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MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 JAMADA ALAWWAL 16, 1435 AH www.kuwaittimes.net Moves to Abu Dhabi US lags as Seven up for enforce ban extends period commercial Barca as on beach of $20bn drones take off Messi breaks barbeques2 loans21 to Dubai around27 globe another19 record Maid kills employer’s Max 26º Min 10º daughter in Sulaibikhat High Tide 00:01 & 12:52 Low Tide Suspect turns self in • MPs vent anger on Ethiopian workers 06:46 & 18:55 40 PAGES NO: 16107 150 FILS

By Hanan Al-Saadoun, B Izzak and A Saleh which confirmed that the death was a result of four stab wounds - two in the chest and two in the abdominal Only 6,400 KUWAIT: An Ethiopian domestic worker stabbed her area. employer’s teenage daughter to death in Sulaibikhat The suspect later turned herself in. She told officers yesterday, in yet another stab-murder case in which that she stabbed the victim multiple times in the girl’s hajj pilgrims housemaids target children of their employers in bedroom while she was asleep, then locked her inside Kuwait. No reason was given for the murder, but it was the room before leaving her employer’s house. She also from Kuwait reported that the maid said she had been insulted the handed over the knife she used in the crime. She also night before. Several Kuwaiti lawmakers meanwhile confessed that she had planned the murder days earlier vented anger on Ethiopian workers, demanding a total and that her plans had been delayed because of the By A Saleh ban on their recruitment. presence of the victim’s younger sister. The suspect, identified as 22-year-old Rabiya The victim’s father was a member of the Kuwait KUWAIT: Saudi authorities have informed Kuwait Mahmoud, turned herself in at Sulaibikhat police sta- national team that participated in the 1982 World Cup. that the kingdom will only accept 6,400 hajj pilgrims tion at 5:45 am. She admitted killing 19-year-old Seham He currently serves as the Deputy Director General for from Kuwait this year. This was announced during a Al-Shemmari, daughter of former Kuwaiti national foot- Youth Affairs at the Public Authority for Youth and meeting of the head of Kuwait’s hajj mission and ball team defender Hmoud Flaiteh Al-Shemmari, earlier Sports. Shemmari confirmed the news on his Twitter Awqaf Ministry undersecretary Adel Al-Falah and act- that morning. She confirmed that the murder hap- account yesterday, and stated that his daughter was to ing Saudi Hajj Ministry undersecretary Sahel Al- pened at Shemmari’s house where she worked as a be laid to rest yesterday afternoon. Seham Al-Shemmari Sabban to discuss preparations for the coming hajj housemaid, and cited conflicts with the victim as the was a freshman at Kuwait University’s Faculty or Arts, Al- season. Ongoing expansion works at Makkah’s Grand reason. Aan news website reported yesterday. It added that stu- Mosque has required reducing pilgrims from outside The circumstances behind the crime and the sus- dents and teaching staff were in ‘a state of shock’ follow- Saudi Arabia by 20 percent and those from within the pect’s exact motives remain unclear as of the newspa- ing the murder. country by 50 percent. per’s publishing. The police report says that officers Separately, MP Abdulhameed Dashti warned of responded to an emergency call reporting that a door ‘Heinous crime’ the consequences of the involvement of Kuwaitis in was locked in a Sulaibikhat house with a girl inside. The The case drew an outcry in Kuwait where around the Syrian conflict and urged the government to take girl was found bleeding heavily after firefighters broke 800,000 of the country’s nearly 4 million people are immediate and serious steps in this regard. He was the door open with her parents present, before she was domestic workers. People took to social media to commenting after a senior Kuwaiti fighter was killed KUWAIT: Ethiopian maid Rabiya Mahmoud is seen rushed to the hospital. The victim arrived dead at the demand the death penalty for the suspect, which is the in Syria late on Friday. after she turned herself in at Sulaibikhat police sta- tion yesterday. Mubarak Hospital according to the medical report, Continued on Page 13

Syrian army captures PAGE 100 killed in Nigeria as PAGE rebel bastion Yabroud gunmen storm villages Crimea votes to join Russia ‘93%’ vote for union • West outraged

SIMFEROPOL: Crimeans voted over- “I am happy. Honestly, I’m 60 and I nev- whelmingly yesterday in favor of joining er thought I would live to see this happy former political master Russia as tensions day,” said Alexander Sorokin as he strolled Myth of soared in the east of the splintered ex- the waterfront of Sevastopol, home of Soviet nation amid the worst East-West cri- tsarist and Kremlin navies since the 18th sis since the Cold War. Exit polls cited by century and a city that like most of the Planet X the Russian RIA news agency showed 93 peninsula is heavily Russified. Ukraine’s percent of the voters in favor of leaving new pro-European leaders and the West Ukraine and joining Russia in the most have branded the vote as “illegal” because debunked serious redrawing of the map of Europe the strategic Black Sea peninsula has been Crewmembers onboard a US Navy P-8A Poseidon aircraft assist in search and rescue since Kosovo’s 2008 declaration of inde- under de facto control of Russian forces operations for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 in the Indian Ocean yesterday. — AP pendence from Serbia. Another Russian since the start of the month. WASHINGTON: It was an elusive planet that for 200 agency said turnout was over 80 percent. Continued on Page 13 years appeared to explain Uranus’s wobbly orbit. And there was the sister sun theorized to be near our solar Final words from jet system that caused asteroids to swerve toward Earth. There is just one problem: neither “Planet X” nor came after shutdown “Nemesis” ever existed, researchers now say. Or probably not. “The outer solar system probably KUALA LUMPUR: The final words from trollers after the ACARS system was shut does not contain a large gas giant planet (“Planet X”), or a the missing Malaysian jetliner’s cockpit down. Whoever spoke did not mention small, companion star (“Nemesis”),” concluded University gave no indication anything was wrong any trouble on board, seemingly mis- of Pennsylvania astronomer Kevin Luhman, who directed even though one of the plane’s commu- leading ground control. the study using NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey nications systems had already been dis- Air force Maj Gen Affendi Buang told Explorer (WISE) telescope. The results were published in abled, officials said yesterday, adding to reporters he did not know whether it the most recent edition of The Astrophysical Journal. suspicions that one or both of the pilots was the pilot or co-pilot who spoke to air Most theories had estimated Planet X to be up to four were involved in the disappearance. traffic controllers. Given the expanse of times the size of Jupiter - the biggest planet in our solar system. They suggested it would be found some 1,486 As authorities examined a flight simu- land and water that might need to be billion km from the sun, or about 10,000 times farther lator that was confiscated from the home searched, the wreckage of the plane than the Earth’s orbit. But the images gathered by the tel- of one of the pilots and dug through the might take months - or longer - to find, escope did not detect any object larger than Jupiter. background of all 239 people on board or might never be located. Establishing Luhman doesn’t rule out the possibility that a planet is and the ground crew that serviced the what happened with any degree of cer- lurking somewhere in the asteroid belt. It would be hard plane, they also were grappling with the tainty will likely need key information, to find if it were closely aligned with a bright star that enormity of the search ahead of them, including cockpit voice recordings, from blinds the telescope or were much smaller than had warning they needed more data to nar- the plane’s flight data recorders. been theorized. But after this latest survey, Luhman said row down the hunt for the aircraft. The search area now includes 11 the odds of finding one are very unlikely: “That is like a SIMFEROPOL: Pro-Russian demonstrators wave Russian flags as they gather in The Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 took countries the plane might have flown one in a hundred chance.” — AFP (See Page 28) Lenin Square yesterday. — AFP off from Kuala Lumpur at around 12:40 over, Hishammuddin said, adding that am on March 8, headed to Beijing. On the number of countries involved in the Saturday, Malaysia’s government con- operation had increased from 14 to 25. firmed that the plane was deliberately “The search was already a highly com- Saudis ban books in major crackdown diverted and may have flown as far north plex, multinational effort. It has now as Central Asia, or south into the vast become even more difficult,” he said. The RIYADH: Saudi authorities have banned hun- police had protested at “blasphemous pas- forced to cover in public from head to toe, are reaches of the Indian Ocean. search effort initially focused on the rela- dreds of books, including works by renowned sages” in works by the late Darwish, widely not allowed to drive. Other banned books Authorities have said someone on tively shallow waters of the South China Palestinian poet Mahmud Darwish, as part of considered one of the greatest Arab poets, include “The History of Hijab” and “Feminism board the plane first disabled one of its Sea and the Strait of Malacca, where the a crackdown on publications deemed threat- pressing organisers to withdraw all his books in Islam”. communications systems - the Aircraft plane was first thought to be. ening to the conservative kingdom. Saudi from the fair, which ended Friday. Activist Aziza Yousef said the crackdown and Communications Addressing and Hishammuddin said he had asked gov- Arabia clamped down on dissent following The religious police frequently intervene to had offered “free advertising to those whose Reporting System, or ACARS - at 1:07 am. ernments to hand over sensitive radar the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011, from which enforce the kingdom’s strict conservative val- books were banned” as many “rushed to Around 14 minutes later, the transpon- and satellite data to try and help get a it has been largely spared, and has adopted ues, but the move to ban so many works was download these works from the Internet.” der, which identifies the plane to com- better idea of the plane’s final move- an increasingly confrontational stance seen as unprecedented. Similar action was Organisers also banned all books by Azmi mercial radar systems, was also shut ments. “It is our hope with the new infor- towards the Muslim Brotherhood and other taken against works by Iraq’s most famous Bishara, a former Arab Israeli MP who left the down. The fact that they went dark sepa- mation, parties that can come forward Islamist groups it has long viewed as a threat modern poet, Badr Shaker Al-Sayyab, and Jewish state in 2007 and is now close to rately is strong evidence that the plane’s and narrow the search to an area that is to its security. another Iraqi poet, Abdul Wahab Al-Bayati, as authorities in Qatar, where he is based, disappearance was deliberate. more feasible,” he said. The local Okaz daily reported yesterday well as those by Palestinian poet Muin Bseiso. Sabq.org reported. Yesterday, Malaysian Defense Minister Malaysia is leading the multinational that organisers at the Riyadh International The fair’s organising committee also banned a The ban comes amid escalating tensions Hishammuddin Hussein said at a news search for the plane, as well as the inves- Book Fair had confiscated “more than 10,000 book entitled “When will the Saudi Woman between Qatar and three other Gulf Arab conference that that the final, reassuring tigation into its disappearance. In the copies of 420 books” during the exhibition. Drive a Car?” by Abdullah al-Alami, the Saudi monarchies - Saudi Arabia, the United Arab words from the cockpit - “All right, good United States, Dan Pfeiffer, senior adviser Local news website Sabq.org reported that Gazette daily reported. Saudi Arabia is the Emirates, and Bahrain - who pulled their night” - were spoken to air traffic con- Continuedon Page 13 members of the kingdom’s notorious religious only country in the world where women, Continued on Page 13 MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 LOCAL Three women in custody Barbequing along By Hanan Al-Saadoun

KUWAIT: Police vice squad arrested three European women staying in a five- beachfront illegal star hotel and a furnished apartment, offering sexual services for $1,000 per hour. A security source said the arrests followed information about their arrival Stiff penalties for violators in the country as part of an international network that provides forbidden services By Ben Garcia Greenline Group Chairman Khalid Al-Hajri been suffering for quite some time,” he com- in the Gulf region. told Kuwait Times the government’s reaction mented. KUWAIT: A campaign against barbequing was long overdue. “The EPA has inspectors just Al-Hajri recommended stiffer penalties for Road accident along the beachfront is being strictly enforced. to give jobs to unemployed Kuwaitis. They are violators. “I want expatriates to be thrown out A half lorry collided with a dump truck But Kuwait’s Greenline Group criticized the not qualified anyway. The law must be fol- of Kuwait if they are caught red-handed harm- on Sixth Ring Road at dawn yesterday. campaign, saying it has been long overdue and lowed and it’s easy to implement, but the ing our environment. If Kuwaitis are involved, Firemen freed a trapped person who was problem is they are not working properly. Their they must be thrown in jail for years. That’s the the penalty is trivial. The Environment Public taken to hospital in critical condition. A Authority (EPA) and the Municipality, accord- duty was to monitor and protect Kuwaiti’s best penalty for everyone — fair and just,” he fire crane helped remove the two vehi- ing to Greenline, acted slowly to protect coun- environment. Our surroundings must be clean noted. try’s environment. and the air we breathe must be clear. But we’ve A strict campaign to monitor Kuwaiti beach- cles from the street. es started on Friday when teams from the Capital governorate carried out inspections. Woman threatened About 65 citations were issued to people using A Kuwaiti woman told Salmiya police the beach or seaside grassy areas for their that a man with whom she had a rela- grilling sessions. The campaign was carried out tionship threatened to publish her pic- between the Green Island beach and Al-Salam tures if she does not go with him to a flat beach areas. People were handed fines ranging or pay him. Criminal detectives are inves- KUWAIT: A car accident in which a 30- between KD 5 and KD 200. tigating the case as extortion. year-old Kuwaiti was killed yesterday. Tariq Al-Qattan, head of the emergency team, said that the campaigns will continue on Reckless driver Traffic accidents a weekly basis. “Some people believe that state A 19-year-old Kuwaiti was held at Two Kuwaitis in their early 20s were property is their own property that they can Saad Al-Abdullah police station following taken to Jahra hospital following a car utilize illegally,” he told a local daily. a collision with a Jahra police patrol vehi- accident in Amghara scrap area. A regular beach visitor noted the campaign cle. Police received a call about reckless Meanwhile, a 30-year-old Kuwaiti was must be carried out properly and strictly - drivers in the area, and when police however, he said an area for barbequing must killed and another 30-year-old sustained arrived, the drivers attempted to escape a broken pelvis in an accident. The body be set up. “It’s about time to act against barbe- and the young man hit the patrol car. quing because I see some people doing it even of deceased was recovered by the coro- on the grass. But they must provide us a safer ner and the injured was taken to Jahra place to barbeque. We only have one place to Drug possession hospital. A 51-year-old Kuwaiti sustained unwind in Kuwait, and that is the seaside - if A citizen was sent to the Drugs a back and left shoulder injuries during a you are going to take it away from us, what Control General Department for pos- car accident on King Fahad road near KUWAIT: A signboard banning barbequing along the beach- else is left,” said the beach visitor who spoke on session of drugs and a firearm in Sabhan exit. He was taken to Adan hos- front. (Inset) Khalid Al-Hajri. the condition of anonymity. Salwa. pital. Call for closer Kuwaiti-Iraqi economic cooperation

BAGHDAD: The Kuwaiti-Iraqi business- nomic cooperation,” she said. try should focus on building long-term women forum discussed the economic Engineer Sarah Akbar, CEO of Kuwait partnership, not profit-taking. relations between the two countries and Energy Company, led Kuwait’s delegation Al-Qassar thanked Kuwait ways to promote investment in com- to the forum. Ambassador to Iraq Ghassan Al-Zawawe merce and energy. Al-Qassar noted that the Kuwaiti dele- and staff of the embassy for their contri- “We seek to build closer business rela- gation held fruitful talks with Chairperson bution to the success of the forum. tions with the Iraqi people, particularly of the Trade Bank of Iraq (TBI) Hamdiyah On her part, Al-Jaff, the TBI Chairperson, the businesswomen, and open new hori- Mahmoud Faraj Al-Jaff and Chairman of lauded the growing economic relations zons for economic cooperation; the the National Investment Commission between Iraq and Kuwait, saying that forum is a step forward in this direction,” (NIC) Sami Al-A’raj. these relations will reach new height in the Basma Al-Qassar, member of the delega- “The talks during the forum focused near future. tion and co-organizer of the event, said on cooperation in the fields of finance, “Iraq’s completion of the implementa- Saturday. investment, commerce and energy,” she tion of its financial obligations towards “The forum provided us with an said, noting that Kuwait Energy, which Kuwait ... will be opening new horizons opportunity to share experience and developed several oil projects in Iraq, for the bilateral ties and joint invest- brainstorm ideas on the prospects of eco- believes that its investment in any coun- ments,” she noted. —KUNA British Council hosts Performance Parkour

KUWAIT: In celebration of the GREAT British Week, the British Council in collaboration with LOYAC hosted the premiere show of “The Inner City” performance by the “Urban Playground “team from the United Kingdom. This event is sponsored by Marina World and the Sheraton Hotel. The show was held at the Marina Crescent on Friday and yester- day and ran three times on both days at 1 o’clock in the after- noon, 4 o’clock in the afternoon and 7.30 in the evening. “The Inner City” performance showcased an outdoor and public performance parkour show that portrays a group of hi-rise city workers climb the career ladder, slide on the slip- pery slope of success, embark on an office romance and fight to make a killing before they get the push. It was a knockabout, slapstick, comedic choreography for the whole family combining authentic French Parkour with contemporary and urban dance, gravity defying spins and rapid vaults designed to bring fun and joy to everyone “This collaboration with Loyac aims at providing a plat- form to showcase local talents in Kuwait and bring about a new concept to Parkour, called performance parkour, where sports and arts mix together safely.” Reem Dawani - Arts Project Manager at British Council Kuwait-said prior to the event that a series of workshops were put into place by the Urban Playground Team at the Loyac headquarters in Sharq, in order to train young local participants on the fundamentals of performance parkour and contemporary dance where they will perform at an opening act before each main performance by the Urban Playground. Fareah Al-Saqqaf, chairperson at LOYAC, said: “This is a great experience that proved its great value and benefit on our youth. We believe that such joined projects enrich the youth experience and culture and cultivates their artistic KUWAIT: ‘Urban Playground’ team from the instinct, which in return will effect the whole cultural and United Kingdom performs in Kuwait in celebra- artistic environment in Kuwait. Such experiences lie within tion of the GREAT British Week. our core values and mission of humanity, such as celebrating —Photos by Joseph Shagra diversity and building relationships between other nations. We plan to continue to enhance our relationship with the british council and other foreign cultural bodies and bring to Kuwait such new experiences with the contribution of our youth. The UPG Team is the original and premiere Performance- Parkour company performing across the UK and worldwide collaborating with a huge range of performers, participants and artists. The team chair the 2PK Network connecting park- our, dance,academic and teaching communities globally. British Council’s involvement with the GREAT campaign is to help people discover why the UK is such a great place to interact with, particularly with”Culture is GREAT”. This initia- tive was agreed by a number of UK government depart- ments that include British Council, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), and Visit Britain. The aim of the GREAT campaign is to maximize the eco- nomic potential of the Olympic and Paralympic Games and promote the UK’s assets around the world between 2012- 2015. Through the UK government’s GREAT campaign, the British Council is raising awareness and promoting the UK’s strengths in English, education and culture. The GREAT campaign was announced by Prime Minister David Cameron in New York on Sept 21, 2011 and officially launched in February 2012. The campaign aims to support the marketing and public diplomacy efforts of UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), VisitBritain, the Foreign Office and the British Council overseas. MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 LOCAL Palestinian-Kuwaiti panel to study bilateral ties Abbas to head delegation

KUWAIT: Palestine’s Ambassador to Kuwait Rami 10,000 Palestinians who have Palestinian ple and hoped it remains within the same house. Tahboub said that preparations are underway to refugee travel documents live in Kuwait. Tahboub said there are 54 files of 54 Kuwaiti establish a higher Palestinian-Kuwaiti committee He said the Palestinian Authority is commit- families who own real estate in Palestine. He said to discuss bilateral relations in all fields, adding ted to a nine-month negotiations period as that contacts were made with some of them, but that the President of the Palestinian National agreed with Israel that will expire in April in regretfully, some of their lands were confiscated Authority Mahmoud Abbas will head the exchange of not going to UN agencies. He con- after 1967 and settlements were built on them. Palestinian delegation at the Arab summit and firmed the rejection of recognizing Israel as a He said one Kuwaiti family owns sizeable will inform Arab leaders about his talks with US Jewish state. lands in Ramallah, and following a search, it was President Barack Obama on March 17. The ambassador said the National Authority found that these lands were also confiscated Tahboub said that transferring Palestinians’ is ready to reconcile with Hamas, which must and settlements were built on them, and the iqamas from travel documents to a Palestinian accept elections and precede it with the declara- Kuwaiti owner was informed about this. He said passport is linked to technical matters to be set- tion of a national reconciliation government. He these lands will be returned when the political tled with Kuwait security authorities, adding that said Hamas remains part of the Palestinian peo- issue is resolved.

Kuwait advanced Nuclear medicine in sewage water conference begins treatment KUWAIT: KUWAIT: Experts attend the ‘Beyond Connectivity 2014’ conference yesterday. The fourth Kuwait Society of (diseases) as well as the use of radionuclide KUWAIT: The manager of the projects systems at the Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging in therapy.” Ministry of Public Works (MPW) Mansour Bomejdad (KSNMMI) Conference kicked off here yes- Meanwhile, Head of the Organizing ‘Beyond Connectivity said that Kuwait is ranked amongst the world’s terday under the title “Updates in Molecular Committee and Head of Jahra Hospital advanced countries in sewage projects and that Imaging,” and the eventwas inaugurated by Nuclear Medicine Department Dr there are plans to use treated sewage water in irriga- Health Undersecretary Dr Mohammad Al- Mahmoud Al-Feeli said, “We are having a 2014’ kicks off tion, namely in new cities. Khashti. In his opening address on behalf of group of elite specialized lecturers in the Bomejdad stressed that MPW sewage projects aim Health Minister Ali Al-Obaidi, Al-Khashti field from North America, Europe, and said the participants of the three-day con- regional countries, as well as local speakers KUWAIT: at protecting Kuwait’s land, air and marine environ- The “Beyond Connectivity Fakhroo, General Manager and Chief ference would review and discuss the latest utilizing the latest presentation facilities to 2014” conference kicked off here yester- Executive Officer of Wataniya Telecom, ment from pollution and contamination resulting from pumping sewage water into the sea or ground. developments in molecular imaging, stress- give the lectures.” day to discuss the role of telecom sectors told reporters on sidelines of the confer- ing such events show the state’s interest in “There will be parallel sessions for the in strengthening economic growth and ence. “We are using the latest technology and have reached the levels of 100 percent purity of treated improving healthcare and providing better physicians and the technologists,” he added. sustainable development, with the par- Fakhroo added that this development water, which equals fresh drinking water,” he added, service. Al-Feeli pointed out that “Kuwait Society ticipation of an elite of telecom special- in the telecom requires that telecom noting that many members of the engineering staff He noted that the great speed at which of Nuclear Medicine” was established in late ists and experts. players keep up and adapt with global had drunk this treated water. technologies used in the field are devel- 2009, and the name was changed in late The two-day conference, organized by changes and variables, asserting Moreover, Bomejdad said that MPW has built oped means it is vital to organize such 2013 to “Kuwait Society of Nuclear Medicine SAMENA Telecommunications Council, is Wataniya Telecom’s commitment to par- many plants around Kuwait and it is cooperating with exchanges to help professionals stay and Molecular imaging”. KSNMMI is mem- to discuss tax optimization, smart gover- ticipating in specialized international various bodies, including the PAAAFR to use treated abreast with their peers and to provide ber of Kuwait Medical Association, he nance, spectrum harmonization and meetings, as well as its duty in laying water for irrigating landscape plants on the sixth, patients with both better service and a added. Nuclear medicine was introduced in pricing, and revenue streams diversifica- appropriate perceptions to operate its fifth, fourth, third and second ring roads. sense of trust in their health providers. Kuwait in the late 1960s, he said. tion. services inside the Kuwaiti society. He added that there are plans to pump treated As to specifics of the agenda, he said the On a note for those in the field, the offi- Several other issues will be addressed SAMENA Telecommunications Council sewage water to Abdaly and Wafra farms in addition discussions would focus on “thyroid dis- cial said the conference is registered in during the conference concerning is South Asia-Middle East-North Africa to new cities where special treatment plants would eases and their treatment, and the use of Kuwait Health Ministry’s Institute for Medical regional perspective of net neutrality, (SAMENA) region’s sole industry associa- be built especially for this purpose. molecular imaging in non-oncological dis- Specialization (KIMS) for the CME/CPD pro- eases like bone and central nervous system gram for 16 credit hours. —KUNA strategies to overcome spectrum chal- tion, driven primarily to represent lenges, including allocation and pricing, telecommunications operators and serv- diversification of revenue streams, tele- ice providers. Kuwait still under ‘Al-Ajooz’ influence com licensing framework, international SAMENA is also a nonprofit organiza- roaming regulations, and infrastructure tion with no affiliation with any interest KUWAIT: Astronomer Dr Saleh Al-Ojairi said Al-Ojairi said it is not necessary for this peri- was under partly cloudy weather with light rain sharing. groups, companies, profit organizations, Kuwait is still under the influence of the “Al- od to occur every year. He expected tempera- in the past two days. He expected the weather The number of cellular phone sub- or any government body. Ajooz” cold period which will last all this week. tures to rise starting next week after the Ajooz to be partly cloudy in the next three days with a scribers around the world has surpassed However, SAMENA member organiza- He said these are the last days of winter, period and the elderly can wear summer chance of light rain, while the winds will turn 6 billion via around 800 telecom players tions include telecom vendors and tech- unless the period of “the clumsy who sells his clothes. southeasterly. in over 200 countries at the time where nology companies, cellular and fixed-line coat” occurs in the last week of March when the Meanwhile, Director of the meteorology On Wednesday, winds will reach 45km/h and telecom sector witnessed fast and vast operators, consultancy groups, as well as weather becomes colder after a rise in tempera- department at the Civil Aviation Directorate the temperature will vary between 12-17 development of his system, Abdulaziz telecom regulatory bodies. —KUNA ture makes people think it is the start of summer. General Mohammad Karam said the country Celsius minimum and 24-28 Celsius maximum. MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 LOCAL

wIn my vie Local spotlight Protection of Broken bridge environment Assembly Government of Arab summit

By Labeed Abdal By Muna Al-Fazai

[email protected] [email protected]

any people believe that there is an Al-Anbaa he annual 25th Arab Summit will be held in Kuwait Minverse relation between environment Tshortly. Typical logistics and security preparations and oil, in the sense that the former for this summit are undergoing. Kuwait has hosted always falls victim to the global race of oil pro- many summits and meetings before but it did not duction. Oil is considered a lifeblood by countries Bridging attract a lot of media interest as this one. of the region, and the main source of income for This upcoming summit is an exception not because the economies of the Gulf Cooperation Council the of the loaded agenda, but everyone is eager to see how countries, who are also active OPEC members. But Gulf countries will act towards Qatar. It is no secret that Qatar is confronting attempts of isolation and Kuwait is the importance of oil for the region should also gaps! taking the lead of reconciliation after Saudi Arabia, UAE evoke efforts to show similar importance to envi- and Bahrain pulled their ambassadors from Qatar. ronmental issues, and not the other way round as Can Kuwait repair the broken bridge between Qatar happening today. and the rest of the Gulf countries? How much success Oil production is usually mentioned in debates Kuwait be able to achieve? It is hard to predict at this about air, water and soil pollution in the region. digest stage because several former Arab summits were held In order to address this situation, Gulf states must kuwait at a time when debates were open and heated. This one take serious efforts to protect the environment is new and threatening because the Gulf countries and seek help of foreign and domestic environ- United people of the Gulf should not be apart and the decision of these three mental consultants to achieve that goal. For countries is not welcomed by Kuwait and Oman. example, governments can use help of consulta- Qatar today is with a fresh and young leadership, tion offices for best environmentally-friendly By Dr Rabieah Al-Kuwaari drawing its own policy and expressing itself in an inde- ways for waste management and recycling. pendent method. This shouldn’t be a threat because I Meanwhile, the public and private sectors are he Gulf Cooperation Council was established in their overflowing, politically, socially or especially believe that Qatar is fully aware of its responsibilities required to cooperate when it comes to protect- T1981 with the main objective of achieving coordi- through the media. Unfortunately, there are many indi- and duties towards the GCC. That doesn’t mean it will ing the environment from violations that include nation, integration and correlation between mem- viduals in the Gulf and Arab media who feed on political only act upon the approval or blessing of other mem- unsafe waste disposal, which continues to hap- ber states in all fields in order to boost relations en disagreements between GCC states and use them to bers of the GCC. This is a key message that Kuwait has to convey to other GCC countries and Kuwait did well by pen in Kuwait due to lack of monitoring or to save route to the ultimate goal of unity. The GCC also allows encourage conflicts between those countries. member states to put together common organizations But what media personalities do not realize is that not rushing to pull its ambassadors. Oman followed the money that would be used to acquire internation- same path as Kuwait. Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain ally-approved waste management methods. and structures in all fields, including the economy, people of the Gulf region have never had deep conflicts trade, customs, communication, education, culture, throughout our history on this land. All of us share the may have their reasons, but discussing the problem at The Environment Public Authority, which is the health, social affairs, industry, scientific advancement same fate in good or bad. The prime example happened one table may bring a win-win solution for all. Kuwaiti government’s environmental body, needs and others. on Aug 2, 1990 when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, We surely don’t need more crises in the troubled to play the role of environmental police to pre- This is what is mentioned in the GCC statute. after which all Gulf states jumped to help Kuwait until it Middle East. Some writers have made comments about vent direct or indirect damage to the environ- Regardless of any kind of events and conflicts between was librated on Feb 26, 1991 and returned back to the the importance of this summit because of key urgent ment or any of its components. A clean environ- issues like the Syrian crisis and the Palestinian issue. I member states, wisdom and prudence is required in Gulf house. This is the true state of the Gulf people, one ment must be transformed into a common goal of agree that all these crises need to end, or reach a satis- order to find solutions and prevent escalations for which will stay with them same forever. top priority over the years. Children must be factory solution. But I doubt this summit or any other which the Gulf people would eventually pay the price. PS: The beautiful thing about teamwork is that you taught the principles of protecting the environ- will bring an end to any of these problems unless the The recent political crisis between GCC states has always find others at your side, whether in times of ment through cooperation between the family concerned parties ignore their personal and religious proven the importance of containing crises and avoid stress or prosperity. —Al-Rai and school. differences as much as their political interests. So most But in order to make sure that environment probably this summit will add the typical words of con- protection efforts are effective, the judiciary’s role demnation and support of the Syrian people and good wishes to see a happy ending of the Palestinian conflict. must be activated through court cases to convict In my view It is not easy to eliminate religious and political con- environment offenders, such as companies that flicts in the Middle East. One of the key issues is the can be fined or even face closure in cases of seri- Ukrainian crisis may help Syria need of reforming the Arab League. It is about time to ous pollution. move it out of Egypt and have a full reform of its policies and methods of working and handling issues. This sum- By Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg mit will not bring miracles and key issues will be ana- lyzed, but Kuwait will carry the mission as a host coun- kuwait digest n March 6, the United States Senate Foreign with calling him feckless or weak, they conceded try. Not less and not more. Relations Committee held a hearing on Syria that his policies have been inconsistent and indeci- How to solve Owhere several experts strongly criticized the sive on Syria, leading the Russians to take advan- Obama administration’s policies in Syria and Ukraine. tage of that state of affairs. Ambassador Fred Hoff, housing issue? It is clear that President Obama’s gamble on diplo- former US special representative on Syria, said, “Our kuwait digest macy and partnership with Russia has produced little approach to Syria has not discouraged Putin’s in Syria and may have encouraged Russia in Ukraine. approach to Ukraine,” Hoff said. Money and ignorance! By Abdullatif Al-Duaij However, when President Obama visits Saudi Arabia By contrast, experts see Russia as being consis- tent. In both Syria and Ukraine, Russia is advancing and the region later this month, he may find out that By Fahd Rashid Al-Mutairi arliament Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem said Ukraine crisis may make a solution to the Syrian crisis its national interests ahead of ethical considerations recently that behaving like statesmen is the P possible. However complicated and different the two or peaceful solutions, regardless of what the inter- very blessing has its own curses. The blessing only way to solve the housing dilemma. I tend situations may be, there are many parallels. More to national community, regional powers, or the West I am talking about is the geographic coinci- to disagree with that statement, as I believe that the point, Russia’s preoccupation with Ukraine may may think or believe should be done. E dence that gave us control over the ‘black depending on statesmen and calls to allow states- provide an opening to make progress on Syria. According to this analysis, Russia’s preoccupation men to take leadership posts have been the main gold’. The curse, on the other hand, is because of Although the hearing on March 6 was scheduled with Ukraine, where it has greater interests than in the increasing ignorance. Nothing is more danger- cause of all our problems. originally to discuss Syria, senators and others Syria, could provide an opportunity to make During the early 90’s of the past century, the ous for a nation than a combination of ignorance brought in the crisis in Ukraine, focusing on Russia’s progress on Syria. and money because then the nation starts it down- Supreme Council for Planning and Development — role in both crises. Justifying the inclusion of Ukraine Although President Obama had agreed last year fall through undermining human dignity and the which consisted of ‘elite statesmen’ in the country led in the hearing, Democratic Sen. Robert Menendez, to try diplomacy, at Russia’s suggestion, to resolve value of work. by then prime minister late Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah the Committee’s Chairman, said, “Ukraine is the 800- the Syrian crisis, he has lately acknowledged that Thanks to oil, our pockets are stuffed with mon- Al-Sabah — decided that the best solution for the pound gorilla at the moment and we can’t ignore it, diplomacy was not working, as the Geneva process ey but we gained no knowledge. St Evagrius demographic crisis is to encourage Kuwaitis to give nor can we ignore that Russia is a common element has produced nothing and the regime has merely Ponticus was right in saying: “Poverty with science birth, with hope that their numbers will eventually in both countries. Russia’s support for Assad in Syria used it for cover, to buy time while escalating its is much better than richness with ignorance”. overcome that of expatriates. and the Russian invasion and occupation of parts of merciless onslaught on the opposition. During the Similarly, Imam Ali bin Abi Taleb was also right The ‘elite statesmen’ did not believe at the time - or Ukraine make clear that Putin’s game isn’t 21st-cen- Foreign Relations Committee hearing, US Deputy when he said: “ No richness matches a witty mind, perhaps even now - that every Kuwaiti newborn tury statesmanship.” Secretary of State William Burns acknowledged that no poverty matches ignorance”! Money in the needs three expatriates to ‘serve’ him, either directly Republican lawmakers, in the United States had been hands of an ignorant person is but a means to such as housemaids, or indirectly like employees in particular, were scathing in frustrated about Russia’s achieve his wishes and fancies and one can easily technical and even administrative posts. their critique of the Obama Many in Washington and unwillingness to pressure envision the kind of fancies an ignorant person That is how statesmen used to think at the time, administration. Sen. Lindsey the Assad regime, on many may have — fancies and fantasies that will totally and I am confident that the way of statesmen’s think- Graham, from South elsewhere have made the link issues, including increasing control him and alter the course of his life. What is ing during the 90’s was a lot better than that of states- Carolina, said: “We have a between US vacillation in Syria access to humanitarian aid. more dangerous is the profanation of human digni- men today. At least the older ones were raised by the weak and indecisive presi- After its annexation of ty because of overconsumption habits. For those founding generation. dent that invites aggression.” and Ukraine developments, Crimea, Russia may seems to with heavy pockets and light minds, a human’s val- Sen John McCain, from making the point that Russia encourage separatist moves ue is measured by his possessions and how many The ‘elite statesmen’ did not Arizona, said that Obama elsewhere in Ukraine. There wishes he realizes! had “a feckless foreign policy took its cues on Ukraine from already have been numerous Materialistically speaking, oil almost placed us believe at the time - or perhaps where nobody believes in pro-Russian demonstrations side by side with advanced nations but we failed to even now - that every Kuwaiti America’s strength anymore.” American accommodating in eastern parts of Ukraine, achieve any social justice on the moral side. The Other Republican mem- tendencies in Syria. where many Ukrainians over richness of a minority of us indicates that newborn needs three expatri- bers of Congress chimed in. speak Russian and feel con- poverty is haunting the majority. Oil has also Representative Michael siderable affinity with deprived us from the ability to refine the souls of ates to ‘serve’ him, either directly Turner, from Ohio, said: “We’re projecting weakness.” Russian culture. While few doubt that Russia will Kuwaiti people. Despite religious appearances such as housemaids, or indirect- Mike Rogers, from Michigan, Chairman of the ever relinquish Crimea, it may hold eastern Ukraine found everywhere, lies and hypocrisy still dominate Intelligence Committee, was more colorful; accusing as a bargaining chip in any future negotiations with - greed continues and our relations with domestic ly like employees in technical the Obama Administration of “playing marbles,” Kiev. laborers still lacks the least levels of humanity while the Russians were “running circles around us.” As Russia continues its Ukraine gamble and although we pray side by side. But we quickly go and even administrative posts. Many in Washington and elsewhere have made becomes more entangled there, it may be willing to back to the ‘slaves and masters’ life as soon as the the link between US vacillation in Syria and Ukraine be flexible on Syria, if the US exercises enough pres- prayers are over. developments, making the point that Russia took its sure to complete the diplomatic process started in In pre-oil times, we had real job opportunities but with the discovery of oil, getting a government Regardless of the identity and qualifications of cues on Ukraine from American accommodating Geneva. The Assad regime should be pressured to job became a channel through which citizens can statesmen, they remain the problem, and not the tendencies in Syria. Seeing American about face comply with the terms of Geneva1 regarding the access their share of oil wealth, which is natural solution. The real solution lies in finding ‘states-peo- regarding Syria, or “reset” in Washington vernacular, establishment of a new governing authority to over- when governments use money as means to ensure ple’, or men and women who are committed to the as weakness, Russia has all but disregarded any pos- see the transition toward a future democratic Syria state’s security and general interest. their survival instead of adopting and promoting sible reaction from the West to its land grab in without Assad or his regime. In Geneva2, the regime science to do so. Then, some smart guys will keep This is what we lack, and what addresses the heart Crimea and plans to restore its hegemony over stonewalled on this issue, claiming that ending ter- of the problem. In fact, insisting on handing the duty repeating that Kuwaiti citizens do not work and are Ukraine. rorism should be a prerequisite to any discussion unproductive, which sounds as if citizens should do for finding the solutions over to ‘statesmen’, or the Bob Corker, the Republican senator from about future arrangements. Russia supported that state itself, only complicates the problem. We need something out of nothing and compete with oil Tennessee, speaking before the Foreign Relations sequencing. productivity! states-people to solve problems of housing, demog- Committee, criticized “the permissive environment As the Obama administration acknowledges that raphy and other issues found in Kuwait. Finally, we are a very dependant people as Al- that we have created through this reset, thinking diplomacy is not working in Syria and as Russia Maarri and the dean of art and literature Taha People who understand that solving the housing that someone like Putin reacts to warmth and charm seems to rely on military power to achieve its strate- problem starts by providing residence for those who Hussein said. Nevertheless, none of us became and reach-out, when what he really reacts to is gic objectives in Ukraine, this may be the time for like either of them because when money mixes need it, not those who simply don’t have it. A shelter weakness. I think he has seen that in our foreign another “reset” in US policy toward Syria. Arming and roof on top of those who cannot afford a house, with ignorance, the surrounding environment policy efforts over the course of this last year.” He moderate opposition forces would improve chances will only have people like Monsieur Jordan, the not an investment for people looking to improve their added: “I don’t think we can make a case that what of a diplomatic solution, because diplomacy alone situation and ‘benefit’ from the problem. insolent bourgeois in Moliere’s famous play. A happened in Crimea wouldn’t have happened, but I could not persuade the Assad regime to negotiate land where richness and stupidity will generous- If we can realize that; if the people believe that that certainly don’t think he has felt that there would be seriously with the opposition. At the same time, ly produce more silliness and impudence and is what needs to be done, then the ‘kids of the neigh- much of a push-back from us.” arming the moderates would help counter the influ- enjoy a considerable amount of nonsense and borhood’ would be more capable than statesmen to While President Obama’s supporters disagreed ence of extremists in Syria. showiness! —Al-jarida solve the housing dilemma. —Al-Qabas LOCAL MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Kuwaiti fighter hailed at hometown as martyr ‘Victory after heroic actions’

KUWAIT: Family of Abu Azzam Al-Kuwaiti, who to remain anonymous. He further told Al-Rai that activists praised Al-Enizy for his “martyrdom died in Syria Friday while fighting alongside the man did not enroll in college, and instead and victory after heroic actions.” rebels, received mourners at a tent set up in had religious studies after graduating from high “The martyr Abu Azzam Al-Kuwaiti com- Jahra Saturday one day after the Nusra Front school. Several people dropped to offer condo- manded heroic fights until his pure blood was eulogized one of its commanders. lences at the tent set up between Al-Naseem spilled on the Levant’s land,” former MP Waleed Local dailies yesterday referred to the man by and the Industrial Zone of Jahra districts, where- Al-Tabtabaei posted on Twitter. The Islamist KUWAIT: World Kidney Day celebration at the Indian Central School. his real name, Wajdi Tuwairesh Al-Enizy, and indi- as no police presence was found, according to politician had posted pictures on his Twitter cated that he was bedoon (stateless) as opposed Al-Qabas daily. accounts last year which he said were taken to earlier reports which suggested that he was a Family of Al-Enizy, who referred to their son from Syria. Kuwaiti. as a ‘martyr’, refused to speak to the media, hop- The pictures showed him in military suit Nevertheless, Al-Enizy grew up in Jahra ing that Al-Enizy “is accepted by God,” and saying standing with who he said were rebel fighters. before leaving to Syria and join fight against the that they do not wish the media attention sur- Al-Tabtabaei also hoped for action to “count forces of the regime which started in 2011. rounded by his death. the number of Kuwaitis who fell martyrs in “Al-Enizy is his mother’s only child and left Syria in order to honor them. Former Islamist Kuwait to Syria shortly after his marriage three ‘Heroic action’ MP Jamaan Al-Harbash also praised Al-Enizy years ago,” said a family member who preferred Meanwhile, several MPs and political on Twitter. Zain hosts iCamp program for high school students

World Kidney Day held KUWAIT: Zain, the leading telecommunica- tions company in Kuwait, announced today KUWAIT: Dasman Diabetes Institute, which was awareness event, a medical screening camp was that it has completed its third consecutive founded by Kuwait Foundation for the held in association with Indian Doctors Forum Innovation Camp, “iCamp”, for high school stu- Advancement of Sciences, recently took part in and Heart Foundation and Dasman Diabetes dents at the company’s headquarters. Over the World Kidney Day in collaboration with the Institute to provide complementary health Kuwait Kerala Muslim Association. The event checkups for the attendees and participants. 160 high school students participated, with was held at the Indian Central School. Dr Kazem The participation of Dasman Diabetes Zain training staff supported in running the Behbehani, Director-General of Dasman Institute in such events, is in accordance with iCamp by INJAZ Kuwait, a not-for-profit Diabetes Institute was the guest of honor at the the mission of the Institute to promote aware- organization that delivers educational pro- kidney awareness seminar, held on Thursday. ness amongst the population and prevention of grams on entrepreneurial and leadership skills Dr Behbehani spoke to the audience about diabetes and its related conditions including aimed at inspiring and educating future gen- health-related issues. As part of the kidney kidney problems. erations of Kuwaitis. The iCamp program challenged students to find innovative solutions to real business Brotherhood suffers problems using out-of-the-box techniques. Each of the two workshops involved the co-op elections defeat attendance of a group of students from 10 dif- ferent public schools in Kuwait, who were KUWAIT: Muslim Brotherhood activists in The new board includes Shaya Al-Shaya required to find the most innovative solution Kuwait suffered a setback Saturday when a list who was elected as board chairman, to a business challenge through various exer- affiliated to the group lost in the Roudha and Mahmoud Abul (vice chairman), Ali Al-Khashti cises using critical thinking and problem solv- Hawally Co-op Society’s board elections. (secretary) Fawaz Al-Hazmi (treasurer), Ra’ed ing skills. The workshops, mentored by Zain Group 29, which consists of members repre- Al-Rukhaimi (head of the procurement com- staff volunteers, gave students an opportunity uals from the corporate world. The workshops tional sectors. For this reason, the company senting ‘all components of the area’, won the mittee) and Ali Al-Haddad (head of the social to engage in multiple exciting activities in also provided an excellent platform for stu- has maintained its support of numerous ini- elections in a landslide, ending the Muslim and media committee). The ICM has always efforts to expand their horizons in working dents to come to understand the nature of tiatives that add to the investment in student Brotherhood’s 25-year dominance over the co- denied affiliation with the Muslim op society’s board that was considered one of Brotherhood, but at the same time announced within a corporate environment while working in a private company, and how to and educational activities in Kuwait. The com- the group’s strongholds in Kuwait. sympathizing with the pan-Arab group’s ide- enhancing their professional abilities, in problem-solve in order to reach constructive pany tirelessly strives to provide an enabling Out of 9 board members who won the ologies. The recent election result demon- preparation for their future careers. decisions and outcomes. environment to improve the outlook of youth elections, only 3 members have close ties with strates the drop in the Muslim Brotherhood’s During the workshops, Zain volunteers Zain’s active Corporate Social in the communities in which it operates, and the Islamic Constitutional Movement; a politi- popularity in Kuwait, and also comes in the conducted several training courses supplied Responsibility and Sustainability strategies by partnering with INJAZ Kuwait, Zain is confi- cal group considered to be the Muslim wake of Saudi Arabia’s decision to brand the by INJAZ Kuwait to ensure that students were primarily focus on the well-being of the entire dent in building a prosperous future for the Brotherhood’s representative in Kuwait. group as a terrorist organization. instructed and guided by professional individ- nation, most notably the youth and educa- upcoming generations of Kuwaitis. Russian firms eye key Kuwaiti, GCC partnerships

MOSCOW: Major Russian firms are terparts, he stressed. to do to overcome lack of media expo- engaged in talks for cooperation and The council membership now stands sure on investment opportunities in partnerships with Kuwaiti businessmen at over 500 medium and grand scale Russia, though media and finance circles and peers in the Gulf Cooperation firms which include a number of banks in the Arab World are beginning to real- Council (GCC) as well as the Arab World, interested in the Arab region. ize that Russia is an important economic, and there is a vast horizon for such coop- The Russian-Kuwaiti Business Council trade, and investment power. This realiza- eration. This was a remark by CEO of the in turn plays an important role in foster- tion was translated into scores of con- Russian-Arab Business Council Stanislav ing partnerships and encouraging joint tracts, he stressed. Yankovets in an interview with KUNA ventures, he said. Headed by Fuad Al- On the Russian side, giants including here, yesterday. The Russian figure Ghanem, the council is currently working Gazprom, LUKOIL, Gazprom Neft, expressed hope cooperation in these on proposals for projects in the areas of Stroitransgaz, and Tatneft, in addition to major projects would lead to higher eco- oil drilling and of power and communi- rail way operators, power companies, nomic exchange, stressing cooperation cations both in Kuwait and in third coun- and heavy machinery companies, are with the GCC in particular is “still in its tries. now engaged in investment activity in early stages.” the Arab region. The official urged Arab Yankovets remarked both state and Media exposure investors to particularly consider oppor- private Russian firms are interested in The Russian figure said there is partic- tunities in the tourism sector. He further furthering cooperation with Kuwaiti and ular interest in fostering partnerships pointed out Egypt, the UAE, Oman, GCC investors, and the council is most with Kuwaitis on investments in Africa, Bahrain, Tunisia, and Morocco are among willing to extend support as they venture stressing the Arab region is an important the popular destinations for Russian deeper into the Russian market. importer of Russia’s industrial and tech- tourists. There is also a great deal Russia The council is already assisting nology products, as well as raw material, has to offer in terms of spas and medical investors in all phases of their ventures in as well as an important source of invest- and rehabilitation centers. fields including oil and gas, agriculture, ment capital. Turning to another field, the official real estate, power, modern technology, The volume of Russian-Arab trade urged investment in food security proj- and oil industries. exchange, he pointed out, is currently at ects, pointing out Russia is now the The body proved a success since its $14 billion, which is 10-fold that seen in world’s second exporter of wheat and establishment ten years ago through fos- the 1990s. The trade exchange with the grains. Long-term cooperation in water tering a network of productive interac- GCC is also growing rapidly and the fig- and advanced communications is also tions among governments and com- ure was $3.7 billion in 2013 compared to vital, and Russia has the technological merce chambers, as well as individual just $2.3 billion in 2012. backbone to offer products and services investors. It now boasts 18 regional Soviet-era markets like Algeria, Libya, related to urban security and manage- branches and had enabled hundreds of and Iraq but also to venture into new ment and also products in the field of Russian companies and investors to markets, particularly in the GCC region. smart electronic operation and manage- establish partnerships with Arab coun- Yankovets said the council has much ment, said Yankovets. — KUNA Sheikha Latifa holds cooperation talks with Azeri minister NEW YORK: Chairperson of the Women’s Affairs Azerbaijan, issues related to training courses and exhibi- Committee at the Kuwaiti Cabinet Sheikha Latifa Al- tions as well as different other women topics. Minister Fahad Al-Salem Al-Sabah has held talks with Azeri Huseynova, Chairperson of the State Committee of Minister of Family Affairs Hijran Huseynova on cement- Family, women and Children’s Affairs in Azerbaijan, said ing mutual cooperation between Kuwait and Azerbaijan. “I am very happy because it is a good opportunity for us Sheikha Latifa, also the head of the Kuwaiti delega- to have a meeting with our good friend Sheikha Latifa tion to the 58th session of the UN Commission on the who is famous, not only in Kuwait and the Arab coun- Status of Women (CSW), agreed with the Azeri minister tries, but also among women around the world.” on sidelines of the meetings to coordinate stances at She added that Sheikha Latifa’s participation in the international forums and quarters for service of interests 58th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, of women in the two friendly countries. held from March 10 to 21, is “for us a good opportunity The discussions, held late on Saturday, focused on re- to meet and to chart our countries’ future cooperation” activating a Kuwaiti-Azeri cooperation memorandum of on women issues, especially that both countries have understanding and ways of strengthening mutual coop- “good relations” and have signed a “special” memoran- eration between the two countries in women sectors. dum on women, family and children issues. For her part, the Azeri minister, during the meeting, She added that women in both countries face similar invited Kuwaiti businesswomen to take part in an inter- problems and “it is big help” that they benefit from each national convention, due in Baku next month. other’s experience, especially Kuwaiti women who have Badria Al-Khaldi, the Ministry of Education coordina- a “long experience in business,” contrary to Azerbaijan tor in the women affairs committee, stated that the two where the private sector is only 20 years old and closed sides raised various issues of joint concern during the to women. “But now, it is a very interesting time. We see meeting. Diverse issues were brought up, she said, big growth in this area,” she said, adding that “if we con- namely activation of the agreement concerning women, tinue our cooperation, it will be a good example for boosting the two countries’ programs for woman and many countries to benefit from our experience and child care, Kuwait’s participation in conferences held in friendly relationship.” — KUNA MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 LOCAL ‘Friend’ sexually assaults teen in Failaka apartment Five held in brothel raid KUWAIT: Investigations are ongoing to arrest Armed robbery Body found a man accused of sexually assaulting his Daiya police are looking to identify and A man was found dead inside his residence in teenage friend as well as beating the victim’s arrest a man who robbed a store in the area Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh, and investigations are ongo- nephew. According to a case filed at the at gunpoint. An Iranian man told local police ing to determine the circumstances behind his Failaka police station, the suspect arrived at an that the suspect arrived at his baqala in the death. Police and paramedics headed to the scene apartment in the area rented by a group of area with an air rifle and a stun gun. The man with a warrant to raid the man’s apartment after friends and was in an inebriated state. A per- stole KD 300 in cash as well as KD 300 worth receiving an emergency call reporting foul odor son from the group who filed the case said of phone recharge cards before escaping. The emanating from inside. The Asian national was that the suspect sexually assaulted their shopkeeper also provided a medical diag- found dead before crime scene investigators were KUWAIT: Sheikh Mohammad honoring EQUATE officials. teenage friend and hit him in the jaw with noses report showing chest bruises he says called. The body was taken to the forensic depart- brass knuckles. The suspect, who is in his he sustained after the suspect hit him with ment for an autopsy to determine the cause and twenties, then beat the boy’s nephew with a the rifle. Investigations are ongoing. time of death. stick, according to the complainant. EQUATE sponsors Mugging suspect Work mishap Khaitan brothel A man arrested in Mirqab recently admit- A construction worker died Saturday morning Five people were arrested during a police ted to robbing at least 13 pedestrians at in a case classified as an accident according to pre- Firemen Day raid on a brothel in Khaitan. Police headed to knifepoint. The Pakistani national was identi- liminary investigations. Police and paramedics had the scene with a warrant to raid an apartment fied based on descriptions which matched headed to a construction site in Sharq in response KUWAIT: EQUATE Petrochemical Company ronment. During 2013, EQUATE also based on investigations which confirmed those provided by people who reported to an emergency call, and found the worker in a sponsored the 12th Firemen Day 2014 launched EQUATE Home Safety information that the flat was used for prostitu- being mugged in Mirqab. The man was critical condition. The 29-year-old Egyptian nation- under the patronage of Minister of State for Campaign (Stay Safe) whereby it commu- tion. The detainees include four Asian women arrested in his apartment in Farwaniya, and al was rushed to Amiri Hospital with a broken Council of Ministers Affairs Sheikh nicated home safety practices with the who were charged with prostitution and an taken for questioning during which he admit- skull, but the man was soon pronounced dead. Mohammad Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al- public. This is all part of EQUATE’s sustain- Asian man who was served as the pimp. The ted responsibility for 13 reported muggings. Eyewitnesses on the scene said that the man lost Sabah. ability framework towards maintaining its four were referred to the proper authorities to He was taken to the authorities for further balance while working and fell to the ground. EQUATE’s contribution in the event promise of being “Partners in Success.” face charges. action. Investigations are ongoing. included interaction with the public and Established in 1995, EQUATE is an other stakeholders to highlight EQUATE’s international joint venture between Environment, Health & Safety (EH&S) Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC), Kuwaiti-Swiss ties blooming efforts through the participation of EH&S The Dow Chemical Company (Dow), Leader Mohammad Al-Shamary and oth- Boubyan Petrochemical Company (BPC) KUWAIT: Relations between Kuwait and He also noted with content that several Swiss er employees from the company. and Qurain Petrochemical Industries Switzerland have strengthened noticeably over the firms are currently taking part in mega-sized Agreement In recognition of its continuous sup- Company (QPIC). Commencing produc- past year on more fronts than one, witnessing a 19 infrastructure and power generation projects in port to Kuwait Fire Service Directorate tion in 1997, EQUATE is the single opera- percent increase in the value of Kuwait’s merchan- Kuwait, while at least 500 other Swiss companies on women (KFSD), Al-Sabah presented EQUATE with tor of a fully integrated world-scale man- dise imports from Switzerland, according to the are operating in the Kuwaiti market in coopera- a token of appreciation. ufacturing facility producing over 5 mil- Swiss Embassy’s economic and commercial advisor tion with local agents. EQUATE maintains record safety levels lion tons annually of high-quality petro- Ziad Tarakji. The exchanges between the two friendly nations protection and prides itself on applying globally chemical products which are marketed The advisor said direct Swiss exports to Kuwait are not limited to the flow of merchandise, accord- GENEVA: MP Saleh Ashour said here yesterday that there accredited and recognized practices to throughout the Middle East, Asia, Africa last year totaled about $610 million, of which phar- ing to Tarakji, who pointed out that the number of is a remarkable agreement among participating parlia- ensure a safe and secure working envi- and Europe. maceuticals accounted for 31 percent, watches for tourists who visited Switzerland from Kuwait in mentarians at the 130th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) 29.5 percent, and industrial machines for 11.7 per- 2013 stood at more than 24, 000, which is a remark- General Assembly meetings on a draft that addresses role cent, while food products accounted for 4.8 per- able increase of 44 percent from the year before. of parliamentarians and parliaments in women and chil- cent. On another front, the new-born Kuwaiti Anti- dren protection. Gulf Bank celebrates He added, however, that actual value of Swiss Corruption Authority has accepted an invitation Today’s Parliamentarian women session disclosed that products entering Kuwait is in reality 10 to 15 per- and its representatives visited Switzerland a few there is an agreement among members on protecting chil- Mother’s Day cent higher than that “if we take into account the months back for a close look at the experience of dren from all forms of exploitation, including compulsory mil- Swiss goods coming to Kuwait through a third par- Swiss authorities in this domain, he added. itary recruitment in some countries, with shedding some KUWAIT: In celebration of Mother’s Day, nity to purchase the perfect gift for the ty and through regional free-trade zones, rather Taking cooperation between the two countries light on situation of immigrant children, Ashour, who is also Gulf Bank will host a special preview most cherished women in their lives. than directly from Switzerland.” to a new level, the American football team of the chairman of women and children affairs committee at the He noted that Kuwaiti exports to Switzerland Swiss city of Neuchatel visited Kuwait last January event for its Priority Banking clients Tiffany & Co. has been synonymous Kuwaiti Parliament, said.. However, there are differences in tomorrow at Tiffany & Co.’s flagship store with luxury and style for more than 175 meanwhile remain very modest in value, given the at the invitation of the President of the Kuwaiti views among European and non-European countries on par- in The Avenues Prestige District from years. It is a world-renowned jewelry fact that Switzerland does not import oil and its by- Federation of the game, Sheikh Mishaal Talal Al- liamentary dealing with the issue of changing of demograph- products directly from the Gulf region. Fahad, and played against the Kuwaiti national ics and its impact on native residents’ protection as immigra- 2pm to 10pm. with over 200 stores worldwide, and The advisor said trade ties between Kuwait team, the embassy advisor noted. tion laws vary fron country to another, he added, noting that Premium clients of Gulf Bank will be something more: the trusted maker of and Switzerland are set to elevate to new levels On the political front, he said ways and means to some countries allow wide immigration to their lands and hosted for a special preview at Tiffany & gifts that will be treasured for a lifetime. when a free trade agreement signed between further cement relations between the two countries some prefer towards rationing it with limited standards. Co., to provide them with the opportuni- To find out more about any of Gulf the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the were the focal point of discussions when Swiss Issues related to women and children are often ty to see Tiffany’s latest jewelry collection Bank’s products and services, visit one of European Free Trade Association (EFTA), of which Under State Secretary for Political Affairs Wolfgang highlighted in the Middle East region, primarily Syria, in a private viewing event. This coin- Gulf Bank’s 57 branches; call the Switzerland is a principal member, goes into Amadeus Brulhart visited Kuwait last January and Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan, together with some Muslim cides with the week leading into Customer Contact Center on 1805805 for effect this year as foreseen. held talks with senior government officials. —KUNA countries like Afghanistan, said Ashour. —KUNA Mother’s Day, giving clients the opportu- assistance and guidance. MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014

Syria army recaptures 100 killed in Nigeria attacks rebel bastion Yabrud Page 9 Page 8

KUALA LUMPUR: A man writes a message for passengers aboard the missing Malaysia Airlines plane, at a shopping mall yesterday. — AP Families face nightmare of mid-air ordeal China slams Malaysian authorities ON MH370

KUALA LUMPUR: New revelations about a missing Malaysian military radar signals, but the data has not Malaysia Airlines plane have left anguished relatives been confirmed by the authorities. “At 45,000 feet, it contemplating the prospect that those on board may result in pressurization problems,” said Gerry endured a terrifying high-altitude hijack ordeal that Soejatman, a Jakarta-based independent aviation may have lasted nearly eight hours. But while the dis- analyst. “But we don’t know how the fluctuation went, closures led to increased speculation of a terror plot whether it was gentle or violent and sharp. If it was or pilot suicide, for some they offered a glimmer of gentle, only a few sensitive passengers would notice.” hope-that flight MH370, carrying 239 passengers and crew, may somehow have landed safely and that their China’s fury loved ones may still be alive. For relatives in China, which had 153 citizens on For relatives of Bob and Cathy Lawton, a missing the flight, the investigators’ breakthrough just Australian couple, the possibility of a terrifying brought more distress and frustration. “We are experi- drawn-out fate at thousands of feet reflected their encing an ordeal. We are still waiting for (more infor- deepest fears. “That’s one of the worst things I could mation),” said one tearful man emerging from a meet- have hoped for,” Bob’s brother David Lawton told ing between Malaysia Airlines and relatives in Beijing News Limited newspapers. “Even if they are alive, yesterday morning. “We are extremely anxious. A what did they have to put up with?” Prime Minister long time has passed and they don’t disclose (more) Najib Razak declined to use the word hijack when he information,” he said. Another branded the meeting “a briefed the press Saturday, but said new data suggest- joke”. ed a “deliberate action” to divert the plane. “Until they say what really and truly happened, The Boeing 777’s communications appear to have what good is it?” he said. Malaysian authorities have been switched off manually before the jet veered been severely criticized for failing to share informa- westward and flew for hours. What happened during tion or for issuing contradictory statements. China’s that time remains a mystery. But one report of the media made fresh criticism yesterday, saying Malaysia plane fluctuating from low to high altitude fuelled had “squandered” precious time and resources by fears the passengers may have been well aware they releasing the dramatic information on the plane’s fate were in terrible danger. a full week after it vanished. “It is undeniable that the The New York Times said the jet had reached disclosure of such vital information is painfully belat- 45,000 feet-above its approved altitude limit-before it ed,” a scathing editorial by the state-run Xinhua news “descended unevenly to 23,000 feet”. It cited agency said, noting the “excruciating” seven days it entailed for relatives of the missing.

Clinging to hope Yet for some the new evidence brought relief-and a reason for hope. “Our family is relieved that there’s an official statement from the Malaysian government, delivered by the Malaysian prime minister, that there’s a possibility that the aircraft might have been hijacked,” said Indonesian Santi, 42, who goes by one name. Her brother Sugianto Lo was on the flight with his wife Vinny Chynthya. “There have been too many speculations about the missing plane so this official statement has helped to quash some of them. “At least it gives us hope that our loved ones are still safe. We really hope that the vari- ous governments will help to look for the plane,” she said. While the theory that the plane landed some- where and has remained hidden is seen as highly improbable by experts, most do not discount it as impossible. The multi-nation hunt is now focused on two vast areas, stretching from Kazakhstan to the southern Indian Ocean, with 25 countries searching for the plane. Malaysian Subramaniam Gurusamy, 60, whose 34-year-old son Puspanathan Gurusamy was on board, refused to believe the worst. “I am praying every day for divine help. I will not lose hope. I want to hear my son cry out ‘Father!” he said. Selamat Umar, 60, also from Malaysia, placed his faith in his 29-year-old son Khairul Amrison’s ability to survive whatever he confronted. He said the new evi- dence was “a good sign which shows the plane can be detected and the passengers are safe-if not all, then some”. “It may be a hijack, but why have there been no demands?” he said. Although so many questions remain, he is clinging to the belief that his son may one day come home. “We are definitely worried about his safety but confident that those on the plane will do what they can to survive,” said Selamat. “My son is a Muslim who fasts every Ramadan, so I am sure he has strength.” — AFP INTERNATIONAL MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Kerry pressuring the wrong side: Israel minister

JERUSALEM: An Israeli minister yesterday said threatening to derail the peace talks ahead of an responded to Kerry’s remarks. Kerry is facing an President Barack Obama on Monday, and is likely to Washington’s top diplomat was “wrong” for pres- April 29 deadline. Kerry waded into the debate on uphill battle to get the two sides, which have raise the issue of Israel’s pledge to release another suring Israel in peace talks, a day before Palestinian Friday, saying he believed it was a “mistake” to raise reportedly failed to agree on anything, to clinch a 26 veteran Palestinian prisoners, which is due to leader Mahmud Abbas visits the White House. His the issue over and over again-in what was taken as framework proposal which would extend the talks take place on March 29. remarks came two days after US Secretary of State open criticism of Netanyahu. beyond the April deadline until the end of the year. But Israeli officials have said that without any John Kerry criticized Israeli Prime Minister “I think it’s a mistake for some people to be rais- On Saturday, another senior member of movement in the peace talks, the release is unlikely Benjamin Netanyahu’s repeated demand that the ing it again and again as the critical decider of their Netanyahu’s cabinet poured cold water on Kerry’s to happen, especially as the group is said to Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state. attitude toward the possibility of a state and efforts by saying Abbas was not a partner for include a number of Arab Israeli prisoners. “I’ve “John Kerry is wrong because he is putting pres- peace,” Kerry told a congressional hearing. He said peace. “He is not a partner for a final agreement already voiced my opposition,” Yaalon told Channel sure on the wrong side,” said Environment Minister such recognition was clear in UN resolutions and that would include the recognition of Israel as the 2. “We made a commitment about Palestinian pris- Gilad Erdan, who is considered close to Netanyahu. was also confirmed by the late Palestinian leader national state of the Jewish people and that would oners from the pre-Oslo period. We did not make a “Kerry should be asking Abu Mazen (Abbas) why he Yasser Arafat in 1988 and in 2004. end the conflict and all claims,” Defense Minister commitment about Arab Israelis,” he said, without is stubbornly refusing to recognize Israel as the The Palestinians, who recognized Israel as a Moshe Yaalon told private Channel 2 television. saying whether the release would take place. “Abu Jewish state,” he told public radio. state in the early 1990s, have said that accepting its “I’m sorry to come to this conclusion, but this Mazen is obstinate. He isn’t prepared to make con- The demand, which was only placed on the religious character would ignore its Arab minority (peace agreement) will not happen in my time,” cessions,” he said. “I don’t know what is going to table several months ago by Netanyahu, has been and amount to giving up on the “right of return” of said Yaalon, one of several hardliners in emerge from this but we aren’t prepared to be consistently rejected by the Palestinians and is now Palestinian refugees. Israel has not formally Netanyahu’s government. Abbas will meet US extorted.” — AFP Militants attack Iraq anti Al-Qaeda leader

SAMARRA: Heavily-armed militants two sons and another woman, a police helping turn the tide of Iraq’s insur- attacked the home of an anti-Qaeda colonel and another officer said. gency. But as a result, they are regarded militiaman north of Baghdad yesterday, They then decapitated his wife and by Sunni militants as traitors, and are killing and decapitating his wife and two two sons, and set off explosives around regularly targeted in attacks. In the sons and killing another person in a bru- the house, injuring two other sons, aged Baghdad area yesterday, meanwhile, a tal pre-dawn assault. The militia leader, four and five. Policemen at a nearby bombing and two shootings killed three Abu Salim, was not in the house at the checkpoint attempted to repel the people, security and medical officials time of the attack, which involved more assault, the officers said, but were unsuc- said. The latest bloodshed came a day than a dozen vehicles and fighters cessful and fled the scene when they ran after five car bombs were set off in com- armed with heavy machine guns and out of ammunition and reinforcements mercial areas of the Iraqi capital, killing other weapons and also left two of his that they had radioed for failed to arrive. 15 people and wounding more than 50 young sons wounded. Fighters attacked Abu Salim is the leader in Jilam of the others. No group immediately claimed the militia leader’s house in Jilam, a sub- Sahwa, or Awakening, a collection of responsibility for the bloodshed, but urb of the predominantly Sunni city of mostly-Sunni tribal militias that from Sunni militants, including those linked to Samarra, at around midnight on late-2006 onwards sided with US forces the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Saturday, and killed Abu Salim’s wife, against their co-religionists in Al-Qaeda, jihadist group, are often blamed for car- rying out coordinated mass-casualty bombings. Iraq is grappling with its worst pro- longed period of violence since it DAMASCUS: Supporters of the Syrian regime gather yesterday to celebrate after the Syrian army seized full con- emerged from a bloody sectarian war trol of the rebel bastion Yabrud in the strategic Qalamun region near the Lebanese border. — AFP that left tens of thousands dead in 2006- 07. More than 250 people have been killed already this month, according to Syria army recaptures an AFP tally. Analysts and diplomats have urged the Shiite-led government to reach out to the Sunni community, who allege they are mistreated by the gov- rebel bastion Yabrud ernment and security forces. But with elections looming on April 30, political leaders have been loath to be seen to compromise. Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Govt regaining ground, initiative in 3-year conflict Al-Maliki has instead singled out Saudi Arabia and Qatar, accusing the two Gulf YABRUD: Syria’s army seized full control “groups of terrorists” fleeing Yabrud in areas around the town, which are regu- states of backing militant groups and of the rebel bastion Yabrud yesterday, the direction of Arsal. The fall of Yabrud larly targeted by Syrian war planes. Arsal effectively waging war on Iraq. He told dealing the opposition a heavy symbol- comes after months of Syrian army municipality official Ahmad Fliti told France 24 in an interview this month ic and strategic blow in the Qalamoun operations in the strategic Qalamoun AFP that the Syrian air force was staging BAGHDAD: An Iraqi man visits a graveyard and a monument for the victims that Riyadh and Doha provide political, who were killed in a gas attack by former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein region adjoining the Lebanese border. region, north of Damascus, where the continuous raids outside the town yes- financial and media support to militant An AFP reporter entered the town after town is situated. Late last year, the army terday. Yabrud’s capture was celebrated in 1988 during the 26th anniversary of the attack in the Kurdish town of groups, and also accused the Saudis of Halabja, 300 kms (190 miles) northeast of Baghdad yesterday. — AFP the army declared it had captured the captured a string of nearby towns in Damascus by hundreds of residents supporting global “terrorism”. — AFP opposition stronghold north of the cap- before turning it sights to Yabrud. The who took to the streets to celebrate. ital. Syrian soldiers sat in the streets town was once home to some 30,000 Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah is after it was taken in fierce clashes that people, including a Christian minority, believed to have played a key role in the saw the regime troops backed by and had been a rebel bastion since early town’s capture, and Lister said he Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah movement in the Syrian uprising that began in expected the group to continue cooper- and pro-regime militiamen. March 2011. ating with regime forces in the area. Earlier, the army announced it had “It is likely that joint Hezbollah-Syrian “returned security and stability to the Key strategic prize army forces in the area could end up town of Yabrud and its surroundings in In addition to its symbolic impor- fanning out with the secondary aim of northern Damascus province.” “This new tance, the town is a key strategic prize acquiring near total control of the success... is an important step towards because of its proximity to the highway Lebanese border,” he said. Hezbollah’s securing the border area with Lebanon, and the Lebanese border, across which involvement in Syria has prompted and cutting off the roads and tightening rebels have smuggled fighters and retaliatory bomb attacks by extremist the noose around the remaining terror- weapons. The capture of the town, and groups against areas in Lebanon sympa- ist cells in Damascus province,” the mili- continuing army operations in the sur- thetic to the movement. The attacks tary added. rounding area, will sever important sup- have mostly killed civilians. The group The Syrian Observatory for Human ply lines for the rebels as they face sev- and Lebanese security forces have said Rights, an NGO, said Lebanon’s Shiite eral army advances on different fronts. many of the car bombs used in those Hezbollah movement had led the oper- “It underlines yet again that the real attacks originated in Yabrud. ation and “taken control of large parts of momentum in the strategic zones of The town’s fall comes a day into the Yabrud.” The Observatory and sources this conflict is now with the govern- fourth year of Syria’s conflict, which has across the border in Lebanon reported ment,” said Charles Lister, a visiting fel- killed more than 146,000 people. The multiple air raids including with explo- low at the Brooking Doha Centre. UN’s refugee agency says nine million sive-packed barrel bombs on the area The town’s seizure could also place Syrians have been forced from their between Yabrud and Arsal inside new pressure on Lebanon’s Arsal, which homes, creating the world’s largest dis- Lebanon. is hosting at least 51,000 Syrian placed population. More than 2.5 mil- The NGO said at least six people refugees, many from the Qalamoun lion Syrians have become refugees in were killed in raids on the area, among region. Sunni Arsal is largely sympathet- neighboring countries, and in excess of them two children. Syrian state televi- ic to the Sunni-led uprising, and rebel 6.5 million people are displaced inside sion said the army was targeting fighters are believed to have bases in the country. — AFP Iran pursuing banned items for nuclear, missile work

DUBAI: Iran has pursued a longstanding effort to buy efforts. Iran denies Western allegations that it has long banned components for its nuclear and missile programs in sought covertly to develop the means to produce nuclear recent months, a US official said yesterday, a period when it weapons, saying its uranium enrichment program is solely a struck an interim deal with major powers to limit its disputed peaceful endeavour to yield electricity as well as isotopes for atomic activity. Vann Van Diepen, Principal Deputy Assistant medical treatments. Secretary of State for International Security and Non- Proliferation, said Iran was still “very actively” creating front Deterrent companies and engaging in other activity to conceal pro- Diplomats have said that Iran is meeting its commitments curements. under the November deal, under which Iran suspended its The reported supplies do not contravene last year’s break- higher-grade enrichment and stopped increasing its capacity through agreement between Tehran and six world powers to to produce low-refined uranium, among other steps. curb its most sensitive atomic activity in exchange for some Uranium forms the core of a nuclear bomb if enriched to a limited easing of sanctions damaging its economy. But such high fissile purity. The six-month agreement, which took trade would breach a 2006 UN embargo banning the provi- effect on Jan. 20 this year, was designed to buy time for talks sion by any nation to Iran of materials related to its nuclear on a final settlement defining the overall scope of Iran’s and missile development work. Western experts say such nuclear work to end fears that it could be diverted to military low-profile procurement efforts by Iran date back many ends. Those talks got under way in Vienna last month and a years, perhaps decades in the case of its nuclear activity. second round at the political director level will be held on Asked if he had seen a change in Iranian procurement behav- March 18-19, also in the Austrian capital. The aim is to reach ior in the past six to 12 months, a period that has seen a cau- an agreement by late July, although that deadline can be tious thaw in US-Iranian relations after decades of hostility, extended by another half year if both sides agree. Iran has Van Diepen replied: “The short answer is no. “They still contin- one of the biggest missile programs in the Middle East, ue very actively trying to procure items for their nuclear pro- regarding such weapons as an important deterrent and retal- gram and missile program and other programs,” he told iatory force against US and other adversaries - primarily Gulf Reuters in an interview. Arabs - in the region in the event of war. “We continue to see them very actively setting up and Its efforts to develop, test and field ballistic missiles, and operating through front companies, falsifying documenta- build a space launch capability, have helped drive billions of tion, engaging in multiple levels of trans-shipment ... to put dollars of US ballistic missile defense expenditure, and con- more apparent distance between where the item originally tributed to Israel’s threats of possible pre-emptive military came from and where it is ultimately going.” Asked for reac- action against Iranian nuclear installations. Since Iran is not a tion to the allegation, a senior Iranian official replied: “No self-sufficient manufacturer of missiles, the expansion of its comment”. Van Diepen did not say what sort of components inventory depends on the import of goods and materiel Iran had sought to obtain or which part of a government sourced abroad. Van Diepen said that while there was no known for having competing hardline and moderate factions direct link between the level of Iranian illicit procurement was responsible. In the past, Western officials said Iran’s elite and the negotiations on a settlement to the nuclear dispute, Revolutionary Guards and the Defense Ministry - both “obviously if the negotiations succeed then there should hotbeds of opposition to any rapprochement with the West - therefore be a corresponding decrease in Iranian prolifera- were believed to control clandestine nuclear procurement tion activity.” — Reuters INTERNATIONAL MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Le Pen predicts daughter 100 killed in Nigeria attacks France’s next president

TOULOUSE: The founder of France’s far- speech vilifying the European Union and Seven killed in Nigeria stampede at recruitment drive right National Front (FN), Jean-Marie Le blaming France’s economic woes on Pen, predicted Saturday that his daugh- immigrants. Still the party’s honorary KANO: At least 100 people were killed in the religiously ter Marine would succeed where he had leader, Le Pen has repeatedly been con- divided centre of Nigeria this weekend, local officials always failed and win the 2017 presiden- victed of racial hatred and Holocaust said yesterday, as tensions between Muslim-dominated tial vote. Socialist President Francois denial. He has sparked outrage by calling herdsmen and mostly Christian farmers again turned Hollande’s popularity has plummeted to for HIV carriers to be put into forced iso- deadly. About 40 assailants armed with guns and record lows but the right-wing opposi- lation, attacking France’s World Cup win- machetes stormed the villages of Angwan Gata, tion party of his predecessor Nicolas ning football team for not being white Chenshyi and Angwan Sankwai, attacking locals in their Sarkozy has been unable to take advan- enough, or, most notoriously, describing sleep and torching their homes, Yakubu Bitiyong, a law- tage amid a string of scandals. the Nazi gas chambers as a “minor detail” maker at the Kaduna state parliament told AFP. Le Pen predicted a major FN foray in in the history of World War II. “We have at least 100 dead bodies from the three vil- this month’s local polls, which pollsters But his 45-year-old daughter has start- lages attacked by the gunmen” overnight Friday- and analysts have also forecast, would ed to revamp the FN since taking over Saturday, he said, adding that scores of residents were lead to more electoral victories and even- the leadership in 2011, attempting to tually shatter the bipolar order of French broaden the appeal of a party whose also injured. Some of the victims “were shot and burnt politics. “This (municipal) election is the image has long been linked to the per- in their homes while others were hacked with first in a series which must drive us-I sonality of Le Pen senior. Under her lead- machetes,” Bitiyong said. According to a local govern- sense that profoundly-to Marine Le Pen’s ership, the FN has expelled overtly racist ment official who asked not to be named, around 2,000 election victory in 2017,” the 85-year-old activists and selected a number of ethnic people displaced by the attacks were now sheltering in said, addressing a crowd of supporters in minority candidates for local elections, a primary school in Gwandong village. the southwestern city of Toulouse. changes which critics have described as Kaduna state police spokesman Aminu Lawan con- He spent much of the rest of his pure window-dressing. — AFP firmed the attacks but refused to give a casualty toll or say who was behind the violence. Local residents, most- ly Christians, blamed the bloodshed on Muslim Fulani herdsmen, who have been accused of similar raids in Darfur governor the past. Chenshyi village was the worst affected with at least 50 people killed, said Adamu Marshall, a JOS: A file picture shows natives gathering at a mass burial of their kinsmen killed spokesman for the Southern Kaduna Peoples’ Union, a during a religious crisis. — AFP survives ambush regional political and cultural body. “Many people are still in the bush, afraid to return to northern Muslims and Christians, this but has failed to create employment. KHARTOUM: The governor of Sudan’s trou- 115,000 people had been displaced by vio- their burnt homes,” he told AFP, confirming a total toll of time in Jonathan’s own ruling party, Officials said only one entrance to the bled North Darfur state has survived an lence in North Darfur and in South Darfur, at least 100 dead. “The attackers looted food and set fire where northerners claim a candidate 60,000 capacity stadium was open dur- ambush after visiting a town briefly seized according to the United Nations. to the barns during the attacks,” he added. Kaduna state from their regions should run. Jonathan ing the aptitude test for applicants to by rebels, a source familiar with the incident International peacekeepers said “a number governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero was to cut short a visit has yet to officially declare that he will join the immigration service. Reuters said yesterday. “He’s OK,” the source told AFP of military and civilian casualties” were to the United States in response to the violence, his stand for re-election but his apparent counted seven bodies at the National after the Saturday attack against North reported after last week’s attack against a spokesman said. refusal to step aside has prompted a Hospital where the dead and injured Darfur governor Osman Kbir, which was the Sudanese military base in Mellit. Fulani leaders have for years complained about the series of defections of governors, law- were taken. Tayo Haastrup, spokesman of latest sign of instability in the region. It came According to the source familiar with the loss of grazing land which is crucial to their livelihood, makers and senators to the opposition. the hospital, said there were several while he was returning to the state capital El incident there were “heavy losses” among with resentment between the herdsmen and their Meanwhile, seven people have been injured in a critical but stable condition. Fasher after assessing the situation in Mellit paramilitary forces, but he did not have an agrarian neighbors rising over the past decade. Most of killed in a stampede at Nigeria’s national “We are shocked and deeply sad- town, more than 50 kilometers (30 miles) exact number. Minnawi claimed to have the Fulani-linked violence has been concentrated in the stadium during a recruitment drive for dened by the news of the untimely north, said the source, who asked for killed several dozen government troops but religiously divided centre of the country, where rivalries the immigration service, officials and wit- death of the young citizens who were at anonymity. Governor Kbir said it was the rebels who suf- nesses said yesterday. The stampede late the exercise not only to secure jobs but There was no indication of who carried fered heavy casualties. between the herdsmen and farmers have helped fuel the unrest. on Saturday shows the desperation for to be allowed the opportunity to con- out the ambush. The state-linked Sudanese The African Union-United Nations jobs in Africa’s second biggest economy tribute towards the development of the Media Centre (SMC) reported that Kbir, Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), which has a Nigeria is almost evenly split between the Muslim majority north and largely Christian south. Religion and and most populous nation, where oil nation,” said Olisa Metuh, spokesman of accompanied by a legislative and security base outside Mellit, said it treated several wealth has enriched elites and grown the Nigeria’s ruling People’s Democratic delegation, had visited the area but the victims, one of whom died from injuries. ethnicity underpin daily life. Kaduna and the neighbor- economy by more than 6 percent a year Party. — Agencies report made no mention of an attack. SMC is Christopher Cycmanick, UNAMID’s acting ing state of Plateau make up Nigeria’s so-called middle close to Sudan’s security apparatus. The offi- spokesman, told AFP yesterday that the mis- belt where the two religions often clash. cial SUNA news agency on Saturday quoted sion has “repeatedly attempted to access The weekend attacks in the flashpoint region recall Kbir as saying Mellit was “fully under control Mellit town and has been denied access.” the sectarian-fuelled violence following the last presi- of the armed forces” after the attack by The restriction is the latest of many cited dential elections in 2011, which saw southern Christian insurgents. Minni Minnawi, who heads a fac- by UNAMID, despite an agreement with the Goodluck Jonathan defeat northern Muslim candidate tion of the rebel Sudan Liberation Army, told government which says peacekeepers have Muhammadu Buhari. Buhari’s supporters took to the AFP on Thursday that his forces had cap- freedom of movement. Rebel-government streets, claiming the vote was rigged. Their protest tured the town. battles are no longer the main source of vio- became violent and Human Rights Watch estimated It was the fourth major outbreak of vio- lence in Darfur, where insurgents from black that more than 500 people were killed, most of them lence in Darfur since late February, with tribes began an uprising against the coun- Muslims, in southern Kaduna. rebels attacking an area in the southeast try’s Arab elites in 2003. Over the past two and another uprising erupting in the far years, Sudan’s deteriorating economy has Not enough employment west, where local sources said militia loyal to led to worsening crime and intercommunal The run-up to the next presidential vote in February Musa Hilal took control of Saraf Omra town. tribal clashes, a February report by UN chief 2015 has again been dominated by a row between Even before the Mellit incident, about Ban Ki-moon said. — AFP MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 INTERNATIONAL Long road to hold N Korea accountable for crimes: UN Japan keen for consensus, EU fighting for strong text

GENEVA: Western and Asian pow- larly because Pyongyang’s ally against its population,” he told education Centre, one of North ers will begin pressing this week for China has veto powers at the Reuters. “Now we have a full volume Korea’s worst camps. “But I stood up North Korea to be held liable for Security Council which would have book that tells it all in a comprehen- (at the hearing) because even if I crimes against humanity docu- to refer crimes in North Korea to the sive manner. The moment of truth had to go through again memories I mented in a United Nations report, ICC. has approached. We must turn it don’t want to remember, I thought I but concede that their chances of China came under fire in the into action,” he added. Human represented dead souls,” she said in influencing the isolated country are report for forcing North Korean rights were among the founding Seoul. slim. North Korean security chiefs refugees to return to home where principles of the United Nations in As the Human Rights Council dis- and possibly even Supreme Leader they face possible persecution. the wake of World War Two, after cusses how to handle North Korea, Kim Jong Un should face interna- Beijing denies the charge, saying it discovery of atrocities against Jews the main actors are staking out their tional justice for ordering systemat- favors “constructive dialogue” and and minorities, he said. He wants ground. The EU, in a speech deliv- ic torture, starvation and killings has a longstanding position against North Korea referred to the ICC or to ered by Greek Deputy Foreign comparable with Nazi-era atrocities, what it regards as interference in a special ad hoc tribunal. China will Minister Dimitris Kourkoulas two UN investigators said last month. the internal affairs of sovereign have a pivotal say in the Security weeks ago, said the bloc wanted Their findings, based on testimony nations. “To bring human rights Council, dimming hopes for quick proper follow-up to ensure account- from hundreds of victims, defectors issues to the International Criminal action. As Pyongyang has not ability. EU and Japanese diplomats and witnesses, were unequivocal. Court does not help improve a signed the Rome statutes setting up have held several rounds of confi- They demanded closure of political country’s human rights conditions,” the Hague-based ICC, its prosecutor dential talks in Geneva to hammer prison camps believed to hold up to Chinese foreign ministry spokes- can act only at the request of world out a resolution for consideration at 120,000 people and action by the woman Hua Chunying said on Feb powers. the rights forum. International Criminal Court (ICC). 17, the day the report was released. Their latest joint draft text, Michael Kirby, a former Australian “Once in a lifetime opportunity” reviewed by Reuters, urges the judge who led the independent 60 years of abuses Japan and the European Union General Assembly to submit the BALASINOR: India’s Congress Party Vice President Rahul Gandhi waves to inquiry, will officially present the Pyongyang has rejected the led the effort a year ago at the report to the Security Council for supporters as he arrives at a rally at Balasinor town, some 100 kms from report to the UN Human Rights report’s findings and the mandate Geneva rights council for the appropriate action, including “con- Ahmedabad. —AFP Council in Geneva on Monday. The of the investigators, whom it inquiry into persistent allegations of sideration of referral to the appro- forum, which commissioned the refused to meet or allow into North crimes against humanity in North priate international criminal justice unprecedented investigation a year Korea, whose official name if the Korea. The United States has backed mechanism and targeted sanctions India’s Rahul Gandhi predicts ago, will decide on how to handle Democratic People’s Republic of their drive to hold Pyongyang against those who appear to be most responsible for crimes against bigger election win than 2009 humanity”. NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi yesterday forecast a and results expected four days later on May 16. “Field-based office” bigger win for India’s ruling Congress party in Meanwhile, the main opposition candidate Japan is keen to maintain global next month’s elections than it secured last time, for Indian prime minister will contest next consensus on North Korea even if rejecting comments by senior party members month’s elections from a revered Hindu holy the text has to be watered down to that they face an uphill battle. Gandhi, frontrun- city, a decision that analysts said was a sign of achieve a united front, but the EU is ner to be prime minister should Congress win, his commitment to Hindu nationalism. Anant fighting for strong wording, diplo- predicted the party would surpass its tally of Kumar, a Bharatiya Janata Party spokesman, mats say. Because China, Cuba, and seats secured at the 2009 national elections, announced late Saturday Narendra Modi’s nomi- Russia are back as members on the rejecting opinion polls showing it headed for a nation from the city of Varanasi in northern Uttar council, along with Venezuela and humiliating loss. Pradesh state, India’s most populated state, with newcomer Vietnam, the likelihood Acknowledging that after a decade in power, nearly 200 million people. Voting in the elec- of consensus in the rights forum is “there is a certain amount of anti-incumbency tions will be held from April 7 to May 12. now close to zero, but the resolu- against us”, Gandhi disagreed with Finance Analysts said choosing Modi symbolized his tion should be adopted easily, Minister P Chidambaram that Congress was the credentials as a Hindu nationalist, though he is diplomats say. “underdog”. “Congress is fighting a challenging projecting himself in the campaign as a man A “no” vote by China and Russia election and we will win the election,” Gandhi committed to development in an impoverished in Geneva would not augur well for told the Press Trust of India in an interview. “I am country. He is considered to be pro-business. any future steps at the Security not a soothsayer but we will do well,” he told PTI. Neeraja Chowdhury, a political analyst, said Council, they add. The EU-Japan Although he declined to predict the number Modi need not talk about his Hindu credentials, proposal also lays out a parallel of seats, Gandhi said the figure would be higher because people already know about them. path: the creation of a small UN than the 206 Congress won in the 543-seat Muslim leaders and rights activist accuse human rights office dedicated to national parliament in 2009, when it formed a Modi of failing to stop 2002 religious riots in the documenting crimes and raising coalition government. Gandhi also hit out at western state of Gujarat, where he’s served as awareness. This would probably be arch rival Narendra Modi, widely tipped to win the top elected official since 2001. More than based in Seoul or Bangkok, collect- the elections, claiming he still has many ques- 1,000 people died in the violence, mostly ing more evidence and testimony tions to answer about his links to deadly riots in Muslims. Modi has denied any wrongdoing, and to widen the data base. the western state of Gujarat where he is chief investigators have cleared him of any direct PYONGYANG: This file photo shows SA-3 ground-to-air missiles being displayed during a military US Under Secretary of State minister. involvement in the violence. Sarah Sewall, in a speech to the parade. —AFP Gandhi said there was a “clear and inexcus- Chowdury said Modi’s decision to contest Geneva forum this month, praised able failure” of governance in Gujarat where from the Hindu holy city was aimed at galvaniz- North Korea at a session lasting until Korea (DPRK). The team held public accountable and is being closely the commission of inquiry for its more than 1,000 people, mainly Muslims, were ing his party’s prospects in the sprawling states March 28. Campaigners want action. hearings in Seoul, Tokyo, London consulted on the next move, along thorough and objective report killed in riots in 2002 after Modi took office in of Uttar Pradesh and neighboring Bihar, which “The fact that these violations are and Washington. “The commission with South Korea, diplomats say. despite the lack of access “in a way 2001. “The specific allegation and evidence together account for 120 of the 543 seats at now deemed to be crimes against of inquiry on the DPRK is none oth- But Washington has qualms about that has generated a new and pointing to Mr Modi’s responsibility in the 2002 stake in the powerful lower house of humanity triggers the responsibility er than a marionette representing explicitly calling for a referral to the important global conversation riots are yet to be adequately probed. Any talk of Parliament. Its performance in these two states of the international community to the ill-minded purpose of its string ICC, as it signed but never ratified about one of the most under-dis- his having been given a clean chit (slate) may be could prove to be crucial for the BJP to come to respond,” Julie de Rivero of Human pullers including the United States the Rome treaty, they add. cussed and devastating human politically expedient, but is far too premature,” power in May. Rights Watch told Reuters. “It might and its followers who are endeavor- The Japanese-EU resolution to rights crises of our time”. he said. Modi’s main rival in the elections is Rahul be a long route but steps need to be ing to eliminate the socialist system set up the inquiry won unanimous South Korea’s foreign minister “There are many unanswered questions. Gandhi, the 43-year-old vice president of the rul- taken.” Roseann Rife of Amnesty on the pretext of human rights,” approval at the 47-member forum Yun Byung-se expressed support for There is a lot more the country needs to know.” ing Congress Party and scion of the Gandhi fami- International said in a statement: North Korea’s ambassador So Se partly because China, Cuba and strengthening UN mechanisms to Modi has denied wrongdoing and has been ly, who will be contesting from the Amethi parlia- “This is the first real test of the inter- Pyong told the UN rights forum this Russia were not members at the “implement the commission’s rec- cleared by legal inquiries, but allegations that he mentary seat, also in Uttar Pradesh state. national community to show it is month. time. The absence of the trio, which ommendations”, but did not spell failed to stop the riots continue to dog the However, Modi’s party is considered the front- serious about acting on the Ahn Myong Chul, a former North reject country-specific resolutions, out how. African countries are divid- prime ministerial candidate. Hindu nationalist runner heading into the elections. A recent poll Commission of Inquiry’s chilling Korean guard at four prison camps, was seen as a rare opportunity to ed on the prospect of referring Modi and his opposition Bharatiya Janata Party by the Pew Research Center said 63 percent of findings. There needs to a concert- is a defector who testified and investigate one of the most secre- North Korea to the ICC, although are expected to come to power on a platform of Indians prefer the Bharatiya Janata Party over ed effort to ratchet up the pressure wants to see Kim and his loyal elite tive countries in the world. “We they often complain that prosecu- economic revival following the world’s biggest Congress. Modi is also expected to contest from a on the North Korean government to held accountable for gross abuses thought it was a once in a lifetime tors have focused only on atrocities elections starting on April 7. The elections have parliamentary voting district in his home state of address these systematic, wide- that began under the leader’s father opportunity,” said Kwon Eun- on their continent, diplomats say. pitted Gandhi, vice president of Congress and Gujarat. Under Indian election laws, a person can spread and grave human rights vio- Kim Jong Il and grandfather Kim Il kyoung of the International Botswana has severed diplomat- scion of India’s political dynasty, against Modi, contest from more than one constituency. But lations.” Sung. “Over 60 years North Koreans Coalition to Stop Crimes Against ic ties with North Korea, a move the son of a tea-stall owner. Voting will take Modi has to choose one seat in Parliament after The country is already on the have suffered severe oppression Humanity in North Korea (ICNK), an that defectors hope will lead to place in nine phases until May 12 with counting the election results are announced. —Agencies agenda of the UN General under three generations of the alliance of more than 40 groups, growing pressure on China to Assembly, but the Security Council regime. These are basic human which lobbied governments to demand human rights reform in its has so far focused only on its rights, their voices should be heard. seize the chance. ally. Diplomats were not aware of nuclear weapons and proliferation The government must be punished,” North Korean defector Jee any other countries contemplating threat, de Rivero said. “We are Ahn said in an interview. Hyeon-a is less hopeful about quick cutting off ties with Pyongyang. advocating that the Security Inquiry leader Kirby said it is time results this time. “It can only be pos- “The Government of Botswana does Council needs to deal with crimes in to act rather than talk. “What is sible to bring Kim Jong Un or his not wish to be associated with a North Korea.” But winning interna- unique has been the capacity of subordinates to the ICC after North Government which continues to tional consensus to bring Kim to North Korea to avoid international Korea collapses,” said Jee, who was display such total disregard for the book will probably remain elusive scrutiny, to avoid examination of its sent back by China three times and human rights of its citizens,” it said for now, according to diplomats, UN record over such a long time, effec- eventually fled to South Korea after in a statement issued shortly after sources and activists. This is particu- tively 60 years of very great wrongs being jailed in the Jeungsan Re- the UN report. —Reuters Peace talks raise new fears in Colombia TORIBIO: For farmers like Angel Escue, comes from right-wing contender Oscar Ivan ally - are furious that FARC leaders could be Colombia’s bid to end half a century of war with Zuluaga, an ally of conservative former President handed light sentences for their crimes, and per- Marxist rebels may come at too high a price. Alvaro Uribe who says he would scrap the FARC haps even given seats in Congress. “We won’t Stripping leaves from an illegal coca bush at his talks. Leftist candidate Clara Lopez, Marta Lucia accept that FARC leaders who have killed soldiers small plot in the mountains of central Cauca Ramirez of the Conservative Party, and Enrique and police in cold blood, recruited children, kid- department, Escue says a peace deal with the Penalosa from the Green Alliance will also run. napped and extorted - killed defenseless CARACAS: A masked protester throws back a teargas canister fired by Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or Santos is seeking to compensate millions of Colombians - are awarded a place in Congress Bolivarian National Police during clashes. —AFP FARC, could sink him deeper into poverty even if people displaced by the war and has returned tomorrow,” Zuluaga told Reuters. Almost a third it ends almost daily firefights in the area. land stolen by the FARC and right-wing paramili- of voters still say they will not mark the ballot for Venezuela wants US to “We pray for an end to the violence, but not taries. The measures helped bring the rebels to any candidate, pollster Gallup said recently. at any cost,” 61-year-old Escue says as he hunch- the negotiating table, although many of those es over the bright green coca scrub in Toribio, a he has pledged to help are unlikely to vote for Off limits join ‘peace commission’ rebel stronghold that processes the leaves into him. Farmers from across the country last year The war-torn region of Cauca remains off lim- cocaine. “They want us to switch to crops that led violent protests against a free-trade deal with its for most Colombians. Violence can flare at any CARACAS: Venezuelan President Nicolas South American nations. The leftist president won’t bring enough money to feed a family; we the United States and other reforms they say time, forcing villagers to hide and dodge bullets Maduro urged Washington on Saturday to said he would name Diosdado Cabello, the can’t do that.” Three months before the presiden- have left them even poorer than before. and the rebels’ homemade cylinder bombs. Two- join a “high-level commission” to promote head of Venezuela’s National Assembly, to tial election, government envoys and FARC com- Coca farmers worry they will be pushed into thirds of Cauca’s 1.4 million people live on $3 a peace after more than a month of deadly lead potential talks with the United States “to manders are working through the third item on growing coffee, rubber or cacao, which they say day and dirt roads to market are frequently anti-government demonstrations. Maduro speak while respecting peace for a dialogue a five-point peace agenda - the illegal drugs require additional workers, costly fertilizers and washed away. Subsistence farmers depend on blames the United States for the riots, a among equals.” His terms for dialogue are vir- industry, and how to rid Colombia of coca. generate less income. “We only just make ends growing coca to survive. Many here sympathize charge US officials on Friday dismissed as tually identical to those that have been stated Negotiations to end the conflict that has meet with coca,” says Escue’s sister Teresa of the with the FARC, trade with it and have family in its “absurd.” At least 28 people have been killed repeatedly by Cuba, Caracas’s closest ally. The killed more than 200,000 - mostly civilians - since weed, which needs little water and can earn ranks. They have little faith in the government and 400 injured in the student-led protests United States has not taken either country up the 1960s is a campaign battleground ahead of double what legal crops do for each of its three and are deeply skeptical about peace talks and that began February 4 in western Venezuela on their regularly stated offers. the first round of voting on May 25. President annual harvests. It also has a regular buyer in the the election. and spread to Caracas and other cities. Oil- Venezuelan Foreign Minister Elias Jaua had Juan Manuel Santos is favored to win a second FARC, which sends rebels to farms such as “It’s all just empty promises ahead of the vote. rich Venezuela has seen almost daily anti-gov- earlier called top US diplomat John Kerry a term and continue the peace talks that began in Escue’s to purchase the leaves. Negotiators at the What will peace really bring here? There are no ernment demos as tens of thousands of peo- “murderer of the Venezuelan people,” accus- 2012, although he will be hard pressed to match peace talks in Cuba have already reached partial jobs to replace coca and other crime gangs will ple vent their rage over the soaring crime ing him of encouraging the protests that have his comfortable victory in 2010 given criticism of agreement on agricultural reform and rebel par- just move in after the FARC leave,” said Manuel rate, spiraling inflation, and a lack of house- killed 28 people in five weeks. “The solution to the talks and his economic policies. ticipation in politics. Still on the agenda is an end Bonilla, 62, who lost his right arm when the hold goods in the markets. Venezuela’s problems lies in democratic dia- This is the first election held during a peace to the conflict - including a ceasefire - and repa- rebels detonated a bus bomb in Toribio’s central logue among Venezuelans, not in repression process, so convincing farmers like Escue and rations for war victims. square. “I’m voting blank.” Bonilla’s wife, Marta ‘Let’s talk’ or in hurling verbal brickbats at the United others that an end to the conflict will also bring While most Colombians are desperate for Lucia, scratches a living by trimming and bag- Maduro, speaking at a rally in support of States,” a State Department official said Friday, jobs is key. The scion of one of Colombia’s most peace, many are wary of how much Santos is ging marijuana on the porch of her crumbling the armed forces, said he would propose a speaking on condition of anonymity. The powerful families, Santos says investors are willing to offer the rebels for them to put down adobe shack. She feeds her family of seven with commission “for peace and mutual respect of United States is the main market for awaiting the talks’ outcome before pouring cash their weapons. That may play against him in the sugar water, plantain and rice with the $2.50 she sovereignty” between Venezuela and the Venezuela’s petroleum. The two countries into the Andean nation. His biggest challenge election. Zuluaga and Uribe - a one-time Santos is paid daily. —Reuters United States that could include parties from have had testy relations for years, and with- both sides and the UNASUR grouping of drew ambassadors in 2010. —AFP

MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 INTERNATIONAL The Silk Road: From past to the future ‘Economic Belt’ to create new opportunities for regional, global trade KUWAIT: On separate visits to Kazakhstan and critical and increasing role in the shaping of inter- Profound changes are taking place with 3. Working jointly for the “Belt” and “Road” viding more public goods and playing a more Indonesia in September and October 2013, national landscape. Meanwhile, Asia faces multi- respect to global growth, trade, investment and initiatives meets China’s needs for its own effective role as a responsible major country. The President Xi Jinping of China called for joint ple challenges, old and new, including mounting capital flows. Eurasian countries, all in a critical development and its cooperation with the out- initiatives will also help dovetail China, its neigh- development of an “Economic Belt along the Silk pressures to stay vibrant. It will be the common state of transition and upgrading, desperately side world: China’s cause of reform and opening- bors and other Eurasian countries on the issue of Road” and a “Maritime Silk Road of the 21st tasks of all Asian countries to consolidate and need to unleash their potential demand and that up has been a resounding success. Unbalanced development strategies, build an even closer net- Century”. The “Belt” and the “Road” are two major maintain the favorable situation of peace and of the region, create still more growth points and development, however, remains a problem, espe- work of common interests, and bring integration of initiatives that China has made to deepen reform development in Asia, build stronger consensus make their economies more dynamic and more cially between the country’s eastern region and respective interests to a higher level, whereby and open up and advance its neighborhood and capacity of Asian countries, enhance the resilient to fend off risks. The “Belt” and “Road” ini- central and western regions. To solve this problem, China and all countries in the neighborhood can diplomacy. They have been written into the docu- awareness of a community of shared interest and tiatives foresee infrastructure development and we need to promote transfers of resources and benefit from each other’s development and the ments of the Third Plenum of the 18th CPC shared destiny for a harmonious Asia and achieve systemic innovation, which conduces to an industries among the different regions, giving common development of the whole continent. Central Committee, the Meeting on a comprehensive rejuvenation of all Asian coun- improved business environment in relevant coun- greater scope to the resource and geographical Neighborhood Diplomacy and the Central tries. The “Belt” and “Road” initiatives linking the tries and the region as a whole, to an orderly and advantages of the central and western regions and 4. The “Belt” and “Road” initiatives are ones Economic Work Conference, and have been past with the present and covering China and unimpeded flow of production factors and their tapping their potential for exchanges and coopera- for open and inclusive economic cooperation: enthusiastically received both at home and other countries, have a highly inclusive scope that improved distribution, to the development of tion with neighboring countries. Building the Both the Economic Belt along the Silk Road and abroad. bears witness to the history of great glory in Asia, landlocked countries and the remote areas of var- Economic Belt along the Silk Road may be an the Maritime Silk Road of the 21st century have provide an important source from which Asians ious countries, to lowering costs and trade and important way to this end. been anchored on economic cooperation, and 1. The “Belt” and “Road” initiatives are the draw confidence and pride for their history and investment barriers, and to providing greater built on cultural and people-to-people exchanges. continuation and development of the spirit of cultures, and stand as a banner of Asian unity and drive for reform and opening-up in the various New urbanization strategy They foresee no interference in the internal affairs the ancient Silk Road: Over 2,000 years ago, the commitment to cooperation. countries. China’s opening-up in the past 30-odd years has of the countries involved, nor do they seek to dom- industrious and brave people on the Eurasian With obvious differences in history, culture, been more targeted to the East and the developed inate regional affairs or secure spheres of influence continent opened several trade routes connect- Pan-Asian, Eurasian regional cooperation religion and level of development, Eurasian coun- world. Today, as we turn around and set our eyes to in the region. ing major civilizations across Asia, Europe and Regional integration is an unavoidable phase tries need to give scope to their advantages of the west direction, we see a big market on the The “Belt” and “Road” initiatives look at ideas Africa. Together, they were referred to as the “Silk towards economic globalization. The flourishing diversity, follow a path of diversified develop- Eurasian continent. This is a vast region calling for and suggestions for cooperation and develop- Road” by succeeding generations. Despite repeat- cooperation in Asia has boosted peace and devel- ment, build harmony to bridge differences while our vigorous efforts to explore, develop and man- ment. They are not about building an entity or cre- ed strifes and wars in Eurasia, traffic on the Silk opment in the region. However, compared with constantly seeking common ground. Personnel age. The Third Plenum of the 18th CPC Central ating new mechanisms. The initiatives will rely on Road, with sound of camel bells and endless flows Committee made the decision to expand and accel- existing bilateral and multilateral mechanisms of caravans and ships, never stopped completely. erate the opening of the inland and border regions between China and other countries and use exist- Transportation and technologies were so back- so as to build an economic corridor criss-crossing ing platforms of regional cooperation that have ward back then, yet nothing would keep mer- the country. At the same time, coastal areas in proven effective. They will not overlap or compete chants, the wise, the learned and envoys from China’s east region should build on their existing with existing cooperation mechanisms of the travelling across mountains and rivers amid strengths, open still wider to the outside, speed up Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Eurasian untold difficulties, and exploring the Silk Road FTA implementation aimed at neighboring coun- Economic Community or ASEAN Plus China. If any- with utmost resilience and courage. Countries tries and deepen the maritime economic coopera- thing, they will enrich and enliven those mecha- large and small along the routes had all reaped tion scheme with the relevant countries. The “Belt” nisms. We should open our mind and heart for the considerable benefits from the Silk Road. China and “Road” initiatives, by covering multiple various cooperation initiatives and mechanisms, learnt a lot from other countries, and so did these provinces, autonomous regions and major munici- take a more pragmatic approach, and make them countries from China. Such links of mutual emula- palities in China’s central, western and east coastal more effective and mutually reinforcing. tion via the Silk Road made exchanges of goods, regions and being consistent with the country’s know-how, people and ideas possible, promoted regional development strategy, the new urbaniza- Integrated package the economic, cultural and social progress in the tion strategy and the opening-up strategy, will Inheriting the proud tradition of openness from various countries, facilitated dialogue and inte- serve as a big booster for the shaping of an all- the ancient Silk Road and adopting the “open gration of different civilizations, and left behind directional opening China. regionalism” advocated by East Asian countries, brilliant pages in human history. The “Belt” and “Road” initiatives also come as a the “Belt” and “Road” initiatives can only be more Moving into the 21st century, an era that is highlight in China’s diplomacy in the new era, open and more inclusive, rather than becoming a dominated by the themes of peace, development especially its neighborhood diplomacy. secluded, ossified and exclusive mechanism. and cooperation but continues to feature a com- Neighborhood diplomacy occupies the primary Instead of starting from scratch, the initiatives will plex international and regional landscape, the Silk position in China’s overall diplomacy. As a policy be built on the continuation and upgrading of Road has become all the more important and priority, China works hard to develop more friendly existing cooperation. The parties involved may precious as a symbol of peace, cooperation, political relations, stronger economic ties, closer consider linking their cooperation projects, both openness, inclusiveness, mutual learning and KUWAIT: Cui Jiangchun, Ambassador of China to Kuwait is pictured at a recent security cooperation and deeper cultural links with existing and planned, together into an integrated resilience. If our ancestors could treat each other press conference. — Photo by Joseph Shagra the neighboring countries. The state of China’s package for multiplied cost-effectiveness. with respect as equals, work for mutual benefit relations with the rest of the world finds expres- The “Belt” and “Road” initiatives foresee com- and rise above occasional hostility 2,000 years sion, first and foremost, in the changing relations plete openness in geographical and country-spe- ago, it is all the more pressing for us today to car- those in Europe and North America, regional exchanges, cultural interactions and inter-civiliza- between China and its neighbors. Whether or not cific reference. They may trace, but not be limited, ry this invaluable legacy forward. It is all the more cooperation in Asia remains inadequate, as evi- tion dialogues are therefore of vital importance. China can continue to live harmoniously with its to the past Silk Road, and all countries along the crucial for the international community to denced in particular by the uneven development The ancient Silk Road is paved with timeless jew- neighbors and help each other along the way will land and the maritime Silk Roads as well as all embrace the spirit of the ancient Silk Road, bring and poor connectivity among Asia’s sub-regions, els of country-to-country and people-to-people have an important bearing on the way China con- friendly neighbors of China can get involved. it up to date, instill greater dynamism, and realize posing a considerable obstacle to deeper regional exchanges. The “Belt” and “Road” initiatives will ducts its relations with the world. China has Central Asia, Russia, South Asia and Southeast Asia its value in this new age, thus creating a new cooperation. The “Belt” and “Road” initiatives, by bring out the profound cultural achievements of adhered to the policy of building friendship and will be the priority direction. So will the Middle material and cultural wealth for humanity. linking Central Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia ancient times, strengthen people-to-people partnership with the neighbors and abided by the East and East Africa since they are where the “Belt” and West Asia, will contribute to greater connec- exchanges among all countries across a spectrum principle of bringing harmony, security and pros- and “Road” join. Countries in Europe, CIS and Africa 2. Working jointly for the “Belt” and “Road” tivity across the sub-regions, and help the estab- of areas, strata and faiths, give scope to the perity to the neighborhood. We hope to partici- may also be included in the long run. What is more, initiatives meets the trend of the times for lishment and improvement of Asia’s supply chain, potential of “soft” exchanges geared to expanding pate more actively in international affairs including the initiatives, as they make progress in the future, regional cooperation: Asia, known as the engine industrial chain and value chain, thus bringing the groundwork of friendship among peoples those in the neighborhood through the “Belt” and may involve a lot more projects, countries or enti- of global growth and a key driver for world multi- Pan-Asian and Eurasian regional cooperation to a and contribute a positive energy to peace and “Road” initiatives, highlighting the concept of ami- ties, which can only ensure their increasing open- polarization and economic globalization, plays a new level. development in Asia. ty, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness, pro- ness. NEWS MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014

Saudis ban books in major crackdown Final words from jet came after shutdown Continued from Page 1 fiscated. A few days after the fair opened, Saudi Continued from Page 1 necessity in the early stages”. Khalid said police confis- authorities closed the stall of the Arab Network for cated the elaborate flight simulator that one of the envoys from Doha earlier this month, accusing it of Research and Publishing headed by Islamist publisher to President Barack Obama, told NBC’s “Meet the pilots, Zaharie Ahmad Shah, had built in his home and interfering in their internal affairs. The decision to Nawaf Al-Qudaimi and confiscated all his publications, Press” that the FBI was supporting the criminal probe. reassembled it in their offices to study it for clues. withdraw the ambassadors was seen as driven largely citing threats to the kingdom’s security. Rep Peter King, who is chairman of the House Zaharie, 53, who has three grown children and one by Saudi animosity towards the Muslim Brotherhood The crackdown comes after the interior ministry Homeland Security subcommittee on counterterror- grandchild, had previously posted photos online of of deposed Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi and its published a list of “terror” groups earlier this month in ism and intelligence, said on ABC’s “This Week” that so the simulator, which was made with three large com- regional affiliates, which are widely believed to receive a move which analysts have warned could further curb far “there’s nothing out there indicating it’s terrorists.” puter monitors and other accessories. Earlier this support from Qatar. civil liberties in the absolute monarchy. On the list is Investigators are trying to answer these questions: week, the head of Malaysia Airlines said this was not in “Revolution”, a book by Wael Ghonim, a secular the Muslim Brotherhood, Al-Nusra Front, which is Al- If the two pilots were involved in the disappearance, itself cause for any suspicion. Malaysian police are also Egyptian and former Google executive who became Qaeda’s official Syrian affiliate, and the Islamic State of were they working together or alone, or with one or investigating engineers and ground staff who may an icon of the country’s 2011 uprising that toppled Iraq and the Levant, another jihadist group fighting in more of the passengers or crew? Did they fly the plane have had contact with the plane before it took off, Saudi ally Hosni Mubarak, was also banned from the Syria and Iraq. Saudi Arabia is a key backer of the under duress or of their own volition? Did one or more Khalid said. Riyadh fair, according to Sabq. Organisers of the book rebels fighting to unseat Syrian President Bashar Al- of the passengers manage to break into the cockpit, or ACARS is used to send information about the fair, which began March 4, had announced ahead of Assad but is concerned about possible blowback from use the threat of violence to gain entry and then pilot plane’s engines and other parts to the airline. Even the event that any book deemed “against Islam” or jihadists, following a wave of domestic unrest from the plane? And what possible motive could there be though it was disabled on Flight 370, it continued to “undermining security” in the kingdom would be con- 2003-2006. — AFP for flying off with the plane? send out faint hourly pulses that were recorded by a Malaysia’s police chief, Khalid Abu Bakar, said he satellite. The last “ping” was sent out at 8:11 am - 7 requested countries with citizens on board the plane hours and 31 minutes after the plane took off. It to investigate their background, no doubt looking for placed the jet somewhere in a huge arc as far north as any ties to terrorist groups, aviation skills or evidence Kazakhstan in Central Asia or far into the southern Maid kills employer’s daughter in Sulaibikhat of prior contact with the pilots. He said that the intelli- Indian Ocean. Continued from Page 1 Yesterday’s case, along with 2011’s crime, shed light gence agencies of some countries had already done While many people believe the plane has crashed, on the often shaky relationship between families and this and found nothing suspicious, but that he was there is a very small possibility it may have landed sentence recognized in Kuwait’s penal code for pre- housemaids in a country were citizens rely heavily on waiting for others to respond. somewhere and be relatively intact. Affendi, the air meditated murder. A number of MPs also reacted angri- domestic helpers to attend to their household affairs. The government said police searched the homes of force general, and Hishammuddin, the defense minis- ly to the murder, with some calling on the interior min- “This tragic case requires opening the domestic helpers’ both pilots on Saturday, the first time they had done ter, said it was possible for the plane to “ping” when it istry to impose a blanket ban on the recruitment of file and address the problems it contains,” Jalal said, call- so since the plane went missing. Asked why it took was on the ground if its electrical systems were Ethiopian manpower, especially domestic helpers, and ing at the same time for periodic tests of housemaids to them so long, Khalid said authorities “didn’t see the undamaged. — AP even stop renewing the residence permits of those “examine their mental state”. already in the country. There are around 40,000 Crimea votes to join Russia Ethiopian maids in Kuwait, the Interior Ministry’s public Ethiopian maids’ ban relations and moral guidance director Col Adel Al- Kuwait recently banned recruitment of domestic Continued from Page 1 sign of the agreement being implemented at the Hashash said yesterday. helpers from Ethiopia, and the Interior Ministry did not Perevalnoye base outside Simferopol as Russian forces “The death penalty must be enforced as soon as pos- provide a reason for the decision. However, a security The options facing voters were either to join Russia or stood rooted in place. Three people have died in clashes sible after the maid admitted her heinous crime,” MP source quoted in local news reports yesterday said the go back to a 1992 constitution that effectively made between nationalists and Russian supporters in Ukraine’s Crimea into an independent state within Ukraine. southeast since Thursday -the first fatalities since nearly Talal Al-Jalal said in a press statement. He also called for decision was based on “10 murder and attempted mur- Retaining good relations with Kiev was not an alternative. media coverage of the suspect’s execution “in order to died in a week of carnage in Kiev last month - and the der cases reported during a year and a half period in International condemnation of the referendum began region remained fraught with tensions as Crimeans voted set an example”. Jalal also called for studies on crimes by which Ethiopian housemaids were the suspects.” pouring in from world capitals even before the polls had to join Kremlin rule. maids based on the suspects’ nationalities and ages. Last November, Addis Ababa issued a prohibition for closed. Around 4,000 pro-Moscow activists rallied in Donetsk “We urge the general secretariat of the National its nationals from traveling to Kuwait for work pending US Secretary of State John Kerry demanded that to support Crimea’s referendum and 6,000 turned out in Assembly to carry out a study containing authentic sta- a response from Kuwaiti authorities on its request for Moscow pull back its forces to their bases in Crimea in Kharkiv with a large Russian flag and a sign reading “Our tistics based on which the state can ban recruitment of “amendments on recruitment procedures for Ethiopian return for constitutional reforms in Ukraine to protect Homeland is the USSR”. Not everyone in Crimea was hap- housemaids of certain nationalities,” he added. labor forces and reassessment of the work of domestic minority rights. A US State Department official said Kerry py to return to Russia for the first time since peninsula “The interior minister must immediately take a deci- helpers’ recruitment offices, medical testing procedures told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in a phone was symbolically gifted to Ukraine by Soviet leader Nikita sion to ban the entry of Ethiopian workers and stop and the age limit for recruited workers.” call that “as Ukrainians take the necessary political meas- Khrushchev in 1954. Some Crimeans said they would renewing the residence permits of those in the country” The Ethiopian embassy said when it announced the ures going forward, Russia must reciprocate by pulling spoil their ballots in protest and there was a call on social MP Roudhan Al-Roudhan said. Roudhan also appealed measure then that the decision was taken by the forces back to base.” media for people to cook vareniki - Ukrainian dumplings to Kuwaiti families to sack Ethiopian domestic helpers in Ethiopian government to “protect citizens’ rights” and The European Union said it would be deciding on - instead of going out to vote. order to “safeguard the lives of our children after the “combat human trafficking”. “The decision is tempo- sanctions against Russia on Monday that include the pos- Crimean authorities denied irregularities but accred- sible seizure of the foreign assets of top Kremlin officials criminal intent of this nationality (Ethiopians) has been rary... and came as a result of problems currently facing ited journalists including AFP were prevented from enter- and travel bans for senior ministers. “We reiterate the ing some polling stations in the port city of Sevastopol confirmed in Kuwait and Gulf countries”. labor forces including mistreatment, violation of work- strong condemnation of the unprovoked violation of and in Simferopol. Several people were seen voting MP Kamel Al-Awadhi, former director general of the ers’ rights, abuse, murder and increase in human traf- immigration department, said he had suggested on Ukraine’s sovereignty... and call on Russia to withdraw its before polls opened. Foreign observers were present ficking practiced by licensed offices,” reads a statement armed forces to their pre-crisis numbers,” the EU said in a although the Organisation for Security and Cooperation three occasions to authorities when he was at the immi- released by the Ethiopian embassy on Nov 24, 2013. gration department to ban the entry of Ethiopian man- statement. in Europe (OSCE) said it would not monitor because it The lack of a domestic labor law in Kuwait and other power because of their “criminal” tendency. Awadhi But Russian President Vladimir Putin - accused of was not officially invited by Ukraine’s national govern- Gulf countries is a matter of controversy. The sponsor- strongly criticized the current situation of the domestic orchestrating the vote as a way of seizing Ukranian land ment. ship or kafala system which regulates the affairs of for- and punishing its leaders for spurning closer relations helpers recruitment offices and what he called their Crimea’s indigenous Muslim Tatar community - eign labor forces in Kuwait does not cover domestic with Moscow - said he would “respect” its outcome. The deported to Central Asia en masse in Soviet times - large- chaotic situation, insisting that such crimes will contin- helpers. As a result, complaints are often made by both Russian tricolour was flown all over Crimea amid a festive ly boycotted the referendum. “Of course we are not ue as long as these offices are not regulated. He said employers who claim breach of contractual agreement atmosphere that reflected a profound mistrust of the going to vote,” said community leader Dilyara Seitvelieva that maids’ offices are not qualified to recruit competent and sometimes use of violence, as well as domestic new Kiev leaders through the largely Russified southeast in the historic Tatar town of Bakhchysaray. “The situation and reliable domestic helpers, adding that the solution workers who claim similar breaches and human rights of the nation of 46 million people. “This is a historic is very dangerous.” But the sentiment was vastly different lies in the establishment of a national company for moment,” Crimea’s self-declared premier Sergiy Aksyonov among ethnic Russians. “We have waited years for this recruitment. violations. Domestic labor abuse is often mentioned as a dark told reporters after casting his ballot in the regional capi- moment,” said 71-year-old Ivan Konstantinovich. MP Abdullah Al-Tameemi backed Awadhi assess- tal Simferopol. spot in the human rights record of Kuwait and other Preparations to become part of Russia - a process ment, stressing the chaotic situation of the maids Cossacks and pro-Moscow militias were patrolling that could take months - are to begin this week. Russian countries in the Gulf region and Middle East. Last recruitment offices, saying the latest crime is a proof of outside polling stations and Russian troops guarded the lawmakers are also expected on Friday to debate legisla- the lack of regulation. MP Khalil Al-Saleh also blamed January, a Farwaniya man was charged with murder unofficial border between Crimea and the rest of tion that would simplify the process under which the the government for bringing what he called “cheap” and after admitting to beating his housemaid to death, Ukraine. Pro-Russian groups in favour of holding a similar Kremlin can annex a part of another state. There has been unqualified labourers while failing to recruit maids from while a couple were arrested two months earlier for referendum in the flashpoint eastern industrial city of no armed confrontation between Russian and Ukrainian Indonesia for example. Indonesia stopped sending beating their maid to death inside their apartment in Donetsk stormed the local security and legal headquar- forces but there have been several incidents involving domestic workers to Kuwait in 2009 citing concerns the same area. ters demanding the release of their self-appointed “gov- journalists and pro-unity activists condemned by over abuse. “Even though the Middle East and North Africa are ernor”. Amnesty International as “extremely worrying”. MP Safa Al-Hashem questioned the reasons behind home to some of the worst abuses against domestic Ukraine’s interim President Oleksandr Turchynov - in The authorities are calling the vote a “Crimean Spring” recruiting Ethiopian housemaids following Indonesia’s workers, the pace of legal reforms in Saudi Arabia, power since last month’s ouster and flight to Russia of but many locals are concerned about a possible legal decision to stop sending domestic helpers to Kuwait. Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Lebanon Kremlin-backed Viktor Yanukovych - also accused Russia vacuum and economic turmoil. One immediate worry is MP Abdulhameed Dashti also demanded a halt to has dragged on for years with little to show,” said Nisha of fanning tensions in eastern Ukraine as a way of justify- about the availability of cash and there have been long Ethiopian labor forces’ recruitment “due to the increas- Varia, senior women’s rights researcher at Human Rights ing an invasion. “The result has been pre-planned by the queues outside banks with Crimeans rushing to with- Kremlin as a formal justification to send in its troops and draw their money. Ukraine’s government has said Crimea ing number of crimes committed by nationals of this Watch, in a report released in October last year. start a war that will destroy people’s lives and the eco- cannot survive since it depends on electricity as well as country in specific”. Her statements came in an official release to nomic prospects for Crimea,” he said. announce a report that assess progress since the adop- energy and water supplies from the mainland. The crime brought back to people’s attention a simi- There were signs however of a possible easing in Bakhchysaray native Anna Ivanovna, 70, said she had vot- tion of 2011 adoption of the Domestic Workers lar case from Nov 2011, where a housemaid killed her Crimea as Ukraine said its forces on the peninsula had ed to join Moscow, but was apprehensive. “Yes, we will be employer’s 25-year-old daughter on the eve of the vic- Convention, an international treaty that entitles domes- reached a temporary truce with Russia to lift the block- Russians. It’s good but at the same time, at my age, it’s tim’s wedding. In October, the appeals court upheld the tic workers to the same basic rights as other workers. ade around Ukrainian bases. But AFP reporters saw no hard to change countries.” — Agencies death sentence for the maid, who is also Ethiopian. Kuwait is yet to ratify the treaty. MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 ANALYSIS

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Issues Coal, gas or nuclear? S Africa must decide now

By Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo

n paper, South Africa’s long-term energy plans look solid, Owith coal, nuclear, gas and renewables all viable options. But none are likely to prevent potentially crippling future power crunches in Africa’s biggest economy unless a decision is made soon on when and how to add capacity to the grid. South Africa’s failure to invest in new power plants nearly two decades ago meant it paid dearly in 2008 when the grid nearly collapsed, leading to power cuts that cost the economy billions of rand in lost output and dented investor confidence. State-owned power utility Eskom is scrambling to finish new power plants, including Medupi and Kusile, massive coal-fired outfits with a combined capacity of about 9,500 megawatts (MW). But they are still several years away from completion, and in the interim Eskom Swords of Damocles threaten Sarkozy will be battling to keep the lights on, nursing its fleet of ageing gener- ating units and hoping breakdowns do not reduce reserve margins By Mark John preliminary inquiry over allegations he let his friends sub- Bordeaux, has kept his intentions well under wraps. to critical levels. The utility has declared four power “emergencies” mit inflated invoices for their work organising Sarkozy’s Whatever happens, Sarkozy, a political scrapper at his since November and earlier this month imposed rolling blackouts, ffaires’? They’re picking up again,” joked 2012 rallies. “The country wants solutions. But increasing- best when down, is unlikely to give in without a fight - known locally as “load shedding”, for the first time in six years. “‘A President Francois Hollande to reporters last ly, Sarkozy and his allies are being perceived as prob- even if it means the implosion of the UMP formed a Although they lasted only a day, the blackouts came at a bad time for week in a pun on the French word for both lems,” said Stephane Rozes, head of political consultancy mere 12 years ago to settle an earlier round of old scores President Jacob Zuma and his governing African National Congress business activities and political scandals. Well might he Cap and who advised Sarkozy for the 2007 elections and on the French right. Hollande may currently look a poor two months before a national election. The ANC is expected to win smile. For the legacy of a turbulent past few weeks of Hollande in 2012. bet for winning a second term, given his failure so far to but its majority is likely to be reduced by public anger over corruption intrigue may be to harm any hopes ex-president Nicolas Although Cope protests his innocence, his already kick-start the economy and the lack of confidence he scandals and deficient delivery of public services in many poor black Sarkozy has of avenging his 2012 defeat by Hollande in the poor poll ratings have been knocked further and his tenu- inspires in most French voters. But, some argue, his townships. next presidential election. ous hold on the UMP weakened - setting the stage for a chances might be better than they now seem if he is up The worst is not over, says Eskom, which provides 95 percent of In quick succession, Sarkozy and France’s conservative battle for leadership of the French right with unpre- against Sarkozy trying to portray himself as a returning South Africa’s electricity and has a total generation capacity of 42,000 opposition have been hit by allegations of improper use of dictable consequences. For Sarkozy, the worst-case sce- saviour of the country but looking over one shoulder for MW. This is slightly less than Turkey but almost 10 times more than party funds, influence-peddling and leaked tapes in which nario would be a party coup led by Alain Juppe, the veter- legal problems and leading a divided party licking its Nigeria, sub-saharan Africa’s second biggest economy and top oil the former leader is heard trashing his then ministers. Those an ex-prime minister he replaced as UMP leader in 2004 wounds. “Sarkozy could still play the white knight,” said producer. Although South Africa’s infrastructure is generally the envy under suspicion deny wrongdoing and accuse Hollande’s but who could go on to position himself for a the presi- Rozes. “But he would be a white knight with chinks in his of Africa, at the moment nearly a quarter of its power generation Socialists of using the judiciary to launch a smear campaign. dential run. Juppe, now mayor of the southwestern city of armour.” —Reuters capacity is out of action, mainly for maintenance. The political heat spread to the government camp when his The first power from Medupi, about 800 MW, is expected in the justice minister contradicted herself about the extent of her second half of this year. Eskom admits this will not prevent more knowledge of the investigations underway. blackouts should the system come under further strain. Any event Short-term, the saga has strengthened the suspicions of leading to a loss of more than 1,500 MW could have a significant the French about the shadiness of their politicians. It will impact on the grid, Eskom said. also do little to help mainstream parties, left or right, in town hall elections this month when the anti-immigrant National ‘Ten Years to Fix’ Front - France’s third political force - expects gains. But more Eskom Chief Executive Brian Dames said South Africa was still feel- crucially, it has shown how Sarkozy’s comeback from early ing the repercussions of the ANC government’s decision not to build retirement to stand in the 2017 election - something the 59- new plants when asked by the utility to do so in 1998. Construction of year-old has said he would consider out of “duty” to the Medupi only started in 2007 and has been plagued by delays related nation - is held hostage to legal upsets. to design flaws and labour unrest. “It will take 10 years to fix the 1998 Writer Thomas Guenole draws parallels with the classical problem,” said Dames, who steps down at the end of this month. In its Greek figure of Damocles, who according to legend sat 20-year Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), running up to 2030, the gov- under a sword suspended by a single horse hair. “Sarkozy is ernment says coal, nuclear, hydro, shale gas and renewable energy the Damocles of French politics - and now he has five are all options to beef up power supply. swords above his head,” Guenole, author of “Sarkozy - the And after the 2008 debacle, the government realises it could pay story of an impossible comeback”, said of the five legal cases a heavy price if it does not decide in time on the next phase of power in which he is now implicated. construction when Medupi and Kusile are complete. “We are working around the clock to arrive at decisions quickly,” Public Enterprises ‘Monstrous’ Minister Malusi Gigaba said. The IRP is revised every two years, the lat- The awkward link between the law and executive power est revision being last year. Cabinet has yet to approve the updated in France has fed scandals as far back as the Dreyfus Affair in plan which proposes a delay in construction of more nuclear power the late 19th century, when for political expediency a Jewish plants and a focus instead on coal, hydro and gas. army officer was wrongly convicted of treason. The fact that Eskom’s problems are compounded by increasing maintenance top members of the magistrature fall under the hierarchy of needs at its decades-old plants, and unplanned outages. It also faces the justice minister both creates scope for political meddling challenges relating to the quality of coal fed into its power stations. and feeds suspicions of it, even when unfounded. The The recent blackouts were imposed after torrential rain soaked coal European Court of Human Rights judged in 2008 that stockpiles and the coal could not be fed properly into the system. “I French justice was not fully independent. don’t think there is nearly enough attention being given to the supply A cloud was lifted off Sarkozy’s future last October when of coal for Eskom. That’s an area government needs to do more work a court dropped inquiries into whether he had exploited the on,” said Mike Rossouw, chairman of the Energy Intensive Users mental frailty of France’s richest woman, L’Oreal heiress Group, which represents heavy power users such as mines and facto- Liliane Bettencourt, to fund his successful 2007 election ries. Eskom’s coal stockpiles are mostly kept in the open, in part campaign. That still left a separate investigation open on because of the high cost of storage, and so are prone to damage from whether he illegally used funding from late Libyan leader heavy rain. Storage bunkers are available but not enough to protect Muammar Gaddafi for the same campaign. The new twist is all the coal and the problem is compounded by most of Eskom’s sup- that phone taps of Sarkozy and his lawyer, carried out in the ply coming from exposed open-pit mines. Gaddafi inquiry, have prompted investigating magistrates to open yet another case after monitoring conversations they Diversify the Energy Mix believe show Sarkozy promised a judge a career boost in Eskom generates most of its electricity from coal-fired plants but return for favours. also has one nuclear plant, gas turbines, hydro-electric and wind facili- Sarkozy has made no public comment. His lawyer Thierry ties. Coal is likely to remain the main feed stock for base-load power, Herzog called the accusations unfounded and a “monstrous” given that South Africa is a major producer and exporter of coal. To attempt to destroy the comeback hopes of the politician still diversify its energy sources and reduce its reliance on coal plants, favoured by right-wing voters for the 2017 presidential race. South Africa started three years ago to procure renewable power “Sarkozy has an excellent lawyer - in fact he has several,” not- from independent producers. To date, the government has signed off ed Guenole. “But it shows there is one big risk that he cannot on 64 renewable energy projects with a combined capacity of 3,850 do anything about: that he is hit with formal charges just MW. Eskom said 19 projects had been connected to the grid to date. before the 2017 election.” Analysts say more needs to be done to allow private players in - and not just for renewable energy, which is struggling to produce power ‘White Knight’ at rates Eskom deems competitive with coal. “The industry is by far The snail’s pace of French justice means such a risk - not deregulated enough. We need to have more participants in base- which would destroy any presidential bid - is real. Others load generation in South Africa,” said Cornelis van der Waal, an energy argue that Sarkozy has analyst at consultancy Frost & Sullivan. “Whether that base load is coal, already been politically nuclear, gas or hydro, let’s leave that to the industry to decide who can damaged by events of supply the most reliable electricity at the best rate.” —Reuters the past few weeks. A March 7-8 survey by pollster Ifop just after the first revelations All articles appearing on these showed Sarkozy’s pages are the personal opinion of popularity ratings fell to 44 percent from 50 the writers. Kuwait Times takes no percent. This is still responsibility for views expressed above Hollande’s dire therein. Kuwait Times invites read- 28 percent score, but ers to voice their opinions. Please shows a worrying drop given he has yet to re- send submissions via email to: opin- emerge from retirement [email protected] or via snail into the cut-and-thrust of mail to PO Box 1301 Safat, Kuwait. politics. Just as bad, his ex-protege The editor reserves the right to edit who runs the conservative any submission as necessary. UMP party in his absence, Jean-Francois Cope, faces a MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 SPORTS

Wilder stops Malik Scott New blow for fighting Force Johnson out of World T20 BAYAMON: Deontay Wilder remained undefeated with his 31st straight DUNEDIN: Having finally secured back-to-back victories for the first SYDNEY: Paceman Mitchell Johnson was ruled out of the Twenty20 World Cup by an knockout, stopping Malik Scott in the first round in their heavyweight fight time in nearly three years on Saturday, perennial Super Rugby cellar infected big toe yesterday in a blow to Australia’s hopes of snaring the one major interna- Saturday night. dwellers the Western Force have a mountain to climb if they are to tional trophy they have never won. The 32-year-old, the form bowler in world cricket at Wilder landed a solid left and followed with a quick right that sent Scott make it three in a row. the moment, will be replaced by fellow left-arm quick Doug Bollinger for the March 16- (36-2-1) crumpling to the canvas 1:36 after the opening bell. Scott made a Not only do the Force welcome the Waikato Chiefs to Perth next April 6 tournament in Bangladesh. move to get up from his knees, but referee Roberto Ramirez Jr. counted him weekend but they are almost certain to take on the Super Rugby Johnson fired Australia to a 5-0 Ashes sweep over the New Year and a 2-1 test series tri- out.The crowd of more than 10,100 at Ruben Rodriguez Coliseum was solid- champions without their inspirational number eight Ben McCalman. umph in South Africa over the last few weeks but cut the big toe on his right foot in the McCalman was cited for a spear tackle on Otago Highlanders prop third test against the Proteas. The initial prognosis was that his ly behind the electric Wilder, but many seemed uncon- departure for Bangladesh would only be delayed but Johnson vinced as the knockout sequence was replayed on the Kame Hames in the 72nd minute of the Force’s 31-29 victory in Dunedin on Saturday. Rugby officials are determined to rid the game had not made the sort of progress originally envisioned. big screens. The 28-year-old Wilder has surged into the of the spear, or tip, tackle because of the risk of head injuries and “We have given Mitchell as long as we can but unfortu- spotlight as a stoppage artist in the pro ranks. “My power McCalman faces a ban of up to four weeks for the offence. nately his infection hasn’t responded to the treatment as is crazy,” Wilder said. “It’s unstoppable. It’s like a mis- The 25-year-old received only a yellow card on the pitch, one of quickly as we had hoped with swelling remaining in his toe sile.” The quick win put him in position for a WBC two sin-binnings that reduced the Force to 13 men as they clung on and foot,” Cricket Australia’s Dr Justin Paoloni said in a news heavyweight title shot against the winner of the for an impressive victory over the Highlanders. release yesterday. “It is difficult to say how quickly the infec- tion will take to resolve and due to the high risk of infection Bermane Stiverne and Chris Arreola fight this The Force clearly have the hex on the Highlanders - Saturday’s was recurrence with a return to bowling we feel it is in the best inter- year. Wilder downplayed questions that he has their sixth successive Super Rugby victory over the team from New yet to be tested. “All the tests are in the gym. I ests of Mitchell’s health for him to continue to receive intensive Zealand’s southern tip - but they had never before gained successive treatment in Perth.” work my butt off there to come out here to bonus point wins. “These guys have worked very hard for the past 16 Bollinger, 32, has played just two Twenty20s for Australia, make it look easy,” he said. Wilder, a Tuscaloosa, months, and I think there’s a little bit of validation there,” coach against South Africa in 2011, but brings a wealth of experience Ala., native who didn’t start fighting until he was Michael Foley said. “The guys who have been at the club for a long of the shortest form of the game in the sub- 21, is the last American boxer to medal in an time haven’t had the good fortune of getting back-to-back bonus continent courtesy of his time in the Indian Olympics. He won bronze in Beijing in 2008. —AP point wins before. — Reuters Premier League. —Reuters Six Nations delivers high drama

LONDON: The Six Nations Championship Fifty points in Italy was a good way to end delivered in spades once again as Ireland the tournament and although Ireland’s win in claimed the title with a nerve-shredding 22- Paris deprived them of the Six Nations title, 20 win over France in the final match to clinch England will take solace from a Triple Crown the trophy on points difference from England. and a powerful base from which to build their Fifteen games of high intensity boiled up 2015 World Cup campaign. into a fitting finale as Brian O’Driscoll bowed Scotland endured another dismal tourna- out of the international stage by helping ment, battered by Ireland and England before Ireland secure only their second victory in a morale-boosting last-gasp win in Italy and a France in 42 years. painful home loss to France preceded the England earlier beat Italy 52-11 in Rome humiliation by Wales. but it was not enough to deny the Irish, who Warren Gatland’s Welsh side experienced a flirted with defeat in Paris before closing out a difficult tournament, the pressure of being famous win. Wales crushed Scotland 51-3 in twice defending champions proving too their final match, the champions of the last much. two years finishing in style after a difficult They showed signs of form with an campaign, although they were helped signifi- emphatic win over France and a mauling of cantly by the sending-off of Scottish fullback Scotland but heavy defeats by Ireland and Stuart Hogg. It was Wales’ biggest-ever tour- England showed that an ageing team may be nament win - topping their 104-year best struggling ahead of next year’s World Cup against France - and Scotland’s worst defeat. where they face pool matches against Overall, however, there were few mis- England and Australia at Twickenham. matches as once again, the Six Nations bris- Italy lost all five matches for the first time tled with emotion, drama and tension. in five years and although they went toe to England fought back to engineer a winning toe with Scotland before losing to a last- position in their first game in France, only to minute drop goal, their routine second-half be denied by a brilliant French move in the implosions show that they are still struggling dying minutes which culminated in a try by to really compete with the powers of north- Yoann Huget. Stuart Lancaster’s team took ern hemisphere rugby. At the end of another the loss on the chin and responded with a compelling tournament, Ireland and England solid 20-0 win in Scotland before making the are in good shape to mount a challenge in most of home advantage to see off Ireland next year’s World Cup. Wales, France, Scotland 13-10 and Wales 29-18. and Italy are not. — Reuters Hirscher bags

MONTREAL: Zack Smith No. 15 of the Ottawa Senators body checks Brandon Prust No. 8 of the Montreal Canadiens during the NHL game at the WCup slalom title Bell Centre. — AFP

LENZERHEIDE: Marcel Hirscher beat Felix Hirscher, of the anger also expressed by the Neureuther in a testy Austria vs. Germany France team. “The course setter will always Bruins defeat Hurricanes duel for the World Cup slalom title yester- try to set for his athlete.” day. Racing last as the controversial first- Still, Hirscher fully earned his third run leader, Hirscher finished 0.76 seconds slalom victory this season on a less chal- BOSTON: Jarome Iginla scored twice and back- LIGHTNING 3, DEVILS 0 1 since the Blues acquired him in a trade with inside Neureuther’s time to overtake his lenging second-run course set by the up goaltender Chad Johnson made 29 saves as Ben Bishop stopped 23 shots to set Tampa Buffalo on Feb. 28. Two of those victories came rival in the standings. Hirscher then circled Sweden team. Neureuther stood hunched the Eastern Conference-leading Bruins won their Bay’s single-season record with 31 victories as against the Predators. the finish area in a wide sweep, pounding resting on his ski poles in the finish area to eighth straight, 5-1 over the Carolina Hurricanes the Lightning beat the New Jersey Devils. St. Louis is 19-0-2 against the Central this sea- his chest with his right fist in celebration. watch Hirscher race for the title. on Saturday afternoon. Bishop (31-11-6) broke the mark held by son. Eric Nystrom scored for Nashville, which Earlier, Austrian and German team boss- They were locked on the same time at Milan Lucic had a goal and two assists, Torey Nikolai Khabibulin, which was set in 2002-03. It saw its three-game winning streak end. es had traded barbs before the decisive run the final check point, but Neureuther had Krug and Chris Kelly each scored a goal and was Bishop’s fifth shutout this season. over a first-run gate-setting design by one lost speed through the last six gates and David Krejci added three assists, his first coming Michael Kostka had a goal and an assist for COYOTES 3, FLAMES 2 of Hirscher’s coaches. Hirscher’s smoother run carried him to a as he was falling to the ice on Lucic’s score. Tampa Bay, which has won two in a row follow- Shane Doan scored his 350th career goal on “At the end, everything is fine,” said clear winning margin. It’s Boston’s longest winning streak since a ing a five-game losing streak (0-3-2). B.J one of Phoenix’s six third-period power plays to Hirscher, who added his second straight The new champion first greeted Matt, 10-game stretch in November 2011. Alexander Crombeen and Nate Thompson had the other help the Coyotes beat the Calgary Flames. slalom trophy to the third straight overall who beat him to the Olympic title last Semin had the goal and Cam Ward made 36 goals for the Lightning. Martin Brodeur made 29 Chris Summers got his first NHL goal and Rob title he clinched Saturday. month, before going to console saves for the Hurricanes, who lost for the eighth saves for the Devils, who were coming off a 5-3 Klinkhammer also scored to put Phoenix up 2-0 Neureuther said he had been “quite Neureuther. “It’s fine,” between us, time in 11 games. Johnson, playing with regular loss Friday night at Florida. B after one period. Calgary got power-play goals mad” after his first run, but acknowledged Neureuther said, “because Marcel wasn’t goalie Tuukka Rask getting the day off, is 8-0-1 in from Curtis Glencross and Mikael Backlund to tie Hirscher as a worthy winner. “A very, very setting the first run today.” On Saturday, his past nine starts. ISLANDERS 4, SABRES 1 it at 2 after two. tough end,” said Neureuther, who was Neureuther had denied Hirscher the sea- Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo scored first- After a frustrating series of power plays, denied his first season-long title. “The last son-long giant slalom title by the minimum CANADIENS 5, SENATORS 4 period goals, helping the New York Islanders to a Rahim Vrbata rocketed a shot toward the net race was maybe the most difficult of the 0.01 margin. Francis Bouillon scored 1:26 into overtime as 4-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres. and Doan deflected it past Joni Ortio for the whole year. The best won and it was Then, the German’s third-place finish as the Montreal Canadiens erased a three-goal The Islanders (26-34-9) earned their 10th deciding goal with 11:11 to play. Marcel.” the final racer knocked the Austrian down deficit in the third period to defeat the Ottawa home win (10-17-8), and did it in a rare matchup Olympic champion Mario Matt was to fourth and into a points tie with Ligety. Senators. against an opponent they are ahead of in the DUCKS 2, KINGS 1 third, trailing 1.08 behind his Austrian The American got that title on a tiebreaker David Desharnais tied it for Montreal with 1 standings. Backup goalie Anders Nilsson (3-4-2) Patrick Maroon scored the go-ahead goal and teammate’s two-run time of 2 minutes, 7.74 - 5-2 on race wins - over Hirscher. second left in regulation for the Canadiens, who made 33 saves and earned the win in his 15th Frederik Andersen made 37 saves as the seconds. Hirscher had led by 0.06 on the Germany’s Maier earlier revealed that trailed 4-1 five minutes into the final period. NHL game. He lost his shutout bid 56 seconds Anaheim Ducks beat the Los Angeles Kings for morning course. He raced first on the best Austria considered a formal protest Lars Eller, Brian Gionta and Daniel Briere also into the third when Tyler Ennis scored a power- their third straight win in the Freeway Faceoff snow through a gate-setting by an Austria Saturday against Neureuther’s skis. Had he scored for the Canadiens, who stormed back to play goal. But the Islanders’ two-goal lead was rivalry. coach that was branded unfair and ugly by been disqualified, Hirscher would have tak- end a three-game slide. Carey Price made 29 restored 39 seconds later when Ryan Strome Andersen and the Pacific Division leaders Neureuther’s team director, Wolfgang en Ligety’s title. saves in his first NHL game since the Olympic scored his fourth goal. Cal Clutterbuck added an barely held off the Kings, who had a 38-20 shots Maier, and ridiculous by American racer Ted “When they win everything, everything break. empty-netter with 2:13 remaining. advantage. An apparent tying goal by Anze Ligety. is fine,” Maier said, describing the Austria Jason Spezza, Zack Smith, Ales Hemsky and Kopitar was waved off with 6:23 left because of Austria team director Hans Pum defend- team as “the most unfair nation. Always Clarke MacArthur scored for Ottawa, which has BLUES 4, PREDATORS 1 incidental contact with Andersen, prompting ed its right to set any course within the they are finding something to show not lost five of seven. Robin Lehner made 43 saves. Patrik Berglund scored twice to lead the St. Kings fans to litter the ice with debris. rules. “I can understand it a bit,” said really good sportsmanship.” — AP Louis Blues past the Nashville Predators. Vladimir Tim Jackman scored an early goal for the BLUE JACKETS 2, WILD 1 Tarasenko and Alexander Steen had the other Ducks, who have won two straight after a four- Ryan Johansen scored a disputed goal in the goals for the Blues, who have won seven of their game skid knocked them from their longtime fourth round of the shootout to lift the last eight. The game also marked the fifth and perch atop the overall NHL standings. Columbus Blue Jackets over the Minnesota Wild. final game of the season series between the Tyler Toffoli scored a power-play goal and Johansen’s shot initially was ruled a rebound, Central Division rivals, with the Blues winning all Martin Jones stopped 18 shots for the Kings, but a video review showed that Wild goalie five matchups. whose eight-game winning streak was snapped Darcy Kuemper did not touch the puck, making Ryan Miller made 30 saves to improve to 6-0- Thursday by Toronto. — AP it a legal shootout goal. The shootout capped a night of brilliant goal- tending from the Blue Jackets’ Sergei Bobrovsky NHL results/standings and Minnesota’s Kuemper. Bobrovsky stopped 32 of 33 shots through overtime, while Kuemper Boston 5, Carolina 1; Philadelphia 4, Pittsburgh 0; Montreal 5, Ottawa 4 (OT); Tampa Bay 3, New finished with 28 saves. Jersey 0; NY Islanders 4, Buffalo 1; St. Louis 4, Nashville 1; Columbus 2, Minnesota 1 (SO); In the shootout, Zach Parise and Mikko Koivu Phoenix 3, Calgary 2; Anaheim 2, Los Angeles 1. scored for Minnesota, but Artem Anisimov and Mark Letestu rallied the Blue Jackets to set up Western Conference Eastern Conference Pacific Division Atlantic Division Johansen’s clincher. Boston 45 17 5 215 146 95 W L OTL GF GA PTS Toronto 36 24 8 201 207 80 FLYERS 4, PENGUINS 0 Anaheim 45 16 7 218 172 97 Tampa Bay 36 24 7 194 175 79 Matt Read scored a pair of goals as the San Jose 44 17 7 213 165 95 Montreal 36 25 7 172 174 79 Philadelphia Flyers beat the short-handed Los Angeles 38 24 6 165 144 82 Detroit 30 23 13 174 184 73 Pittsburgh Penguins. Scott Hartnell and Vincent Ottawa 28 25 13 189 218 69 Phoenix 32 25 11 188 193 75 Florida 25 35 7 166 217 57 Lecavalier also scored for Philadelphia, which is Vancouver 30 29 10 163 187 70 Buffalo 19 40 8 132 200 46 in the middle of a tightly bunched pack of teams Calgary 27 34 7 165 202 61 Metropolitan Division battling for a playoff spot. Edmonton 23 36 9 169 223 55 Pittsburgh 44 18 4 206 163 92 The Penguins, who are comfortably atop the Central Division Columbus 35 26 6 195 184 76 Metropolitan Division, were shut out for the NY Rangers 36 28 4 177 169 76 St. Louis 46 14 7 223 151 99 Philadelphia 34 25 7 188 190 75 fourth time this season. Pittsburgh played with- Colorado 43 19 5 206 180 91 Washington 31 27 10 197 205 72 out its third- and fourth-leading scorers, Chris Chicago 38 15 14 227 178 90 New Jersey 29 26 13 166 176 71 Kunitz (lower body) and James Neal (concus- Minnesota 35 22 10 164 164 80 Carolina 29 29 9 168 192 67 sion). The Flyers neutralized Pittsburgh stars Dallas 32 23 11 191 185 75 NY Islanders 26 34 9 195 233 61 Note: Overtime losses (OTL) are worth one point in LENZERHEIDE: Overall Ski World Cup winner Austria’s Marcel Hirscher holds his Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Steve Mason Winnipeg 30 29 9 186 199 69 made 25 saves for his fourth shutout of the sea- the standings and are not included in the loss col- Globe trophy as he celebrates on the podium at the FIS Men’s Alpine Skiing World Nashville 29 29 10 164 201 68 umn (L). Cup finals. — AFP son and 23rd of his career. MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 SPORTS

Referees, shooters and officials in a joint picture. (Inset) Afrah Adel —Photos by Sherif Ismail Kuwait shooters dominate championship

By Abdellatif Sharaa gold, Abdelaziz Al-Saad clinched silver and Otaibi said the success of the sporting cham- hope to continue winning championships, Al-Osaimi commended the technical level of Fares Al-Mutairi took the bronze. pionship followed on the heels of success of especially that we own an international shoot- the tournament of HH the Amir in general and KUWAIT: Kuwaiti shooters dominated the In the veteran’s category Belgiums Nello HH the Amir Third International Shooting ing center, which is Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad sporting in particular. He said Kuwait won the international sporting championship that con- Accaputo was first followed by his compatriot Grand Prix, which took place with total sup- Olympic Shooting Complex.” confidence and appreciation of the participat- cluded on Saturday at Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Eric Manshoven, while Kuwait’s Khalaf Al- port from HH the Amir. He appreciated the He said this year’s sporting championship ing countries. Olympic Shooting Complex. Kuwait’s Abdallah Otaibi was third. efforts of honorary president of Kuwait was good as shooters from Belgium, Morocco, Kuwait shooter Abdallah Al-Rashidi said he Al-Rashidi won the gold medal in the men’s In the ladies category, it was all Kuwait, as Shooting Sports Club, President of Asian and Kuwait attracted a large number of fans dealt with the sporting championship serious- category followed by Saad Al-Hubaida also Afrah Mohammad emerged first, followed by Shooting Confederation, Vice-president of ISSF who highly enjoyed it. He said that a special ly and great devotion. He said he enters tour- from Kuwait and third place went to Morocco’s Iman Al-Shamma, and Futooh Mohammad. Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al- sporting range will be constructed and will be naments with high concentration and this Mohammad Hamza bin Haida. President of Kuwait and Arab Shooting Sabah. an indicator on the development of Kuwait sporting event was no exception. He said he Kuwait’s juniors won the first three medals Federations, member of Asina Shooting He said Kuwait shooting is now among the shooting. Meanwhile, Secretary General of was happy with first place, adding that he in that category as Ali Saad Al-Bughaili won Confederation and ISSF Engr Duaij Khalaf Al- developed countries in this field and “we still Kuwait and Arab Shooting Federations Obaid played four rounds and emerged victorious.

Iman Al-Shamma, Futooh Adel and Afrah Adel Eng Duaij Al-Otaibi lifts the cup with gold medallist Shooters Saad Al-Hubaida, Abdallah Al-Rashidi, Nello Accaputo and Mohammad Benhida Abdallah Al-Rashidi. with Duaij Al-Otaibi.

Adnan Al-Ibrahim hands Afrah Adel her first place cup. Obaid Al-Osaimi with the junior category winners. Duaij Al-Otaibi (second left) Obaid Al-Osaimi, Mohammad Al-Daihani, Adnan Al- Ibrahim and other officials watching the action.

Protocol girls in a group photo. KSSC services team KSSC secretariat and accounting departments employees. M.C. Fareed Dashti MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 SPORTS Langer leaves pack behind

NEWPORT BEACH: Bernhard Langer to 10 feet and made the birdie putt. maintained a two-stroke lead Saturday in “I was told it hit him,” Langer said. “But the Champions Tour’s Toshiba Classic, it was more like it bounced a few times making four birdies in a late five-hole and rolled up to him. He was OK.” Perry stretch for a 5-under 66. also had a strange incident. On No. 9, he Langer, the 2008 winner, had a 13- tried to cut the corner on the dogleg under 129 total at Newport Beach right and caught a palm tree about 37 Country Club. The 56-year-old German yards from the tee box. won the season-opening event in Hawaii Fortunately, the ball fell to the side of in January for his 19th victory on the 50- the tree. Perry hit a 4-iron layup, followed and-over tour. Kenny Perry and Chien by a 9-iron to 4 feet and made the putt Soon Lu had a share of second spot. for par. “That hole’s got me,” Perry said. “If Perry made a 15-foot eagle putt on the I had to play a lot of holes like it, I would- par-5 18th for a 65, and Lu shot 66. Fred n’t play much.” Couples, Scott Dunlap, Esteban Toledo Ryder Cup captain Tom Watson made and Jeff Hart were 10 under. Langer a 30-foot eagle putt on the last hole for Garrigus opened with a birdie, then made his first 63, tied for the best round of the day. It Garrigus bogey of the tournament on his next was the first time on the Champions Tour hole. He added two more birdies on the the 64-year-old Watson has bettered his front nine but also had another bogey. age on the tour. He was tied for 12th at 8 On the back nine, Langer birdied Nos. under. “When you are 64, it doesn’t hap- leadsleads inin 13, 14, 15 and 17. On No. 15, he hit son pen that much anymore,” Watson said. “I Jason in the gallery on his approach shot. have been rolling in a lot of putts Langer then hit a flop shot over a bunker though.” — AP Putin’s Olympics end FloridaFlorida under a Crimean cloud

SOCHI: Triumphant in the midst of global versy over Ukraine, Crimea, and that’s driv- FLORIDA: Robert Garrigus missed a short par three. Garrigus, eyeing a second tour victory, admit it but I didn’t think I was playing slow and condemnation, Vladimir Putin clinked his ing a lot of the perception.” putt at the final hole to cut his lead to one stroke also missed a short putt at the 12th hole but was Robert plays fast.” Senden, widely regarded as champagne flute with sports leaders, The scale of the Sochi venture - it was over Kevin Na in the third round of the $5.7 mil- upbeat after his round. “This is the position you one of the world’s top ball-strikers, looked the toasting the success of his pet project in the most expensive Olympic Games ever, lion Tampa Bay Championship in Florida on want,” the 36-year-old told PGATour.com. “I part as he ran off seven birdies. Sochi. winter or summer - was matched by the Saturday. haven’t made a bad stroke yet except for those “I’ve been doing some great work with my Under chandeliers in ornate surround- record-breaking achievement of the Garrigus made a blazing start with three early couple (of putts on the back nine) and I’m hit- coach Ian Triggs and wanted to take it to the golf ings, the wine was flowing over lunch dur- Russian athletes who topped the birdies and opened up a four-stroke cushion at ting it well, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow.” course,” Senden said after sinking a 30-foot the turn at the Copperhead course in Palm Garrigus and Na were “on the clock” for slow birdie bomb at the last. ing the Paralympics as the Russian presi- Paralympic medals table. Harbor. He threatened to run away with the play for much of the back nine and each He shared the low round of the day with dent saluted the transformational effect of “Russia always wants to try to be the tournament but did not make a birdie on the received a ‘bad time’ warning - Garrigus on the Retief Goosen, a two-time U.S. Open champion his nation’s six-week sporting extravagan- best,” biathlete Alena Kaufman, who won back nine, ending his day on a sour note when 13th hole and Na the 14th. A second ‘bad time’ whose world ranking has slipped to 318 after za. For Putin, the 2014 Winter Olympics three gold for Russia, said through a trans- he missed a five-foot putt to shoot one-under- would have resulted in a one-stroke penalty. back surgery in 2012. Goosen became frustrated and Paralympics were a validation of mod- lator. “We have definitely done that.” She par 70, leaving a group of players move within The fidgety Na never looked comfortable when he could not convert his early birdie ern Russia’s place on the world stage and also noted with pride how sports can give striking distance. over the ball, but his bogey at the 10th was his opportunities, but his drought turned into a del- “our invariably kind attitude toward hope to those with disabilities. Garrigus stands on an eight-under 205 total, first, and so far only, dropped shot this week. uge as he made three in a row from the seventh friends.” “There could be small children in chil- with Na (68) on seven-under. Australian John “The back nine I felt a little rushed,” said Na, hole. “Suddenly I made one and hallelujah, it But between the Olympians leaving the dren’s homes with disabilities who perhaps Senden, a two-time runner-up at Innisbrook, who did not think he and Garrigus deserved to started happening,” said Goosen, who ended the Black Sea resort of Sochi last month and thought before they were limited by their compiled a brilliant bogey-free 64 to vault with- be on the clock, even though at times they were day four shots off the pace. “I made a 15-footer the Paralympians arriving, Putin became disability but now see there are possibili- in two strokes of the lead, while Englishman nearly two holes behind the pair in front. with a big break and from then on suddenly the rapidly isolated in the international com- ties,” Kaufman said. Justin Rose (69) bogeyed the last and trails by “When I’m playing slow I’ll be the first to hole was bigger.” — Reuters munity as Russian forces took over Dmitry Chernyshenko, president of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, only 300 Sochi’s organizing committee, is convinced miles (480 kilometers) away. The that attitudes have already shifted in this Paralympic flame will be extinguished late vast nation during the 10-day Paralympics, B’desh thrash Afghanistan yesterday closing the ceremony just as breaking down a “mental barrier” in voting ends in a referendum, denounced Russian society. “We have broken the DHAKA: Hosts Bangladesh made an impressive start in in the West as illegitimate, on whether stereotypes about people with impair- the World Twenty20 with a nine-wicket demolition of Crimea should split off from Ukraine and ments,” Chernyshenko said. “We are really Afghanistan in the tournament opener in Dhaka yester- seek annexation by Russia. different as a country.” day. Left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan grabbed three Although Ukraine backed off from boy- Visiting Sochi from Moscow, 30-year- wickets for eight runs as Afghanistan, sent in to bat, cotting the Paralympics, the crisis afflicting old Yulia Simonova found moving around were skittled for 72 in 17.1 overs at the Sher-e-Bangla their homeland remained on the minds of the resort to be far easier in a wheelchair stadium. athletes competing in Russia. In protest, than in the Russian capital. She said atti- The meagre total was the second lowest in the Ukrainian parathletes covered their medals tudes in Russia toward the disabled have World T20 competitions, barely surpassing Ireland’s 68 during podium ceremonies. steadily improved in the years since she against the West Indies in 2010. “That is how we show our protest and was not allowed to attend a regular school. A sell-out home crowd of 25,000 then cheered disagreement that our country could be “I felt very comfortable in Sochi and I every run as Bangladesh raced home in 12 overs, with divided and part of it could be excluded could go around very easily,” Simonova opener Anamul Haque sealing the emphatic win with a from Ukraine,” said Iuliia Batenkova, who said. “Maybe it’s not perfect but it’s much six off Samiullah Shenwari. won six medals in Sochi including one better.” Haque, who put on 45 for the first wicket with Tamim gold. “Crimea is my motherland, where I The challenge for Sochi is now ensuring Iqbal, was unbeaten on a 33-ball 44 that was studded was born, and of course I worry about it. I the new resorts carved into the mountains with three sixes and four boundaries. want peace.” and on the coast have a legacy and don’t With just one team going into the Super-10 stage Such an intervention in a neighboring become empty crumbling memories of from the preliminary group A that also has debutants country seemed to many to be at odds Russia’s 2014 winter of sports. The stadium Hong Kong and Nepal, the defeat left Afghanistan fac- with the message Russia intended in this for the opening and closing ceremonies in ing an early exit. $50 billion-plus rebranding exercise - that Sochi could remain largely empty until Shakib, who was named man of the match, said the a nation which had moved on from the 2018, when soccer’s World Cup comes to turning pitch helped his team make a good start to Cold War since the 1991 collapse of the Russia. But the first Formula One race will their campaign. “There was obviously spin out there,” he Soviet Union. be staged this year around Sochi’s Olympic said. “We put the ball in the right areas and that did the But Putin’s government remains con- Park and officials are anticipating an influx trick for us. This is usually a good track, but today it was vinced that the successful transformation of tourists to the mountain village of different.” The Afghans, who had beaten Bangladesh in Sochi - once a decaying Soviet-era resort - Krasnaya Polyana, which has been trans- the preceding Asia Cup one-day tournament, faltered into a world-class tourist hotspot will over- formed into a Swiss-style ski resort with badly on Sunday to reduce a much-anticipated contest ride the current diplomatic tensions. “The brand-new lifts and international hotels. to a one-sided affair. Skipper Mohammad Nabi admit- new Russia is a Russia that is capable of But the next major event planned here - ted Bangladesh’s spinners did not let his side settle carrying out large-scale projects, capable the Group of Eight summit in June - is down after hard-hitting opener Mohammad Shahzad of creating modern infrastructure in a already in turmoil. The US and six other had been dismissed off the first ball of the match. record short timescale, both in terms of nations have already suspended planning “We were under pressure in this opening match,” said sports and the rest of society,” Russian for the summit after Russian-backed forces Nabi. “Shakib and the others bowled very well on the Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak told seized control of Crimea two weeks ago. spinning pitch. But I am hopeful we will put up a better The Associated Press in Sochi. By then the memories of Olympic and performance in the remaining matches.” “The new Russia is a Russia that open to Paralympic glory - witnessed by record TV Six qualifiers-Ireland, Afghanistan, Nepal, Hong the whole world, which cooperates and audiences globally - could have faded. Kong, the United Arab Emirates and the Netherlands- makes friends with people from all over Chernyshenko, who lead Sochi’s Olympic joined Zimbabwe and Bangladesh in the preliminary the world,” he declared. That’s the impres- bid and staging, hopes not. league of two groups. The two group winners will then sion some visitors had after the much “We have created a fantastic cumulative contest the Super-10 round with the top eight Test more high-profile Winter Olympics - but it effect that united the nation and turned nations-Australia, Pakistan, South Africa, England, New could be a rapidly shifting vision. “I think dramatically the attitude from abroad to Zealand, India, Sri Lanka and the West Indies-from (the Olympics) did improve the image (of Russia,” he said. “Everyone recognizes that March 21. The final is on April 6 in Dhaka. Russia),” Martin Sorrell, CEO of global we are modern, efficient, transparent and advertising giant WPP, said in an interview very hospitable. We delivered what we Brief scores: in Sochi. “But now you have this contro- have promised.”— AP Afghanistan 72 all out in 17.1 overs (Gulbadin Naib 21, Shakib Al Hasan 3-8, Abdur Razzak 2-20) Bangladesh 78-1 in 12 overs (Tamim Iqbal 21, Anamul Haque 44 not out) DHAKA: Bangladesh’s batsman Anamul Haque celebrates after hitting the winning Bangladesh won by nine wickets. —AFP shot during their ICC Twenty20 Cricket World Cup opening match against Afghanistan. — AP Nepal rout Hong Kong

CHITTAGONG: Nepal marked their arrival on the international cricket ing three wickets for nine runs and Basant Regmi taking three for 14. stage with a massive 80-run win over fellow newcomers Hong Kong Babar Hayat top-scored for Hong Kong with 20, but eight batsmen in a preliminary group match at the World Twenty20 yesterday. failed to reach double figures against the steady Nepalese attack. Nepal hammered 149-8 after being sent into bat and then bowled Hosts Bangladesh had thumped Afghanistan by nine wickets in the Hong Kong out for just 69 in 17 overs in the day-night match at group A tournament opener in Dhaka earlier yesterday. Nepal and Chittagong’s Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury stadium. The memorable Hong Kong are among six qualifiers-the others being Ireland, group A win was set up by skipper Paras Khadka and Gyanendra Afghanistan, the United Arab Emirates and the Netherlands-who Malla, who put on 80 for the third wicket after Nepal were reduced to joined Zimbabwe and Bangladesh in the two-group preliminary 36-2 in 5.1 overs. Khadka hit a 37-ball 41, while Malla made 48 off 41 league. The two group winners will then contest the Super-10 round balls with four boundaries and a six. with the top eight Test nations-Australia, Pakistan, South Africa, Nepal lost four wickets off the last four deliveries of the innings- England, New Zealand, India, Sri Lanka and the West Indies-from two of them run out-which denied them a bigger total. March 21. But even the 150-run target proved too stiff for Hong Kong after the inspirational Khadka had opener Irfan Ahmed caught behind Brief scores: with the first ball of the innings. Nepal 149-8 (Paras Khadka 41, Gyanendra Malla 48, Haseeb Amjad Hong Kong suffered a dramatic middle order collapse, losing four 3-25, Nadeem Ahmed 2-26) SOCHI: The flame burns at the Olympic Park during the last day of the 2014 Winter wickets in eight balls at the same score of 58. The innings was Hong Kong 69 all out in 17 overs (Babar Hayat 20, Shakti Gauchan 3- Paralympics in Sochi. — AP wrecked by Nepal’s two left-arm spinners, with Shakti Gauchan claim- 9, Basant Regmi 3-14). Nepal won by 80 runs. —AFP MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 SPORTS Rosberg wins F1 Photo of the day season-opener

MELBOURNE: Nico Rosberg drew first thrilled German said over the team laps after Hamilton, complaining of blood for Mercedes in the new Formula radio after crossing the line. engine performance problems. One season with a dominant Australian “The car was just really, really quick Ricciardo, who replaced compatriot Grand Prix victory yesterday after pole- today,” the German later told reporters, Mark Webber at Red Bull after crossing sitter Lewis Hamilton and world cham- looking forward with relish to the next from sister team Toro Rosso, thrilled pion Sebastian Vettel retired with relia- race in Malaysia in two weeks. “A really home fans by taking his maiden podium bility problems. good engine, not much problem with spot in his first race with his new team Vettel’s early exit ended the Red Bull fuel consumption. It just all worked per- and drove with admirable composure driver’s record run of nine successive fectly.” after being challenged by Magnussen victories racked up since last August. The gaping margin of victory under- over the closing laps. While one German smarted, another scored Mercedes’ superior preparations The runner-up finish was a boost for celebrated as 28-year-old Rosberg capi- for F1’s technical revolution, which saw the Milton Keynes-based team, who talised on a brilliant start from third on all teams struggle during winter testing endured a dismal winter testing in the grid, snatching the lead before the with the new V6 turbocharged hybrid which neither driver was able to com- first turn and roaring to a 24.5-second engines. The glitches continued as only plete a race simulation. “Two, three weeks ago, I would have bet pretty much anything we have that we would not be standing up here,” the 24-year-old said after becoming the first Australian on the podium at his home Grand Prix since the race has been part Carlos Sainz Jr (ESP) drives during World Series 3.5 by Renault Tests at Motorland Aragon in Aragon, of the championship. “First Aussie on the Spain on February 25, 2014 —www.redbullcontentpool.com Aussie podium, so really proud.” Magnussen’s podium was the first by a Dane in Formula One and McLaren’s first since 2012, the 21-year-old outshining Grizzlies maul 76ers 2009 champion team mate Jenson Button, who finished fourth in front of PHILADELPHIA: The 76ers had a loss for Ferrari’s two-time world champion the record book. Mike Conley scored 19 NBA results/standings Fernando Alonso. points and Zach Randolph had 14 to lead Williams driver Valtteri Bottas fin- the Memphis Grizzlies to a 103-77 win ished sixth for his best F1 result after an Saturday night, sending the 76ers to a NY Knicks 115, Milwaukee 94; Washington 101, Brooklyn 94; Atlanta 97, outstanding race from 15th on the grid, franchise-tying 20th straight loss. The Denver 92; Indiana 112, Detroit 104 (OT); Memphis 103, Philadelphia 77; having also overcome a punctured rear Sixers can set the team mark with a loss Chicago 94, Sacramento 87. tyre after brushing a barrier. Monday night at Indiana. Eastern Conference Western Conference His eight-point haul was more than The Sixers also lost 20 straight games Atlantic Division Northwest Division his team scored in all of last season. His from Jan. 9, 1973-Feb. 11, 1973, in a 9-73 W L PCT GB Oklahoma City 48 17 .738 - new team mate Felipe Massa was season. The NBA record for consecutive Toronto 37 27 .578 - Portland 43 23 .652 5.5 unable to add to the tally, however, hav- losses in a season is 26 set by the 2010-11 Brooklyn 33 31 .516 4 Minnesota 32 32 .500 15.5 ing been taken out of the race at the Cleveland Cavaliers. NY Knicks 27 40 .403 11.5 Denver 29 37 .439 19.5 first turn by Caterham’s Kamui That mark just may be next: The Sixers Boston 22 44 .333 16 MELBOURNE: Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg of Germany (center) holds the Kobayashi. (15-51) play only one team over the next Philadelphia 15 51 .227 23 Utah 22 44 .333 26.5 six games with a losing record, the Knicks trophy after winning the Formula One Australian Grand Prix as third- The Japanese ploughed into the Central Division Pacific Division on Friday, and they are on a six-game win- placed McLaren driver Kevin Magnussen of Denmark (right) and second- back of Massa’s Williams, enraging the LA Clippers 47 20 .701 - ning streak. Indiana 49 17 .742 - placed Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo of Australia (left) look on at the Brazilian and prompting an FIA investi- Chicago 37 29 .561 12 Golden State 41 26 .612 6 Albert Park circuit. — AFP gation. Kimi Raikkonen’s eighth-placed Michael Carter-Williams led the Sixers with 23 points and Thaddeus Young had Cleveland 26 40 .394 23 Phoenix 37 28 .569 9 finish behind Force India’s Nico 20. “This is not slit-your-wrist time. This is Detroit 25 41 .379 24 Sacramento 23 43 .348 23.5 victory ahead of Red Bull’s Australian 14 of the 22 cars finished on a gusty day Hulkenberg capped a frustrating return not even close to that,” Philadelphia coach Milwaukee 13 53 .197 36 LA Lakers 22 44 .333 24.5 Daniel Ricciardo. at the bumpy street circuit which was to Maranello for the 2007 world champi- Southeast Division Brett Brown said before the game. “This is Southwest Division On an overcast day at Albert Park, doused by a brief rain-shower early in on, who started 11th on the grid after a about building a program and under- Miami 44 19 .698 - Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen shone the race. Hamilton, who snatched pole crash during qualifying. standing the short-term pain for a lot of Washington 35 31 .530 10.5 San Antonio 49 16 .754 - with a brilliant third place finish for position at the end of a wet qualifying Russian rookie Daniil Kvyat finished long-term gain. Charlotte 32 34 .485 13.5 Houston 44 21 .677 5 McLaren, emulating Hamilton’s first session on Saturday, noticeably lacked 10th on his debut for Toro Rosso, Atlanta 29 35 .453 15.5 Dallas 39 27 .591 10.5 effort for the British team at the same power on his start and was called in by becoming at 19 years old the sport’s PACERS 112, PISTONS 104 Orlando 19 48 .284 27 Memphis 39 27 .591 10.5 Grand Prix in 2007. The result meant all his team to retire on the third lap. youngest points scorer. Paul George scored 30 points and three men on the podium had beaten Mercedes later clarified his car had Lotus’s insipid race weekend finished Indiana rallied from a 25-point second- world champion team mates in a stun- suffered a misfiring cylinder. “We will with both Romain Grosjean and Pastor quarter deficit to defeat Detroit. Evan ning triumph of the underdogs. recover from this, it’s only a small hic- Maldonado unable to complete the race Turner added 20 points for the Pacers, and Rosberg, tipped to duel with team cup. There’s a long way to go still,” due to reliability problems. The race David West scored six of his 15 points in mate Hamilton for the championship, Hamilton told Sky television. “At the stumbled at the start, with Marussia overtime. Indiana leads Miami by 31/2 celebrated his fourth race victory and moment I’m not concerned about any- driver Max Chilton stalling on the games in the race for the top seed in the first since last year’s British Grand Prix, thing.” grid before the pre-start installation Eastern Conference. when he was also the beneficiary of lap and his team mate Jules Bianchi Josh Smith scored 23 points for the technical mishaps to Hamilton and Red FIRST AUSSIE then repeating the mishap. Bianchi, Pistons, who lost star center Andre Bull’s Vettel. “Brilliant stuff, what a car Twelfth off the grid, Vettel also strug- along with both Caterhams, was Drummond in the first quarter to a neck injury. Drummond was able to walk off you’ve given me! What a car!” the gled at the start and retired only a few unable to finish. —Reuters with some assistance, but he was expect- ed to have further testing. Federer and Djokovic to BULLS 94, KINGS 87 Joakim Noah had 23 points and 11 rebounds, Taj Gibson scored seven of his meet in Indian Wells final 19 points in the fourth quarter and Chicago held off Sacramento. Mike Dunleavy added 16 and DJ Augustin 12 for INDIAN WELLS: Roger Federer and dropping a set in the California desert of us,” Federer said in a courtside inter- the Bulls. Isaiah Thomas led the Kings with Novak Djokovic set up another mouth- this week. view. “I think I really served well when I 26 and DeMarcus Cousins had 25. Both watering final at the BNP Paribas Open Relaxed and super confident after had to and that allowed me to take teams struggled on offense, with the Bulls at Indian Wells after winning their winning his 78th singles title in Dubai more chances. shooting 40 percent and the Kings 37 per- semis on Saturday. earlier this month, Federer pounced “Alexandr’s had a wonderful tour- cent. Federer ended the giant-killing run on Dolgopolov from the outset, break- nament so it’s really a big win for me The Bulls, who are fourth in the Eastern of Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov ing him once to snatch the opening today. I was going for it and I served a Conference, improved to 3-2 on their six- when he cruised to a 6-3 6-1 victory in set. lot of aces, it was one of the best serv- game homestand. The Kings are 2-4 on a one-sided semi-final that lasted just “I was ready physically, mentally,” ing performances of my career.” their seven-game road trip. a tick over an hour. said Dolgopolov. “I wasn’t nervous Later, at his news conference, Cousins hit a layup with 1:01 left to cut Then Djokovic succeeded in blunt- much, but I wasn’t sharp enough. My Federer said he was in a good frame of the Bulls’ lead to 88-85. Gibson responded mind, having made his third final this with a jumper and the Bulls made four of year. “Now it’s just a matter of keeping six free throws to seal the win. that up, taking the right decisions not WIZARDS 101, NETS 94 to overplay, not to underplay, and John Wall scored 33 points, Drew enjoy yourself. Because at the end of Gooden got 11 of his 21 in the final quar- the day, it’s also very important,” he ter and Washington overcame a 10-point said. fourth-quarter deficit to beat Brooklyn and “But having the fire and wanting to move past the Nets for fifth place in the win every single match you go out Eastern Conference. there and in the practice trying to Gooden’s 3-pointer broke a 94-94 tie improve as much as you can, I think with 2:37 left. Trevor Ariza then scored off I’ve got the good balance right now, an offensive rebound with 44 seconds left so it’s very encouraging.” Isner upset and Wall capped it with dunk. CHICAGO: Joakim Noah No. 13 of the Chicago Bulls dunks against the Djokovic in the semi-finals at Indian The Nets, who went the final 6:22 with- Sacramento Kings at the United Center. — AFP out a field goal, were led by Marcus Wells two years ago but the Serbian each scored 15 for the Knicks, who easily and 10 assists and Atlanta rallied to beat Thornton’s 19 points. Joe Johnson added was better prepared this time. ended their daytime woes by pounding Denver and earn its third straight win. 16 and Paul Pierce had 15. The key to beating the 6ft 10in the team with the NBA’s worst record. Kenneth Faried finished with 25 points Trailing 82-72 early in the fourth, the (2.08metre) Isner has always revolved Nate Wolters scored 15 for the Bucks, and Wilson Chandler scored 12 for the Wizards went on a 15-4 run keyed by around how his opponents cope with who lost their third straight. New York’ Nuggets. Kyle Korver, who hit a pair of free Gooden (8 of 11 from the field) and Al his devastating serve. playoff push has taken a backseat to the throws in the closing seconds to make it Harrington. Washington completed a The wind had died down shortly news that Jackson was coming in to run 96-92, scored 18 points and Pero Antic sweep of the season series (3-0). after Federer wrapped up his victory the Knicks’ front office. The Knicks will added 16 for Atlanta. over Dolgopolov and Djokovic had to introduce the 11-time champion as a Ty Lawson, Denver’s leading scorer KNICKS 115, BUCKS 94 save three set points on his serve in coach at a news conference Tuesday this season, handed out 11 assists, but Carmelo Anthony scored 23 points, Tim morning. went 0 for 12 from the field and finished the 10th game of the opening set. But Hardaway Jr. had 20, and New York beat with two points. The win kept the Hawks in the following game, Djokovic made Milwaukee for its season-high sixth HAWKS 97, NUGGETS 92 31/2 games ahead of the Knicks for the his move, breaking Isner’s serve for the straight victory as the team prepares to Paul Millsap had 24 points and 11 eighth and final Eastern Conference play- first time then serving out the set. welcome Phil Jackson back to the fran- rebounds, Jeff Teague added 15 points off spot. — AP Djokovic twice had the chance to chise. Amare Stoudemire and J.R. Smith serve out the match in the second but faltered each time as Isner forced a tiebreak, which he won to set off a Betancur gives Colombia deafening roar in the stadium . In the deciding third set, it was all first victory in Paris-Nice Djokovic as Isner began to struggle INDIAN WELLS: Roger Federer of Switzerland serves to Alexandr NICE: Carlos Betancur became the first Tour of Italy. “I have received great sup- Dolgopolov of Ukraine during the semifinals of the BNP Parabas Open at with fitness, and the Serbian seized his Colombian cyclist to win the Paris-Nice port from my team-mates while I have the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. — AFP opportunity. race yesterday following the eighth and held the overall lead,” said Betancur, who “He’s definitely the best server in final stage. French champion Arthur won two stages during the week. ing the booming serve of John Isner to concentration was going away for the world right now so it’s never easy Vichot won the stage, raced along the cel- Betancur, who rides for the French beat the American 7-5 6-7(2) 6-1 and maybe one, two points every game, against John,” said Djokovic. “I should ebrated Promenade des Anglais, which AG2R team, kept a keen eye on Costa join Federer in Sunday’s championship and you can’t afford to have that in have closed it out in the second set saw several riders, including Portugal’s throughout the final stage as the match. these matches.” but I didn’t and he played an amazing road race Portuguese rider was only 14sec behind It will be the 33rd time overall and The Ukrainian had beaten three tiebreaker. “It was only fair that it went world champion Rui Costa, lose their him in the overall standings. the ninth time in a final that the pair higher ranked players, including world to a third set because I got lucky in the chance of victory in the stage in a pile-up The only anxious moment he had vis a have locked horns. Federer holds a 17- number one Rafa Nadal, to reach the first set. He should have won the first 300 metres from the finish. Costa was able vis his main rival was when Costa tried to 15 lead in their head-to head matches semis but was powerless to stop the set and I should have won the second.” to remount and cycle gingerly to the fin- steal a march on him on the Col d’Eze, the and they are tied 4-4 in finals. 32-year-old Federer, who fired down Late yesterday ‘s women’s final will be ishing line of the ‘Race to the Sun’ to finish final climb of the stage, but he and his The Swiss master has already won seven aces in a brilliant serving per- contested between Poland’s second overall. team-the first French team to have the the Indian Wells title four times and formance. Agnieszka Radwanska and Italian vet- Betancur, 24, was winning his first winner of the race since Swiss rider Tony made it through to a fifth final without “(It was) tough conditions for both eran Flavia Pennetta. — Reuters stage race at WorldTour level, although he Rominger won in 1991 — reeled him in Carlos Betancur finished an impressive fifth in last year’s without any great difficulty. — AFP SPORTS MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Hamburg escape Seven up for Barcelona as bottom three with Messi breaks another record Nuremberg win MADRID: Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick to become Barcelona’s all-time record goalscorer BERLIN: Hamburg escaped the defrauded the state of 28.5 million euros as they cut the gap on La Liga leaders Real Bundesliga’s bottom three for the first ($39.5 million) in unpaid taxes. Madrid to four points ahead of their meeting time since January with a tense 2-1 win Leverkusen were the last German next weekend with a 7-0 thrashing of at home to fellow-strugglers Nuremberg team to beat Bayern, back in October Osasuna. yesterday. 2012, but Sami Hyypia’s side offered little After a slow start, the hosts were sparked Hamburg midfielder Hakan resistance as they suffered their seventh into life by Messi’s opening goal as he flicked Calhanoglu gave them a late lead when defeat in eight matches. home at the near post from Alexis Sanchez’s his deflected shot looped over They had already dropped to fourth cross. Nuremberg goalkeeper Raphael Schaefer after being knocked from third by Sanchez was next on the scoresheet as he on 80 minutes. Nuremberg midfielder Schalke’s 2-1 win at Augsburg on Friday finished off a similar move involving Andres Mike Frantz then turned the ball into his when Dutch striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar Iniesta and Jordi Alba before Iniesta’s wonder- own net six minutes later. scored both goals. ful strike from 25 yards made it 3-0. Hamburg’s Germany goalkeeper Rene Messi then broke another record by regis- Adler pulled off a stunning save to deny DORTMUND STUMBLE tering his 370th Barca goal to overtake Jose Campana’s free-kick after Swiss strik- Bayern’s relentless march to the title er Josip Drmic scored the guests’ late was helped after second-placed Borussia Paulinho Alcantara as the club’s record marks- consolation goal in added time. Dortmund suffered a 2-1 defeat at home man before rounding off his hat-trick in With Hamburg desperate to avoid to Borussia Moenchengladbach earlier between further strikes from Cristian Tello and their first relegation from Germany’s top on Saturday. Pedro Rodriguez. flight, Mirko Slomka replaced Bert van Gladbach earned their first win in ten “The victory is very important because we Marwijk as coach a month ago and saw games to dent Dortmund’s confidence remain four points behind Madrid,” Sanchez his side climb to 14th. ahead of Wednesday’s Champions told Canal Plus. “We played a great game and I “We’ve overtaken two teams now, League last 16 clash at home to Zenit St am happy with my performance as I scored which means nothing other than we now Petersburg when they hold a 4-2 lead and provided an assist.” Next up for Barcelona SPAIN: Barcelona’s Lionel Messi, from Argentina (left) duels for the ball against Osasuna’s have something to defend-namely, not from the first leg. is a trip to the Santiago Bernabeu next Sisinio Gonzalez during a Spanish La Liga soccer match at the Camp Nou stadium. — AP being in the relegation places,” said Dortmund are now just one point Sunday and Sanchez is sure they can get in even further ahead at the break. Substitute Tello got his side’s fifth goal with Slomka. Nuremberg drop to 15th while clear of third-placed Schalke ahead of the themselves back into the title race by ending Osasuna should have got themselves back virtually his first touch as he whipped the ball VfB Stuttgart, who drew 1-1 at Werder Ruhr Valley derby on March 25. Swiss Madrid’s five-month unbeaten run in all com- in the game early in the second-half as Riera into the far corner from just outside the area. Bremen on Saturday under new coach coach Lucien Favre extended his petitions. and Roberto Torres failed to hit the target Messi fittingly sealed his hat-trick as he Huub Stevens, find themselves second Gladbach contract last week until 2017 “I think we can beat Real Madrid in the when presented with clear sights of goal. received Dani Alves’ pass before easily side- from bottom. and his side produced a devastating first- Bernabeu and that would put us right in the They were soon further behind, though, as footing in from close range for his 31st goal of Freiburg moved up to 16th, but stay in half spell with two goals in nine minutes fight for La Liga. “Both teams will see them- Messi slammed home Iniesta’s cut-back just the season. And Messi then teed up Pedro to the relegation places, with a 4-1 win at at Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion. selves as favourites, they are the two biggest after the hour mark to surpass Alcantara’s 369 make it 7-0 in stoppage time with a neat low Eintracht Frankfurt yesterday as five Brazilian striker Raffael wrong-footed clubs in the world and it will be a great game. goals in 357 games between 1912 and 1927. finish past Fernandez. — AFP points now separate the bottom five Dortmund goalkeeper Roman We are going to the Bernabeu with only the teams. At the top of the table, leaders Weidenfeller on 31 minutes, then Max Bayern Munich can be crowned champi- Kruse fired home five minutes before the intention of winning.” Spanish League results/standings ons next Saturday-with a record eight break. Gladbach midfielder Havard Amazingly, Barca had to withstand a bright games to spare-as their 2-1 win at home Nordtveit was sent off for a second yel- opening from Osasuna as Victor Valdes pro- to Bayer Leverkusen left them 23 points low card for the final 20 minutes and duced a great save to deny Emiliano Elche 0 Real Betis 0; Barcelona 7 (Messi 19, 62, 88, Sanchez 21, Iniesta 34, Tello 78, Pedro 90) clear. The European champions will be new-signing Milos Jojic pulled one back Armenteros and Oriol Riera was rightly Osasuna 0. confirmed as German champions for the for Dortmund on 77 minutes. flagged offside as he put the rebound into the Playing later Played Saturday 24th time if they win at Mainz next Mainz moved up to fifth with a sensa- net. Sevilla v Valladolid, Real Sociedad v Valencia. Levante 0 Celta Vigo 1 (Nolito 19); Rayo Saturday and rivals Dortmund and tional 4-2 victory at Hoffenheim with However, the Catalans opened the scoring Vallecano 3 (Bueno 37, Larrivey 57, 76) Almeria Schalke both draw. Japan’s Shinji Okazaki netting their last 10 minutes later when Sanchez was fed by Playing today 1 (Soriano 71); Malaga 0 Real Madrid 1 Goals by Mario Mandzukic and two goals as the guests scored three Xavi and Messi got across his man to delicate- Villarreal v Athletic Bilbao (Ronaldo 23); Atletico Madrid 1 (Diego Costa Bastian Schweinsteiger saw Bayern enjoy times in seven stunning second-half min- ly touch home the Chilean’s low cross. 55) Espanyol 0. their 17th straight league win and extend utes to come from 2-0 down. Sanchez should have doubled his side’s their record unbeaten Bundesliga run to The win keeps Thomas Tuchel’s Mainz advantage two minutes later when he Spanish La Liga table after yesterday’s two early matches (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, 50 matches. in the hunt for a European spot next sea- chipped over with just Andres Fernandez to goals against, points): Former Germany striker Stefan son and are only three points short of a beat, but the former Udinese man made Real Madrid 28 22 4 2 77 26 70 Celta Vigo 28 9 6 13 33 39 33 Kiessling gave Leverkusen a consolation Champions League berth. amends when he side-footed home after a Atletico 28 21 4 3 64 21 67 Granada 28 9 4 15 27 39 31 goal when he headed home just before Wolfsburg drop to sixth after their 1-1 lovely one-two between Alba and Iniesta Barcelona 28 21 3 4 81 22 66 Elche 28 7 9 12 24 40 30 the final whistle. draw at bottom side Eintracht opened up the Osasuna defence. Bilbao 27 15 6 6 50 31 51 Malaga 28 7 8 13 26 36 29 The victory capped arguably the most Braunschweig as only three points sepa- Iniesta then made it 3-0 with just his sec- Villarreal 27 13 5 9 47 33 44 Osasuna 28 8 5 15 24 48 29 turbulent week in Bayern’s history after rate the bottom four clubs including ond goal of the season 11 minutes before Sociedad 27 12 7 8 48 39 43 Vallecano 28 9 2 17 32 62 29 ex-president Uli Hoeness resigned on Freiburg, Hamburg and Stuttgart. Sevilla 27 11 8 8 47 42 41 Getafe 28 7 7 14 26 45 28 Friday, 24 hours after being convicted of Hertha’s European aspirations suffered half-time with a sweetly struck left-footed Valencia 27 10 6 11 39 38 36 Valladolid 27 5 11 11 29 44 26 tax fraud. a setback as they lost 2-0 at home to effort that flew into the top corner. Espanyol 28 10 6 12 32 34 36 Almeria 28 7 5 16 27 52 26 He was sentenced to three-and-a-half Hanover 96 to stay ninth and four points Fernandez was forced into fine saves from Levante 28 9 9 10 26 35 36 Real Betis 28 4 7 17 23 56 19 years by Munich’s regional court having off the top six. — AFP Dani Alves and Xavi to ensure Barca didn’t go Cassano brace sinks Milan

MILAN: Former AC Milan striker their frustrations. While Juve continue their charge Antonio Cassano struck a brace in a 4- “It’s a very delicate situation but it towards a third consecutive scudetto- 2 win for Parma at Milan, then stuck was a peaceful meeting and the fans they hold a 14-point lead on Roma, the boot into his ailing former club by who are close to the club have every who have a game in hand, before claiming he is still an Inter fan. right to express their feelings, before, their respective games later-the battle After two consecutive defeats the during and after the match,” Seedorf for European places is well and truly pressure was on Milan coach Clarence told Sky Italia. on. Seedorf, who in midweek was forced Seedorf, who earlier this week Parma now have a one-point lead to deny he had had harsh words for complained he had inherited an “ail- on Fiorentina as well as a game in misfiring striker Mario Balotelli. ing” team from previous coach hand, although Fiorentina can reclaim But despite the misfortune of see- Massimiliano Allegri, who was sacked fifth spot with a win at home to ing ‘keeper Christian Abbiati sent off in January, saw his side crash out of Chievo later yesterday. inside 10 minutes for a foul on the Champions League after a 5-1 Having tempered the jeers of Ezequiel Schelotto, the burden on the aggregate reverse to Atletico Madrid Milan’s fans with the joy of scoring his 37-year-old Dutchman is already last week. 10th and 11th goals of the season, weighing heavier. Milan’s third league defeat in suc- Cassano said he would welcome a Dozens of angry fans congregated cession left the Italian giants 37 points shock call-up to Cesare Prandelli’s Italy outside Milan’s shared San Siro behind leaders Juventus and now 11 squad for the World Cup. ground to protest, some of whom got behind Parma, who occupy the first “I’ve never played at the World Cup to meet the Milan coach to express Europa League spot in fifth. before, so it would be wonderful,” said Cassano, who has lost several kilos this season to produce some solid form for Roberto Donadoni’s side. But when pressed about the verbal abuse to which he was subject at the San Siro, Cassano twisted the knife against his former club. “I’m an Inter fan, I’m proud of it and besides I don’t care a damn,” Cassano told Sky Sport Italia. Inter on Saturday crept up to fourth place with a 2-0 away win at Verona thanks to goals from Rodrigo Palacio and Jonathan. It was three wins on the trot for Walter Mazzarri’s side and the former Napoli handler said: “This is the improvement in quality that we’ve been looking for and what I’ve tried to instill in the lads. “We should be playing like this all the time. Now let’s look forward to that and see how we end up at the MILAN: Parma midfielder Marco Parolo (left) challenges for the ball with AC end of the season.” Milan midfielder Riccardo Montolivo during a Serie A soccer match. — AP Elsewhere yesterday, Lazio main- tained their hopes of Europa League football with a 2-0 away win at Italian League results/standings Cagliari which kept the capital side five points behind Parma in seventh. Cagliari had little to offer but after Atalanta 3 (Carmona 36, Bonaventura 42, Denis 55) Sampdoria 0; Cagliari 0 seeing Senad Lulic and Keita Balde Lazio 2 (Lulic 19, Keita 69); Livorno 2 (Benassi 46, Paulinho 52) Bologna 1 score in either half, Lazio coach Edy (Christodoulopoulos 86); AC Milan 2 (Rami 56, Balotelli 76-pen) Parma 4 Reja said: “We put in a great perform- (Cassano 9-pen, 51, Amauri 78, Biabiany 90+5); Sassuolo 3 (Zaza 56, Missiroli ance, I’ve seen some improvement 61, Sansone 89) Catania 1 (Bergessio 30). again. Playing later Playing today “It will help us make up for last Fiorentina v Chievo, Genoa v Juventus Torino v Napoli, Roma v Udinese week’s defeat (1-0) to Atalanta, with- out which we would have been even Italian Serie A table after yesterday’s early game (played, won, drawn, lost, closer to the Europa League.” goals for, goals against, points): Relegation-threatened Livorno had Juventus 27 23 3 1 63 19 72 AC Milan 27 9 8 10 39 38 35 two men sent off but survived to beat Roma 26 17 7 2 49 12 58 Genoa 27 9 8 10 31 34 35 Bologna 2-1 at home and move one Napoli 27 16 7 4 52 29 55 Sampdoria28 9 7 12 33 42 34 point clear of the relegation zone. Inter Milan28 12 11 5 46 29 47 Udinese 27 9 4 14 30 39 31 In another bottom-of-the-table Fiorentina 27 13 6 8 45 30 45 Cagliari 27 6 11 10 27 36 29 clash Sassuolo beat Catania 3-1 to Parma 26 11 10 5 41 29 43 Chievo 27 6 6 15 22 38 24 send the Sicilians back to the bottom. Verona 28 12 4 12 43 46 40 Bologna 27 4 11 12 22 41 23 Fiorentina host Chievo and Juve travel Lazio 27 10 8 9 34 35 38 Livorno 27 5 6 16 29 50 21 to Genoa in yesterday’s late games Atalanta 28 11 4 13 31 38 37 Catania 27 4 8 15 20 46 20 while Napoli, in third, are away to Torino 27 9 9 9 39 35 36 Sassuolo 27 4 6 17 25 55 18 Torino today, when Roma host Udinese. — AFP Hirscher bags Rosberg wins F1 WCup slalom title season-opener

MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 15 18

Putin’s Olympics end under a Crimean cloud Page 17

LONDON: Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard celebrates with teammate Luis Suarez (right) after scoring against Manchester United during their English Premier League soccer match at Old Trafford. — AP Liverpool storm Old Trafford

a second yellow card for felling guished. channel set Sturridge free, but he shot with Wayne Rooney stinging Simon Daniel Sturridge, but it was to prove As a result, Wednesday’s Champions wide with his weaker right foot. Mignolet’s palms, there was more of EPL results/standings Man United 0 anecdotal. League home game with Olympiakos United demonstrated plenty of the same to come. Only 25 seconds of Manchester United 0 Liverpool 3 (Gerrard 34- Gerrard said that the result proved now takes on crucial significance, but commitment in the opening the second half had elapsed when pen, 46-pen, Suarez 84); Tottenham 0 Arsenal that Liverpool were “genuine con- with United 2-0 down from the first leg exchanges, with Phil Jones and Robin Jones barged into Joe Allen after he 1 (Rosicky 2). tenders” for the title, but although of the last 16 tie, there could be more van Persie both flying into early chal- had chested down a lofted pass from Liverpool 3 they have a game in hand on misery around the corner. lenges, but they had not mustered a Henderson and Gerrard’s second spot- English Premier League table after yesterday’s Chelsea, manager Brendan Rodgers “It was important we came out in shot worthy of the name by the time kick, into the bottom-right corner, was matches (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, sounded a note of caution. “Our the second half and got a goal back, Liverpool went ahead in the 34th again unerring. goals against, points): dominance in the match was clear,” but instead we gave one away and minute. After Van Persie had headed wide Chelsea 30 20 6 4 56 23 66 MANCHESTER: Steven Gerrard Liverpool 29 19 5 5 76 35 62 he said. “We could arguably have that made it very difficult for us,” said As Suarez looked to dink the ball from a Rooney cross, Gerrard was Arsenal 29 19 5 5 53 28 62 scored two penalties as Liverpool scored five or six and that is testa- United manager David Moyes. “It past Rafael da Silva on the left-hand handed an opportunity to complete a closed to within four points of Man City 27 19 3 5 71 27 60 ment to the quality of the players. looks like we are a long way off (the side of the area, the Brazilian jutted first ever hat-trick against United when Tottenham 30 16 5 9 37 38 53 Premier League leaders Chelsea with “But we won’t get carried away. It top four). We are well aware of that, out a hand and referee Mark Sturridge tumbled over Vidic’s out- Everton 28 14 9 5 40 28 51 a 3-0 win at beleaguered rivals is a wonderful result and our confi- but we are going to keep fighting.” Clattenburg immediately awarded a stretched leg. Man Utd 29 14 6 9 46 34 48 Manchester United yesterday. dence is high at the moment, but our penalty. This time, however, his aim was Southampton 30 12 9 9 43 37 45 Gerrard found the net from 12 Newcastle 29 13 4 12 37 40 43 only focus is on the next game.” UNITED CATCALLS Having been booked for clatter- slightly off, with the ball cannoning yards either side of half-time before Aston Villa 29 9 7 13 32 38 34 While Rodgers’s side look more Moyes had admitted prior to the ing Gerrard moments earlier, Rafael against the base of the left-hand post Stoke 30 8 10 12 32 44 34 Luis Suarez added a third goal in the like potential champions with each game that Liverpool’s form “probably” was fortunate to avoid a second yel- and away. West Ham 29 8 7 14 32 38 31 84th minute to give Liverpool their display, United’s season continues to made them favorites, but he will have low card, but the Liverpool captain Liverpool were not finished Hull 29 8 6 15 30 37 30 first victory at Old Trafford in five Swansea 29 7 8 14 38 43 29 unravel. This was the defending been alarmed by the ease with which showed no mercy from the spot to though. Moments after being Norwich 30 7 8 15 24 48 29 years. champions’ fifth home defeat of the the visitors found holes in the hosts’ silence the catcalls from the thwarted by a stunning save from Gerrard should have had a hat- West Brom 29 5 13 11 33 43 28 campaign and having started the day defence. Stretford End. David de Gea, Suarez ghosted in Crystal Palace 29 8 4 17 19 38 28 trick of spot-kicks, with a third penal- 11 points below the Champions There were fewer than three min- Liverpool’s fans at the opposite end behind the hosts’ flatfooted defence Sunderland 27 6 7 14 26 42 25 ty hitting the post after United cap- League places, their hopes of a top- utes on the clock when a Jordan of the ground celebrated deliriously, to roll home and make United’s mis- Cardiff 30 6 7 17 23 52 25 tain Nemanja Vidic had been shown four finish have been all but extin- Henderson pass down the inside-right and although United briefly rallied, ery complete. — AFP Fulham 30 7 3 20 30 65 24 Rosicky fires Arsenal Aberdeen end back into title race “It’s a huge result because we were trophy drought under pressure to win before the Tottenham 0 game,” Wenger said. “Tottenham played GLASGOW: Aberdeen ended their 19-year spot on. We rode our luck a bit when they hit well and sometimes we were under trophy drought as they defeated Inverness the post but that was about it. I didn’t think pressure, so we needed some special Caledonian Thistle 4-2 on penalties in the there was much in the game but you have to resilience to get away with it. It’s three Scottish League Cup final at Celtic Park say well done to them.” massive points.” after the match ended 0-0 after extra-time. Neither goalkeeper had been really tested Arsenal 1 Tottenham’s third successive Greg Tansey was off-target and Billy McKay in normal time but Aberdeen, who had been defeat was harsh on Tim Sherwood’s had his effort saved by Dons ‘keeper Jamie favourites before the match, had the best of fifth placed team, who look to have Langfield before Adam Rooney slotted the chances. home the decisive kick to send the 40,000 Dons skipper Russell Anderson saw his Tomas Rosicky fired blown their chances of qualifying for LONDON: Aberdeen fans wild. 24th minute effort come off the post before Arsenal back into the Premier League the Champions League via a top-four Manager Derek McInnes, who only took being cleared off the line and Adam Rooney title race as the Czech midfielder’s finish. over at Pittodrie at the end of last season, was had a first half penalty claim turned down. quick-fire strike clinched a crucial 1-0 “First and foremost, I wanted the delighted to claim the first trophy of his man- Inverness, making their first appearance win over north London rivals performance. We got that but we didn’t agerial career. in a national cup final, had defended res- Tottenham yesterday. get the result,” Sherwood said. “The “It’s been a long time coming for so many olutely but nearly threw it away three min- Arsene Wenger’s side began the fans won’t be happy with that but any- LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur’s Younes Kaboul (left) attempts to get people at the club and we’ve made them utes from time when Niall McGinn intercept- weekend seven points behind Chelsea, one who has seen that performance the ball from Arsenal’s Lukas Poldoski during the English Premier wait that bit longer with extra time and ed Tansey’s slack back-pass but the forward but they moved to within four points of will know we didn’t deserve to lose.” League soccer match. —AP penalties,” said McInnes, who has led his side blazed his effort over with only the keeper to the leaders-with a game in hand- Arsenal had already defeated their Tottenham were caught short- Cup third round. to second in the Scottish Premiership and the beat. thanks to Rosicky’s winner after just 72 hated neighbours twice this season handed at the back and the Czech Rosicky was pulling the strings and last four of the Scottish Cup. Neither side could conjure up a winner in seconds. and they were quickly back in the picked out Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain he produced a perfectly-weighted pass “I’d always anticipated a tight match. We extra time and it was the Aberdeen players The Czech midfielder’s goal, and the ascendancy thanks to a virtuoso contri- on the edge of the penalty area. to put Oxlade-Chamberlain clean said at the start it was all about winning it who held their nerve as they scored all their gritty defensive display that followed it, bution from the man nicknamed ‘the Oxlade-Chamberlain couldn’t con- through on goal, but the midfielder and you could see in the celebrations at the spot-kicks to seal a famous win. secured Arsenal’s first league win at little Mozart’. trol the ball, but it rolled fortuitously chipped woefully wide with just Lloris end what it means to so many people and Aberdeen had been dealt a blow in the White Hart Lane since 2007 in Wenger’s Rosicky was only playing because of back to Rosicky and, although the to beat. we are delighted to give them the trophy.” first minute when Jonny Hayes injured his 999th match in charge. an injury to the club’s record signing angle didn’t suggest the shot was on, Tottenham threatened for the first His Inverness counter-part John Hughes shoulder in an awkward fall following an aeri- The third placed Gunners feared Mesut Ozil, but he took less than two he unleashed a ferocious half-volley time when Andros Townsend whipped was despondent in defeat. “I’m disappointed al challenge with Josh Meekings and had to their title challenge was fading after a minutes to make a more decisive con- that flashed into the top corner past over a teasing cross that just eluded for the boys more than anything else but I’m be replaced by Cammy Smith. The Dons defeat at Stoke, but they are firmly tribution than the German has man- the stunned Hugo Lloris. Emmanuel Adebayor. so proud of them and it could have been our thought they had grabbed the opener in the back in the race and a titanic aged for months. Rosicky seized pos- It was just Rosicky’s third club goal That provided a much-needed jolt day,” said Hughes, who took over from Terry 24th minute when Anderson’s shot came encounter against Jose Mourinho’s session near the halfway line after a of the season, but Spurs will be sick of adrenaline for the hosts, who had Butcher earlier this year. crashing off the post before being cleared off Chelsea side looms at Stamford Tottenham attack broke down and of the sight of the 33-year-old, who made a lethargic start in unseasonably “I thought our game plan and tactics were the line by Richie Foran. — AFP Bridge next weekend. surged forward with real intent. also scored against them in the FA warm temperatures. — AFP First half of Omantel share sale 1.99 times subscribed

Page 22 Business Plane mystery deepens MAS’ financial woes MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Page 23 Rolls-Royce Ghost ‘Royal Blue Edition’ Yellen expected to stick to taper path now in Kuwait Page 25 Page 26

KARACHI: Pakistani activists from the Awami Tehreek organization shout anti-government slogans during a protest against rising inflation in Karachi yesterday. Economists say growth needs to be seven percent to absorb the coun- try’s booming population. — AFP UAE, Abu Dhabi roll over $20bn of Dubai debt Deal extends maturity for 5 years at 1% interest

DUBAI: Abu Dhabi and the Central Bank of the five-year bonds which Dubai issued to the UAE is the capital of the UAE and has vast oil years.” Dubai’s $10 billion of debt to the UAE 2009; the original bonds issued to the central United Arab Emirates have agreed to refinance central bank. wealth, stepped in to bail Dubai out. Dubai is central bank had been due to mature this bank carried a 4 percent coupon. $20 billion of debt that was extended to the The agreement, which had been expected now recovering strongly, with residential month; in February, Reuters quoted sources Some of Dubai’s biggest government-relat- Dubai government as emergency aid during by financial markets, will enable Dubai to con- property prices up over 20 percent last year familiar with the matter as saying an agree- ed entities (GREs) are working through debt its financial crisis and comes due this year, the tinue spending heavily to develop itself as a and its stock market rallying about 140 per- ment to roll over that amount had been restructurings launched after the crisis, and state news agency said yesterday. regional centre for finance, trade and tourism. cent since the end of 2012. reached. will have to sell assets to meet repayments in The debt is being rolled over for five years Dubai, one of seven emirates in the UAE, This month’s roll-over deal “is part of the The other $10 billion of aid, extended the next few years. The International at a 1 percent annual interest rate, WAM said in obtained the aid in 2009 after the global credit signatories’ attempts to reinforce the competi- through National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Abu Monetary Fund estimated in January that an official statement. The roll-over covers a crisis caused its real estate market to crash, tiveness of the Emirati economy regionally Dhabi’s Al Hilal Bank, was due to mature in Dubai and its GREs faced about $78 billion of $10 billion, five-year loan which was offered to threatening to force some of its state-linked and internationally,” WAM said. “It also reflects November this year. Dubai appears to be get- maturing debt between 2014 and 2017; this Dubai by the Abu Dhabi government through firms to default on billions of dollars of debt. the positive developments that the local econ- ting considerably more attractive terms in the month’s agreement takes care of more than a two state-owned banks, and $10 billion of The neighboring emirate of Abu Dhabi, which omy of the emirate of Dubai has seen in recent roll-over than it obtained during the crisis in quarter of it. — Reuters Europe to find it difficult to Emaar boosts Dubai, wean itself off Russian gas Ukraine hurts region PARIS: Europe will have trouble weaning itself off Russian natural up of North African gas exports and the late emergence of additional gas, analysts say, as its faces declining production at home and Asian exports from Azerbaijan, it comes down to a competition between competition for supplies. Even before the current flare up of tensions Russia and LNG producers,” the International Energy Agency said in with Russia over its de facto occupation and possible annexation of its latest report on the medium-term outlook for gas markets. MIDEAST STOCK MARKETS Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula, Europe has been trying to reduce its “Luckily for Russia, the thirst for LNG in Asia means that additional dependence on Russian supplies. LNG supply is largely absorbed by the Pacific basin, leaving little DUBAI: Positive news from Emaar Properties resistance at 9.16-9.20 dirhams, the highs seen The diversification effort has been bearing fruit: imports of incremental LNG supply available to Europe.” boosted Dubai’s bourse yesterday but the in February and March. Dubai’s market turnover Russian natural gas fell from 45.1 percent of the EU’s total to 31.9 per- The EU has long looked to tap into Caspian Sea gas supplies, but Ukrainian crisis pushed down almost all other was only moderate on Sunday, and many of its cent over a decade to 2012, according to data from the EU’s statistics progress has been slow. The construction of a “southern corridor” stock markets in the Middle East. Emaar most heavily traded shares fell. agency, Eurostat. Europe has reduced somewhat its dependence on pipeline that skirts around Russia was a major EU policy initiative, announced plans to sell up to 25 percent of its After the close yesterday, Abu Dhabi and the Russian gas, even if Gazprom remains a key player in Europe,” said and while the project is advancing, Gazprom will beat it with the shopping mall in a public offer expected to raise central bank of the United Arab Emirates said Pascale Jean, a natural gas specialist at PriceWaterhouseCoopers. South Stream competing pipeline that is due to come online next 8 to 9 billion dirhams ($2.18-$2.45 billion), with they had agreed to refinance $20 billion of debt However the Russian gas giant Gazprom has made no secret it year. Norway, which hopes to stem or maybe even temporarily proceeds to be “primarily distributed as divi- that was extended to the Dubai government as aims to claw back its market share, having built a new pipeline to reverse its slide in production, could benefit from renewed EU efforts dend” to Emaar shareholders. It also hiked its emergency aid during its financial crisis, and Germany and a second one under construction to southern Europe. to diversify supplies. 2013 dividend to the highest since 2007. was to come due this year. The news was posi- The share of Russian gas in European imports climbed last year, and Having briefly become the EU’s top gas supplier in 2012, analysts The company’s shares closed 5.1 percent tive for Dubai but widely expected by the mar- its share in total consumption has remained relatively stable over the say Norway could expand its market share by several points. Recent higher at 9.10 dirhams; Emirates NBD, another kets. past decade at just under a quarter. discoveries of gas supplies in the eastern Mediterranean off Cyprus Dubai flagship stock, jumped 5.8 percent Two other UAE property-related names also However, EU production which currently covers a third of con- and Israel have also fueled European diversification hopes. although trading was very thin. Dubai’s main gained yesterday. Construction firm Arabtec sumption, is expected to fall by up to 20 percent by 2020 and up to index climbed 2.0 percent. Emaar’s plan, which rose 0.4 percent, while Abu Dhabi’s Aldar 30 percent by 2030. “It is likely that the share of Russian natural gas in Look West chairman Mohammed Alabbar said he wanted Properties added 1.0 percent. Abu Dhabi’s Europe will increase further in the coming years, whether we like it, Such hopes are increasingly turning to the other side of the to carry out “within months”, was not unexpect- index, however, fell 0.5 percent because of soft or not,” said Tim Boersna, an energy specialist and Brookings Institute Atlantic, where the shale gas boom has turned the United States into ed, but it got good reviews from analysts. banking and cement stocks, moving in line with in Washington. the world’s number one producer. Many European countries have EFG-Hermes said Emaar’s valuation of its unit, other Gulf markets, which enjoyed no major British North Sea output has already begun to fall and that of the refused to allow shale gas exploration or production due to environ- if accepted by the market, would create upside positive news to offset the gloomy global mood Netherland’s is also expected to do so soon. Production in nearby mental concerns over the “fracking” techniques used to recover potential of 7 to 13 percent above the invest- created by the Ukraine crisis. suppliers like Algeria is also on the decline. deposits. Others have failed to find commercially exploitable ment bank’s fair-value estimate of 10.10 Although the wealthy Gulf economies are rel- deposits. dirhams for the stock. Arqaam Capital, which atively immune to any global instability due to Russia fills supply gap However plans to export US shale gas are multiplying, even if only has an even higher price target for the stock of Ukraine, local retail investors have so far reacted Boersna said “the market will increasingly dictate that Russian nat- one LNG facility is currently under construction. Four others are in a 12.00 dirhams, said the plan was “highly posi- to the crisis by taking profits. “We still have this ural gas supplies will fill this supply gap.” The European gas market relatively advanced state in the permit process. tive”. Emaar may subsequently list other units; cloud over the emerging markets of what could finds itself today at a crossroads following two unexpected events “US LNG is set to become the world’s primary swing and emer- Alabbar said its Egyptian unit was being pre- happen in Ukraine,” said Sebastien Henin, port- which have shaken up the energy market: the US shale gas boom gency supplier in times of crisis, which will be particularly helpful for pared for an initial public offer in that country. folio manager at The National Investor. “We and the Fukushima nuclear disaster. European buyers,” said Eurasia analyst Will Pearson. The first US LNG There were signs, however, that Emaar’s plan know the emerging markets could come under With Japan shutting down all its nuclear reactors, Asia’s already supplies won’t arrive until 2016 at the earliest, however, and Asia will might not be enough to support a sustained ral- pressure in the coming days.” In Muscat, rising demand for natural gas has jumped, particularly for liquefied undoubtedly buy up a significant portion. “Another point to keep in ly in the Dubai market from current levels, given Omantel fell 2.2 percent to 1.555 rials after the natural gas (LNG). This has caught the attention of gas producers, in mind is that the ramp-up of US LNG exports will be slow and incre- the weak global backdrop and the fact that company said the first half of the Oman govern- particular the Qataris, who have shifted attention from Europe to a mental,” he said. Dubai has already risen so fast in the past 18 ment’s sale of a 19 percent stake in the firm, a fast-growing and more lucrative Asian market. Europe has already been benefitting from cheap US coal, howev- months. Emaar hit an intra-day high of 9.25 private placement, had been completed and The terrorist attack on an Algerian gas plant last year and frequent er. Cut rate gas prices in the US has displaced coal, but shipped to dirhams but fell back to close below major chart was 1.99 times subscribed. — Reuters stops in shipments via the Libyan-Italy pipeline has cast a shadow Europe, the coal is still cheaper than natural gas for electricity genera- over North African supplies. “Given the absence of a significant build- tors. — AFP MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 BUSINESS Retail success at John Lewis means staff bonus for all

LONDON: Far from the astronomical incentives the structure has been accused of leading to a lack “The company’s structure has allowed it to invest in A tale of co-operatives accorded to a select few at Britain’s banks, clothes- of dynamism and entrepreneurialism... but I think long-term performance and apply a long-term Since Clegg’s appeal, the mutual model has also to-food retailer John Lewis Partnership is paying all that point of view has been dispelled by the compa- vision by investing in store improvements and more been in the headlines for the wrong reasons-the its staff an annual bonus worth 15 percent of their ny’s out-performance, innovation and willingness to efficient internet retailing solutions, without the supermarket-to-banking Co-operative Group has salaries, earning praise for its co-operative structure. take tough commercial decisions” in recent years. added pressure from shareholders more focused on been riven by internal scandal. Its chief executive From the chief executive right down to shop assis- It was a mixed showing for JLP in 2013, causing short-term profits,” said Raphael Moreau of research Euan Sutherland resigned this week after less than a tants at the group’s high-end supermarket Waitrose the group to reduce annual bonuses from 17 per- group Euromonitor International. year at the helm, blaming the failure to reform gov- and department store chain John Lewis, workers cent of salary a year earlier. Profit after tax fell 4.1 “This has been one reason for the company’s ernance of the mutual that is owned by its 4.7 mil- will share a bonus pot totalling £202.5 million ($336 percent to £329.1 million. The group is meanwhile performance, with steady sales growth in a stag- lion customers. million, 242 million euros) for 2013. faced with a large shortfall in the fund that pays out nant economy since 2009,” he said. Deputy Prime The resignation was sparked by leaked details of About 91,000 staff are receiving the equivalent pensions to its retired workers. Minister Nick Clegg, whose Liberal Democrats are Sutherland’s £3.5-million pay package for 2014. The of about two months’ extra pay after John Lewis Despite certain challenges, group chairman the junior partner in Britain’s Conservative-led coali- Co-op’s banking unit meanwhile came close to col- Partnership (JLP), whose stores are popular with Charlie Mayfield recently said that 2013 had been tion government, has spoken on the need for more lapse last year after the lender was ordered by regu- Britain’s middle class, enjoyed a rise in pre-tax prof- another “good year for the Partnership”. He added companies to mirror the JLP model. lators to increase its capital cushion by £1.5 billion. its last year, putting more pressure on its struggling that “both Waitrose and John Lewis increased mar- “Firms that have engaged employees, who own The bank-which prides itself on ethical investments- rival Marks & Spencer. ket share for the fifth consecutive year”. a chunk of their company, are just as dynamic, just was subsequently forced into a drastic restructuring Bryan Roberts, analyst at consultants Kantar The first John Lewis store opened in 1864 on as savvy, as their competitors,” he said two years that handed control to US hedge funds in order to Retail, said the co-operative or mutual structure at Oxford Street-London’s main shopping thorough- ago. “In fact they often perform better. The 1980s plug the vast black hole. JLP, which sees the company owned by its workers, fare-while Waitrose joined the JLP structure in 1937. was the decade of share ownership. I want this to Co-op Bank slumped into further crisis last hands the group “a very real competitive advan- Shareholder pressure absent - be the decade of employee share ownership. We November after its former chairman Paul Flowers, a tage... helping with staff retention, customer service Analysts say John Lewis’s structure frees it from need more individuals to have a real stake in their Methodist minister, was filmed allegedly arranging and employee morale”. He said: “On the downside, the pressure that shareholders exert at its rivals. firms, more of a John Lewis economy.” to buy illegal drugs. — AFP

Virgin Mobile Middle East plans Saudi launch by June

DUBAI: Virgin Mobile Middle East & Africa The virtual mobile operators do not own (VMMEA) said it expected to launch telecom- the networks they use but instead lease capaci- munications services in Saudi Arabia in the first ty from conventional operators, usually paying half of 2014 after the industry regulator gave it them a percentage of revenues as well as fees. a license. The regulator told Saudi’s three mobile opera- The Communication and Information tors - Saudi Telecom Co (STC), Mobily and Zain Technology Commission (CITC) announced in Saudi to each host an MVNO in a move aimed June that VMMEA, part-owned by British entre- at increasing competition. STC has teamed up preneur Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, was with VMMEA, Mobily with London’s Lebara one of the winning bidders for three mobile Group and Zain Saudi with Gulf retailer virtual network operator (MVNO) licenses in Axiom. Zain Saudi’s launch in 2008 was the the kingdom. The award of the license, last major change to Saudi’s mobile sector. In announced on Saturday, was largely a formality January, Mobily told Reuters it hoped Lebara ahead of what promises to be the biggest would begin services in the first quarter of shake-up in the kingdom’s telecommunica- 2014. The regulator was not immediately tions market in six years. available for comment. — Reuters Saudi 2014 growth target of 4.4% achievable: CB chief

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s economy can the same rate in 2013 after a jump of over MAZAR-I-SHARIF: Afghan laborer Abdul Karim, 43, carries metal containers as he works at a workshop in Mazar-I-Sharif. Abdul Karim works achieve growth of 4.4 percent this year, in 26 percent in 2011, when the Gulf monar- from dawn until dusk in a small factory where he earns around $1.5 per day. The factory produces around 50 pots daily, that are mainly used in line with a forecast by the International chy boosted social handouts at a time of cooking, by recycling metal scraps. — AFP Monetary Fund, the central bank governor Middle East unrest. A Reuters poll of ana- said yesterday. “We see that the private sec- lysts in January this year predicted that tor will be the main growth driver this year. inflation-adjusted GDP would expand 4.2 Government investments continue to be percent in 2014 and 4.3 pct in 2015. Japan’s Mizuho ensnared the main driver for private sector growth, Inflation in the desert kingdom is fore- so I am optimistic,” Fahad Al-Mubarak told cast at 3.0 percent this year by the IMF, an annual news conference. Mubarak also said, citing the Fund’s latest “I do not see high risks in specific areas.” available prediction. “I expect this will be in Mt Gox bitcoin fallout The country’s economic growth slowed to reasonable. Results for the first few months 3.8 percent in 2013 from 5.8 percent in the of the year are less than 3 percent.” TOKYO: Customers suspect fraud Mizuho vs Mt Gox previous year as oil output, which accounts Consumer price growth eased to 2.8 per- Mizuho Bank, one of Japan’s largest for nearly half of overall gross domestic cent year-on-year in February, the lowest lenders, has became ensnared in North American The company said it had likely lost all 750,000 In fact, the bank by January was trying to close product, fell after a robust increase in 2012. level since September 2012 when the sta- legal fallout from Mt. Gox, once the world’s biggest customer bitcoins it was holding, as well as 100,000 the exchange’s account. An unnamed Mizuho man- Actual government budget spending tistics office launched its new rebased price bitcoin exchange, which collapsed last month after of its own and 2.8 billion yen in cash. That repre- ager at Mizuho bank, in a recording leaked on the rose by a modest 6 percent in 2012 and by index. — Reuters losing nearly half a billion dollars worth of cus- sents $567 million of vanished assets at current internet, asks Mark Karpeles, Mt Gox’s 28-year-old tomers’ digital currency. market prices, as well as about 7 percent of the bit- French CEO, to close his firm’s account with the Lawsuits in the United States and Canada repre- coins in circulation. bank, citing compliance issues and moves by other First half of Omantel share sent a new legal front - and a deep-pocketed Mt. Gox blames systematic attacks on what it banks to cut ties with the exchange. The recording defendant - in the battle over Mt. Gox, which acknowledges was lax computer security. was confirmed as authentic by a person familiar sale 1.99 times subscribed claims hackers stole huge amounts of its own and Customers - more than 99 percent of whom are with the situation. If Mizuho had to close the its customers’ assets. Mizuho, the core unit of non-Japanese - suspect a massive fraud. account forcibly, the manager warned, it could DUBAI: The first part of the Oman govern- Wednesday. Bids ranged from 1.500 to 1.900 Mizuho Financial Group Inc , Japan’s second- Last Monday, Mt Gox filed for a US Chapter 15 damage Mt Gox’s business. “There would be confu- ment’s sale of a 19 percent stake in telecom- rials per share, while the cut-off price at which biggest “megabank” by assets, was added as a bankruptcy, which shields the company from law- sion when your regular users try to deposit money. munications operator Omantel, part of efforts the placement was fully subscribed was 1.511 defendant on Friday to an existing US lawsuit suits in US courts as the Tokyo case proceeds. We don’t think that’s right,” he says. “If there’s con- to revive its privatization program, was 1.99 rials per share. against Mt Gox for allegedly aiding in a fraud by Mizuho held non-bitcoin currency on behalf of fusion, we’d come under criticism and you’d be in times subscribed, the company said yester- Omantel’s shares fell 2.2 percent to 1.555 providing banking services to the exchange. Tokyo-based Mt. Gox and its customers, according trouble as well.” day. The sale, which will cut the government’s rials on Muscat’s bourse following the On Friday, Mizuho was named in a class-action to the amended US complaint by Gregory Greene, Karpeles told the Mizuho official Mt. Gox was holding in Omantel to 51 percent, is expected announcement, reaching their lowest close lawsuit in Canada against Mt. Gox, alleging a an Illinois resident who has said he lost $25,000 unwilling to cooperate. The Canadian suit was filed to raise about $570 million as the Gulf state since mid-January. Subscribers are expected lengthy security breach at Mt. Gox resulted in “the when Mt Gox shut down. on behalf of “all persons in Canada who paid a fee seeks to boost its non-oil income and fund to receive the shares sold in the first phase by pilfering of millions of dollars’ worth of its users’ bit- The US suit accuses Mizuho of knowing of Mt to Mt. Gox to buy, sell or otherwise trade bitcoins” rising public spending. the end of Monday, the statement said. The coins.” A Mizuho spokeswoman in Tokyo declined Gox’s fraud, of not segregating funds that belong and all those who had bitcoins or currency stored In February, state news agency ONA second part of the sale, which will be open to comment on Sunday on the lawsuits, filed in to Mt Gox from those of its customers and of con- with Mt Gox on Feb 7. While the US bankruptcy reported that Oman would sell 142.5 million Omani retail investors, is due to begin by the Chicago federal court and the Ontario Superior tinuing to provide banking services that inflated stopped American courts from issuing orders Omantel shares in two equal-sized parts, with end of March. Court of Justice. losses for bitcoin customers. “Mizuho profited from against the Tokyo company, it does not protect the first - a private placement - aimed at The government owns more than 60 com- Tokyo-based Mt. Gox closed its virtual doors on the fraud,” said the complaint. The Canadian plain- Karpeles, the parent company Tibanne or Mt Gox’s wealthy individual investors and institutions; panies across the economy, and Minister for February 25 and three days later filed for Chapter tiffs allege that “all non-bitcoin currency received US affiliate. On Tuesday, the US assets of those it required minimum orders of 2 million Financial Affairs Darwish Al-Balushi has said 11-style bankruptcy protection with a Japanese by the Mt. Gox defendants from its users was held three were temporarily frozen by the federal judge shares each. That phase was completed last some will be privatized. —Reuters court. in an account or accounts” at Mizuho. overseeing Greene’s lawsuit. —Reuters EXCHANGE RATES

Malaysian Ringgit 86.600 Singapore Dollar 0.219605 0.225605 Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. UAE Exchange Centre WLL Chinese Yuan Renminbi 46.320 Thai Bhat 9.700 South African Rand 0.020506 0.029006 COUNTRY SELL DRAFT SELL CASH Turkish Lira 126.090 Sri Lankan Rupee 0.001863 0.002443 Japanese Yen 2.742 Taiwan 0.009179 0.009359 Australian Dollar 259.05 256.05 Indian Rupees 4.626 Thai Baht 0.008358 0.008908 Canadian Dollar 257.62 258.62 Pakistani Rupees 2.858 Bahrain Exchange Company Srilankan Rupees 2.158 Swiss Franc 326.02 324.02 Arab Euro 394.72 395.72 Nepali Rupees 2.893 Bahraini Dinar 0.741157 0.749157 US Dollar 281.40 284.40 COUNTRY SELL CASH SELLDRAFT Singapore Dollar 223.040 Egyptian Pound 0.036730 0.039830 Sterling Pound 473.05 476.05 Europe Hongkong Dollar 36.351 Iranian Riyal 0.000078 0.000079 Bangladesh Taka 3.624 Japanese Yen 2.78 2.80 Belgian Franc 0.007324 0.008324 Iraqi Dinar 0.000181 0.000241 Philippine Peso 6.324 Bangladesh Taka 3.622 3.892 Indian Rupee 4.607 4.907 British Pound 0.462255 0.471255 Thai Baht 8.715 Jordanian Dinar 0.393305 0.400805 Sri Lankan Rupee 2.157 2.592 Czech Korune 0.006000 0.018000 Irani Riyal transfer 0.271 Kuwaiti Dinar 1.0000000 1.0000000 Nepali Rupee 2.894 3.429 Danish Krone 0.048515 0.053515 Irani Riyal cash 0.273 Lebanese Pound 0.000138 0.000238 Pakistani Rupee 2.788 2.790 Euro 0.386445 0.394445 Moroccan Dirhams 0.024277 0.048277 GCC COUNTRIES UAE Dirhams 76.68 77.15 Norwegian Krone 0.043243 0.048443 Nigerian Naira 0.001190 0.001825 Bahraini Dinar 748.97 751.04 Romanian Leu 0.081326 0.81326 Saudi Riyal 75.270 Omani Riyal 0.726044 0.731724 Egyptian Pound 40.42 41.02 Slovakia 0.008052 0.018052 Qatari Riyal 77.556 Qatar Riyal 0.076707 0.077920 Jordanian Dinar 400.50 406.15 Swedish Krona 0.040218 0.045218 Omani Riyal 733.240 Omani Riyal 731.82 739.12 Saudi Riyal 0.074523 0.075223 Bahraini Dinar 749.700 Swiss Franc 0.316975 0.327175 Syrian Pound 0.002159 0.002379 Qatari Riyal 77.71 78.26 Turkish Lira 0.124144 0.131144 UAE Dirham 76.870 Saudi Riyal 75.17 75.57 Tunisian Dinar 0.175224 0.183224 Turkish Lira 0.124144 0.131144 Australasia ARAB COUNTRIES UAE Dirhams 0.075755 0.0769904 Egyptian Pound - Cash 39.700 Australian Dollar 0.246300 0.257800 Yemeni Riyal 0.001280 0.001360 Egyptian Pound - Transfer 40.096 Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd New Zealand Dollar 0.234383 0.243883 Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.317 Tunisian Dinar 180.520 Rate for Transfer Selling Rate America Al Mulla Exchange Jordanian Dinar 398.600 US Dollar 281.900 Canadian Dollar 0.248745 0.257245 Lebanese Lira/for 1000 1.894 Canadian Dollar 256.590 US Dollars 0.277750 0.282100 Syrian Lira 2.012 Sterling Pound 469.955 US Dollars Mint 0.278250 0.282100 CurrencyTransfer Rate (Per 1000) Morocco Dirham 35.715 Euro 392.505 US Dollar 281.600 Swiss Frank 321.250 Asia Euro 392.350 Bahrain Dinar 744.350 EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES Bangladesh Taka 0.003289 0.003889 Pound Sterling 469.650 UAE Dirhams 76.730 US Dollar Transfer 282.150 Chinese Yuan 0.044742 0.048242 Canadian Dollar 254.950 Euro 392.190 Qatari Riyals 78.280 Saudi Riyals 76.040 Hong Kong Dollar 0.034254 0.037004 Indian Rupee 4.610 Sterling Pound 470.340 Indian Rupee 0.004367 0.004768 Egyptian Pound 40.090 Canadian dollar 254.800 Jordanian Dinar 397.280 Indonesian Rupiah 0.000019 0.000025 Sri Lankan Rupee 2.156 Turkish lira 125.930 Egyptian Pound 40.444 Japanese Yen 0.002699 0.002879 Swiss Franc 322.830 Sri Lankan Rupees 2.157 Bangladesh Taka 3.625 Kenyan Shilling 0.003344 0.003344 Australian Dollar 253.940 Indian Rupees 4.619 Philippines Peso 6.310 US Dollar Buying 280.950 Pakistani Rupees 2.846 Korean Won 0.000253 0.000268 Pakistan Rupee 2.845 Bangladesh Taka 3.621 Malaysian Ringgit 0.081979 0.087979 Bahraini Dinar 749.850 Philippines Pesso 6.307 GOLD Nepalese Rupee 0.002839 0.003009 UAE Dirham 76.700 Cyprus pound 692.400 20 Gram 240.000 Pakistan Rupee 0.002652 0.002832 Japanese Yen 3.735 Saudi Riyal 75.200 10 Gram 121.000 Philippine Peso 0.006351 0.006631 Syrian Pound 2.952 Sierra Leone 0.000069 0.000075 5 Gram 62.500 Nepalese Rupees 3.875 *Rates are subject to change MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 BUSINESS ‘Wataniya Telecom’ launches special offer with valuable gifts to customers

KUWAIT: Wataniya Telecom caters number, and a free ticket to enter customers to enjoy a free trial of to the diverse needs of its cus- the Rimal City. In addition, cus- LTE-A network, which is working on tomers and therefore it offers tai- tomers can choose between 4 valu- the currently used and approved lored plans based on the usage, able gifts from Wataniya Telecom spectrum, at Rimal International spending habits and communica- which are: a Samsung LED TV of 45 Festival in Mishref area during the tion patterns that meet customers’ inch, Samsung Galaxy Note 3, months of March and April. The vil- requirements. And to provide value, Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 lage was created by the world’s top the new offer allows customers to edition, and a Play Station PS4 (PAL sand sculptors from 24 countries to choose between four valuable gifts Version) which customers can per- construct the sand village on an for a limited period only at the fectly use with Wataniya’s 4G/LTE area of 30,000 square meters using Wataniya branch located at Rimal fast internet provided by the most over 35,000 tons of sand. City in Mishref. advanced network in Kuwait. Wataniya continues to surprise Wataniya now offers KD31month Galaxy Note 3 is one of the latest its customers by creating packs and package to its customers giving devices from Samsung and it comes products that are unique and bring them the flexibility to choose from a with many benefits such as a 13 value to their lives. New and innova- Samsung Galaxy Note 3 or an megapixel back camera, and a 2 tive services are constantly devel- iPhone 5S, and with it, customers megapixel front camera as well as oped at Wataniya so that people will get 30GB 4G/LTE internet, 1000 support to 3G and 4G/LTE networks. can make the best of their mobile free local minutes, a free golden Wataniya Telecom also invites all and internet access. YICHANG: An excavator moving coal onto a truck at a port in Yichang, central China’s Hubei province. China could miss its official growth target for the first time in 16 years, a snap poll of economists has showed after surprisingly weak Plane mystery deepens data for January and February. —AFP China may miss official MAS’ financial woes growth target Costly lawsuits, drop in bookings seen Weak start to year a test for Beijing BEIJING: China could miss its official ries over an economic slowdown, with the KUALA LUMPUR: The mystery surrounding the Khazanah Nasional, Malaysia’s state investment Malaysia Airlines has offered family members growth target for the first time in 16 years, benchmark Shanghai Composite Index fate of a possibly hijacked Malaysia Airlines plane arm, last posted a net profit — 237 million ringgit- of each passenger $5,000 expenses as they await a snap poll of economists by AFP shows dropping 0.73 percent. raises the specter of costly lawsuits and a damaging in 2010. In 2011 and 2012, it reported consecutive the conclusion of the search for flight MH370. And after surprisingly weak data for January drop in bookings for a national carrier already hem- losses of 2.5 billion ringgit and 433 million ringgit the possibility of legal suits from family members and February. Key downside risks orrhaging cash in the face of intense competition. respectively. “has to be taken into account when we look at Industrial output, a key measure of pro- China’s top leaders have said they are Prime Minister Najib Razak said Saturday that Analysts have long blamed poor management, MAS’s earnings,” Shukor said. duction at factories, workshops and mines ready to accept slower expansion as they investigators believe the jet, with 239 passengers government interference, a bloated workforce, and The missing Boeing 777-200ER aircraft, which in the world’s second-largest economy, seek to transform the economy’s growth and crew on board, had been deliberately diverted powerful, change-resistant unions for preventing has a list price of $261.5 million according to the rose just 8.6 percent in the first two months model away from an over-reliance on often from its course and flown on for hours after primary the airline from remaining competitive. Wong said US manufacturer, is however not on the airline’s of 2014, the slowest pace in five years, gov- wasteful investment, and instead make pri- radar contact was lost. “It definitely makes investors the sensational daily headlines generated by the books. Shukor said it was leased from ernment figures showed Thursday. Retail vate demand the driver of future develop- sales, an indicator of consumer spending, ment. After the close of the NPC, China’s very concerned,” Daniel Wong, an analyst with missing Boeing could only undermine efforts to Penerbangan Malaysia, an aviation company fully increased at the lowest rate since February Communist Party-controlled legislature, on Hong Leong Investment Bank in Malaysia, said. bring the carrier back to profit. owned by Malaysia’s finance ministry. 2011, while growth in fixed asset invest- Thursday Premier Li sought to downplay “People want to know what went wrong, “The financial impact will be longer term. It Irrespective of how the MH370 mystery finally ment, a gauge of government spending on the importance of the target. whether there is a safety issue or security issue with could mean less people wanting to travel on pans out, analysts say the real challenge for MAS infrastructure, came in at a surprisingly low “We have a level of flexibility by setting Malaysia Airlines if the plane was hijacked,” he said. Malaysia Airlines, and the airline will have to reduce remains the structural and managerial inefficien- 17.9 percent during the period, according the target at around 7.5 percent,” he said. The airline has a good safety record, although a ticket prices to encourage people to travel with cies blamed for its plunge into the red. to the data. In a survey of 10 economists by He did not specify the lowest rate the gov- Twin Otter aircraft belonging to its fully-owned them,” he said. Travel agents told AFP that “They have been far behind the curve, and the AFP, the median forecast for 2014 growth ernment could accept, only saying it must subsidiary MASWings crashed in October last year, Malaysian travellers were already shunning the air- only reason they have been able to stay afloat is was 7.4 percent, with some saying the ensure sufficient job creation. killing two people. line. “Of course there are customers who don’t because of Khazanah,” said Shukor. He added that weak start to the year had led them to cut “We think the government will not let Najib’s announcement all but ruled out a want to fly MAS. They are scared,” said one travel a damaging financial fallout from the missing their annual predictions. growth slide below the 7.0 percent mark,” mechanical issue with the Beijing-bound Boeing agent, who declined to be named. plane case could push the government into finally At the just-concluded National People’s Wang Tao, a UBS economist in Hong Kong, 777 that disappeared on March 8, but raised the “Even if MAS has the best rates, some don’t want selling its stake in MAS, after years of internal Congress (NPC), Premier Li Keqiang set this said in a report. Key downside risks ahead alarming prospect that one or both pilots might it. They try to avoid it. They are willing to pay more.” resistance against such a move. year’s growth target at “around 7.5 percent”, this year include uncertainties in export have been involved. The singular peculiarities of Malaysia Airlines did not immediately respond to Tony Fernandes, the flamboyant boss of lower than last year’s actual expansion of recovery, credit volatilities related to the case have kept the missing plane at the top of queries on whether ticket sales have been affected. Malaysian budget airline AirAsia ripped into MAS 7.7 percent-which was unchanged from China’s multi-trillion-dollar shadow bank- the global news agenda for more than a week-plac- In a statement Saturday, the airline defended last month after it announced its latest annual 2012 and the worst since 7.6 percent in ing sector-heightened by the country’s ing the carrier under a harsh and unwanted spot- itself against criticism it was slow in disseminating loss. 1999. China is a key driver of the world first-ever default on a domestic corporate light at a time when it is desperate to turn its fresh information about developments in the “So much money wasted,” Fernandes said. “I economy and the last time its actual GDP bond last week-and a “more pronounced” finances around. search for the missing aircraft. wonder if it’s fair that Malaysia Airlines can lose so growth came in below the government tar- property slowdown, she said. much money and protect its market share.” get was in 1998, at the height of the Asian Yao Wei, an analyst with Societe financial crisis. “The disappointing econom- Generale, said in a research note: “New lead- Huge losses State sell-off? Fernandes had agreed to a strategic tie-up ic data in January-February will be a test of ers are now facing a critical test: whether Last month, Malaysia Airlines (MAS) announced Shukor Yusof, an aviation industry analyst with aimed at breathing fresh life into MAS in 2011, but the government’s tolerance level, as this they can stabilize the economy, without sig- a 1.17 billion ringgit ($360 million) loss for the year Standard & Poors Capital IQ, said the airline’s earn- the deal was called off just months later, with the pace of deceleration has rarely been seen nificantly compromising the progress of to December 2013, exceeding analysts’ expecta- ings could be impacted by incidental expenses aris- AirAsia chief faulting “massive” union resistance to before,” Shen Jianguang, a Hong Kong- lowering debt risks.” The government has tions. ing out of the incident, as well as potential legal reform and hinting at deep problems in the state based economist with Mizuho Securities, avoided introducing major stimulus meas- The airline, which is 70 percent owned by costs. carrier. —AFP said in a research note. ures since Li took office in March last year, He cut his projection for 2014 growth and the ruling party leadership promised in from 7.5 percent to 7.3 percent. Bank of November to let the market play the “deci- America Merrill Lynch analysts also lowered sive” role in resource allocation. New Nigeria bridge raises their prediction from 7.6 percent to 7.2 per- But that vow could make it more difficult cent for the full year due to the “significant- for the government to intervene in the ly weaker than expected” data in the first economy, for example with infrastructure two months. investment, as such policies “may conceptu- hopes and resentment Goldman Sachs, meanwhile, said that if ally contradict the goal”, Goldman Sachs economic growth falls under 7.5 percent in economist Song Yu said in a report. “It does LAGOS: Sometimes a bridge is who say infrastructure spending undeclared policy that calls for has performed well in the south- the first quarter, there will be “significant imply more constraints on what and how risks of not hitting the annual target”. much the government can do compared “holding down the southeast.” east since civilian rule was restored more than just a bridge. After years needs to become a top priority for Chinese shares closed down Friday on wor- with the past,” Song wrote. —AFP of delays and empty promises, Africa’s most populous country and “No other conclusion is possible in 1999. Nigeria has finally begun work on a top oil producer. from the continued neglect of the But the president is facing an new bridge across the vast River Regardless of how people in the (River) Niger bridge,” he wrote. unprecedented crisis within the Niger, connecting states in the region feel about their government, Ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo PDP and will, should he run again southeast to major commercial Udah, an opposition party member, also held a groundbreaking cere- at the election in February 2015, be hubs in the southwest. Many of the urged southeast residents “to put mony in 2007, but funds to actually up against a new opposition Igbo ethnic group that dominates politics aside and support the presi- build the project were never mega-coalition which groups his in the southeast have applauded dent to ensure the success of this approved. Unfinished public proj- most prominent rivals. His support the project as a crucial step towards laudable project.” At the ground- ects are a scourge across the coun- in the southeast is also thought to improving trade and travel breaking ceremony, Jonathan try and are not specific to the south- be eroding, with two of five states between two of Nigeria’s most pop- described the new bridge as a piece east, but the delays still raised in the region now controlled by ulous regions. But others have of “strategic national infrastructure” resentment in the region. opposition governors. “If Jonathan charged that the bridge was and said that by pushing the proj- Fierce rhetoric from some Igbo thinks giving us another bridge will delayed as punishment to a people ect forward he had fulfilled “a sin- hardliners aside, Jonathan’s make him get our votes, he is jok- still persecuted more than four cere promise” from his 2011 cam- Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ing,” said Uchenna. —AFP decades after a civil war that fol- paign. lowed the southeast’s attempt to secede. Political ploy? Burgan Bank They charge that the project has Hardliners in the southeast said Poul Thomsen International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission chief in Greece Poul been launched now merely to they were not persuaded that the announces winners Thomsen arrives for a meeting between Greek government officials and the debt improve President Goodluck president was working in their inspectors at Greece’s Finance ministry yesterday. The debt inspectors from the Jonathan’s political fortunes as he interest. “The project is a drop in of Yawmi account European Central Bank, European Commission and International Monetary Fund, heads towards an expected re-elec- the ocean,” said Madu Uchenna, KUWAIT: Burgan Bank announced yesterday the names of the lucky known as the troika are in Athens to approve another bailout loan. —AP tion bid less than a year away. spokesman for a group pressuring winners of its Yawmi account draw, each taking home a prize of KD for southeastern sovereignty. “It 5,000. Keeping his ‘promise’ cannot make us forget the injustice The lucky winners for the daily draws took home a cash-prize of KD EU-IMF creditors “This project is very dear to the and marginalization of our people 5000 each, and they are: people of the southeast,” Anambra by the Nigerian state.” The south- 1. ABDULLAH HADI ALDHAFEERI owe ‘reparations’: state spokesman Mike Udah said of east unilaterally declared inde- 2. MOHAMMAD MAHMOUD ABBOUSH the proposed 1500 meter (5,000 pendence in 1967 following waves 3. FOUAD MOHAMMAD DIOMAN feet) bridge project which broke of killings of Igbos in the mainly 4. SHAIKHA MOHAMMED ALBAGHLI Greek leftist leader 5. HAMED FAYEZ ALHAMADI ground last month. Muslim north, reportedly by mem- With its new and enhanced features, the Yawmi Account has ATHENS: Radical leftist Alexis Tsipras said dictated by the creditors plunged the The existing River Niger over- bers of the Hausa ethnic group. become more convenient, easier, and faster for customers to benefit yesterday that international creditors had country into a deep recession. pass, built in 1963, is decaying and Calling itself the Republic of from. Now, customers will be eligible to enter the draw after 48 hours committed a “crime” against southern Prime Minister Antonis Samaras faces cannot cope with the massive flows Biafra, the southeast fought a brutal only from opening the account. Customers are also required to Europe and should pay reparations for risky local elections in May in which of traffic between the southeast, 1967-1970 civil war that killed more deposit KD 100 or equivalent only to enter the daily draw, and the hardships endured under austerity Tsipras’s Syriza is poised to score major which has a population of roughly than a million people, many from coupon value to enter the draw stands at KD 10. regimes. Tsipras, whose Syriza party leads gains. The prime minister has ruled out the 50 million, and the major cities of starvation. Uchenna’s group, the The newly designed Yawmi account has been launched to provide in opinion polls over the ruling conserva- holding of early general elections before the southwest, including Lagos, Movement for the Actualization of a highly innovative offering along with a higher frequency and incen- tive New Democracy party, told the weekly his term expires in 2016, but it looks likely sub-Saharan Africa’s largest city the Sovereign State of Biafra (MAS- tive of winning for everyone. Today, the Yawmi account is a well under- Real News that the creditors had “know- that early ballots will be required next year with some 20 million people. SOB), and others have long alleged stood product, where its popularity can be seen from the number of ingly led (Greece) to the greatest humani- to enable parliament to elect a new presi- increasing account holders. Crossing the current bridge has that Igbos receive inferior treat- tarian disaster” through faulty fiscal calcu- dent. Burgan Bank encourages everyone to open a Yawmi account lations. Tsipras said his first act if elected prime become a hellish experience with ment from the federal government and/or increase their deposit to maximize their chances to becoming a “We find ourselves before a new gener- minister would be to “abolish” the bailout “excruciating traffic” disrupting in areas ranging from prominent daily winner. The more customers deposit, the higher the chances ation of reparations,” said Tsipras, 39, who agreement. The firebrand leftist leader has business and commercial travel, political and military appointments they receive of winning the draw. is among candidates to become the next repeatedly called for an international con- Udah said. The new structure being to infrastructure projects. Opening a Yawmi account is simple, customers are urged to visit president of the European Commission. ference to cancel the debt of the reces- built by the German construction Writing for the widely read their nearest Burgan Bank branch and receive all the details, or simply “A Syriza government will not let this sion-hit countries of southern Europe. His firm Julius Berger at a projected Sahara Reporters news website, call the bank’s Call Center at 1804080 where customer service repre- crime against the country and the point of reference is the 1953 London con- cost of 17.8 billion naira ($108 mil- columnist Frank Onia suggested sentatives will be delighted to assist with any questions on the Yawmi European south stand,” he said in the inter- ference at which 22 countries including lion dollars, 78 million euros) has the new bridge would have been account or any of the bank’s products and services. Customers can view. Greece’s multi-billion-euro EU-IMF Greece wrote off a large part of Germany’s also log on to Burgan Bank’s www.burgan.com for further information. the backing of many economists built years ago if not for an official, bailout in 2010 saved the country from debt after World War II to allow its econo- bankruptcy, but the austerity measures my to recover. —AFP BUSINESS MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Brazil drought puts froth on coffee prices

LONDON: The morning caffeine hit is about to at farmer group Coopamig, said some regions of $2,076 at the same time last week. The the ICO recently. impact of the drought on next year’s crop. get more pricey as drought in top producer Brazil Brazil have had only a tenth of their average rain- International Coffee Organization (ICO) now fore- The beginning of the year is a crucial Ribeiro Costa said his coffee growers have has sparked fears of a global shortfall of coffee fall so far this year during a crucial stage in the casts a global production deficit of at least 2 mil- period for the development of Brazil’s cof- only been able to apply a third of the this year, sending the price of beans soaring. beans’ development. Coopamig, which is made lion 60 kilogram bags of coffee in 2014-15. fee beans, and the market is easily spooked amount of fertilizer they normally would Coffee prices hit their highest point in two years up of 5,800 farmers from the country’s main cof- F O Licht analyst Stefan Uhlenbrock said the by fears of a poor crop. Agronomist Marcelo this year, which could cut output in 2015. in New York, with Arabica beans due for delivery fee producing region Minas Gerais, expects to market has staged a complete turnaround since Almeida said the lack of water in parts of And the impact is set to begin filtering in May fetching 203.75 cents per pound, more harvest up to 30 percent less coffee this year November, when “everybody was talking of sup- Brazil has stunted the beans’ development. down to the consumers. Griffiths Coffee, than double that of the 100.95 cents per pound than in 2013. ply overhang, with Brazil coming off a record off- This year it will likely take 600-700 liters of Australia’s oldest coffee roaster which sup- in November. “I’ve never seen such a drought in my life: in year crop, Columbia seeing a very strong recov- coffee cherries to produce a bag of 60 kilo- plies to the retail sector, is already forecast- The worst drought to hit Brazil in decades has some places we have found coffee wilted on the ery in its production and Vietnam also heading grams, after washing and drying, compared ing a rise in consumer prices. “The recent sparked fears that the crop in the world’s top cof- tree,” he said. The price of robusta, the more bit- for a bumper crop”. “Now everybody is concerned to 500 liters in a normal year. increase in prices of coffee beans will see fee producer could shrink for the second consec- ter variety of bean used in instant coffee, has also about the supply outlook for Brazil, with a real “It is fairly unprecedented this kind of an increase of at least 50 cents in a cup of utive year for the first time since 1970. surged due to cold and drought in Vietnam. On threat of a deficit in the coffee market, which has drought at this particular period of time in coffee. A cup of coffee here in Australia Leandro Gomes Ribeiro Costa, head of coffee Friday, London prices hit $2,176 a ton, up from not been the case in the past four years,” he told terms of cherry growth,” said Kona Haque, costs somewhere between 3 to 4 dollars, so who leads Macquarie’s agricultural com- it’ll probably go up by about 12 percent to modities research. 15 percent,” Chris Togias, director of F O Licht has already reduced its forecast Griffiths Coffee, said. for Brazil’s crop this year by 15 percent to 48 He added that “the international brokers million bags. are finding it quite difficult to supply glob- “The real damage will only be seen when ally because a lot of the farmers are actually the harvest starts in May,” Uhlenbrock said. not honoring their contracts.” “A lot of the farmers say they will not Market could go ‘ballistic’ honor the contract at $1.30 a pound “If the weather stays dry and you don’t because they can now get $2.06 a pound. get rain until May, as some weather fore- There is some talk in the industry of that cast suggest, this market could go ballistic,” happening,” he said. said Haque. “Equally, if the crop ends up But some analysts are more optimistic being close to 55 (millions bags) the mar- about Brazil’s ability to bounce back. “At ket could start collapsing.” Arabica prices some point, it will rain again in Brazil,” said soared to a 14-year high of 307.20 cents a Judith Ganes-Chase, president of J Ganes pound in 2010-2011 due to fears of a glob- Consulting. “Brazil is going to be back hav- al shortfall. But a rebound in production ing bigger crops, this market will return the following year saw prices collapse in back to surplus and we’ll be right back to 2012 and 2013. where we were before this new develop- Farmers are already worrying about the ment.” — AFP

The worst drought to hit Brazil in decades has sparked fears that the crop in the world’s top coffee producer could shrink for the second consecutive year for the first time since 1970. Wind power line proposal irks some Midwest farmers ST LOUIS: The windy plains of Kansas annually in property taxes, Lawlor said. could be a treasure trove in the nation’s As for property owners, compensa- effort to harness clean energy, but a tion will depend on how much ease- major proposal to move wind-generat- ment is needed, the value of the land ed electricity eastward is running into a and other factors. Lawlor gave an exam- roadblock: Farmers who don’t want ple of an easement stretching half a high-power transmission lines on their mile across land valued at $5,000 an land. Clean Line Energy Partners wants acre, housing two tower structures. The to spend $2.2 billion to build a 750- owner would get about $45,500 mile-long high-voltage overhead trans- for the easement and a one-time mission line. Towers 110 to 150 feet tall, payment of $18,000 for each structure - 4-6 per mile, would carry lines with a total of $81,500. Owners could also power generated by Kansas’ mod- opt for smaller annual payments for the ernistic windmill turbines through structures. Yet many landowners have sparsely populated northern Missouri, organized in opposition to Clean Line. through the cornfields of Illinois and to They worry about whether the towers a substation in Sullivan, Ind. The exact and lines will reduce property values, route has not been finalized. get in the way of farming operations The idea is supported by environ- like crop-dusting and irrigation, and mental groups who say it is an opportu- even create health risks for those living nity to take a big step forward for an so close to high-voltage wires. energy source that could reduce the “This is some of our best ground,” nation’s reliance on fossil fuels and cut said Kent Dye, 56, who farms about air pollution. Clean Line has four other 7,000 acres in northeast Missouri’s transmission line projects in the works Monroe County. “This line - there’s no in the West and Midwest. All five still proven need for it. There are no con- require regulatory approval. If all goes tracts to provide power, no contracts to right, the Kansas-to-Indiana line - called sell on the other end.” Then there are the Green Belt Express Clean Line - property rights issues. Clean Line filed could be operational by 2018, said Mark an application with the Missouri Public Lawlor, director of development for Clean Line. “There are a whole host of Service Commission in January for wind developers who are ready to go approval to operate as a public utility, a but they don’t have the ability to trans- move that would grant eminent domain mit the power,” Lawlor said. “But like an rights. Similar approval would be need- oil or gas field that’s remotely located, ed in Illinois. Clean Line already oper- you’ve got to find a way to get that ates as a public utility in Kansas and resource to market.” Indiana. Clean Line says the project will be an Many along the route worry that a economic boon, with all four states see- private company could simply take over ing new jobs for construction and local land that in some cases has been in companies providing things like parts families for generations. “We have sacri- and concrete. Lawlor said consumers ficed everything for this land,” said would benefit, too, by the new source of Jennifer Gatrel, 33, who, along with her power that would drive down electricity husband, Jeff, farms a 430-acre cattle costs. Kansas figures to benefit the ranch in western Missouri. “We don’t go most. Clean Line projects that more on vacation. We don’t go out to eat. than $7 billion of new wind projects will Everything we have is tied up in this be needed to meet demand created by land. The idea that somebody can come the line, potentially creating thousands in and take it from us is appalling and it of new jobs in Kansas and making the goes against what it is to be an state a hub of wind energy. American.” Lawlor said the company prefers not Other factors to use eminent domain and wants to Randi Tveitaraas Jack, energy coordi- reach agreements with landowners. He nator for the Kansas Department of also cited studies showing that power Commerce, said the agency doesn’t lines and towers have no effect on prop- endorse individual projects, but that in erty values. “When they sit down and general, “We’re very supportive of the talk to us and get the information about wind industry in Kansas and continued the reality of the project, I think we’re growth, and transmission is an impor- succeeding in clearing the air,” he said. tant piece of that.” Both the property Not as far as Gatrel is concerned. “There owner and the counties where the tow- are already significant barriers to farm- ers would be built stand to make mon- ing,” Gatrel said. “This would be another ey. A typical county could see $800,000 major barrier.” — AP BUSINESS MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 ECB on defensive over rates status quo

FRANKFURT: The European Central Bank appears to be Lautenschlaeger said in her first newspaper interview Brzeski at ING DiBa. were facing inflation above the ECB’s target, “I don’t increasingly on the defensive, stepping up efforts this since taking up her position. Tools that other central banks had at their disposal- think there could be any doubt whatsoever that the week to counter criticism of complacency after it held The ECB’s chief economist Peter Praet similarly such as quantitative easing or the purchase of asset ECB would have hiked interest rates to bring about a interest rates steady again this month. A whole range of rejected suggestions that the central bank was “behind backed securities-would be either “very hard (for the bit faster cooling of the economy,” Nielsen said. top ECB officials-from president Mario Draghi to chief the curve” and under-estimating the dangers of defla- ECB) to implement, highly controversial and it is far economist Peter Praet and the newest executive board tion. “We have a clear view of the situation and we will from certain whether they would really work,” Brzeski Strong euro a problem member Sabine Lautenschlaeger-have felt compelled act when necessary,” Praet insisted at a central banking said. “All of this leaves the ECB with only one last Analysts said the rising euro-which last week to defend the decision not to ease monetary conditions conference. option and this is a rate cut. But as long as the macro- touched its highest level since late 2011, closing in on any further, despite an alarmingly low level of inflation. “At present, risks of deflation ... are quite limited,” said scenario predicts a gradual recovery and low inflation $1.40 — could increasingly become a headache and The ECB last cut its key “refi” refinancing rate to 0.25 ECB chief Mario Draghi. But Draghi also insisted that the is mainly driven by energy prices, there is no reason for may even force the bank’s hand. While the ECB has no percent in November but has not taken any additional ECB has been preparing “additional non-standard mon- the ECB to act,” Brzeski said. official exchange rate target, a strong euro can harm measures since, despite concerns the single currency etary policy measures” and would take “decisive action” RBS economist Richard Barwell also felt that the exports and also push inflation still lower. Draghi area could slip into deflation. Deflation is a widespread if needed. ECB’s hands were tied. Its apparent reluctance to act admitted that the exchange rate was becoming decline in prices which can lead to consumers delaying was because the ECB’s governing council “has run out “increasingly relevant” in the ECB’s assessment of price purchases. It can trigger a destructive spiral where com- No easy options of easy options, not that it is indifferent to low infla- stability. panies forced to cut prices also cut wages and lay off Given the ECB’s pro-active fire-fighting role tion,” Barwell said. Berenberg Bank chief economist Holger workers, leaving consumers with less money to spend throughout the euro-zone crisis, central bank watchers Natixis economist Sylvain Broyer pointed out that Schmieding said he shared the ECB’s optimism about and the entire economy worse off. said they are convinced that Draghi and his team are with most data pointing upwards, “why take additional the outlook for recovery. “We see no need for the ECB “Acting just for the sake of acting makes no sense,” not suddenly being complacent. Rather, with interest action which won’t have any effect?”. UniCredit econo- to add a further monetary stimulus,” he said. “If the said Sabine Lautenschlaeger, who joined the ECB’s rates close to zero, the bank’s options were more limit- mist Erik Nielsen noted an “asymmetry” which has economic upswing were to falter unexpectedly, the executive board in January. “I reject it if someone says ed, analysts said. “Conducting monetary policy is sim- emerged in the ECB’s reaction function. ECB would have to react. But if the economy stays on we are complacent. There was no strong reason to act,” ply not as easy as some analysts think,” said Carsten If the situation were reversed and the euro-zone track, the ECB can stay put.” — AFP

Blackstone Market Commentary German top court to rule Getting to tomorrow on European bailout fund By Byron Wien e started off the year with a Focus on ESM and lending capacity scare from the emerging mar- Wkets. The Argentine peso was BERLIN: Germany’s highest court will tomorrow Germany was one of the last countries in the In a ruling last month, the German court for the devalued by more than 20 percent, but make its final ruling on the legality under national region to ratify the ESM, in late 2012. The German first time passed a matter up to the European level, other currencies in the developing law of the European bailout fund, the ESM, having judges, in a preliminary ruling in September 2012, the Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice world had declined sharply as well. earlier backed it in principle. saw no obstacles to Germany taking part in the (ECJ). At issue was the European Central Bank’s Equities in these countries fell also, with Throughout the euro-zone turmoil since 2010, mechanism, a decision that was met with relief OMT bond purchase program, which eurosceptics many markets down 10 percent or more. the Constitutional Court has repeatedly been throughout Europe. had argued overstepped the central bank’s man- In the developed world equities asked by eurosceptics to rule on whether new EU As a result, President Joachim Gauck was able date and was tantamount to printing money. The declined about 5 percent, but in Japan crisis-fighting tools are in line with Germany’s con- to sign Germany’s participation in the crisis-fight- Outright Monetary Transactions program theoreti- fell twice that. At the beginning of the stitution. ing tool into law. However, the court in the western cally allows the bank to buy up unlimited amounts year I feared a sell-off and when people The red-robed judges have always validated city of Karlsruhe imposed some conditions, includ- of sovereign debt of crisis-ridden countries. asked me why, I fumbled for a credible European decisions, or sent them to a European ing consultation with the lower house of the It was unveiled by ECB chief Mario Draghi in answer. My thinking was that sentiment court, while reinforcing the German parliament’s German parliament. August 2012 and, although it has never been put was much too optimistic. Everyone had right to be consulted and informed. The treaty establishing the ESM contained an into use, its mere existence largely defused fears of made money in the stock market in This time the focus will be on the European annex detailing these provisions. The German an imminent euro-zone break-up. Observers said somewhat along with the market. Much Stability Mechanism (ESM), set up to bail out trou- judges-whom Chancellor Angela Merkel has the decision could be good for the euro because 2013, although few had done as well as of this was blamed on the bad weather. the Standard & Poor’s 500. People were bled countries and their banks, with a maximum always had to take into account in her decisions on the ECJ as a European body was unlikely to over- Retail sales declined by .4 percent in lending capacity of 500 billion euros ($696 billion), European policy-will now make their final verdict turn an anti-crisis measure that has been instru- generally positive about the outlook for January, the most in ten months. The guaranteed by the member states. Germany’s on the legality of the ESM. There has been no sug- mental in restoring calm to the markets. 2014 and there was a background of weather discouraged shoppers from share of these guarantees amounted to 190 billion gestion they will deviate from the line they have The EU Commission in Brussels welcomed the complacency. When these conditions buying anything but cold weather gear. euros, more than that of any other country. taken so far. German court’s move. — AFP prevail, something always comes along Auto and appliance sales were particu- to shake confidence. larly hard hit. Weak consumer sales have I continue to be constructive on equi- caused some economists to revise their ties and expect the economy in the forecasts for first quarter real growth to 2 Dubai considers rule United States to expand by more than percent or below. They may be right, but the 1.9 percent real growth rate report- I still expect the economy to pick up later change to lure ed for 2013. What worries me overall is in the year, with the full year coming in the nature of the policy responses I see at 3 percent or above. Contributing to more domiciled funds across the world.(In Japan,)The defla- the view that the economy is softening tionary recession has ended and the was the sharp decline in the Institute of DUBAI: Dubai is considering regulatory reforms Luxembourg, Dublin, the Cayman Islands and economy is growing. dismantling regu- Supply Management (ISM) factory index to persuade more funds to base themselves in Singapore, the DFSA said. A public consultation lation and producing sustainable for January, which dropped from 55 to its financial centre, though industry experts ended last month and the rules could be intro- growth - is proving harder to achieve. In 51, close to the level (50) which indicates believe that other parts of its investment envi- duced this year. Dubai has strengths as a fund the meantime the aging population the manufacturing sector is no longer ronment may also need to change for the emi- centre. Tax and investment treaties between the grows larger and the work force is reach- expanding. I think weather may have rate to compete globally. United Arab Emirates and other countries, as ing a peak. This could be countered by had something to do with this also and The proposed rules would create a new class well as the legal treatment of land ownership, WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama listening to implementing a liberal immigration pol- believe we will see stronger data later in of funds in the Dubai International Financial can make it advantageous for foreign investors economist Janet Yellen (right) after she was nominated icy, but the country has no appetite for the year. A study by Bianco Research Centre (DIFC) in an effort to attract asset man- in Gulf assets - or Gulf-based investors in over- to Chair the Federal Reserve at the White House in that. At some point the stimulative pro- shows that the correlation between the agers, such as hedge funds and private equity seas assets - to have their funds domiciled in the Washington, DC. New Federal Reserve chief Janet grams will have to be scaled back and ISM factory index and GDP has declined funds, serving the richest and most risk-tolerant DIFC. In effect, Dubai can act as a contact point Yellen is expected to stick to the game plan when she the question is: will the economy have sharply in this cycle. The ISM index for investors. The DIFC has boomed since it was set for the Gulf and Western financial systems. developed enough natural momentum chairs her first monetary policy meeting this week, fur- up as a financial free zone in 2004, becoming Dubai’s move comes after the European non-manufacturing was 54 in January, ther cutting back economic stimulus. — AFP by that time to continue to grow? only a slight uptick, but services are the Middle East’s top banking hub. The number Union introduced its Alternative Investment Concern about that may be the principal much more important to overall growth. of registered firms operating in the DIFC Fund Managers Directive, tightening the EU’s factor behind the recent sell-off. Weather was blamed for a weak Yellen expected to jumped 14 percent to 1,039 last year, but it has regulation of hedge funds and private equity In China, the Third Plenum in January (payroll) report but (a study by) not come close to competing with the likes of funds in the wake of the global financial crisis. November outlined a plan by the new Bianco Research reported that only stick to taper path Luxembourg, Dublin and the Cayman Islands as While the DFSA emphasizes that it is not sacri- a top domicile for funds. ficing responsible regulation with its proposal, it leaders, Xi and Li, to reduce corruption 262,000 people were out of work WASHINGTON: New Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen is Only nine funds have been domiciled in the has a chance to appear attractively lenient to and rebalance the economy. Growth because of weather in January, well expected to stick to the game plan when she chairs her DIFC since its current funds regime was intro- European fund managers saddled with heavier had been moving along at a 7+ percent below the January weather-related out- real rate but that was largely a result of first monetary policy meeting this week, further cutting duced in 2010, compared with hundreds estab- regulation at home. It is not yet clear, however, of-work average of 415,000. An back economic stimulus. lished in the leading centres, industry sources whether the DFSA’s efforts will bear fruit. Harran the generous credit provided by the increase in construction jobs also sup- banking and shadow banking system. But, six weeks after inheriting Ben Bernanke’s mantle, said. The DIFC declined to comment. The Dubai said the proposed $1 million minimum sub- ports the view that weather played less she is also under the gun to make a pivot in the way the Financial Services Authority (DFSA), the regula- scription could be considered too high by some The agreement by many members of of a role in the employment report than Fed has been signaling its intentions. Handled well, that tory body for the DIFC, is now moving to nar- fund managers. Regulations in Ireland and both parties (as well as the general pub- generally assumed. The big problem in delicate shift in how the Fed foreshadows an eventual rate row that gap with its new fund class, which Luxembourg suggest that a figure of $500,000 lic) that changes must be made. If we unemployment is the share of workers hike could assuage markets. But communicated badly, it would impose less stringent regulation - and might be more appropriate for QIEF, he said. cannot get that done, remedial steps to with a part-time job who would like to could result in volatile movements and leave the new Fed therefore lower costs - on asset managers. Some other QIEF requirements look poten- sustain the long-term growth of the be at it full-time. This has declined from chief on the back foot. Rapidly expanding financial markets and ris- tially problematic, depending on how they are economy are unlikely to be taken. None over 17 percent of the work force to 13 ing incomes in the Gulf suggest there is room applied, he said. For example, while private of this is new, but these issues recede percent, but it is still higher than the Harsh winter blamed for a fund management hub to develop in the equity funds do not have to appoint custodians from investor consciousness as long as peak of 10 percent in 2003. Jobless The first meeting under Yellen’s lead of the Federal region. “You need an option now for a Middle for assets in certain circumstances, they do the economic and market performance claims are also higher, but vehicle pro- Open Market Committee, on Tuesday and Wednesday, is East domicile,” said Chris Harran, a national part- need to have independent oversight commit- are favorable. duction and industrial production data expected to conclude that unusually harsh winter storms ner at law firm Dechert LLP, which has worked tees, which could prove burdensome. The decline in the indexes in January generally are favorable. Finally, the were mainly behind the slowdown in economic activity in extensively on setting up funds in Dubai. But he And though the QIEF proposal aims to has unsettled some investors who are recent economic reports coming out of December to February. Despite a series of weak job cre- added that elements outside the DFSA’s control streamline registration for funds, DIFC compa- students of market history. Since 1950 China are positive, which benefits all ation numbers, slow construction activity and slow retail - such as the way in which investment funds are nies law and its requirements would still apply. (according to Strategas Research), there the countries that do business there. sales since December, most analysts expect the FOMC incorporated and registered - would also need Standalone investment fund incorporation rules have been 24 instances of a January Let’s hope that encourages the leader- won’t pause in the drawdown of its bond buying program, to be considered to maximize Dubai’s attrac- may be needed to resolve this issue, Harran decline. The full-year return in those ship to pursue the rebalancing program its huge easy-money the stimulus effort. tiveness. Anthony Mallis, chief executive of asset said. years has been a negative 4 percent with and that they set an example for others. The Fed has cut the program by $20 billion to $65 bil- management firm Securities & Investment Co in the median a negative 4.8 percent, but And since everyone is down on the lion a month since the beginning of the year, and another Bahrain, said the DIFC would succeed in the POLICY SPARK the market had a positive return in 46 emerging markets now, it may be time $10 billion cut could be decided this week. Yellen already long run if it could accommodate investors such Other obstacles to the QIEF regime involve percent of those instances, so I am not to take a hard look at some of them. showed her bias toward the weather explanation when she as family offices from around the Gulf. wider aspects of Dubai’s investment environ- backing away from my favorable outlook Also, Europe, surprisingly, had growth in testified to the US Senate on February 27. A growing number of these offices, which ment. John Sfakianakis, chief investment strate- for the year. As is often the case, the fun- the fourth quarter and I believe there Taking note of the poor data, she said she “wouldn’t help the region’s wealthy families and business gist at Saudi Arabian investment firm MASIC, damental background deteriorated are some opportunities there. want to jump to conclusions.” However, she added, “It is dynasties to manage their money, have been said that the decade-old DIFC would initially clear that unseasonably cold weather has played some establishing a presence in Dubai, he noted. find it hard to compete with more established role.”A week later, the Fed Beige Book survey of regional For now, however, Dubai needs to develop fund domiciles. “Others are more attractive in economies, important content for the FOMC policy meet- its “human infrastructure” of financial lawyers, terms of experience, legacy and cost,” he said. ing, mentioned the weather 119 times in explaining slug- custodians and other professionals to sustain “The last point is very crucial as fund competi- Aldermore eyes gish activity in much of the country. growth as a fund centre, Mallis said. tiveness is partly due to the set-up cost.” Jacques A modest rebound in retail sales data in February sug- “The volumes of money flowing through Visser, another national partner at law firm gested that there is some pent-up demand, and analysts must be large enough to sustain the infrastruc- Dechert, argues that more policy changes at hope this month and next will show a rebound in the ture. They haven’t got that yet.” local and federal government levels might be stock listing economy. necessary to give the DIFC a unique selling “We expect catch-up in March, leading to good momen- QIEF FUNDS point for funds. tum heading in to the second quarter,” said Jim O’Sullivan At present, DFSA rules permit two types of For example, a Dubai government decree LONDONP: The private equity owner of more credible newcomers trying to chal- at High Frequency Economics. Yellen, who has always funds: public funds and exempt funds. Public allows one fund, Emirates REIT, to buy property new British bank Aldermore has hired lenge Britain’s established banks and stayed behind the scenes during her three years as funds serve the mass of retail investors, who can anywhere in the emirate, not only in designated Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank to prepare potentially increase competition. It said it Bernanke’s deputy, will face the media on Wednesday afford relatively little risk, with extensive regula- zones for foreigners. Extending that right to all it for a listing that could value it at 800-900 was seeking acquisitions to speed up its when she announces the FOMC’s policy decision. tion in line with International Organization of DIFC funds, provided that most investors were million pounds ($1.33-1.5 billion), Britain’s expansion last year. With the bond-buying taper expected to remain on Securities Commissions standards. from Gulf Cooperation Council countries, could Sunday Times newspaper reported. It raised 40 million pounds in new capi- track, the challenge will be to explain how the FOMC will Exempt funds, meanwhile, serve profession- ignite interest in DIFC funds as a way into The newspaper, without citing sources, tal in December to help it with its growth adjust the communication of its expectations: essentially, al, experienced clients more able to cope with Dubai’s booming property market. said that the listing by Aldermore’s owner aspirations. Separately, the Sunday Times how it signals to the market when it plans to begin raising risk. Regulation is less stringent but subscrip- Similarly, there are ceilings or bans on for- Anacap would take place in the autumn. A also said that Labelux, the owner of Jimmy its key interest rate, held at a rock-bottom 0-0.25 percent tions to exempt funds start at $50,000. eign investment in individual UAE stocks such spokesman for Aldermore declined to com- Choo, has held meetings with investment since December 2008. At the end of 2012, the FOMC set The DFSA’s proposal would create a third as telecoms giant Etisalat , and Visser says that ment on the Sunday Times report but said bankers in recent weeks to discuss floating specific thresholds for when it could begin lifting the rate: category: qualified investor exempt funds federal rules could be eased to make the DIFC a Aldermore was reviewing its capital mar- a minority stake in the luxury shoe retailer 2.0 percent for inflation and a 6.5 percent unemployment (QIEFs). Rules would be relaxed further - for channel for such investment. “The moment one kets strategy which could, amongst other that could value it at 1 billion pounds. rate. example, fund managers would have more flex- takes steps like that, DIFC-based funds may be strategies, include an initial public offering. However, it cited sources close to Labelux Most policymakers did not think those levels would be ibility in the appointment of custodians and the able to reach critical mass to fuel further, expo- Credit Suisse declined to comment as saying that the plans were at an early breached until 2015, and the current Fed outlook for a rate filing of reports on funds. The minimum sub- nential growth,” he said. while Deutsche Bank was not immediately stage and could amount to nothing. hike is later next year. Inflation is still very low, but the scription would be much higher at $1 million. “But one needs that spark from a policy- available to comment. Aldermore, founded Labelex was not immediately available to unemployment rate has fallen faster than expected, now at The proposal was made after a review of related perspective rather than just focusing on in 2009, has established itself as one of the comment. — Reuters 6.7 percent, and is bumping against the threshold. — AFP other fund jurisdictions, including Bahrain, pure regulatory change.” — Reuters BUSINESS MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Rolls-Royce Ghost ‘Royal Blue Edition’ now available in Kuwait

KUWAIT: Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has announced that can be embroidered throughout the exterior graphics and glove boxes. that a client’s vision can be realized, and that per- that a unique Bespoke Royal Blue Ghost, which was and interior of the vehicle, especially designed Yousef Al-Qatami, General Manager, Ali fection is possible. The program takes the world’s recently revealed to the public at Auto Moto 2014, steering wheels, headrests, door pocket inners, Alghanim & Sons Automotive said: “The Rolls- greatest car and makes it even more unique - an is now available exclusively at Ali Alghanim & Sons personalized clock, personalized tread plates Royce Bespoke Program is built on the principle offering that no other automotive manufacturer Automotive, the sole dealer of Rolls-Royce Motor can rival. This Royal Blue Ghost embodies the spirit Cars in Kuwait. of this service and we are excited to see the Designed especially for the Kuwaiti market by response to this striking vehicle.” Ali Alghanim & Sons Automotive and showcasing In addition to a customized color and options, the very best of the Rolls-Royce Bespoke Program, the unique Royal Blue Ghost, a 2014 model-year the car’s Royal Blue hue is complemented by a vehicle, reflects the car maker’s vision of riding and Silver Satin Bonnet, creating a color combination driving in peerless fashion, including subtle that evokes the azure skies and shimmering towers enhancements over previous Ghost models which, of Kuwait’s skyline. The distinct reflective character- together ensure the car is equipped to the pinna- istic of the exterior is created through five layers of cle of Rolls-Royce standards. primer, Xirillac Paint infused with special particles, These enhancements include a new IPS 10.25” and high-gloss clear coat, followed by many hours HD screen, the largest in its class, an all-new touch- of hand polishing and sanding. pad Spirit of Ecstasy Rotary Controller and the lat- Under the Rolls-Royce Bespoke program cus- est in audio-engineering technology, which tomers can specify the features of their car, choos- ensures that no external conditions can affect the ing from a range of elements that include an sound quality inside the vehicle. incredible palette of over 44,000 catalogued hues Since its original launch in Kuwait in 2009, the of paint, with a further option to also create and Ghost has been well-received amongst discerning name their own unique color. Kuwait-based clientele. It is considered a modern In addition to color, Bespoke Program cus- execution of timeless Rolls-Royce elegance, widen- tomers also have the choice to design a raft of ele- ing its appeal beyond the purely traditional but ments, aligning them to their preferences and retaining the core values that make the Rolls-Royce needs. Such features include personalized logos marque unique and cherished. Air Arabia completes Kazakhstan hat-trick Airline launches non-stop services to Shymkent

SHARJAH: Air Arabia, the Middle East and North Africa’s first and largest low-cost carrier, yesterday announced the launch of regular non-stop services to Shymkent, Kazakhstan. With the addition of Shymkent, Air Arabia became the only operator in the UAE to serve 3 destinations in Kazakhstan. The new twice- weekly service will be Air Arabia’s 91st world- wide destination. Air Arabia currently serves Astana and Almaty in Kazakhstan, in addition to Shymkent starting March 15, 2014. Located in the south of the country, Shymkent is the Kazakhstan’s third most populous city and is known as a centre of culture and industry. “Kazakhstan is a rapidly emerging econo- my with a very bright future, and we have accordingly prioritised building our route net- work in the country,” said Adel Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer, Air Arabia. “As two major oil which makes us confident of the success of at Shymkent International Airport at 03:30 on producers, there are obvious links between this new service to Shymkent.” Flights will the following day. Return flights will depart the UAE and Kazakhstan, and we also see real depart Sharjah International Airport on Shymkent on Thursdays and Sundays at 04:30 potential for broader trade and tourism ties, Wednesdays and Saturdays at 22:00, arriving arriving in Sharjah at 06:15.

Chevrolet Alghanim surprises Shurooq wins Arab Organization its customers with crazy prices for Social Responsibility Award on the Malibu and Captiva SHARJAH: The Sharjah Investment and be highly received by ecotourism enthusiasts Oman being built in line with eco-friendly KUWAIT: Spring is in the air, and on this start engine, smart key, features that makes Development Authority (Shurooq) has won in the world as it will offer a numerous facilities standards. An art centre and marine hobbies occasion Yusuf Ahmed Alghanim & Sons the Malibu one of the most technological the 3rd Arab Organization for Social and activities and will be a destination of and diving centre will be built, and exploration Automotive is proud to launch its newest advanced vehicles in its segment. Responsibility Award for outstanding environ- choice for natural beauty lovers in the region. expeditions to Kalba Creek and the Mangroves Spring offer which includes Crazy prices on Chevrolet Captiva is available in two mental initiatives in recognition of the Through this project, Shurooq aims to protect will be organized for visitors. its reliable mid-size sedan the Malibu, and engines: the 2.4, 4-cylinder engine that Authority’s remarkable development projects natural life in the region and contribute to sus- Through this project, Shurooq aims to sig- its family Crossover, the Captiva. Customers generates 169 hp and the 3.0-liter V6 in environment protection, most notably the tainable development. nificantly reduce environmental degradation, can now enjoy an elegant Chevrolet Malibu engine that generates an impressive 264 Kalba Eco-tourism Project which was launched He continued: “This award will inspire us to save endangered species, maintain biodiversi- for only KD 4,999, also the family-friendly, hp, making it one of the most powerful in collaboration with the Sharjah Environment pioneer more initiatives in environment pro- ty, and develop ecotourism sector in the coun- seven-seat and elegant Captiva is now at crossovers in the market. Both engines and Protected Areas Authority (EPPA), and is tection such as utilising solar energy in power try, as this sector is one of the latest tourism only KD 5,999. This is the ultimate opportu- have a smooth 6-speed automatic trans- considered as the largest ecotourism project generation for lights in some of our leisure and attractions in the world. nity for individuals to own the car that suits mission, giving customers an efficient driv- in the UAE and the entire region. tourist facilities. We will continue our efforts in Shurooq is committed to social responsibili- their needs and wants during this limited ing experience. The Chevrolet Captiva is Marwan bin Jassim Al-Sarkal, CEO of waste recycling and using environment friend- ty, towards its employees, the community, and characterized by a spacious interior with time offer. Shurooq, received the golden trophy and the ly materials in addition to the environment the environment in its various projects. This The Chevrolet Malibu has redefined the storage space that is among the best in Certificate of Excellence from the President of protection campaigns which we are planning commitment has been apparent through a mid-size segment in Kuwait with its expres- class with the option of 5 and 7 passengers sive styling, interior refinements, outstand- providing customers the maximum com- Tatweej Academy for Excellence Awards 2014 to carry out in collaboration with our partners number of initiatives aimed at improving liv- ing riding and handling as well as its five- fort they need. Advanced technology has in the Arab Region, Pierre Moukarzel, during and visitors of our various facilities” ing conditions of people, create jobs, improve star safety, making the Malibu a one-of-a- also been integrated into the Captiva’s inte- the annual award ceremony which was held at kind car. The exterior design of the Malibu rior with standard cruise control, steering Al-Murooj Rotana Dubai. A number of entities carries DNA from its sister vehicles, the wheel control, Bluetooth and a CD/MP3 and organizations were honored in recogni- Camaro a factor that brings in a sporty sen- player with AUX and USB port. The Captiva tion of their outstanding performance in social sibility to the family sedan segment. The comes equipped with a range of standard responsibility. The ceremony was attended by Malibu also offers the quietest ride in its safety features including dual airbags and VIPs, business leaders, and special guests from segment through the use of components standard ABS braking system and rear sen- across the Arab countries. that prevent tire, wind and road noise from sors to offer all-around protection. The award highlights outstanding environ- entering the cabin. Components such as mental initiatives launched and supported by noise-reducing rearview mirrors, acoustic Chevrolet Care: New levels of public and private sectors in member coun- laminated front glass and noise-absorption aftersales service tries of the Arab League. These initiatives pads are strategically placed to make the All customers who purchase a new include smart building concepts, the rational cabin quiet and improve the overall quality Chevrolet will receive the benefits of the use of energy, green urban development, inside. Chevrolet Care program. Chevrolet Care is a beach clean-ups, greenhouse gas reduction, The new Malibu features a lineup of high level customer service experience and carbon emission solutions. fuel-efficient and powerful four and six based on four pillars: To provide customers Launched by His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan with the best in service pricing and cost cylinder engines that complements its bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi, Member of the European-inspired driving characteristics. transparency; booking service with same Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, in May The Malibu is available with a wide range of day delivery; quality service by certified features such as MyLink infotainment tech- technicians as well as a regional 3 2012, the Kalba Eco-tourism Project nology, rearview Camera, LED tail Lamps, year/100,000 km warranty and 24x7 region- Development was highly recognized by the front HID lamps, Remote start Engine, Push al roadside assistance. judging panel, due to its outstanding contri- bution to preserving natural resources and protecting the environment and wildlife. The Al-Tijari announces winners project is situated in Kalba, an exclave of the emirate of Sharjah lying along the UAE - Oman of Al-Najma Account draw border, 15 kilometres to the south of Fujairah. KUWAIT: Commercial Bank of Kuwait mega prizes during the year worth KD Marwan bin Jassim Al-Sarkal stated that held the Al-Najma Account Daily draw 100,000 each on different occasions: The Shurooq places the environment at the fore- yesterday. National Day, Eid Al-Fitr, Eid Al-Adha and front of its strategic objectives in its various The three-phase project is expected to be services, and preserve environment for better The draw was held under the supervi- on the 19th of June which is the date of projects under development or management. completed in six years. The first phase is cur- community and sustainable future. sion of the Ministry of Commerce & the bank’s establishment. “This attention to the environment is a matter rently under way and will see the redevelop- Established in 2009, Shurooq strives to Industry represented by Abdulaziz With a minimum balance of KD 500, of course in all our activities in order to pre- ment of Al-Hafiya and Al-Qurm. As part of the encourage investment in the emirate of Ashkanani. customers will be eligible for the daily serve the environment of the Emirate and the project, endangered animals and birds has Sharjah by adopting the best international The winners of the Najma Daily draw draw provided that the money is in the UAE and to maintain the achievements made been released in the conservation area, and standards in providing quality services that are: Mohamad Sheba Ibrahim— KD account one week prior to the daily under the leadership of Ruler of Sharjah and archaeological sites within the area will be help attract investors from the region and the 7,000, Zainab Abdulaziz Abdul Raheem draw or 2 months prior to the mega the directives of Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan restored. world. Shurooq’s key mission is to provide — KD 7,000, Naser Saleh Haji & Fahad draw. In addition, for each KD 25 a cus- Al-Qasimi, chairperson of Sharjah Investment The second phase of the project will involve facilities and incentives to help overcome Ahmed Hussain — KD 7,000, Mansour tomer can get one chance for winning and Development Authority,” he said. the development of Kalba Creek and the con- obstacles facing investment activities in the Ahmed Ali — KD 7,000, Jamaan Marjan instead of KD 50. “As part of its corporate social responsibility struction of a commercial complex, in addition Emirate, evaluate tourism and investment Saeed — KD 7,000. Commercial Bank of Kuwait takes this and its commitment to promote the emirate’s to developing recreational spaces for visitors. related infrastructure projects, and lay down The Commercial Bank of Kuwait opportunity to congratulate all lucky unique tourist attractions, the Authority is The project also envisages the development of the necessary plans to complete such projects. announces the biggest daily draw in winners and also extends appreciation to striving to preserve the country’s rich environ- a number of islands in the creek, as well as In recognition of its overall accomplish- Kuwait with the launch of the new Najma the Ministry of Commerce and Industry mental legacy and develop projects that serve rehabilitation of their natural environments. ments, Shurooq has been named The Banking account. Customers of the bank can now for their effective supervision of the the interests of the nation, while providing a The third phase of the project will focus on Awards 2013 - FDI Agency of the Year in the enjoy a KD 7,000 daily prize which is the draws which were conducted in an new tourist destination,” he clarified. He added tourism and will witness 300 rooms spanning MENA region in The European’s Global highest in the country and another 4 orderly and organized manner. that the Kalba Eco-tourism Project was sure to hotels and lodges overlooking the Gulf of Banking and Finance Awards. MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 technology

High-tech on slopes: Networked masks to revolutionise skiing PARIS: Measuring performance, providing a sound- also locate other wearers on the slopes, share text The cost is not surprising given that the parts There has also been disappointment that a track and giving real-time information about the messages and take incoming calls that flash up on alone cost around 400 euros, according to Recon, the planned project in the popular Three Valleys ski slopes: the latest ski masks are revolutionising skiing, the screen. A remote control-worn like a large Canadian company that sells the technology to gog- resort in the Savoie region of the French Alps-which but can they crossover into the mainstream, or will watch-also allows wearers to flick through their gle-makers such as Smith, Oakley and Zeal. would have given users of the mask a wealth of infor- they remain stuck with a niche market of rich geeks? music collection.”It’s like being in the future,” Damien “The price is not likely to change next season,” mation on its tracks in real-time-is “currently on Worthy of a James Bond gadget, these large ski Chaussin, owner of the shop “L’Oeil du Mont Blanc” at said Sylvain Faivre, head of marketing at Smith stand-by due to a technical problem”, according to goggles are equipped with an integrated screen in Chamonix, told AFP. He added that “the idea is very France. The American brand said it had sold around Recon. the bottom-right of the view that relays information cool, it is the future, but there is currently still a price 700 of the networked ski-masks in Europe in 2013 — Nonetheless, it is only a matter of time before sent by Bluetooth, wifi and GPS. barrier.” around 200 of them in France. The market is current- these technologies take off, said Thierry Penet, of Sensors measure not only altitude and the gradi- ly held back by both cost and the limited number of Paris-based Laster Technologies, which specialises in ent of the slope, but also distance covered, tempera- A ‘geeky’ clientele units delivered to stores, and will “evolve gradually digital display technologies in medical, aerospace ture, speed and the height of any jumps. Indeed, the goggles will still set you back about but not in big volumes,” Faivre said. and military sectors. To really impress your friends, these networked 650 euros ($900) — the same as an excellent snow- Users are still put off by the extra weight of the “For two years, manufacturers have realised the skiiers can also download their data once they are board or pair of touring skis. mask, especially when a camera is incorporated. potential uses for this type of technology in sport. back at their lodge, allowing them to compare per- They attract buyers, according to several vendors Others have suggested a better-positioned screen, as Right now, we are only at the start of this type of formances and analyse data. In addition-by connect- who spoke to AFP, who tend to be over-30s and a lit- the current version requires users to look down as usage ... but we must prepare ourselves for the emer- ing through their mobile phones-the goggles can tle “geeky” and “narcissistic”. though at a car dashboard. gence of a mass market,” he said. — AP

Haiti manufacturing Chinese e-commerce giant its own Android tablet Alibaba gears for US IPO PORT-AU-PRINCE: Better known for imported Asian components, the facto- producing third-world poverty and ry produces three models all with 7-inch political mayhem - as well as a world- (18-cm) screens that run on Google Inc’s Door not completely shut on listing in HK class rum - the Western Hemisphere’s Android operation system. They range least developed country has made a sur- from a simple wifi tablet with 512 HONG KONG: Chinese e-commerce giant prising entry into the high-tech world megabytes of RAM for about $100, to a Alibaba Group said yesterday that it will go pub- with its own Android tablet. 3G model with 2-gigabytes of memory lic on a US stock exchange in a move analysts Sandwiched between textile facto- for $285. say might raise up to $15 billion in the year’s ries in a Port-au-Prince industrial park The small factory with 40 employees biggest initial public offering. next to a slum, a Haitian-founded com- is a throwback to the 1970s and 1980s The announcement confirming plans for a US pany has begun manufacturing the low- when Haiti had a thriving assembly offering ended months of speculation over cost tablet called S˚rtab, a name closely industry, including computer boards, as where the company would list its shares after resembling the Haitian Creole for “on well as baseballs for US professional talks for a Hong Kong stock sale fell apart last year. teams. the table.” Alibaba is one of the world’s biggest Internet Unlike the factories next door where Political turmoil, and a US economic companies and says more than $150 billion low-paid textile workers churn out embargo in the 1990s following a mili- worth of merchandise changes hands on its cheap undergarments for the US mar- tary coup, put them out of business. “A online platforms each year, more than Amazon ket, S˚rtab workers are equipped with product such as S˚rtab shows that and eBay combined. soldering irons, not sewing machines. Haitians are not just destined for low- The company began as a service to link Dressed in sterile white work clothes, wage, low-skilled jobs,” said John Chinese suppliers with retailers abroad and has and a hair net, Sergine Brice is proud of Groarke, country director for USAID. “It’s branched out into retail e-commerce. It is little her job. “I never imagined I could, one the sort of high-skilled job that the known abroad but has launched two consumer- day, make a tablet by myself,” she said. country needs to work its way out of oriented services in the United States. Unemployed for a year after losing poverty.” “Alibaba Group has decided to commence her position in a phone company, Brice, Brice, who works an eight-hour shift, the process of an initial public offering in the 22, was not sure she had the skills when would not disclose her salary. S˚rtab United States,” the company said in a statement. she took the job after S˚rtab opened last employees receive a bonus for each “This will make us a more global company and enhance the company’s transparency, as well as year. “When I arrived and realized the tablet that successfully passes the quali- allow the company to continue to pursue our job deals with electronic components, I ty control and the company says it pays long-term vision and ideals.” was wondering if I would be able to do two to three times the Haitian minimum It gave no details of the timing or size of the HANGZHOU: Young men walk past the corporate logo at the headquarters compound of it. But when I finished my first tablet ... I wage of $5 a day. initial public offering or on which exchange it Alibaba Group in Hangzhou in eastern China’s Zhejiang province in this May 21, 2012 file photo. felt an immense pleasure,” she said. would take place. Analysts have estimated that The Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba says it’s gearing up to go public on a US stock exchange Her family and friends were skeptical. Individually assembled an Alibaba IPO could raise up to $15 billion and in what is likely to be the world’s biggest IPO this year. The company said yesterday that it has “None of them believed me,” she said. With only a limited selection of value the company at more than $100 billion. “decided to commence the process of an initial public offering in the United States.” — AP “Tablets made in Haiti? What are you expensive imported tablets available in Hangzhou, China-based Alibaba had previ- The company hinted that the door has not potential US IPO. Weibo, China’s equivalent of talking about?” they told her. “Haitians Haiti, S˚rtab is the cheapest device on ously abandoned plans for an IPO in Hong Kong completely shut on listing its stock in Hong Twitter, indicates have in our minds the idea that nothing the market. because the semiautonomous Chinese financial Kong. “Should circumstances permit in the it plans to raise $500 million. Another Chinese can be done in this country. I proved “It’s easy to use and it takes really center’s stock exchange refused to change its future, we will be constructive toward extending online retailing giant, JD.com, filed in January for that yes, we Haitians have the capacity good quality photos, like any other rules to accommodate the company’s unusual our public status in the China capital market in a U.S. stock listing. Alibaba Group doesn’t report to do many things,” she said. “It’s not just tablet,” said one happy customer, management structure. order to share our growth with the people of its finances. But Yahoo Inc., which owns a 24 per- Americans or Chinese. We’ve got what Lisbeth Plantin. “And it’s great to see The company failed to persuade the Hong China,” the statement said. cent stake in the company, said Alibaba’s rev- Kong exchange to grant it an exception from they’ve got, so we can do it too.” ‘Made in Haiti’ on the back,” she added. Alibaba is one of a number of Chinese inter- enue for the quarter ending in September rose listing rules so that it could maintain a “partner- With $200,000 in start-up funds from At the factory there is no production net heavyweights planning to cash in with IPOs 51 percent from a year earlier to $1.8 billion. ship” structure that lets top executives, who own amid rapid growth. The announcement comes That was down from 61 percent growth over the US Agency for International line, instead workers assemble each 10 percent of the company, retain control of the Development (USAID), and using device from start to finish. — Reuters two days after Chinese internet company Sina a year earlier in the previous quarter and 71 per- board. Corp.’s Weibo microblog unit filed plans for a cent in the first quarter of 2013. — AP US lagging as commercial drones take off NATO websites hit WASHINGTON: A small, four-rotor drone members of Congress are worried the United in cyber attack hovered over Washington Nationals baseball States will be one of the last countries, rather BRUSSELS/LONDON: Hackers brought down several public players for a few days during spring training than one of the first, to gain the economic NATO websites, the alliance said yesterday, in what appeared to in Florida last month, taking publicity photos benefits of the technology. “We don’t have be the latest escalation in cyberspace over growing tensions over impossible for a human photographer to the luxury of waiting another 20 years,” said Crimea. capture. But no one got the Federal Aviation Paul McDuffee, vice president of drone-mak- The Western military alliance’s spokeswoman, Oana Lungescu, Administration’s permission first. “No, we did- er Insitu of Bingen, Washington, a subsidiary said on social networking site Twitter that cyber attacks, which n’t get it cleared, but we don’t get our pop of Boeing. “This industry is exploding. It’s began on Saturday evening, continued on Sunday, although flies cleared either and those go higher than getting to the point where it may end up most services had now been restored. this thing did,” a team official said when con- happening with or without the FAA’s bless- “It doesn’t impede our ability to command and control our tacted by AP. The drone flights ceased the ing.” forces. At no time was there any risk to our classified networks,” next day. The official wasn’t authorized to In Japan, the Yamaha Motor Company’s another NATO official said. speak publicly and asked not to be named. RMAX helicopter drones have been spraying NATO’s main public website (www.nato.int), which carried a statement by Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen saying The agency bars commercial use of crops for 20 years. The radio-controlled that Sunday’s referendum on Crimea’s status would violate inter- drones no matter how seemingly benign. drones weighing 64 kg are cheaper than hir- national law and lack legitimacy, worked intermittently. The lone exception is an oil company that ing a plane and are able to more precisely The so-called “distributed denial of service” (DDoS) attack, in has been granted permission to fly drones apply fertilizers and pesticides. They fly clos- which hackers bombard websites with requests causing them to over the Arctic Ocean, and it took an act of er to the ground and their backwash enables slow down or crash, also hit the site of a NATO-affiliated cyber Congress to win that concession. FAA offi- the spray to reach the underside of leaves. security centre in Estonia. NATO’s unclassified e-mail network was cials say rules to address the special safety The helicopters went into use five years ago also affected. challenges associated with unmanned air- in South Korea and last year in Australia. NEW YORK: This March 12, 2104 file photo shows Brian Wilson launching a small A group calling itself “cyber berkut” said the attack had been craft need to be in place before they can Television networks use drones to cover drone equipped with a video camera to fly over the scene of an explosion an explo- carried out by patriotic Ukrainians angry over what they saw as share the sky with manned aircraft. The cricket matches in Australia. Zookal, a sion that leveled two apartment buildings in East Harlem in New York. Wilson says NATO interference in their country. The claim, made at www.cyber-berkut.org, could not be independently verified. Sydney company that rents textbooks to col- he uses the aerial drone to document buildings, weddings and news events. The agency has worked on those regulations for “Berkut” is a reference to the feared and since disbanded riot the past decade and is still months and pos- lege students, plans to begin delivering Federal Aviation Administration bars commercial use of drones no matter how seemingly benign. — AP squads used by the government of ousted pro-Russian Ukrainian sibly years away from issuing final rules for books via drones later this year. The United President Viktor Yanukovich. small drones, which are defined as those Arab Emirates has a project underway to see drone that could be used to deliver small, Williams said in an interview. “People believe Cyber warfare expert Jeffrey Carr, in a blog on the attacks, weighing less than 55 pounds. Rules for larg- whether government documents like dri- urgently needed goods in hard-to-reach they have the right to just jump in their air- described cyber berkut as staunch supporters of Yanukovich and er drones are even further off. ver’s licenses, identity cards and permits can places. Facebook is in talks to buy Titan plane and fly just like they do their car. ... We a “pro-Russia hacktivist group working against Ukrainian inde- But tempting technology and an eager be delivered using small drones. Aerospace, a maker of solar-powered drone- can’t set up a system that puts any of those pendence”. marketplace are outrunning the aviation In the United Kingdom, energy compa- like satellites, to step up its efforts to provide folks at risk.” Lungescu noted the statement by “a group of hacktivists” but agency’s best intentions. Photographers, real nies use drones to check the undersides of Internet access to remote parts of the world. Yet the FAA permits hobbyists to fly mod- said that, due to the complexities involved in attributing the estate agents, moviemakers and others are oil platforms for corrosion and repairs, and There is also a strong business case for urban el aircraft that have so improved in technolo- attacks, NATO would not speculate about who was responsible or their motives. hurrying to embrace the technology. Drones real estate agents use them to shoot videos drones that can replace truck deliveries of gy that they’re little different from small have been used to photograph the two of pricey properties. In a publicity stunt last single packages. “If you look at the economic drones. The FAA has issued voluntary guide- ‘Kicking sand’ apartment buildings that collapsed in New June, a Domino’s Pizza franchise in the UK footprint and CO2 emissions,” Raptopoulous lines for hobbyists, including staying away John Bumgarner, chief technology officer at the U.S. Cyber York City this past week and a car crash in posted a YouTube video of a “DomiCopter” said, the drone “beats the truck hands down.” from airports, flying no higher than 400 feet Consequences Unit, a non-profit research institute, said initial evi- Connecticut. The AP, in fact, is one of several drone flying over fields, trees and homes to and staying within the line of sight of the dence strongly suggested that these cyber attacks were news organizations studying the possible deliver two pizzas. But when Lakemaid Beer Complex operator. “You could go off to the hobby launched by pro-Russian sympathisers. use of drones. tried to use a drone to deliver six-packs to ice Worldwide sales of military and civilian shop, buy a little remote control helicopter “One could equate these cyber attacks against NATO as kick- Unless FAA officials receive a complaint or fishermen on a frozen lake in Minnesota, the drones will reach an estimated $89 billion and fly it to your heart’s content,” McDuffee ing sand into one’s face,” he said. Cyber attacks on NATO’s com- chance upon a news story that mentions FAA grounded the brewskis. over the next decade, according to the Teal said. “But if you hung a digital camera on that, puter systems are common, but a NATO official, speaking on con- drone flights, they have little ability to find Andreas Raptopoulous, CEO of Matternet Group, an aerospace research company in took pictures of your neighbor’s roof and sold dition of anonymity on Sunday, said this was a serious online assault. out about violations. The ban was further in Menlo Park, California, predicts that in the Fairfax, Virginia. The FAA estimates as many those pictures to him or her, now you are in undercut this month when a federal judge near term, there will be more extensive use of Ian West, director of NATO’s cyber defence nerve centre at as 7,500 small commercial drones will be in business and you’re flying” an unmanned air- Mons in southern Belgium, said last year that the alliance’s net- dismissed the only fine the FAA has imposed drones in impoverished countries than in use within five years once the necessary reg- craft system. work intrusion detection systems handled around 147 million on a commercial drone operator. The judge wealthier nations such as the US. He sees a ulations are in place. Sean Cassidy, senior vice president at the “suspicious events” every day and around 2,500 confirmed seri- said the agency can’t enforce regulations market for drones to deliver medicines and Jim Williams, head of the FAA’s drone Air Line Pilots Association, said he worries ous attacks on its computers in the previous year. that don’t exist. The FAA, which contends it other critical, small packaged goods to the 1 office, said writing rules for the US is more that commercial drone users will be less will- Occupied by Russian forces for two weeks, the largely controls access to the national air space, has billion people around the globe who don’t complex than other nations. The US has far ing than hobbyists to abide by restrictions Russian-speaking Crimea holds a referendum on seceding from appealed. have year-round access to roads. Later this more air traffic than anywhere else and a because of economic pressures. Drones are Ukraine to join Russia on Sunday. NATO states have opposed the year, Matternet plans to start selling to gov- greater variety of aircraft, from hot air bal- “becoming so prevalent and affordable that move, calling it unconstitutional and effectively an annexation of Economic Benefits ernment and aid organizations a package loons and old-fashioned barnstormers to the something has to be done to make sure Ukraine’s sovereign territory. The use of commercial drones, most of that includes a drone and two landing pads. most sophisticated airliners and military and they’re not being used in a reckless manner,” Tensions between Moscow and the West have been rising them small, is starting to spread to countries On the return trip, the drones can carry blood steadily since Russia intervened following the ouster of business jets. At low altitudes, the concern is he, said. “Even a fairly small (drone), if the per- Yanukovich. Ukrainian and Russian websites have both been where authorities have decided the aircraft samples bound for labs and other packages. a small drone could collide with a helicopter son flying this thing is unaware of their sur- targets for cyber attacks in recent weeks but this appeared presents little threat if operators follow a few Germany’s express delivery company or small plane flown by a recreational pilot. roundings ... there could be very dire conse- the first major attack on a Western website since the crisis safety rules. The drone industry and some Deutsche Post DHL is testing a “Paketkopter” “It’s a different culture in the US and Canada,” quences.” — AP began. — Reuters MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 HEALTH & SCIENCE New insurance rights for same-sex couples

WASHINGTON: Addressing gay and lesbian con- suit. The issue is seen as a national test of The administration said it intends to make expected medical costs of workers. Self-insured cerns, the Obama administration Friday moved whether insurance companies will be able to coverage “more accessible and equitable for employers generally hire an insurance company to expand health insurance access for same-sex continue avoiding costly patients. President married same-sex couples.” It’s part of a govern- to administer their benefit plan. couples and close a loophole that threatened to Barack Obama’s health care law requires insurers ment-wide effort to codify the rights of same-sex The new rules apply instead to plans that are leave some HIV/AIDS patients without coverage. to take all applicants, regardless of their medical spouses. That follows the Supreme Court deci- sold directly by insurance companies to individ- In separate announcements, the Health and history. sion last year striking down the federal Defense uals and employers, usually small to mid-sized Human Services Department said: Insurers offer- of Marriage Act, which opened the way for companies. ing spousal coverage for heterosexual couples Discrimination same-sex spouses to receive government bene- There are exceptions: “Grandfathered” plans must also provide it to legally married couples of The new rule says insurers must accept third- fits. that were in existence when the health law the same gender. party premium payments from the Ryan White The new HHS policy says that if an insurance passed four years ago and have changed very lit- Insurers cannot turn down HIV/AIDS patients and other federal and state programs. Ryan company offers spousal coverage to heterosexu- tle since then do not have to offer coverage to whose premiums are being paid through the White was an Indiana teenager with hemophilia al couples, it must also provide that benefit to same-sex spouses. Those plans, however, repre- federal Ryan White program. The administration who was diagnosed with AIDS in 1984, at a time same-sex couples who were legally married in a sent a dwindling share of the market. acted after gays and lesbians complained about when there were fewer precautions to safeguard jurisdiction that recognizes marriage between The new policy does not apply to Medicaid confusing rules on spousal coverage in the new blood supplies. Congress first authorized the people of the same sex. coverage for low-income people. The administra- health insurance exchanges, particularly in states federal HIV/AIDS program in 1990, the year tion encourages states to offer Medicaid benefits that do not recognize same-sex marriage. White died. Lawmakers named the program in Benefit plan to same-sex spouses, but state authorities have HHS also countered a move by insurers in his honor to recognize White’s stand against The administration is urging insurers to volun- the final say. Louisiana to stop accepting premium payments AIDS-related discrimination. tarily comply with the same-sex rule right away. Separately, HHS issued another one-month made by the federal Ryan White program on The policy on coverage for same-sex spouses It will be a requirement for coverage starting Jan. extension for the Pre-Existing Condition behalf of HIV/AIDS patients. takes effect next year and applies to plans 1, 2015, or later. Many large employer plans are Insurance Plan, known as PCIP. Patients in the The insurers, who said they were relying on offered in the health care law’s new insurance already operating under similar rules issued last temporary program will now have until April 30 another federal policy that discourages third markets. It also covers many - but not all - indi- fall by the Labor Department. These are so-called to find a new policy. PCIP was created as a transi- parties from paying premiums for individuals, vidual and employer plans offered outside that self-insured plans in which an employer sets tional program for people turned down for cov- wound up in federal court after advocates filed marketplace. aside its own money to cover most of the erage because of health problems. — AP Blood test offers safer diagnosis of brain injury

‘This kind of injury is particularly dangerous’

LONDON: Swedish researchers say they have loss of consciousness, they can induce other Thursday in the journal JAMA Neurology, the devised a blood test that could better diagnose symptoms such as dizziness, nausea, trouble players who had a concussion were asked to sports-related brain injuries and prevent concentrating, memory problems and provide repeated blood samples, initially directly American football, rugby and ice hockey players headaches. Severe concussions can cause a loss after the concussion and then also during the returning to the field in danger. of consciousness. Most concussions get better in following days. In findings from a study of ice hockey players, days or weeks, but some patients can suffer The results were compared with the pre-sea- the researchers said their method can show just symptoms more than a year after injury. son samples from two full teams, and the scien- an hour after a head injury how severe the con- The National Football League in the United tists found that having raised levels of a nerve cussion is, whether there is a risk of long-term States agreed in August to pay $765 million to cell protein called tau in the blood was a marker symptoms, and when the player can return to settle a lawsuit brought by thousands of former of concussion. the sport. players, many suffering from dementia and By measuring tau levels in regular tests, the “In ice hockey and other contact sports, health problems. They accused the league of researchers could say how severe the concus- repeated concussions are common, where the hiding the dangers of brain injury while profiting sion was just one hour after the injury, and could New study shows stem brain has not finished healing after the first from the sport’s violence. predict with a high level of certainty which play- blow,” said Henrik Zetterberg of the Sahlgrenska ers would have long-term symptoms and need- cells could be used in Academy at the University of Gothenburg, who Marker of concussion ed to rest longer. led the study. “Concussions are a growing international Yelverton Tegner, a researcher at Lulea “This kind of injury is particularly dangerous, problem,” said Zetterberg. “The stakes for the University of Technology and a team doctor for facial reconstruction but there have not been any methods for moni- individual athlete are high, and the list of players the Swedish national women’s football team, toring how a concussion in an athlete heals.” A forced to quit with life-long injury is getting ever who also worked on the study, said the ultimate LONDON: The effectiveness of human example, to improve the quality of tracheal growing body of scientific evidence, much of it longer.” aim was “to have a working kit that can be used stem cell therapies for facial reconstruction transplants. from studies of former American football players Zetterberg’s team examined all the players in for diagnostics in hospitals, and perhaps also at has been investigated in a new study led by Scaffold cellularization in vivo (within and boxers, suggests repeated head knocks such the Swedish Hockey League and found that rink-side or in stadiums”, for use immediately Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) and the body) is a lengthy and uneven process. as in contact sports can cause chronic traumatic between September and December of the after a player is concussed. the UCL Institute of Child Health (ICH). Hence POSS-PCU scaffolds pre-seeded with encephalopathy, a brain condition that can lead 2012/2013 season alone, 35 of 288 players had Zetterberg said the same test could also be The paper, published in the journal autologous hADSCs could help to improve to loss of cognitive function, dementia, aggres- had a concussion. In three cases, it was so severe used in general emergency medical care to diag- Nanomedicine, shows how stem cells could stability, integration and functionality of sion and depression. that the player was knocked unconscious. nose brain damage from concussions, regardless pose a viable alternative to current engineered transplants while avoiding tis- While mild concussions don’t generally cause For the study, which was published late of how they happened. — Reuters approaches to facial cartilage reconstruc- sue rejection. tion such as ear and nose reconstruction. Neil Bulstrode, Consultant Plastic GOSH has an excellent track record of Surgeon at GOSH and an author on the successfully treating patients born with a paper said: “It is such an exciting prospect malformed or missing ear, a condition with regard to the future treatment of Planet X myth debunked known as microtia. The two-stage ear these patients and many more. Currently I reconstruction takes cartilage from the take the rib cartilage from the chest to WASHINGTON: It was an elusive planet that aligned with a bright star that blinds the tele- of Neptune, which meant the planet could in patient’s ribs and from this, a new scaffold make an ear but if we could produce a is moulded and placed beneath the skin. block of cartilage using stem cells and tis- for 200 years appeared to explain Uranus’s wob- scope or were much smaller than had been the- fact be the reason for Uranus’s orbital behavior. Both the clinical and cosmetic results of sue engineering, this would be the Holy bly orbit. And there was the sister sun theorized orized. Yet Planet X believers were still not convinced. this procedure have been very good. Grail for our field.” to be near our solar system that caused aster- But after this latest survey, Luhman said the However, as Patrizia Ferretti, Head of GOSH has one of the largest and most oids to swerve toward Earth. odds of finding one are very unlikely: “That is Sister sun killed dinosaurs? Developmental Biology Unit at the ICH and experienced paediatric plastic and recon- There is just one problem: neither “Planet X” like a one in a hundred chance.” The existence of Nemesis, a sun-like star her co-authors demonstrate in their study, structive surgery centres anywhere in the nor “Nemesis” ever existed, researchers now say. nearby, was first posited in the 1980s. The star, the potential application of human stem world, with the aim of providing clinical Or probably not. “The outer solar system proba- History of Planet X by occasionally coming closer to the sun, inter- cells and tissue engineering could further excellence in our special areas of expertise bly does not contain a large gas giant planet Scientists first imagined the existence of fered with the orbit of comets and asteroids improve results and would obviate the which include; craniofacial surgery, cleft lip (“Planet X”), or a small, companion star Planet X in 1781, when they discovered Uranus, leading them to occasionally hit the Earth. need for this invasive part of the procedure, and palate repair, congenital hand anom- (“Nemesis”),” concluded University of a gas giant that astonished astronomers with its Collisions like these are blamed for the five which leaves a permanent defect in the alies, ear surgery, vascular anomalies and Pennsylvania astronomer Kevin Luhman, who orbital variations, apparently incompatible with mass extinctions over the last 540 million years- donor site. birthmarks and general plastic and recon- directed the study using NASA’s Wide-field Newton’s laws of gravity. the most recent being the dinosaur extinction structive surgery. Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) telescope. Observers concluded that these irregulari- 65 million years ago. Stability The results were published in the most ties could be explained by the existence of “So over the years, there have been different Dr Ferretti explains, “We used stem cells Note to editors recent edition of The Astrophysical Journal. another, unknown planet that was exerting its pieces of evidence suggesting there might be (hADSCs) harvested from the abdominal Great Ormond Street Hospital for Most theories had estimated Planet X to be up own gravitational force. something there,” Luhman explained to AFP. tissue of young patients affected by cranio- Children is one of the world’s leading cen- to four times the size of Jupiter-the biggest Attempts to track this mysterious Planet X But the WISE telescope didn’t find anything. facial conditions to explore, in our laborato- tres for treating sick children, with the planet in our solar system. led to the discovery of Neptune in 1846. But the The hunt for Planet X and Nemesis may have widest range of specialists under one roof ries, how these might be used in future sur- They suggested it would be found some estimated mass of Neptune couldn’t explain the turned up empty, but the study did uncover gery. The use of stem cells from the paedi- in the UK. With the UCL Institute of Child 1,486 billion kilometers (923 billion miles) from deviations of Uranus’s orbit. 3,525 stars and brown dwarfs-celestial objects atric patients themselves circumvents the Health, we are the largest centre for paedi- issue of rejection and would overcome the atric research outside the US, and play a the sun, or about 10,000 times farther than the That led astronomers to continue their whose mass puts them between a star and a need for immunosuppressive therapies.” key role in training children’s health spe- Earth’s orbit. But the images gathered by the search for Planet X-which, in turn, led to the dis- large planet-within 500 light years of the sun. The study suggests that combining cialists for the future. telescope did not detect any object larger than covery of Pluto in 1930. But the dwarf planet “Neighboring star systems that have been hADSC with POSS-PCU bionano scaffolds Great Ormond Street Hospital for Jupiter. was also too small to explain Uranus’s irregular hiding in plain sight just jump out in the WISE can be of great value for several applica- Children treated over 1400 inpatients and Luhman doesn’t rule out the possibility that path around the sun. data,” said Ned Wright, a University of California, tions. In addition to ear and nose cartilage over 9000 outpatients from the Middle East a planet is lurking somewhere in the asteroid Finally, in the 1990s, researchers determined Los Angeles astronomer who contributed to reconstruction, they could be used, for in 2012/13. belt. It would be hard to find if it were closely that they had slightly overestimated the mass the study. -— AFP ‘Love hormone’ oxytocin may help anorexics fight food fixation LONDON: Oxytocin, a brain chemical known as the “love hor- patients with anorexia and 33 healthy controls who were giv- mone”, is showing promise as a potential treatment for people en either oxytocin or a placebo. Participants were asked with the eating disorder anorexia nervosa, according to before and after taking the drug or placebo to look at images research by British and Korean scientists. relating to weight, high and low calorie foods, and fat and thin In studies of anorexic patients, researchers found oxytocin body shapes. altered their tendencies to become fixated on images of fat- tening foods and large body shapes - suggesting it could be Ground-breaking treatment developed as a treatment to help them overcome unhealthy As images flashed up, the researchers measured how obsessions with diet. quickly participants identified them. If they had a tendency to Anorexia nervosa affects millions of people worldwide - focus on the negative images, they would identify them more including around 1 in 150 teenage girls in Britain, where it is rapidly. The results, published in the one of the leading causes of mental health-related deaths, Psychoneuroendocrinology journal, showed that after taking both due to physical complications and suicide. While it most- oxytocin, anorexic patients reduced their focus on images of ly affects girls and women the condition can also affect males. food and fat bodies. In a second study, published in Public As well as problems with food, eating and body shape, Library of Science journal PLOS ONE, the researchers used the patients with anorexia often have social difficulties, including same participants, the same drug and placebo, but tested anxiety and hypersensitivity to negative emotions. reactions to facial expressions such as anger, disgust or happi- “Patients with anorexia have a range of social difficulties ness. After taking a dose of oxytocin, patients with anorexia which often start in their early teenage years, before the onset were less likely to focus on the “disgust” faces. of the illness,” said Janet Treasure, a professor at King’s College “Our research shows that oxytocin reduces patients’ London’s Institute of Psychiatry, who worked on two studies unconscious tendencies to focus on food, body shape, and on the hormone published in science journals on Thursday. negative emotions,” said Youl-Ri Kim, a professor at Inje “By using oxytocin as a potential treatment for anorexia, University in Seoul, South Korea who worked with Treasure. we are focusing on some of these underlying problems,” she He said the result “hints at the advent of a novel, ground- said. Oxytocin is a hormone released naturally in human breaking treatment option for patients with anorexia.” bonding, including during sex, childbirth and breastfeeding. Treasure stressed the research was at an early stage, how- MALEKHU: In this photograph taken on February 26, 2014, Nepalese women Sita Pariyar (L) and Madhuri Thakuri As a synthesized product, it has been tested as a treatment for ever, and although it was “hugely exciting to see the potential speak during an interview with AFP at Malekhu, Dhading district some 80 kilometers from Kathmandu. Sita various psychiatric disorders. Some studies have shown it has this treatment could have”, much larger trials would need to Pariyar had barely recovered from childbirth when her uterus slipped out of her body, making her one of hun- benefits in lowering social anxiety in people with autism. be carried out on more diverse participants before oxytocin dreds of thousands of Nepalese women struck by a debilitating reproductive condition.— AFP In the first of two studies, Treasure’s team analysed 31 could considered for an approved treatment. — Reuters HEALTH & SCIENCE MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Melting away: Vanishing ice warning for ‘Africa’s Alps’

RWENZORI MOUNTAINS: In swirling snow, John change and its negative consequences,” said Luc Fifty years ago, the glacier once began a stone’s Medenge prods a thin ice bridge over a crevasse Hardy of Pax Arctica, an organisation that pro- throw from the cliff-top Elena camp, where moun- with an iron-tipped spear, guiding climbers scaling motes awareness of the impact of climate change, taineers shiver in basic huts before making a pre- the steep glacial wall using crampons and axes. and who led an expedition in January to the dawn attempt to scale Stanley’s peaks. “We are the last few who will climb on the ice, it mountains. Now the ice lies almost an hour’s tough scram- is going so fast,” said Medenge, after scaling the “The melting of this unique African glacier is a ble up a steep track on loose rocks along sheer treacherous ridge up Mount Stanley, part of the major threat to local communities, with the obvi- cliffs. dramatic Rwenzori mountain range straddling the ous loss of sustainable water supplies,” said Hardy, border between Uganda and Democratic Republic a French-American explorer and a vice-president Impacting agriculture and tourism of Congo. of the environmental Green Cross group. Mountain guides say the local king sends eld- At 5,109 metres (16,763 feet), Stanley’s jagged Reduced glacial river flows are already impact- ers to sacrifice chickens and goats at the foot of peak is the third highest mountain in Africa, ing agricultural production and cutting the output the mountains to appease the gods that live in the topped only by Mount Kenya and Tanzania’s iconic of hydroelectric power plants, said Richard peaks, to stem the vanishing ice. Kilimanjaro. But experts warn the ice is melting at Atugonza, from the Mountain Resource Centre at “Global warming was not caused by people “disturbing” rates, and that within two decades Uganda’s Makere University. here, but it is harming us,” Baluku Stanley said, Africa’s equatorial peaks will be bare rock, impact- “It can be a big problem in the future for the chairman of one of the main trekking companies, ing agriculture and tourism. region, with the river ecology already changing,” the community-run Rwenzori Mountaineering “Every year the ice grows smaller,” 54-year old Atugonza said. Just a handful of kilometres (miles) Services. Medenge added, who has been climbing the north of the equator, the mist-covered Rwenzoris- “Of course when the ice goes it will affect range since a teenager. Ancient Greek geographer meaning “rain-maker” in the local Bakonzo lan- tourism, even though trekking in the valleys is Ptolemy in Alexandria wrote of the snow-capped guage-stretch for some thousand kilometres amazing,” he added. Spectacular valleys with fan- RWENZORI MOUNTAINS: Mountain climbers head to the top of Mount Stanley at the Rwenzoris around the second century AD, dub- squared (386 square miles), and include several tastical vegetation akin to a fairy story-including Rwenzori mountain range on the border between Uganda and the Democratic bing the mysterious peaks the “Mountains of the short glaciers, though on many peaks remaining bizarre twisted trees draped in near luminous Republic of Congo on March 8, 2014. — AFP Moon”, and identifying them as a source of the ice is now tiny patches. green lichen, giant lobelia plants and heather mighty White Nile. British-American explorer Henry Morton some five metres (15 feet) tall-offer extraordinary paths unusable, with dangling rusting ladders Kenya or Tanzania. Stanley was the first Westerner to sight the ice in trekking, even once the ice has gone. once used to climb onto the glaciers now ending “The Rwenzoris are some of the most exciting ‘Canary in the mine’ 1889, but the dramatic sight of glinting snow in Elephant, leopards, monkeys and chimpanzees dangerously in mid-air. glacier trekking and climbing I’ve done, rivalling But after centuries of wonder at the spectacle hot sunshine is fading fast, with maps showing the hide in the thick lower jungle, while at higher alti- The peaks offer some of the only proper ice peaks in Europe and South America,” said Paul of snow on the equator, the ice is vanishing, bring- ice has shrunk from some seven square kilometres tudes, colourful birds endemic to the range swoop climbing in Africa, attracting mountaineers from Drawbridge, a keen British mountaineer on an ing with it multiple challenges. “The melting gla- (2.7 square miles) when they were first climbed in over the vast bogs that line the valleys. across the world to the challenging climb, though eight-day expedition to climb Stanley. “It is such a ciers are another warning sign, a ‘canary in the 1906, to just a single square kilometre (a third of a But in higher reaches, new climbing routes numbers reaching the top summits are tiny com- shame to think that any children I may have will mine’ of mankind’s inability to contain climate square mile) today. have to be found, as the retreating ice make old pared to those scaling peaks in neighbouring never get to see the ice-capped peaks.” — AFP WHAT’S ON MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Thousands walk in NBK’s 2014 Walkathon

BK organized its annual Walkathon for the 20th consecutive year. Isam nationalities participated in the annual event. The Walkathon culminated with a Ahmad Ghloum Mohammed won three Citreon C-Elysee brand new cars. NJasem Al Sager NBK Group Chief Executive Officer, Shaikha Khaled Al prize giving ceremony at the Green Island where NBK awarded the top 120 par- NBK’s 2014 Walkathon aimed to encourage each individual to believe in their Bahar, NBK Deputy Group CEO, Salah Al Fulaij, NBK Capital CEO and many ticipants, and gave away three brand new cars, as grand prizes alongside the 10 ability towards making a change “If We Can make a change ... So Can You”. senior NBK officials joined thousands of participants in the Walkathonon winners in the first draw of NBK’s campaign to win a trip for two to attend one of NBK’s Social Media team broadcast the Walkathon live on NBK’s Official Saturday. Thousands of supporters and spectators lined the route on the Arabian the 2014 FIFA World Cup TM matches in Brazil in association with Visa that were Facebook, Twitter and Instagram Pages, posting regular updates throughout Gulf Road to cheer on the participants. Men, women and children of all ages and announced live during the Walkathon. Mahmoud Awad Ali, Muzamil Bachir and the day.

Kalpak celebrates silver jubilee

ALPAK celebrated its silver jubilee on 28th the field of drama and cinema with the audience in her Chakola. All these honored persons in their replay KALPAK President Babu Chakola presided the function. KFebruary 2014 at the Indian Central School audi- inaugural speech. KALPAK Advisor Adv. John Thomas, speech felicitated KALPAK members to make successful He proudly presents our beloved patron Thomas Chandi torium Abbassiya with various cultural programs Norka Pravasi welfare board member Vargheese their all future programs. Joseph Kannankara handed MLA who always support us for our each program and the one full length theater drama “AMME MAPPU” Puthukulankara, Malayil Moosakoya felicitated the func- over the Silver Jubilee souvenir to the chief guest to become successful and he extended thanks to our which also participated currently in the Kerala tion. KALPAK honored some prominent personalities in releasing. Famous artist Johnarts kalabhavan presented patron and our advisor United Indian School adminis- Sangeetha Nadaka Academy drama competition. Our the various field such as Valsala Menon (Cine Serial a beautiful caricature of the chief guest Valsala Menon. trate manager Adv. John Thomas and all the supporting chief guest Famous Malayalam film and serial actress Artist), Dr. Narayanan Namboodhiri (Chairman Doctor’s In the cultural program Deepu enthralled the audience staffs. General secretary Kumar Trithala welcomed the Valsala Menon inaugurated the function by lighting the forum), Susan Roy (Principal United Indian School), with his songs, Jeeva Mariya Davis, Dhaveed Babu audience and Treasurer Idicula Mathews extended vote lamp started with the prayer of little singer Ranjana Chirakkal Raju (Drama director), Johnarts Kalabhavan chakola, John Binoj, Aimee Vinodh excited the audience of thanks. The program was compared by Manju Regi Rajendran. Valsala Menon conveyed her experience in and the winner of Kerala Pravasi Kalasri Award Babu with their single dance and Ghannum style dance. Mathew and Benitta Jose. WHAT’S ON MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014

Al Sayer opens Cofran oil-change service branch with Hadiya Co-op

adiya Co-op announcing launch of Meshal Jalal Mohamed, Chairman of Hadiya ness strategy, and therefore decided to partici- Hentire renovated oil-change service Co-op said on this occasion: “We are very grate- pate in the renewal of the renovated oil-change branch in collaboration with Al-Sayer ful for sharing with us this important occasion branch in Hadiya Co-op serving customers with Engineering sole exclusive distributor for the opening of the entire renovated oil-change Cofran Oil (Made in France), through constant Kuwait of Cofran Oil, and a subsidiary of Al- service branch in partnership with Al-Sayer research have tested the products under “real Sayer Group Holdings on Wednesday March Group Holding, which is well-known to all of us world” conditions and come out with a wide 12, 2014 to meet always and commit serving with its expertise and leadership in products range of specialty greases and oils which can residents in that area by providing the best and services to provide worldwide respected oil withstand high and low temperatures, shocks, products and services at competitive prices. lubricants and tires. Today Al Sayer Engineering fling off, extreme pressure, etc. Cofran range This cooperation came as part of Al Sayer is providing Hadiya renovated branch with one includes a wide range of specialty greases, Group’s tireless efforts to be closer to its cus- of the best known oil lubricants: Cofran Oil engine oils, hydraulic oils, and other special tomers and provide finest products and serv- along with best the latest equipment and pro- products to meet today’s growing demands.” ices. fessional technicians in the field to provide high Paul Also added: “Al Sayer Engineering with The opening were attended by Meshal Jalal service level to customers in the area by provid- providing Cofran Oil is eager to meet all the Mohamed Al-Jalal, Chairman and members of ing most convenience and comfort to cus- needs of both regular vehicles and heavy equip- the Board of Directors of Hadiya Co-op, from Al- tomers while making oil change and prove ment in addition to all the needs of the industri- Sayer Group attended by Paul Reynolds, Chief highest level of satisfaction”. al equipment with various types of oil needs for Operating Officer and Krishna Kumar, General On this occasion, Paul Reynolds, Chief longer lifetime and better performance to Manager of Al-Sayer Engineering and a number Operating Officer Al Sayer Group holding said: “ engines. Al-Sayer Group Holding through its of representatives from Cofran Oil Marc Seche, Al Sayer Group always make sure to provide to products and services continue to provide all Managing Director of Cofran, Matteo Curletto, customers best products and services empha- possible support to the residents in Hadiya area Export Area Manager and Timothee Marchand, sizing on relationship importance and close ties to gain their trust and fulfill their highest level of Export Director. to our customers part of Al Sayer Group busi- expectations.” Statement from the Palestinian embassy epresentatives of the Palestinian community in RKuwait met with Palestinian Ambassador Rami Tahboub and expressed their support for President Mahmoud Abbas and his efforts to achieve freedom for Palestinian people and their right of an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital. The Palestinian embassy meanwhile urges members of the Palestinian community to ‘stand united’ behind their leadership “to face the pressures from inside and outside and which the Zionist enemy relies on.” McDonald’s Kuwait gears up for FIFA World Cup with football-themed tastes cDonald’s Kuwait announced the “Customers throughout the Middle East are Mlaunch of its third annual Tastes of not only known for their sophisticated the World campaign. Following palates, but also for being devoted football ABK awards customer service employees overwhelming success in 2012 and 2013, fans, which is why - for the first time ever in McDonald’ swill once again offer a limited the Middle East - we’re excited to announce l Ahli Bank of Kuwait awarded its cus- the staff for their unique role in the Bank’s importance of their role. We express our deep time range of exotic sandwiches, this year a football-themed Tastes of the World cam- Atomer service employees for their hard growth Plowman spoke encouraging words of appreciation to each and every one of them, and inspired by favourite football destinations paign in preparation for the highly antici- work, commitment, and impressive per- advice to them, and said “ABK celebrates your hope they will be motivated to continue their around the world which began from March pated 2014 FIFA World Cup in June. We formance in 2013. commitment and performance that has won the exemplary performance.” 15th 2014. think it’s a winning combination of exciting ABK employees were commended for under- customers trust and it surely reflected on the At the event different awards ‘Best Employees With its unique and unexpected range new flavours, a love for the game of foot- standing their crucial role in customer care and banks reputation”. of the Year for Customer Service’, ‘Best Branch of of sandwiches, McDonald’s invites cus- ball, and the high quality products that maintaining premium standards in catering to During the commemorative event attended 2013’ and ‘Best Employee’ were rewarded to the tomers to experience all the delicious McDonald’s has always been known for.” customer needs. by Stewart Lockie, General Manager, Retail, Ali Al staff. ABK invests in enriching its employees’ flavours they have come to expect from the On the sweeter side of the menu, At the occasion, Colin Plowman, Chief Sammak, Manager of Customer Service and oth- banking skills to maintain high standards of cus- brand, but this year with the added fanfare McDonald’s also announced the launch of General Manager and Chief Executive Officer er ABK officials, Plowman concluded his inspir- tomer care. The felicitation aimed to motivate and flavour of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. the limited time “Apple Cinnamon Sundae”, thanked the staff for their dedication and excep- ing speech by saying “At ABK we appreciate the the ABK team to be more productive in an envi- The campaign kicks off in exotic South featuring real apple chunks and cinnamon, tional performance. Expressing his gratitude to work of every employee and understand the ronment that breeds healthy competition. America with the Brazilian. Customers can for those who want to end off their meal look forward to a crispy Halal chicken patty, with a cool treat. punched up with a smoky kick of fire roast- McDonald’s is committed to serving the ed pepper sauce, shredded fresh lettuce very best, and never compromises on food Soorya India Fest on April 10 and a slice of Emmental cheese. The first of quality. All products served at all the sandwich line-up will be available until McDonald’s restaurants in the Middle East 4th April, 2014. Customers wondering are Halal, inspected and approved by local oorya Kuwait Chapter will stage ‘Soorya three oldest dance forms of India - In addition, a solo fusion by Mridangam about the other sandwiches will have to authorities and Halal officers at the coun- SIndia Festival 2014’, on Thursday at 7 pm, Bharatanatyam recital by Dakshina maestro Kuzhalmannam Ramakrishnan will be wait patiently until they are launched; tries of export, and customs officials at the April 10, 2014 at the Indian Community Vaidyanathan, one of the promising an added attraction. Dakhsina Vaidyanathan, a McDonald’s is keeping their identities a port of entry. All meat used in McDonald’s School Auditorium (Senior) Salmiya. Bharatanatyam dancers today, Mohiniyattam young talented and promising Bharatanatyam closely-guarded secret. restaurants can be traced back to a trusted Indian Ambassador Sunil Jain will inaugurate recital by Aiswarya Warrier, a leading dancer and an innovative choreographer has Adel Fahmy, Marketing Manager, supplier that shares its dedication to the the festival that aims to promote international Mohinayattam exponent and Odissi by Arupa enriched with the stamp of her own personality McDonalds’ Kuwait commented: highest quality standards. integration through culture. Gayatri Panda and Pravat Kumar Swain, leading since her childhood. She has performed her This time Soorya is coming up with a mix of duet odissi performers of the country. dance in many stages both inside and outside the country. Aiswarya Warrier has been noted as one of India’s top exponents of Bharatanatyam. Her solo dance presentation titled “SHAKUNTALA” projects twin messages of our life being inte- grally part of the rich natural environment and the potential power of a woman as an individ- ual. Duet performers of odissi dance Arupa Gayatri Panda and Pravat Kumar Swain have individuated themselves by passion for perfec- tion, vibrant nritta and sophisticated senses of Abhinayam. The Guinness world record holder for longest hand drum marathon Kuzahalmannam Ramakrishnan uses his skills in percussion as a catalyst for social change exalting peace and Korea scholarship announcement anti-violence. His name is synonymous with Mridangam in the world of music. he National Institute for International Education (NIIED) under the Ministry of “The art lovers of Kuwait will have a new Education of the Republic of Korea offers “2014 Global Korea Scholarship: Korean experience with the above combination of T dance and music which will amaze and enthrall Government Scholarship Program for International Students for Graduate Courses all age groups”, according to officials. As usual, (2014 Graduate GKS) to be conducted in Korea. the entry will be strictly through invitations. For This scholarship is for Master’s degree or PhD degree. As part of the 2014 Graduate more details, please contact GKS, the participants are provided with round-trip airfare, monthly stipend, tuition, [email protected] medical insurance, settlement and repatriation allowances, etc. Soorya India, led by versatile mastermind Applicants have until March 28, 2014 to submit their application. Please feel free to Soorya Krishnamurthy, is present in 20 coun- tries. It has been propagating the art of India’s contact Chung (Consul of the Embassy of the Republic of Korea to the State of Kuwait) at outside the country for the last 16 years with 2537-8621/2/3/4/5 or send an email to [email protected] for more information about active support of its Chief Patron Dr B R Shetty, the scholarships. Managing Director, NMC Group of companies. TV PROGRAMS MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014

10:20 Container Wars 10:15 A.N.T. Farm 10:45 How Do They Do It? 10:40 Dog With A Blog 11:10 How It’s Made 11:05 Suite Life On Deck 11:35 Fast N’ Loud 11:25 Jessie 12:25 Classic Car Rescue Sony to remake 00:25 Doctor Who 11:50 That’s So Raven 01:15 Call The Midwife 13:15 Overhaulin’ 2013 12:15 Hannah Montana 02:10 Stella 14:05 Border Security 12:35 Hannah Montana ‘My Best Friend’s 02:55 New Tricks 14:30 Auction Kings 13:00 Wizards Of Waverly Place The 03:45 My Family 14:55 Container Wars Movie 04:15 The Weakest Link 15:20 Flying Wild Alaska 14:35 Dog With A Blog Wedding’ in Chinese 05:00 Mr Bloom’s Nursery 16:10 Fast N’ Loud 15:00 Good Luck Charlie 05:20 Balamory 17:00 Ultimate Survival 15:25 Gravity Falls ony’s Columbia Pictures announced its plans to remake 05:40 Nina And The Neurons 17:50 Wheeler Dealers 15:50 Austin & Ally “My Best Friend’s Wedding” - in Chinese. The studio has 18:40 You Have Been Warned S 05:55 Me Too! 16:10 Violetta partnered with several Chinese filmmakers and produc- 06:10 Mr Bloom’s Nursery 19:30 Sons Of Guns 17:00 Dog With A Blog tion companies to make three Chinese-language movies, with 20:20 How Do They Do It? 06:30 Balamory 17:20 Austin & Ally one being a re-telling of the hit Julia Roberts romantic come- 06:50 Nina And The Neurons 20:45 How It’s Made 17:40 Gravity Falls 21:10 Auction Kings dy. Six of the ten highest-grossing movies released in China 07:05 Me Too! 18:10 Jessie over the past five years have been in the country’s native 07:25 The Weakest Link 21:35 Container Wars 18:30 Good Luck Charlie 22:00 Gold Rush tongue, encouraging many in Hollywood to contemplate 08:10 Walk On The Wild Side 18:55 A.N.T. Farm changing their approach to the world’s second largest film 08:40 Friday Night Dinner 22:50 Alaska Gold Diggers 19:20 Violetta market. Village Roadshow, producer of “The Great Gatsby” and 09:05 2 Point 4 Children 23:40 Gold Divers: Under The Ice 20:05 Jessie “The Lego Movie,” has a sister company dedicated to Chinese- 09:35 Doctors 20:30 Good Luck Charlie 10:05 Casualty language productions, while Disney just announced a new 20:50 Dog With A Blog partnership with a Chinese company to make English-lan- 10:55 Last Man Standing 21:15 Gravity Falls guage films. “Columbia Pictures is reemphasizing our long 11:45 The Vicar Of Dibley 21:40 Shake It Up 12:15 My Family 22:00 Austin & Ally established commitment to Chinese local language produc- 12:45 2 Point 4 Children tion,” Doug Belgrad, president of Columbia Pictures, said in 00:40 Dark Matters 22:25 A.N.T. Farm 13:15 Friday Night Dinner statement. “We are delighted to be collaborating with such 01:30 Bang Goes The Theory 22:50 Good Luck Charlie 13:45 Walk On The Wild Side world class filmmakers as Chen Kaige and Jiang Wen, as well 02:00 Food Factory 23:10 Wizards Of Waverly Place 14:15 Doctors as partnering with esteemed Chinese production companies 02:25 How Tech Works 23:35 Wizards Of Waverly Place 14:45 Casualty like New Classics Media, as we ramp up our activity in China.” 02:50 Through The Wormhole With 15:35 Last Man Standing Sony’s first of three films entering production is “The Morgan Freeman 16:25 The Weakest Link Monk,” a martial arts movie with Cao Huayi. Acclaimed film- 03:45 Through The Wormhole With 17:10 Eastenders Morgan Freeman maker Chen Kaige will direct from a script based on a best- 17:40 Doctors 04:35 Through The Wormhole With selling novel by Xu Haofeng, a director and writer who 18:10 Being Erica 00:00 Party On Morgan Freeman worked on Wong Kar-Wai’s “The Grandmaster.” The film stars 19:00 My Family 00:30 The Dance Scene 05:25 Through The Wormhole With Wang Baoqiang, the star of “Lost in Thailand,” one of the high- 19:30 Little Britain 00:55 The Dance Scene Morgan Freeman est-grossing movies in Chinese history. “The Monk” is China’s 20:00 New Tricks 01:25 Style Star 06:15 Food Factory second recent production in mainland China, following Jiang 20:50 Spooks 01:50 Style Star 06:40 How Tech Works Wen’s “Gone With the Bullets.” The film is set to open next sum- 21:40 The Vicar Of Dibley 02:20 E!ES 07:05 Bang Goes The Theory mer. New Classics Media will distribute “The Monk” for 22:10 Call The Midwife 03:15 Extreme Close-Up 07:30 Bang Goes The Theory Columbia in China, and will work with the studio on the 23:05 The Weakest Link 03:40 Extreme Close-Up 08:00 Sci-Fi Saved My Life “Wedding” remake when it enters production in 2014. 23:50 Eastenders 04:10 E!ES 08:50 Prank Science 06:00 15 Remarkable Celebrity Columbia’s third film, “Summer Has Tears” with Ruyi Media, will 09:15 Prank Science Body Bouncebacks start shooting later this year. Few Chinese language movies 09:40 Food Factory 07:50 Style Star make money in the United States, but Sony produced 10:05 How Tech Works 08:20 E! News “Couching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” the highest-grossing foreign 10:30 Test Case 09:15 Scouted language movie in US history. — Reuters 00:40 The Hairy Bikers: Mums 10:55 Bigger, Better, Faster, 10:15 Married To Jonas Know Best Stronger 10:40 Chasing The Saturdays 01:35 Come Dine With Me 11:25 Engineered 11:10 Giuliana & Bill 02:20 Come Dine With Me: 12:20 Thunder Races 12:05 E! News Supersized 13:10 Through The Wormhole With 13:05 Extreme Close-Up Elisabeth Moss is 03:55 Cash In The Attic Morgan Freeman 13:35 E!ES 04:35 Cash In The Attic 14:00 Building The Future 14:30 Style Star 05:25 Cash In The Attic 14:50 Bang Goes The Theory 15:00 Keeping Up With The 06:20 Cash In The Attic 15:20 Food Factory over talking Kardashians 07:10 Cash In The Attic 15:45 How Tech Works 16:00 Keeping Up With The THE IRON LADY ON OSN MOVIES HD 08:00 Cash In The Attic 16:10 Eco-Tech Kardashians 08:45 Bargain Hunt 17:00 How The Universe Works 17:00 The Drama Queen 19:35 The Jonathan Ross Show 14:00 One Life-PG15 about Scientology 09:30 Antiques Roadshow 17:55 Thunder Races 18:00 E! News 20:30 Please Marry My Boy 16:00 Arthur 3: And The War Of 10:25 Come Dine With Me: 18:45 X-Machines 19:00 The E! True Hollywood Story 21:25 Paul Ogrady: For The Love Of Two Worlds-PG Dogs ad Men” star Supersized 19:35 James May’s Man Lab 20:00 Keeping Up With The 00:00 Monty Python’s Meaning Of 18:00 Hitchcock-PG15 21:50 Miranda Elisabeth Moss 12:00 The Little Paris Kitchen 20:30 Mega Builders Kardashians Life-18 20:00 Take This Waltz-18 ‘M 12:30 Gok’s Clothes Roadshow 21:20 Kings Of Construction 22:00 Resident Evil: Retribution-18 doesn’t want to 21:00 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills 02:00 The Impostors-PG15 talk about her affiliation 13:20 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 22:10 Food Factory 22:00 Hello Ross 04:00 The Naked Gun: From The with the Church of 14:05 Antiques Roadshow 22:35 How Tech Works 22:30 Party On Files Of Police Squad-PG 15:05 Extreme Makeover: Home 23:00 Mega Builders 06:00 Damsels In Distress-PG15 Scientology anymore, but Edition 23:50 Kings Of Construction 00:00 The Goodwin Games she’s still open to discussing 00:30 The Daily Show With Jon 08:00 Mrs. Doubtfire-PG 02:00 Futbol Mundial 15:50 MasterChef 10:15 Ski Patrol-PG15 her “extremely traumatic 16:45 Bargain Hunt Stewart 02:30 LV Cup 01:00 The Colbert Report 12:00 The Naked Gun: From The 05:00 NRL Premiership and awful and horrible” 17:30 Chef At Home Files Of Police Squad-PG marriage to former 17:55 Chef At Home 01:30 Saturday Night Live 07:00 LV Cup 00:10 Paul Ogrady: For The Love Of 02:30 Out There 14:00 A Kiss For Jed Wood-PG15 09:00 NRL Premiership “Saturday Night Live” star 18:20 Antiques Roadshow Dogs 00:00 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 03:00 How I Met Your Mother 16:00 Ski Patrol-PG15 11:00 Live NRL Premiership Fred Armisen. “Looking 19:15 The Planners 00:35 House Gift 00:20 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 04:00 All Of Us 13:00 Futbol Mundial back, I feel like I was really 20:10 Rachel Khoo’s Kitchen 01:30 Emmerdale 00:45 Jonas 04:30 The Tonight Show Starring 13:30 Super Rugby Notebook: London 02:25 Coronation Street young, and at the time I 01:05 Jonas Jimmy Fallon 15:30 Super Rugby 20:35 Come Dine With Me 02:55 Holiday: Heaven On Earth didn’t think that I was that 01:30 Suite Life On Deck 05:30 Better Off Ted 17:30 ICC Cricket 360 21:30 Come Dine With Me 03:25 Ant And Decs Saturday Night young,” Moss told New York 01:50 Suite Life On Deck 06:00 The War At Home 18:00 Golfing World 22:20 Antiques Roadshow Takeaway Magazine. “It was extremely 02:15 Wizards Of Waverly Place 06:30 Arrested Development 19:00 PGA Tour Highlights 23:15 Bargain Hunt 04:45 Paul Ogrady: For The Love Of 01:00 The Good Doctor-PG15 02:35 Wizards Of Waverly Place 07:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers 20:00 PGA European Tour traumatic and awful and horrible. At the same time, it Dogs 03:00 Another Harvest Moon-PG15 03:00 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 08:00 All Of Us Highlights turned out for the best. I’m glad that I’m not there. I’m glad 05:15 Ade In Britain 05:00 Taken Back: Finding Haley- 03:20 The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody 08:30 Better Off Ted that it didn’t happen when I was 50. I’m glad I didn’t have 06:10 House Gift PG15 03:45 Jonas 09:00 How I Met Your Mother kids. And I got that out of the way. Hopefully. Like, that’s 07:05 Holiday: Heaven On Earth 07:00 The Key Man-PG15 04:05 Jonas 09:30 2 Broke Girls probably not going to happen again.” 07:30 Dancing On Ice 09:00 The Good Doctor-PG15 04:30 Suite Life On Deck 10:00 Two And A Half Men 09:20 Ade In Britain 11:00 Hyde Park On Hudson-PG15 Moss, who plays Peggy Olson opposite Jon Hamm’s Don 04:50 Suite Life On Deck 10:30 Arrested Development 00:05 Gold Divers: Under The Ice 10:15 May The Best House Win 13:00 A Kiss At Midnight-PG15 01:00 Futbol Mundial Draper on AMC’s drama surrounding advertising execu- 05:15 Wizards Of Waverly Place 11:00 The Tonight Show Starring 00:55 Gold Rush: Queen Of 11:10 Emmerdale 15:00 Tricks Of A Woman-PG15 01:30 NRL Premiership tives, probably won’t weigh in on Scientology again, either. 05:35 Wizards Of Waverly Place Jimmy Fallon Diamonds 12:00 Coronation Street 17:00 Emperor-PG15 02:00 PGA Tour “I’m not going to talk about it anymore,” the 31-year-old 06:00 Austin & Ally 12:00 The War At Home 02:35 Gold Rush 12:30 House Gift 19:00 Comes A Bright Day-PG15 07:00 Trans World Sport 06:25 Dog With A Blog 12:30 All Of Us Emmy nominee and Golden Globe winner told the publica- 03:25 Gold Rush 13:25 House Guest In The Sun 21:00 Melancholia-18 08:00 Futbol Mundial 06:45 Suite Life On Deck 13:00 Better Off Ted tion. “I said what it meant to me, and anyone can go and 04:15 Gold Rush 14:20 May The Best House Win 23:15 Blue Like Jazz-PG15 08:30 PGA Tour 07:10 A.N.T. Farm 13:30 Arrested Development look at that if they want to know what I feel. But now it’s 05:05 Gold Rush 15:10 Holiday: Heaven On Earth 14:00 Champions Tour 07:35 Wolfblood 14:00 How I Met Your Mother private, off limits.” 06:00 Mythbusters 15:35 The Jonathan Ross Show 16:00 Golfing World 07:55 Gravity Falls 14:30 2 Broke Girls Previously, Moss has said the controversial religion 07:00 You Have Been Warned 16:30 Please Marry My Boy 17:00 Trans World Sport 08:20 That’s So Raven 15:00 Two And A Half Men 07:50 Robson’s New Extreme 17:25 Paul Ogrady: For The Love Of 18:00 NRL Premiership incorporated by science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard in 08:45 Jessie 15:30 The Daily Show With Jon Fishing Challenge Dogs 20:00 AFL Premiership Preview 1953 was “grossly misunderstood by the media.” “I would 09:05 Good Luck Charlie Stewart 08:40 Fast N’ Loud 17:50 Miranda 21:00 WWE SmackDown feel the same way, honestly,” Moss continued in her latest - 09:30 Shake It Up 16:00 The Colbert Report 01:00 Cosmopolis-18 09:30 Border Security 18:20 May The Best House Win 23:00 PGA Tour Highlights and maybe last - commentary on the subject. “I think if 09:55 Austin & Ally 16:30 The War At Home 03:00 Ed Wood-PG15 09:55 Auction Kings 19:10 Coronation Street 17:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers 05:15 Citizen Gangster-PG15 there was something that I didn’t know and didn’t under- 18:00 How I Met Your Mother 07:00 Dead Again-PG15 stand, I would probably feel as opinionated. You know how 18:30 How I Met Your Mother 09:00 The Music Never Stopped- you’re opinionated about when someone breaks up? 19:00 2 Broke Girls PG15 Celebrities break up and you just feel like you know what 19:30 Trophy Wife 11:00 Underground: The Julian 01:00 ICC Cricket 360 happened?” 20:00 The Goldbergs Assange Story-PG15 01:30 ICC T20I World Cup Despite reading “100 percent made up” things about 20:30 The Goodwin Games 13:00 Virtual Lies-PG15 05:00 ICC World T20 Highlights her 2010 break up with Armisen in the tabloids, Moss 21:00 The Daily Show Global 15:00 The Field-PG15 06:00 ICC World T20 Highlights admits that even she is “not perfect in that way,” and enjoys Edition 17:00 Underground: The Julian 07:00 ICC Cricket 360 reading “a little” celebrity gossip and looking at pictures of 21:30 The Colbert Report Global Assange Story-PG15 07:30 Big Bash League Highlights the stars. “I always knew that the stuff that you read is not Edition 19:00 Here On Earth-PG15 08:30 ICC World T20 Highlights 22:00 Girls 09:30 ICC World T20 Highlights true, but when I was in the situation and you really, actually 22:30 Getting On 10:30 ICC Under 19 World Cup read things that you apparently said or did that are 100 23:00 Ja’mie: Private School Girl 2014 Highlights percent made up ... It’s just the strange,” Moss said. “Simple 23:30 The Goldbergs 11:30 Champions League T20 thing of, that’s your heart they’re talking about, and it just 01:00 Colombiana-PG15 Highlights 03:00 Beastly-PG15 ... it sucks.” — Reuters 12:00 ICC Cricket 360 05:00 Flicka 3-FAM 12:30 Live ICC T20I World Cup 07:00 The Chateau Meroux-PG15 16:00 ICC Cricket 360 09:00 Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Dog 16:30 Champions League T20 Saunders wins 00:00 Warehouse 13 Days-PG Highlights 01:00 Top Gear (UK) 11:00 Oh Christmas Tree-PG 17:00 Live ICC T20I World Cup Folio prize, sees 02:05 Supernatural 13:00 Argo-PG15 20:30 ICC Cricket 360 03:00 The Newsroom 15:00 The Iron Lady-PG15 21:00 ICC Under 19 World Cup 04:00 Burn Notice 17:00 Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Dog boost for short story 2014 Highlights 05:00 Suits Days-PG 22:00 ICC T20I World Cup 06:00 Warehouse 13 18:45 Silver Linings Playbook-PG15 07:00 Drop Dead Diva S author George Saunders, whose short stories 21:00 Gangster Squad-18 specialize in “darkly playful” twists of fate, said after 08:00 Switched At Birth 23:00 Chernobyl Diaries-18 U 09:00 Top Gear (UK) winning the inaugural Folio literary prize worth 10:05 Suits 40,000 pounds ($66,500) he hoped it would draw atten- 11:00 Burn Notice tion to the role of the writer in society. Saunders, 55, also 12:00 Emmerdale 00:00 Haunted History saw the award as a further boost for the short story form, 12:30 Coronation Street 01:00 Moomins And The Comet 01:00 Ancient Aliens another of whose practitioners, the Canadian writer Alice 14:00 Switched At Birth Chase 02:00 Pawn Stars UK Munro, won the Nobel Prize for Literature last year. 15:00 The Mob Doctor 03:00 Storage Wars: New York 02:45 A Very Fairy Christmas “It seems like a nice moment for it but I’ve been doing 16:00 Emmerdale 04:15 Cinderella 03:30 Storage Wars: New York 16:30 Coronation Street 06:00 Princess Sydney: The Legend 04:00 Haunted History (short) stories since the ‘70s. It’s sort of like in the women’s 17:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show Of The Blue Rabbit 05:00 Swamp People magazines when they say red is back. You think, ‘Well, 18:00 Switched At Birth 07:45 The Happets 06:00 Pawn Stars UK when was it gone?’ But it does seem like a good time for 19:00 Betrayal 09:45 Scooby-Doo! Mask Of The 07:00 Ancient Aliens short stories.” Saunders, who started out as a geophysicist 20:00 Revenge Blue Falcon 08:00 Shipping Wars and worked in the oil fields of Sumatra before turning to 21:00 The Blacklist 11:30 Cinderella 08:30 Shipping Wars writing, was selected from a shortlist of eight authors for 23:00 The Newsroom 13:00 Jingle All The Way 09:00 Ancient Aliens the new prize sponsored by the Folio Society publisher of 14:30 The Three Bears: Dreadful 10:00 Storage Wars Texas deluxe books. 10:30 Counting Cars Dangers At an awards ceremony in London, Saunders said he 16:00 3 Ninjas Knuckle Up 11:00 Pawn Stars 18:00 Scooby-Doo! Mask Of The 11:30 Pawn Stars had to give up his oil exploration work and took up writ- Blue Falcon 12:00 Storage Wars ing in part because when he was swimming in a river a 00:00 Devil’s Playground-18 12:30 Storage Wars colony of some 300 monkeys on a pipeline were defecat- 02:00 Jarhead-18 13:00 Shipping Wars ing into the water. “I thought, ‘Oh, God, I wonder if that’s 04:00 Ultraviolet-PG15 13:30 Shipping Wars okay’ and it wasn’t and I got really sick and that’s really 06:00 Special Ops-PG15 14:00 Ancient Aliens where the writing started because I got so sick I had to 08:00 Sins Expiation-PG15 00:00 Today’s Special-PG15 15:00 Auschwitz: Journey Into Hell quit the job and went home...So I thank the monkeys 10:00 Grosse Pointe Blank-PG15 02:00 Mirror Mirror-PG15 16:00 Shipping Wars tonight,” he said. 12:00 Riddle-PG15 04:00 3 Times A Charm-PG15 16:30 Shipping Wars 14:00 Sins Expiation-PG15 06:00 Smooch-PG15 17:00 Storage Wars: New York Saunders said he hoped the award would raise the lev- 16:00 The Last Stand-PG15 08:00 Arthur 3: And The War Of 17:30 Storage Wars: New York el of awareness of the importance of writers in public life, 18:00 Riddle-PG15 Two Worlds-PG 18:00 Pawn Stars particularly in America where he said the cash prize 20:00 Silent House-PG15 10:00 The Wishing Well-PG15 18:30 Pawn Stars would attract attention. —Reuters THE LAST STAND ON OSN MOVIES HD ACTION 22:00 The Last Stand-PG15 12:00 Mirror Mirror-PG15 19:00 Storage Wars Classifieds

MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014

Kuwait KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (13/03/2014 TO 19/03/2014)

SHARQIA-1 FANAR-4 RED SKY (DIG) 1:00 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 12:30 PM LAMO AKHZA (DIG) (Arabic) 3:30 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 2:30 PM RED SKY (DIG) 5:30 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 4:30 PM LAMO AKHZA (DIG) (Arabic) 7:45 PM MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN (DIG-3D) 6:30 PM LAMO AKHZA (DIG) (Arabic) 9:45 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 8:30 PM RED SKY (DIG) 11:45 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 10:30 PM NO SUN+TUE+WED 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 12:30 AM NO SUN+TUE+WED SHARQIA-2 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 12:45 PM FANAR-5 MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN (DIG-3D) 2:45 PM FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 1:45 PM MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN (DIG-3D) 4:45 PM FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 3:45 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 6:45 PM LAST LOVE (DIG) 6:00 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 8:45 PM LAST LOVE (DIG) 8:15 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 10:45 PM FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 10:45 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG-3D) 12:45 AM FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 12:45 AM NO SUN+TUE+WED NO SUN+TUE+WED SHARQIA-3 MARINA-1 NON-STOP (DIG) 1:45 PM RED SKY (DIG) 1:45 PM FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 4:00 PM RED SKY (DIG) 4:00 PM NON-STOP (DIG) 6:00 PM RED SKY (DIG) 6:15 PM NON-STOP (DIG) 8:15 PM LAMO AKHZA (DIG) (Arabic) 8:30 PM FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 10:30 PM LAMO AKHZA (DIG) (Arabic) 10:30 PM NON-STOP (DIG) 12:30 AM RED SKY (DIG) 12:30 AM NO SUN+TUE+WED NO SUN+TUE+WED FOR SALE MUHALAB-1 MARINA-2 URGENTLY REQUIRED 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 1:30 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 1:30 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 3:30 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 3:45 PM 2011 Toyota Camry, white For Leading Company RED SKY (DIG) 5:30 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 6:00 PM exterior, mileage 76,000, REQUIRED 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 7:45 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 8:00 PM price KD 3,450. Tel: 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 9:45 PM 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 10:00 PM (C 4666) 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (DIG) 12:15 AM 99883645. Control MUHALAB-2 NO SUN+TUE+WED For a private dental center RED SKY (DIG) 1:30 PM 2013 Volvo SUV, brown Technician RED SKY (DIG) 3:45 PM MARINA-3 exterior, mileage: 14,000, LAMO AKHZA (DIG) (Arabic) 6:00 PM MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN (DIG-3D) 1:00 PM under warranty + 2 years, LAMO AKHZA (DIG) (Arabic) 8:00 PM NON-STOP (DIG) 3:15 PM Licensed Prosthodontist RED SKY (DIG) 10:00 PM MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN (DIG-3D) 5:30 PM full insurance, price KD Send your CV to Fax: NON-STOP (DIG) 7:30 PM 10,300. Tel: 97227376. 24572320 to work full time MUHALAB-3 NON-STOP (DIG) 9:45 PM (C 4665) MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN (DIG-3D) 1:00 PM NON-STOP (DIG) 12:05 AM 15-3-2014 NON-STOP (DIG) 3:00 PM NO SUN+TUE+WED MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN (DIG-3D) 5:15 PM SITUATION WANTED AVENUES-1 Please send your CV on Fax: NON-STOP (DIG) 7:15 PM CHANGE OF NAME NON-STOP (DIG) 9:30 PM LAST LOVE (DIG) 2:15 PM I am LAST LOVE (DIG) 4:45 PM looking for a job in FANAR-1 LAST LOVE (DIG) 7:15 PM I, Dahodwala Husain accounts & finance, my 25755747 NON-STOP (DIG) 12:45 PM LAST LOVE (DIG) 9:45 PM Joharbhai, holder of expectation is between KD NON-STOP (DIG) 3:00 PM LAST LOVE (DIG) 12:15 AM Passport No: K-3652329, 650 to KD 1000 depending NON-STOP (DIG) 5:15 PM NO SUN+TUE+WED hereby change my surname upon the position offered. I NON-STOP (DIG) 7:45 PM Bhabawala Husain NON-STOP (DIG) 10:00 PM AVENUES-2 have transferable residency Joharbhai. (C 4668) article no. 18 & also valid NON-STOP (DIG) 12:15 AM FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 2:30 PM 17-3-2014 NO SUN+TUE+WED FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 4:30 PM driving license. Kindly con- FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 6:30 PM tact me by SMS with your FANAR-2 I, Taza, FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 8:30 PM holder of Indian email ID on this no. MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN (DIG) 1:30 PM FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 10:30 PM Passport No. K9682992 66825635 to forward you MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN (DIG) 3:30 PM FORCE OF EXECUTION (DIG) 12:30 AM have changed my name to my CV. (C 4667) LAMO AKHZA (DIG)(Arabic) 5:30 PM NO SUN+TUE+WED Murtaza Shabbir Husain LAMO AKHZA (DIG)(Arabic) 7:30 PM 16-3-2014 LAMO AKHZA (DIG)(Arabic) 9:30 PM AVENUES-3 Raswala, residing at LAMO AKHZA (DIG)(Arabic) 11:45 PM RED SKY (DIG) 2:00 PM Partapur, Rajasthan. NO SUN+TUE+WED RED SKY (DIG) 4:15 PM (C 4663) RED SKY (DIG) 6:45 PM THE PUBLIC FANAR-3 RED SKY (DIG) 9:00 PM I, Thopugunta Sudheer AUTHORITY FOR RED SKY (DIG) 12:30 PM RED SKY (DIG) 11:30 PM holder of Indian Passport RED SKY (DIG) 2:45 PM NO SUN+TUE+WED No. K7916639 change my CIVIL INFORMATION RED SKY (DIG) 5:00 PM AVENUES-4 name to Ali Haider Shaik, Automated enquiry BEWAKOOFIYAAN (DIG) (Hindi) 7:15 PM my address in India is N.T.R. RED SKY (DIG) 9:45 PM NON-STOP (DIG) 1:45 PM aboutthe Civil ID card is RED SKY (DIG) 12:05 AM NON-STOP (DIG) 4:00 PM Nagar, Chitvel, K. NO SUN+TUE+WED NON-STOP (DIG) 6:15 PM Kandulayaripalli, Kadapa 1889988 NON-STOP (DIG) 8:30 PM Dist, AP, 516104. (C 4664) 112 13-3-2014

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

Arrival Flights on Monday 17/3/2014 IRC 6666 Ahwaz 13:45 Departure Flights on Monday 17/3/2014 KAC 561 Amman 14:30 Airlines Flt Route Time FDB 057 Dubai 13:50 Airlines Flt Route Time IRC 6667 Ahwaz 14:45 JAI 574 Mumbai 00:10 QTR 1078 Doha 13:55 AIC 976 Goa/Chennai 00:05 QTR 1079 Doha 14:55 JZR 539 Cairo 00:40 KAC 672 Dubai 14:00 AXB 490 Mangalore/Kochi 00:15 KAC 673 Dubai 15:05 THY 772 Istanbul 00:45 SVA 500 Jeddah 14:30 JAI 573 Mumbai 01:10 KAC 617 Doha 15:15 QTR 1084 Doha 00:55 KNE 472 Jeddah 14:35 DLH 637 Frankfurt 02:10 KNE 473 Jeddah 15:30 RJA 642 Amman 01:05 GFA 221 Bahrain 15:00 ETH 621 Addis Ababa 02:45 SVA 503 Madinah/Jeddah 15:45 DLH 637 Dammam 01:10 KAC 788 Jeddah 15:10 THY 773 Istanbul 02:55 JZR 134 Bahrain 19:10 PGT 858 Istanbul 01:30 QTR 1072 Doha 16:40 PGT 859 Istanbul 03:20 UAL 982 Bahrain 19:15 ETH 620 Addis Ababa 01:45 UAE 857 Dubai 16:40 UAE 854 Dubai 03:50 FDB 064 Dubai 19:25 GFA 211 Bahrain 02:10 ETD 303 Abu Dhabi 16:50 ETD 306 Abu Dhabi 04:00 QTR 1081 Doha 19:40 THY 764 Istanbul 02:15 RJA 640 Amman 16:55 MSR 613 Cairo 04:10 AXB 3944 Kozhikode 20:15 JZR 267 Beirut 02:30 SVA 510 Riyadh 17:15 QTR 1085 Doha 04:15 GFA 218 Bahrain 20:15 UAE 853 Dubai 02:35 ABY 127 Sharjah 17:25 FDB 068 Dubai 04:40 KAC 283 Dhaka 20:30 ETD 305 Abu Dhabi 02:45 GFA 215 Bahrain 17:30 QTR 1077 Doha 05:15 FDB 062 Dubai 20:45 JAI 576 Kochi/Abu Dhabi 02:50 AFG 415 Kabul 17:45 CLX 792 Hong Kong 05:45 OMA 648 Muscat 20:55 MSR 612 Cairo 03:10 JZR 777 Jeddah 17:55 JZR 560 Sohag 06:20 ABY 120 Sharjah 21:00 CLX 792 Luxembourg 03:40 KAC 542 Cairo 18:05 FDB 070 Dubai 06:30 KAC 361 Colombo 21:00 QTR 1076 Doha 03:45 RBG 553 Alexandria 18:15 JAI 575 Abu Dhabi/Kochi 06:45 JAI 571 Mumbai 21:10 FDB 067 Dubai 04:00 JZR 177 Dubai 18:20 JZR 164 Dubai 06:55 MSR 619 Alexandria 21:45 QTR 1080 Doha 18:40 KAC 544 Cairo 04:20 RJA 643 Amman 07:05 DHX 171 Bahrain 21:50 KAC 786 Jeddah 18:45 THY 770 Istanbul 05:35 THY 765 Istanbul 07:05 FDB 072 Dubai 21:55 FDB 063 Dubai 18:45 DHX 170 Bahrain 05:40 GFA 212 Bahrain 07:15 GFA 222 Bahrain 15:45 KAC 502 Beirut 18:50 QTR 8524 Doha 05:45 QTR 8525 Doha 07:15 KAC 513 Tehran 16:20 KAC 618 Doha 19:00 FDB 069 Dubai 05:50 THY 771 Istanbul 07:30 JZR 238 Amman 16:55 KAC 166 Paris/Rome 19:10 JZR 553 Alexandria 06:05 FDB 054 Dubai 08:30 ETD 304 Abu Dhabi 17:35 AXB 393 Kozhikode 19:15 BAW 157 London 06:40 BAW 156 London 08:45 QTR 1073 Doha 17:40 KAC 674 Dubai 19:25 KAC 412 Manila/Bangkok 06:45 QTR 1087 Doha 08:50 UAE 858 Dubai 17:50 KAC 206 Islamabad 07:40 GFA 217 Bahrain 19:30 KAC 171 Frankfurt 09:10 KAC 102 New York/London 19:35 JZR 538 Cairo 17:50 QTR 1086 Doha 07:50 SVA 513 Riyadh 09:15 OMA 647 Muscat 19:55 RJA 641 Amman 17:55 FDB 053 Dubai 07:50 KAC 787 Jeddah 09:25 KAC 562 Amman 19:55 ABY 128 Sharjah 18:05 KAC 302 Mumbai 07:55 KAC 671 Dubai 09:30 FDB 061 Dubai 20:05 SVA 511 Riyadh 18:15 KAC 382 Delhi 07:55 ABY 126 Sharjah 09:40 JAI 572 Mumbai 20:10 GFA 216 Bahrain 18:20 KAC 352 Kochi 08:10 UAE 856 Dubai 09:55 ABY 129 Sharjah 20:20 JZR 184 Dubai 18:40 SVA 512 Riyadh 08:15 KAC 117 New York 10:00 MSR 606 Luxor 20:45 AFG 415 Jeddah 18:45 KAC 332 Trivandrum 08:15 ETD 302 Abu Dhabi 10:05 KAC 514 Tehran 20:45 JZR 266 Beirut 18:50 UAE 855 Dubai 08:40 DLH 634 Frankfurt 20:55 KAC 773 Riyadh 10:05 RBG 554 Alexandria 18:55 KAC 362 Colombo 08:45 ALK 229 Colombo 21:10 FDB 056 Dubai 10:20 ALK 230 Colombo 22:10 KAC 284 Dhaka 08:50 FDB 071 Dubai 21:15 KAC 741 Dammam 10:30 MEA 403 Beirut 22:20 ABY 125 Sharjah 09:00 MEA 402 Beirut 21:20 QTR 1071 Doha 10:55 ETD 308 Abu Dhabi 22:20 ETD 301 Abu Dhabi 09:20 ETD 307 Abu Dhabi 21:35 KAC 501 Beirut 11:10 GFA 220 Bahrain 22:30 FDB 055 Dubai 09:40 UAE 859 Dubai 21:40 GFA 214 Bahrain 11:25 KAC 301 Mumbai 22:35 QTR 1070 Doha 09:55 GFA 219 Bahrain 21:45 KAC 541 Cairo 11:30 FDB 060 Dubai 22:40 IRA 603 Shiraz 10:35 KAC 172 Frankfurt 21:45 IRA 602 Shiraz 11:35 UAE 860 Dubai 22:50 GFA 213 Bahrain 10:40 FDB 059 Dubai 22:00 KAC 103 London 12:20 KAC 381 Delhi 22:50 JZR 165 Dubai 11:30 QTR 1074 Doha 22:00 JZR 776 Jeddah 12:25 KAC 205 Islamabad 22:55 MEA 404 Beirut 11:55 JZR 135 Bahrain 22:05 MEA 405 Beirut 12:55 KAC 351 Kochi 23:00 IRC 6507 Shiraz 12:05 KLM 417 Amsterdam 22:05 KAC 785 Jeddah 13:00 KLM 417 Dammam/Amsterdam 23:05 SYR 341 Latakia 12:10 JZR 239 Amman 22:20 IRC 6508 Shiraz 13:05 QTR 1075 Doha 23:10 UAE 871 Dubai 12:50 AIC 981 Chennai/Hyderabad/Ahmedabad 22:30 SYR 342 Latakia 13:10 KAC 343 Chennai 23:15 JZR 561 Sohag 12:55 FDB 061 Dubai 23:00 JZR 176 Dubai 13:45 JZR 502 Luxor 23:30 MSR 610 Cairo 13:00 UAL 981 Bahrain 23:10 MSR 611 Cairo 14:00 FDB 062 Dubai 23:40 KAC 774 Riyadh 13:30 JZR 185 Dubai 23:20 UAE 872 Dubai 14:15 KAC 415 Kuala Lumpur/Jakarta 23:55 KAC 742 Dammam 13:30 PIA 205 Lahore 23:55 FDB 058 Dubai 14:30 KAC 411 Bangkok/Manila 23:55 DIAL161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION 34 MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 stars

STAR TRACK CROSSWORD 489

Aries (March 21-April 19) Libra (September 23-October 22)

This is a good time to double your money. We are not talking about gam- Careful-you may be susceptible to all sorts of ideas to keep the family busy bling but perhaps your eye for antiques or the resale value for some item this summer. There are offers in the religious sector of your life to organize will be the focus of your monetary gain. The day is working in your favor to create some and perhaps guide a young married group. This afternoon, you and a few of your friends extra savings or funds. You have a natural sense of what the public wants at this time. You may have set aside some time to learn a new dance step. Perhaps you have rented a video. will be dealing with young people this whole day. This may mean you run your own table Dance is a great way to express yourself and can be a good aerobic workout that will help at a flea market, or some other fun market place. Patience, persistence, fairness and a to improve your overall health as well as reduce stress. You see people as they are and not sense of limits are in order. This is a good time for new emotional beginnings, a fresh start, as you want to see them, particularly in your circle of friends and loved ones. Your friends perhaps the establishment of new habit patterns-make sure they are good ones, because and loved ones give you some insight into the workings of different personalities. Later this evening there is time to just enjoy what you have. they will set the tone for you for quite some time to come!

Taurus (April 20-May 20) Scorpio (October 23-November 21)

Although this is a Monday, you may still have a schedule and a few appoint- This is an easy, calm day that should find everything running smoothly. You ments to keep. You may find yourself lecturing. Be on time for appointments and take a can demonstrate a great deal of understanding and sensitivity to the needs businesslike attitude towards any plans that have been made. You could be most persua- of others. Ideas and interaction with the elder people in your family, neighborhood or a sive with others and eloquent in your communication skills. New ideas and an independ- religious group may come to your attention today. Perhaps you have researched or plan to research the options that are within your community to help the elderly. If there are no ent or pioneering mental orientation take on more importance in your life at this time. elderly in your family, there will be some day and you plan to have answers. This afternoon Teaching, learning, communicating and social contact have a way of outlining new direc- is spent with people that want to have contact with animals. There may be a new animal tions in your life; there is much activity and involvement with these kinds of issues. Today born at your zoo or your very own animal has decided this afternoon is the time to give provides a natural opportunity for self-expression and lends itself to your particular ideas birth. Much is discovered, talked about and laughter can be heard. and thoughts. Your inner emotions are quite agreeable.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)

Puzzling over what to do to boost the appearance of the clothes in your Good luck may increase your finances now. You spend some time going over some of your records to see where you can improve your budget. The closet, you may grasp the idea of a jacket that you can use to dress up a young people in your family are industrious, you might consider showing them what some ACROSS 5. A loose sleeveless outer garment made dress or slacks. You want to look your best and may spend some time looking through the of the household expenses are and allow them to ask questions. Just share enough so that 1. Inquire about. from aba cloth. magazines or internet to see about getting some new addition to your clothes. Technical they gain an idea of the responsibilities that come with family and earning money, etc. or scientific equipment has your attention later today and you may find that the hours fly There can be more money talk later. A friend returns a favor this afternoon, giving you a 4. An esoteric or occult matter that is tradi- 6. A circular segment of a curve. by as you work or play on some new equipment . . . It could be a new musical instrument. tionally secret. 7. An undergarment worn by women to great opportunity to catch up on the activities of each other. You may make some future New accomplishments and new insights and breakthroughs are in order. Fill up your inner plans to get together. A favorite meal and a few candles will help you enhance the 12. A byproduct of inflammation. support their breasts. spaces with something spiritual this evening-sing. Underneath your calm exterior there is evening with your beloved. Romance is probable. 15. Aircraft landing in bad weather in which 8. Dried out by heat or excessive exposure a need for physical hugs and long talks. Express your needs to your loved ones tonight. the pilot is talked down by ground control to sunlight. using precision approach radar. 9. Immediately past. 16. A mining town in southern Wales. 10. A small zodiacal constellation in the 17. A river in north central Switzerland that northern hemisphere. Cancer (June 21-July 22) Capricorn (December 22-January 19) runs northeast into the Rhine. 11. (Greek mythology) Greek goddess of 18. Thigh of a hog (usually smoked). fertility who later became associated with Everything points to your taking control of this day. You could feel great You face tremendous responsibilities in relationship with loved ones and are 19. (formal) Ordinary and not refined. Persephone as goddess of the underworld support from those around you, or circumstances could dictate your taking apt to have difficulty expressing wants and desires openly at this time. action. You feel healthy and natural. A new exercise program makes you feel like a new Perhaps it is time to have a chat and talk about goals. If it is important to you, it will be 20. Being six more than fifty. and protector of witches. important to your mate. This chat could be about goals of home, travel, profession, etc. 21. (Babylonian) A demigod or first man. person. You grab hold of a few exercise dance ideas, teach them to others and agree to 12. The civil and religious leader of a meet twice a week. You will soon have a mean, lean team. All will have fun when you gath- Whatever the case, easy does it, no real answers just now, only thoughts and dreams and 23. Made steady or constant. Muslim state. er and each will be pleased to see the result of healthy bodies. Good for you. Consider a promise to think on these things for deeper results later. You will be entering a period of 25. A white linen liturgical vestment with 13. A row of unravelled stitches. opening a class or just keep it the same and enjoy each time you gather. Tickets for an heightened sensitivity-your creativity is inspired-exploit it. Having reruns on television this sleeves. 14. A feeling of self-respect and personal upcoming exciting event just fall in your lap today. Tonight there is time to enjoy a differ- evening means you can catch up on some of the things you recorded last winter-if that is 27. A New England state. worth. ent sort of animal, perhaps a kitty or puppy or birds that enjoy a special treat. how you want to spend your time. A sense of harmony makes this a happy time. 28. Joint between the femur and tibia in a 22. Large burrowing rodent of South and quadruped. Central America. 29. Dried bark of the cascara buckthorn 24. English theoretical physicist who Leo (July 23-August 22) Aquarius (January 20- February 18) used as a laxative. applied relativity theory to quantum 34. A trivalent metallic element of the rare Fun is easy to find today! It is easy for you to gain strong mental impres- mechanics and predicted the existence of Although this may not be a moneymaking day for most, you will find that earth group. antimatter and the positron (1902-1984). sions. You enjoy reading about new ideas and the progress in healing and money has a nice ring to it today. A little gambling, a good purchase, a hid- discoveries in science. Your home is due for some basic enhancements. After you spend a 35. A city in northern India. 26. A nonmetallic largely pentavalent den letter or any bonus from working a tough job is likely to land right in your lap. If you 36. An indehiscent fruit derived from a sin- great deal of time catching up on the world of science and health events, you look at ways heavy volatile corrosive dark brown liquid don’t see green before the end of the day, you will be knocking yourself out to show to improve and enhance your living arrangements. When you start asking for approval, gle ovary having one or many seeds within element belonging to the halogens. someone how much you appreciate that person’s help to do or give or share some very you may run into all sorts of problems-instead, look for ways to improve your own person- a fleshy wall or pericarp. special time with you and, you know the old saying, time is money. Your humanitarian al surroundings and sit back and listen to all the great comments. You are open to new 30. Pertaining to or associated with agony urges should be satisfied to help you find a balance. Consider some volunteer work now. 40. United States writer (born in Poland) (especially death agonies). ideas and with some sort of color chart for your skin color, you would be able to make who wrote in Yiddish (1880-1957). An instinctive urge to get serious about taking care of you at many levels is emphasized. good decisions for yourself. Social surroundings are positive tonight. 31. A historical region in central and north- Positive thinking, diet, exercise and work put you in the right places. 44. An elegantly dressed man (often with ern Yugoslavia. affected manners). 32. A French abbot. 47. Stout-bodied insect with large membra- 33. Date used in reckoning dates before the Virgo (August 23-September 22) nous wings. supposed year Christ was born. Pisces (February 19-March 20) 48. Black tropical American cuckoo. 37. Jordan's port. 49. The content of cognition. 38. A white metallic element that burns Making your mark on the world has a special significance. You have an From the very moment of sunrise, you are swept away by good feelings and 51. (British) Your grandmother. increased desire to succeed in many avenues of your life. You are full of wit and sharp loving people and places and fun ideas. Some plans from the past come to with a brilliant light. mind this morning as you put together a few ideas for ways to store your favorite hobbies. 52. The seventh month of the Moslem cal- 39. A dull persistent (usually moderately insights. This could be a time for real breakthroughs in the idea department. A financial endar. increase is in the making. This is an excellent time to talk business or engage in discus- This may mean a trip to the hardware store. If you complete this project, you might be very intense) pain. sions about philosophy, religion or the arts. Everything conspires to value and to bring out pleased at the response from others. Many will want your plans and some will want you to 54. A very young child (birth to 1 year) who 41. The capital and largest city of Yemen. build for them what you have built for yourself. You won’t want to quit your day job but has not yet begun to walk or talk. your unique and unusual qualities. You may find that someone close to you understands 42. Aromatic herb of southern Europe. and is supportive of your future plans; this person may even have an idea or two that you you could see a little financial plus from this endeavor. There is some teasing about age, 57. (botany) Of or relating to the axil. 43. (with `in') Guardianship over. had not considered. Good things happen all day long. Something that was lost will be body and just good old fun today. Remember; popular and successful get the attention 60. United States lawyer and politician who 45. Top part of an apron. found before this day is over. and you have the attention this evening. Happy birthday! formulated a production code that pre- 46. A public promotion of some product or scribed the moral content of United states service. films from 1930 to 1966 (1879-1954). 50. 16 ounces. 61. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising Challenging Mazes Yesterday’s Solution 53. An Arabic speaking person who lives in solely the razorbill. Arabia or North Africa. 64. Someone who works (or provides work- ers) during a strike. 55. A colorless and odorless inert gas. 67. Cubes of meat marinated and cooked 56. A seat for one person, with a support for on a skewer usually with vegetables. the back. 70. (Islam) The man who leads prayers in a 58. A radioactive element of the actinide mosque. series. 74. Consisting of or made of wood of the 59. Flightless New Zealand birds similar to oak tree. gallinules. 78. A federal agency established to regu- 62. United States educator who founded late the release of new foods and health- the first private school for Black students in related products. Augusta, Georgia (1854-1933). 79. Marked by an orderly, logical, and aes- 63. The blood group whose red cells carry thetically consistent relation of parts. both the A and B antigens. 81. An alliance made up of states that had 65. (of a young animal) Abandoned by its been Soviet Socialist Republics in the mother and raised by hand. Soviet Union prior to its dissolution in Dec 66. A Kwa language spoken in Ghana and 1991. the Ivory Coast. 82. Being one more than nine. 68. Any place of complete bliss and delight 83. Thin epithelial membrane lining the and peace. ventricles of the brain and the spinal cord 69. A lyric poet. canal. 71. Any of various minerals consisting of 84. Hormone secreted by the posterior hydrous silicates of aluminum or potassium pituitary gland (trade name Pitressin) and etc. that crystallize in forms that allow per- also by nerve endings in the hypothalamus. fect cleavage into very thin leaves. 72. Harsh or corrosive in tone. DOWN 73. A mixture of mashed malt grains and 1. Title for a civil or military leader (especial- hot water. ly in Turkey). 75. (informal) Of the highest quality. 2. Any of a number of fishes of the family 76. An early form of modern jazz (originat- Carangidae. ing around 1940). 3. God of love and erotic desire. 77. The 7th letter of the Greek alphabet. 4. An esoteric or occult matter that is tradi- 80. A metric unit of length equal to one bil- tionally secret. lionth of a meter.

Yesterday’s Solution

Daily SuDoku Yesterday’s Solution MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 information

For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128 Al-Madeena 22418714 Al-Shuhada 22545171 GOVERNORATE PHARMACY ADDRESS PHONE Al-Shuwaikh 24810598 Ahmadi Sama Safwan Fahaeel Makka St 23915883 Sabah Hospital 24812000 Abu Halaifa Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd 23715414 Al-Nuzha 22545171 Danat Al-Sultan Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd 23726558 Amiri Hospital 22450005 Sabhan 24742838 Maternity Hospital 24843100 Jahra Modern Jahra Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 24575518 Madina Munawara Jahra-Block 92 24566622 Al-Helaly 22434853 Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital 25312700 Capital Ahlam Fahad Al-Salem St 22436184 Al-Faiha 22545051 Chest Hospital 24849400 Khaldiya Coop Khaldiya Coop 24833967

Farwaniya Hospital 24892010 Farwaniya New Shifa Farwaniya Block 40 24734000 Al-Farwaniya 24711433 Ferdous Coop Ferdous Coop 24881201 Adan Hospital 23940620 Modern Safwan Old Kheitan Block 11 24726638 Al-Sulaibikhat 24316983 Ibn Sina Hospital 24840300 Hawally Tariq Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St 25726265 Al-Fahaheel 23927002 Al-Razi Hospital 24846000 Hana Salmiya-Amman St 25647075 Ikhlas Hawally-Beirut St 22625999 Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh 24316983 Physiotherapy Hospital 24874330/9 Hawally & Rawdha Hawally & Rawdha Coop 22564549 Ghadeer Jabriya-Block 1A 25340559 Kindy Jabriya-Block 3B 25326554 Ahmadi 23980088 Ibn Al-Nafis Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St 25721264 Mishrif Coop Mishrif Coop 25380581 Al-Mangaf 23711183 Kaizen center 25716707 Salwa Coop Salwa Coop 25628241 Al-Shuaiba 23262845 Rawda 22517733

Adaliya 22517144 Al-Jahra 25610011 Khaldiya 24848075 Al-Salmiya 25616368 Kaifan 24849807 Shamiya 24848913 INTERNATIONAL Shuwaikh 24814507 CALLS Abdullah Salem 22549134

Nuzha 22526804 Afghanistan 0093 Iran 0098 Albania 00355 Iraq 00964 Industrial Shuwaikh 24814764 Algeria 00213 Ireland 00353 Qadsiya 22515088 Andorra 00376 Italy 0039 Angola 00244 Ivory Coast 00225 Dasmah 22532265 Anguilla 001264 Jamaica 001876 Antiga 001268 Japan 0081 Bneid Al-Gar 22531908 Argentina 0054 Jordan 00962 Shaab 22518752 Armenia 00374 Kazakhstan 007 Australia 0061 Kenya 00254 Qibla 22459381 Austria 0043 Kiribati 00686 Bahamas 001242 Kuwait 00965 Ayoun Al-Qibla 22451082 Bahrain 00973 Kyrgyzstan 00996 Mirqab 22456536 Bangladesh 00880 Laos 00856 Barbados 001246 Latvia 00371 Sharq 22465401 Belarus 00375 Lebanon 00961 Belgium 0032 Liberia 00231 Salmiya 25746401 Belize 00501 Libya 00218 Jabriya 25316254 Benin 00229 Lithuania 00370 Bermuda 001441 Luxembourg 00352 Maidan Hawally 25623444 Bhutan 00975 Macau 00853 Bolivia 00591 Macedonia 00389 Bayan 25388462 Bosnia 00387 Madagascar 00261 Mishref 25381200 Botswana 00267 Majorca 0034 Brazil 0055 Malawi 00265 W Hawally 22630786 Brunei 00673 Malaysia 0060 Bulgaria 00359 Maldives 00960 Sabah 24810221 Burkina 00226 Mali 00223 Jahra 24770319 Burundi 00257 Malta 00356 Cambodia 00855 Marshall Islands 00692 New Jahra 24575755 Cameroon 00237 Martinique 00596 Canada 001 Mauritania 00222 West Jahra 24772608 Cape Verde 00238 Mauritius 00230 South Jahra 24775066 Cayman Islands 001345 Mayotte 00269 Central African 00236 Mexico 0052 North Jahra 24775992 Chad 00235 Micronesia 00691 Chile 0056 Moldova 00373 North Jleeb 24311795 China 0086 Monaco 00377 Ardhiya 24884079 Colombia 0057 Mongolia 00976 Comoros 00269 Montserrat 001664 Firdous 24892674 Congo 00242 Morocco 00212 Cook Islands 00682 Mozambique 00258 Omariya 24719048 Costa Rica 00506 Myanmar (Burma) 0095 N Khaitan 24710044 Croatia 00385 Namibia 00264 Cuba 0053 Nepal 00977 Fintas 23900322 Cyprus 00357 Netherlands (Holland) Cyprus (Northern) 0090392 0031 Czech Republic 00420 Netherlands Antilles 00599 Denmark 0045 New Caledonia 00687 Diego Garcia 00246 New Zealand 0064 PRIVATE CLINICS Djibouti 00253 Nicaragua 00505 Dominica 001767 Nigar 00227 Dominican Republic 001809 Nigeria 00234 Ecuador 00593 Niue 00683 Egypt 0020 Norfolk Island 00672 El Salvador 00503 Northern Ireland (UK) Ophthalmologists Plastic Surgeons Paediatricians Endocrinologist England (UK) 0044 0044 Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf 22547272 Dr. Khaled Hamadi 25665898 Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman 25339330 Equatorial Guinea 00240 North Korea 00850 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari 22617700 Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed 25340300 Eritrea 00291 Norway 0047 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 Dr. Abdel Quttainah 25625030/60 Dr. Zahra Qabazard 25710444 Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888 Estonia 00372 Oman 00968 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 Dr. Sohail Qamar 22621099 Ethiopia 00251 Pakistan 0092 Family Doctor Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Falkland Islands 00500 Palau 00680 Dr Divya Damodar 23729596/23729581 Dr. Snaa Maaroof 25713514 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Physiotherapists & VD Faroe Islands 00298 Panama 00507 Psychiatrists Dr. Pradip Gujare 23713100 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 Fiji 00679 Papua New Guinea 00675 Dr. Zacharias Mathew 24334282 Dr. Deyaa Shehab 25722291 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Dr. Esam Al-Ansari 22635047 Finland 00358 Paraguay 00595 Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan 22613623/0 (1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees 22666288 France 0033 Peru 0051 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Gynaecologists & Obstetricians Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, French Guiana 00594 Philippines 0063 Rheumatologists: French Polynesia 00689 Poland 0048 Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 DrAdrian arbe 23729596/23729581 FRCS (Canada) 25655535 Gabon 00241 Portugal 00351 Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 Dentists Dr. Adel Al-Awadi 25330060 Dr. Verginia s.Marin 2572-6666 ext 8321 Gambia 00220 Puerto Rico 001787 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr Anil Thomas 3729596/3729581 Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan 22655539 Georgia 00995 Qatar 00974 Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah 25722290 Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami 25343406 Dr. Shamah Al-Matar 22641071/2 Germany 0049 Romania 0040 Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly 25739272 Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed 22562226 Internist, Chest & Heart Ghana 00233 Russian Federation 007 General Practitioners Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer 22561444 Gibraltar 00350 Rwanda 00250 Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 Dr. Salem soso 22618787 DR.Mohammes Akkad 24555050 Ext 210 Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan 22619557 Greece 0030 Saint Helena 00290 General Surgeons Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 Dr. Mohammad Zubaid Greenland 00299 Saint Kitts 001869 Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash 22525888 Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer 22610044 MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Grenada 001473 Saint Lucia 001758 Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan 25653755 Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher 25327148 Assistant Professor Of Medicine Guadeloupe 00590 Saint Pierre 00508 Dr. Bader Al-Ansari 25620111 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Internists, Chest & Heart Head, Division of Cardiology Guam 001671 Saint Vincent 001784 Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Neurologists Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Guatemala 00502 Samoa US 00684 Dr. Adnan Ebil 22639939 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri 25633324 Guinea 00224 Samoa West 00685 Dr. Mousa Khadada 22666300 Consultant Cardiologist Urologists Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan 25345875 Guyana 00592 San Marino 00378 Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan 25728004 Dr. Farida Al-Habib 2611555-2622555 Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Haiti 00509 Sao Tone 00239 Gastrologists MD, PH.D, FACC Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra 25355515 Holland (Netherlands) 0031 Saudi Arabia 00966 Dr. Sami Aman 22636464 Inaya German Medical Center Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Mobarak Aldoub 24726446 Honduras 00504 Scotland (UK) 0044 Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly 25322030 Te: 2575077 Hong Kong 00852 Senegal 00221 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Dr Nasser Behbehani 25654300/3 Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali 22633135 Fax: 25723123 Hungary 0036 Seychelles 00284 Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 Ibiza (Spain) 0034 Sierra Leone 00232 Soor Center Psychologists [email protected] Kaizen center Iceland 00354 Singapore 0065 Tel: 2290-1677 William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 India 0091 Slovakia 00421 /Psychotherapists www.soorcenter.com Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688 25716707 Indian Ocean 00873 Slovenia 00386 Indonesia 0062 Solomon Islands 00677 LIFESTYLE MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Gossip36 Cowell buys baby an Aston Martin Shakira inspired by Pique hakira says Gerard Pique deserves “a million love songs”. The 37-year- pram old singer has heaped praise on her Spartner, insisting while she’s written many tracks for him over the years, she never feels imon Cowell has bought his baby an Aston Martin like it’s been “enough”. Speaking to The Sun on pram. The media mogul - who, along with his Sunday newspaper, she said: “I’ve written many Spartner Lauren Silverman, welcomed their son love songs for Gerard. But it’s never enough. I into the world last month - has paid £2,000 on the feel that he deserves a million love songs writ- top-of-the range buggy so that Eric can enjoy the same ten for him.” Together, the couple welcomed luxuries in life as his father. A source told The Sun on son Milan into the world in January 2013 and Sunday newspaper: “Simon is used to enjoying ultimate Shakira has admitted Gerard’s career as a soccer luxury wherever he goes and of course he wants the star for Barcelona means they have to be mainly same for his son.” The couple bought the pram during a rooted in the Spanish city. She explained: “I have recent shopping trip to Harrods, leading the upmarket to live in Barcelona because Gerard is anchored department store to sell out of the item - with only here. “Footballers are like soldiers, he can’t really 800 models made - which they describe as “the world’s travel and go away with me. I’m trying to work most outstanding contemporary baby travel system”. out how I’m going to do my next tour. “I miss The store also claims it “cocoons and protects like no him when I’m away and the baby is so little. I other”. The pricey pram features a hand stitched Italian sometimes feel guilty.” However, the star also leather interior, and is modeling off the £1.2 million admitted she’d learned a lot from Gerard about Aston Martin One-77 coupe. Simon recently insisted being selfless and thinking “about being a team he was “born” for fatherhood, although he admitted player”. She said: “He has a totally different mind- he had his doubts before the birth of his son. He said: set to me. He always thinks about how every- Shakira “I was born to be a dad ... I actually said to Lauren beforehand, ‘What if I Simon Cowell thing he does will impact on his team. That’s very different to megalomaniac like the dogs more than him?’ - and she said, ‘You’re gonna be absolutely artists! “I’m my own boss, I don’t have a band and don’t have to report to fine,’ and then literally within seconds of him being born, I got it!” anyone. I was also an only child. “I’ve flown solo my whole life and he has taught me so much about being a team player.” Pitt wants to make Cole working with kids proud Eminem songwriter rad Pitt wants his children to be “proud” of his work. The 50-year-old actor - who raises Maddox, 12, Pax, 10, Zahara, heryl Cole is working on a new track with Eminem Bnine, Shiloh, seven, and twins Knox and Vivienne, five, with songwriter Jon Bellion. The ‘Call My Name’ hitmaker, fiancee Angelina Jolie - admits these days, his career choices are Cwho has revealed her new album is “almost done”, has based on whether he will be happy to show the movie to his six recorded a hip-hop track co-written by Jon, who helped to kids when they get older. He said: “The key for me [when choosing pen Eminem and Rihanna’s number one hit ‘The Monster’, and a film] is to leave something behind that will make my kids proud. Rihanna producer Jesse Shatkin confirmed she has also been working ”I want to be able to show my films to my children and say, ‘Your on a new ballad. He said: “It’s strong, it’s powerful and really daddy made this.’ “The ‘Moneyball’ actor admits he struggled early from the heart. She loved it. She sounds awesome.” Jesse has in his career because he felt “lost” and took too much advice from worked with huge stars including Pink, Kelly Clarkson and other people, but he is now much more confident in the choices Kylie Minogue and has worked on a number of other songs on he makes. He told Britain’s OK! magazine: “When I was starting out, ihanna obsessed with Wotsits Cheryl’s fourth studio album, the follow-up to ‘A Million Lights’ I didn’t really follow my instincts. I felt kind of lost. ”You get a lot in 2012. Cheryl was forced to shelve the third single from the of advice from people who are trying to advance your career and ihanna is completely obsessed with Wotsits. The 26-year-old singer is said record to commit to the Girls Aloud 10th anniversary reunion make money off you - and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it R to adore the cheesy-flavored snack, which she ordered when she was before taking a break from music when the band split. She isn’t always going to lead you to make good films. ”But eventually, Rstaying at London’s luxury Cafe Royal hotel - with boxes being paced in said: “I just took this time and partied and have just been me I figured out I was in the game to tell personal stories. I wanted the limo she was travelling in so she could still enjoy them whilst on the move. A and normal for the past six months.”Then I started recording to be able to add something to a film that was different to what source told the Sunday People newspaper: “Rihanna’s love for Wotsits has caused the new album and that’s almost done. There’s no delay on anyone else could bring.” much laughter among the staff. They find it very funny that the star would be so the album. I’ve got things in the pipeline.” Meanwhile, the hooked on them. “We’re not just talking the odd packet here and there. She wants 30-year-old singer revealed that Simon Cowell was “begging” boxes of them on hand for whenever she fancies them. It is utterly bizarre but she for her to return to ‘The X Factor’ She said: “There’s only so just can’t get enough of them. “She is constantly asking for them to be delivered to much begging one can take.”It’s not nice to see a grown man her hotel suite ad her car also has to be fully stocked with them.” This comes after cry, so I finally succumbed.” a film was revealed of the ‘Pour It Up’ singer pushing a man out of the men’s toilet so that she could use it. She was spotted entering the restroom and grabbing an unknown male by the arm before shoving him out and closing the door behind her, during her recent trip to Zouk Restaurant, Manchester.

Brad Pitt Farrell’s sons don’t understand his career Cheryl Cole

Theo James’ month of olin Farrell’s children “have no idea” he’s a famous Hollywood actor. The 37-year-old star has two children - James, 10, who Csuffers from neuro-genetic disorder Angelman Syndrome, and stunts Henry, four, from previous relationships - and recalled his younger Madonna collaborating son’s confusion when he spotted him on TV, claiming both boys don’t know he’s an actor. Quizzed on what his children think about his ca- reer, he said: “They have no idea what I do for a living. Henry saw me heo James had a month’s stunt training for ‘Divergent’. The 29-year- on the TV screen once and he went, ‘What are you doing there?’ ”And with Avicii old actor plays Tobias ‘Four’ Eaton in the forthcoming sci-fi film and James’ way of processing the world is very particular, which is one of wanted to ensure his character as the leader of the Dauntless - a re- T the beautiful things about him. I don’t even know if I put a film on in adonna says her recording sessions with Avicii have produced “so many bellious group who pride themselves on their bravery - had a “powerful front of James that he would even understand the idea of acting or great songs”. The pop superstar has been busy in the studio with the physical presence” on screen. He explained: “We had about a month of performance - his cognitive capability is such that he understands a Swedish DJ-and-producer and so far she is very happy with the results training, which was great. I wanted my character ‘Four’, to have a power- M lot of magical and interesting things that I just don’t, but there are a of their collaboration In a post on her Twitter account - accompanied by an ful presence physically so you felt you didn’t want to mess with him!” Al- lot of boring things about the physical world that he may never be Instagram photo of her and Avicii - Madonna revealed: “The End of a long week though ‘Divergent’ has been tipped to be similar to ‘The Hunger Games’, able to comprehend - and why should he?” Colin insists his dad does with Viking Leader AKA DJ Virgo AKA Avicii! So many great songs! #icantwait which stars Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson, James insists it’s “dad things” with his children and although he isn’t the best chef he #revolution (sic)” She made another post on Twitter and Instagram - which about “identity”. He added in an interview with We Love Pop magazine: can make “decent” chicken fingers for the boys. showed her playing the guitar with Avicii and a group of people - which read: “It’s actually quite different. There is of course crossover, the strong He added in an interview with Britain’s HELLO! magazine: “I do the “My Viking Harem! Great Music Great Vibes! We were grinding on that. Wood! female lead and a future where the world has gone through some kind dad things, you know. I make silly voices. They think I’m the guy to go #rebelheart (sic)” Madonna revealed she has started work on a new studio LP - of catastrophe war, but generally that’s where the comparison ends. to when they want to watch cartoons on the television. And that I fail her first since 2012’s ‘MDNA’ - in February, but at the time she refused to reveal It’s more about identity.” ’Divergent’, which is based on the novel of the at making them laugh and that I make kind of decent chicken fingers, she was working with Avicii on the project. When asked if she was making a same name by Veronica Roth, stars Shailene Woodley as Beatrice “Tris” except sometimes I burn them.” new record, the 55-year-old singer said: “Yes, plans are in the works already. Prior as the female lead and will be released later this month. Don’t ask me with who - it’s a secret. Top secret.” Avicii - real name Tim Bergling - has worked with many artists for their releases and his own album ‘True’, with previous collaborators including Leona Lewis, David Guetta, Aloe Blacc, Adam Lambert and Nile Rodgers. —Bang Showbiz

Madonna Theo James Colin Farrell LIFESTYLE MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Music37 & Movies talks 5th No. 1, own mortality at SXSW ick Ross still gets excited by No. 1 albums, but as he celebrates Remembering rappers Rickhis fifth he takes satisfaction Ross in different ways. Ross marked The 38-year-old Miami rapper played new material for fans and Rthe ascendance of “Mastermind” on Saturday night during showed his mind’s been on mortality since he survived a January South By Southwest, drawing one of the week’s larger crowds in 2013 drive-by shooting in Fort Lauderdale. He told the crowd it was Austin during the annual music conference and festival. important to remember the rappers who have died too early like “You know what, when this is what you center everything Shakur, The Notorious B.I.G. and Pimp C before launching into “No- around, you just want the best, not only for yourself, but for your body,” a song with the chilling French Montana vocal hook “you’re team, everybody you build with,” Ross said. “I not only want a No. 1 nobody till somebody kills you.” for me but for all the new-time dudes who’ve never been on a No. The song is paired back to back on “Mastermind” with “Shots 1 album.” It’s been quite the run for Ross. Five of his six major-label Fired,” a series of news clips recounting the attack. “You know it’s albums started out atop the Billboard 200, moving him into rare unfortunate, it’s nothing to glorify,” Ross said. “Where I come from company. The magazine says among rappers only Jay Z (13), Emi- in my city - I come from Carol City in Miami - they’ve renamed it the nem (seven), Nas and Kanye West (six apiece) have had more and Miami Gardens, you know, and they done dubbed it the Murder he’s now tied with Tupac Shakur and DMX. Gardens, and it’s unfortunate. But those are conditions we were Ross attributes the run to remembering where he got his start. unfortunately seeing coming up. So me being in the position I am, “Regardless of the success I see, I still go back to my foundation ... that’s what come with that. So Rule No. 1 in the handbook I studied that made me,” he said as he stood shirtless in his dressing room is never let the game kill you.” tent following a performance at Fader Fort. “Yesterday, after being Ross says the experience has caused him to look at life through out on promo for two months, I took a day out of my schedule to go a new filter. Not long after the near miss he put on Biggie Smalls’ to the smaller markets in South Carolina, the Columbias, you know “Ready to Die.” “I just listen to it in a different light,” Ross said. “It’s the (places) that don’t get attention. But those are the places where jacked up, but that’s what come with this. ... You’re never indestruc- I remember making my first $5,000 shows from, so I still go to those tible, but what you do is if you have certain feelings you want to places. At the end of the day, I still think that’s the energy that keep that express, you express your feelings. I’ll continue to do that till the day moving like that.” I die.”—AP File photo shows Rick Ross performing at the BET Hip-Hop Honors at Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center in Atlanta.—AP ScHoolboy Q basks in glow of No. 1 at SXSW Police: Tyler, The Creator,

Schoolboy Q performs during the SXSW Music Festival Friday.—AP incited

t’s ScHoolboy Q’s turn. The Los Angeles about his single, nobody really cares about his rapper took the handoff from Top Dawg En- project because it just wasn’t as good.” Terrence riot at Itertainment label-mate Kendrick Lamar and “Punch” Henderson, one of TDE’s two founders, scored a touchdown when his new album “Oxy- said the back-to-back successes “good kid” de- moron” opened at No. 1 two weeks ago. It’s the buted at No. 2 upon release in November 2012 SXSW second straight strong showing for TDE and Q, - show where the label is headed. “The first time who sees it as the start of a championship team. with Kendrick wasn’t a fluke,” Henderson said. “Somebody has to step up besides Kevin Du- Crazy performance rant,” said Q, who has been making the rounds “Q came out, got a No. 1 album, but the Tyler, The Creator performs during the SXSW Music Festival at South By Southwest this week. “Somebody album’s actually great. It’s a great record and early Friday in Austin, Texas.—AP has to step up beside Michael Jordan and Kobe that’s what we aim towards, to put out great Bryant. They can’t do it by themselves. Football music.” Henderson reaffirmed plans to release a is the best example, you can’t win by yourself. new album from every label member this year - apper Tyler, The Creator, was arrested that shows scores of fans bursting through A good quarterback can’t win a championship. SZA is up next on April 8. That list includes Saturday for allegedly inciting a a gate at the Scoot Inn in downtown The linebacker can’t win you a championship. Lamar, who he says has recorded 12 new songs Rriot during a show at the South By Austin. The coach can’t win you a championship. It has but may throw them out and start anew. Inter- Southwest music festival. Travis County Tyler and members of the Odd Future to be everybody.” est is high. Lamar was one of the top nominees Sheriff’s spokesman Roger Wade said the collective were denied a visa to travel to Q held up his part of the deal, delivering at the 2014 Grammy Awards, but was shut out Odd Future rapper, whose name is Tyler New Zealand in February after officials a critically praised major label debut that in what turned out to be a hip-hop landslide Gregory Okonma, was arrested at Austin- there said they were a potential “public compares favorably to Lamar’s Grammy Award- victory for Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. Though Bergstrom Airport and was likely to be threat” because of past troubles, “including nominated breakthrough “good kid, m.A.A.d. Lamar didn’t win, he teamed with Imagine arraigned later Saturday. If convicted of incidents at past performances in which city” in its grittiness and authenticity. Given the Dragons for one of the night’s most power- inciting a riot, which is a misdemeanor, he they have incited violence.” They pointed opportunity in front of him, the rapper could ful performances and attained a new level of faces up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine. to a 2011 incident in which police were have aimed for pop radio success, but instead popularity. His bond was set at $3,500. The rapper’s called to a comic book store in Boston made an LP that reflects his life as a father and “The performance was crazy, probably the publicist declined to comment about the where fans became unruly. The group’s former gang member. The 27-year-old began best performance of the night,” Henderson said. arrest. Police say the 23-year-old Los Ange- manager, Christian Clancy, defended them his TDE run as Lamar’s hype man and calls King “I’m not just saying that because that’s my artist, les resident incited a large crowd of fans at last month after the New Zealand deci- Kendrick his brother, giving him the credit for either. After that all the controversy behind him the annual music conference and festival sion, saying they were young at the time his moment. not winning, that’s keeping him in all the con- to push their way past venue employees and were being judged too harshly.—AP “That’s how it goes in any successful label - versations. It keeps us as an underdog. There’s controlling access to a Thursday show that you have to roll off somebody,” Q said. “It’s just no ceiling. If you win, where do you go after was already at full capacity. Officers who up to you to take advantage of the opportunity that? So it gives us something to work towards were at the scene said in a warrant that Ty- because there’s plenty of rappers that have still.”—AP ler yelled for fans to push their way inside friends. Like you have a friend rapper, but he twice, and that a bartender had to protect never gets to drop an album or nobody cares a woman from injury in the resulting push. Police released a video from the concert

David Brenner, frequent ‘Tonight’ guest, dies ther veteran comics could head straight to “The Tonight Show” and publicist, Jeff Abraham. In a statement, Walker called Brenner “a true comic couch to banter with Johnny Carson, but David Brenner had to genius” who was “my mentor and taught me about life and comedy.” Odo a stand-up routine when he was a guest. Finally, Carson told a The lanky, toothy-grinned Brenner’s brand of observational comedy puzzled Brenner why.“I like to sit back, smoke a cigarette and laugh for six became a staple for other standups, including Jerry Seinfeld and Paul minutes,” Brenner, in a 2013 interview with CBS, recalled him saying. Reiser. “David Brenner was a huge star when I met him and he took me Carson’s regard for Brenner, who died in his New York City home Sat- under his wing. To me, historically, he was the godfather of hip, observa- urday at age 78 after battling cancer, made him one of the most frequent tional comedy,” comedian Richard Lewis said in a statement. “He mentored visitors to “Tonight” as a guest and substitute host who was on more than me from day one. ... His passing leaves a hole in my life that can never be 150 times. And NBC’s late-night show, in return, made Brenner’s career. It replaced.” made the former documentary filmmaker into a hot comedian, one who Brenner took a brief stab at upping his TV fame with the 1976 sit- was ubiquitous on other talk shows and game shows. com “Snip” and the talk show “Nightlife” he hosted in 1987. But he The lanky, always sharply dressed Brenner also briefly hosted his own didn’t achieve the success of Seinfeld’s self-titled NBC sitcom or Reiser’s syndicated talk show in 1987 and starred in four HBO specials. Brenner “Mad About You,” and he saw Jay Leno follow Carson as “Tonight” host. moved with the times, trading routines about the humor of everyday Brenner’s take on his career, as he described it in a 2000 interview with life for jokes about social and political issues, and appearing on MSNBC The Associated Press, was that he put family before stardom. and Fox News Channel cable programs. Although his career faltered, he worked steadily through 2013 doing standup. A four-day gig last Decem- Brenner’s legacy ber included a New Year’s Eve show at a Pennsylvania casino-resort in He said a long custody battle with a girlfriend over their son, Cole, In this Sept 24, 1986 file photo, comedian which he showcased young comedians. forced him to curtail his TV appearances and visibility beginning in the David Brenner hosts avant garde fusion Brenner, who was raised in working-class south Philadelphia and mid-1980s, when Brenner lived in Aspen, Colo. “In a nutshell, I couldn’t musician Frank Zappa, center, and his graduated with honors from Temple University, was “always there helping work more than 50 nights a year (out of town) or I’d be an absentee children, Dweezil, left, and Moon Unit, a bright young comedian, whether it be Richard Lewis, Freddie Prinze or father,” he said. “That was when they were giving out the talk shows, the during a taping of Brenner’s “Nightlife” Jimmie Walker, and he was still doing it until the very end,” said his friend sitcoms.” He was asked if he regretted his decision.—AP talk show in New York.—AP LIFESTYLE MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Features38 For Marvel, a digital timeline for 75-year history

rom the Golden Age Toro to Ultimate Human Torch, characters sprung views with classic writers and artists — including Stan Lee and Roy Thomas to the present day” focusing on each decade. from Marvel Entertainment are as varied as the people who read, — along with contemporary ones like Dan Slott, Kelly Sue DeConnick and “That vast spread is why we did it by era, so that we could highlight even Fwatch, listen and even play them in video games. The publisher of Brian Michael Bendis, among others. “The web gives us the capability to do those that may not be prominent and still give them their due,” he said. That Marvel Comics is focusing on its panoply of characters, enlisting writers, things differently, daily and across platforms — audio, video, picture galler- will help them lavish attention on every era from the Golden Age of the late artists, editors and historians to build a sprawling digital and interactive ies, lists — with all the characters and the creators,” said Ben Morse, editor 1930s and 1940s to the Silver Age and the creation of Spidey, the Fantastic timeline that showcases the famous, the infamous and the obscure heroes, of Marvel’s website and an architect of the initiative. “We’re looking at the Four, the rise of the X-Men and contemporary characters, too. “For long- villains and others. characters, the history and the major stories from different perspectives time fans, it’s a refresher course and will probably fill in some gaps,” Alonso The endeavor is part of Marvel’s celebration of its 75th anniversary, than we normally would.” said. “For the new ones? It’s the chance to see everything that has gotten us said editor-in-chief Axel Alonso, and to make people aware of more than In most cases, promotion is about what is to come — a new Rocket Rac- to where we are now.”—AP marquee names like Captain America or Spider-Man. “We want it to be coon comic or a Big Hero Six film. The 75th anniversary site is about looking as friendly to people who come out of the Cineplex to people who have back and taking stock. “This is an opportunity to celebrate what’s come long boxes in their basement,” he said this week of the site at www.marvel. before,” said Morse. Part of the interactive is breaking the company’s history com/75. “It’s time for us to underline that and show our rich history.” into different eras, said Matt Robinson, Marvel’s art director for digital, to The site, which goes live in April, features interactive timelines, inter- have content from “over the years, from the beginning of Marvel all the way Writer Mark Millar pours foundation for a Manga-Comic-Convention universe ark Millar is wasting no time in hatching his own world and uni- verse, moving like lightning to populate it with heroes and villains Mof his own creation, from US government-created speed demons fueled by illicit drugs to old-fashioned space opera that recalls 1950s-era sci- ence fiction tales with moon men, monsters and space cadets on dangerous missions. The books — “MPH” and “Starlight,” respectively — are being published by Image Comics this year. They’re the latest in his efforts to not just exert creative control over characters and concepts he’s created, but to expand storytelling in the pages of comics with a more contemporary vibe and with real-world influences, too, under his Millarworld umbrella. It’s integral to his drive to create modern characters for a modern generation raised on classic tales but yearning for what he called “21st century” heroes. “I think pop culture atrophies if it doesn’t move on,” he said of his desire to advance a new breed of heroes while acknowledging and paying homage to those who came before like Batman and Spider-Man or Wonder Woman and Black Widow. “DC Comics created all their main characters — Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern — between about 1938 and 1942,” he said. “All the major Marvel characters, all the ones we really understand, were created 10 years before I was born, in the early 1960s.” Yes, they have a resonance that remains strong 75 and 50 years after their creation he said, but readers want new characters, too. “Each generation has their own universe of heroes like this and I just thought, ‘My God, there’s a gigantic gap in the market,” he said. “A whole wave of contemporary superheroes and ‘Kick-Ass’ was the first step in that A cosplayer dressed in a fantasy costume direction.” His “Kick-Ass” series, which is in its third outing and has yielded stands in front of a poster with books dur- two successful movies, along with associated merchandise, has given Millar a ing the Manga-Comic-Convention at the stepping stone. Leipzig International Book Fair in Leipzig, “MPH,” a five-issue miniseries due out May 21 and illustrated by artist Dun- Germany, Saturday.—AP photos can Fegredo, is about four teens from Detroit who stumble upon a batch of illicit pills that gives them the power to move at light speed for seven days. It is, Millar said, as if your neighbor down the street suddenly manifested the powers of Mercury. “This guy who is looking for a new life and this pill is his way out of it,” he said of the story, which examines whether having such gifts will result in ruin or something more noble. “The four most powerful people in the country are these four teenagers.” That book, along with “Starlight,” a space opera serial in the Flash Gordon or Buck Rogers vein that sees the protagonist dealing with retirement, is serving as a gateway to Millarworld’s upcoming titles. “I liked the idea of having an entry-level book. It won’t initially feel like it’s connected, but it will all eventually intercon- nect,” he said of the Cosplayers dressed in fantasy costumes take a break book illustrated by during the Manga-Comic-Convention. Goran Parlov and due out March 5. “I have nine titles planned in a three year timeframe here. This opens the door to those.” Cosplayers dressed in fantasy costumes Ultimately, the perform during the convention. creator of “Civil War” and writer of “Swamp Thing” and “The Ultimates” views his new works as an op- portunity to seed new readers for today and beyond. “I really do believe that the public is very, very tuned into the idea of heroes created in the 21st century,” Millar said. “I’m devoting the next few years of my life to trying to do the 21st century version of the Marvel universe.”—AP This cover image released by Image Comics A cosplayer dressed in a fantasy costume walks shows “MPH” by Mark Millar and Fegredo.—AP between the visitors during the Manga-Comic-Convention. LIFESTYLE MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 Fashion39

he lights dim, mournful music comes on and a stick-thin model struts assuredly down the catwalk: no, this is not TNew York or Milan, this is Kiev. The threat of war in Ukraine might be on everybody’s lips but walk into the Mystetskyi Arse- nal art complex and you might as well be in an episode of “Sex & the City”. Pretty young things in stiletto booties, red-lipped and decked out in the latest trends, mill about exchanging gossip, a voluminous leather tote or trendy little clutch in hand. Ukrainian Fashion Week kicked off on Friday and will show- case over 40 local designers over six days. But with Russian forces at the border and Crimea threatening a break-up of Ukraine, organizer and designers insist they are trying to send a message to Europe and the rest of the world, as well as to people at home. “We thought of postponing Ukrai- nian Fashion Week but when the Crimea situation began we knew we had to do it now,” Iryna Danylevska, co-founder and organizer of the event, told AFP. “We need to show the outside world that we’re unbroken and that we’re strong.” Far from living in a fashion bubble, Danylevska and many others working at Ukrainian Fashion Week, including designers, were actively involved in the Maidan movement that helped topple Ukraine’s pro-Moscow govern- ment last month. They helped get the protesters’ message out and worked in hospitals, Danylevska said: “They don’t live in the clouds, they live here on the ground.”

Protests as inspiration Amid the stylish crowd, accessorized with flowery hairbands, elbow-length leather gloves or chic capeline hats, there is a mood of defiance. “The situation in Ukraine doesn’t mean every- thing has stopped and is not working in Ukraine,” said Fashion Week co-founder Oleksandr Sokolovsky. “We want to show that in Ukraine it’s not war, that Ukraine’s still alive,” added Natalia Kamenska, half of the designer duo Kamenskakononova, now rebranded as Lake. The female duo—which long hesitated to take part in Fashion Week and drew up designs in just a couple of weeks in the middle of their Maidan activities—presented a somber collection with the word “Duty” spelt in capital letters on several pieces. The show’s sound design—industrial noise—was a trib- ute to the protests, an attempt to make people “feel something A model poses for a picture on the backstage of the Ukrainian Fashion Week show in Kiev on Saturday.—AFP photos because this noise, you can feel it inside,” said Kamenska. Designer Liliya Poustovit—whose clothes are sold in Italy, Switzerland and Russia—sent her own patriotic message with a collection in pale yellows and blues, the colours of the Ukrainian flag. “A lot of designers were inspired by Maidan, by the spirit. A lot of tragedies happened there so it’s logical that it influences what they do,” noted Anna Pashkova, a fashion editor for Ivona, a Ukrainian lifestyle and entertainment news website.

No celebrities, no parties Two Ukrainian designers had to pull out of Fashion Week after the months of protests disrupted their work, and foreign designers were forced to stay away due to the escalating situ- ation, according to the organizers. But for the industry and for designers needing to sell their wares, it was vital to hold this 18th edition. “We have a country full of people who have a huge talent and we need to show this,” said Danylevska, who hoped to capitalize on the entire world media’s presence in Ukraine. “It’s important to show that Ukrainian fashion is a stable business like in every other country in the world” and to reassure partners “that it’s possible to work with us,” added Sokolovsky. In view of the political situation, glitzy events were scrapped from the program, he said: “Celebrity parties went out of the schedule and we just kept the professional event.” But for many, Ukrainian Fashion Week was still a welcome opportunity to get their minds off the frightening situation unfolding live on televi- A visitor poses for a picture in front sion. of t-shirts with the words “Stop Mila Borodin, attending the event for the first time, sipped a Putin” and “Glory for Ukraine” during cocktail with a friend and considered purchasing a few acces- the UKrainianFashion Week in Kiev. sories. As a girl with a billowing white cape rollerbladed by, she was adamant that holding Fashion Week was the right thing to do: “Everyone is looking to relax with this whole situation. Life goes on.”—AFP Models display ready-to-wear collections during the Ukraini- an Fashion Week show in Kiev.

Safat Home honors customers with spring saving promo afat Home prides itself in its commitment toward inspiring its cus- inscriptions that narrate history. As well as a range of hand built furniture all customers with ideas for their homes. tomers and helping them build an extraordinarily elegant house for made from solid wood. The selections that arrive to Safat Home are constantly increasing, with Sthe whole family. With the arrival of the spring season, Safat Home The display also includes unique fabrics made from the kilims and dhur- new products displayed weekly in our showrooms. presents an exceptional offer that can save its customers up to 200KD. in ries textiles, cottons, and linens, and handmade carpets in keeping with The Safat Home branch in Alrai welcomes you daily from 9:30 am to their purchases, in addition to offering a wide variety of new products that traditional techniques that harken back to centuries-old craftsmen from 12:00 pm, and in Shuwaikh, near Alghanim’s Service Center, from Sunday to inspires creativity and innovation, as well as a wide selection of home furni- India famous for their handmade masterpieces, in addition to sheesham Thursday, from 9:00 am to 10:00 pm, and on Fridays from 2:00 pm to 10:00 ture and accessories from valuable international brands. and Acacia, the elegant and everlasting solid wooden furniture, a new col- pm, where we provide you a friendly shopping environment and excep- Safat Home’s new spring selection focuses collection across the whole lection of marble tables and accessories that cannot be found elsewhere tional services, in addition to online shopping and ordering by phone. We home, heritage our first for this year as it is in Maisonet Objet, a trade fair as they were individually handmade, making each piece a unique entity on also offer insurance and a free delivery service to anywhere in Kuwait and a for interior design in Paris. The selection starts with classic carpet designs its own. To celebrate the heritage complete home range a unique arch has free assembly service by professional contractors, altogether ensuring you handmade from wool, cotton, and jute, and heritage-inspired embroider- been constructed from hand carved pink Jaipur sandstone in our Shuwaikh the ease of mind. ies, from pillows to mattresses that are hand block printed with traditional showroom and along with many stone accessories. We hope we can inspire Ukraine Fashion Week shows unbroken spirit as war looms

MONDAY, MARCH 17, 2014 39

A cosplayer dressed in a fantasy costume performs during the Manga-Comic-Convention at the Leipzig International Book Fair in Leipzig, Germany, Saturday.—AP Daring ‘urban explorers’ get high on history angling his feet off the edge of more exclusive penthouse suites, the a skyscraper more than 50 sto- last few storeys were made on foot via Dreys above the streets of Hong a staircase and through an unlocked Kong, Jonathan Tsang looks as relaxed door that led to the roof. But any mis- as if he was kicking back in his own conception that rooftopping is a safe living room. For most people the view hobby was soon dispelled as Tsang below would be a dizzying, terrifying and his friend climbed a large illumi- spectacle. But for 25-year-old Tsang, it nated dome at the top of the building. brings a sense of calm. “The popula- The ladder up to the dome hung over tion is really dense and sometimes it’s the edge of the skyscraper whilst just kind of suffocating to the point the pathway at the top was little where you need some time to your- more than a foot wide. A slip on either self,” he said. “That’s mostly why I come would mean certain death. “I do have up here.” Tsang, who asked AFP to use a fear of heights,” said Tsang, visibly a pseudonym, is one of a growing elated from his climb. “It sounds kind number of so-called “urban explorers”, of cliched but it’s about facing your a subculture of adrenaline junkies, fears. And it really does help.” Hong photographers and history enthusiasts Kong’s police declined an interview who treat the world’s forgotten—and request by AFP but warned that prac- often forbidden places as their own titioners could face criminal damage personal playgrounds. and burglary charges in the event of The pursuit has long been popular any destruction of property. No explor- in North America and Europe, and ers have been prosecuted to date. now Asia is becoming an increasingly sought after destination for an intrepid Windows into the past new generation of “urbexer”. In Febru- Yet not all forms of urban explora- ary two Russian daredevils scaled tion are about seeking the adrenaline China’s tallest building with their bare rush that comes from soaring above hands. Vadim Makhorov and Vitaliy the crowds on towering rooftops. Raskalov took advantage of lax secu- Airin, a 25-year-old office worker by rity over the Chinese New Year holiday day, is a keen rooftopper. But she also to sneak into the under-construction spends much of her time exploring Shanghai Tower, releasing a hair-rais- Hong Kong’s myriad of abandonments, ing video of their stunt that went viral. from shuttered mental asylums to dis- Hong Kong, a city with more carded factories and crumbling apart- skyscrapers than anywhere else in ment blocks. Sporting bright blue hair, the world, is a particularly attractive suspenders and a leather skirt, she destination for both local and interna- looks like a character from a Manga tional “rooftoppers”, a daring subset comic as she strolls along the decaying of adventurers with a head for heights paths around an abandoned village in In this picture taken late on December 2, 2013, shows a general view of Hong Kong seen from a building climbed by “urban explorers”.—AFP photos willing to risk arrest, injury and even Hong Kong’s rural Sai Kung district. death as they scale some of the world’s In one house, she cuts past a tradi- tallest buildings. tional table still displaying ancestor offerings, up a rotten wooden staircase ‘Wait for right time’ to a bedroom littered with broken Getting to the top of many Hong pieces of furniture. For Airin, who has Kong residential buildings, said Tsang, gone urbexing as far afield as Russia, is often as easy as bluffing your way South Korea and Japan, abandon- past the concierge and taking a lift ments offer a hidden window into the to the top floor. But some of the past. “You can feel that time stops here tallest luxury complexes, hotels and and that’s what attracts me,” she says. office towers present a much greater Wong Chuk Yeung is one of around challenge.“You try and do as much 100 traditional villages in Hong Kong research as you can. If other explor- which lie shuttered. ers have been there then you can “The young people move out and get advice about how to get in—like they have their families in the city. The whether there is a hole in a fence old people stay and (eventually) die somewhere,” he said. “Usually there so it becomes abandoned,” Airin said are security guards but you just have of the village. Tsang believes urbexers The interior of a house in the abandoned village of Sha Lo Tung. Urban explorer “Airin T” looking out over Hong Kong. to be patient. You can’t just barge into are too often portrayed as adrena- a place and walk up to the roof. You line junkies and that their respect for have to wait for the right time.” Many leaving places untouched is ignored. attempts end in failure. “There’s a lot of people putting labels “The success rate on rooftops is on us. Calling us thrill seekers, dare- probably 20-30 percent,” he said. “And devils. That’s true, there are some at times it can be discouraging. You people like that but it doesn’t fully might walk up 30-40 stories and then represent this subculture,” he says. you discover you can’t get past the Meanwhile Airin believes more and final door. But when you do finally get more people across Asia will inevitably to the top, wow, it’s hard to describe. be drawn to explore the forbidden as It’s just beautiful.” Accessing the roof of the subculture grows. “Everyone is ac- the skyscraper—a luxury hotel in the tually born an explorer,” she concludes. city’s bustling Kowloon district—was “But they just don’t realize it.”—AFP alarmingly easy. Tsang and an urbex- ing friend who uses her exploring name “Airin T” simply walked through a mall, into the hotel and took an eleva- tor most of the way up. To avoid any guards or staff near the Airin T, a 25-year-old office worker and “urbexer”, exploring the abandoned village of Wong Chuk Yeung in Hong Kong.