into tablets. The launch of Windows 8, Microsoft’s new operating system, on Oct. 26 gives it a chance to do that, since the software is designed both for PCs and tablets. But Intel’s expectations for the Windows 8 launch are muted.

Normally, PC makers ramp up production for the holiday season, but Intel CEO Paul Otellini said he expects that increase to be halved this year, in part because manufacturers are cautious about how consumers will take to Windows 8.

The new software is a radical departure from previous Windows versions in terms of how people are expected to use it to control their PCs. “I’m very excited about this new operating system,” Otellini said, but “we haven’t had a chance to really judge how consumers will embrace this in the PC space or

not.” Patrick Moorhead with research firm Moor Insight said PC makers have been cautious about building up big stocks of new Windows 8 PCs. That means they put in fewer orders with Intel, though it did see a bit of a spike in September as PC makers built initial stock for this month’s launch.

Intel’s stock fell 77 cents, or 3.5 percent, to $21.58 in extended trading, after the release of the results.

In regular trading, the shares rose 2.9 percent. The stock hit a 52-week low of $21.40 on Friday. While the outlook for the fourth quarter was glum, Intel beat expectations for the third quarter, after it had lowered those expectations twice. The Santa Clara, Calif., company said its third-quarter net income was $2.97 billion, or 58 cents per share, down from $3.47 billion, or 65 cents per share, a year ago. Excluding the amortization of some acquisition-related assets

and related tax effects, Intel earned 60 cents per share, handily beating the average estimate of analysts polled by FactSet, at 50 cents per share.

Revenue fell 5.5 percent to $13.5 billion. Analysts were expecting $13.22 billion, in line with the midpoint of Intel’s own forecast. Intel said it expects about $13.6 billion in fourth-quarter revenue, below the analyst forecast of $13.7 billion. More significantly, it said it expects a gross margin of 57 percent, well below the average for the last three years of 64 percent. The gross margin is Intel’s revenue minus the cost of making and selling the chips, so the lower forecast points indirectly to lower profit in the fourth quarter. The reduction is due to lower utilization of its factories, and a shift toward to a new processor technology, which will idle some factories for retooling. —AP

IBM’s Q3 earnings flat Revenue slides 5 percent

Etihad Airways President and CEO at IATA world passenger symposium

Mideast hubs are ‘driving force of change in aviation industry’ ABU DHABI: “Middle East hubs and airlines are leading the way to confront and overcome the serious challenges to global aviation growth and stability and bring about positive change in the industry.” That was the message given by James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ President and Chief Executive Officer, in his keynote address to delegates at the International Air Transport Association (IATA) World Passenger Symposium taking place in Abu Dhabi.

Hogan spoke in depth about the positive impact the Middle East is having on the global economy and how the focus is shifting from the traditional, more established markets to the emerging economic powerhouses in the Middle East, Asia, South America and Africa. “In an uncertain world,” Hogan said, “The Middle East is one of the “strong pockets” for growth in aviation.” In addition to capitalizing on its strategic geographical location, Hogan explained that the Middle East region works because of a new

approach - highlighting Abu Dhabi as a prime example of a new aviation hub.

“There’s an unprecedented focus on service, we are able to work from a new cost control template and there’s no ‘legacy’ airline baggage,” he said.

Hogan said: “The connectivity provided

by Etihad Airways is key to Abu Dhabi’s regional competitiveness and we relish our integral role in inbound tourism and the promotion of Abu Dhabi as a leading global destination. “Abu Dhabi has a growing, diversifying economy - backed by a Government with the vision, the will and ability to invest in the future. “The doubledigit growth we are seeing is largely supported by the government’s vision for the future which is backed by considerable investment in tourism infrastructure and Abu Dhabi’s willingness to embrace best practice and knowledge in other key areas including manufacturing, education and health.

Malabar Gold & Diamonds unveils sparkling offers KUWAIT: Malabar Gold & Diamonds announced exciting festive offers to make this season a truly sparkling one.

Celebrating this festive season, the jewellery group unveiled their latest collections in gold and diamonds that represents timeless elegance and sophistication, a tribute to the modern woman.

Adding extra glitter to this season, the jewellery group offers their customers special pearl diamond set absolutely free till 14th November with every purchase of stunning diamond jewellery in eye catching

designs. The branded jewellery collection of the group, Era- Uncut Diamond Collection, Mine- Diamonds- Unlimited, Diva- Own your style, Ethnix- Hand Crafted Designer Jewellery, Divine-Heritage Jewellery Collection, Starlet- Kids Jewellery, PreciaPrecious Gem Jewellery can add instant sparkle to any occasion. The group also introduces Zero Deduction exchange scheme till 31st October 2012 through which customers can update their old ornaments to the brand new collectionsof Malabar Gold & Diamonds with zero loss.

SAN FRANCISCO: IBM’s revenue slipped below Wall Street’s expectations in the third quarter as the technology company dealt with jittery customers and a weakening euro that undercut its results. Despite the problems posed by the wobbly economy, IBM’s earnings held steady. Much of revenue shortfall was blamed on the economic deterioration in Europe and other parts of the world.

That has resulted in weakened international currencies, translating into fewer dollars on sales made abroad.

IBM management also raised the specter of slowing demand for the company’s technology consulting services and business-software products as corporate customers become more cautious and debt-laden government agencies deal with budget cuts. After a solid start to the third quarter, business became “more challenging” in September, Chief Financial Officer Mark Loughridge told analysts during a conference call Tuesday to discuss the quarterly earnings report.

Loughridge sounded confident that several business software deals that didn’t get done during the summer will be completed before the end of this year to help boost IBM’s fourth-quarter earnings. IBM Corp signaled its belief that its business will hold up by standing behind its previous earnings forecast for the full year. Investors, though, seemed a little worried. IBM shares shed $7.30, or 3.5 percent, to $203.70 in extended trading after the thirdquarter numbers came out.

IBM, which is based in Armonk, NY, is considered a good gauge of technology demand because it sells to major companies and governments throughout the world. It also boasts a nearly decade-long record of uninterrupted prosperity. The latest threemonth period marks the 39th consecutive quarter in which IBM’s earnings per share was higher than the previous year. The company has been able to thrive because it locks many of its customers into contracts that guarantee regular payments even in tough economic times.

Even so, IBM isn’t completely insulated from economic downturns. That was in evident during the third quarter in Europe, where massive government deficits in several countries are hurting the continent’s economy. IBM’s revenue in its region that includes Europe declined 9 percent from the same time last year, more than any other part of the world. The weaker euro contributed to the erosion. That’s because sales made in Europe

are converting into fewer US dollars than a year ago.

IBM earned $3.8 billion, or $3.33 per share, in the July-September period. The company delivered the same net income a year ago, but its per-share earnings were 14 cents lower in the 2011 quarter because the company had more outstanding stock then. This year’s results included a last-minute $160 million charge that the technology services and business software company absorbed for a UK court decision that will increase its costs for paying pensions to some of its retired employees. The adverse court decision came at the end of last week.

If not for the costs of past acquisitions and retirement charges, IBM said it would have earned $3.62 per share. On that basis, IBM’s latest earnings were a penny above the average estimate among analysts polled by FactSet. The adjusted earnings of $4.2 billion represented a 5 percent increase from the same period last year. Revenue for the quarter fell 5 percent from the same time last year to $24.7 billion. That figure was about $700 million below the average estimate of analysts surveyed by FactSet. Analysts had factored the strengthening dollar into their projections, but apparently underestimated the impact.— AP

HDFC Ltd presents ‘India Homes Fair’ KUWAIT: It’s an opportune time for NRIs wanting to own their home in India. HDFC Ltd, India’s premiere housing finance company is hosting ‘India Homes Fair’, a property exhibition exclusively for the Indians at Hotel Crowne Plaza, Farwaniya, Kuwait.

This two-day show held will exhibit prime properties from all across India by over 35 renowned developers under one roof and will be open to visitors between 10 am to 8 pm on 19th and 20th October 2012 (Friday and Saturday).

“Home buying is challenging especially if one is living miles away from one’s aspired house. We have well understood this need and have thus organized this exclusive event to assist our NRI customers so that they can take an informed decision.

The response for such events have been very encouraging and hence we have been regularly organizing such fairs overseas.

The projects showcased are from reputed developers, thus assuring high quality standards. We sincerely wish that our customers benefit from this fair and hope to reach out to larger numbers with many such fairs in the years to come.” Says Renu Sud Karnad, Managing Director HDFC Ltd. At HDFC’s ‘India Homes Fair’, 200 projects will be on display from Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi,

Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kochi, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Pune and the National Capital Region (NCR). They would display varying options like flats, villas, plots, etc.

Customers can choose from a wide range of properties starting from INR 20 lakh to premium properties up to INR 10 crore with sizes ranging between 700 sq ft to 5,000 sq ft. One can get exclusive offers and value-added benefits during these two days of the exhibition.

HDFC Kuwait will assist its customers in the selection of developers and properties that best suit them. HDFC is quick to recognize the market pulse and thereby set higher benchmarks of service delivery on a continuous basis. Customer satisfaction has always been at the core of all HDFC offerings. With a view to maximize customer convenience, HDFC through its team of specialized counselors, is providing its customers personalized home loan counseling, legal and technical advise relating to property related documentation and a full range of home loan options and flexible repayment options tailor made to suit their requirement. The team will ensure they guide customers to seamlessly purchase their property in India. For further information please contact Fahad Jameel at +965-65686161

Mercedes-Benz M-Class voted Germany’s best looking SUV Mercedes-Benz crowned as Germany’s most attractive automaker DUBAI: The Mercedes-Benz M-Class has claimed the AUTO BILD Design Awards 2012 title of the most attractive vehicle in the SUV/Vans/All-wheel drive category, in a poll by leading German car magazine, AUTO BILD with the majority of 100,000 reader votes.

The win demonstrated the readers’ appreciation of the trend-setter’s characteristically striking design, which effortlessly matches power with sophistication. Readers were also delighted at the progressive design of the new Mercedes-Benz A-Class, deeming it Germany’s most attractive car.

Determined solely by the readers’ personal tastes, AUTO BILD crowned a MercedesBenz model as Germany’s most attractive car for the fourth consecutive time. After awarding the coveted title of “Germany’s most attractive car” to the E-Class, the SLS AMG CoupÈ and the SLK in the preceding years, in 2012 they were won over by the design of

the new A-Class. With a new category win for the M-Class, launched in the Middle East in March this year, Mercedes-Benz may thus justifiably claim to make the most attractive German automobiles.

With the new A-Class and its radical, dynamic design idiom, Mercedes-Benz has opened up a totally new chapter in the compact class this year, visualizing the beating pulse of a new generation of vehicles in fascinating guise. “The A-Class is a clear statement on the new dynamism of the Mercedes-Benz brand,” says Dr Dieter Zetsche, CEO of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes Cars.

The AUTO BILD Design Awards are the latest in a series of accolades for Mercedes-Benz this summer. The jury of the world’s most renowned design competition acknowledging Mercedes-Benz for setting sustainable trends in automotive design with maximum

aesthetic appeal by awarding the coveted red dot award for two new Mercedes-Benz car models simultaneously. The winners are the C-Class CoupÈ and the SLS AMG Roadster.

This year, 1800 manufacturers and designers from 58 countries registered submissions

for consideration by the discerning judges of the red dot awards, which are regarded as a seal of quality for outstanding design. The high-caliber jury of international and independent experts assessed more than 4500 products. Only the best made it through this exclusive field of entrants. The competition

recognizes well-thought-out, innovative products, aesthetic quality and future-oriented design. According to the hard-to-please and highly respected jury, the new the C-Class CoupÈ and the SLS AMG Roadster satisfy these stringent requirements, all earning the red dot award for high design quality. In addition to the three car models, the Actros truck is also permitted to bear the red dot label.

Commenting on the awards, Frank Bernthaler, Director, Sales and Marketing, Mercedes-Benz Cars, Daimler Middle East and Levant, said, “After more than 125 years, the three pointed star continues to draw the highest praises and admiration from those with a deep appreciation for design and innovation. These highly respected awards from both industry experts and consumers further assert our position as luxury automotive design leader in a highly competitive segment.”

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

TECHNOLOGY

Nissan shows safety features, electronic steering YOKOSUKA: Electronically managed steering that completely bypasses the mechanical link of a clutch is among the new safety technology from Japanese automaker Nissan. Other vehicles are smart enough to park themselves. And some swerve automatically to avoid pedestrians.

Nissan Motor Co. Executive Vice President Mitsuhiko Yamashita said the latest safety advancements are proactive, unlike air-bags and other “passive” features that are triggered by a crash.

Next-generation steering uses electronic signals to control tires, not a mechanical link. It’s set to be introduced in an Infiniti luxury model within a year, and would be a world first for a commercially produced car. In the auto industry, the technology is being touted as the biggest innovation in steering since the widespread adoption of

power-assisted steering, which uses hydraulics to make turning the wheels easier.

Nissan executives say electronic steering is safer because drivers tend to overcompensate, such as when traveling in gusty wind, and veer off too much. They say the feature also adds to the psychological sense of security for the driver, which in turn contributes to safety because stress is often behind accidents.

With the technology, sensations of bumpy roads get mitigated and steering becomes super quick and fine-tuned, Nissan said. Vehicles equipped with electronic steering will still come with a mechanical clutch as a backup that kicks in if the electronic system fails.

Nissan also showed “autonomous emergency steering,” designed to avoid collisions through

turns when braking would be too late. Although many automakers, including Volkswagen AG, Toyota Motor Corp. and Ford Motor Co., offer automatic braking, Nissan’s still experimental system takes the idea a step further to steer away in unexpected situations such as a pedestrian suddenly moving into the path of a vehicle.

But Yamashita acknowledged the technology, which relies on radars and cameras, is still incomplete, and the vehicle still could crash into something else just as it steers away from the pedestrian.

Nissan also showed nifty parking technology that senses if the driver mistakenly steps on the gas pedal instead of the brakes, and corrects that.

Another was automated steering so the car parks without the driver lifting a finger. In a recent demonstration for reporters at a Nissan facility, a

Leaf electric vehicle turned on its own and backed into a charging station.

Toru Hatano, analyst at IHS Automotive, believes that safety technology such as automatic stopping before crashes will become more popular even in cheaper models. He said the feature that detects when a driver pushes on the accelerator by mistake would likely be a hit in aging societies such as Japan.

“It’s an effective way for automakers to differentiate themselves and appeal to consumers,” he said.

Nissan said it was well on its way to achieving its target of halving deaths and serious injuries from traffic accidents involving Nissan vehicles by 2015, compared with 1995 data. Making that zero is Nissan’s goal. Some 1.3 million people die in car wrecks every year. — AP

UAE tops number of malicious programs Malware evolution in ME revealed by Kaspersky Lab

By Islam Al-Sharaa

BARCELONA: In this Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012, file photo, Steven Sinofsky, president of Windows and Windows Live attends the Windows 8 Consumer Preview presentation during a press conference at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. The PC industry is in a slump, as consumers show more interest in tablet computers and smartphones. — AP

Microsoft becomes friend and foe to PC partners LOS ANGELES: With the launch of its Surface tablet computer, Microsoft is becoming a genuine “frenemy” - part friend, part enemy - to its longtime manufacturing partners. Since its founding 37 years ago, the Redmond, Washington state, company has had a mutual understanding with makers of computer hardware: Microsoft creates software.

Companies such as Dell, HP, Acer and Lenovo pay Microsoft a licensing fee to place the Windows operating system on the desktop PCs, notebooks and other gadgets they market to consumers.

Now, Microsoft is complicating the cozy relationship by making and marketing its own tablet computer. The company announced Tuesday that the Surface will start at $499 when it goes on sale Oct. 26. The new tablet is set to invigorate an already hotly contested market for touch-screen computers. But for the first time, Microsoft will be in head-tohead competition with partners that help generate sales for its $14 billion-a-year Windows software business.

LOS ANGELES: In this June 18, 2012, file photo, Microsoft Corp.’s new Surface tablet computer is displayed at Hollywood’s Milk Studios in Los Angeles.— AP

Microsoft is no stranger to manufacturing hardware, but it usually does so in businesses that are sideshows to its mainstay computer software. It has made the Xbox game console since 2001, for instance. It also made the Zune music player and Kin line of phones, although both were short-lived.

CEO Steve Ballmer insists Microsoft Corp. must move into manufacturing to bring consumers “delightful, seamless experiences” that they can enjoy “right out of the box,” according to a letter he wrote to shareholders recently.

Of course, it’s not just for the sake of consumers. The strategy of making both gadgets and software could pay off for Microsoft, too.

The company is coming out with a new version of Windows next week, one that is optimized for touch-screen devices and will run on tablets and PCs. Every time it sells a Surface, analysts say, Microsoft will record some revenue for the Windows 8 operating system. Manufacturers that build competing Windows 8 tablets will pay Microsoft a fee, estimated between $30 and $80 per device.

That’s a big expense, especially considering that manufacturers are allowed to use Google Inc.’s Android operating system for tablets and smartphones for free. The extra cost of making Windows 8 tablets could put Microsoft’s partners at a disadvantage in a cut-throat tablet market.

“It’s always tough when you’re competing with your partners,” says Shaw Wu, an analyst with Sterne Agee. “That’s what Microsoft has decided to do.” The expense also comes at a time when tablet prices are dropping. In the past few months, Google Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. have undermined tablet

leader Apple Inc. with 7-inch (17.8-centimeter)screen tablets using Android. The cheapest goes for $159, which barely covers manufacturing costs. Apple, too, is expected to downsize its iPads with a mini version that might also give consumers a less expensive tablet option ahead of the holidays.

Having a product that is priced well above these smaller offerings will give Microsoft’s partners a better chance to make a profit. The downside? Windows tablets may be too expensive to become a popular stocking stuffer this Christmas. Microsoft’s Surface has a 10.6-inch (26.9-centimeter) screen, slightly bigger than the iPad’s 9.7 inches (24.6 centimeters). Unlike the iPad, Surface also has the ability to run Office and other Windows applications. That, plus its optional touch keyboard cover for $100 more, may enable the devices to cross the productivity gap between tablets and PCs. Several of Microsoft partners are trying - at least publicly - to remain upbeat about their coming competition with the Surface. At a recent event showcasing Windows 8 tablets in San Francisco, a Lenovo executive said Surface highlights the advantages of Windows 8 and encourages the development of more applications for the system.

“Surface is about Microsoft standing up and saying, ‘We want to make sure the market understands the importance of Windows 8,’” said Tom Butler, director of ThinkPad marketing for Lenovo. “All the Microsoft Surface announcement does is help validate the ecosystem that we all want to see develop around the new interface.”

Dell Inc., the second largest PC maker in the US, also believes Surface will spur more interest in Windows 8, says Bill Gordon, the company’s executive director for end user computing. “We think Microsoft is trying to build the market, so we think it’s great,” Gordon says. “They are just trying to generate more excitement. Google did its own devices for Android, so I think it’s kind of the same thing.”

To warrant prices on par with the latest iPad, which also starts at $499, Microsoft needs to prove that the Surface is a more powerful tool. Early demonstrations suggest that Surface and other Windows tablets could be of interest to large corporations, many of which have created internal software that operates on the Windows platform, says Rhoda Alexander, an analyst with market research company IHS iSuppli.

“They’re looking for a secure tablet solution that will support legacy operations,” she says.IHS sees worldwide tablet sales exploding in the next few years from 19.9 million units sold in 2010 to 386 million in 2016.

This year, Apple’s iPad is the dominant player, with 62 percent of the market, compared with 34 percent for tablets using Android and 3 percent for tablets that run on an older Windows operating system.

But Windows’ share is expected to blossom. According to IHS, by 2016, its tablets will have nearly caught Android, with a 24 percent share compared with Android’s 29 percent. It predicts Apple will still command nearly half, or 47 percent, of the tablet market.

Whatever the potential downsides to Microsoft, its entry into tablets is seen as crucial because the PC market is expected to decline this year for the first time since 2001.

“The worst thing that can happen is stagnation in the market,” Nomura analyst Rick Sherlund says. “At least (Microsoft is) getting in the game now.” — AP

DUBAI: Kaspersky Lab, a developer of secure content management solution announced yesterday at Gitex Technology Week, being held in Dubai World Trade Center from the 14th until today, that the UAE tops the number of malicious programs and Egypt bears malware infections detected on hard drives and removable media in the Middle East.

We counted the average number of malicious programs that have been detected and blocked per each user of Kaspersky Security Network in these countries for the third quarter of 2012. It turned out that we have blocked or removed about 17 malware per each active KSNuser. This is two times more than average for North America. In UAE and Oman we found 22 and 18 malware per each KSN user accordingly. The lowest value in the region is in Kuwait, where we blocked 11 malicious objects per user.

These very important factor is how malicious or unwanted programs infiltrate on computers in GCC countries. To do this, we analyzed how often our products detected or blocked a malicious program on users’ machines, while user was surfing the internet or was inserting removable media or just scanning his or her hard drive. So we have two main attack vectors: From web & mail and from local networks plus file/ removable drives infectors.

These statistics are based on the detection verdicts of the web antivirus module, and were provided by users of Kaspersky Lab products who gave their consent to transfer their statistical data. When calculating, we excluded those countries in which the number of Kaspersky Lab product users is relatively small (less than 10,000).

The average share of internet users attacked in GCC during third quarter of 2012 was 24.4%. This means that each fourth user in GCC faced malware while surfing the internet!

The over average value have Oman, Qatar and United Arab Emirates. For Saudi Arabia it is in the middle with 24.4% and it corresponds to the 81 position in the global ranking of countries on this indicator and 4th for the GCC countries.

These statistics are based on the detection verdicts of the antivirus module, and were provided by users of Kaspersky Lab products who gave their consent to transfer their statistical data. When calculating, we excluded those countries in which the number of Kaspersky Lab product users is relatively small (less than 10,000).

In the case of infections, detected on hard drives of computers and removable media (flash-drives), in GCC this figure is much higher, than for Internet - 37.5%.The greatest value have Egypt 46% and Oman-43.5%, which means we found something malicious particularly on each second hard drive or removable device like usb-flashdrive in these countries.

When it comes to self-propagating malware with no user interaction main factor is number

Top 20 countries in terms of highest risk of malware found on computers of well protected computers in the country.

There still a lot of computers with outdated software in the GCC region and computers with no antivirus installed and this is just per-

Exploit packs are very commonly used in today’s drive-by attacks. An exploit pack is a set of programs that exploit vulnerabilities in legitimate software programs running on the vic-

fect environment for self-propagating malware, which is really widespread here.

tim machine. In other words, the exploits open a sort of back door via which malicious programs can infect the computer. Since attacks on the web take place through the browser, cybercriminals need to exploit vulnerabilities in the browser, in browser add-ons (Flash Player), or in third-party software (Java, Acrobat Reader) which is used by the browser to process content. The main purpose of exploit packs is to download and launch executable malicious files without the user noticing.

On users computers in these countries we have detected a lot of self-replicating threats like Net-worm. Win32.Kido, Virus.Win32.Sality, Worm.Win32.Mabezat and several Trojandown loaders. All such threats form a huge botnets that a used for “delivering” different kind of malware on users’ computers. Most likely it would be a Trojan-Banker programs that are designed to steal user account data relating to online banking systems, e-payment systems and plastic card systems. The data is then transmitted to the malicious user controlling the Trojan. Also such botnets deliver spam, ddos and proxy-bots that are used by cybercriminals to send spam, organize ddosattacks and hide their activity.

As we can see most attacks nowadays are launched using exploits that take advantage of software errors. Which apps are most susceptible to exploits in GCC countries and Egypt?

Users’ should install updates for these programs - or even better yet, allow automatic updates for these programs. More effective way to defend against exploits is to use modern internet security solution which has automatic exploit protection system.

Top 20 malicious threats detected on the Internet in GCC region Now let’s take a look on the malware spreading in GCC countries and Egypt. While surfing the internet most users faced malware when searching some kind of pirated content cyber criminals use these resources to spread malware or while visiting hacked websites.

In both cases cyber criminals use some kind of automatic redirection to exploits pack.

28

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

health & science

Fighting female circumcision, one village at a time TUTAKAL, Iraq: Amena practised female genital mutilation in her remote village in Iraqi Kurdistan for so many years that she struggles to recall how many girls passed through her hands. “I couldn’t count them,” said the midwife, sitting in a garden in Tutakal, her hair in a black headscarf and her chin marked by a faded traditional blue tattoo. “Ten children, a hundred children, a thousand children, I just can’t count how many.”

More than a year after lawmakers in Iraq’s self-governed Kurdistan region passed a law banning FGM - also known as female circumcision - activists say the practice still goes on. Autonomous from Baghdad since 1991, Kurdistan has its own government and enjoys an oil boom that has helped make it one of Iraq’s safest areas, enjoying modern services, glitzy hotels and shopping malls unavailable in the rest of the country.

In remote rural areas, however, ancient traditions often rule. Honour killings, where women are murdered to protect the family’s honour, still occur, and FGM is widespread, in part because it is supported by some clerics who say it is part of sharia or traditional Islamic law.

This could be changing, however. In Tutakal, the donation of basic school services and a small classroom by a

German-funded non-governmental organisation called WADI has helped convince residents to stop the practice.

It is a promising model, activists involved in the campaign to stop FGM say, one they hope will spread to other Kurdish villages. The activists work to convince villagers the practice has no basis in Islam and spread the word that it is now against the law. “More people understand this is a crime, and they can’t practice it any more, but we still need to implement the law,” said Suaad Sharif, a field worker with WADI. “They say their grandmothers did it, their mothers did it, it was a habit that they had to carry on.”

According to the World Health Organization, female genital mutilation the partial or total removal of external female genitalia - is practised in countries across Africa and in Asia and the Middle East for cultural, religious and social reasons. Some practitioners believe FGM will prevent sex before marriage and promiscuity afterward; others say it is part of preparing a girl for womanhood and is hygienic. It can cause bleeding, shock, cysts and infertility, but also severe psychological effects which campaigners say is similar to those suffered by rape victims.

As many as 40 percent of women and girls in Kurdistan have been subjected to

the procedure, according to New Yorkbased Human Rights Watch, citing government reports and activists. A survey

by WADI found up to 70 percent of women had suffered from FGM in some Kurdish areas. The roots of the practice in Kurdistan are unclear. Beyond the ethnically mixed city of Kirkuk, the practice is less common in other parts of Iraq and in Kurdish areas in neighbouring Turkey.

But where illiteracy and poverty are high in Kurdistan, so too is the number of woman who are circumcised, and the prevalence of conservative Islam in these areas also appears to play a role.

“They related this to sharia practice, and this is how they educated these communities about this,” Suzan Aref, head of WEO, a woman’s empowerment group in Kurdistan.

Kurdistan’s parliament won praise from rights organisations when the law criminalizing the practice went into effect in August last year. But in a statement earlier this year, Human Rights Watch criticized the government for not doing enough to enforce the ban, including by making sure police and government officials were educated and on board. Pakhshan Zangana, secretary general for the Kurdistan’s High Council on Women’s Affairs, said the law had succeeded in reducing the num-

bers of female circumcisions but acknowledged that some of the practice was going underground. “They do it secretly because it is against the law,” she said.

In Tutakal, three hours from the Kurdish capital Arbil reached only by dusty tracks weaving through the mountains, FGM has been practiced for generations. All but two of the women and girls from about 17 families in the farming hamlet have been circumcised, most at as young as four years old. For many of the families, it was simply a tradition passed down from grandmother to mother to daughter in the belief that girls who failed to go through the ritual were “unclean”.

For women like Golchen Aubed, 50, social pressure also played its part. Like many of the mothers in Tutakal, she felt the practice was wrong but allowed her daughters to be circumcised by the community midwife just as she had been herself. “In our culture when you don’t do this, everyone else asks why,” she said sitting on a carpet in her home with her youngest daughter, Sharaban.

“Why should I stand out? I knew it was bad, I knew it hurt the child, but even so I went ahead.” Her son refused to allow his own daughter to suffer the same way - she is one of the two small

girls in the village to escape FGM. No girls have been circumcised since Tutakal’s elders signed the agreement with WADI in September last year. “He says now that if he finds out about anyone doing this he will go and report them to the police,” Aubed said. The decision to stop the practice was a pragmatic one for village elders in Tutakal after the campaigners volunteered the school services and new classrooms.

Prefabricated facilities have replaced the ramshackle mud-brick and wood room that used to serve as a school.

Older children are provided with transport to a nearby town where they can attend middle school. Amena now lives without the work that brought her meagre income from her village, from nearby towns and even Kurdish communities in neighbouring Iran. “They should find me some alternative,” she said. “Everyone knows I am alone that I don’t have a husband, a father or a brother or son to look after me.” But the elders have no regrets about their decision. “When they do this, they cut a piece of flesh from a woman,” said headman Sarhad Ajeb, sitting on the floor of Tutakal’s simple mosque. “There is no mention of this practice in the Holy Quran.” — Reuters

400 more plants, animals declared as ‘threatened’ Ministers meet for crunch biodiversity talks

Greenpeace activists divers display a sign near a coral reef off the coast of the Andaman and Nicobar islands. — AFP

Conference seeks to curb exploitation of high seas HYDERABAD: Long spared because of their remoteness, the high seas have become an important hunting ground for fish trawlers and oil prospectors, putting at risk many marine species that call these waters home. Covering 64 percent of the oceans and half the Earth’s surface, international waters have become the next frontier as fish stocks nearer to the coast run out and oil exploration ships are spurred on by high fuel prices. The high seas, where no national laws apply and international rules are often vague, have become a “lawless zone” where prospectors operate “on a first-come-firstserved” basis, oceanographic and marine law experts lamented at a conference in Monaco last week.

Policymakers from 184 countries meeting in Hyderabad, India until tomorrow in a bid to turn around the rate of biodiversity loss, will also examine ways to prevent the international waters becoming a deep-sea Wild West.

“International waters and seabeds are a vital part of the global ocean and planetary life support system, producing much of the oxygen and storing both CO2 and heat, (making) life on Earth habitable for us humans,” Kristina Gjerde, of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, told AFP. “They are also of vast importance for supporting a wide range of marine life, from tiny phytoplankton to

blue whales, the largest creatures on our planet.”

The threats are diverse. With little supervision, trawlers are indiscriminately scooping up unsustainable numbers of fish, permanently harming species populations and damaging the ocean floor.

Alongside oil prospecting ships, they also cause chemical and sound pollution, disrupting species such as whales and dolphins that rely on sonar communication for socialising, hunting and mating. In anticipation of global rules being adopted to better manage the exploitation of deep-sea resources, an issue discussed at length but without resolution at the Rio+20 environment summit in June, hopes are that the UN Convention on Biodiversity meeting in India will adopt some safeguards.

Officials, joined from yesterday also by environmental ministers from more than 70 countries, were set to examine the findings of scientific reports that have identified more than 120 marine biodiversity “hot spots”. The reports were compiled by regional study groups examining all the world’s oceans and measuring different indicators of species vulnerability.

“It is above all a scientific exercise aimed at cataloguing the zones to be protected,” said Elisabeth Druel, marine law expert at the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations. — AFP

Extra shut-eye may improve kids’ conduct MONTREAL: Maybe parents should let their children sleep in a little more - it may help improve their behavior and make them less restless in school, according to a Canadian study. On the flip side, few parents are likely to be surprised to know that cutting back on children’s sleep time seems to make them more likely to cry, lose their temper and become frustrated, according to the researchers, who published their findings in Pediatrics. “You can think about it from a lot of different angles,” said Reut Gruber, of Montreal’s McGill University and Douglas Research Center, who led the study. “What we are showing here is that it can go both ways in terms of behavior and academic performance.”

While Gruber’s team is not the first to link sleep and behavior, few studies have looked at whether more sleep actually leads to better behavior in school children. For the study, they recruited 33 children between seven and 11 years old to be followed over two weeks. For the first week, the researchers monitored how long the children slept - about 9.3 hours, which is short of the 10 hours suggested by the US National Institutes of Health. The children were split into two groups for the second week. One group’s parents

were told to add an hour to their kids’ usual time asleep, while the other group was told to cut their sleep time by an hour.

Half of the children did lose an hour of sleep each night, but the other group was only able to add about 30 minutes. Still, that seemed long enough for teachers to notice an improvement in the kids’ behavior.

After the first week of monitoring, the teachers answered questions that rated the children’s emotions, moodiness and restlessness at school on a scale from zero to 100, with higher scores indicating worse behavior and scores above 60 indicating a behavioral problem.

The baseline score for both groups before the sleep manipulation began was about 50, but after a week of the experimental sleep changes teachers, who did not know which group any of the children were in, rated the kids again. The children who got the extra 30 minutes of sleep during the second week scored, on average, about 47, meaning their behavior had improved.

But the children who lost an hour of sleep each night were scored about 54.

Gruber said that while the study only included 33 kids, it was still able to show that more sleep leads to better behavior. — Reuters

HYDERABAD, India: An island-dwelling cockroach and a tiny snail were declared extinct Wednesday while 400 plants and animals were added to a threatened “Red List” as global environment ministers met in India. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) updated its authoritative study on the state of biodiversity on Earth, saying 20,219 species were at risk of dying out. It added 402 species such as the Egyptian dab lizard and the Sichuan Taimen, a fresh water fish from China, to the “Red List”, which puts them in the threatened category.

Two invertebrates, a cockroach from the Seychelles last seen in 1905 and a freshwater snail called Little Flat-Top from the US state of Alabama, have moved into the extinct category since the last update of the bi-annual survey in June. “These are species that do not occur anywhere else in the world,” the IUCN’s director of biodiversity conservation Jane Smart said at a UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) conference in Hyderabad, southern India.

The report also showed that 83 percent of Madagascar’s 192 palm species, which the poor rely on heavily for food and housing, are at risk of extinction. They include the “Suicide Palm”, which grows up to 18 m in height and dies a few months after flowering and producing seeds. Only 30 mature specimens are known to exist in the wild today. A quarter of the world’s mammals, 13 percent of birds, 41 percent of amphibians and 33 percent of reefbuilding corals are at risk of extinction, according to the IUCN. The report set alarm bells ringing as more than 70 environment ministers met for talks on halting the depletion of the Earth’s natural resources, with pressure for them to match political pledges with hard cash. There was also some happy news, however, with the IUCN saying eight species had moved out of the extinct category due to new sightings.

They include a Tanzanian tree, Erythrina schliebenii, five types of mollusc, a dwarf toad from Sri Lanka, and Holdridge’s Toad, a species from Costa Rica.

The gathering comes two years after UN countries approved a 20-point plan at a conference in Japan for reversing the worrying

decline in plant and animal species that humans depend on for food, shelter and livelihoods. Execution of the plan has been hamstrung by a lack of funding and the Hyderabad talks are being closely watched for new financial commitments. Environmental economist Pavan Sukhdev said yesterday that an expert panel had concluded that between $150-440 billion would be needed annually to meet the Japan goals, dubbed the Aichi biodi-

tor Achim Steiner warned. “When you run out of water, when you run out of arable land... and your rivers run dry, when your lakes silt up, when your fisheries collapse, then it is often too late to start talking about the value of biodiversity ecosystems.”

The three-day ministers’ meeting comes at the end of two weeks of talks by senior officials from 184 parties to the conference negotiations that delegates say have become

HYDERABAD: An Indian visitor takes pictures of a display board on the exhibition floor during the Convention on Biodiversity yesterday. — AFP versity targets. Current conservation spending is estimated at about $10 billion per year.

With a 2020 deadline, the targets include halving the rate of habitat loss, expanding conservation areas, preventing the extinction of species on the threatened list, and restoring at least 15 percent of degraded ecosystems. “The cost of inaction is something that people have only just begun to appreciate,” UN Environment Programme executive direc-

stuck on the question of financing in a time of economic austerity.

The convention, to which 193 countries are signatories, marks its 20th anniversary this year. It has already missed one key deadline when it failed to meet the target set to halt biodiversity loss by 2010. The updated Red list, assessing 65,518 known species of animals and plants, lists 795 as extinct and 63 as surviving only in captivity. — AFP

Indonesia’s mentally ill shackled and forgotten KARANGASEM, Indonesia: Between rice fields and coconut trees on Indonesia’s “paradise” island of Bali, a man lies chained by the ankles to a rotting wooden bed in a garden, staring at roosters tottering by. I Ketut Lingga, 54, has schizophrenia and is one of more than 15,000 Indonesians with a mental illness who are either chained, caged or placed in primitive stocks, according to health ministry data. They are known as “pasung” - which loosely translates to “shackled” - and are considered lost causes. Lingga’s family shackled him 30 years ago, and he has never been unchained since. When he is relaxed, he rarely moves or speaks, but during an episode, his family fears him.

“He attacked me one day, so we had no choice but to chain him up,” Lingga’s sister-in-law, Wayan Reti, 50, told AFP at her home in eastern Bali’s Karangasem district.

“He ripped off my clothes and tried to strangle me, and he’s been shackled ever since. What else could we do?” In his early 20s, Lingga began threatening to kill or beat people. He was taken for just three visits to the mental hospital, where he was given medication

but no counselling.

After that his family could no longer pay the $15 fee for each visit. Some 50 pasung exist in Karangasem alone, according to psychiatrist Dr Luh Ketut Suryani, who discovered the extent of the problem early last decade while researching a spike in suicide rates in the district. Suryani identified 895 people in Karangasem with mental disorders. But with her thin resources already stretched, she is unable to treat them all.

Helped by her son, who is also a psychiatrist, and three assistants, she treats and monitors almost 700 patients with anti-psychotic drug injections, counselling and meditation. She has also used singing sessions, which she said help patients to relax and focus.

The Balinese government in 2009 granted Suryani more than $500,000 to keep up her work, which she had for years funded herself, but that money was cut after complaints about her medita-

KARANGASEM, Indonesia: In this picture taken on Oct 8, 2012, mental disorder patient, I Ketut Lingga, 54, stays on his bed and chained by his family. — AFP

tion and singing sessions. “We include meditation because it’s the Balinese Hindu belief, and using a method patients believe in means they accept us into the community. It helps them heal emotionally,” Suryani said.

In Bali, most people with mental illnesses first see a traditional healer for purification, believing mental disorders are caused by the supernatural. Suryani claims a success rate of 31 percent, where patients no longer need medication. Only three percent of her patients have shown no improvement, while the rest are making progress with regular treatment.

“Many disagree with my methods, but these people are the forgotten.

If not us, who will help them?” she said.

A health ministry survey in 2007 showed that 11.6 percent, or more than 27 million Indonesians, have some kind of mental or emotional disorder, while around a million have psychotic or serious mental illnesses. Less than five percent are treated. Around two percent of the national budget is slated for health next year, and only one percent of that is typically allocated to mental health, ministry data show. — AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

health & science

Feds raid US lab tied to meningitis outbreak CDC says 231 people have contracted meningitis BOSTON/NEW YORK: Federal agents on Tuesday raided the Massachusetts pharmacy linked to a meningitis outbreak that has killed 16 people and sickened more than 200 others, federal prosecutors said.

Agents from the US Food and Drug Administration searched the New England Compounding Center (NECC) in the Boston suburb of Framingham, with officers from the local police department on site providing support, Framingham police said. Carmen Ortiz, US Attorney for Massachusetts, said: “I can confirm that this office and our law enforcement partners are investigating allegations concerning the New England Compounding Center.”

Ortiz cautioned it was “entirely premature” to speculate about what might be uncovered.

Officials from NECC did not immediately respond to phone calls or emails seeking comment. The raid came as a leading US lawmaker called for an investigation of whether NECC violated federal laws covering potentially addictive drugs, a day after the health scare widened to new medications. The US meningitis outbreak continues to grow and has so far killed 16 people and infected 231, according to a tally from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday. “We will see more patients reporting in ill and we’ll have to treat many more,” Dr William Schaffner, an infectious diseases expert at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, said on “CBS This Morning”. The FDA on Monday widened its investigation of the cause of the fungal meningitis outbreak to other drugs made by the NECC. Nearly 14,000 people nationwide are at risk of infection because they received injections from sus-

pect steroid medications shipped to 76 facilities in 23 states. Another 19 people were reported stricken with fungal meningitis on Tuesday. The 231 total does not include two people who have a non-meningitis fungal infection from injections in their

sees sales of potentially addictive, or “controlled,” drugs.

The FDA said Monday it was looking into two other drugs made by the NECC. The agency said it had received reports of a patient with possible meningitis who received an

FRAMINGHAM, Massachusetts: Federal agents investigate the offices of New England Compounding Center Tuesday. — AP joints (as opposed to back injec- injection of a different steroid than tions), so the total of infections the one found to have caused the reached 233. In Washington, deaths. It said Tuesday that one Massachusetts Democratic transplant patient was infected with Congressman Edward Markey, a sen- a fungus after receiving a drug used ior member of the committee that in open heart surgery made by oversees business, called on the NECC. The FDA had originally said Justice Department to investigate two such patients were infected. whether NECC violated federal laws Another patient identified by the designed to stem illegal activity in FDA received an injection of the controlled drugs. The NECC already steroid triamcinolone, also supplied faces multiple investigations by the by NECC. During a conference call on FDA and several states, but Markey’s request could launch an even more Tuesday with doctors on the meninserious probe involving the Drug gitis outbreak, FDA official Janet Enforcement Agency, which over- Woodcock stressed that the two

additional products had not been linked to confirmed infections. She asked doctors to contact patients injected since May to make sure they have no signs of infection.

NECC said in a statement that it was reviewing the new information from the FDA. The FDA has been inspecting the NECC facilities. Woodcock said that based on the condition of the plant and other factors, “we really can’t assure the sterility of these products”.

The legal threat to NECC also mounted as more victims of meningitis filed lawsuits. Lyn Laperriere, who remains in hospital with fungal meningitis, filed a federal lawsuit in Michigan on Tuesday. The lawsuit says he received an epidural injection of methylprednisolone acetate manufactured by NECC on Sept. 6 and shortly afterward showed symptoms of fever, headache, stiff neck, nausea and vomiting as well as light sensitivity. Laperriere went to a hospital in Ypsilanti, Michigan, where he was admitted and began treatment first for bacterial meningitis which proved ineffective, the lawsuit states. He was later diagnosed with fungal meningitis.

Brenda Bansale of Howell, Michigan, who also is hospitalized for fungal meningitis, filed a federal lawsuit in Detroit on Monday that contends she was injected on Aug 28 and developed severe headaches and nausea on Oct 4. All but eight of the 23 states that received suspect medications from the Massachusetts specialist pharmacy have reported at least one case of fungal meningitis. Meningitis is an infection of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord.

Symptoms include headache, fever and nausea. Fungal meningitis is not contagious. — Reuters

GOSH participates in 44th Congress of SIOP KUWAIT: Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children (GOSH), one of the world’s leading centres for treating sick children, recently participated in the 44th Congress of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), which took place in London from 5-8 October 2012.

The largest annual paediatric cancer meeting in the world was attended by over 2,000 children’s cancer specialists.

Among those representing GOSH was key speaker Professor Kathy PritchardJones who also chaired the congress.

Other speakers included leading oncology experts at GOSH, Dr Mark Gaze, Dr Peppy Brock, Dr Anthony Michalski, Dr Olga Slater, Dr Tanzina Chowdhury, Julie Bayliss (Head of Nursing for Infection, Cancer and Immunity) and Dr Paul Veys who is Director of Bone Marrow Transplant and Specialty Lead at GOSH. SIOP is the largest international annual conference on paediatric oncology. It brings together doctors, scientists, nurses and parents in a holistic review of current care standards for children with Cancer. GOSH, which has a partnership with Kuwait’s Ministry of Health, had a prominent role in the conference, with its executives and medical experts leading and chairing 11 educational sessions and debates, including: ‘Meet the expert on paediatric stem cell transplantation’ and

‘Sustaining innovation and improvement in childhood cancer treatment around the world’. “We are proud to continue to support the International Society of Paediatric Oncology and the SIOP conferences,” said Professor Kathy PritchardJones. “Ever since GOSH’s inception, children’s healthcare services, programmes, treatments and developments have always been very important. SIOP provides an important forum for us to share our knowledge and ideas with some of the professionals from across the world.”

At the conference, members of the GOSH team delivered detailed presentations about the hospital’s work, and the programmes and treatments available to patients and their parents.

GOSH stand reached out to both referral clinicians and visitors who were keen to learn about the hospital’s services. In Kuwait GOSH has established a successful working partnership with NBK Hospital. Senior GOSH medical staff have been providing practical support and training to NBK nurses and doctors which has increased understanding of paediatric procedures, diagnosis and care in a clinical setting. GOSH also provides cutting-edge diagnostic capability to patients in Kuwait through its Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) testing for children with leukemia at NBK hospital.

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WHAT’S ON

SEND US YOUR INSTAGRAM PICS hat’s more fun than clicking a beautiful picture? Sharing it with others! This summer, let other people see the way you see Kuwait - through your lens. Friday Times will feature snapshots of Kuwait through Instagram feeds. If you want to share your Instagram photos, email us at instagram@kuwaittimes.net

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Greetings

appy birthday to Marshal. With lots of love and blessings from friends and relatives.

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Galleries in Kuwait Gallery Tilal Gallery Tilal is located in Shuwaikh, Jahra road, Tilal Complex, M3-M4. For more information check out their facebook page.

Al M Gallery Al M. Gallery is located in Kuwait City, Salhiya Complex, Mezanine 2, Gate 4, Place 16. Working hours: Sunday Thursday 10 am-3 pm and 5pm - 9pm. Saturday by appointment only.

CAP Kuwait CAP Kuwait is a nonprofit venture, supported by an extensive private collection of modern and contemporary artwork.

The Contemporary Art Platform is located in Industrial Shuwaikh Block 2, St. 28, Life Center, top floor (Across from the Shuwaikh Immigration Dept).

Open football tournament fter a successful inaugural tournament which had teams participating from Kuwait and the GCC countries, Real Betalbatim Football Club are all set once again for the second edition, which is scheduled on 27th October 2012. The tournament is organized in fond memory of Late Sheikha Huda Bader Mohammed Al-Ahmed AlSabah, and is a much awaited feature in the expatriate football circuit in Kuwait. Among others who shone during the tournaments were teams: Vaxim Divar from Dubai (UAE), Fahaheel Bros. from Kuwait, CRC Chinchinim from Kuwait and DHL FC, Kuwait whose players were declared to receive special citation and prizes among the 22 teams who equally gave their best during the one day tournament which was cheered by hundreds of spectators and jointly expressed their fondness of celebrating the golden jubilee of Kuwait’s independence.

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Melbandhan Socio Cultural Evening 2012 elbandhan Cultural Group organized Melbandhan Socio Cultural Evening 2012 on September 28, 2012 at Salmiya Indian Model School, Kuwait. The Ambassador of India, Satish Chand Mehta and the Bangladesh Ambassador Janab Saed Sahed Reza inaugurated the program and uncovered the 4th volume of Melbandhan, declaring the official publication of the book. Both the ambassadors in their brief speeches enlightened the spirit of this endeavor. Their speeches were truly inspiring to the effort of combining the Bengali literary works of the people of India and Bangladesh living in Kuwait. The Chief Editor of Melbandhan, Dr Ashok Deb thanked everybody associated with the publication of the book and expressed his teams’ aspiration to carry this effort for-

ward in the years to come. M P Dalbehra among the distinguished guests, highlighted the strength of Bengali literature.

Many distinguished guests and dignitaries graced the occasion.

Three eminent persons of India, and two eminent persons of Bangladesh were felicitated and awarded by the Indian and Bangladesh Ambassadors respectively. Among the Indians, Mozammel Mallick for his philanthropist activities and relentless contribution in human welfare, Mrs Rina Deb for her dedication in teaching different forms of dance, especially Kathak, Shubhashis Bhattacharya for releasing his maiden music album-Ek Koshish for the aid of ailing cancer patients, Mohd All Azam for his brilliant literary works in Bengali literature and Satya Ranjan Sarkar for his sustained studies and works in Bengali

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Literature had also been awarded.

The singers, musicians and dancers and reciters of both the countries performed at their best in front of a huge audience. Though attendance outnumbered the capacity of the hall, the audience enjoyed the show to their hearts content. The Dancers of Rhythm Dance Group performed vibrantly under the choreography of the Director Rina Deb, who also performed at the event.

Anchors of the show were Sukdeb Chatterjee, Naznin Rahman Lazu and Sweta Ravindran. Among the eminent Bengali singers we can name Shafiqul Alam, Dr Nazma Talukdar, Seuti Shams Sinha, Fatema, Mohd Farook, Shilpi Sinha and Siddhangana Sinha. Hassan Kamal showed his brilliance in Tabla. Among the eminent Hindi singers Surojit Kundu, Shubhashis Bhattacharya and

Parthasarathi Bardhan and Sanghita Deb had stolen the show. Among the dancers- Rina Deb, the Director of Rhythm Dance Group, Shalini Shah, Dr Arpita Chatterjee, Lipsa, Muskan, Tamanna, Anahita, Arushi and Bhavya enchanted the audience by their classical and contemporary flamboyant dance performances. The audience enjoyed a group recitation from Sanjib Bhadra Chandan, Ehsan UI Khokan, Kanto Pathik, Kamaruzzaman Babu and Sumon Rahat.

The hosts of the event- Dr Ashok Deb and Sanjib Bhadra Chandan thanked the chief organizer Aloke Deb and also expressed their gratitude to Mizanur Rahman for his wholehearted assistance.

Indian Embassy Announcements Caricatures presented at event

Indian Embassy passport and visa Passports and visa applications can be deposited at the two outsourced centers of M/S BLS Ltd at Sharq and Fahaheel. Details are available at www.bls-international.com and www.indembkwt.org.

G Isac Mor Osthatheos, Baselius Thomas Ist Cathdlicose, Joseph Mor Gregorios Metropolitan, and Moran Mor Ignatius Zakka I Iwas are presented with their caricatures by Johnarts Kalabhavan during a function held in Kuwait.

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Consular Open House Consular Wing is providing daily service of Open House to Indian citizens on all workings days from 1000 hrs to 1100 hrs and from 1430 hrs to 1530 hrs by the Consular Officer in the Meeting Room of the Consular Hall at the Embassy. For any unaddressed issues, Second Secretary (Consular) can be contacted. Furthermore, the head of the Consular Wing is also available to redress grievances.

Indian workers helpline/helpdesk Indian workers helpline is accessible by toll free telephone number 25674163 from all over Kuwait. It provides information and advice to Indian workers as regards their grievances, immigration and other matters. The help desk at the Embassy (Open from 9am to 1pm and 2pm to 4:30PM, Sunday to Thursday) provides guidance to Indian nationals on routine immigration, employment, legal and other issues. It also provides workers assistance in filling up labour complaint forms. For any unaddressed issues, the concerned attachÈ in the Labour section and the head of the Labour Wing can be contacted.

Write to us Send to What’s On upcoming events, birthdays or celebrations by email: local@kuwaittimes.net Fax: 24835619 / 20

KEO hosts 1st annual blood drive s part of KEO International Consultants’ Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign running the month of October, the firm held a blood drive to benefit the Kuwait Blood Bank on Tuesday October 16, 2012. Over 100 people took part to show their support for Tuesday’s events. On hand from the early morning was a team of Kuwait Blood Bank nurses, who spent time in the donation area, which was set up in the main cafeteria of one of KEO’s buildings in the Kuwait Free Trade Zone.

Donors came from Bader Sultan & Brothers Company, the Petroleum Services Co and other organizations that were adjacent to the KEO offices. In total, there were over 90 pints of blood collected over the five hours of the event.

This particular campaign was initiated as part of the KEO Facilities Management & Administrations commitment to sponsor good causes around the GCC. This is the first of such an event to be held at the KEO offices in Kuwait, but with the success of this year’s attendance, it will likely become an annual event according to Alyssa Sultan and Bonny Godinho, who organized and ran the event for KEO International Consultants.

Kuwait Central Blood Bank is the only blood bank in Kuwait being operated by the government. It is located in Jabriya behind Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital. KEO International Consultants is one of the region’s largest Design, Engineering & Construction firms, with over 2,100 employees based throughout the MENA region.

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WHAT’S ON

Embassy Information EMBASSY OF AUSTRALIA The Australian Embassy Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration department.

All processing of visas and immigration matters in conducted by The Australian Consulate-General in Dubai. Email: info.ausdxb@vfshelpline.com (VFS) immigration.dubai@dfat.gov.au (Visa Office); Tel: +971 4 355 1958 (VFS) - +971 4 508 7200 (Visa Office); Fax: +971 4 355 0708 (Visa Office).

In Kuwait applications can be lodged at the Australian Visa Application Centre 4B 1st Floor, Al-Banwan Building Al-Qibla Area, Ali Al-Salem Street, opposite the Central Bank of Kuwait, Kuwait City, Kuwait. Working hours and days: 09:30 - 17:30; Sunday - Thursday. Or visit their website www.vfs-au-gcc-com for more information. Kuwait citizens can apply for tourist visas on-line at www.immi.gov.au/e visa/e676.htm.

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Eid Al-Adha at Radisson Blu Hotel, Kuwait n the occasion of Eid Al-Adha, you are invited to spend a memorable moments at The Radisson Blu Hotel Kuwait. Families can celebrate this joyful occasion through an unforgettable stay at Al-Hashemi Residence where the available spacious rooms and unique suites are overlooking the sea.

The Eid period is rich with valuable benefits for the families to enjoy this occasion, the entire family young and old can entertain themselves in a relaxed and luxurious environment.

Rangoli restaurant offers a wide variety of oriental and international cuisine with the highest standards of presentation and preparation starting form salad buffet, to

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sumptuous dishes from around the world, the buffet also includes a selected variety of European pastry and Arabic sweets in addition to the live Pasta Station during lunch while sushi, shawarma and mixed grill live stations are additionally served during dinner. Seafood and steak lovers can enjoy AlBoom restaurant, which opens for dinner and offers an all-inclusive menu concept with salad, main course fresh from the grill, tea or coffee and a platted dessert.

Moreover, Families can enjoy access to the hotel’s Beach Club “Viking Club”, first of its class and furnished with the latest sport’s equipments and overlooking the beach and swimming pools to spread more happiness and fun to all family members.

EMBASSY OF CANADA The Canadian Embassy in Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration department. All processing of visa and immigration matters including enquiries is conducted by the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, UAE Individuals who are interested in working, studying, visiting or immigrating to Canada should contact the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, website: www.UAE.gc.ca or www.goingtocanada.gc.ca, E-mail: abdbi-im-enquiry@international.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakei St, Block 4 in Da’aiyah. Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is open from 7:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday. The reception is closed for lunch from 12:30 to 13:00. Consular services for Canadian citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00, Sunday through Wednesday.

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Aware diwaniya he AWARE Center cordially invites you to its diwaniya presentation entitled, “Hajj; a spiritual journey to Mecca (Makkah),” by Dr Teresa Lesher on Tuesday October 23, 2012 at 7:00 pm. What is Hajj? Hajj is an international pilgrimage to Mecca (Makkah) that attracts up to three million Muslims annually. Dr Teresa Lesher will discuss its historical significance, describe the major rites that comprise the pilgrimage, and share some of the sentiments that Muslims experience in this trip of a lifetime. Her 40-minute PowerPoint

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Al-Mulla Exchange gets ISO 9001:2008 certification l-Mulla Exchange, the premier money remittance company in Kuwait, has added another laurel to its list of accolades. The company was recently awarded the prestigious ISO 9001:2008 certification in recognition of its quality management system in the Money Transfer and Foreign Exchange Products and Services. Speaking on the occasion, the Chairman of Al-Mulla International Exchange Co. KSCC, Abdulla Najeeb Almulla said, “I am delighted that we have been accorded this certification.

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This award is a testimony to our endeavor to keep improving our processes for the benefit our customers. We believe in constant improvement of our quality.” Other officials present at the award ceremony were Hormuzda Davar, Director of Financial Services, Al-Mulla Group and G K Patel, Country Manager of URS-Kuwait, the independent assessment and certification company which audited Al-Mulla Exchange.

presentation will be followed by general discussion. All are welcome.

Dr Teresa holds her PhD in Information Science from the UK and is now associate professor at the Kuwait College of Basic Education. She held the position of General Manager of the AWARE Center for three years and returns often to host presentations related to Arab and Islamic culture. For more information, please call 25335260/80 or log onto: www.aware.com.kw.

Winter 2012 AMIE examination he AMIE Winter 2012 examinations will be held between Dec 01-07, 2012 as follows: Section A (Diploma) - December 14, 2012 Section A (Non-Diploma) December 1-7, 2012 Section B - December 1-7, 2012 The last date for submission of examination application forms are given hereunder: Candidates not appeared at Summer 2012 Exam: Aug 21 - Sept

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21, 2012 Candidates appeared at Summer 2012 Exam: Sept 21 - Oct 19, 2012.

Candidates who intend to appear for the Winter 2012 examination must apply directly to Kolkata by filling the prescribed application form along with requisite amount of demand draft in favour of The Institution of Engineers (India), payable in Kolkata.

EMBASSY OF CYPRUS In its capacity as EU Local Presidency in the State of Kuwait, the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus, on behalf of the Member States of the EU and associated States participating in the Schengen cooperation, would like to announce that as from 2nd October 2012 all Schengen States’ Consulates in Kuwait will use the Visa Information System (VIS). The VIS is a central database for the exchange of data on short-stay (up to three months) visas between Schengen States. The main objectives of the VIS are to facilitate visa application procedures and checks at external border as well as to enhance security. The VIS will contain all the Schengen visa applications lodged by an applicant over five years and the decisions taken by any Schengen State’s consulate. This will allow applicants to establish more easily the lawful use of previous visas and their bona fide status. For the purpose of the VIS, applicants will be required to provide their biometric data (fingerprints and digital photos) when applying for a Schengen visa. It is a simple and discreet procedure that only takes a few minutes. Biometric data, along with the data provided in the Schengen visa application form, will be recorded in the VIS central database. Therefore, as from 2nd October 2012, first-time applicants will have to appear in person when lodging the application, in order to provide their fingerprints. For subsequent applications within 5 years the fingerprints can be copied from the previous application file in the VIS. The Cypriot Presidency would like to assure the people of Kuwait and all its permanent citizens that the Member States and associated States participating in the Schengen cooperation, have taken all necessary technical measures to facilitate the rapid examination and the efficient processing of visa applications and to ensure a quick and discreet procedure for the implementation of the new VIS. ■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF FRANCE The Embassy would like to inform that starting September 2nd, 2012, visa demands for France will be handled by the outsourcing company “Capago - MENA Company”. Capago - MENA’S Call Center will be operational starting Sunday August 26 for setting appointments beginning September 2nd (+965 22270555).

■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF INDIA The Embassy of India will remain closed on Oct 24, 2012 -Wednesday-Dussehra (Vijaya Dashami) ■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF NEPAL On the happy occasion of Vijayadashmi and Eid Al-Adha, the Embassy of Nepal will remain closed from Monday, October 22 to Saturday, October 27, 2012. The office will resume on Sunday, October 28, 2012.

■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF UKRAINE

KNES celebrates Tabour ach morning the students (Primary and Secondary) of Kuwait National English School celebrate Tabour at the beginning of the school day. The flag is raised, the anthem is sung and students are reminded about their civic duties as responsible citizens of Kuwait. Afterwards as the secondary students file to classes, the primary students engage in some brain gym and simple aerobic exercises before they too commence classes for the day. Celebrating 22 Years of Service to the Community Accredited by CIS (Council of International Schools) & NEASC (New England Association of Schools & Colleges)

E

The Embassy of Ukraine in the State of Kuwait would like to remind that the external polling station No 90046 was created in the Embassy’s premises at the following address: Hawalli, Jabriya, bl.10, str. 6, build. 5. The working hours of the polling station: Sunday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Monday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Tuesday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Wednesday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Thursday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Friday from 10.00 to 13.00 pm; Saturday from 10.00 to 13.00 pm On October 28, 2012 the working hours of the polling station from 8.00 am to 20.00 pm. Please be advised to refer to the Embassy to check your data in the Electoral Register as well as to pick up your personal invitation from the polling station if you did not receive this document by post.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

TV PROGRAMS

00:45 I Was Bitten 01:35 I’m Alive 02:25 The Magic Of The Big Blue 03:15 Speed Of Life 04:05 Mutant Planet 04:55 Animal Battlegrounds 05:20 Dark Days In Monkey City 05:45 Vet On The Loose 06:10 Vet On The Loose 06:35 Wildlife SOS 07:00 Talk To The Animals 07:25 The Jeff Corwin Experience 08:15 Dogs 101 09:10 America’s Cutest Pet 10:05 Mutant Planet 11:00 Venom Hunter With Donald Schultz 11:55 A Nose For Crime 12:50 Wildlife SOS 13:15 Rescue Vet 13:45 Animal Cops Houston 14:40 Mutant Planet 15:35 Dark Days In Monkey City 16:00 Talk To The Animals 16:30 Cats 101 17:25 Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife 17:50 Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife 18:20 Dogs 101 19:15 Wildlife SOS 19:40 Shamwari: A Wild Life 20:10 Predator’s Prey 20:35 Dark Days In Monkey City 21:05 Mutant Planet 22:00 Wild Animal Orphans 22:25 Wild Animal Orphans 22:55 Max’s Big Tracks 23:50 Animal Cops Houston 23:50 Animal Cops Houston 00:30 Antiques Roadshow 01:25 Twiggy’s Frock Exchange 02:15 10 Years Younger 03:05 Living In The Sun 03:55 Saturday Kitchen 04:25 MasterChef 04:50 Living In The Sun 05:45 MasterChef 06:10 Saturday Kitchen 06:35 MasterChef Australia 07:25 MasterChef Australia 08:10 Twiggy’s Frock Exchange 09:05 10 Years Younger 09:55 Bargain Hunt 10:40 Antiques Roadshow 11:35 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 12:15 Gok’s Clothes Roadshow 13:05 MasterChef 14:00 MasterChef 14:50 Bargain Hunt 15:35 Antiques Roadshow 16:30 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 17:15 Gok’s Clothes Roadshow 18:00 Home Cooking Made Easy 18:30 Nigel Slater’s Simple Suppers 19:00 Rhodes Across Italy 19:45 Come Dine With Me 20:35 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 21:20 Antiques Roadshow 22:15 Bargain Hunt 23:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 23:45 Gok’s Clothes Roadshow EditionEdition 00:15 01:10 02:05 03:00 03:55 04:20 04:50 05:15 05:40 06:05 07:00 Junior 07:50 08:45 09:40 10:05 10:30 10:55 11:25 12:20 13:15 14:10 14:35 15:05 15:30 16:25 Junior 17:20 18:15 19:10 19:40 20:05 20:35 21:00 21:30 22:25 23:20

Deception With Keith Barry Mythbusters Mythbusters Mythbusters Border Security Auction Hunters Auction Kings How Do They Do It? How It’s Made Extreme Fishing American Chopper: Senior vs Mythbusters Ultimate Survival Border Security Auction Hunters How Do They Do It? How It’s Made Deception With Keith Barry Mythbusters Mythbusters Border Security Auction Hunters Auction Kings Ultimate Survival American Chopper: Senior vs Extreme Fishing Mythbusters How Do They Do It? How It’s Made Border Security Auction Hunters Auction Kings American Guns Hellriders Ultimate Cops

23:20 Surviving Disaster 00:35 Mega Builders 01:25 Space Pioneer 02:15 Stephen Hawking’s Grand Design 03:05 The Gadget Show 03:35 Sport Science 04:25 NASA’s Greatest Missions 05:15 Scrapheap Challenge 06:05 Mega Builders 07:00 Space Pioneer 07:50 Stephen Hawking’s Grand Design 08:40 Head Rush 08:43 Tech Toys 360 09:12 Patent Bending 09:40 NASA’s Greatest Missions 10:30 The Gadget Show 10:55 The Gadget Show 11:20 Mega Builders 12:10 Scrapheap Challenge 13:00 Space Pioneer 13:50 Stephen Hawking’s Grand Design 14:45 NASA’s Greatest Missions 15:35 The Gadget Show 16:00 Head Rush 16:03 Tech Toys 360 16:32 Patent Bending 17:00 Mega Builders 17:50 NASA’s Greatest Missions 18:40 Scrapheap Challenge 19:30 Weird Or What?

20:20 How The Universe Works

21:10 21:35 22:00 22:50 23:40

The Gadget Show The Gadget Show Weird Or What?

How The Universe Works Sport Science

20:20 Bang Goes The Theory 00:15 00:40 00:55 01:10 01:30 01:55 Pooh 02:00 02:25 02:50 03:20 03:40 04:05 Pooh 04:10 04:35 05:00 05:15 05:30 05:50 06:00 06:15 06:30 06:45 07:00 07:15 07:45 08:10 08:20 08:35 08:50 09:05 09:15 Pooh 09:20 09:35 09:45 09:55 10:20 Pooh 10:45 11:10 11:35 12:00 Pooh 12:10 12:25 12:40 13:05 13:15 13:30 13:55 14:20 Pooh 14:45 15:00 15:15 15:25 15:55 16:20 16:30 16:45 17:10 17:40 17:55 18:10 18:20 18:35 19:00 19:05 19:25 19:40 Pooh 20:05 20:20 20:30 Pooh 20:35 20:40 20:45 21:00 21:25 21:40 21:55 Pooh 22:20 22:30 22:45 22:55 23:20 23:35 23:50

Little Einsteins Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Special Agent Oso Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Lazytown Little Einsteins Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Special Agent Oso Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Lazytown Little Einsteins Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Special Agent Oso Special Agent Oso Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Handy Manny Special Agent Oso Lazytown Mickey Mouse Clubhouse The Hive Jake & The Neverland Pirates Jake & The Neverland Pirates Handy Manny The Hive Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Mouk Mouk The Hive Mickey Mouse Clubhouse New Adventures Of Winnie The Art Attack Imagination Movers Lazytown Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Handy Manny Jungle Junction Imagination Movers The Hive Special Agent Oso Lazytown Mickey Mouse Clubhouse New Adventures Of Winnie The Jake & The Neverland Pirates Jake & The Neverland Pirates The Hive Imagination Movers Lazytown Jungle Junction Mouk Art Attack Lazytown Jake & The Neverland Pirates Jake & The Neverland Pirates The Hive Mouk Imagination Movers A Poem Is...

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jungle Junction New Adventures Of Winnie The Jake & The Neverland Pirates The Hive Mini Adventures Of Winnie The A Poem Is...

A Poem Is...

Mouk Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jake & The Neverland Pirates Special Agent Oso New Adventures Of Winnie The Timmy Time Jungle Junction Handy Manny Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Special Agent Oso Special Agent Oso Lazytown

ecial Agent Oso 23:50 Lazytown 00:25 00:50 01:20 02:15 03:10 04:05 04:30 05:00 05:55 07:00 07:25 07:55 08:20 08:50 09:15 09:45 10:40 11:05 11:35 12:30 13:25 14:20 15:15 15:40 16:10 16:35 17:05 17:30 18:00 18:55 19:50 20:45 21:40 22:05 22:35 23:30

00:05 00:30 00:55 01:20 01:45 02:10 02:35 03:00 03:25 03:50 04:15 04:40 05:05

Wrestling With Reality Wrestling With Reality Pro Bull Riders 2010 World Combat League TNA: Greatest Matches Crusty Demons: No Borders Crusty Demons: No Borders Enfusion Pro Bull Riders 2010 Ride Guide Snow 2009 Ride Guide Snow 2009 Tread BMX Tread BMX Ticket To Ride– 5 2012 Ticket To Ride– 5 2012 Alli Presents Fantasy Factory Fantasy Factory Pro Bull Riders 2010 Mantracker Superstars USA World Combat League Fantasy Factory Fantasy Factory Tread BMX Tread BMX Ticket To Ride– 5 2012 Ticket To Ride– 5 2012 Mantracker Pro Bull Riders 2010 Superstars USA World Combat League Crusty Demons: No Borders Crusty Demons: No Borders TNA: Greatest Matches Enfusion

Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Charly’s Cake Angels Charly’s Cake Angels Unique Sweets Unique Sweets Kid In A Candy Store Kid In A Candy Store Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Guy’s Big Bite Outrageous Food Unique Sweets

05:30 Chopped 06:10 Barefoot Contessa 06:35 Barefoot Contessa 07:00 Iron Chef America 07:50 Barefoot Contessa 08:15 Barefoot Contessa 08:40 Unique Sweets 09:05 Charly’s Cake Angels 09:30 Jenny Morris Cooks Morocco 09:55 Cooking For Real 10:20 Cooking For Real 10:45 Healthy Appetite With Ellie Krieger 11:10 Unwrapped 11:35 United Tastes Of America 12:00 Chopped 12:50 Guy’s Big Bite 13:15 Cooking For Real 13:40 Barefoot Contessa 14:05 Barefoot Contessa 14:30 Unique Sweets 14:55 Charly’s Cake Angels 15:20 Jenny Morris Cooks Morocco 15:45 Food(Ography) 16:35 Barefoot Contessa 17:00 Barefoot Contessa 17:25 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 17:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 18:15 Guy’s Big Bite 18:40 Unique Sweets 19:05 Charly’s Cake Angels 19:30 Chopped 20:20 Iron Chef America 21:10 Crave 21:35 Crave 22:00 The Big Cheese 22:25 The Big Cheese 22:50 Food(Ography) 23:10 Food(Ography) 23:40 Guy’s Big Bite

00:30 01:20 02:05 02:55 03:45 04:30 05:20 06:10 07:00 07:50 08:15 08:40 09:05 09:30 10:20 11:10 12:00 12:50 13:15 13:40 14:30 15:20 15:45 16:10 17:00 17:50 18:40 19:05 Jones 19:55 20:20 21:10 22:00 22:25 22:50 23:40

00:15 00:45 01:40 02:05 02:35 03:00 03:30 03:55 04:25 05:20 05:45 06:15 Planet 06:40 Planet 07:10 07:35 08:05 09:00 09:25 09:55 10:20 10:50 11:15 11:45 12:40 13:05 13:35 Planet 14:00 Planet 14:30 14:55 15:25 16:20 16:45 17:15 17:40 18:10 18:35 19:05 20:00 20:30 21:00 Planet 21:30 Planet 22:00 22:25 22:55 Planet 23:20 Planet 23:50

Ghost Lab A Haunting Behind Mansion Walls American Greed Dr G: Medical Examiner Ghost Lab A Haunting Disappeared Mystery ER Street Patrol Street Patrol Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Murder Shift Disappeared Mystery ER Street Patrol Street Patrol Forensic Detectives On The Case With Paula Zahn Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

Murder Shift Disappeared Forensic Detectives Street Patrol True Crime With Aphrodite Stalked: Someone’s Watching Nightmare Next Door Couples Who Kill Great Crimes And Trials Great Crimes And Trials Nightmare Next Door Dr G: Medical Examiner

Delinquent Gourmet Long Way Down Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Danger Beach Into The Drink

By Any Means Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Food Lover’s Guide To The Food Lover’s Guide To The Delinquent Gourmet Delinquent Gourmet Long Way Down Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Danger Beach Into The Drink

By Any Means Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Food Lover’s Guide To The Food Lover’s Guide To The Delinquent Gourmet Delinquent Gourmet Long Way Down Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Danger Beach Into The Drink

By Any Means Delinquent Gourmet Delinquent Gourmet Food Lover’s Guide To The Food Lover’s Guide To The Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Food Lover’s Guide To The Food Lover’s Guide To The David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 1

23:00 Naked Science 00:00 01:00 01:55 02:50 03:45 04:40 05:35 06:30 07:25 08:20 09:15 10:10 11:05 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00

Hunter Hunted Hooked Zambezi Built For The Kill Caught In The Act The Living Edens World’s Worst Venom Zambezi Built For The Kill Caught In The Act Python Hunters Swamp Troop Swamp Men Hooked Wild Mississippi Built For The Kill Caught In The Act

16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

Amazonia’s Giant Jaws Dragon Chronicles Swamp Men Zambezi Built For The Kill Caught In The Act Python Hunters Swamp Troop

KUWAI

22:00 Crimes Against Nature 23:00 Shark Nicole 00:00 Disturbing Behavior-18 02:00 Carlito’s Way-18 04:30 Disturbing Behavior-18 06:00 Hackers-PG15 08:00 The Cry Of The Owl-PG15 10:00 The Recruit-PG15 12:00 Fantastic Four-PG15 14:00 The Cry Of The Owl-PG15 16:00 Hidalgo-PG15 18:15 Fantastic Four-PG15 20:00 Get Rich Or Die Tryin’-18 22:00 Bad Lieutenant: Port Of Call New Orleans-18 20:00 Fighting-PG15 22:00 Homecoming-18 01:30 The Boondocks 02:00 The Big C 03:00 30 Rock 04:00 Two And A Half Men 04:30 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 06:00 Friends 07:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 08:00 Two And A Half Men 08:30 30 Rock 09:30 Cougar Town 10:00 New Girl 11:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 12:00 Friends 12:30 Two And A Half Men 14:30 New Girl 15:00 Cougar Town 16:30 Friends 17:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 18:00 30 Rock 18:30 Baby Daddy 19:30 New Girl 20:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 Family Guy 22:30 The Big C 23:30 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 23:30 Late Night With Jimmy Fall on 00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 22:00 23:00

White Collar Combat Hospital Supernatural Grimm Bunheads Franklin & Bash White Collar Emmerdale Coronation Street Castle Supernatural Combat Hospital Bunheads Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Castle White Collar Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Castle Parenthood The X Factor U.S. American Horror Story Grimm

23:00 Grimm 00:00 Luster-18 01:30 Alien-18 03:30 The Godfather III-18 07:00 Go Fast-PG15 09:00 Hurricane Season-PG15 11:00 Aeon Flux-PG15 13:00 Time Machine: Rise Of The Morlocks-PG15 15:00 Hurricane Season-PG15 17:00 Game Of Death-PG15 19:00 Gridlock’d-18 21:00 Seventh Moon-18 23:00 Paranormal Activity 2: Tokyo Night-18 23:00 Luster-18 00:00 Stuck On You-PG15 02:00 The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou-PG15 04:00 Bob Roberts-PG15 06:00 The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy-PG 08:00 The Marc Pease ExperiencePG15 10:00 My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend-PG15 12:00 Melinda And Melinda-PG15 14:00 Fat Albert-PG 16:00 My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend-PG15 18:00 Loser-PG15 20:00 No Strings Attached-18 22:00 Due Date-PG15

KNCC PROGRAM FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (18/10/2012 TO 24/10/2012) SHARQIA-1 TAKEN2 :2D THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) TAKEN2 :2D THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

SHARQIA-2 THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) TAKEN2 :2D PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 2:45 PM 4:45 PM 6:30 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:30 AM

SHARQIA-3 LOOPER (DIG) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

MUHALAB-1 THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 1:30 PM HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET 4:00 PM NO FRI+SAT CAMERAMAN GANGATHO RAMBABU (DIG) (Telugu) 4:00 PM FRI+SAT THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) 7:00 PM HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET 9:00 PM THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) 11:00 PM THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) 1:00 AM NO SUN+TUE+WED MUHALAB-2 LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) NO FRI+SAT DAMARUKAM (DIG) (Telugu) FRI+SAT LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 5:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

MUHALAB-3 THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) TAKEN2 :2D THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) TAKEN2 :2D PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:15 PM 4:15 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:05 AM

FANAR-1 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

FANAR-2 THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:15 PM 7:00 PM 9:30 PM 12:05 AM

FANAR-3 STUDENT OF THE YEAR (DIG) (HINDI)1:30 PM NO THU THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 1:30 PM THU THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 4:45 PM STUDENT OF THE YEAR (DIG) (HINDI)7:00 PM STUDENT OF THE YEAR (DIG) (HINDI)10:00 PM THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 1:00 AM NO SUN+TUE+WED FANAR-4 THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) TAKEN2 :2D THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) TAKEN2 :2D THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED FANAR-5 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:15 PM 12:15 AM

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:30 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:30 AM

22:00 Frenemy-18 01:00 Chelsea On The Rocks-18 02:30 Jungle Fever-18 04:45 Evita-PG 07:00 Get Low-PG15 09:00 The Flyboys-PG15 10:45 Les Miserables 25th Anniversary-PG15 13:45 The Fantastic Water Babes-PG 15:30 The Flyboys-PG15 17:15 Love N’ Dancing-PG15 19:00 Cruel Intentions-18 21:00 Yelling To The Sky-U 23:00 Of Gods And Men-18 Square Grouper-18 01:00 13-PG15 03:00 Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides-PG15 05:15 Soldier Love Story-PG15 07:00 Oceans-PG15 09:00 Unanswered Prayers-PG15 11:00 Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides-PG15 13:15 Quest For Zhu-PG 15:00 The Tender Hook-PG15 17:00 Unanswered Prayers-PG15 18:30 The Help-PG15 21:00 Footloose-PG15 23:00 Chloe-R

MARINA-1 LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) THE EXPATRIATE: 2D LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) THE EXPATRIATE: 2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

MARINA-2 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:05 AM

MARINA-3 THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) TAKEN2 :2D THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) TAKEN2 :2D THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:00 PM 5:00 PM 6:45 PM 8:45 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

AVENUES-1 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET 2:30 PM HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET 4:45 PM HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET 7:00 PM

HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET 9:15 PM HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET 11:30 PM NO SUN+TUE+WED

THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) NO SUN+TUE+WED

AVENUES-2 THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

AVENUES-3 LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 3:00 PM 5:30 PM 8:00 PM 10:30 PM 1:00 AM

360 º- 7 THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 2:00 PM THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 4:15 PM THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 6:30 PM NO THU (18.10.2012) French Film Festival Show“War is declared” 6:30 PM THU (18.10.2012) French Film Festival Show“The Artist” 8 : 3 0 PM THU (18.10.2012) THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 8:45 PM NO THU (18.10.2012) THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 11:00 PM

AVENUES-4 LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 3:00 PM 5:30 PM 8:00 PM 10:30 PM 1:00 AM

AVENUES-5 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

AVENUES-6 TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:15 PM 6:30 PM 8:45 PM 11:00 PM 1:15 AM

AVENUES-7 AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) 12:45 PM STUDENT OF THE YEAR (DIG) (HINDI)3:30 PM NO THU AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) 3:30 PM THU AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) 6:30 PM STUDENT OF THE YEAR (DIG) (HINDI)9:30 PM AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) 12:30 AM NO SUN+TUE+WED AVENUES-8 THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE IMPOSTER THE IMPOSTER THE IMPOSTER THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:15 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM 9:00 PM 11:15 PM

AVENUES-9 THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

AVENUES-10 THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:15 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

AVENUES-11 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

360 º- 1 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

360 º- 2 AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 3:15 PM 6:00 PM 8:45 PM 11:30 PM

360 º- 3 PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) THE APPARITION :2D PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) THE APPARITION :2D LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 1:00 AM

360 º- 4 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:15 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

360 º- 5 THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH:2D FRI+SAT THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH:2D PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH:2D PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) 360 º- 6 THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D)

2:30 PM 4:45 PM 7:00 PM 9:15 PM 11:30 PM 12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM

9:30 PM 11:45 PM

360 º- 8 LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:15 PM 6:45 PM 9:15 PM 11:45 PM

360 º- 9(VIP-1) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:15 PM 6:45 PM 9:15 PM 11:45 PM

360 º- 10(VIP-2) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) 12:45 PM PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) 3:00 PM PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) 5:15 PM PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) 7:30 PM NO THU (18.10.2012) Special Show “PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG)” for Ms. Lulwa Salem Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah 7:30 PM THU (18.10.2012) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) 9:45 PM PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) 12:05 AM NO SUN+TUE+WED 360 º- 11 THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG)

2:15 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM 9:00 PM 11:15 PM

360 º- 12 TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

360 º- 13 THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN THE DARK KNIGHT RISES RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 4:15 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:45 AM

360 º- 14 TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital)

2:15 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM 9:00 PM 11:15 PM

360 º- 15 STUDENT OF THE YEAR (DIG) (HINDI)2:30 PM NO THU AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) 2:30 PM THU AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) 5:30 PM STUDENT OF THE YEAR (DIG) (HINDI)8:30 PM STUDENT OF THE YEAR (DIG) (HINDI)11:30 PM NO SUN+TUE+WED AL-KOUT.1 THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) TAKEN2 :2D THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) TAKEN2 :2D THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) THE RAID: REDEMPTION(DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

AL-KOUT.2 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) THE EXPATRIATE: 2D PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 3:45 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:05 AM

AL-KOUT.3 LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:15 PM 4:45 PM 7:15 PM 9:45 PM 12:15 AM

AL-KOUT.4 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:30 PM 7:30 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

BAIRAQ-1 THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) THE ILLUSIONAUTS (DIG-3D) TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:30 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:30 AM

BAIRAQ-2 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG)

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:30 PM 7:30 PM 9:30 PM 11:30 PM

Classifieds THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Airlines JZR QTR JZR JZR SAI ETH GFA UAE ETD FDB MSR QTR JZR THY DHX JZR KAC BAW SVA JZR KAC KAC KAC FDB KAC KAC KAC KAC UAE ABY IRA GFA QTR IZG IRA FDB ETD BAB GFA UAE MEA JZR MSR KNE MSC SYR MSR GFA KAC FDB OMA QTR SVA RJA KAC JZR KAC QTR KAC KAC JZR JZR ETD UAE UAL GFA SVA JZR TAR JZR KAC ABY KNE KAC KAC QTR BAB KAC KAC FDB MSR MSC RBG JZR KAC KAC JAI KAC KAC AXB FDB SVA OMA MEA QTR GFA ALK FDB UAE JZR ETD BBC ABY QTR JAI JZR AIC GFA UAL JZR DLH SVA MSR THY KLM JAI

Arrival Flights on Thursday 18/10/2012 Flt Route 185 DUBAI 148 DOHA 539 CAIRO 267 BEIRUT 441 LAHORE 620 ADDIS ABABA 211 BAHRAIN 853 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI 67 DUBAI 612 CAIRO 138 DOHA 503 LUXOR 770 ISTANBUL 170 BAHRAIN 555 ALEXANDRIA 412 MANILA/BANGKOK 157 LONDON 4461 JEDDAH 529 ASSIUT 284 DHAKA 206 ISLAMABAD 382 DELHI 53 DUBAI 302 MUMBAI 332 TRIVANDRUM 352 COCHIN 362 COLOMBO 855 DUBAI 125 SHARJAH 605 ISFAHAN 223 BAHRAIN 132 DOHA 4161 MASHAD 617 AHWAZ 55 DUBAI 301 ABU DHABI 436 BAHRAIN 213 BAHRAIN 871 DUBAI 404 BEIRUT 165 DUBAI 618 ALEXANDRIA 470 JEDDAH 401 ALEXANDRIA 341 DAMASCUS 610 CAIRO 219 BAHRAIN 672 DUBAI 57 DUBAI 645 MUSCAT 140 DOHA 500 JEDDAH 640 AMMAN 788 JEDDAH 257 BEIRUT 546 ALEXANDRIA 134 DOHA 1720 MEDINAH 118 NEW YORK 535 CAIRO 357 MASHAD 303 ABU DHABI 857 DUBAI 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 215 BAHRAIN 510 RIYADH 177 DUBAI 328 TUNIS/DUBAI 777 JEDDAH 1904 JEDDAH 127 SHARJAH 474 JEDDAH 502 BEIRUT 542 CAIRO 144 DOHA 438 BAHRAIN 786 JEDDAH 104 LONDON 63 DUBAI 624 SOHAG 405 SOHAG 3553 ALEXANDRIA 175 DUBAI 674 DUBAI 614 BAHRAIN 572 MUMBAI 774 RIYADH 562 AMMAN 389 KOZHIKODE/MANGALORE 61 DUBAI 4459 JEDDAH 647 MUSCAT 402 BEIRUT 146 DOHA 221 BAHRAIN 229 COLOMBO 59 DUBAI 859 DUBAI 135 BAHRAIN 307 ABU DHABI 43 DHAKA 129 SHARJAH 136 DOHA 576 COCHIN 513 SHARM EL SHEIKH 981 CHENNAI/AHMEDABAD 217 BAHRAIN 981 BAHRAIN 239 AMMAN 636 FRANKFURT 4481 JEDDAH 614 CAIRO 772 ISTANBUL 411 AMSTERDAM/DAMMAM 574 MUMBAI

Time 0:15 0:20 0:30 0:50 1:30 1:45 2:20 2:25 2:30 3:10 3:20 3:25 3:55 4:35 5:00 6:00 6:15 6:30 6:35 6:40 7:15 7:15 7:30 7:45 7:50 7:55 8:05 8:20 8:25 8:30 8:35 8:40 9:00 9:10 9:15 9:20 9:30 9:35 10:00 10:45 10:55 11:05 11:25 11:35 12:00 12:05 13:30 13:40 13:40 13:45 14:00 14:25 14:30 14:55 15:00 15:00 15:05 15:15 15:40 16:00 16:00 16:20 16:35 16:55 17:10 17:20 17:20 17:30 17:35 17:40 17:40 17:45 17:55 18:00 18:15 18:20 18:40 18:40 18:45 18:45 18:55 19:00 19:05 19:15 19:25 19:30 19:35 19:40 19:50 19:55 20:00 20:05 20:10 20:15 20:25 20:35 20:55 21:10 21:15 21:15 21:25 21:25 21:30 21:35 22:00 22:00 22:25 22:35 22:40 22:55 23:10 23:30 23:35 23:40 23:40 23:50

Airlines AIC UAL DLH MSR THY SAI ETH UAE FDB ETD MSR QTR QTR JZR GFA THY SVA KAC BAW FDB JZR ABY JZR KAC GFA IRA KAC UAE QTR KAC FDB ETD IRA BAB JZR IZG GFA KAC KAC KAC KAC MEA KAC JZR UAE MSR KNE MSC SYR KAC JZR GFA FDB MSR KAC OMA KAC JZR RJA JZR SVA QTR KAC KAC ETD JZR JZR QTR UAE GFA JZR TAR ABY UAL SVA KNE JZR QTR FDB BAB RBG MSR MSC JZR KAC JAI FDB KAC KAC OMA MEA KAC SVA GFA FDB DHX ALK ABY ETD UAE QTR KAC KAC JAI JZR BBC QTR AXB GFA KAC KAC JZR

Depature Flights on Thursday 18/10/2012 Flt Route 976 GOA/CHENNAI 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 637 FRANKFURT 615 CAIRO 773 ISTANBUL 442 LAHORE 621 ADDIS ABABA 854 DUBAI 68 DUBAI 306 ABU DHABI 613 CAIRO 139 DOHA 149 DOHA 164 DUBAI 212 BAHRAIN 771 ISTANBUL 5461 MEDINAH 545 ALEXANDRIA 156 LONDON 54 DUBAI 256 BEIRUT 126 SHARJAH 534 CAIRO 671 DUBAI 224 BAHRAIN 606 MASHAD 787 JEDDAH 856 DUBAI 133 DOHA 101 LONDON/NEW YORK 56 DUBAI 302 ABU DHABI 616 AHWAZ 437 BAHRAIN 356 MASHAD 4162 MASHAD 214 BAHRAIN 1719 MEDINAH 1903 JEDDAH 541 CAIRO 165 ROME/PARIS 405 BEIRUT 501 BEIRUT 776 JEDDAH 872 DUBAI 623 SOHAG 471 JEDDAH 406 SOHAG 342 DAMASCUS 785 JEDDAH 176 DUBAI 220 BAHRAIN 58 DUBAI 611 CAIRO 561 AMMAN 646 MUSCAT 673 DUBAI 174 DUBAI 641 AMMAN 512 SHARM EL SHEIKH 505 JEDDAH 135 DOHA 773 RIYADH 613 BAHRAIN 304 ABU DHABI 238 AMMAN 538 CAIRO 141 DOHA 858 DUBAI 216 BAHRAIN 134 BAHRAIN 328 TUNIS 128 SHARJAH 982 BAHRAIN 511 RIYADH 475 JEDDAH 266 BEIRUT 145 DOHA 64 DUBAI 439 BAHRAIN 3554 ALEXANDRIA 607 LUXOR 402 ALEXANDRIA 184 DUBAI 283 DHAKA 571 MUMBAI 62 DUBAI 331 TRIVANDRUM 351 COCHIN 648 MUSCAT 403 BEIRUT 543 CAIRO 5459 MEDINAH 222 BAHRAIN 60 DUBAI 171 BAHRAIN 230 COLOMBO 120 SHARJAH 308 ABU DHABI 860 DUBAI 137 DOHA 301 MUMBAI 205 ISLAMABAD 575 COCHIN 554 ALEXANDRIA 44 DHAKA 147 DOHA 390 MANGALORE/KOZHIKODE 218 BAHRAIN 411 BANGKOK/MANILA 415 KUALA LUMPUR/JAKARTA 528 ASSIUT

Time 0:05 0:25 0:30 0:35 2:15 2:30 2:45 3:45 3:50 4:05 4:20 4:50 5:40 6:55 7:05 7:10 8:05 8:10 8:25 8:25 9:00 9:05 9:10 9:20 9:25 9:35 9:35 9:40 10:00 10:00 10:05 10:15 10:15 10:25 10:30 10:35 10:45 10:50 11:25 11:30 11:45 11:55 12:00 12:15 12:20 12:25 12:25 13:00 13:05 13:10 13:20 14:25 14:25 14:30 14:40 15:00 15:05 15:05 15:50 15:55 16:00 16:15 16:25 16:30 17:20 17:30 17:40 17:45 18:05 18:20 18:20 18:25 18:25 18:30 18:35 18:45 18:50 19:20 19:25 19:30 19:45 19:55 20:00 20:05 20:15 20:35 20:40 20:50 21:05 21:10 21:15 21:30 21:35 21:35 21:50 21:50 21:55 22:10 22:20 22:25 22:35 22:40 22:45 23:00 23:00 23:05 23:10 23:10 23:30 23:40 23:50 23:50

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

ACCOMMODATION A room available in a furnished 2 bedroom flat in Salmiya 単near the bus stop for a working class lady.

Please call 99702658.

18-10-2012 Bed space available for a Keralite bachelor near Amiri hospital next to Holiday Inn downtown.

Contact: 99387111, 97929183.

15-10-2012

grey color (1.6 CLR). KD 2,350. Mob: 50699345.

(C 4177)

MATRIMONIAL Marthoma parents of male (29) Keralite engineer working in Kuwait (170cm, fair) invites proposals from parents of engineering graduates/ post graduates of other fields. M4M 2804610.

Contact: propmt1983@gmail.com 14-10-2012 Proposals invited for a girl, God-fearing (Marthomite, 30yrs/160 cm) born and educated in Kuwait and Mangalore, MDS Doctor presently working in India, from Post Graduate boys Mathomite/CSI, God-fearing and having good family background. Email: mathewjacob201@hotmail.com (C 4153)

Jeep Mitsubishi Nativa 2004, white color, ver y good condition. KD 1,600.

Tel: 66729295.

I, Megala Devi, holder of Indian Passport No: G1871523 converted to Islam do hereby change my name to Ayesha Banu.

(C 4179) I, Surinder, S/o Ram Chand R/o H.No. 106, Amar Garden near Tanda Road Jalandhar have changed my name from Surinder to Surinder Kumar Gaat. All concerned please note.

(C 4180) 16-10-2012

Marthoma parents working in Kuwait invite proposals for daughter 25/162, M.Sc Biotech, from parents of professionally qualified boys (Marthoma/ CSI/ Orthodox). If interested contact: jlovedale87@yahoo.com (C 4175) 11-10-2012 24 year old daughter BSc passed Pakistani/ Canadian dual citizen. Highly qualified professionals from Pakistan age up to 29 years can contact at email: d3sak@yahoo.com (C 4172) 9-10-2012

Australian Engineer with two-Engineering (Civil/ Elect) & four Master Degrees (Engg/Prog Mgmt/ Education/MBA). 23 years experience in Dubai/ Qatar/ Australia, looking project Mgr / QHSE Mgr job. Contact: 65695468.

(C 4160) 7-10-2012

Toyota Camry GL, model 2012, color silver, km done 13,000, alloy rim, original paint. Price KD 4,880. Tel: 66507741.

(C 4181) 17-10-2012 Toyota Corolla 2008, dark

SITUATION VACANT Live-in maid wanted for a small family in Farwaniya.

Full time.

Contact: 50833103.

10-10-2012

CHANGE OF NAME

I, Vita Quirino Monteiro, holder of Indian Passport No: E8364338 have changed my name to Vita De Jesus Maria Monteiro as per gazette No X - 18770.

(C 4168) 14-10-2012

FOR SALE

Sultan Kaler Mushtaq Ahmed is reported to have been lost. Anyone finding the same or claiming any interest in it should communicate with the Manager (PHS) State Life P.O. Box No. 11278, Dubai, UAE within one month from this date.

18-10-2012

SITUATION WANTED

LOST Policy No. 6330001223 issued by the State Life Insurance Corporation of Pakistan Gulf zone on the Life of Mr. Mohammad

Prayer timings Fajr:

04:32

Duhr:

11:33

Asr:

14:48

Maghrib:

17:15

Isha:

18:31

GOVERNMENT WEB SITES Kuwait Parliament www.majlesalommah.net

The Public Institution for Social Security www.pifss.gov.kw

Ministry of Interior www.moi.gov.kw

Public Authority of Industry www.pai.gov.kw

Public Authority for Civil Information www.paci.gov.kw

Prisoners of War Committee www.pows.org.kw

Kuwait News Agency www.kuna.net.kw

Ministry of Foreign Affairs www.mofa.gov.kw

Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affair www.islam.gov.kw

Kuwait Municipality www.municipality.gov.kw

Ministry of Energy (Oil) www.moo.gov.kw

Kuwait Electronic Government www.e.gov.kw

Ministry of Energy (Electricity and Water) www.energy.govt.kw

Ministry of Finance www.mof.gov.kw

Public Authority for Housing Welfare www.housing.gov.kw

Ministry of Commerce and Industry www.moci.gov.kw

Ministry of Justice www.moj.gov.kw

Ministry of Education www.moe.edu.kw

Ministry of Communications www.moc.kw

Ministry of Information www.moinfo.gov.kw

Supreme Council for Planning and Development www.scpd.gov.kw

Kuwait Awqaf Public Foundation www.awqaf.org

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

i n f o r m at i o n For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128 GOVERNORATE Sabah Hospital

24812000

Amiri Hospital

22450005

Maternity Hospital

24843100

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

Chest Hospital

24849400

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

Adan Hospital

23940620

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

Kaizen center

25716707

Roudha

22517733

Adhaliya

22517144

Khaldiya

24848075

Keifan

24849807

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Al-Khadissiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

22451082

Al-Mirqab

PHARMACY

ADDRESS

PHONE

Ahmadi

Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

23915883 23715414 23726558

Jahra

Modern Jahra Madina Munawara

Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 Jahra-Block 92

24575518 24566622

Capital

Ahlam Khaldiya Coop

Fahad Al-Salem St Khaldiya Coop

22436184 24833967

Farwaniya

New Shifa Ferdous Coop Modern Safwan

Farwaniya Block 40 Ferdous Coop Old Kheitan Block 11

24734000 24881201 24726638

Tariq Hana Ikhlas Hawally & Rawdha Ghadeer Kindy Ibn Al-Nafis Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554 25721264 25380581 25628241

Hawally

ST TAT TE OF KUW K WA AIT

Tel.: e 161

DIRECTORA AT TE GENERAL GEN OF CIVIL AV VIA ATION T METEOROLOGICAL DEP PA ARTMENT

WWW.MET.GOV V..KW

BY Y DA AY:

Fair with light to moderate variable wind changing to light to moderate easterly wind, with speed of 06 - 26 km/h and some scattered clouds will appear

WA ARNING

No Current Warnings arnin a

MAX. REC.

MIN. N. EXP P.

KUW WA AIT CITY

39 °C

28 °C

KUW WA AIT AIRPOR RT

38 °C

21 °C

22456536

NUW WA AISEEB

40 °C

24 °C

Sharq

22465401

WAFRA A

39 °C

21 °C

Salmiya

25746401

SALMI

36 °C

20 °C

Jabriya

25316254

ABDAL LY

38 °C

20 °C

Maidan Hawally

25623444

JAL ALIY YA AH

38 °C

21 °C

Bayan

25388462

FA AILAKA

38 °C

22 °C

AHMADI POR RT

37 °C

27 °C

Mishref

25381200

UMM AL-MARADEM

35 °C

30 °C

W.Hawally

22630786

WARBA A A - BUBY YAN A

39 °C

18 °C

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

SFC. CHART

17/10/2012 1200 UTC

4 DA AY YS FORECAST Temperatures WEA AT THER

MAX.

MIN.

Wind Speed

Wind Direction

Thursday

18/10

fair + scattered clouds

37 °C

21 °C

VRB-E

06 - 26 km/h

Friday

19/10

partly cloudy + scattered rain

36 °C

23 °C

SE

20 - 45 km/h

Saturday

20/10

partly cloudy + scattered rain

36 °C

23 °C

SE

20 - 45 km/h

Sunday

21/10

partly cloudy

37 °C

21 °C

SE

20 - 38 km/h

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Al-Ardhiya

24884079

Fajr

04:31

MAX. Temp.

Firdous

24892674

Sunrise

05:51

MIN. Temp.

38 °C 22 °C

Zuhr

11:33

MAX. RH

30 %

Al-Omariya

24719048

Asr

14:49

MIN. RH

N.Kheitan

24710044

Sunset

17:15

MAX. Wind

Isha

18:32

TOT TAL AL RA AINF FA ALL L IN 24 HR.

Fintas

23900322

PRA AY YER TIMES

RECORDED YESTERDA AY AT KUW WA AIT AIRPOR RT

11 % NW 39 km/h 00 mm

All times are local time unless otherwise stated.

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 General Practitioners Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Urologists Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 Psychologists /Psychotherapists

Paediatricians

Plastic Surgeons Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf

22547272

Dr. Khaled Hamadi

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari

22617700

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed

Dr. Abdel Quttainah

25625030/60

Family Doctor Dr Divya Damodar

23729596/23729581

Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari

22635047

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan

22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians DrAdrian arbe

23729596/23729581

Dr. Verginia s.Marin

2572-6666 ext 8321

Endocrinologist

25665898 25340300

Dr. Zahra Qabazard

25710444

Dr. Sohail Qamar

22621099

Dr. Snaa Maaroof

25713514

Dr. Pradip Gujare

23713100

Dr. Zacharias Mathew

24334282

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada)

25655535

Dentists

Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan

22655539

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami

25343406

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar

22641071/2

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly

25739272

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed

22562226

22618787

Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer

22561444

Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan

22619557

Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash

22525888

Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan

25653755

Dr. Bader Al-Ansari

25620111

General Surgeons Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer

22610044

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher

25327148

Internists, Chest & Heart Dr. Adnan Ebil Dr. Mousa Khadada Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan

22666300 25728004

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra

25355515

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub

24726446

Dr Nasser Behbehani

25654300/3

Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688

info@soorcenter.com www.soorcenter.com

3729596/3729581

Neurologists

22639939

Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman

Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri

25633324

Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan

25345875

Gastrologists Dr. Sami Aman

22636464

Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly

25322030

Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali

22633135

Kaizen center 25716707

25339330

Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888 Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 Physiotherapists & VD Dr. Deyaa Shehab

25722291

Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees

22666288

Rheumatologists: Dr. Adel Al-Awadi

Dr Anil Thomas

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36

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

LIFESTYLE G o s s i p

Pattinson in Talks for ‘Hold On to Me’ obert Pattinson may sink his fangs into “Hold On to Me,” his manager told The Wrap. The “Twilight” hunk is in talks to play Carey Mulligan’s lover in the romantic drama, directed by James Marsh, who made the Oscar-winning documentary “Man on Wire.”

In the film, Pattinson would play a character named Jimmy who is manipulated by the money-hungry social-climber portrayed by Mulligan. She hatches a plot to kidnap and bury the town’s richest man. Suffice to say, things don’t go as planned on the way to easy street. Pattinson has become a teenage sex symbol thanks to his role as the brooding vampire in “Twilight,” but he has shown an eagerness to avoid being typecast as Byronic objects of lust in an array of roles in indie films like David Cronenberg’s “Cosmopolis”(2012). On deck for Pattinson are “The Rover,” a futuristic western opposite Guy Pearce, and “Queen of the Desert,” a historical drama that will find him playing T.E. Lawrence for Werner Herzog, the idiosyncratic director behind “Fitzcarraldo.” He will also stick on the pointy teeth once more in “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2,” which will start inducing mass-swooning among preadolescent girls on Nov 16.

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Beyonce set for Super Bowl halftime show the New England Patriots in a thrilling rematch of the contest four years earlier. Her performance was seen by 114 million people, a higher average than the game itself, which was seen by an estimated 111.3 million people, according to the Nielsen Co. If Beyonce’s performance at the Pepsi NFL Halftime Show features collaborations, it could likely include husband-rapper Jay-Z and her Destiny’s Child bandmates Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. New Orleans last hosted a Super Bowl in 2002, making next year’s game the first NFL championship in the city since Hurricane Katrina devastated parts of the Louisiana Superdome in 2005. Pepsi is returning as the sponsor for the halftime show since doing so in 2007 when Prince performed.

ll the single ladies will be watching the upcoming Super Bowl along with football lovers - that’s because Beyonce is the halftime show performer.

NFL confirmed the news Tuesday afternoon after Beyonce posted a photo of herself sporting eye black, where “Feb. 3” is written on one and “2013” on the other, on her Tumblr page. The Super Bowl is set for Feb 3, 2013 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans. Beyonce, whose pop and R&B hits include “Crazy in Love,” “Irreplaceable” and “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It),” has won 16 Grammy Awards. The 31-year-old sang the national anthem at the 2004 Super Bowl in her hometown of Houston when the New England Patriots defeated the Carolina Panthers. Madonna performed at halftime at this year’s Super Bowl in February with guests CeeLo Green, Nicki Minaj, LMFAO and M.I.A. The New York Giants beat

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De Niro is homeless after fire obert De Niro has been left homeless after a house fire. The 69-year-old actor and his wife Grace Hightower had to move out of the home in Central West Park in New York City in June after a blaze caused by a lint build-up in a clothes dryer spread across the building, Despite originally planning to renovate they are now moving out permanently after it was deemed uninhabitable.

They had lined up a $100,000-a-month apartment to rent on the 64th floor of the Park Imperial, but the deal turned sour with Robert claiming it was “misrepresented” to him. A source told New York Post’s Page Six: “There was an issue with misrepresentation of the apartment and they managed to get out of the lease. The apartment went back on the market two days ago.” Grace has also been heard telling friends she and her husband are looking for a five-bedroom rental which has “tons of closet space”. An eyewitness at the time of the fire - which took an hour to put out was shocked at how tall the flames were. The onlooker, who was driving at the time, said: “Right above my head these 12 ft tall flames exploded out of the fifth floor window.”

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‘I Get Around’: Beach Boy dedicates Nev roundabout he Beach Boys hit “I Get Around” will take on a whole new meaning when one of the band members who co-wrote the 1964 song helps dedicate the first highway roundabout at Lake Tahoe. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Mike Love is a longtime Incline Village resident and a proponent of the new environmentally friendly roundabout. The roundabout is Located at the intersection of the Mount Rose Highway

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‘Bachelorette’ Maynard

Bette Midler

and Holm break up

to star in ‘Glee’ he ‘Wind Beneath My Wings’ singer has agreed to film a cameo for the musical TV drama after being asked to by the show’s co-creator Ryan Murphy. Ryan asked Bette while she was on stage for the God’s Love We Deliver Golden Hearts Awards event in New York City. She tweeted: “And from the stage, @ryanmurphy invited me to guest on @Glee! I should get out more.” Ryan couldn’t contain his excitement and also took to twitter to speak of his joy. He wrote: “Bette said yes! Amazing. I am plotting...who should she play?” But it seems, Bette, 66, already has some ideas and thinks she could be the grandmother of Rachel Berry, who is played by Lea Michele. She tweeted: “I have one vote for Rachel’s grandmother.” Bette is not the only star to sign up for the show as ‘American Idol’ runner-up Jessica Sanchez will also have a recurring role. However, character details and a start date are yet to be revealed. Stars to have appeared in ‘Glee’ include Gwyneth Paltrow, Britney Spears, Kate Hudson and Sarah Jessica Parker.

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elevised dating might not be the right fit for Emily Maynard. The single mom’s second turn on ABC’s “Bachelor” and “Bachelorette” series has ended in a broken engagement. After weeks of rumors, Maynard and Jef Holm confirmed their split to People.com on Tuesday.

Maynard described it as “a very difficult and heartbreaking decision.” Maynard competed on the 15th season of “The Bachelor” where she accepted Brad Womack’s proposal in the season finale. They, too, broke up a few months later.

Earlier this month, former “Bachelor” Ben Flajnik (FLAN’-ihk) and fiancee, model Courtney Robertson, also broke up.

Two “Bachelor”-related couples are celebrating some good news, though. Ashley Hebert (AY’-behr) and J.P. Rosenbaum’s televised wedding special will air on ABC in December, while Jason and Molly Mesnick are expecting their first child together.

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Cameron Diaz still cleans her own toilet he 40-year-old actress - who earns a reported $20 million per movie - insists she has remained down-to-earth despite her vast wealth. She said: “I think your foundation is your foundation. I work as hard as it takes. That’s the essence of who I am. “So for me, I’m not thinking, ‘Hmm, what is it like to do that?’ I already know. “And I’ll jump into it at any time. I can scrub my own toilet. And I can scrub it against the best scrubbers of toilets. We can do a scrub-off!” The ‘Gambit’ actress has never gone off the rails because she insists wild partying or drug taking never seemed “interesting” to her. She told the new issue of Britain’s Esquire magazine: “It just wasn’t interesting for me. There’s more I want out of life. “Not to say I didn’t go through my phases, but any time I was in danger of any of that, I was like, ‘Come on Cameron, that’s not who you are.’ There’s so much to gain by not doing that stuff.”

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and state Route 28 in Incline Village. It’s part of a $2.4 million project designed to promote safety, protect Tahoe’s famed water clarity and celebrate local public art. In addition to Love’s appearance, Wednesday’s dedication will highlight the official unveiling of bronze sculptures that local artist June Towill Brown created to reflect Lake Tahoe’s native wildlife.

Akerman was star-struck when she met Cruise alin Akerman was star-struck when she met Tom Cruise. The 34-year-old actress couldn’t believe it when she was cast alongside the Hollywood legend for ‘Rock of Ages’ and was nervous about meeting him for the first time but she quickly struck up a bond with Tom. Malin - who had to stick her tongue in the actor’s ear during one memorable scene - said: “I still get excited by working with big names. You have that initial moment of, ‘Oh my goodness, I’m going to work with Tom Cruise!’“And then you meet him and in 10 minutes you realise you’re both just in this together, two actors who are equally as nervous and excited to be on a new journey. And star-struck feelings go away and you become partners in crime. “My dream now is to work on a big film with Tilda Swinton and Cate Blanchett.” The Swedish-born beauty has six films out this year and several other movies hitting screens in 2013, but although her career is going great, she claims her biggest achievement to date is marrying her husband, drummer Roberto Zincone. Malin - who is expecting her first child with the musician - told Stylist magazine: “My husband is my rock. He’s kept me sane throughout this whole process. When we met, I couldn’t believe I’d found my soul mate - and this coming from a girl who didn’t believe that marriage was possible. “I had come from a broken family and didn’t believe two people could be together forever, and then I met Roberto and was like, ‘I want to marry this man.’ And we’ve been together for nine years now. Marrying him is the thing I’m most proud of in my life.” —Agencies

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37

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

LIFESTYLE M u s i c

&

M o v i e s

Springsteen presents charity honor to Van Zandt he night busted open in New York City as Bruce Springsteen and other Rock and Roll Hall of Famers helped Steven Van Zandt celebrate his Big Man of the Year award.

Darlene Love, Elvis Costello and Dion were among the stellar performers Tuesday night at a rollicking benefit for Little Kids Rock, an initiative that rescues music education amid public school budget cuts. Springsteen had some fun while presenting the award - gleefully detailing their roommate days and Van Zandt’s lack of housekeeping skills.

“What a liar,” Van Zandt retorted with a grin. Amid the musical blowout, Van Zandt and the other stars discussed the arts’ role in fueling young minds and shaping character tasks accomplished through the thousands of musical instruments and the lessons made possible by Little Kids Rock. Costello, before going onstage, waxed eloquently on the “mundane and magical” aspects of music, and its transformative effects. Van Zandt said in an AP interview before the show that children might see a musical career as glamorous and fun - “and it is.”

But it also “requires a lot of work, just like any other craft. ... You need discipline and you need willpower and focus. And ...a lot of hours put

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Khloe Kardashian attends the InStyle Summer Soiree at The London Hotel, in West Hollywood, Calif. —AP photos

Mario Lopez arrives at the 64th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Nokia Theatre, in Los Angeles.

Lopez, Kardashian to host ‘The X Factor’ ario Lopez and Khloe Kardashian Odom are officially joining “The X Factor.” After weeks of speculation, Fox announced Tuesday that the “Extra” host and the “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” costar will indeed host the second season of the talent competition. Lopez and Odom will first appear as hosts during the show’s live broadcasts next month, the network said. “The worst kept secret in Hollywood is out,” said “X Factor” creator and judge Simon Cowell in a statement. “Mario and Khloe are our hosts. They will debut on our first live show in November,

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and I couldn’t be happier.”

British television personality Steve Jones served as the sole host for the first season of the US edition of the show. The addition of Lopez and Kardashian is the latest shift for the underperforming singing contest.

Britney Spears and Demi Lovato joined Cowell and L.A. Reid on “The X Factor” judging panel at the start of the second season. The pair replaced Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger.

“I’m very excited to be joining ‘The X Factor’ team,” said Lopez, who has also hosted MTV’s “America’s Best Dance Crew” for the past seven seasons. “I

love the show, and I’ve been a big fan of Simon Cowell and the judges for a long time. Khloe and I have been friends for years, and I know we’ll be a great team and have a blast.”

The current second season of “X Factor” is earning solid ratings for Fox, but NBC’s “The Voice” continues to perform better. Last week, 12.55 million people watched “The Voice,” while “X Factor” was seen by 9.71 million, according to the Nielsen Co. —AP

into it,” he said. So people might be surprised to know that Van Zandt, while concentrating on a multitude of parallel careers, can go three years without playing a guitar, and then pick it up again in a week or two.

“When you’ve been playing so long, you don’t really forget how to play,” he said.

“Well, that’s not a good example for the kids, though,” he conceded, laughing. “That’s just me. ... ‘You kids:

File photo shows actor and musician Steven Van Zandt in New York. —AP Don’t do what I do - do what I say.’”

The charity named the award for E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons in 2009, two years before he died. Clemons’ nephew, Jake, who now tours with the E Street Band playing saxophone, lent heartfelt accompaniment to Little Kids Rock musicians from Franklin L. Williams

Bristol Palin booted off ‘Dancing With the Stars’ ristol Palin, one of the biggest names on “Dancing With the Stars” all-star season, on Tuesday became the fifth contestant eliminated from the hit television show. Palin, 21, who was paired with professional dancer Mark Ballas, had avoided low finishes in the previous three weeks and never risked elimination.

But relatively low scores from the judges for her rock dance to “At the

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Hop,” combined with weak support from fan voting sent her packing.

The daughter of former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin was making her second appearance in the competition during a special season that brought back former competitors.

Palin, who finished third in the fall 2010 season, said she had an “awesome time” and was satisfied with having made it to week four.

Review

‘Nobody Walks’ is artful but goes nowhere rtfully constructed but hollow at its core, “Nobody Walks” makes it impossible to stop watching while simultaneously making it impossible to care about what’s happening. It’s a frustrating little paradox. This languid slice of Los Angeles life features an appealing cast of actors playing characters who are all surface and impulse someone is constantly coming onto someone else - but their actions seem to carry low stakes. It’s a sensory experience, featuring an intriguing use of sound design, but any tension that arises ultimately feels like it’s in the service of nothing.

This is especially true of its central character, who is also its biggest weakness. Olivia Thirlby stars as Martine, a 23year-old experimental filmmaker visiting from New York to finish a project for a gallery installation. That the young woman who’s the catalyst for the movie’s domestic upheaval is such an enigma is baffling, given that “Nobody Walks” comes from two young women who’ve established voices of their own: director Ry Russo-Young and her cowriter, the acclaimed “Girls” creator Lena Dunham.

From the second Martine steps off the plane in LA, guys are hitting on her for reasons that are difficult to fathom; she has a certain urban cool about her, but what defines and drives her remains elusive, even as she fine-tunes the film that brought her across the country. Martine is staying at the stylish, spacious, mid-century modern home of Julie (Rosemarie DeWitt), a therapist who’s a friend of a friend, and her husband, Peter (John Krasinski), the sound designer who’s helping her with her short: a stark, black-andwhite meditation on insects. (If nothing else, the visuals from cinematographer Christopher Blauvelt are always striking.)

Also living there are Kolt (India Ennenga), Julie’s intellectual, 16-year-old daughter from a previous marriage, and the

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Middle School in Jersey City, NJ. Singer-guitarist Tom Morello, serving a blistering homage to Van Zandt’s old anti-apartheid song, “Sun City,” told the crowd how it helped stoke his own activism as a student at Harvard University. Some bad-boy appeal came when rocker Jesse Malin climbed onto a table of people dining near the stage, singing as he traipsed in sneakers amid stemware on the tablecloth. Besides working with Bruce Springsteen and E Street, and camping it up in mobster roles - his most recent on the Netflix show “Lilyhammer” - Van Zandt works as a record and television producer, radio host, songwriter and arranger, and oversees two satellite channels.

The self-educated music historian is also chairman of the Rock and Roll Forever Foundation, which is developing curriculum for schools. Not bad for a guy who endured his own school days as a self-described “freak,” “misfit” and “outcast.” “That was particular to my generation,” he said. Now, being a musician is “acceptable. ... But it wasn’t so respectable in the 60s.” In the long run, though, Van Zandt said music saved his life - and he wants to return the favor. “It’s why I support Little Kids Rock.” —AP

couple’s young son. A couple of other men traipse in and out: Peter’s blonde, muscular assistant (Rhys Wakefield) and Kolt’s skeevy Italian tutor (Emanuele Secci). Kolt also has a sweetly nerdy, sorta-boyfriend at school.

Every interaction is sexually charged to some extent, which provides some intrigue but not a consistent amount.

Some of the best scenes involve the one character who really does assert himself: a no-nonsense, quick-witted screenwriter (Justin Kirk) who’s one of Julie’s patients and, increasingly and insistently, her admirer. Martine’s arrival, ostensibly, stirs all the curiosities and spurs the shenanigans that play out over the film’s brief running time - which would make sense if there were more to her. The fact that Martine doesn’t register is no fault of Thirlby, who once again reveals a versatility and an eclectic taste in film choices (her last role was in the action spectacle “Dredd 3D”). The character is a collection of quirks, from her preferred style of jeans to her inability to drive, being a proud, true New Yorker.

The title refers only partly to the fact that nobody walks in LA, as the old Missing Persons song goes. Maybe she’s drawn in intentionally vague fashion to suggest the illusory nature of attraction, but it doesn’t give us much to hold onto. There’s ambiguity, and then there’s just flat-out emptiness. No more so is this evident than at the very end, where it’s difficult to determine whether Martine grasps the impact of her actions, or even cares.

“Nobody Walks,” a Magnolia Pictures release, is rated R for sexuality, language and some drug use. Running time: 82 minutes. Two stars out of four. —AP

Another returning dancer, actress and former finalist Kirstie Alley, barely survived this week after her Charleston received the lowest scores from the judges. “Dancing with the Stars” is in its 15th season and airs on ABC. —Reuters

S Korea to crack down on sexy performance by minors

outh Korea authorities said yesterday they were taking steps to curb over-sexualized performances by teenaged stars of the country’s thriving K-pop scene.

Proposed revisions to the existing Youth Protection Law would slap an R-rating on films, music videos and TV shows that placed an exaggerated sexual emphasis on young singers and bands they feature. An official at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, Lee Ill-Hyun, said the move would encourage self-regulation, as producers would have to tone down performances or suffer a rating that cuts out the teenage audience they target.

The revised law would apply to videos and shows that “excessively highlight certain body parts of minors and depict them as sexual subjects”, the ministry said in a statement. Lee specifically cited images that zoom in on the breasts or hips of performers aged 18 or under. The R-rating would mean that such material can only be sold to people aged over 18 or, in the case of TV shows, could only be broadcast late at night. Internet viewers would be required to type in social security numbers to prove their age.

“It is aimed at curbing the exploitation of underage entertainers as some are known to be forced to perform overly sexual dance moves,” Lee said. “Most fans of these young stars are teenagers. If the artists are practically banned from showing their performances to them, there will be less incentive for agents to produce such sexual choreography,” he said.

South Korea’s K-pop scene, which has been exported with enormous success across Asia and beyond, is dominated by young girl and boy bands whose members are sometimes as young as 13 or 14 years old. —AFP

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Fans’ outrage at soaring Rolling Stones ticket prices olling Stones fans reacted with fury yesterday at the steep cost of tickets for the British band’s 50th anniversary shows, while prices soared to thousands of pounds on re-sale websites. After months of rumours, the Stones announced on Monday that they would play two nights at London’s 02 Arena on November 25 and 29, followed by gigs at New Jersey’s Newark Prudential Center, just outside New York, on December 13 and 15.

But hundreds of fans have taken to the Internet to complain about the ticket prices, with a seat for the London shows costing £406 ($650, 500 euros) on the official ticket website.

Premium tickets have subsequently appeared on re-sale websites for more than £13,000 each.

The cheapest seats on the official site, costing £106,was sold out yesterday. “These prices are a

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joke,” fan Steve Grace wrote in a comment appearing on the official See Tickets website. “To expect this sort of money just makes me lose a lot of respect for these guys.” Drachan Forster added on the site: “Saw them in Rio at a free concert. Was pickpocketed relentlessly throughout, but nothing compares to this fleecing. £246 for some of the worse seated tickets in the house. Disgusting.”

By today, seats at the front of the 20,000-capacity 02 Arena were listed on the Get Me In re-sale website for up to £13,200 each.

Many fans protested online that the band should have rewarded their fans for their loyalty over the last half-century with cheaper shows. “Considering these guys started off as a working-class set of lads, these prices are well out of reach of the ordinary working man,” Chrissi Matusevics posted on Facebook.

American Express customers gained advance access to tickets for the London shows on Monday, followed on Wednesday by subscribers to the band’s mailing list and users of Britain’s O2 mobile phone network. The tickets go on general sale in Britain on Friday. Hospitality package tickets for the two US shows go on pre-sale on Saturday, ahead of a wider pre-sale next Monday and a general release on October 26. Frontman Mick Jagger, 69, told BBC radio on Monday that the four concerts will be followed by a longer string of dates, yet to be announced. US music magazine Billboard reported in August that Jagger and bandmates Charlie Watts, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood will earn a total of $25 million for the four shows. —AFP

South Korean pop sensation Psy, whose real name is Park Jae-Sang, performs for fans at a promotion by the Sunrise breakfast television show in central Sydney yesterday. The 34-year-old Psy has rocketed to international fame with his song “Gangnam Style” and its much-imitated dance moves which has gone viral on YouTube. —AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

lifestyle F a s h i o n

A selection of costumes showing various designs and outfits worn by actresses playing royal and regal characters.

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new London exhibition has brought together Hollywood’s most iconic costumes, from Darth Vader’s suit to Dorothy’s ruby slippers and pinafore in “The Wizard of Oz.” The show at the Victoria and Albert Museum showcases more than one hundred movie costumes from a century of film-making.

It includes many of cinema’s most legendary outfits: Charlie Chaplin’s baggy suit, hat and cane; Scarlett O’Hara’s green velvet dress from “Gone with the Wind”; Holly Golightly’s little black dress in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”; and Indiana Jones’ leather jacket and fedora from “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” Curators said yesterday they wanted the exhibit to tell the story of the process of costume design and how it helps create authentic characters. The exhibition opens Saturday. — AP

A selection of costumes seen at the Hollywood Costume exhibition at the Victoria and Albert museum in London.

DUBAI: High-end luxury meets sinful shades of soulful Broadway in the Fall/Winter 2012-13 collection of Aigner’s new releases. Starring this season in a script of Old World classic are a line of timeless etiquettes premiered by the German fashion house in subtle hues of unexplored elegance.

From watches to jewelry, accessories and pens - the new line of must-haves are every etch the stylish trendsetters this season. Collaging together a world of creativity and craftsmanship, the new line of Aigner tickers are a sell-out story. The modish vibe of the jewelry and accessories flirts and adds frills of fun to the theatrical launch. Ready to unveil drama, the chic magnifiques are set to steal the show at leading luxury outlets across the Middle East.

A Sotheby’s employee displays a sumptuous conch pearl Cartier bracelet which once belonged to Queen Victoria of Spain (1887 1969), during a press preview in Geneva, Switzerland, yesterday. The bracelet is estimated to fetch 800,000 - 1,400,000 US dollars, during a Sotheby’s auction on Nov 14, 2012 in Geneva. — AP

A costume designed by Ann Roth and used in the 2008 film Mamma Mia for the character Donna played by Meryl Streep.

Two black and white costumes designed by Anthony Powell for the 2000 film 102 Dalmatians lead female villain Cruella de Vil portrayed by actress Glenn Close.

Two costumes made for the 1992 film Bram Stoker’s Dracula, by designer Eiko Ishioka, showing a dress worn by the characters Mina Murray/ Elizabeth played by actress Winona Ryder and the red cape worn by Count Dracula played by actor Gary Oldman on display at the Hollywood Costume exhibition at the Victoria and Albert museum in London.

The blue and white gingham pinafore dress worn by Judy Garland in her iconic role of Dorothy designed by Adrian for the 1939 film The Wizard Of Oz, with a video portrait of garland in the background, on display at the Hollywood Costume exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. — AP photos

The green dress worn by actress Tippi A costume worn by British actress Vivien Hedern for the 1963 film The Birds in Leigh as Scarlett OíHara in the iconic 1939 which she played Melanie Daniels, the movie ‘Gone with the Wind’. costume was designed by Edith Head for the movie directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

lifestyle F a s h i o n

File photos show Longchamp’s second mega store in Hong Kong. — AFP photos

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rench luxury handbag maker Longchamp is eyeing a huge expansion in China despite the country’s economic slowdown, its chief executive said as the firm opened a new store in Hong Kong yesterday. The 64-year-old family-owned brand, famous for its colored fold-up nylon and leather totes, said it was optimistic about the Asian market, especially China, as European economiesits main markets-remain “unfavourable”. “We have no intentions to slow down our expansion plans, especially in Asia,” chief executive Jean Cassegrain, a grandson of the founder, told AFP. He said he had

no concerns about China, adding: “The purchasing power of Chinese consumers continue to increase and it is not going to change” even as the Asian powerhouse’s economy slowed.

The 400-square-metre (4,300-square-feet) outlet is Longchamp’s second mega store in Hong Kong and is located in Kowloon, one of the city’s busiest shopping districts where mainland Chinese tourists flock to splurge on luxury goods. Cassegrain said Longchamp is looking to expand its current presence of seven stores in mainland China-including Beijing and Shanghai-to about 40 to 50 stores,

although he could not specify a timeline. “The challenge is to pick the right locations,” he said, adding that Longchamp has appointed popular Chinese actress Gao Yuanyuan as its ambassador to boost the brand’s profile in the region.

China’s economy expanded 7.6 percent in the second quarter of this year, its worst performance in three years, and disappointing data since then has led to fears that third-quarter growth may have weakened further. Third-quarter data will be out today. Longchamp saw turnover of 390 million euros ($507 million) last year, up 22 percent

from a year earlier. China is set to become the world’s second biggest market for luxury goods after the United States by 2017, overtaking France, Britain, Italy and Japan, consumer research group Euromonitor said in a report this month. Luxury-good sales could top $302 billion worldwide this year, up 4.0 percent from 2011, driven by demand in emerging economies, according to the report. — AFP

Models present creations by Colombian designer Beatriz Camacho during the Cali Exposhow fashion week in Cali, Valle del Cauca department.

— AFP/AP photos

Models wear creations by Colombia’s designer Andres Otalora at the Cali Exposhow fashion week in Cali, Colombia, Tuesday. — AP photos

Lopez, Kardashian to host ‘The X Factor’

37

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

Women look at a painting ‘Marlon’ 1966 by artist Andy Warhol and presented by US auction house Christie’s as part of the sale ‘Post-war and Contemporary evening sale’ yesterday in Paris. The auction will take place in New York on November 14, 2012. — AFP

J

ust the mention of her name, J.K. Rowling, had the audience screaming and on its feet.

The “Harry Potter” author spoke for just over an hour before a capacity crowd Tuesday night at Manhattan’s Lincoln Center in her sole US public appearance to promote her first novel for grownups, “The Casual Vacancy.” Dressed in a dark skirt and dark sweater blouse, Rowling chatted on stage with fellow author Ann Patchett, read briefly from her new book and also responded to preselected questions from fans. Rowling spoke before some 2,500 people, mostly women, gathered under the high, golden ceiling of the David H. Koch Auditorium.

Patchett, who has a wide following of her own thanks to such novels as “Bel Canto,” warned at the start that she was not “particularly nice.” Rowling had nothing to fear. Patchett gushed like the most avid Potter fan as she praised Rowling for inspiring countless readers and told Rowling how much she loved “ The Casual Vacancy,” which has received mixed reviews. It was a grownup, writerly conversation, with a few obscenities thrown in and a brief detour into the latest phenomenon, EL James’ erotic “Fifty Shades of Gray.” When Patchett criticized James’ writing as inferior, Rowling replied, “But that’s porn.”

Rowling said she felt a special connection to adolescents because of their “vulnerability” and how they come to comprehend there is “evil in the world.” Stories, she said, can help them explore their feelings. Rowling also discussed the difficulty of structuring a book and how attached she becomes to her characters. She spoke up for traditional publishers and the editorial support they offer as she explained why she didn’t simply self-publish “The Casual Vacancy.”

She didn’t just change her subject matter when she took on the new book. She changed the process. Rowling observed that with her Potter books, she did not allow anyone - not even her husband, Neil Murray - to see the manuscript before she had finished. —AP

A

n exhibition exploring the concept of freedom through post-World War II artworks begins a European tour here today, a stone’s throw from where the Berlin Wall once stood. With paintings, videos, photos, drawings and art installations, the “Desire for Freedom” exhibition at the German Historical Museum in central Berlin spotlights the work of more than 100 artists from the East and West since 1945.

Featured artists range from German painter Gerhard Richter, Belgian surrealist Rene Magritte and Christo, known for his environmental works of art including the wrapping of the Reichstag in Berlin in 1995.

“It’s not in chronological order and national differences are not underlined

V

ienna’s prestigious State Opera House said yesterday that Japanese ballerina Kiyoka Hashimoto has been promoted to solo dancer by its French dance director Manuel Legris. The Staatsoper said that the move followed a star turn by Hashimoto as Clara in Rudolf Nureyev’s choreography of Tchaikovsky’s ballet “The Nutcracker” on Monday evening.

Hashimoto, 27, trained at the Izumi Ballet in Japan and the Cannes Jeune Ballet before joining the Semperoper in Dresden, Germany in 2004 and the Vienna State Opera and Volksoper in 2008. — AFP

because basic questions such as ‘who am I?’, ‘to what extent am I free?’, ‘who are the others?’ are always the same,” curator Monika Flacke said. She said that freedom originated from the ideas of the Enlightenment and was much wider than just the division between East and West which resulted from World War II. Divided into 12 sections, the exhibition, in Berlin until February, seeks to outline the idea of freedom in its different guises, from revolution to utopia via politics and sustainable development.

Visitors are reminded on entering the display of Article One of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights”. The idea of freedom is

A photo taken on February 10, 2012 at the Austrian state opera in Vienna shows Japan’s Kiyoka Hashimoto dancing at the general rehearsal of the ballet ’Suite en blanc’.—AFP

“deeply anchored in Europe and has moved to America where it has also found expression in all these revolutions of recent years, in the Occupy movement, in student revolutions,” Flacke said. Berlin provides a fitting backdrop, having seen two dictatorships in the last century and been the setting of a peaceful revolution which led to the tearing down of the detested Wall in 1989 at the end of more than four decades of the Cold War.—AFP

H

ilary Mantel wrote herself into the history books on Tuesday, becoming the first woman and first Briton to win the coveted Man Booker prize for fiction twice with “Bring Up the Bodies”, the sequel to her acclaimed “Wolf Hall”. Two men had previously “done the double” J.M. Coetzee who was born in South Africa and Australia’s Peter Carey. Chair of judges Peter Stothard described Mantel as the “greatest modern English prose writer”, and told reporters she had rewritten the art of historical fiction.

Wolf Hall, her re-imagining of the rise of blacksmith’s son Thomas Cromwell to the top of the court of King Henry VIII, won the 50,000 pound ($80,000) prize in 2009. Bring Up the Bodies, published by HarperCollins imprint Fourth Estate, picks up the action in 1535 with Anne Boleyn’s spectacular fall from grace and execution the following year. “This is a bloody story of the death of Anne Boleyn and the pursuit of Anne Boleyn, but Hilary Mantel is a writer who thinks through the blood. She uses her power of prose to create moral ambiguity and the real uncertainty about political life then,” Stothard said of the winner.

There could yet be a third Booker prize for Mantel. The final part of her epic trilogy, called “The Mirror and the Light”, is expected to hit shelves in 2015. Stothard, who is editor of the Times Literary Supplement, likened the character of Cromwell to Don Corleone of the famous “Godfather” film series. “If you are looking for comparing it with things, you can see as much Don Corleone in this book as D.H. Lawrence,” he said in the medieval splendour of London’s Guildhall, where the prize was announced at a glitzy dinner. “There is certainly a Godfather element to this book including, I have to say, the moral ambiguity of the Don Corleone/Thomas Cromwell figure.

“The way she uses language to make you slightly uncertain as to whether or not Cromwell is acting wrongly or rightly, or sincerely or insincerely ... is all created by prose.”

No votes allowed Stothard, who sought to impose rigorous literary criticism to the judging process this year, said Bring up the Bodies had surpassed Wolf Hall, calling it “tighter”. He banned fellow judges, including “Downton Abbey” actor Dan Stevens, from mentioning books other than the six novels shortlisted for the prize and from expressing a personal preference for any of the nominees. Stothard also prevented the fivemember panel from taking the decision to a vote, saying that the winning novel was the one for which the arguments in favour proved strongest.

“We have never had a vote at any point in our long discussions,” he explained. “I don’t believe that art can be reduced to numbers.” His comments were seen as a rebuttal of the 2011 selection process dur-

ing which judges led by former British spymaster Stella Rimington upset many within the London “literati” by stressing the importance of “readability” in their choice of winner.

Also on the shortlist this year, and joint favorite, was Will Self’s “Umbrella”, a modernist tale about Audrey Death, a woman who falls into a coma at the end of World War One only to be awoken decades later when Dr Zack Busner discovers a cure.

The writer said he wanted to challenge what he called “profoundly conservative narrative fiction” with a book that critics have variously described as “sprawling”, “draining” and “moving”. Up against the literary “establishment” were two first-time novelists - Alison Moore for “The Lighthouse” and Indian writer and poet Jeet Thayil for “Narcopolis”.

Malaysia’s Tan Twan Eng made it to the Booker longlist with his first novel “The Gift of Rain” in 2007 and was shortlisted in 2012 for “The Garden of Evening Mists”.

“Swimming Home” by playwright and novelist Deborah Levy explores the devastating effect depression can have on apparently stable people, and has been described by the author as a “page-turner about sorrow”.

As well as the prize money, the winner of the Man Booker prize awarded to an author from the Commonwealth, Zimbabwe or Ireland for a full-length novel written in English is virtually guaranteed a significant spike in sales. Research by the Guardian newspaper showed that Mantel’s Wolf Hall, for example, sold 35,900 copies before the award was announced and nearly 600,000 afterwards. — Reuters

British author Hilary Mantel poses for pictures after winning the 2012 Man Booker literary prize for her novel ‘Bring Up The Bodies’ in London on October 16, 2012. — AFP